Validity of retrospective measures of early maltreatment and depressive episodes using the Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse (CECA) instrument — A life-course study of adult chronic depression — 2

BackgroundA previous paper, using data collected retrospectively from sister pairs, reported substantial associations of adult depressive episodes lasting at least 12 months with childhood maltreatment [Brown, G.W., Craig, T.K.J., Harris, T.O. Handley, R.V. & Harvey, A.L. 2007a-this issue. Development of a retrospective interview measure of parental maltreatment using the Childhood Experience of Care & Abuse (CECA) instrument — a life-course study of adult chronic depression — 1. J. Affect. Disord. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2007.05.022]. Risk was far less when depressive episodes of any duration were considered. This paper considers how much scientific weight can be placed on these findings in the light of doubt often expressed about retrospective collection of childhood and adult data.MethodsThe retrospectively gathered material was obtained from adult sister pairs within 5 years of age, comprising a high-risk series (n = 118) where the first sister was selected as likely to have experienced childhood abuse or neglect, and a comparison series (n = 80) where she was selected at random. Current age ranged between early 20s and 50s. Data was collected by semi-structured interviews, using investigator-based ratings covering a wide range of parental behaviour and childhood behaviour.ResultsA series of analyses failed to reveal evidence of significant bias in the collection of material about adult depression or parental maltreatment. There was, however, some evidence of under reporting.LimitationsConclusions from such analyses can only be judged in terms of degree of plausibility.ConclusionsNothing emerged to suggest the presence of significant bias in the aetiological findings of our earlier paper. There is evidence of some underreporting of both early adverse experience and adult depressive episodes, but this is unlikely to threaten the conclusions drawn about the link of parental maltreatment with adult chronic depressive episodes.