The role of parental marital discord in the etiology of externalizing problems during childhood and adolescence

AbstractPrevious research has established that parental marital discord is associated with higher levels of offspring externalizing behaviors, but it is unclear how parental relationship functioning is associated with the genetic and environmental variance on a factor of externalizing problems. Thus, the current study assessed how parental marital discord moderates genetic and environmental variance on offspring externalizing problems at two different ages: childhood and late adolescence. That is, the magnitude of genetic and environmental influences on offspring externalizing at ages 11 and 17 was examined as a function of parental marital discord. Consistent with a diathesis–stress model of psychopathology, it was hypothesized that with increasing marital discord, genetic influences on externalizing would be more pronounced. Rather, results indicated that for the 11-year-old sample, nonshared environmental influences were greater when parental marital discord was low, and comparatively, shared environmental influences contributed more to the variance in externalizing problems when parental marital discord was high. No moderation was found for the 17-year-old cohort. In contrast to studies that do not find an effect of the shared environment, these results provide evidence that the common rearing environment has an impact on externalizing problems in preadolescent children.

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Differential susceptibility to environmental influences: the role of early temperament and parenting in the development of externalizing problems

Comprehensive Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/j.comppsych.2010.10.017 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 52 (6) ◽

pp. 650-658 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Martina Pitzer ◽

Christine Jennen-Steinmetz ◽

Guenter Esser ◽

Martin H. Schmidt ◽

Manfred Laucht

Keyword(s):

Externalizing Problems ◽

Environmental Influences ◽

Differential Susceptibility

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A twin study of antisocial and neurotic symptoms in childhood

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291700035832 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 26 (6) ◽

pp. 1111-1118 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

Anita Thapar ◽

Peter McGuffin

Keyword(s):

Environmental Factors ◽

Psychiatric Symptoms ◽

Antisocial Behaviour ◽

Shared Environment ◽

Childhood And Adolescence ◽

Different Types ◽

Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽

Using Data ◽

Variance Explained

SynopsisThere is some evidence to suggest that the role of genetic and environmental influences may vary for different types of psychiatric symptoms in childhood. The aim of this study was to examine to what extent genetic and environmental factors influence parent-rated conduct and neurotic symptoms in childhood and adolescence, using data obtained from a systematically ascertained sample of twins (198 same sex pairs) aged between 8 and 16 years. For symptoms of antisocial behaviour, transmission could be explained entirely by shared environmental factors. Social class effects were also found to have a significant influence on antisocial behaviour, although these effects only accounted for a small proportion of the variance explained by shared environmental factors. In contrast, transmission of neurotic symptoms was best explained by additive genetic influences alone with no contribution from shared environment. Non-shared environmental factors accounted for a substantial component of the variation for both antisocial behaviour and neurotic symptoms.

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Discrimination and externalizing problems among Moroccan- and Romanian-origin early adolescents in Italy: Moderating role of cultural orientations and impulse control.

Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology ◽

10.1037/cdp0000192 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 374-388 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Diana Miconi ◽

Gianmarco Altoè ◽

Silvia Salcuni ◽

Daniela Di Riso ◽

Sami Schiff ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Impulse Control ◽

Externalizing Problems ◽

Early Adolescents ◽

Cultural Orientations ◽

Moderating Role

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Developmental foundations of externalizing problems in young children: The role of effortful control

PsycEXTRA Dataset ◽

10.1037/e552582012-037 ◽

2002 ◽

Author(s):

Sheryl L. Olson ◽

Arnold J. Sameroff ◽

David C. Kerr ◽

Nestor L. Lopez

Keyword(s):

Young Children ◽

Externalizing Problems ◽

Effortful Control

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Highly sensitive adolescent benefits in positive school transitions: Evidence for vantage sensitivity in Japanese high-schoolers

10.31234/osf.io/kmxqs ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Shuhei Iimura

