This study examined the role of coping strategies in the relationship between childhood multitype maltreatment and psychological adjustment in young adulthood. The participants were 233 students, 18 to 35 years of age, from the University of Mostar, in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Retrospective data about multi-type maltreatment were completed using Higgins and McCabe's Questionnaire. The Croatian version of the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS) was used for measurement of three coping strategies: Problem-oriented, emotion-oriented, and avoidance coping. Psychological adjustment was assessed by the Trauma Symptom Checklist (TSC- 40). Results show that the experience of neglect predicted emotion- oriented coping, while witnessing family violence had significant predictive power for avoidance coping. The experience of maltreatment together with coping strategies also predicted the total score on the TSC-40. Overall, these results showed that coping strategies mediate the relationship between the experience of maltreatment and psychopathological symptoms.

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