{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,17]],"date-time":"2026-10-17T14:35:13Z","timestamp":1792247713657,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":44,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,18]],"date-time":"2021-10-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1634515200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:p>\n                    Victims of childhood trauma report shame and anticipation of stigma, leading to non-disclosure and avoidance of help. Stigma is potentially aggravating the mental health consequences of childhood trauma. So far there is no comprehensive study examining stigma toward adult survivors of various forms of childhood trauma, and it is unclear whether stigma interferes with reaching out to affected individuals. In a vignette study based on a representative sample of the German general population (\n                    <jats:italic>N<\/jats:italic>\n                    = 1320; 47.7% male) we randomly allocated participants to brief case vignettes pertaining to past childhood sexual\/physical abuse or accidents, and adult physical abuse. Stigma was elicited by applying the Social Distance Scale, assessing respondents\u2019 attitudes\/stereotypes toward the persons in the vignette and their reluctance to address the specific trauma in conversation. While one aim was to establish the prevalence of stigma toward persons with CT, we hypothesized that attitudes differ according to type of trauma. Of the respondents, 45% indicated they were unlikely to reach out to a victim of childhood sexual abuse, 38% to a victim of childhood physical abuse, 31% to someone reporting a childhood accident and 25% to someone reporting adult physical abuse. Contrary to our expectations, childhood sexual abuse did not consistently elicit more stigma than childhood physical abuse in Krukall-Wallis tests. Equally, childhood interpersonal trauma did not consistently elicit more stigma than childhood accidental trauma. Structural equation modeling revealed social distance as mediator of the relationship between negative stereotypes and reluctance to address childhood trauma in conversation. Our analyses further revealed an ambiguous role of negative stereotypes in addressing childhood trauma in conversation with trauma victims, which has yet to be examined. There is evidence for stigma associated with having survived childhood trauma, which is interfering with offering help.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0258782","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,18]],"date-time":"2021-10-18T17:07:53Z","timestamp":1634576873000},"page":"e0258782","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":40,"title":["Stigma as a barrier to addressing childhood trauma in conversation with trauma survivors: A study in the general population"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6752-463X","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Georg","family":"Schomerus","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Stephanie","family":"Schindler","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Theresia","family":"Rechenberg","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tobias","family":"Gfesser","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hans J.","family":"Grabe","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mario","family":"Liebergesell","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5402-6631","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Christian","family":"Sander","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Christine","family":"Ulke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sven","family":"Speerforck","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,18]]},"reference":[{"key":"pone.0258782.ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"517","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev-psych-010416-044208","article-title":"Hidden Wounds? Inflammatory Links Between Childhood Trauma and Psychopathology","volume":"68","author":"A Danese","year":"2017","journal-title":"Annu Rev Psychol"},{"issue":"11","key":"pone.0258782.ref002","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1207","DOI":"10.1007\/s00127-018-1525-y","article-title":"Profiles of childhood trauma and psychopathology: US National Epidemiologic Survey","volume":"53","author":"E Curran","year":"2018","journal-title":"Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0258782.ref003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"66","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1600-0447.2009.01491.x","article-title":"Childhood life events and childhood trauma in adult patients with depressive, anxiety and comorbid disorders vs. controls","volume":"122","author":"JGFM Hovens","year":"2010","journal-title":"Acta Psychiatr Scand"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0258782.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"217","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jad.2003.12.013","article-title":"Adverse childhood experiences and the risk of depressive disorders in adulthood","volume":"82","author":"DP Chapman","year":"2004","journal-title":"J Affect Disord"},{"issue":"9432","key":"pone.0258782.ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"453","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(04)16770-6","article-title":"Borderline personality disorder","volume":"364","author":"K Lieb","year":"2004","journal-title":"The Lancet"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0258782.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"225","DOI":"10.1017\/S0033291712000785","article-title":"Childhood adversity in schizophrenia: a systematic meta-analysis","volume":"43","author":"SL Matheson","year":"2013","journal-title":"Psychol Med"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0258782.