The Effect Of Childhood Trauma On Depression In College Students: The Role Of Shame And Self-esteem And Qualitative Study

Background: Depression is an important psychological risk factor for college students,which has a profound impact on their physical and mental health,while childhood trauma can affect the generation and development of depression.Objective: To explore the role of shame and self-esteem in the relationship between childhood trauma and depression,as well as the relationship and influence process between childhood trauma and depression in college students.Methods:1.Questionnaire survey.Using childhood trauma questionnaire,guilt-shame tendency questionnaire,self-esteem scale and nine-item patient health questionnaire,1631 college students and postgraduates from a university in Henan province were selected as subjects to explore the influence of childhood trauma,shame and self-esteem on college students’ depression.Data were collated and statistically analyzed by SPSS22.0 and PROCESS plug-in.2.Qualitative approach.The semi-structured interview method was used to conduct in-depth interviews with11 subjects,and in-depth coding analysis was conducted on the interview data obtained by grounded theory,so as to further explore the influence of childhood trauma on college students’ depression.Results:1.There was a significant positive correlation between childhood trauma and depression,and childhood trauma could significantly positively predict depression(β=0.23,t=9.67,p<0.001).2.Shame can mediate the relationship between childhood trauma and depression,the mediating effect is 17.39%;3.Self-esteem moderates the mediating effect of childhood trauma on shame,childhood trauma on depression,and shame on depression.Specifically,compared with high self-esteem(β=0.12,t=2.66,p<0.01),low self-esteem(β=0.32,t=11.19,p<0.001)childhood trauma had a stronger predictive effect on depression.At low self-esteem(β=0.40,t=14.94,p<0.001,β=0.15,t=5.32,p<0.001),childhood trauma significantly predicted shame,and shame significantly predicted depression,while at high self-esteem(β=0.06,t=1.21,p>0.05,β=0.01,t=0.37,p>0.05),childhood trauma has no significant predictive effect on shame,and shame has no significant predictive effect on depression.4.Construct a model of the influence of childhood trauma on depression,and divide it into four main categories:(1)the formation of childhood trauma: the nature of the event itself,personal characteristics and social support system;(2)The impact of childhood trauma on college students: interpersonal relationship,self-esteem,sense of meaningless,loneliness and shame;(3)The characteristics of depression among college students: persistent low mood,depression,suicidal ideation;(4)Coping strategies for alleviating depression: self-awareness,active behavior coping,and emotion regulation.Conclusions: 1.Childhood trauma can directly affect college students’ depression,and indirectly affect college students’ depression through the mediating effect of shame.Self-esteem plays a moderating role in mediating models of childhood trauma,shame and depression.2.Qualitative research builds on the impact of childhood trauma on depression model,mainly including the formation of childhood trauma,the influence of the childhood trauma of college students,the features of college students’ depression and to alleviate depression of college students coping strategies of the four major categories,verify the childhood trauma of the negative effects on the individual,in turn,lead to college students’ depression,At the same time,it also indicates that college students will adopt a variety of coping strategies to help relieve depression and reduce the possibility of depression development.