Effects of Maternal and Child Lifetime Traumatic Stress Exposures, Infant Temperament, and Caregiving Quality on Preschoolers' Executive Functioning

Temperament and sex as moderating factors of the effects of exposure to maternal depression on telomere length in early childhood

Individual differences in sensitivity to context are posited to emerge early in development and to influence the effects of environmental exposures on a range of developmental outcomes. The goal of the current study was to examine the hypothesis that temperament characteristics and biological sex confer differential vulnerability to the effects of exposure to maternal depression on telomere length in early childhood. Telomere length has emerged as a potentially important biomarker of current and future health, with possible mechanistic involvement in the onset of various disease states. Participants comprised a community sample of children followed from infancy to age 3 years. Relative telomere length was assessed from DNA in saliva samples collected at infancy, 2 years, and 3 years. Maternal depressive symptoms and the child temperament traits of negative affectivity, surgency/extraversion, and regulation/effortful control were assessed via maternal report at each timepoint. Analyses revealed a 3-way interaction among surgency/extraversion, sex, and maternal depressive symptoms, such that higher surgency/extraversion was associated with shorter telomere length specifically among males exposed to elevated maternal depressive symptoms. These findings suggest that temperament and sex influence children's susceptibility to the effects of maternal depression on telomere dynamics in early life.

Associations Among EEG Aperiodic Slope, Infant Temperament, and Maternal Anxiety/Depression Symptoms in Infancy

The aperiodic "slope" of the EEG power spectrum (i.e., aperiodic exponent, commonly represented as a slope in log-log space) is hypothesized to index the cortical excitatory-inhibitory balance. Slope has been associated with various neurodevelopmental outcomes in older children and adults, as well as with family history of ADHD in infants. Here, we investigate associations among EEG aperiodic slope, temperament, and maternal internalizing (anxiety and depression) symptoms in a large cohort of typically developing infants. A steeper slope was associated with higher scores on the temperament domains of orienting/regulation and surgency but was not associated with negative affectivity. Maternal symptoms did not appear to be directly associated with the slope, but the slope moderated the association between maternal symptoms and temperament. Specifically, a steeper slope was associated with a stronger negative association between maternal internalizing symptoms and infant orienting/regulation. These results demonstrate associations between slope and behavior as early as infancy, which may reflect early differences in the development of global inhibitory networks. Longitudinal research in early childhood is necessary to better understand the nature of these relations during development and their potential impact on later socioemotional outcomes.

Unraveling the relationship between stress exposure and childhood anxiety: Considering accumulation, impact, and type in the first five years of life

Exposure to stressful events is linked to anxiety symptoms in children, although research examining this association in the first five years of life is limited. We sought to examine the role of various aspects of family stressful experiences such as the total accumulation, impact, and type (measured longitudinally in the first five years of life) on child anxiety symptoms at age 5 years. A community sample of children and their parents (N = 399) enrolled in a longitudinal study of emotion processing were assessed when the children were infants and at ages 2 years, 3 years, and 5 years. Parents completed the Revised Life Events Questionnaire (all visits) to assess family exposures to stressful life events and the Child Behavior Checklist (5 years) to assess child emotional and behavioral symptoms. Analyses showed that total stressful events accumulated by 4 years were significantly associated with child anxiety symptoms at 5 years (r = 0.118, p = 0.045). Total stressful events accumulated at earlier time points (by 1 year, 2 years, and 3 years of age) were not significantly associated with child anxiety symptoms at 5 years. Events reported as being impactful by families appeared to be more sensitive than total events, with accumulated impactful events as early as 1 year being significantly associated with child anxiety symptoms at 5 years (r = 0.112, p = 0.042). When considering types of stressors, cumulative exposure from the prenatal period to 5 years to financial stressors (β = 0.12, p = .035) was most saliently and significantly associated with child anxiety symptoms at 5 years (after adjusting for other categories of stress such as health, interpersonal, and logistical stressors). Together, these findings suggest that stressful life events accumulated in early life, particularly those rated as impactful for the family and those related to finances, are associated with child anxiety symptoms at 5 years.

Associations among temperament characteristics and telomere length and attrition rate in early childhood

There is growing interest in telomere length as an indicator of current and future health. Although early childhood is a period of rapid telomere attrition, little is known about the factors that influence telomere biology during this time. Adult research suggests that telomere length is influenced by psychological characteristics. This study's goal was to test associations among repeated measures of temperament and telomere length in a community sample of children (N = 602; 52% male, 73% non-Hispanic White, middle-to-high socioeconomic status) from infancy to age 3 years. Relative telomere length was assessed from DNA in saliva samples collected at infancy (M = 8.4 months), 2 years (M = 24.9 months), and 3 years (M = 37.8 months). Temperament was assessed via maternal report questionnaires administered at infancy (Infant Behavior Report Questionnaire-Revised) and ages 2 and 3 years (Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire). Temperament was operationalized in two ways: using the established domains of negative affectivity, surgency/extraversion, and regulation/effortful control and using person-centered scores that identified three groups of children with similar profiles across domains (emotionally and behaviorally regulated; emotionally and behaviorally dysregulated; introverted and overcontrolled). Analyses revealed that greater regulation/effortful control was associated with longer telomere length across time points. Additionally, higher surgency/extraversion, beginning in infancy, was associated with decreased rate of telomere attrition. There were no sex differences in the relations between temperament and telomere measures. These findings suggest that, as early as infancy, temperament may influence telomere biology, with a potential protective effect of positive temperament characteristics on telomere erosion. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

From prenatal maternal anxiety and respiratory sinus arrhythmia to toddler internalizing problems: The role of infant negative affectivity

Prenatal maternal anxiety is considered a risk factor for the development of child internalizing problems. However, little is known about potential mechanisms that account for these associations. The current study examined whether prenatal maternal anxiety was indirectly associated with toddler internalizing problems via prenatal maternal physiology and infant negative affectivity. We examined these associations in a longitudinal study of 162 expectant mothers from their third trimester until 18 months postpartum. Path analyses showed that higher prenatal anxiety was associated with higher infant negative affectivity at 7 months, which in turn was associated with higher toddler internalizing problems at 18 months. Prenatal anxiety was not indirectly associated with child outcomes via baseline or task-evoked respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) in response to an infant cry while pregnant. However, pregnant women with greater decreases in task-evoked RSA had toddlers with greater internalizing problems, which was mediated by infant negative affectivity at 7 months. Findings suggest that prenatal anxiety and RSA reactivity to an infant cry may be independent risk factors for the development of infant negative affectivity, which in turn increases risk for toddler internalizing problems. These findings contribute to a growing literature on mechanisms that underlie intergenerational transmission of internalizing problems.

The Impact of Maternal Interpersonal Violent Trauma and Related Psychopathology on Child Outcomes and Intergenerational Transmission

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

This review aims to outline some consequences that maternal history of trauma with and without related psychopathology, such as posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), can have on their children's development and functioning. It then addresses mechanisms through which intergenerational transmission of interpersonal violence (IPV) and related psychopathology may occur.

RECENT FINDINGS

Findings include the effects of maternal IPV experience and related psychopathology on child social-emotional and biologically-based outcomes. This includes increased developmental disturbances and child psychopathology, as well as physiological factors. Secondly, the review focuses on psychobiological mechanisms by which maternal experience of IPV and related psychopathology likely trigger intergenerational effects. Maternal IPV and related psychopathology can have a negative impact on several areas of their child's life including development, interactive behavior, psychopathology, and physiology. This transmission may partially be due to fetal and perinatal processes, genetic and epigenetic effects, and interactions with their parents.