Childhood maltreatment is linked to larger preferred interpersonal distances towards friends and strangers across the globe

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is thought to be associated with altered responses to social stimuli and interpersonal signals. However, limited evidence exists that CM is linked to larger comfortable interpersonal distance (CID) - the physical distance humans prefer towards others during social interactions. However, no previous study has investigated this association in a comprehensive sample, yielding sufficient statistical power. Moreover, preliminary findings are limited to the European region. Finally, it is unclear how CM affects CID towards different interaction partners, and whether CID is linked to social functioning and attachment. To address these outstanding issues, adults (N = 2986) from diverse cultures and socio-economic strata completed a reaction time task measuring CID towards an approaching stranger and friend. Higher CM was linked to a larger CID towards both friends and strangers. Moreover, insecure attachment and less social support were associated with larger CID. These findings demonstrate for the first time that CM affects CID across countries and cultures, highlighting the robustness of this association.

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Publication Details

Journal
Translational Psychiatry
Published
2024-08-23
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-024-02980-2
Citations
6
Primary Topic
Child Abuse and Trauma
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
3.83

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article

Childhood maltreatment is linked to larger preferred interpersonal distances towards friends and strangers across the globe

Vedat Şar, Muniarajan Ramakrishnan, Soraya Seedat, Deniz Ceylan et al.
6 citations
Translational Psychiatry
Child Abuse and Trauma
3.83
article

Childhood maltreatment is linked to larger preferred interpersonal distances towards friends and strangers across the globe

Vedat Şar, Muniarajan Ramakrishnan, Soraya Seedat, Deniz Ceylan, Habte Belete, Azi Berzengi, Necip Çapraz, Natalia E. Fares‐Otero, Einat Levy‐Gigi, Ibtihal Najm Shihab, Helena Örnkloo, Antje‐Kathrin Allgaier, Antonia M. Lüönd, Daniel Dukes, Chantal Martin‐Soelch, Monique C. Pfaltz, Dorota Reis, Misari Oe, Dany Laure Wadji, Georgina Spies, Christian Asongwe, Reut Zabag, Shilat Haim‐Nachum, Ulrich Schnyder, Nimrah Afzal, Sarah Miriam Quaatz, Sarah L. Halligan, Rahel Bachem, Alla Hemi, Naved Iqbal, Tanja Michael, Rachel Wamser‐Nanney, Krithika Prakash, Adrián Arévalo, Aziz Essadek, Laura Jobson, Stefanie Rita Balle, Tilahun Belete Mossie, M. Roxanne Sopp, Miranda Olff, Fredrik Åhs, Susilkumar Vandhana, Vijaya Raghavan
article en
6 citations

Abstract

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is thought to be associated with altered responses to social stimuli and interpersonal signals. However, limited evidence exists that CM is linked to larger comfortable interpersonal distance (CID) - the physical distance humans prefer towards others during social interactions. However, no previous study has investigated this association in a comprehensive sample, yielding sufficient statistical power. Moreover, preliminary findings are limited to the European region. Finally, it is unclear how CM affects CID towards different interaction partners, and whether CID is linked to social functioning and attachment. To address these outstanding issues, adults (N = 2986) from diverse cultures and socio-economic strata completed a reaction time task measuring CID towards an approaching stranger and friend. Higher CM was linked to a larger CID towards both friends and strangers. Moreover, insecure attachment and less social support were associated with larger CID. These findings demonstrate for the first time that CM affects CID across countries and cultures, highlighting the robustness of this association.

Translational PsychiatryVol. 14(1)
University of Kirkuk (IQ), Kurume University (JP), South African Medical Research Council (ZA), University of East Anglia (GB), University of Geneva (CH), Western Cape Department of Health (ZA), Schizophrenia Research Foundation (IN), Koç University (TR), Eastern Michigan University (US), Bar-Ilan University (IL), University of Fribourg (CH), University of Cape Town (ZA), University of Piura (PE), National University of San Marcos (PE), University of Zurich (CH), University of Missouri–St. Louis (US), Stellenbosch University (ZA), University of Bamenda (CM), Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ES), Yale University (US), Universität der Bundeswehr München (DE), Arq Psychotrauma Expert Group (NL), Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (ES), University Hospital of Zurich (CH), Amsterdam Neuroscience (NL), Kanchi Kamakoti CHILDS Trust Hospital (IN), Hôpitaux de Saint Maurice (FR), Amsterdam University Medical Centers (NL), Fundació Clínic per a la Recerca Biomèdica (ES), Consorci Institut D'Investigacions Biomediques August Pi I Sunyer (ES), Interpsy (FR), McGill University (CA), University of Bath (GB), Mid Sweden University (SE), Monash University (AU), Bahir Dar University (ET), Jamia Millia Islamia (IN), Universitat de Barcelona (ES), Columbia University (US), Saveetha University (IN), University of Amsterdam (NL), Université de Lorraine (FR), Saarland University (DE)
European Commission, Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst, Mittuniversitetet
Reduced inequalities
Openalex Percentile: Top 7%
Child Abuse and Trauma
3.83
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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