Childhood trauma is known to have negative repercussions on the life course. Using a correlational research design, this study investigated the effects of childhood trauma on dissociative symptoms and borderline personality features and aimed to contribute to future efforts to reduce their impact in adulthood. The research sample consisted of 519 volunteer participants, 222 women and 297 men. Data were collected from the participants using the Dissociative Experiences Questionnaire (DES), Borderline Personality Questionnaire (BPQ), and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ-28). Findings suggest that traumatic experiences occurring in childhood and adolescence may be associated with greater later risk, and that neglect and abuse may have a role in the development of borderline personality features and dissociative symptoms throughout life. Childhood neglect and abuse were particularly strongly associated with difficulties in emotion regulation, fear of abandonment, and impulsive behaviours. In addition, sociodemographic data indicated that childhood trauma affected self-image and emotional instability in men and relationships in women. However, no significant overall gender difference was found in dissociative symptoms. Low socioeconomic status was associated with a higher risk of dissociative symptoms, whereas it was not a significant predictor of borderline personality features. Furthermore, both borderline personality features and dissociative symptoms increased with age.
Yiğit et al. (Wed,) studied this question.