Childhood Maltreatment History and Adult Depression: Methodological Issues

Year 2019, Volume: 2 Issue: 2, 1 - 7, 31.12.2019

Esra Zıvralı Yarar

https://doi.org/10.33817/muhakeme.642072

Abstract

The association between childhood maltreatment and later mental
health problems, especially adult depression, has been widely studied in the
literature. The long-term effects of childhood maltreatment have encouraged
investigators to examine possible factors and mechanisms explaining this
relationship. Studies investigating genetic and nervous, endocrine and immune
systems-related factors explaining the link between childhood adversity and
adult depression reported significant results. However, findings of studies
examining childhood maltreatment and adult depression relationship should be
evaluated carefully before taking actions on them due to a number of
limitations. This paper documented some of these methodological issues briefly:
concerns about definition and terms used for maltreatment, generalizability of
results, uncontrolled factors, unreturned data, multiple maltreatment types and
assessment of maltreatment. Findings of research on long-term effects of
maltreatment are promising to offer new research directions as well as
development of strategies to help individuals with early maltreatment history
and depression in adulthood. Future studies should take methodological concerns
into consideration and try to overcome related limitations.

Keywords

childhood maltreatment, adulthood, depression, methodology, limitations

Çocukluk İstismar Öyküsü ve Yetişkin Depresyonu: Yöntemsel Meseleler

Abstract

Çocuklukta
yaşanılan istismar ve yetişkinlikteki zihin sağlığı problemleri, özellikle
depresyon, alanyazında oldukça fazla çalışılmış bir konudur. Çocuk istismarının
uzun vadeli sonuçları araştırmacıları bu ilişkiyi açıklayan olası faktör ve
mekanizmaları incelemeye teşvik etmiştir. Çocukluktaki kötü yaşantılar ve
yetişkin depresyonu arasındaki bağlantıyı açıklamaya çalışan genetik, sinir
sistemi, endokrin sistem ve bağışıklık sistemi ile ilişkili faktörleri
inceleyen araştırmalardan anlamlı sonuçlar elde edilmiştir. Ancak, konu ile
ilgili çalışmalardan elde edilen bulgular bir takım kısıtlılıklar sebebiyle
eylem planlarına dahil edilmeden önce dikkatle değerlendirilmelidir. Bu
makalede söz konusu yöntemsel meselelerden bazıları ele alınmakta ve
çocukluktaki istismar yaşantıları için kullanılan tanım ve terimlere, çalışma
sonuçlarının genellenebilirliğine, kontrol edilmeyen faktörlere, geri dönüt
alınamayan verilere, istismarın çoklu türlerine ve ölçümüne yönelik endişelere
yer verilmektedir. İstismarın uzun vadeli etkileri hakkındaki araştırmalardan
elde edilen sonuçlar yeni araştırma fikirlerinin yanında erken istismar geçmişi
bulunan ve depresyonu olan yetişkinlere yardım etmek için yeni stratejiler
geliştirilmesine katkıda bulunmaktadır. Gelecekteki çalışmalar yöntemsel
endişeleri dikkate almalı ve ilgili kısıtlılıkların üstesinden gelmeye çalışmalıdır.

Keywords

çocuk istismarı, yetişkinlik, depresyon, yöntem, kısıtlılıklar

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