Childhood adversities associated with self-criticism in a nationally representative sample

This study sought to examine the relationship between a broad range of childhood adversities and the adult psychological trait of self-criticism in a nationally representative sample. Data came from the US National Comorbidity Survey (N = 5877; age 15–54; response rate = 82.4%). A conservative multiple logistic regression analytic approach was employed to adjust for a number of sociodemographic variables, current distress, lifetime diagnosis of depression, and neuroticism. Results indicated that individuals with elevated self-criticism had significantly higher odds of reporting parental absence of at least six months (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.61, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) = 1.06–2.46), mother antisocial behavior (AOR = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.13–2.54), neglect (AOR = 1.90, 95% CI = 1.01–3.55), and three or more childhood adversities (AOR = 1.54, 95% CI = 1.12–2.12) than individuals with low or moderate self-criticism. This is the first study to examine retrospective reports of childhood adversities in relation to elevated self-criticism in a nationally representative sample of adults.