Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, Pakistan

Abstract Background Adverse Childhood Experiences are a significant global public health concern as these experiences have adverse effects on all the health determinants. Methods The interpretive phenomenological research design was used to explore the implications of adverse childhood experiences o...

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Main Authors: Rabia Fatima, Javeria Saleem, Muhammad Ishaq, Humera Zaib Khan, Gul Mehar Javaid Bukhari, Mahwish Naz, Aneela Fatima, Gholamreza Abdi, Mukul Jain
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2024-10-01
Series:BMC Public Health
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-20391-2
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author Rabia Fatima
Javeria Saleem
Muhammad Ishaq
Humera Zaib Khan
Gul Mehar Javaid Bukhari
Mahwish Naz
Aneela Fatima
Gholamreza Abdi
Mukul Jain
author_facet Rabia Fatima
Javeria Saleem
Muhammad Ishaq
Humera Zaib Khan
Gul Mehar Javaid Bukhari
Mahwish Naz
Aneela Fatima
Gholamreza Abdi
Mukul Jain
author_sort Rabia Fatima
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Adverse Childhood Experiences are a significant global public health concern as these experiences have adverse effects on all the health determinants. Methods The interpretive phenomenological research design was used to explore the implications of adverse childhood experiences on the adult life of university students. An interpretive thematic analysis method was employed to analyze this study. Results Five major themes emerged after a comprehensive review of the information obtained from the interviews with the ten selected participants. These were (1) Chronic health struggles (2) Mental health disorders (3) Emotional and social difficulties (4) Paranoia and distrust and (5) Academic and professional under-performance. Conclusion This study concludes that adverse childhood experiences have long-lasting negative effects on university students’ health and behaviour, preventing them from leading healthy lives and excelling academically and professionally.
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publishDate 2024-10-01
publisher BMC
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series BMC Public Health
spelling doaj-art-0ffb6884108943f3b0665b2b3765fe6b2025-08-20T02:11:55ZengBMCBMC Public Health1471-24582024-10-012411910.1186/s12889-024-20391-2Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, PakistanRabia Fatima0Javeria Saleem1Muhammad Ishaq2Humera Zaib Khan3Gul Mehar Javaid Bukhari4Mahwish Naz5Aneela Fatima6Gholamreza Abdi7Mukul Jain8Department of Public Health, Institute of Social and Cultural Studies, University of the PunjabDepartment of Public Health, Institute of Social and Cultural Studies, University of the PunjabDepartment of Sociology, Institute of Social and Cultural Studies, University of the PunjabDepartment of Public Health, Institute of Social and Cultural Studies, University of the PunjabDepartment of Community Medicine, Rawalpindi Medical UniversityGhazi Khan Medical CollegePakistan council of scientific & industrial ResearchDepartment of Biotechnology, Persian Gulf Research Institute, Persian Gulf UniversityCell and Developmental Biology Laboratory, Research and Development Cell, Parul UniversityAbstract Background Adverse Childhood Experiences are a significant global public health concern as these experiences have adverse effects on all the health determinants. Methods The interpretive phenomenological research design was used to explore the implications of adverse childhood experiences on the adult life of university students. An interpretive thematic analysis method was employed to analyze this study. Results Five major themes emerged after a comprehensive review of the information obtained from the interviews with the ten selected participants. These were (1) Chronic health struggles (2) Mental health disorders (3) Emotional and social difficulties (4) Paranoia and distrust and (5) Academic and professional under-performance. Conclusion This study concludes that adverse childhood experiences have long-lasting negative effects on university students’ health and behaviour, preventing them from leading healthy lives and excelling academically and professionally.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-20391-2Adverse childhood experiencesUniversity students of LahorePakistanImplications of ACEsMental healthSocial health
spellingShingle Rabia Fatima
Javeria Saleem
Muhammad Ishaq
Humera Zaib Khan
Gul Mehar Javaid Bukhari
Mahwish Naz
Aneela Fatima
Gholamreza Abdi
Mukul Jain
Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, Pakistan
BMC Public Health
Adverse childhood experiences
University students of Lahore
Pakistan
Implications of ACEs
Mental health
Social health
title Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, Pakistan
title_full Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, Pakistan
title_fullStr Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, Pakistan
title_full_unstemmed Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, Pakistan
title_short Effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students’ ability to lead healthy lives: an exploratory qualitative study in Lahore, Pakistan
title_sort effects of adverse childhood experiences on university students ability to lead healthy lives an exploratory qualitative study in lahore pakistan
topic Adverse childhood experiences
University students of Lahore
Pakistan
Implications of ACEs
Mental health
Social health
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-20391-2
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