Adverse Childhood Experiences and ADHD in College Students: Exploring the Role of Emotion Regulation and Self-Compassion

Background: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are known to have several negative effects on mental health and well-being. However, few studies have examined the role of these events in the development of ADHD and the protective factors that could guide prevention and intervention strategies in college students. The aim of current study is to examine the potential role of self-compassion and emotion regulation in the relationship between ACEs and ADHD symptoms in college students. Method: The sample of the study consisted of 442 young adults (67.4% female; 32.6% male) aged between 18 and 29 years (M = 20.43, SD = 1.74) from a public university in Türkiye. Participants completed validated measures that were combined in a single battery with a web-based tool. Results: We found that ACEs were associated with lower levels of self-compassion (Cohen’s d = 0.43) and emotion regulation (Cohen’s d = 0.29), along with higher levels of attention deficit (Cohen’s d = 0.47) and hyperactivity-impulsivity (Cohen’s d = 0.46) symptoms. Further results indicated that ACEs were a significant positive predictor of attention deficit and hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms and a negative predictor of self-compassion and emotion regulation. Additionally, self-compassion showed an indirect effect on the relationship between ACEs and emotion regulation, as well as the association between ACEs and attention-deficit/hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms. Finally, we found that emotion regulation had an indirect effect on the association between self-compassion and attention-deficit/hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms. Conclusion: These findings provide further evidence supporting the importance of self-compassion-based strategies to reduce attention-deficit/hyperactivity impulsivity by promoting emotion regulation skills in college students.