Purpose: Continued research regarding the effects of experiencing multiple types of childhood maltreatment is necessary in gauging the impact of such experiences on the survivor. In an effort to contribute to the study of the effects of multitype childhood maltreatment, the authors investigated the relationship between multitype childhood maltreatment and adult spirituality. In addition, the authors compared three established methods of assessing the effects of multitype maltreatment to investigate the degree to which a researcher’s choice of method might affect their findings. Methods: Surveys were completed by 254 university students. Data collected included information on childhood maltreatment and current spirituality. Results: Findings suggest the presence of a dose response in the relationship between multitype childhood maltreatment and adult spirituality and that the researcher’s choice of assessment method can affect findings of the research. In addition, the authors report their findings on the unique effects of five types of childhood maltreatment on adult spirituality. Emotional neglect and emotional abuse were found to be associated with lower levels of spirituality; no significant relationships were found between sexual abuse, physical abuse, and physical neglect and spirituality. Conclusions: the findings of this study suggest the need for continued study regarding the effects of experiencing multiple types of childhood maltreatment, the most accurate methods of assessing those effects on survivors, and the relationship between multitype maltreatment and spirituality.
