Childhood maltreatment, mindfulness, and the mediating role of rumination in college students

Childhood maltreatment has been associated with a myriad of challenges in later life, including difficulties related to cognitive processing, emotional regulation, social-behavioral functioning, and academic achievement. The current study investigated how childhood maltreatment may affect college students by examining the interrelationship of important variables known to be associated with maltreatment: trait mindfulness and rumination. Data was collected via convenience sampling. Self-report measures of childhood maltreatment, ruminative thoughts, and trait mindfulness were completed by college students attending a midsize, public, regional, four-year university in the southeastern United States. Data from a total of 374 participants were included in the analyses. Findings provide evidence that rumination may mediate the relationship between childhood maltreatment and trait mindfulness. In addition, results indicated that negative forms of ruminative thought, both depressive and maladaptive, partially accounted for the relationship between childhood maltreatment and trait mindfulness. Adaptive rumination was not found to be a significant mediator in the relationship between childhood maltreatment and trait mindfulness. These findings may be useful for colleges and universities in considerations for providing a tiered system of support for students with maltreatment histories who experience ruminative thoughts. Addressing ruminative thoughts may help improve important life functions of those students.