Why We Should Focus on Positive Childhood Experiences

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We’ve all heard of “adverse childhood experiences” (ACEs). Psychology has focused a large chunk of research on these negative experiences of childhood and found that children with a high number of ACEs tend to develop higher levels of neuroticism and lower levels of conscientiousness. ACEs are also correlated with the development of dark triad traits, including psychopathy, borderline personality disorder, and narcissism, as well as lower levels of happiness.

While the study of ACEs is certainly important, what about benevolent childhood experiences (BCEs)?

Childhood experiences can be either benevolent (positive) or adverse (negative). People differ substantially in the amount of stress they experienced as a child. Curiously, however, BCEs haven’t received as much attention in psychology. This is a pet peeve of mine: Psychology has disproportionately been focused on the darker aspects of human development and personality and has neglected research on benevolent developmental experiences and personality traits. Sometimes I think the field of psychology is like Netflix documentaries: Much more fascinated with understanding serial killers than serial saints.

This was a major impetus behind my team and I initiating an entire research program on the light triad, or as we alternatively refer to them, “everyday saints.” We found that the three light triad characteristics of Kantianism (the belief that people are ends unto themselves), Humanism (the belief that people are inherently worthy and have dignity), and Faith in Humanity (a belief in the fundamental goodness of humans) strongly predict a wide range of well-being variables, including higher meaning in life, spirituality, and prosocial behaviors.

Thus, I was happy to discover that there exists a small but growing research literature on benevolent childhood experiences. BCEs consist of the social and family support a person receives before the age of 18, and include comforting beliefs, opportunities for joy, stable home routines, self-acceptance, and school enjoyment (Narayan et al., 2018). Here is the full list of BCEs:

• At least one caregiver with whom you felt safe
• At least one good friend
• Beliefs that comforted you
• Liked going to school
• At least one teacher who cared for you
• Good neighbors
• Had an adult who supported or advised you
• Opportunities to have a good time
• Liked yourself or felt comfortable with yourself
• Predictable home routine

Recent research suggests that children with a higher number of BCEs tend to display reduced symptoms of depression, stress, and loneliness during adulthood. What’s more, BCEs appear to substantially predict mental health independently of ACEs. So it would seem that BCEs are pretty darn important to study!

Enter a brand new study that directly tackles the link among BCEs, the light triad, and human flourishing. I must admit, I was so excited and giddy when I saw this paper. I know, I’m a nerd. But I do think this line of research is so important. Let’s see what they found.

The Impact of Benevolent Childhood Experiences on Adult Flourishing: The Mediating Role of Light Triad Traits

In a new study, Miguel Landa-Blanco and his colleagues studied 410 participants in Honduras, considered one of the most violent countries in the world. This context is important. As the researchers note, “Research conducted in diverse cultural contexts helps us move beyond a narrow focus on Western perspectives and provides a more comprehensive understanding of the universal and cultural specific factors contributing to positive childhood development.”

While a number of studies have found a link between certain aspects of Honduran life and ACEs, researchers have overlooked key dimensions of well-being and positive life experiences. Their findings are interesting and important.

On average, respondents reported 7.34 benevolent childhood experiences. On average, men were more likely to have at least one teacher who cared about them, had more opportunities to have a good time, and were more likely to like/feel comfortable with themselves compared to women.

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Critically, the more BCEs the person had, the more likely they were to report flourishing, which was measured by eight items assessing a sense of competence as well as purpose and meaning in life. The largest effect size was found for those who reported they liked going to school. Medium effect sizes were found for having at least one good friend, good neighbors, having comfortable beliefs, liking/feeling comfortable with oneself, and having a predictable home routine.

The researchers also found a positive link between BCEs and the light triad. In particular, those scoring higher in faith in humanity were more likely to report the presence of having at least one good friend, comforting beliefs, liking school, good neighbors, having an adult supporter/adviser, opportunities for a good time, liking/feeling comfortable with oneself, and having a predictable home routine. Humanism and Kantianism were higher for those who liked attending school and had an adult advisor/supporter. What’s more, all the light triad traits were significantly associated with flourishing scores.

Reflections

The results of this study have a number of important implications. For one, the findings suggest that benevolent childhood experiences are associated with the development of positive personality traits as well as a sense of flourishing in life. As the researchers note, their findings underscore “the importance of a positive childhood environment in fostering healthy personality traits." This seems pretty obvious to anyone who has lived life, but it’s nice to see researchers actually care about documenting this systematically.

The link to the light triad is especially interesting considering that the three members of the light triad are basically benevolent beliefs about others and how one should interact with others. The study found that Faith in Humanity and Humanism were particularly important pathways for nurturing flourishing through positive childhood experiences.

This suggests that our childhood experiences (positive or negative) can have an important influence on the beliefs we develop about how we should engage in our social world: Should I be exploitative, manipulative, and try to extract scarce resources from as many people as possible or should I be benevolent, caring, and treat all people with humanity and dignity? Along with our genetic endowment, our childhood experiences play a critical role in the development of these beliefs.

The key mechanism explaining this relationship may be that BCEs involve nurturing relationships and support from caregivers that foster trust and security. You can view our early childhood experiences like a weather forecasting system—if it’s harsh and unpredictable, our brains (which are essentially prediction machines) will come to expect a harsh and unpredictable world as an adult. On the other hand, experiencing a reliable and compassionate childhood can cause our brains to expect such a social world moving forward with our lives.

While families can offer such a nurturing relationship, this study also points to the importance of a nurturing school environment for positive development. Liking school was a big factor in explaining these relationships and no doubt lay an important foundation for adult growth. The researchers suggest incorporating socioemotional education and universal positive mental health screenings into school, as well as promoting teacher mental health and well-being.

The field of psychology has been obsessed with adverse childhood experiences and the development of dark triad traits. I look forward to seeing more research (and conducting more research with my team) on benevolent childhood experiences so we can shine a spotlight on the existence of these important childhood experiences.

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