Abstract
Childhood maltreatment, particularly when it originates within the family, can lead to significant challenges to personal recovery and subsequent interpersonal relationships. This chapter reviewed evidence for social support as a promotive (main effect) and/or a protective/buffering (moderating effect) factor in overcoming the negative effects of child maltreatment. Findings revealed promotive effects across many studies, but less consistent evidence for a protective effect. Social support generally acted as a buffer against negative outcomes for individuals with lower, rather than higher, exposure to maltreatment. In addition, family or network social support served as a risk factor within certain situations or contexts. The nuanced findings regarding the impact of social support provided a better understanding of the benefits and limits of social support following child maltreatment. Therapists working with survivors of childhood maltreatment should explore the quality and characteristics of the social support provided to assess whether it is a helpful resource or if alternate sources of support should be cultivated.
Keywords
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Appleyard, K., Yang, C., & Runyan, D. K. (2010). Delineating the maladaptive pathways of child maltreatment: A mediated moderation analysis of the roles of self-perception and social support. Development and Psychopathology, 22, 337–352. doi:10.1017/S095457941000009X.
Babcock, J. C., Roseman, A., Green, C. E., & Ross, J. M. (2008). Intimate partner abuse and PTSD symptomatology: Examining mediators and moderators of the abuse-trauma link. Journal of Family Psychology, 22, 809–818. doi:10.1037/a0013808.
Beeble, M. L., Bybee, D., Sullivan, C. M., & Adams, A. E. (2009). Main, mediating, and moderating effects of social support on the well-being of survivors of intimate partner violence across 2 years. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 77, 718–729. doi:10.1037/a0016140.
Berlin, L. J., Appleyard, K., & Dodge, K. A. (2011). Intergenerational continuity in child maltreatment: Mediating mechanisms and implications for prevention. Child Development, 82, 162–176. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01547.x.
Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: Parent-child attachment and healthy human development. New York: Basic Books.
Briere, J. (2002). Treating adult survivors of severe childhood abuse and neglect: Further development of an integrative model. In J. E. Myers, L. Berliner, J. Briere, C. T. Hendrix, C. Jenny, & T. A. Reid (Eds.), The APSAC handbook on child maltreatment (2nd ed., pp. 175–204). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Carlson, B. E., McNutt, L., Choi, D. Y., & Rose, I. M. (2002). Intimate partner abuse and mental health: The role of social support and other protective factors. Violence Against Women, 8, 720–745. doi:10.1177/10778010222183251.
Ceballo, R., & McLoyd, V. C. (2002). Social support and parenting in poor, dangerous neighborhoods. Child Development, 73, 1310–1321. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00473.
Center for Disease Control. (2014). Promoting safe, stable and nurturing relationships: A strategic direction for child maltreatment prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/cm_strategic_direction--long-a.pdf
Charuvastra, A., & Cloitre, M. (2008). Social bonds and posttraumatic stress disorder. Annual Review of Psychology, 59, 301–328. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.58.110405.085650.
Cicchetti, D., & Toth, S. L. (2013). Child maltreatment and attachment organization: Implications for intervention. In S. Goldberg, R. Muir, & J. Kerr (Eds.), Attachment theory: Social, developmental, and clinical perspectives (pp. 279–308). London: Routledge.
Clapp, J. D., & Beck, J. G. (2009). Understanding the relationship between PTSD and social support: The role of negative network orientation. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 47, 237–244. doi:10.1016/j.brat.2008.12.006.
Cloitre, M., Stovall-McClough, C., Zorbas, P., & Charuvastra, A. (2008). Attachment organization, emotion regulation, and expectations of support in a clinical sample of women with childhood abuse histories. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 21, 282–289. doi:10.1002/jts.20339.
Cohen, S. (2004). Social relationships and health. American Psychologist, 59, 676–684. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.59.8.676.
Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98, 310–357. doi:10.1037//0033-2909.98.2.310.
Courtois, C. A. (2010). Healing the incest wound: Adult survivors in therapy (2nd ed.). New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
Crouch, J. L., Milner, J. S., & Caliso, J. A. (1995). Childhood physical abuse, perceived social support, and socioemotional status in adult women. Violence and Victims, 10, 273–283 Retrieved from http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/springer/vav.
Davis, J. L., Petretic-Jackson, P. A., & Ting, L. (2001). Intimacy dysfunction and trauma symptomatology: Long-term correlates of different types of child abuse. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 14, 63–79. doi:10.1023/A:1007835531614.
Elliott, A. N., & Carnes, C. N. (2001). Reactions of nonoffending parents to the sexual abuse of their child: A review of the literature. Child Maltreatment, 6, 314–331. doi:10.1177/1077559501006004005.
Evans, S. E., Steel, A. L., & DiLillo, D. (2013). Child maltreatment severity and adult trauma symptoms: Does perceived social support play a buffering role? Child Abuse & Neglect, 37, 934–943. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2013.03.005.
Feldman, B. J., Conger, R. D., & Burzette, R. G. (2004). Traumatic events, psychiatric disorders, and pathways of risk and resilience during the transition to adulthood. Research in Human Development, 1, 259–290. doi:10.1207/s15427617rhd0104_3.
Finkelhor, D., Ormrod, R. K., & Turner, H. A. (2007). Poly-victimization: A neglected component in child victimization. Child Abuse & Neglect, 31, 7–26. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2006.06.008.
