Abuse, neglect, violence: two in three young Europeans have experienced childhood adversity

More than two in three young adults surveyed across the European Union, Iceland and Norway report experiencing at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE), according to a new report from the WHO Regional Office for Europe.

The findings come from a survey of more than 26,000 young adults aged 18-30, recruited through national panels conducted by the Public Health Institute at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU).

The study measured exposure to nine forms of adversity, including abuse, neglect and household dysfunction (e.g. domestic violence, living with a household member experiencing mental illness or substance use issues), and looked at patterns across countries rather than ranking them. Data collected for the UK will be published separately in early 2027.

Across Europe, more than one in five young adults report experiencing four or more adverse experiences in childhood. Of those, 76.3% felt they needed professional mental health support as a result.

Concertina effect

They were also six times more likely to report being victims of violence as young adults and ten times more likely to report perpetrating violence. Those suffering four or more ACEs were also eight times more likely to report experiencing cyberbullying in childhood.

“What we see is that adversity accumulates, and the more of it a person experiences, the wider the range of problems they report later in life,” explained Professor Zara Quigg, a researcher on the LJMU team.

Higher ACE exposure was also associated with lower educational attainment, a greater likelihood of being out of education, employment or training, lower household income, lower trust in others, and weaker feelings of connection to community. Together these consequences reach beyond the health sector, into social care, education, criminal justice and employment.

“When a child grows up around violence or a household in crisis, we shouldn't be surprised that it follows them into the classroom, job market, and their relationships years later,” said Dr Natasha Azzopardi-Muscat, Director of Health Systems, WHO/Europe.

“What's often missed is just how widespread this is. We're not talking about a small, unlucky minority. A majority of the young adults in this survey experienced at least one adverse childhood experience. This isn't a mental health issue in isolation. It's a social and economic one, and it needs every sector at the table, not just health services.”

'Remarkably consistent'

Funded by the European Commission, the survey was carried out by WHO/Europe in partnership with LJMU, whose researchers led the analysis.

“The findings are remarkably consistent,” said Professor Mark Bellis, LJMU’s academic lead for the study. “Adverse childhood experiences are at the root of poorer health, social and economic outcomes among young adults across Europe.

“The good news is that ACEs can be prevented and their impacts reduced. With support from policymakers, investment in safer and more nurturing childhoods will help deliver healthier populations, stronger communities and a more prosperous future for Europe.”

WHO/Europe is calling for a three-part response.

• First, prevent adversity at the source, by supporting families and tackling the conditions that drive it, including poverty, social exclusion and community violence.
• Second, build resilience where adversity can't be prevented through supportive relationships, life skills and leveraging community strengths, since the report finds that having supportive adults around is linked to better mental health outcomes.
• Third, make public services trauma-informed, so that health, social care, education and justice systems recognise and respond to people affected by childhood adversity, and help break the cycle before it passes to the next generation.

Notes to editors

• Childhood exposure to nine adverse childhood experiences was measured using the Adverse Childhood Experiences International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ). The nine ACEs measured were: physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, physical neglect, household substance use, household mental illness, household incarceration, parental separation or death, and witnessing domestic violence in the household.
• The study is designed to examine patterns and relationships between ACEs and life outcomes across countries, rather than to compare or rank countries by the prevalence of individual ACEs. The country samples do not provide nationally representative estimates of ACE prevalence.