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Hereditary Risk and Child Abuse: Their Relative Roles in Type of Schizophrenia

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Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study tests to see if different types of childhood abuse precede specific symptoms of schizophrenia. The analyses also examine for an interactive effect of hereditary risk, using family history of serious mental illness as a proxy variable. Data are taken from the cumulative anonymous records of patients with schizophrenia (N = 642) from a large state hospital in the northeastern U. S. Childhood abuse was separated into two domains: physical abuse and emotional/verbal abuse. Log-linear analysis of contingency tables uncovered a powerful pattern: risk for positive symptoms of schizophrenia is significantly elevated by two conditions: history of childhood abuse in combination with no history of serious mental illness within the family. The implications of these findings are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the work of Marge DiLullo, Director of Medical Records at the state hospital for her painstaking efforts in collecting detailed clinical and social histories of the patients for us. This study is dedicated in her memory. We are also grateful to Sarah Spencer, Mariana Pardes and Denise Wilson for their technical and research support.

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  1. Department of Sociology, Villanova University, Villanova, PA, 19085, USA

    Bernard J. Gallagher III & Brian J. Jones

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  1. Bernard J. Gallagher III
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Correspondence to Bernard J. Gallagher III.

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Gallagher, B.J., Jones, B.J. Hereditary Risk and Child Abuse: Their Relative Roles in Type of Schizophrenia. Journ Child Adol Trauma 9, 255–261 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40653-016-0078-z

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