Is childhood maltreatment linked to daily smoking in young adulthood?

Details

The study examined whether child maltreatment was associated with daily cigarette smoking in young adulthood, whether the association varied by gender, and what might mediate it. For all 1,125 participants, 94% of whom were African American, researchers prospectively collected data from multiple sources, including child welfare records, at childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood.

The authors used multivariate probit regression to examine the association and differences by gender, and exploratory and confirmatory mediation strategies to examine mediators. Maltreatment was significantly associated with daily cigarette smoking. Gender did not moderate the association, which was fully mediated by adolescent indicators of family support and stability, social adjustment, and cognitive and school performance, together with young adult indicators of educational attainment, life satisfaction, substance abuse, and criminality.

The authors concluded that maltreatment places low-income minority children at risk for daily cigarette smoking and other harmful health outcomes in young adulthood. They recommended treatment targets including family support and stability, emotion regulation, social skills, and cognitive and academic functioning.