Among adults, childhood maltreatment is widely known to increase depressive symptoms and reduce quality of adult’s intimate relationships. Considering the association between childhood maltreatment and adult depression and relationship quality from systemic theories may help clinicians conceptualize and intervene with their clients. Internal Family Systems is an evidenced based psychotherapy and is a trauma-informed model. Self is one of the core concepts of the Internal Family Systems model and it is theorized to reduce mental health problems such as depression and strengthen adult romantic relationships. Despite this theoretical proposition there is no supporting empirical research. To address this gap, the current study examined Self, specifically the qualities of Self (e.g., compassion) and Self-Leadership (e.g., staying calm in face of distress) as pathways linking childhood maltreatment to depression and relationship quality. Using a sample of adults in a romantic relationship, the current study examined Self-Qualities and Self-Leadership as mediators linking retrospective reports of child maltreatment to current depressive symptoms and relationship quality. Results indicate that the indirect (mediating) effects from childhood maltreatment to depressive symptoms and relationship quality were significant through Self-Qualities, but not Self-Leadership. Findings suggest that childhood maltreatment is associated with less frequent access to the qualities of Self, such as compassion and confidence which, in turn, were associated with fewer depressive symptoms and higher levels of relationship quality. For clinicians, the use of IFS and specifically helping clients increase the Self-Qualities may reduce depressive symptoms and strengthen romantic relationships.

在成年人中，众所周知，童年时期的虐待会增加抑郁症状，并降低成年人的亲密关系的质量。从系统理论上考虑儿童虐待与成人抑郁症之间的关联以及关系质量，可以帮助临床医生对其客户进行概念化和干预。内部家庭系统是一种基于证据的心理治疗方法，是一种创伤知情的模型。自我是内部家庭系统模型的核心概念之一，在理论上可以减少诸如抑郁症之类的心理健康问题，并增强成人的浪漫关系。尽管有这样的理论命题，但没有任何支持性的实证研究。为了弥补这一差距，本研究研究了自我，特别是自我（例如，同情心）和自我领导（例如，保持冷静，面对苦难）是将儿童期虐待与抑郁和人际关系联系起来的途径。本研究以恋爱关系中的成年人为样本，研究了自我素质和自我领导作为调解人，将儿童虐待的回顾性报告与当前的抑郁症状和人际关系联系起来。结果表明，儿童虐待对抑郁症状和关系质量的间接（中介）影响通过“自我素质”具有显着意义，而“自我领导力”则无显着意义。研究结果表明，儿童时期的虐待与获得自我特质（例如同情心和自信心）的频率降低有关，而自尊心和自信心又与抑郁症的症状减少和人际关系质量的提高有关。对于临床医生而言