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

Statistical Power ◽

Environmental Influences ◽

Differential Susceptibility ◽

School Transition ◽

Well Being ◽

Crossover Point ◽

Japanese Adolescents ◽

Highly Sensitive

Some researchers indicate that the transition to high school deflects adolescent developmental trajectories. Others assert it provides a new possibility for the promotion of adolescents’ socioemotional well-being. One critical view missing in such claims is that individual variabilities interact with environmental influences. We employed the framework of Differential Susceptibility Theory, which postulates that individual susceptibilities moderate external influences for better and for worse. In order to clarify the mechanism of adolescents’ differential adjustments, this paper investigated the role of sensory-processing sensitivity using the Japanese version of Highly Sensitive Child Scale for Adolescence (J-HSCS), and tested whether the diathesis-stress model or the differential susceptibility model best describes students’ socioemotional adjustment across their high school transition. The current paper used the two-wave data collected from Japanese adolescents aged from 14 to 15 years (n = 412, 50% girls). In Study 1, we investigated the replicability of psychometric properties of J-HSCS. The results supported previous findings, indicating its validity for the bifactor model. In Study 2, we utilized confirmatory competitive model testing, which maximizes statistical power by parameterizing the crossover point to allow a direct comparison of alternative models. The results indicated that neither the diathesis-stress nor the differential susceptibility models fitted the data. Rather, a strong vantage sensitivity model was revealed, suggesting that highly susceptible adolescents disproportionately benefitted from a positive school transition over their counterparts. This finding signified the role of adolescents’ sensitivity to environmental influences and the importance of considering its moderation under person x environment interactions.

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Prenatal and Perinatal Environmental Influences Shaping the Neonatal Immune System: A Focus on Asthma and Allergy Origins

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18083962 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (8) ◽

pp. 3962

Author(s):

Azahara María García-Serna ◽

Elena Martín-Orozco ◽

Trinidad Hernández-Caselles ◽

Eva Morales

Keyword(s):

Immune System ◽

Immune Cell ◽

Mode Of Delivery ◽

Environmental Influences ◽

Pet Ownership ◽

System A ◽

Neonatal Immune System ◽

Chemical Factors ◽

Asthma And Allergy

It is suggested that programming of the immune system starts before birth and is shaped by environmental influences acting during critical windows of susceptibility for human development. Prenatal and perinatal exposure to physiological, biological, physical, or chemical factors can trigger permanent, irreversible changes to the developing immune system, which may be reflected in cord blood of neonates. The aim of this narrative review is to summarize the evidence on the role of the prenatal and perinatal environment, including season of birth, mode of delivery, exposure to common allergens, a farming environment, pet ownership, and exposure to tobacco smoking and pollutants, in shaping the immune cell populations and cytokines at birth in humans. We also discuss how reported disruptions in the immune system at birth might contribute to the development of asthma and related allergic manifestations later in life.

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Selected Predictors of the Sense of Intimacy in Relationships of Young Adults

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph16224447 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 16 (22) ◽

pp. 4447

Author(s):

Dorota Czyżowska ◽

Ewa Gurba ◽

Natalia Czyżowska ◽

Alicja Kalus ◽

Katarzyna Sitnik-Warchulska ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Young Women ◽

Stepwise Regression ◽

Interpersonal Relations ◽

Childhood And Adolescence ◽

Main Research ◽

Identity Style ◽

Identity Commitment ◽

Study Results ◽

Predictive Role

The main research objective of this study was seeking the predictive role of closeness to parents, attachment, identity style, identity commitment, type of relationship, and having children in intimacy among young women and men. Many studies indicate differences in the level of engagement, communication, and satisfaction in relationships. The study group comprised 227 people, including 114 women (M = 29.99; SD = 4.36), and 113 men (M = 30.00; SD = 4.33). A total of 40% of the subjects were married, and the remaining 60% subjects were in informal relationships; 101 people had children and the other individuals were childless. The following instruments were used: The Miller Social Intimacy Scale, questionnaires to assess closeness and attachment, and the Identity Style Inventory. The significance of the differences and the stepwise regression analysis were performed. The results of the study demonstrated a higher level of intimacy in a relationship with a partner among women than men. The nature of a relationship does not matter to the sense of intimacy. However, closeness to parents during childhood and adolescence, the model of interpersonal relations, and the identity style are predictors of intimacy in a relationship. The study results can be used in creating preventive and educational programs focused on family life and satisfied relationships.

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Genetic and Environmental Influences on Disability Pension Due To Mental Diagnoses: Limited Importance of Major Depression, Generalized Anxiety, and Chronic Fatigue

Twin Research and Human Genetics ◽

10.1017/thg.2015.86 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 10-16 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Jurgita Narusyte ◽

Annina Ropponen ◽

Kristina Alexanderson ◽

Pia Svedberg

Keyword(s):

Major Depression ◽

Disability Pension ◽

Structural Equation ◽

Environmental Influences ◽

Chronic Fatigue ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Computer Assisted ◽