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"530","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1939-0025.1985.tb02703.x","article-title":"The traumatic impact of child sexual abuse: a conceptualization","volume":"55","author":"D Finkelhor","year":"1985","journal-title":"Am J Orthopsychiatry"},{"issue":"5","key":"pone.0258782.ref008","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"512","DOI":"10.1177\/1524838016673601","article-title":"\"I Still Feel Like I Am Not Normal\": A Review of the Role of Stigma and Stigmatization Among Female Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse, Sexual Assault, and Intimate Partner Violence","volume":"19","author":"AC Kennedy","year":"2018","journal-title":"Trauma Violence Abuse"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref009","first-page":"413","volume-title":"Childhood Trauma in Mental Disorders","author":"Springer","year":"2020"},{"issue":"8","key":"pone.0258782.ref010","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1734","DOI":"10.1177\/0886260516653753","article-title":"Stigmatizing Reactions Versus General Negative Reactions to Partner Violence Disclosure as Predictors of Avoidance Coping and Depression","volume":"34","author":"NM Overstreet","year":"2019","journal-title":"J Interpers Violence"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0258782.ref011","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"515","DOI":"10.1177\/0886260515609565","article-title":"Sources and Components of Stigma Experienced by Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence","volume":"33","author":"CE Murray","year":"2018","journal-title":"J Interpers Violence"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0258782.ref012","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"127","DOI":"10.1037\/a0013475","article-title":"Childhood sexual abuse, stigmatization, internalizing symptoms, and the development of sexual difficulties and dating aggression","volume":"77","author":"C Feiring","year":"2009","journal-title":"J Consult Clin Psychol"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref013","volume-title":"Stigma: notes on the management of spoiled identity","author":"E Goffman","year":"1963"},{"issue":"7","key":"pone.0258782.ref014","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1032","DOI":"10.1016\/j.socscimed.2009.07.032","article-title":"The role of shame in posttraumatic stress disorder: a proposal for a socio-emotional model for DSM-V","volume":"69","author":"A Budden","year":"2009","journal-title":"Soc Sci Med"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0258782.ref015","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"363","DOI":"10.1146\/annurev.soc.27.1.363","article-title":"Conceptualizing Stigma.","volume":"27","author":"BG Link","year":"2001","journal-title":"Annu. Rev. Sociol"},{"issue":"8","key":"pone.0258782.ref016","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1741","DOI":"10.1017\/S0033291711002558","article-title":"Association between public views of mental illness and self-stigma among individuals with mental illness in 14 European countries","volume":"42","author":"S Evans-Lacko","year":"2012","journal-title":"Psychol Med"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref017","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"455","DOI":"10.1016\/j.chiabu.2018.08.015","article-title":"Barriers and facilitators affecting self-disclosure among male survivors of child sexual abuse: The service providers\u2019 perspective","volume":"88","author":"M Sivagurunathan","year":"2019","journal-title":"Child Abuse & Neglect"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0258782.ref018","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"339","DOI":"10.1016\/j.psychres.2011.05.024","article-title":"Examining a progressive model of self-stigma and its impact on people with serious mental illness","volume":"189","author":"PW Corrigan","year":"2011","journal-title":"Psychiatry Res"},{"issue":"6","key":"pone.0258782.ref019","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"753","DOI":"10.1016\/j.comppsych.2012.01.003","article-title":"Attitudes among medical and nonmedical university students toward the survivors of childhood abuse","volume":"53","author":"E Kandemir","year":"2012","journal-title":"Compr Psychiatry"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0258782.ref020","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"41","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijlp.2012.11.006","article-title":"Attitudes among judiciary and junior clerks toward the survivors of childhood sexual abuse","volume":"36","author":"G Berber","year":"2013","journal-title":"Int J Law Psychiatry"},{"issue":"7","key":"pone.0258782.ref021","first-page":"839","volume":"26","author":"R Hawkins","year":"2017","journal-title":"Child Sexual Abuse Attributions Among Undergraduate Psychology Students in Singapore"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0258782.ref022","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"379","DOI":"10.1177\/088626089004004001","article-title":"Sexual Abuse and Its Relationship to Later Sexual Satisfaction, Marital Status, Religion, and Attitudes.","volume":"4","author":"D Finkelhor","year":"1989","journal-title":"J Interpers Violence"},{"issue":"8","key":"pone.0258782.ref023","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"759","DOI":"10.1016\/S0145-2134(98)00062-3","article-title":"Prevalence of post traumatic stress disorder and other psychiatric diagnoses in three groups of abused children (sexual, physical, and both).","volume":"22","author":"PT Ackerman","year":"1998","journal-title":"Child Abuse & Neglect"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0258782.ref024","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"511","DOI":"10.1093\/oxfordjournals.schbul.a007098","article-title":"Measuring mental illness stigma","volume":"30","author":"BG Link","year":"2004","journal-title":"Schizophr Bull"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref025","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"963","DOI":"10.2307\/2090315","article-title":"Rejection: A possible consequence of seeking help for mental disorders","author":"DL Phillips","year":"1963","journal-title":"American Sociological Review"},{"issue":"6","key":"pone.0258782.ref026","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1461","DOI":"10.1086\/228672","article-title":"The Social Rejection of Former Mental Patients: Understanding Why Labels Matter","volume":"92","author":"BG Link","year":"1987","journal-title":"American Journal of Sociology"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref027","first-page":"216","article-title":"Social distance and its origins","volume":"9","author":"ES Bogardus","year":"1925","journal-title":"Sociology and Social Research"},{"issue":"3","key":"pone.0258782.ref028","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"159","DOI":"10.1007\/BF02193089","article-title":"Violent attacks on public figures by persons suffering from psychiatric disorders. Their effect on the social distance towards the mentally ill","volume":"245","author":"MC Angermeyer","year":"1995","journal-title":"Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0258782.ref029","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13","DOI":"10.15241\/als.1.1.13","article-title":"Social Distance and Mental Illness: Attitudes Among Mental Health and Non-Mental Health Professionals and Trainees","volume":"1","author":"AL Smith","year":"2011","journal-title":"TPC"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0258782.ref030","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"281","DOI":"10.1037\/h0040957","article-title":"Construct validity in psychological tests","volume":"52","author":"LJ Cronbach","year":"1955","journal-title":"Psychol Bull"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0258782.ref031","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.18637\/jss.v048.i02","article-title":"lavaan: An R Package for Structural Equation Modeling.","volume":"48","author":"Y Rosseel","year":"2012","journal-title":"J. Stat. Soft"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0258782.ref032","first-page":"23","article-title":"Evaluating the Fit of Structural Equation Models.: Tests of Significance and Descriptive Goodnes-of-Fit-Measures","volume":"8","author":"K. Schermelleh-Engel","year":"2003","journal-title":"Mothods of Psychological Research"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref033","article-title":"Statistically based tests for the number of common factors: Paper presented at the Annual Spring Meeting of the Psychometric Society","author":"J. H. Steiger","year":"1980"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0258782.ref034","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"238","DOI":"10.1037\/0033-2909.107.2.238","article-title":"Comparative fit indexes in structural models","volume":"107","author":"PM Bentler","year":"1990","journal-title":"Psychol Bull"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref035","volume-title":"EQS structural equations program manual","author":".","year":"1995"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref036","volume-title":"Principles and practice of structural equation modeling","author":"RB Kline","year":"2016","edition":"4"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref037","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1007\/978-3-658-16670-0","volume-title":"Einf\u00fchrung in lineare Strukturgleichungsmodelle mit Stata","author":"J Aichholzer","year":"2017"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref038","volume-title":"Handbook of psychology.","author":"JB Ullman","year":"2013","edition":"2"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref039","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"290","DOI":"10.2307\/270723","article-title":"Asymptotic Confidence Intervals for Indirect Effects in Structural Equation Models","volume":"13","author":"ME Sobel","year":"1982","journal-title":"Sociological Methodology"},{"key":"pone.0258782.ref040","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"71","DOI":"10.1016\/j.dr.2016.06.004","article-title":"Measurement Invariance Conventions and Reporting: The State of the Art and Future Directions for Psychological Research","volume":"41","author":"DL Putnick","year":"2016","journal-title":"Dev Rev"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0258782.ref041","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"379","DOI":"10.1038\/s41380-019-0551-9","article-title":"Resilience and the brain: a key role for regulatory circuits linked to social stress and support","volume":"25","author":"NE Holz","year":"2020","journal-title":"Mol Psychiatry"},{"issue":"2","key":"pone.0258782.ref042","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"211","DOI":"10.1016\/S0145-2134(96)00147-0","article-title":"Social support and coping strategies as mediators of adult adjustment following childhood maltreatment","volume":"21","author":"MG Runtz","year":"1997","journal-title":"Child Abuse & Neglect"},{"issue":"4","key":"pone.0258782.ref043","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"417","DOI":"10.1037\/sah0000112","article-title":"Childhood trauma and self-stigma of alcohol dependence: Applying the progressive model of self-stigma","volume":"3","author":"S Stolzenburg","year":"2018","journal-title":"Stigma and Health"},{"issue":"5","key":"pone.0258782.ref044","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"587","DOI":"10.1176\/appi.ps.201700312","article-title":"Understanding Mental Illness Stigma Toward Persons With Multiple Stigmatized Conditions: Implications of Intersectionality Theory","volume":"69","author":"N Oexle","year":"2018","journal-title":"Psychiatr Serv"}],"container-title":["PLOS ONE"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0258782","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,18]],"date-time":"2021-10-18T17:09:43Z","timestamp":1634576983000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/dx.plos.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0258782"}},"subtitle":[],"editor":[{"given":"Astrid M.","family":"Kamperman","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"editor"}]}],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,18]]},"references-count":44,"journal-issue":{"issue":"10","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,18]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0258782","relation":{},"ISSN":["1932-6203"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1932-6203","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,18]]}}}