The Role of Anxiety in the Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Antisocial Behaviour in Adulthood

Childhood trauma and maltreatment are major global health issues with implications for flourishing and wellbeing in adulthood. Those exposed to childhood trauma are more likely to exhibit disruptive, violent and aggressive antisocial behaviors and mental health problems such as anxiety. However, little is known about the mechanisms underlying these associations. The current cross-sectional study sought to test whether adverse childhood experiences relate to risk of anxiety and antisocial behavior in adulthood. In total, 380 adult participants (Mage = 41.3 ± 13.3 years; 335 women, 45 men) completed questionnaires at a single timepoint. After controlling for participant age and sex, results showed that greater exposure to childhood maltreatment was associated with a greater experience of anxiety symptoms and greater antisocial behavior, including physical aggression, social aggression, and rule breaking (with medium effect sizes). Childhood household dysfunction was also associated with greater reported rule breaking (with a medium effect size). Mediation models further showed that anxiety symptoms mediated associations between childhood maltreatment and antisocial behavior (explaining 15%–27% of the association). There were no significant sex moderation effects. These findings provide evidence that adverse childhood experiences have an important role in antisocial behavior, and that anxiety has an important connection to this association.