Longitudinal trajectories of adult sibling relationship quality and psychological well‐being: The effect of childhood maltreatment

Abstract

AbstractObjectivesThis study examined (a) the effect of childhood maltreatment on the trajectory of emotional closeness with siblings and (b) whether and how a history of childhood maltreatment affects the longitudinal association between emotional closeness with siblings and older adults' psychological well‐being.BackgroundPrior studies have suggested that childhood maltreatment may have lasting adverse effects on later‐life relationships with family members of origin, which may include adult siblings.MethodsWe used three‐wave data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. Latent growth curve modeling was conducted to examine the associations between perceived sibling closeness and the psychological well‐being of 4,736 older adults.ResultsOur findings showed that the trajectory of perceived sibling closeness differed between older adults who experienced childhood maltreatment and those who did not. Perceived sibling closeness was lower at baseline for those who experienced maltreatment and did not change over time, whereas perceived sibling closeness increased over time for those who did not experience maltreatment. Further, older adults who reported greater sibling closeness over time showed less of a decline in psychological well‐being, of which patterns did not differ between the maltreated and nonmaltreated groups.ConclusionChildhood maltreatment was found to have long‐term negative effects on the emotional quality of sibling relationships in late adulthood.ImplicationsMore research is needed to explore potential mechanisms that explain these lifelong associations, which will inform the development of timely interventions that can help reduce the long‐lasting influence of adverse childhood experiences on the dynamics and relationships in later‐life families.