Childhood maltreatment and adulthood depressive symptoms: Self and other-mentalizing capacity as a mediating factor

Mentalization refers to the capacity to recognize and interpret behaviors of self and other in terms of mental intentions. It is acquired within a secure attachment relationship with the primary caregiver. Having an unreflective attachment figure and maltreatment during the early years is the primary source of mentalization deprivation. During these years, maltreatment produces several deficiencies in children's emotion recognition, affect regulation, self-regulation, and social recognition capacity, which might develop emotional disorders in adulthood, such as depression. Previous studies investigated how mentalization links early adverse experiences and adult psychopathology; however, none demonstrated how specific mentalization dimensions play a role in the formation of depressive symptoms. Therefore, the current study aimed to show the association between early childhood maltreatment and depressive symptoms in adulthood, investigating the mediating role of self and other-mentalization capacities with the potential moderating effect of stressful life events. Participants from a non-clinical population older than 18, completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, the Trait Meta-Mood Scale, Interpersonal Reactivity Scale, Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scale, and Life Events Checklist. The results of path analysis showed that the more individuals have childhood maltreatment, the less they have the self-mentalization capacity and the more depressive symptoms. However, other-mentalization capacity did not significantly predict the relationship between childhood maltreatment and depressive symptoms. Furthermore, stressful life events did not affect the relationship between self & other-mentalization and depressive symptoms. These findings highlight the importance of self-understanding in terms of emotions and thoughts in developing depressive symptoms in adulthood for individuals exposed to childhood maltreatment.