# Adverse childhood experiences negatively impact sustained attention in adulthood

## TL;DR

Childhood trauma is linked to worse attention in adults, and online testing can reliably detect these effects.

## Contribution

Demonstrates the impact of ACE on sustained attention using a fully online study design.

## Key findings

- Higher ACE scores correlate with reduced attention discrimination and increased reaction time variability.
- The online study design reliably detected subtle attention differences linked to childhood trauma.
- Emotional and physical trauma subscores did not show significant individual effects.

## Abstract

Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) have been linked to reduced cognitive functioning in adulthood. This cross-sectional online study refines this picture by including emotional and physical domains of childhood trauma.

A total of 262 individuals completed the German version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) to operationalize ACE. Sustained attention was measured using the gradual onset Continuous Performance Task (gradCPT). Multivariate linear regressions modeled sustained attention parameters (d’, RT, RTCoV, criterion) based on total CTQ score and emotional / physical subscores.

Higher CTQ Total Scores predicted lower discrimination performance (d′) and increased reaction time variability (RTCoV). No significant effects were found for the emotional and physical trauma subscores.

These findings suggest lasting, negative ACE effects on sustained attention in adulthood. Additionally, the fully online design proved to be a reliable method for detecting subtle variations in sustained attention.