paper
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Running Head: FINAL PROPOSAL: CHILD ABUSE AND ADULT MENTAL HEALTH
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FINAL PROPOSAL: CHILD ABUSE AND ADULT MENTAL HEALTH
Diamond Newton
Southern New Hampshire University
March 3, 2019
Problem Statement
Several adults struggle from a variety of mental health issues (suicidal thoughts and tendencies, alcoholism, depression, and drug abusers.) A lot of those issues may stem from what took place during an adult’s childhood that stem from a variety of reasons. Some adults seek help and some refuse to seek help. The adults who do seek help come to realize that their current issues stem from when they were a child and still developing as a human. Child abuse can come in many forms, physical, mental, and sexual. Adults who have been exposed or experienced this are likely to suffer from some form of mental health issue. It is important to figure out the root of mental health issues in adults so the root can be addressed. Children need to be in a healthy environment with nothing short of love and care. Exposing children to a harsh reality is only breeding them into an adult who suffers from mental health issues.
Literature Review
The study of psychology helps researchers to understand better what is going on with a person. Researchers studied what happened in a person's life that causes them to make the decisions they do and behave in a certain way. Adults have this stigmatism that they can do whatever they want because they are "grown." Many adults suffer from something that can cause to lead towards suicidal thoughts and tendencies, alcoholism, depression, and drug abusers. A lot of those issues may stem from what took place during an adult’s childhood. There could be some reasons adults tend to display certain mental health traits that have been studied in many different forms by researchers. What we will be reviewed is the abuse, physical or mental, that an adult endured as a child and how it affects them in their adulthood.
Blanco, C., Grant, B. F., Hasin, D. S., Lin, K. H., Olfson, M. Sugaya, L. (2012) recognized that child physical abuse had been associated with an increased risk of suicide attempts. The study conducted included Blacks, Hispanics and young adults between the ages of 18-24 in 2001-2002 and 2004-2005. In person, interviews were conducted in Wave 1. In Wave 2 used similar methods as Wave 1 but it excluded the individuals who were not eligible. Wave 2 also interviews went into depth about the questions asked for the participants first 17 years of life. There are many other variables that have been added to the data that relate to childhood physical abuse and mental health distress in adult years. Those other adversatives included the history of child sexual abuse and neglect, parental psychopathology, and perceived parental support, described as emotional neglect.
The advantages to this design would be the inclusion of other childhood adversities that could contribute to adult psychiatric disorders and childhood abuse. The interviews were conducted in person and allowed for diagnosis. They also used data from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC). A disadvantage and a gap in the research would be the only participants studied for suicidal attempts were the ones who were flagged for depression. The study was conducted over several years; files could be misplaced or lost and cross-referenced. This design limits the validity of unconcerned inferences from the childhood abuse on mental health.
Dovran, A, Winje, D, Overland, S, Arefjord, K, Hansen, A, Waage, L. 2016 stated childhood maltreatment associated with an increased risk in later life of mental health problems, developmental and social difficulties, interpersonal problems, revictimization, and criminal behavior. Data were collected from a total of 551 participants, male and female from September 2006 to May 2011 with an age range of 13 to 65 years. There were several client and patient-based groups. Groups for this study were considered to be a large sample that may result in a high risk of exposure to childhood adversity. Researchers used the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire Shirt Form (CTQ-SF), a 28 item self-reporting questionnaire that was allowed for the assessment of five types of maltreatment. The five types include: emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional neglect, and physical neglect, scored from "never true" to "very often true." The study showed women having significantly higher scores than the men in the sexual abuse category.
This study was approved by the Regional Committee for Medical and Health Research Ethics and the Norwegian Social Science Data Services (Dovran et al., 2016). The study was reported good internal consistency and test-retest reliability. The sensitivity and specificity appear good when the suggested cut-off scores were used with the therapists' estimates of maltreatment as the "gold standard." The Norwegian version of the CTQ-SF has demonstrated internal consistency at a satisfactory to excellent level. Reliability from this version is also something that has shown to have satisfactory consistency. The validity of this study could be threatened due to the use of self- reporting without corroborating information and memory bias. The focus on the five types of maltreatment aids and the cut-off values aids in the validity and reliability of this research.
The impact of traumatic events and experiences, such as exposure to violence, on brain functioning, leads to an increased risk for mental health problems, anti-social behaviors, victimization, and other negative life consequences (Franzese, R. J., Covey, H. C., Tucker, A. S., McCoy, L., Menard, S., 2014). This study received data from the National Youth Survey Family Study (NYSFS). The study consisted of 12 waves of data over 27 years with an estimate of 2,360 eligible youth participants who, at the initial interview was aged 11-17 years. When it comes to physical health problems there is no significant difference in male and female, however, females are more likely to seek professional help for mental health problems. Advantages to this study were the time frame and categories utilized to conduct thorough research and provide relevant answers and data. A disadvantage and validity and reliability issue that raises concern is the inconsistency of answers from participants. The study yielded self-reporting surveys. However, some participants were not consistent in their answers in the original waves and then subsequent waves. Also using self-reporting surveys allows for reliance on the memory of the participant.
