Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Childhood Abuse as a Risk Factor for Sleep Problems in Adulthood: Evidence from a U.S. National Study

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Annals of Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

Background

Accumulating evidence indicates that stress impairs sleep quality. Few studies, however, have examined the extent to which early life stress can jeopardize sleep in adulthood.

Purpose

Guided by a life course epidemiological perspective on health, this study examined associations between childhood abuse and adult sleep problems.

Methods

We used data from 835 respondents in the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS). Self-report measures assessed the frequency of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse in childhood, as well as global and component indicators of sleep problems in adulthood.

Results

Having experienced all three types of childhood abuse—even infrequently—was associated with global sleep pathology, as well as specific types of sleep problems. Reports of both frequent physical and frequent emotional abuse—even in the absence of sexual abuse—were also associated with poor sleep.

Conclusions

Childhood abuse is a risk factor for individuals’ long-term sleep problems.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Benca RM. Diagnosis and treatment of chronic insomnia: A review. Psychiatr Serv. 2005; 56(3): 332–343.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Ohayon MM. Epidemiology of insomnia: What we know and what we still need to learn. Sleep Med Rev. 2002; 6(2): 97–111.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Kapur VK, et al. The relationship between chronically disrupted sleep and healthcare use. Sleep. 2002; 25(3): 289–296.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Léger D, Bayon V. Societal costs of insomnia. Sleep Med Rev. 2010; 14(6): 379–389.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Sadeh A. Stress, trauma, and sleep in children. Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 1996; 5(3); 685–700.

    Google Scholar 

  6. Gregory AM, Barclay NL. Too stressed to sleep. Psychologist. 2009; 22: 676–677.

    Google Scholar 

  7. Kuh D, Ben-Shlomo Y, Lynch J, Hallqvist J, Power C. Life course epidemiology. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2003; 57(10): 778–783.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. US Department of Health and Human Services. Child Maltreatment; 2008. http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm08/cm08.pdf. Accessed March 7, 2011.

