The Relationship Between Childhood Traumatic Experiences and Bodily Distress Syndrome: The Mediating Role of Somatoform Dissociation

Abstract

This research aimed to investigate the relationship between childhood traumatic experiences and bodily distress syndrome, and the mediating role of somatoform dissociation. A total of 241 individuals living in Iran aged 20–40 years (M = 26.41 years, SD = 6.30; 74.7% females) were selected by convenience sampling to participate online in the research in March 2023. They answered the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ-SF), the Bodily Distress Syndrome Checklist (BDS-25), and the Somatoform Dissociation Questionnaire (SDQ-20). The results of the structural equation modeling showed that the model had a good fit, and significant relationships were observed between childhood traumatic experiences and bodily distress syndrome, between childhood traumatic experiences and somatoform dissociation, and also between somatoform dissociation and bodily distress syndrome. The results indicated that somatoform dissociation partially mediates the relationship between childhood traumatic experiences and bodily distress syndrome. Furthermore, the prevalence of bodily distress syndrome was higher in the female than the male participants. The results thus highlight the role of childhood traumatic experiences and somatoform dissociation in creating bodily distress syndrome.

Keywords:

• Childhood traumatic experiences
• bodily distress syndrome
• somatoform dissociation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data are available on request from the corresponding author.

Additional information

Funding

No funding was received for this research.

Notes on contributors

Fatemeh Doustmohammadi

Fatemeh Doustmohammadi, M.A. in Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran. Research interests: Health psychology, trauma, attachment, object relation theory.

Azadeh Tavoli

Azadeh Tavoli, Assistant Professor at the Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran. Research areas: Social anxiety, depression, psychopathology, quality of life, mental health, health psychology, and cognitive behavioral therapy.

Farhad Tanhaye Reshvanloo

Farhad Tanhaye Reshvanloo, Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, Department of Psychology, Shandiz Institute of Higher Education, Mashhad, Iran. His research interest includes adolescence and emerging adulthood studies, where he focuses on issues related to motivation and well-being in interpersonal relationships.

Asal Abaszad

Asal Abaszad, B.A. in Psychology, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran. Research interests: Psychoanalysis, psychodynamic approaches, personality disorders, neuroscience, childhood development.