Studies show that neglect, physical abuse, and sexual abuse are each associated with increased levels of suicidal ideation, intent, planning, and suicide attempts. Fuller-Thompson, E., Baker, T., Brennenstuhl, S. (2012). This study received its data from the 2005 Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS). This reporting system allowed for self-reporting answers on childhood physical abuse and lifetime suicidal ideation. The factors measured in this study was limited to adverse childhood conditions, current socioeconomic factors, current health risk and protective behaviors, psychosocial stressors and chronic conditions, and mental health (Fuller-Thompson, Baker, and Brennenstuhl, 2012). Out of 6,642 Canadians from the province of Saskatchewan, childhood physical abuse weighted at 7.7% and suicidal ideation weighted at 8.4%; with that percentage for suicidal ideation being higher for physically abused men and women than non-abused men and women.
A disadvantage in the methods includes the researcher utilizing a knowledgeable person in select households to answer necessary demographic information for all household members. Although that individual member of the residence may be knowledgeable, they may not provide accurate information for all residents residing in that selected household. Another disadvantage I observed was they interviewed another household member to answer questions in regard to age and household composition. I believe they should have interviewed all household participants separately to have a better account for accurate information provided. Due to this study relying upon on self-reported answers like other articles, there can be some validity issues due to the reliance on memory from the participants. Many gaps were found in this study as they did not include many variables that could help aid in their study, to include sexual abuse, trauma disorders, personality disorders, etc. as all these plus more can have more of an effect to suicidal ideation.
Exposure to adverse childhood experiences(trauma) has been linked to multiple short- and long-term physical and psychological consequences (Homer, 2015). This article expresses the importance for pediatric nurse practitioners (PNP) to understand trauma exposure and its risks on the developing child. With that comes continuous training and learning to identify the early warning signs. Traumatic exposures that are abusive, neglectful, or unpredictable can result in toxic stress (Homer, 2015), which in turn can cause adverse psychological and physical health problems.
The advantages of this article are to educate PNPs on the proper way to identify a child who has been exposed to traumatic experiences. Gaps were not identified in this study, or validity issues relevant to this article as it is informative.
Hooven, C., Nurius, P. S., Logan-Greene, P., Thompson, E. A. (2012) states that childhood experiences of violence and victimization are implicated in significant psychosocial difficulties in young adulthood, to include: depression, anxiety, aggression, and suicide. This study involved 849 participants from the ages of 16-24 years. The childhood victimization reported was high in nature, with a very low level of non-reporters before high school.
A disadvantage is missing assessments from original study represent design and timing issues. An advantage is the research was approved by the University Institutional Review Board which aids in the validity and reliability of the article and data provided. Although there was not much difference in the age, race, and ethnicity groupings, the levels for victimization are still high.
Method
Participants
For this research I am allowed seven minimum participants with a maximum of ten as outlines in the instructions and rubric of this research and class. These participants will be graduate students from SNHU PSY 510 classes. I assume I will have a mixture of male and female students participating. I would like to have been able to study a minimum of 50 students to be able to obtain more usable data.
Materials
The materials used in this study will be Qualtrics. Qualtrics is a survey program utilized by SNHU for research purposes. I also plan to utilize IBM SPSS to record data and create charts for visualization. Using a survey is very helpful in aiding and encouraging participation. People tend to be quite honest when answering to surveys. Data is collected from many surveys by businesses to gather data on their clientele and the demographics.
Procedure
There will be an introduction section prior to entering the survey. The introduction statement will be of informed consent and ensuring participants that their identity will remain anonymous. This is to increase the truthfulness and ethical behavior in their responses to questions to provide accurate data. Participants will be asked to answer a few demographic questions following the introduction statement. The demographics would include age, race, field of work, parental demographics; still married, household income. They will then begin asked to answer specific questions regarding their childhood; some being open ended questions to have clarity. They will then be asked to answer questions regarding their adult life. After completing the questionnaire, they will be given a “Thank you” message and information on ethics.
Ethical Concerns
Ethical concerns I foresee happening is participants not being truthful in their answers or possibly forgetting certain details of their life. Participants may feel embarrassed based off what they have been through or currently going through that they may not want to come off as an individual who needs help. one way I intend on remedying this is the introduction statement before entering the survey. I plan to ensure the participants that they will not be judged, and their responses are to remain anonymous. I plan to discuss the ethics and integrity of honest responses. If the participants continue in the survey, they are giving consent of their honesty. The validity of this study could be threatened due to the use of self- reporting without corroborating information and memory bias (Dovran, et al. 2016). I also have a concern about the small number of participants. In order to conduct a valuable research, I believe more participants can help aid in such. However, there is no way to remedy this concern for now.
