Objectives Long-term negative effects of child maltreatment, including risk for depression, are well established. The role of acute stressors in the relationship between maltreatment and depression is not as clear. We used data from a prospective study to test a stress sensitization hypothesis; whether child maltreatment lowered the threshold at which adult household stressors impacted adult depression. We hypothesized that maltreatment would positively moderate the relationship between acute stressors and adult depressive symptoms. Method Participants (n = 457) were majority White (~ 80%) and from low-income families (63%), and the sample was gender balanced (54% male) at the start of a 40-year longitudinal study examining the causes and consequences of child maltreatment. Regression analyses tested a main effects model for adult depression, modeled as a function of proximal adult household stressors and officially recorded child maltreatment, and controlled for measures of prior depression, household stress, and sociodemographic factors. A second model added the interaction between maltreatment and stressors to test the stress sensitization hypothesis. Results Maltreatment had a positive overall association with adult depression. This association was not significant after taking into account adult stressors and other controls. Adult stressors had a unique, positive association with depression. The association between adult stressors and depression was stronger for participants with histories of child maltreatment. Conclusions Child maltreatment increases sensitivity to later stressors, adding to the risk for depression. Findings are generally consistent with prior studies linking child maltreatment, stress, and later depression and provide support for stress sensitization extending into adulthood.

中文翻译：

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童年虐待和后来的压力生活事件作为抑郁症的预测因子：压力敏感假说的检验。

目标 虐待儿童的长期负面影响，包括患抑郁症的风险，已得到充分证实。急性压力源在虐待和抑郁之间的关系中的作用尚不清楚。我们使用来自一项前瞻性研究的数据来检验压力敏感假设；虐待儿童是否降低了成人家庭压力源影响成人抑郁症的阈值。我们假设虐待会积极缓和急性压力源与成人抑郁症状之间的关系。方法 参与者 (n = 457) 大部分是白人 (~ 80%) 和来自低收入家庭 (63%)，在一项为期 40 年的纵向研究开始时样本是性别平衡的 (54% 男性) 检查原因以及虐待儿童的后果。回归分析测试了成人抑郁症的主效应模型，建模为近端成人家庭压力源和官方记录的儿童虐待的函数，并控制先前抑郁、家庭压力和社会人口因素的测量。第二个模型增加了虐待和压力源之间的相互作用，以检验压力敏感假设。结果 虐待与成人抑郁呈正相关。考虑到成人压力源和其他控制因素后，这种关联并不显着。成人压力源与抑郁症有着独特的、积极的关联。对于有虐待儿童史的参与者，成人压力源与抑郁症之间的关联更强。结论 虐待儿童增加了对后来压力源的敏感性，增加了患抑郁症的风险。