Childhood Maltreatment and Life Satisfaction in Chinese Student Preschool Teachers: The Roles of Resilience and Social Support

Although some studies have explored the relationships between childhood maltreatment and life satisfaction, few studies have explored the pathways between those two variables in a sample of student preschool teachers. The current study, thus, attempts to explore the relationships between childhood maltreatment and life satisfaction in Chinese student preschool teachers and to examine the roles of resilience and social support in those relationships. A total of 1218 students majoring in early childhood education were recruited from three Chinese universities to attend this study. Self-reported questionnaires were used to collect data, and structural equation modeling was used to perform data analysis. Results showed that childhood maltreatment was negatively associated with life satisfaction in Chinese student preschool teachers; resilience and social support mediated those relationships. The findings suggest that childhood maltreatment not only has a direct relationship with life satisfaction, but also has an indirect relationship with life satisfaction via resilience and social support. Childhood maltreatment should be considered when enrolling student preschool teachers, and increasing levels of resilience and social support should be meaningful approaches when cultivating student preschool teachers who have experienced childhood maltreatment.