Childhood maltreatment and prosocial behavior among Chinese adolescents: Roles of empathy and gratitude

Abstract Background Childhood maltreatment, including both abuse (physical, emotional, and sexual) and neglect (physical and emotional), is especially detrimental to adolescent development. However, most studies have been conducted within a psychopathological framework and focused on its role in exacerbating negative outcomes. Its adverse effect on adolescents’ positive functioning, including empathy, gratitude, and prosocial behavior, is relatively underexplored. Objective Guided by attachment theory, empathy-altruism hypothesis, and broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, this study examined the relationship between childhood maltreatment and prosocial behavior using a multiple mediation model that included empathy and gratitude as hypothesized mediators. Methods A sample of 897 adolescent students (45.80 % males and 54.20 % females; Mage = 15.41 years, SD = 1.73) completed questionnaires regarding demographics, childhood maltreatment, empathy, gratitude, and prosocial behavior. Results The results indicated that the prevalence rates of physical abuse, physical neglect, emotional abuse, emotional neglect, and sexual abuse were 10.81 %, 58.97 %, 19.84 %, 53.51 %, and 15.61 %, respectively. After controlling for demographic covariates, the results revealed that: (a) childhood maltreatment was negatively associated with prosocial behavior; (b) empathy and gratitude mediated the link between childhood maltreatment and prosocial behavior in a parallel fashion; and (c) empathy and gratitude also mediated the link between childhood maltreatment and prosocial behavior in a sequential fashion. Conclusions Childhood maltreatment is negatively related to adolescent prosocial behavior, and the relation is mediated by empathy and gratitude both parallelly and sequentially.