아동기 학대 경험과 청소년의 학교규칙 위반행동 간의 관계

The Relationship Between Childhood Abuse Experiences and School Rule-Breaking Behavior: A Mediating Effect of Adolescents’ Self-Esteem

Objective: This study examined the mediating effect of adolescents’ self-esteem on the relationship between their childhood abuse experiences and school rule-breaking behavior. Methods: The research participants consisted of 1,748 adolescents aged from 15 to 16. Adolescents’ school rule-breaking behavior and self-esteem were measured in 2016, whereas their childhood abuse experiences were measured in 2010. Panel data collected by the National Youth Policy Institute were analyzed using the bootstrapping technique and PROCESS Macro for SPSS. Results: The results of the study are as follows. First, the adolescents’ childhood abuse experiences affected their school rule-breaking behavior. That is, the adolescents who were abused by their parents were at higher risk of breaking school rules later in life. Second, the adolescents’ self-esteem mediated the relationship between their childhood abuse experiences and school rule-breaking behavior. The adolescents who were abused by their parents tend to have low levels of self-esteem and thereby break school rules. Conclusion/Implications: The present study shows the possibility that childhood abuse experiences lead to adolescents’ problematic behaviors, such as school rule violation. It also indicates that it is necessary to provide counseling and therapeutic interventions for enhancing the self-esteem of adolescents of the at-risk group with childhood abuse experience.