Objective:To explore the relationship between childhood trauma and anxiety in vocational school students, and to analyze the mediating role of emotion dysregulation.Methods:A cross-sectional survey was conducted in one vocational school in Ganzhou, all students completed a series of questionnaires, including the childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ), difficulties in emotion regulation scale (DERS), and generalized anxiety disorder scale (GAD-7).The cut-off score for anxiety symptom was set GAD-7≥5.The data were analyzed using SPSS 23.0 and SPSS macro program PROCESS V4.0.Results:(1) The rate of anxiety in vocational school students was 42.96%, and girls were 27.1% higher than boys ( OR=1.271, 95% CI=1.095-1.474).(2) The CTQ (44(38, 51)) and DERS (98(89, 111)) in students with anxiety were both significantly higher than those in students without anxiety (39(34, 45), 81(73, 90), Z=-17.910, -33.859, both P<0.001).(3) Regression analysis showed that girls ( β=0.240, OR=1.271, 95% CI=1.095~1.474), childhood trauma ( β=0.028, OR=1.028, 95% CI=1.019~1.037), and emotion dysregulation ( β=0.076, OR=1.080, 95% CI=1.073-1.086) were significant predictors for anxiety.(4) Path analysis and mediating effect showed that childhood trauma positively predicted anxiety ( β=0.059, 95% CI=0.048-0.071) and emotion dysregulation ( β=0.802, 95% CI=0.749-0.854), and emotion dysregulation positively predicted anxiety ( β=0.139, 95% CI=0.132-0.145).Emotion dysregulation had a significant mediating effect (effect value=0.112, 95% CI=0.101-0.121) in the relationship between childhood trauma and anxiety, with the indirect effect accounting for 65.50% of the total effect. Conclusion:The incidence of anxiety symptoms is high among vocational school students, and childhood trauma not only directly affects anxiety symptoms, but also indirectly affects anxiety symptoms through emotion dysregulation.