Early Child Abuse and the Effects of Subsequent Witnessed Violence: Results from a National High Risk Sample of Adolescents

Early child abuse likely changes the response to later witnessed community violence, but this interaction is not well understood. This study examined whether early physical, emotional and sexual abuse modify the relationship between adolescent witnessed community violence and functioning. Drawing on stress–diathesis theory, we examined the relevance of two competing models—the stress amplification and stress inoculation model—in a large national high risk sample (N = 874) in the United States. Consistent with stress amplification, results derived from multiple linear regressions suggested that early physical and sexual abuse strengthened the association of adolescent witnessed violence with social competency. In contrast, in one case a stress-inoculation effect was observed, such that youth who reported early sexual abuse experienced fewer internalizing symptoms in response to witnessed violence compared to those without early abuse. Implications of findings are addressed, including the importance of screening for all forms of early abuse (physical, emotional and sexual) so service provision can be effectively timed and tailored.