On the Link between Perceived Parental Rearing Behaviors and Self-conscious Emotions in Adolescents

Is Rejection, Parental Abandonment or Neglect a Trigger for Higher Perceived Shame and Guilt in Adolescents?

Theories of development point out that childhood experiences are relevant across the lifespan, and that the parent-child relationship is essential for a child's physical and psychological wellbeing. The aim of this study is to investigate whether parental abandonment influences self-conscious emotions such as guilt and shame. This quasi-experiment included 230 adolescents and teenagers (M = 17.1, SD = 1.82), and data were collected via a self-reported questionnaire administered online. We used the Guilt Inventory, the Experience of Shame Scale, the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, and the Parental Acceptance/Rejection Questionnaire. Results indicated that the child's environment was significantly associated with feelings of shame. Abuse is associated with both guilt and shame, while paternal rejection is associated with guilt. The environment in which children and teenagers develop is associated with how they perceive themselves in relation to others. This study underlines the importance of considering child development conditions and the paramount importance of social work assistance for abandoned children and teenagers.

The pathogenesis of DLD-mediated cuproptosis induced spinal cord injury and its regulation on immune microenvironment

Introduction

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a severe central nervous system injury that leads to significant sensory and motor impairment. Copper, an essential trace element in the human body, plays a vital role in various biological functions and is strictly regulated by copper chaperones and transporters. Cuproptosis, a novel type of metal ion-induced cell death, is distinct from iron deprivation. Copper deprivation is closely associated with mitochondrial metabolism and mediated by protein fatty acid acylation.

Methods

In this study, we investigated the effects of cuproptosis-related genes (CRGs) on disease progression and the immune microenvironment in acute spinal cord injury (ASCI) patients. We obtained the gene expression profiles of peripheral blood leukocytes from ASCI patients using the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. We performed differential gene analysis, constructed protein-protein interaction networks, conducted weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), and built a risk model.

Results

Our analysis revealed that dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase (DLD), a regulator of copper toxicity, was significantly associated with ASCI, and DLD expression was significantly upregulated after ASCI. Furthermore, gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis and gene set variation analysis (GSVA) showed abnormal activation of metabolism-related processes. Immune infiltration analysis indicated a significant decrease in T cell numbers in ASCI patients, while M2 macrophage numbers were significantly increased and positively correlated with DLD expression.

Discussion

In summary, our study demonstrated that DLD affects the ASCI immune microenvironment by promoting copper toxicity, leading to increased peripheral M2 macrophage polarization and systemic immunosuppression. Thus, DLD has potential as a promising biomarker for ASCI, providing a foundation for future clinical interventions.

The Influence of Negative Feedback and Social Rank on Feelings of Shame and Guilt: A Vignette Study in 8- to 13-Year-Old Non-Clinical Children

This experimental study examined the role of negative feedback and social rank in the experience of self-conscious emotions, shame and guilt, in typically developing children aged 8 to 13 years. Participants were tested by means of a vignette paradigm in which feedback and social rank were systematically manipulated and levels of shame and guilt were assessed after listening to each of the vignettes. In addition, children completed a set of questionnaires for measuring individual differences in shame and guilt proneness, social comparison, submissive behavior, and external shame. The results showed that children presented with negative feedback reported higher ratings of shame and guilt than when presented with positive feedback, implying that the provision of negative feedback has a significant impact on children's experience of self-conscious emotions. Social rank had less effect on children's report of these self-conscious emotions. Furthermore, the individual difference variables of guilt proneness, and to a lesser extent shame proneness and submissive behavior, appeared to be positively related to self-conscious emotions as reported during the vignette task.

Prevalence and correlates of maladaptive guilt in middle childhood

BACKGROUND

Maladaptive guilt can develop by age three and is associated with severe affective psychopathology in adolescents and adults. Yet, little is known about its prevalence prior to adolescence, or which children are at greatest risk of developing this symptom. This study examined the prevalence and correlates of maladaptive guilt in middle childhood.

METHODS

This study examined a large community sample of 9-to 10-year-old children (N = 4485) from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. Maladaptive guilt was assessed through the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for DSM-5. Parental rejection, family conflict, and parental depression were assessed via questionnaires.

RESULTS

In depressed children, a 1-month prevalence of maladaptive guilt of 18.4% and a lifetime prevalence of 30.8% was found. Lifetime rates ranged from 1.8 to 4.1% in children with other psychiatric disorders. Cross-sectionally, maladaptive guilt was associated with lower family income-to-needs, greater family conflict, a history of maternal depression, and greater parental rejection. These findings held when controlling for children's depressive severity, indicating that these associations are specific to maladaptive guilt.

LIMITATIONS

Maladaptive guilt was assessed through one item, though many studies of maladaptive guilt measure the symptom in this manner.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest that it may be beneficial for clinicians to assess for maladaptive guilt beyond the context of assessment for depression, particularly with children of low socioeconomic status and children of depressed mothers, whom this study suggests are at higher risk. Negative family climates and parenting might also be important targets of preventative interventions.