Date
12-7-2023
Department
School of Behavioral Sciences
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD)
Chair
Margaret Gopaul
Keywords
childhood trauma, undergraduate success rates, anxiety, substance use, self-esteem, early adulthood
Disciplines
Psychology
Recommended Citation
Lipowski, Keirsten, "Childhood Trauma and Undergraduate College Success Rates: Examining the Mediating Roles of Anxiety, Substance Use, and Self-Esteem" (2023). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 5045.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/5045
Abstract
Individuals who experience childhood trauma have profound, lasting repercussions on their psychological and physical well-being. This non-experimental correlational study’s purpose is to evaluate if childhood trauma exposure predicts undergraduate college success rates for early adults. This study is designed to examine how the mediating factors of anxiety, substance use, and self-esteem are altered after childhood trauma exposure, ultimately influencing the ability to succeed in a college setting. Four research questions drove this study: (a) What is the relationship between the frequency of complex childhood trauma and college success rates?, (b) How does anxiety mediate the relationship between the frequency of complex trauma and college success rate?, (c) How does the rate of substance use mediate the relationship between frequency of complex trauma and college success rate?, and (d) How does the rate of self-esteem mediate the relationship between the frequency of complex trauma and college success rate? Participants were recruited from Liberty University’s undergraduate student population. Data was collected via an online questionnaire and was analyzed using IBM SPSS statistics software. Significant findings indicate a negative correlational relationship between childhood trauma exposure and undergraduate academic success. It was also found that as drug use increased, college success decreased. Finally, it was found that self-esteem is a mediating factor between childhood trauma and undergraduate success rates. This research highlights the importance of implementing interventions to help individuals who have been exposed to childhood trauma succeed in an academic setting while also overcoming complex repercussions.
