Summary: A new meta-analysis finds that emotional forms of childhood maltreatment—specifically emotional abuse and neglect—are associated with reduced trust in bodily signals, a facet of interoception. The researchers reviewed 17 studies involving 3,705 participants and report that, while childhood maltreatment in general did not show a consistent effect on all measures of interoception, emotional maltreatment was strongly linked to lower confidence in interpreting internal bodily cues.
Reduced trust in one’s body can undermine emotional regulation, stress management and self-care, and may help explain why survivors of childhood emotional abuse and neglect face higher risks for disorders such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders and somatic symptom conditions. The findings highlight the often-overlooked, long-term psychological harm caused by emotional mistreatment of children.
Key Facts:
- Body trust weakened: Emotional abuse and neglect are associated with lower confidence in sensing and interpreting bodily signals.
- Implications for mental health: Diminished body trust may contribute to the development or maintenance of anxiety, depression and disordered eating.
- Often invisible harm: Emotional maltreatment is less visible than physical or sexual abuse but can have substantial and lasting effects.
Source: TUD
“My heart skipped a beat” — a familiar way to describe how physical sensations reflect emotional reactions. Psychology calls the capacity to sense and interpret those internal signals interoception.
Interoception includes noticing and making sense of bodily sensations such as heartbeat, breathing and gut feelings. It plays a central role in how we experience emotions, respond to stress and look after our physical health.
Despite its importance, interoception’s development and its role in psychological risk remain incompletely understood. Growing evidence, however, links interoceptive differences to a range of mental and somatic health conditions, suggesting that early life experiences might shape how people perceive their bodies.
To explore this possibility, a team at the Chair of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology at TU Dresden, led by Prof. Anna-Lena Zietlow, conducted a meta-analysis examining whether experiences of child maltreatment relate to various aspects of interoception and which forms of maltreatment show the strongest associations.
The review combined data from 17 independent studies, representing a total of 3,705 participants. Across this pooled evidence, the authors did not find a uniform relationship between childhood maltreatment and measures of interoceptive accuracy, sensibility or awareness. However, they identified a clear and specific association between childhood maltreatment—particularly emotional abuse and emotional neglect—and reduced body trust, the dimension of interoception that reflects confidence in interpreting bodily signals.
First author Julia Ditzer commented: “Our results indicate that people who experienced emotional abuse or emotional neglect in childhood frequently report less trust in their bodily sensations.” She added that diminished body trust can have broad consequences: “It may interfere with emotion regulation, recognising personal needs and effective stress processing.”
Ditzer and colleagues suggest that lower body trust may be one mechanism linking early emotional maltreatment to the heightened risk for disorders such as anxiety, depression, eating disorders and somatoform conditions observed in affected populations.
Dr Ilka Böhm, a member of the Zietlow lab team, noted the relative invisibility of emotional maltreatment: “Despite their long-term impact, emotional abuse and neglect often receive far less attention than physical or sexual abuse because they are less observable.”
Prof. Dr Anna-Lena Zietlow stressed the practical implications: “We hope this research raises awareness among the public and professionals that protecting children requires more than preventing physical harm. Reliable, sensitive emotional care and attention to children’s emotional needs are essential for healthy development and deserve much greater emphasis in research, prevention and clinical practice.”
Following the meta-analysis, the research team is extending their work with a study focused on adolescents aged 12–17 to further investigate how child maltreatment relates to interoceptive functioning during this important developmental period.
About this neurodevelopment and psychology research news
Author: Magdalena Selbig
Source: TUD
Contact: Magdalena Selbig – TUD
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Closed access. “A meta-analytic review of child maltreatment and interoception” by Julia Ditzer et al., Nature Mental Health. DOI: 10.1038/s44220-025-00456-w
Abstract
A meta-analytic review of child maltreatment and interoception
Interoception—the ability to detect and interpret internal bodily signals such as heartbeat and breath—contributes centrally to emotional experience and physical health. Disruptions in interoceptive processes are increasingly recognised as relevant to a variety of psychological and medical conditions, but the developmental origins of these disruptions remain unclear.
One proposed risk factor is childhood maltreatment. This meta-analytic review synthesises evidence from 17 studies to examine associations between different types of child maltreatment and multiple dimensions of interoception.
The analysis did not reveal consistent links between childhood maltreatment and interoceptive accuracy, sensibility or awareness overall. Nevertheless, a history of childhood maltreatment—most notably emotional abuse and neglect—was robustly associated with lower body trust, indicating reduced confidence in interpreting bodily signals.
These findings suggest that early emotional harm may erode a fundamental sense of trust in one’s body, with potential long-term implications for both mental and physical health. Addressing emotional maltreatment in prevention and intervention efforts could therefore be important for protecting interoceptive development and reducing subsequent health risks.