Public Stigma Toward Adult Survivors of Adverse Childhood Experiences

Background and Purpose: Public stigma involves the endorsement of stereotypes, negative emotional reactions, and discriminatory behaviors toward individuals or groups. Public stigma can cause significant emotional harm, often contributing to feelings of shame, self-criticism, lowered self-efficacy, and increased vulnerability to mental health issues. When experienced by individuals with a history of childhood maltreatment, public stigma can further intensify the long-term negative effects of those early experiences.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) refer to traumatic or stressful events that occur before the age of 18, typically categorized into three domains: abuse, family dysfunction, and neglect. Adult survivors of ACEs frequently report experiencing public stigma related to their childhood trauma—such as being blamed, humiliated, bullied, dismissed, or excluded from social groups. Despite these consistent self-reports, research specifically examining public stigma toward adult survivors of ACEs remains limited.

There is also growing evidence that public perceptions of survivors vary depending on the survivor’s age and the specific type of childhood adversity experienced. Understanding how stigma is shaped by these variables—as well as by the personality traits and beliefs of those who hold stigmatizing attitudes—can support the development of more effective educational campaigns and stigma-reduction interventions.

This study aims to address the following research questions:

1. What are the most frequently and strongly endorsed stigmatizing attitudes toward adult survivors of childhood physical abuse, untreated parental mental illness, and neglect?

2a. How does the type of ACE (physical abuse, untreated parental mental illness, neglect) affect public stigma toward adult survivors?
2b. How does the age of the survivor (27 vs. 67 years) influence public stigma?

3. How do individual characteristics—such as personal ACE history, prior knowledge of ACEs, right-wing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, cognitive empathy, and affective empathy predict public stigma?

Methods: After IRB approval, a national survey was administered to 370 adults using the Qualtrics panel. The study utilized factorial vignettes, validated stigma measures, and two newly developed scales to assess public stigma. Linear regression was used to answer the research questions.

Results: The results indicate participants do hold stigmatizing beliefs about adult ACE survivors. Emotional neglect, in particular, was associated with more dismissive and punitive attitudes than physical abuse. Moreover, individual differences in empathy, political orientation, ACE exposure, and ACE knowledge were significant predictors of stigma levels.

Conclusions and Implications: These results highlight a critically understudied area of stigma directed at adult ACE survivors, reinforcing the real-world consequences reported by those with lived experience. By illustrating how stigma is embedded in public perception, the study calls attention to the need for targeted education and professional training, especially for individuals working in social services, law enforcement, and education. Identifying specific dimensions of stigma (e.g., dismissiveness, anger, fear) can inform the creation of interventions aimed at fostering empathy, understanding, and support. Ultimately, this research validates the stigmatizing experiences often described by survivors and emphasizes the urgent need for policies and practices that challenge harmful societal attitudes.