How Strong Is a Mother's Love? Exploring the Mediating Role of Mother-Child Relationship Quality on the Link between Child Abuse Experiences and Adult Intimate Partner Violence Perpetration

Background and Purpose: In the U.S., 1 in 4 women (27.4%) and 1 in 9 men (11.0%) have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV) in their lifetime, which may lead to higher prevalence of poor physical and mental health, increased substance abuse, and suicide attempts (CDC, 2003; Campbell, 2002; Gilbert et al., 2009). The intergenerational violence transmission theory posits that child abuse (CA) is an important determinant of later IPV perpetration due to psychological and behavioral problems in adolescence and adulthood among abused children (Richards, Tillyer & Wright, 2017; Capaldi et al., 2012). However, less research exists on family protective factors like the mother-child relationship, which may mediate the link between CA and adult IPV perpetration. The present study aimed to fill a gap in the literature by exploring this potential mediator using a nationally representative sample. The following research questions were addressed:1) Did abused children report higher levels of IPV perpetration in adulthood? 2) Were higher quality mother-child relationships more protective against later IPV perpetration? 3) Did mother-child relationship quality mediate the link between CA and IPV?

Methods: This study analyzed data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Respondents were included in the sample if they completed both Wave I and Wave IV (n=5114); had a sample weight (n=5114); did not have missing data on covariates (n=3940); were under age 18 during Wave I (n=3718); final sample contained 3718 participants. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to investigate mediation dynamics between CA, mother-child relationship, and adult IPV perpetration. To reduce estimation bias, potential covariates were included in the model as controls for the exogenous variable (CA); these were respondent race, sex, education level, age and parental income.

Results: The structural equation model fit the data well (comparative fit index = .918, root mean square error of approximation = .051 [.045, .057]). Significant effects of CA on adult IPV perpetration were found, with a direct effect of .067 (p<.001) and indirect effect of .005 (p<.001). Of the total effect, 93% was direct and 6.9% was indirect. Each additional CA experience indirectly increased IPV perpetration through the quality of mother-child relationship by .005 units (P<.001). Other things being equal, for each additional CA experience, mother-child relationship quality decreased by .561 units (p<.001) and IPV perpetration increased by .067 units (p<.001). In addition, every one-unit increase in mother-child relationship quality decreased IPV perpetration by .009 units (p<.05).

Conclusion and Implications: This study provides important information about the complexity of CA and the protective effects of mother-child relationships on intergenerational violence transmission. While CA remains a significant risk factor for adult IPV perpetration, this study suggests that high-quality mother-child relationships may have a buffering effect and aid in preventing the continuation of violence within family systems. Parental support and involvement are an important protector for abused children well into adulthood. Continued efforts to research, fund, and implement interventions that build healthy family dynamics are needed to support traumatized youth into adulthood and end intergenerational violence.