Exploring the relationship between adverse childhood experiences, ethnicity, gender and depression in South Asian communities and White British communities in the UK

A growing body of evidence highlights the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and poor mental health outcomes, such as depression. However, studies exploring the intersection of ACEs, ethnicity, and gender are limited. This study explores the relationship between adverse childhood experiences, ethnicity, and gender on depression in South Asian communities (SACs) and White British communities (WBCs) in the UK. A total of 172 participants aged 18–74 years (M = 33.80) completed the study (120 females and 52 males). The sample consisted of residents of the United Kingdom who were categorised as belonging to one of two different ethnic groups: those from South Asian communities (81 participants) and those from White British communities (91 participants). Participants completed an anonymous online self-report questionnaire that included questions from the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (ACE-Q) and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Multiple regression analysis was conducted to investigate the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and depression. A moderation analysis was used to examine the interaction effects of ethnicity and gender on this relationship. The regression analysis indicated that ACEs significantly predicted depression, accounting for 15.8% of the variance. The moderation analyses revealed that ethnicity significantly moderated this relationship (B = 1.20, SE = 0.58, p  = 0.4), indicating that ACEs were positively linked to depression among White British communities compared to South Asian Communities. Additionally, gender also moderated this relationship (B = 1.52, SE = 0.62, p  = 0.4), with ACEs predicting higher depression scores in female participants but not in male participants. Our findings indicate ACEs as the most influential predictor of depression. ACEs were particularly influential in predicting higher levels of depression for females from White British communities.