Folger, S. F., & Wright, M. O. (2013). Altering risk following child maltreatment: Family and friend support as protective factors. Journal of Family Violence, 28, 325–337. doi:10.1007/s10896-013-9510-4.
Gibson, R. L., & Harshorne, T. S. (1996). Childhood sexual abuse and adult loneliness and network orientation. Child Abuse & Neglect, 20, 1087–1093. doi:10.1016/0145-2134(96)00097-X.
Herman, J. L. (1992). Trauma and recovery. New York: Harper Collins.
Kolko, D. J., Iselin, A. R., & Gully, K. J. (2011). Evaluation of the sustainability and clinical outcome of Alternatives for Families: A Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (AF-CBT) in a child protection center. Child Abuse & Neglect, 35, 105–116. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2010.09.004.
Kwong, M. J., Bartholomew, K., Henderson, A. J. Z., & Trinke, S. J. (2003). The intergenerational transmission of relationship violence. Journal of Family Psychology, 17, 288–301. doi:10.1037/0893-3200.17.3.288.
Levondosky, A. A., Huth-Bocks, A., & Semel, M. A. (2002). Adolescent peer relationships and mental health functioning in families with domestic violence. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 31, 206–218. doi:10.1207/s15374424jccp3102_06.
MacMillan, H., Wathen, C. N., Barlow, J., Fergusson, D. M., Leventhal, J. M., & Taussig, H. N. (2009). Interventions to prevent child maltreatment and associated impairment. Lancet, 373, 250–266. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(08)61708-0.
Messman-Moore, T. L., & Long, P. J. (2003). The role of childhood sexual abuse sequelae in the sexual revictimization of women: An empirical review and theoretical reformulation. Clinical Psychology Review, 23, 537–571. doi:10.1016/S0272-7358(02)00203-9.
Muller, R. T., Goebel-Fabbri, A. E., Diamond, T., & Dinklage, D. (2000). Social support and the relationship between family and community violence exposure and psychopathology among high risk adolescents. Child Abuse & Neglect, 24, 449–464. doi:10.1016/s0145-2134(00)00117-4.
Murthi, M., & Espelage, D. L. (2005). Childhood sexual abuse, social support, and psychological outcomes: A loss framework. Child Abuse & Neglect, 29, 1215–1231. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2005.03.008.
Norris, F. H., & Kaniasty, K. (1996). Received and perceived social support in times of stress: A test of the social support deterioration deterrence model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 71, 498–511. doi:10.1037//0022-3514.71.3.498.
Pepin, E. N., & Banyard, V. L. (2006). Social support: A mediator between child maltreatment and developmental outcomes. Journal of Youth Adolescence, 35, 617–630. doi:10.1007/s10964-006-9063-4.
Powers, A., Ressler, K. J., & Bradley, R. G. (2009). The protective role of friendship on the effects of childhood abuse and depression. Depression and Anxiety, 26, 46–53. doi:10.1002/da.20534.
Salazar, A. M., Keller, T. E., & Courtney, M. E. (2011). Understanding social support’s role in the relationship between maltreatment and depression in youth with foster care experience. Child Maltreatment, 16, 102–113. doi:10.1177/1077559511402985.
Scarpa, A., Haden, S. C., & Hurley, J. (2006). Community violence victimization and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder: The moderating effects of coping and social support. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 21, 446–469. doi:10.1177/0886260505285726.
Seltmann, L. A., & Wright, M. O. (2013). Perceived parenting competencies following childhood sexual abuse: A moderated mediation analysis. Journal of Family Violence, 28, 611–621. doi:10.1007/s10896-013-9522-0.
Sperry, D. M., & Widom, C. S. (2013). Child abuse and neglect, social support, and psychopathology in adulthood: A prospective investigation. Child Abuse & Neglect, 37, 415–425. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2013.02.006.
Spilsbury, J. C., & Korbin, J. E. (2013). Social networks and informal social support in protecting children from abuse and neglect. Child Abuse & Neglect, 37S, 8–16. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2013.10.027.
Sroufe, L. A. (2005). Attachment and development: A prospective, longitudinal study from birth to adulthood. Attachment & Human Development, 7, 349–367. doi:10.1080/14616730500365928.
Tremblay, C., Hébert, M., & Piché, C. (1999). Coping strategies and social support as mediators of consequences in child sexual abuse victims. Child Abuse & Neglect, 23, 929–945. doi:10.1016/S0145-2134(99)00056-3.
Vranceanu, A., Hobfoll, S. E., & Johnson, R. J. (2007). Child multi-type maltreatment and associated depression and PTSD symptoms: The role of social support and stress. Child Abuse & Neglect, 31, 71–84. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2006.04.010.
Widom, C. S., Czaja, S. J., & Dutton, M. A. (2008). Childhood victimization and lifetime revictimization. Child Abuse & Neglect, 32, 785–796. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2007.12.006.
Wilson, L. C., & Scarpa, A. (2014). Childhood abuse, perceived social support, and posttraumatic stress symptoms: A moderation model. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 6, 512–518. doi:10.1037/a0032635.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wright, M.O., Folger, S.F. (2017). Creating a Safe Haven Following Child Maltreatment : The Benefits and Limits of Social Support. In: Teti, D. (eds) Parenting and Family Processes in Child Maltreatment and Intervention. Child Maltreatment Solutions Network. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40920-7_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40920-7_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-40918-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-40920-7
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)