Association of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Self-Transcendence with Chronotypes among South Indian Medical Students

Background: Chronotype, an individual’s preference for morningness or eveningness, has been linked to psychosocial factors such as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and self-transcendence. However, limited research has explored these associations in young adults within the Indian context. Objective: To examine the relationship between chronotype, adverse childhood experiences, and self-transcendence among South Indian medical students. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 157 medical students aged 18–23 years. Chronotype was assessed using the Morningness–Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ), ACEs using the Adverse Childhood Experiences scale, and self-transcendence using the Self-Transcendence Scale (STS). Chronotypes were categorized into morning, intermediate, and evening types. Associations were analyzed using the Kruskal–Wallis test, ANOVA, and Fisher’s exact test. Results: The majority of participants were intermediate types (68.8%), followed by evening (22.9%) and morning types (8.3%). Evening types had slightly higher mean ACE scores than intermediate and morning types, but this difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.551). Intermediate types showed the highest mean self-transcendence scores, followed by morning and evening types, with no significant difference (p = 0.360). Distribution analysis revealed that intermediate types had the largest proportion of high self-transcendence, while evening types had the highest proportion of low self-transcendence. Conclusion: Evening chronotypes tended to report more adverse childhood experiences and lower self-transcendence, while intermediate types demonstrated greater self-transcendence. Although statistically insignificant, these findings suggest potential trends warranting further exploration in larger, longitudinal, and culturally diverse cohorts.