Parenting with a History of ACEs: Examining the Impact of Cumulative Exposure and Child Sexual Abuse on Mothers’ and Fathers’ Reports of Parent-Child Relationship Quality

This study investigates whether cumulative Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and specific exposure to child sexual abuse (CSA) are associated with parent reports of closeness and conflict in their relationships with their children. Parents ( N = 426; 85.9% mothers and 14.01% fathers) were recruited from family support services in Ireland and invited to complete a survey that included an assessment of their exposure to abuse, neglect and household disfunction during their childhood or adolescence. In addition, they completed a measure of their perceived relationship quality with their children. Data were analysed using hierarchal regression and found that parents’ greater cumulative ACE scores were associated with less closeness and greater conflict in parent-child relationships. CSA exposure was significantly associated with conflict in bivariate analysis, but this association was no longer significant once sociodemographic and cumulative ACEs were accounted for in regression. Findings provide insight into the intergenerational impact of childhood adversity and are discussed in terms of informing the design of trauma-informed family support interventions.