Data Analysis Plan
New Data
After all data is collected, it will be coded and put into IMB SPSS for analyzing. There will be results from childhood related questions, adulthood mental health related questions, and demographical questions; specifically, parental demographics. Dependent t-test and independent t-tests will be conducted to help analyze the data. Averages, means, standard deviations will also be included with charts and graphs to be included as well. Outliers, if any, will be addressed and presented as well. A scatter chart will be used to determine if there are any outliers. Names will not be involved to ensure anonymity of the participants. The study will be placed into two categories: male and female.
The childhood abuse questions, adulthood questions, and parental demographical questions will be the more relevant statistical data being analyzed. The results will show the correlation of childhood abuse and the effects of mental health as an adult. It will also show if there is any correlation in the parental demographics and their childhood experience. Does a two-parent household allow for less abuse or more? Does a sizable family income provide more stability and less childhood abuse? With truthful answers, the data should show the correlation between demographics and childhood abuse.
Analytic Procedures
There are so many variables to analyze in this study. To evaluate the variables in this study I will be utilizing the analysis of variance, also known as ANOVA. ANOVA will be utilized through the SPSS program. This program will provide descriptive statistics with regards to means, standard deviation, and confidence interval for each variable. I will run variables like longevity or abuse and longevity of mental health issues, to confirm if there is any significance related. I will also conduct an independent check of the variables to examine if there is any significance. Some variables to consider will be, parental demographics, gender, types of abuse, longevity of abuse and longevity of mental health. With running analysis on these variables to check for significance I will be able to determine which area of this study requires more attention. These procedures may be amended to reflect research later in PSY 520.
Descriptive Statistics
The use of ANOVA will allow for analyzing to become simple. With ANOVA a researcher is able to analyze more than one variable at once while also providing the descriptive statistics of means, confidence intervals, p-value, and standard deviation. Closely observing the values provided for the descriptive statistics will allow me to determine which variables are significant. The variables type of abuse (Hooven, et al., 2012) and mental health issue (Fuller-Thompson, Baker, Brennenstuhl, 2012) have all been established in prior researched. I will still run ANOVA on these variables to see what derives from my participants.
APA Ethics
It will be unethical for a researcher to falsify data according to Standard 8.10 (a; APA, 2017). There is a primary obligation and reasonable precautions must be conducted to protect confidential information obtained or stored in any medium according to Standard 4.01(APA, 2017). There will be no plagiarizing from researchers. All work must be cited giving respect and proper credit to prior researchers (APA, 2017). According to Standard 3.10, researchers must obtain informed consent from the participant when conducting research (APA, 2017).
Anticipated Results
I anticipate for the results to significant of each other. The results will show that there is correlation in childhood abuse and the mental health of an adult. It will also show the correlation of parental demographics and childhood abuse. The results will show that the more abuse a child experience or exposed to the more likely they are to experience some form of a mental health issue. The childhood abuse questions will be the most relevant if participants have experienced the similar traumatic experiences.
The responses provided will be based from memory and honesty of the participant. The questions asked of the participants will not be misleading or confusing. They will ask specific questions not to lead anyone into any answer that does not exhibit their own experience. I expect this research to compliment other research studies conducted in a minute way.
Limitations. The limitations I anticipate having is the sample size of participants. Although I anticipate this study to compliment other studies conducted, the sample size makes it almost impossible. Not only the sample size but the limitations of them only being SNHU graduate students. Although graduate students may be more disciplined, I believe I could get more results from undergraduate students as well. With a limited sample population could provide limited results with gaps.
References
Blanco, C., Grant, B. F., Hasin, D. S., Lin, K. H., Olfson, M. Sugaya, L. (2012). Child Physical Abuse and Adult Mental Health: A National Study. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 25, 384-392. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1002/jts.21719
Dovran, A, Winje, D, Overland, S, Arefjord, K, Hansen, A, Waage, L. Childhood Maltreatment and Adult Mental Health. (2016).
Franzese, R. J., Covey, H. C., Tucker, A. S., McCoy, L., Menard, S. (2014). Adolescent Exposure to Violence and Adult Physical and Mental Health Problems. Child Abuse & Neglect, 38, 1955-1965. https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1016/j.chiabu.2014.10.017
Fuller-Thompson, E., Baker, T., Brennenstuhl, S. (2012). Evidence Supporting an Independent Association between Childhood Physical Abuse and Lifetime Suicidal Ideation. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 42, 279-291. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1111/j.1943-278X.2012.00089.x
Horner, G. (2015). Childhood Trauma Exposure and Toxic Stress: What the PNP Needs to Know. Journal of Pediatric Health Care, 29, 191-198. https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1016/j.pedhc.2014.09.006
Hooven, C., Nurius, P. S., Logan-Greene, P., Thompson, E. A. (2012) Childhood Violence Exposure: Cumulative and Specific Effects on Adult Mental Health. Journal of Family Violence, 27, 511-522. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1007/s10896-012-9438-0
American Psychological Association (2017). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index.aspx