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1. Changes in Maternal Depression and Children’s Behavior Problems: Investigating the Role of COVID-19-Related Stressors, Hair Cortisol, and Dehydroepiandrosterone

   https://doi.org/10.1177/21677026221076845  

   Doan, Stacey N. ; Ding, Madeleine ; Burniston, Anna Beth ; Smiley, Patricia A. ; Chow, Chong Man ; Liu, Cindy H. ( March 2022 , Clinical Psychological Science)

   Few studies have used longitudinal approaches to consider the cumulative impact of COVID-19-related stressors (CRSs) on the psychological adjustment of mothers and children. In the current study, we tracked changes in maternal depressive symptoms and children’s behavioral problems from approximately 2 years before the pandemic (T1) to May through August 2020 (T2). Second, we explored maternal hair cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone as predictors of change in maternal depressive symptoms. Mothers ( N = 120) reported on maternal and child psychological adjustment at both time points. Hair hormone data were collected in the lab at T1. Results suggest increases in children’s internalizing symptoms from T1 to T2 and that higher levels of CRSs were associated with increased maternal depressive symptoms. Maternal and child adjustment were correlated. Maternal hair cortisol, but not dehydroepiandrosterone, was associated with significant increases in depressive symptoms. Findings underscore the importance of considering the family system and cumulative risk exposure on maternal and child mental health.

    

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2. Brief Report: An Examination of Curvilinear Relations Between Perceived Mother–Child Closeness and Maternal Hair Cortisol

   https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.22548  

   Swaminathan, Kavya ; MacDonald, Samantha ; Doan, Stacey ( September 2024 , Developmental Psychobiology)

   Interpersonal closeness has important health benefits; however, recent work suggests that in certain contexts, closeness can come at a cost. In the current study, curvilinear relations between mother–child closeness and health (e.g., depressive and anxiety symptoms and hair cortisol concentrations [HCC]) were tested. Our sample consisted of 117 mother (M_age = 36.86) and child (M_age = 73.07 months, 50.86% male) dyads. A quadratic relationship between maternal perceived closeness with their child and self‐reported depressive and anxiety symptoms, along with overall hair cortisol output, was hypothesized. Path analysis suggested that the quadratic term was predictive of maternal cortisol (β = 0.28,p = 0.001) and depression (β = 0.23,p = 0.014), such that both high and low perceived closeness predict greater maternal depressive symptoms and HCCs as compared to moderate levels of closeness. Results are discussed in terms of parenting support and burnout.

    

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3. Maternal reactions to children’s negative emotions: Relations to children's socio-emotional development among European American and Chinese immigrant children

   https://doi.org/10.1177/1363461520905997  

   Yang, Yang ; Song, Qingfang ; Doan, Stacey_N ; Wang, Qi ( February 2020 , Transcultural Psychiatry)

   This study examined the relations between maternal reactions to children’s negative emotions and children’s socio-emotional outcomes, including psychological adjustment, emotion knowledge, and coping strategies. European American and Chinese immigrant mothers reported on their reactions to children’s ( N = 117, M = 7.14 years) negative emotions and on children’s psychological adjustment. One year later, children were interviewed for emotion knowledge and mothers reported on children’s use of coping strategies. Mothers from the two cultural groups reported the same level of supportive reactions to their children’s negative emotions, whereas Chinese immigrant mothers more often adopted what are commonly considered to be non-supportive strategies than did European American mothers. Whereas supportive maternal reactions were associated with better child outcomes in both cultures, maternal non-supportive reactions were negatively associated with children’s functioning for European American children but not for Chinese immigrant children. The findings shed critical light on the functional meaning of parenting practices in specific cultural contexts in shaping developmental outcomes.

    

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4. Maternal distress, DNA methylation, and fetal programing of stress physiology in Brazilian mother–infant pairs

   https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.22352  

   Wiley, Kyle S. ; Camilo, Caroline ; Gouveia, Gisele ; Euclydes, Verônica ; Panter‐Brick, Catherine ; Matijasevich, Alicia ; Ferraro, Alexandre Archanjo ; Fracolli, Lislaine Aparecida ; Chiesa, Anna Maria ; Miguel, Euripedes Constantino ; et al ( December 2022 , Developmental Psychobiology)

   Maternal prenatal psychosocial stress is associated with adverse hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis (HPAA) function among infants. Although the biological mechanisms influencing this process remain unknown, altered DNA methylation is considered to be one potential mechanism. We investigated associations between maternal prenatal psychological distress, infant salivary DNA methylation, and stress physiology at 12 months. Mother's distress was measured via depression and anxiety in early and late pregnancy in a cohort of 80 pregnant adolescents. Maternal hair cortisol was collected during pregnancy. Saliva samples were collected from infants at 12 months to quantify DNA methylation of three stress‐related genes (FKBP5,NR3C1,OXTR) (n = 62) and diurnal cortisol (n = 29). Multivariable linear regression was used to test for associations between prenatal psychological distress, and infant DNA methylation and cortisol. Hair cortisol concentrations in late pregnancy were negatively associated with two sites ofFKBP5(site 1:B = −22.33,p = .003; site 2:B = −15.60,p = .012). Infants of mothers with elevated anxiety symptoms in late pregnancy had lower levels ofOXTR2CpG2 methylation (B = −2.17,p = .03) and higher evening salivary cortisol (B = 0.41,p = .03). Furthermore,OXTR2methylation was inversely associated with evening cortisol (B = −0.14,p‐value ≤ .001). Our results are, to our knowledge, the first evidence that the methylation of the oxytocin receptor may contribute to the regulation of HPAA during infancy.

    

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5. Parent and Child Depressive Symptoms and Authoritarian Parenting: Reciprocal Relations From Early Childhood Through Adolescence

   https://doi.org/10.1177/21677026231170871  

   Chad-Friedman, Emma ; Jordan, Leslie_S ; Chad-Friedman, Simone ; Lemay, Edward ; Olino, Thomas ; Klein, Daniel_N ; Dougherty, Lea_R ( May 2023 , Clinical Psychological Science)

   We conducted cross-lagged panel models to examine reciprocal relations between parent and child depressive symptoms and authoritarian-parenting behaviors across development in a community sample of 599 youths (89.1% White, 7.7% Black/African American, 2.3% Asian, 0.7% multiracial/other; 65.3% had at least one parent with a 4-year college degree). Mothers and fathers completed self-report measures about their own depressive symptoms and authoritarian-parenting behaviors during the years their children were 3 to 15 years old. Child depressive symptoms were assessed with a developmentally appropriate semistructured clinical interview at all time points. Results demonstrated reciprocal pathways between maternal and child depressive symptoms from ages 3 to 15 years serial mediators. Moreover, although child depressive symptoms at age 3 years led to greater maternal and paternal negative authoritarian parenting from ages 3 to 15 years, these effects were not reciprocal. Pathways between paternal and child depressive symptoms were not observed. Our findings highlight the importance of examining reciprocal pathways to identify mechanisms in the development of depression within families.

    

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