Childhood Trauma and Intimate Partner Violence in Turkish Women: Shame and Guilt as Pathways to Revictimization

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) remains one of the most widespread forms of violence against women. Prior research indicates that women who have experienced traumatic childhood experiences face an enhanced likelihood of IPV later in life, often described as revictimization. Although the occurrence of revictimization is well-documented, less is known about the mechanisms that explain how women with childhood trauma become more vulnerable to IPV victimization. The present study explored two emotional factors, shame- and guilt-proneness, that might contribute to the heightened risk for IPV. Specifically, we examined whether a tendency toward shame and guilt mediates the relationship between the five types of childhood traumatic events (i.e., physical abuse, emotional abuse, emotional neglect, sexual abuse, and physical neglect) and IPV through a multiple mediation model. The sample consisted of 594 Turkish women, aged 18 to 70 (M = 29.53; SD = 10.83), who were in a romantic relationship for a minimum of one year. Participants completed an online survey. Our findings revealed that all five forms of childhood trauma are positively related to IPV, indicating evidence for revictimization. Furthermore, shame-proneness mediated the link between emotional abuse and IPV, whereas guilt-proneness did not function as a mediator between traumatic childhood experiences and IPV. These findings suggest that shame-proneness, but not guilt-proneness, may play a role in revictimization in women with a history of emotional abuse and may be a focus for prevention and intervention efforts.