Trauma Symptoms as a Bridge: Linking Early Adversities to Interpersonal Risk Profiles for Victimization and Perpetration in Women

Objective: in the context of interpersonal violence, traumatic experiences are linked to both the risk of victimization and perpetration. Yet, most studies have examined these roles separately leaving unclear how traumatic experiences in the past and traumatic symptoms in the present may differently contribute to victimization vs perpetration-related problems. This study investigates if the relationships between early traumatic experiences and interpersonal problems typically associated with victim-like and offender-like roles are mediated by trauma symptoms (PTSD, DSO and Dissociation) in women. Method: ninety-eight adult women from the general population (Mage = 33.0, SD = 8.25) completed self-report measures assessing childhood trauma exposure (CTQ-SF), trauma-related symptoms according to ICD-11 criteria (ITQ; PTSD and disturbances in self-organization), dissociative symptoms (DES-II), and interpersonal functioning (IIP-32). Interpersonal risk phenotypes were operationalized as victimization-related (friendly–submissive) and perpetration-related (hostile–dominant) interpersonal problems. An overall childhood trauma severity factor was derived from CTQ clinical subscales using exploratory factor analysis. Two parallel mediation models were tested using bias-corrected bootstrap procedures, controlling for age and marital status. Results: the findings revealed that while dissociation contributes to both victimization-risk and perpetration-risk profiles, PTSD symptoms specifically foster victimization behaviors, whereas DSO symptoms are more strongly associated with perpetration behaviors. Specifically, childhood trauma was indirectly associated with victimization-related interpersonal problems through PTSD symptoms and dissociation, whereas the indirect path through DSO was not significant. Conversely, childhood trauma was indirectly associated with perpetration-related interpersonal problems through DSO symptoms and dissociation, while PTSD did not emerge as a significant mediator. In both models, direct effects of childhood trauma on interpersonal outcomes were non-significant once trauma-related symptoms were included, supporting a full mediation pattern. Conclusions: in conclusion, early adverse experiences, and trauma-related symptoms, appear to make women more vulnerable to victimization/perpetration-like problems. These results clarify distinct trauma-related pathways, underscoring the need for targeted preventive interventions.