Adverse Childhood Experiences ACEs Questionnaire and Adult Attachment Interview AAI: Implications for Parent Child Relationships

• NCJ Number: 246692
• Journal: Child Abuse and Neglect Volume: 38 Issue: 2 Dated: February 2014 Pages: 224-233
• Author(s): Anne Murphy; Miriam Steele; Shanta Rishi Dube; Jordan Bate; Karen Bonuck; Paul Meissner; Hannah Goldman; Howard Steele
• Date Published: February 2014
• Length: 10 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the validity of the 10-category scores on the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) questionnaire compared to responses on the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) that refer to loss and abuse experiences in an "unresolved" (U) or "cannot classify" (CC) manner (Mann et al, 2008; Steele, Steele, and Murphy, 2009).

Abstract

The study found significantly higher rates of four or more categories of ACEs in an urban clinical sample (41 mothers receiving clinical services regarding parenting difficulties) compared with either an urban community sample or the original ACE Study cohort from Kaiser Permanente. All types of ACEs reported by participants in the study, across both clinical and community group respondents were individually linked to AAIs judged U/CC. This was most evident in adults who as children witnessed their mothers being violently abused. The most striking finding was the strong link between the report of four or more ACEs and the significantly large percentage of AAI responses where loss or trauma were spoken about in ways that indicated lapses in the monitoring of speech or reason, unique mental and emotional troubles known to foreshadow difficulties in the parenting role. In addition to extending validation of the ACE Study findings, the current study suggests the possibility that asking about the prevalence of exposure to positive emotionally supportive experiences may hold unique predictive value. Specifically, the current findings show that when parents were unable to endorse that they felt protected, special/important, or loved, then there was a significantly increased frequency of AAIs with U/CC states of mind. The ACEs questionnaire is recommended for wide use in pediatric, mental health, and other health settings in which the central goal is intervention that promotes secure parent-child relationships as a protection against child maltreatment. 5 tables and 36 references