EFFECT OF ACE AND COPING ON COVID SELF-EFFICACY

ABSTRACT

It is well established that exposure to Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) can have a profound negative impact on physical and mental health and other health-related processes (e.g. decision making;Chang et al. 2019). Research has also indicated that individual differences in coping styles represent one pathway through which exposure to ACEs can confer risk for negative health outcomes (Sheffler et al. 2019). It is less clear however, whether the negative effects of exposure to ACEs extend also to one's self-efficacy for preventing and overcoming COVID-19. The current study aimed to examine the relationship between ACEs, measured as the total number of adverse childhood experiences endorsed on the Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale, and self-efficacy for preventing and overcoming COVID-19, measured using a modified version of the Self-Efficacy for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. In addition, we examined whether the use of avoidant coping strategies (denial, venting, and behavioral disengagement) derived from a principal components analysis of the Brief Coping Questionnaire, statistically mediated the association between ACE scores and COVID-19 self-efficacy. Young adults (N = 86, Mage = 23.6;69% female;34% Asian, 33% white, 23% Latinx, 8% Mixed Race, 2% Black or African American) completed measures as part of a larger study. A series of linear regression analyses indicated that both exposure to a greater number of ACEs (β = -.23, p = .033) and greater use of avoidant coping strategies (β = -.36, p < .001) were associated with lower COVID-19 self-efficacy. On the other hand, ACE scores did not significantly predict the use of avoidant coping strategies (β = .09, p = .41) and when entered into a model simultaneously, both ACEs (β = -.20, p = .049) and coping (β = -.34, p = .001) remained significant predictors of COVID-19 self-efficacy. These results indicate that ACE scores and the use of avoidant coping strategies independently affect COVID-19 self-efficacy, and confirm that the negative health effects of ACEs extend also to perceptions of ability to prevent and overcome COVID-19.