  9. Goodwin RD, Hoven CW, Murison R, Hotopf M. Association between childhood physical abuse and gastrointestinal disorders and migraine in adulthood. Am J Public Health. 2003; 92(7): 1065–1067.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Partinen M. Epidemiology of sleep disorders. In: MH Kryger, T Roth, WC Dement, eds. Principles and Practice in Sleep Medicine. Philadelphia, PA: WB Sanders; 1994: 437–452.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Seyle H. The Stress of Life. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1956.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Dahl RE. The regulation of sleep and arousal: Development and psychopathology. Dev Psychopathol. 1996; 8: 3–27.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Germain A, Buysse DJ, Nofzinger E. Sleep-specific mechanisms underlying posttraumatic stress disorder: Integrative review and neurobiological hypotheses. Sleep Med Rev. 2008; 12(3): 185–195.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Gregory AM, Caspi A, Moffitt TE, Poulton E. Family conflict in childhood: A predictor of later insomnia. Sleep. 2006; 29(8): 1063–1067.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Spilsbury JC. Sleep as a mediator in the pathway from violence-induced traumatic stress to poorer health and functioning: A review of the literature and proposed conceptual model. Behav Sleep Med. 2009; 7(4): 223–244.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Greenfield EA. Child abuse as a life-course social determinants of adult health. Maturitas. 2010; 66(1): 51–55.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Springer KW. Childhood physical abuse and midlife physical health: Testing a multi-pathway life course model. Soc Sci Med. 2009; 69(1): 138–146.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Glod CA, Teicher MH, Hartman CR, Harakal T. Increased nocturnal activity and impaired sleep maintenance in abused children. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1997; 36(9): 1236–1243.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Sadeh A, McGuire JPD, Sachs H, Seifer R, Tremblay A, Civita R, Hayden RM. Sleep and psychological characteristics of children on a psychiatric inpatient unit. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1995; 34(6): 813–819.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. El-Sheikh M, Buckhalt JA, Mize J, Acebo C. Marital conflict and disruption of children’s sleep. Child Dev. 2006; 77(1): 31–43.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Cooley-Quille M, Lorion R. Adolescents’ exposure to community violence: Sleep and psychophysiological functioning. J Community Psychol. 1999; 27: 367–375.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Noll JG, Trickett P, Susman EJ, Putnam FW. Sleep disturbances and childhood sexual abuse. J Pediatr Psychol. 2006; 31(5): 469–480.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  23. Koskenvuo K, Hublin C, Partinen M, Paunio T, Koseknvuo M. Childhood adversities and quality of sleep in adulthood: A population-based study of 26,000 Finns. Sleep Med. 2009; 11; 17–22.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Bader K, Schafer V, Schenkel M, Nissen L, Schwander J. Adverse childhood experiences associated with sleep in primary insomnia. J Sleep Res. 2007; 16: 285–296.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Sadavoy J. Survivors: A review of the late-life effects of prior psychological trauma. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 1997; 5: 287–301.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Ford DE, Cooper-Patrick L. Sleep disturbances and mood disorders: An epidemiological perspective. Depress Anxiety. 2001; 14(1): 3–6.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Finkelhor D, Ormrod RK, Turner HA. Poly-victimization: A neglected component in child victimization. Child Abuse Negl. 2007; 31: 7–26.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Shaw BA, Krause N. Exposure to physical violence during childhood, aging, and health. J Aging Health. 2002; 14(4): 467–494.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Williamson DF, Thompson TJ, Anda RF, Dietz WH, Felitti V. Body weight and obesity in adults and self-reported abuse in childhood. Int J Obes. 2002; 26: 1075–1082.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Pilcher JJ, Ginter DR, Sadowksy B. Sleep quality versus sleep quantity: Relationships between sleep and measures of health, well-being and sleepiness in college students. J Psychosom Res. 1997; 42: 583–596.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Love GD, Seeman TE, Weinstein M, Ryff CD. Bioindicators in the MIDUS national study: Protocol, measures, sample and comparative context. J Aging Health. 2010; 22: 1059–1080.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Bernstein D, Fink L. Manual for the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. New York: The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio; 1998.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Nooner KB, Litrownik AJ, Thompson R, Margolis B, English DJ, Knight ED, Everson MD, Roesch S. Youth self-repot of physical and sexual abuse: A latent class analysis. Child Abuse Negl. 2010;34:146–154.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Buysse DJ, Reynolds CF, Monk TH, Berman SR, Kupfer DJ. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index: A new instrument for psychiatric practice and research. J Psychiatr Res. 1989; 28(2): 193–213.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Backhaus J, Junghanns K, Broocks A, Riemann D, Hohagen F. Test-retest reliability and validity of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index in primary insomnia. J Psychosom Res. 2002; 53: 737–740.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Collins LM, Lanza ST. Latent class and latent transition analysis with applications in the social behavioral, and health sciences. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2010.

    Google Scholar 

  37. Goodman LA. Latent class analysis: The empirical study of latent types, latent variables, and latent structures. In: JA Hagenaars, AL McCutcheon, eds. Applied Latent Class Analysis. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press; 2002: 3–55.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  38. Muthén LK, Muthén BO. Mplus User's Guide: Statistical Analysis with Latent Variables. Los Angeles: Muthén & Muthén; 2008.

    Google Scholar 

  39. Nylund KL, Asparouho T, Muthén B, Muthén L. Deciding on the number of classes in latent class analysis and growth mixture modeling: A Monte Carlo simulation study. Struct Equ Modeling. 2007; 14(4): 535–569.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Ohayon NM, Shapiro CM. Sleep disturbances and psychiatric disorders associated with posttraumatic stress disorder in the general population. Compr Psychiatry. 2000; 41(6): 469–478.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  41. Kobayashi I, Boarts JM, Delahanty DL. Polysomnographically measured sleep abnormalities in PTSD: A meta-analytic review. Psychophysiology. 2007; 44(4): 660–669.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  42. Muthén B, Muthén L. Mplus Version 6.0. Computer file. Los Angeles: Muthén & Muthén; 2010.

