Background: Childhood maltreatment is a risk factor for developing multiple forms of psychopathology, including depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and anxiety. Yet, the mechanisms linking childhood maltreatment and these psychopathologies remain less clear.
Objective: Here we examined whether self-stigma, the internalization of negative stereotypes about one's experiences, mediates the relationship between childhood maltreatment and symptom severity of depression, PTSD, and anxiety.