ArticleBMC public health2021
Effects of positive and negative childhood experiences on adult family health.
Article in BMC public health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 72 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
72 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 176 citations in OpenAlex.
- Correlates of adherence to the Mediterranean diet among preschool-age and school-age children living in Mediterranean countries: a systematic review.European journal of nutrition · 2025Pooled it
- Early life circumstances and their impact on health in adulthood and later life: a systematic review.BMC geriatrics · 2024Pooled it
- A systematic review of positive childhood experiences and adult outcomes: Promotive and protective processes for resilience in the context of childhood adversity.Child abuse & neglect · 2023Pooled it
- The effect of a mindful mothering nursing intervention virtual program on mothers with adverse childhood experiences: a randomized controlled trial.Frontiers in public health · 2025Trial
- "All Children in Focus": Effects of a Universal Parenting Program at a 6-Month Follow-Up in a Randomized Controlled Trial in Sweden.Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research · 2024Trial
- Early Exposure to a Parent's Alcohol Use Disorder as an Adverse Childhood Experience: Neurobiological and Clinical Consequences in Adulthood.Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research · 2026Review
- Positive Childhood Experiences and Flourishing Among Young Adults in China: Does Emotion Regulation Explain Associations?Research in nursing & health · 2026Article
- Exploring the Evidence Base on the Association Between Parents' Adverse and Positive Experiences and the Developmental, Psychological and Behavioral Outcomes of Their Offspring: A Scoping Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Daily Parental Positive Experiences Are Linked to Better Daily Parenting Practice Through Reduced Stress and Depressive Mood.Family process · 2026Article
- Associations between adverse childhood experiences and family health in adulthood: a national cross-sectional analysis.Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique · 2026Article
- Positive childhood experiences and insufficient sleep among children and adolescents in the United States: A nationally representative study.Sleep health · 2026Article
- The protective power of connection: a proposed conceptual model of social supports in the context of youth adversity, disrupted attachment, and trauma symptoms.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Review
- Parents' Positive Childhood Experiences: A Scoping Review.Adversity and resilience science · 2026Review
- Associations Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Prenatal Depression Mediated Through Family Communication in Chinese Pregnant Women: Causal Mediation Analysis.Depression and anxiety · 2026Article
- Negative and positive childhood experiences with regard to PTSD and subjective well-being in the national sample of Poles.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Measuring adverse and protective experiences in early childhood: development and initial validation of the child and family experiences survey (CAFES).BMC public health · 2025Article
- Exploring the relationship between education and academic ability in childhood with healthcare utilization in adulthood: findings from the Aberdeen Children of the 1950s (ACONF).European journal of public health · 2025Article
- A Pilot Study of a Trauma-Informed Skills Parenting Group.Journal of child & adolescent trauma · 2025Article
- The Role of Childhood Adversity and Social Drivers of Health in Subjective Cognitive Decline.Preventing chronic disease · 2025Article
- Early-life exercise extends healthspan but not lifespan in mice.Nature communications · 2025Article
12 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe objective of the study was to determine the association between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and positive childhood experiences (PCEs) with family health in adulthood. Prior research indicates that ACEs and PCEs affect individual physical and mental health in adulthood. However, little is known about how ACEs and PCEs affect family health. Families develop and function through patterns and routines which are often intergenerational. Therefore, a person's early experiences may influence their family's health in adulthood.
methodA survey was administered to 1030 adults through Qualtrics, with participants recruited using quota-sampling to reflect the demographic characteristics of U.S. adults. Participants completed a survey about their childhood experiences, four domains of family health (family social and emotional health processes, family healthy lifestyle, family health resources, and family external social supports), and demographic characteristics. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling.
resultsAfter controlling for marriage, education, gender, race and age, ACEs were negatively associated with family social and emotional health processes and family health resources when accounting for PCEs; PCEs were positively associated with all four family health domains irrespective of ACEs.
conclusionChildhood experiences affect family health in adulthood in the expected direction. Even in the presence of early adversity, positive experiences in childhood can provide a foundation for creating better family health in adulthood.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.