Childhood Trauma and Behaviour Problems Among Adolescents: Mediating Role of Experiential Avoidance

Childhood traumas are the tragic events occurred in the developmental stages of one’s life. This could jeopardize individual's personality and develop a pathway for active involvement in many behaviour problems. Adopting avoidant coping strategies seemed to be the most common practice among trauma-exposed adolescents. The present study aimed to examine the mediating role of experiential avoidance between childhood traumas and behaviour problems. The present research utilized a purposive and convenient sampling technique to collect data from different schools in Pakistan. Young adolescents (N = 200) with an age range of 12-18 years (M = 14.70, SD = 1.74) completed self-reported of Childhood Trauma Questionnaire Short Form, Strength and Difficulty Questionnaire, and Acceptance and Action Questionnaire. Results of the analyses suggested that childhood traumas significantly influence behaviour problems of adolescents through experiential avoidance of traumatic events. Experiential avoidance could help in reducing the impact of childhood trauma on behaviour problems. Therefore, these findings could be beneficial in theory-building and designing intervention-based programs for childhood trauma victims.