Childhood Trauma, Resilience and Aggressive Behavior among Young Adults with Paternal Substance Use: A Gender-Based Analysis

Abstract

Family environments affected by parental substance use may expose children to adverse experiences that remain relevant to psychological functioning during later developmental stages. The present study investigated whether male and female young adults with paternal substance use differed in childhood trauma, resilience, and aggressive behavior. A quantitative cross-sectional design was used with 150 participants between 18 and 30 years of age. The sample consisted of 75 males and 75 females recruited through purposive sampling. Participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire–Short Form (CTQ-SF), Brief Resilience Scale (BRS), and Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ). Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha, while gender differences were examined through independent-samples t tests. The CTQ-SF showed excellent reliability (α = .97), the BRS demonstrated good reliability (α = .85), and the BPAQ showed excellent reliability (α = .97). No significant difference was identified between males and females in childhood trauma, t(148) = −0.58, p = .561, or resilience, t(148) = −0.81, p = .417. In contrast, aggressive behavior differed significantly between the two groups, t(148) = 5.03, p < .001. Male participants reported higher aggression (M = 113.41, SD = 17.98) than female participants (M = 97.43, SD = 20.89), with a large effect size (d = 0.82). The findings indicate that gender differences in this sample were specific to aggressive behavior rather than extending to reported childhood trauma or resilience. These findings may inform psychological assessment and gender-responsive intervention for young adults affected by paternal substance use.