Childhood Abuse and Creativity: The Mediating Role of Depression and the Moderating Role of a Close Social Relationship
Loading...
Date of Award
Summer 8-1-2026
Document Type
Applied Project
Degree Name
Master of Science in Research Psychology (MS)
Department
Psychology
Supervisor
Dr. Jessica Fossum
Second Reader
Dr. Jenny Lee Vaydich
Keywords
creativity, childhood abuse, social support, depressive symptoms, moderated mediation
Abstract
While a strong link between childhood abuse and depressive symptoms is established (Nelson et al., 2017; Petruccelli et al., 2019), little research has been done on the effect of childhood abuse on creative engagement in adulthood. Behavioral theories of depression (Lewinsohn, 1975) suggest a lack of positive reinforcement may engender a sustained cycle of behavioral inactivity through the lifespan. Aligned with the stress-buffer hypothesis (Cohen & Wills, 1985), the presence of perceived social support may interrupt this cycle and buffer depressive symptoms in adulthood. To explore this gap, we used data collected from the Global Flourishing Study, which included a total of 207,919 participants recruited globally to complete several one-item measures alongside the PHQ-2 scale of depression (Staples et al., 2019; α = 0.83). Moderated mediation analysis indicated that the presence of childhood abuse was a significant predictor of higher levels of creativity (c = 0.31, p < .001). Depressive symptoms significantly mediate the relationship between childhood abuse and creativity at both levels of the moderator and perceived social support significantly moderates the relationship between childhood abuse and depressive symptoms. The Index of Moderated Mediation was significant (β = 0.0079, 95% CI [0.0053, 0.0109]). These results are consistent with previous findings on the effects of childhood abuse on depressive symptoms. Novel findings highlight the important role perceived social support has in protecting an adaptive, expressive, and resilience-driving behavior. This also suggests early adversity affects long-term behavioral engagement, and can aid in informing resilience-focused behavioral interventions.
Recommended Citation
Chiv, Cosette; Hockley, Brooklyn; McCabe, Sean; and Timmers, Jordan, "Childhood Abuse and Creativity: The Mediating Role of Depression and the Moderating Role of a Close Social Relationship" (2026). Research Psychology Theses. 38.
https://digitalcommons.spu.edu/rpsy_etd/38