The moderating influence of resilience on childhood trauma: towards an understanding in homeless persons

Abstract

Resilience is offered as a theoretical framework from which the competent functioning of a small proportion of survivors of childhood trauma can be understood. Despite the likely deleterious impact of abuse and neglect some
individuals continue to thrive and achieve positive outcomes. The literature investigating protective factors implicated in resilience to childhood trauma is reviewed. Studies indicate that certain individual and environmental protective factors provide encouraging experiences and promote positive adaptation. Although current literature needs to move to a more process orientated approach for
investigating resilience, existing findings offer valuable insights for the direction of prevention and intervention programmes for at-risk populations. This focus on strengths rather than deficits paves the way for innovative approaches especially with disenfranchised groups who might otherwise be less receptive, for instance individuals marginalised from society such as homeless individuals.

On this basis, the empirical study investigated the relationship between childhood trauma and maladaptive coping and the relative influence of resilience, in homeless individuals. A significant relationship between childhood physical abuse and maladaptive coping existed, which was moderated by high levels of resilience. It is postulated that resilience in the homeless population may have a greater protective effect against maladaptive coping as severity of childhood physical abuse decreases. Studies replicating these findings in this and other disenfranchised groups are essential in order to fully understand the role of resilience and potential benefit of promoting and enhancing resilience and coping in reducing tenancy breakdown and therefore chronic and repeated homelessness.

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Identifiers

ORCID for Nick J. Maguire: orcid.org/0000-0003-4295-8068

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