A Prospective Cohort Study on the Intergenerational Transmission of Childhood Adversity and Subsequent Risk of Psychotic Experiences in Adolescence

Background and hypothesis: Previous studies have shown a robust relationship between childhood adversity and subsequent psychotic symptoms. However, the role of familial risk factors underlying this relationship remains largely unclear. Here, we tested whether offspring childhood adversity and postnatal maternal psychopathology mediated the relationship between maternal childhood adversity and offspring psychotic experiences.

Study design: N = 3068 mother-offspring dyads were included. Maternal history of childhood adversity was retrospectively assessed using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire during pregnancy. Maternal psychopathology was assessed during and after pregnancy. Twenty-four offspring childhood adversities were assessed by maternal interview when the child was 10 years old. Offspring psychotic experiences were examined using self-report at 14 years. Structural equation mediation models were conducted to explore whether maternal postnatal psychopathology and offspring childhood adversities sequentially mediated the relationship between maternal childhood adversity and offspring psychotic experiences. Analyses were adjusted for sociodemographic confounders.

Study results: Maternal history of childhood adversity was associated with offspring childhood adversities (β = 0.12, 95% CI: 0.09 to 0.16). Offspring childhood adversity mediated the association of maternal childhood adversity with offspring hallucinations (βindirect effect = 0.008, 95% CI: 0.002 to 0.014, proportion mediated = 16.3%) and delusions (βindirect effect = 0.006, 95% CI: 0.000 to 0.012, proportion mediated = 13.1%).

Conclusions: Intergenerational transmission of childhood adversity can be considered of relevance in the etiology of psychosis vulnerability and can potentially serve as a modifiable risk factor.