Maternal emotional regulation moderates the association between childhood history of maltreatment and cortisol reactivity

Objectives: Approximately 32% of Canadian adults have experienced at least one form of childhood maltreatment. Childhood history of maltreatment has been linked to emotional dysfunction and an altered cortisol response to... [ view full abstract ]

Objectives: Approximately 32% of Canadian adults have experienced at least one form of childhood maltreatment. Childhood history of maltreatment has been linked to emotional dysfunction and an altered cortisol response to stress in adults. However, no study has examined emotion regulation as a potential modulator of the cortisol dysregulation associated with childhood maltreatment. The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between childhood maltreatment, cortisol reactivity, and emotion regulation in new mothers.

Methods: We collected salivary samples at baseline, 20 minutes post-stressor, and 40 minutes post-stressor in a sample of 140 women at 6 months postpartum. All samples were assayed for cortisol, and cortisol reactivity was determined by time-dependent area under the curve computation. Maternal retrospective report of maltreatment was assessed using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Maternal self-report of emotion regulation was assessed using the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-II). Information pertaining to postpartum mood, daily habits, and demographics were collected and used as covariates.

Results: Structural equation modelling was used to create a latent emotion dysregulation construct using both the ERQ and DERS-II, and this was explored as a moderating variable. Moderation analyses revealed that the interaction between maternal exposure to childhood maltreatment and emotion dysregulation significantly influenced cortisol reactivity (β = -0.17, CI.95 = -0.31, -0.03, p < 0.05). Specifically, women with higher CTQ scores and higher emotion dysregulation scores displayed decreased cortisol reactivity compared to women with higher CTQ scores and lower emotion dysregulation scores.

Conclusion: Maternal history of childhood maltreatment was associated with reduced cortisol reactivity in women with lower emotion regulation ability. Previous research has reported associations between childhood maltreatment and cortisol blunting. These findings suggest that emotion dysregulation may be a mechanism through which this hyporeactivity occurs and can help inform future intervention options.