Generalized Anxiety ◽

Environmental Variance ◽

Genetic Contributions

Background:Previous research indicates that liability to disability pension (DP) due to mental diagnoses is moderately influenced by genetic factors. This study investigates whether genetic contributions to the liability to DP due to mood and neurotic diagnoses overlap with the genetic influences on major depression (MD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), or chronic fatigue (CF).Method:A prospective cohort study including 9,985 female twins born in Sweden 1933–1958. The presence of MD, GAD, and CF was assessed by computer-assisted telephone interviews conducted in 1998–2002. Data on DP due to mood and neurotic diagnoses were obtained from nationwide registers for the years 1998–2010. Common genetic and environmental influences on the phenotypes were estimated by applying structural equation modeling.Results:The prevalence of MD/GAD was 30%, CF 8%, and DP due to mood and neurotic diagnoses 3% in 2010. Genetic effects on MD/GAD explained 31% of the total genetic variation in DP, whereas genetic contributions in common with CF were small and not significant. The majority of the total non-shared environmental variance in DP (85%) was explained by the factors that were unique to DP.Conclusions:Large proportions of genetic and non-shared environmental influences in DP due to mood and neurotic diagnoses were not explained by the contributions from MD/GAD or CF. The results suggest that the process leading to DP is complex and influenced by factors other than those related to the disorder underlying DP.

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Sex differences and developmental stability in genetic and environmental influences on psychoactive substance consumption from early adolescence to young adulthood

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s003329171000259x ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 41 (9) ◽

pp. 1907-1916 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

J. H. Baker ◽

H. H. Maes ◽

H. Larsson ◽

P. Lichtenstein ◽

K. S. Kendler

Keyword(s):

Substance Use ◽

Young Adulthood ◽

Early Adolescence ◽

Illicit Drug ◽

Common Factor ◽

Environmental Influences ◽

Genetic Effects ◽

Shared Environment ◽

Males And Females ◽

Substance Consumption

BackgroundGenetic and environmental factors are important in the etiology of substance use. However, little is known about the stability of these factors across development. We aimed to answer three crucial questions about this etiology that have never been addressed in a single study: (1) Is there a general vulnerability to substance consumption from early adolescence to young adulthood? (2) If so, do the genetic and environmental influences on this vulnerability change across development? (3) Do these developmental processes differ in males and females?MethodSubjects included 1480 twin pairs from the Swedish Twin Study of Child and Adolescent Development who have been followed since 1994. Prospective, self-reported regular smoking, alcohol intoxication and illicit drug use were assessed at ages 13–14, 16–17 and 19–20 years. Structural modeling was performed with the program Mx.ResultsAn underlying common factor accounted for the association between smoking, alcohol and illicit drug consumption for the three age groups. Common genetic and shared environmental effects showed substantial continuity. In general, as participants aged, the influence of the shared environment decreased, and genetic effects became more substance specific in their effect.ConclusionsThe current report answers three important questions in the etiology of substance use. The genetic and environmental risk for substance consumption is partly mediated through a common factor and is partly substance specific. Developmentally, evidence was strongest for stability of common genetic effects, with less evidence for genetic innovation. These processes seem to be the same in males and females.

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Are prescription misuse and illicit drug use etiologically distinct? A genetically-informed analysis of opioids and stimulants

Psychological Medicine ◽

10.1017/s0033291720005267 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-8

Author(s):

Genevieve F. Dash ◽

Nicholas G. Martin ◽

Arpana Agrawal ◽

Michael T. Lynskey ◽

Wendy S. Slutske

Keyword(s):

Illicit Drugs ◽

Environmental Influences ◽

Genetic Influence ◽

Prescription Opioid ◽

Future Research ◽

Shared Environment ◽

Opioid Use ◽

Stimulant Use ◽

Prescription Opioid Misuse ◽

Illicit Opioid Use

Abstract Background Drug classes are grouped based on their chemical and pharmacological properties, but prescription and illicit drugs differ in other important ways. Potential differences in genetic and environmental influences on the (mis)use of prescription and illicit drugs that are subsumed under the same class should be examined. Opioid and stimulant classes contain prescription and illicit forms differentially associated with salient risk factors (common route of administration, legality), making them useful comparators for addressing this etiological issue. Methods A total of 2410 individual Australian twins [Mage = 31.77 (s.d. = 2.48); 67% women] were interviewed about prescription misuse and illicit use of opioids and stimulants. Univariate and bivariate biometric models partitioned variances and covariances into additive genetic, shared environmental, and unique environmental influences across drug types. Results Variation in the propensity to misuse prescription opioids was attributable to genes (41%) and unique environment (59%). Illicit opioid use was attributable to shared (71%) and unique (29%) environment. Prescription stimulant misuse was attributable to genes (79%) and unique environment (21%). Illicit stimulant use was attributable to genes (48%), shared environment (29%), and unique environment (23%). There was evidence for genetic influence common to both stimulant types, but limited evidence for genetic influence common to both opioid types. Bivariate correlations suggested that prescription opioid use may be more genetically similar to prescription stimulant use than to illicit opioid use. Conclusions Prescription opioid misuse may share little genetic influence with illicit opioid use. Future research may consider avoiding unitary drug classifications, particularly when examining genetic influences.

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