  43. Stata Corp. Stata Statistical Software: Release11 College Station, TX: StataCorp LP; 2009.

  44. McEwen BS. Protective and damaging effects of stress mediators. N Engl J Med. 1998; 338: 171–179.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. Manly JT, Cicchetti D, Barnett D. The impact of subtype, frequency, chronicity, and severity of child maltreatment on social competence and behavior problems. Dev Psychopathol. 1994; 6: 121–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Charuvastra A, Cloitre M. Safe enough to sleep: Sleep disruptions associated with trauma, posttraumatic stress, and anxiety in children and adolescents. Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 2009; 18(4): 877–891.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Selig JP, Preacher KJ. Mediation models for longitudinal data in developmental research. Res Hum Dev. 2009; 6: 144–164.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. Staner L. Comorbidity of insomnia and depression. Sleep Med Rev. 2010; 14: 35.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  49. Chu JA. The revictimization of adult women with histories of childhood abuse. J Psychother Pract Res. 1992; 1: 259–269.

    Google Scholar 

  50. Pillar G, Malhotra A, Lavie P. Post-traumatic stress disorder and sleep: What a nightmare! Sleep Med Rev. 2000; 4(2):183–200.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  51. Buysse DJ, et al. Relationships between the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and clinical/polysomnographic measures in a community sample. J Clin Sleep Med. 2008; 4(6): 563–571.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  52. Hayashino Y, et al. Association between number of comorbid conditions, depression, and sleep quality using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index: Results from a population-based survey. Sleep Med. 2010; 11(4): 366–371.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Hardt J, Rutter M. Validity of adult retrospective reports of adverse childhood experiences: Review of the evidence. J Child Psychol Psychiatry. 2004; 45: 260–273.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. Margolin G, Gordis EB. The effects of family and community violence on children. Annu Rev Psychol. 2000; 51: 445–479.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  55. Kessler RC, McLaughlin KA, Green JG, Gruber MJ, Sampson NA, Zaslavsky AM, et al. Childhood adversities and adult psychopathology in the WHO World Mental Health Surveys. Br J Psychiatry. 2010; 197: 378–385.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Acock AC. Working with missing values. J Marriage Fam. 2005; 67: 1012–1028.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  57. Havig K. The health care experiences of adult survivors of sexual abuse: A systematic review of evidence on sensitive practice. Trauma Violence Abuse. 2008; 9(1): 19–33.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  58. Bailes S, Balztan M, Rizzo D, Fitchen CS, Grad R, Wolkove N, Creti L, Amsel R, Libman E. Sleep disorder symptoms are common and unspoken in Canadian general practice. Fam Pract. 2009; 26(4):294–300.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  59. Krakow B, Hollifield M, Johnston L, Koss M, Schrader R, Warner T, Tandberg D, Lauriello J, McBride L, Cutchen L, et al. Imagery rehearsal therapy for chronic nightmares in sexual assault survivors with posttraumatic stress disorder. J Am Med Assoc. 2001; 286: 537–545.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This study was supported by grants from the National Institute on Aging (AG206983; AG20166).

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors have no conflict of interest to disclose.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Social Work, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 536 George St., New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA

    Emily A. Greenfield Ph.D.

  2. Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 112 Paterson St., New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA

    Emily A. Greenfield Ph.D., Chioun Lee M.A. & Kristen W. Springer Ph.D.

  3. Department of Sociology, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 26 Nichol Ave., New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA

    Chioun Lee M.A. & Kristen W. Springer Ph.D.

  4. Institute on Aging, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1300 University Ave., Madison, WI, 53706, USA

    Elliot L. Friedman Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Emily A. Greenfield Ph.D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Chioun Lee M.A.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Elliot L. Friedman Ph.D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Kristen W. Springer Ph.D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Emily A. Greenfield Ph.D..

Electronic Supplementary Material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

ESM 1

(DOC 35 kb)

About this article

Cite this article

Greenfield, E.A., Lee, C., Friedman, E.L. et al. Childhood Abuse as a Risk Factor for Sleep Problems in Adulthood: Evidence from a U.S. National Study. ann. behav. med. 42, 245–256 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-011-9285-x

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-011-9285-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation