Cited by 76Posttraumatic Stress Disorder ResearchChild Abuse and TraumaSubstance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes

Childhood trauma, PTSD, and problematic alcohol and substance use in low-income, African-American men and women

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Cross, Dorthie, Crow, Thomas, Powers, Abigail, Bradley, Bekh·2015·Child Abuse & Neglect

Abstract

Previous studies demonstrate that PTSD mediates the relationship between childhood trauma and alcohol and substance use disorders and that PTSD and alcohol/substance use comorbidity is greater in men than in women. We sought to replicate and extend these findings in a predominantly low-income, African-American sample recruited from a public hospital. We administered measures of childhood trauma, PTSD symptoms, problematic alcohol use, and problematic substance use to 803 men and 2084 women. We examined rates of comorbidity in men and women. Next, two bootstrap analyses were used to test whether PTSD is a mediator between childhood trauma and problematic alcohol use and between childhood trauma and problematic substance use. Finally, two bootstrap analyses were used to test whether gender would moderate the indirect effect of PTSD in both the alcohol and substance use models. Results showed that although men and women reported similar overall PTSD symptom frequency, men were more likely than women to report PTSD comorbid with alcohol and/or substance use problems. In addition, PTSD partially mediated the relationship between childhood trauma and problematic alcohol use and between childhood trauma and problematic substance use. The indirect effects of PTSD on the relationship between childhood trauma and problematic alcohol use and between childhood trauma and problematic substance use were greater in men. This study demonstrates the important interplay of gender, childhood trauma, PTSD, and alcohol and substance use. Mental health providers should consider childhood trauma histories and diagnostic comorbidities when treatment planning.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.chiabu.2015.01.007

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  • In a sample of low-income African Americans, PTSS partially mediate the link between childhood trauma and problematic alcohol and/or substance use.

    “In a sample of lowincome African Americans, PTSS were found to partially mediate the link between childhood trauma and problematic alcohol and/or substance use (Cross et al., 2015), a behavioral outcome commonly linked to AS traits.”

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  1. Cohen J Statistical Power Analysis for the behavioral Sciences 1988 2nd ed. New York, NY Academic Press

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Authors
Cross, D., Crow, T., Powers, A., & Bradley, B.
Affiliations
Emory University (US)
Corresponding author
Cross, Dorthie
Venue
Child Abuse & Neglect
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2015-06
Volume
44
Pages
26-35
ISSN
0145-2134 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2033438451
Cited by
76
References
93
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 7 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 1
FWCI
7.85
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Child Abuse & Neglect (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health (MH071537, UL1TR000454, MH018264)
  • National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (MH071537, UL1TR000454, MH018264)
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute (MH071537, UL1TR000454, MH018264)
  • National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (MH071537, UL1TR000454, MH018264)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
Keywords
childhood trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, alcohol abuse, problematic substance use, PTSD comorbidity, gender differences, mediation, public hospital patients
MeSH terms
Adult Survivors of Child Adverse Events, Adult, Alcohol Drinking, Black or African American, Child, Child Abuse, Female, Georgia, Humans, Male, Poverty, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Sex Distribution, Substance-Related Disorders

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