Childhood maltreatment and adolescents’ peer victimization: The effect of security, school connectedness and gender

Based on the cycle of violence theory, exposure to childhood maltreatment is more likely to be revictimized in adolescence. However, the internal mechanism between childhood maltreatment and adolescents' peer victimization is still not precise. Current study aimed to explore the internal mechanism between childhood maltreatment and adolescents' peer victimization through the mediating role of security and moderating roles of gender and school connectedness. Participants. A sample of 2758 adolescents (M = 15.09, SD = 1.61), including 1353 junior school students and 1405 high school students, participated in the study. All participants completed self-report questionnaires regarding childhood maltreatment, sense of security, peer victimization, and school connectedness. (1) Childhood maltreatment positively predicted adolescents' peer victimization. (2) Security played a mediating role between childhood maltreatment and peer victimization. (3) Gender played a moderating role between security and peer victimization. Contrary to girls, security had a more substantial impact on boys' peer victimization. (4) School connectedness was a crucial protective factor that could inhibit childhood maltreatment's adverse effects on security and peer victimization. And adolescents with high school connectedness were at lower risk of feeling insecurity and exposure to peer victimization in adolescence than those with low school connectedness. The findings highlight security and school connectedness are crucial factors in protecting adolescents from peer victimization. Besides, much attention should focus on boys, as boys with insecurity are more likely to be victimized by peers.