Childhood Maltreatment and Biological Aging in Middle Adulthood: The Role of Psychiatric Symptoms.

Background: Childhood maltreatment and psychiatric morbidity have each been associated with accelerated biological aging primarily through cross-sectional studies. Using data from a prospective longitudinal study of individuals with histories of childhood maltreatment and control participants followed into midlife, we tested 2 hypotheses examining whether 1) psychiatric symptoms mediate the relationship between childhood maltreatment and biological aging and 2) psychiatric symptoms of anxiety, depression, or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) act in conjunction with childhood maltreatment to exacerbate the association of child maltreatment to aging. Methods: Children (ages 0-11 years) with documented histories of maltreatment and demographically matched control children were followed into adulthood (N = 607) and interviewed over several waves of the study. Depression, anxiety, and PTSD symptoms were assessed at mean ages of 29 (interview 1) and 40 (interview 2) years. Biological age was measured from blood chemistries collected later (mean age = 41 years) using the Klemera-Doubal method. Hypotheses were tested using linear regressions and path analyses. Results: Adults with documented histories of childhood maltreatment showed more symptoms of depression, PTSD, and anxiety at both interviews and more advanced biological aging, compared with control participants. PTSD symptoms at both interviews and depression and anxiety symptoms only at interview 2 predicted accelerated biological aging. There was no evidence of mediation; however, anxiety and depression moderated the relationship between childhood maltreatment and biological aging. Conclusions: These new findings reveal the shorter- and longer-term longitudinal impact of PTSD on biological aging and the amplifying effect of anxiety and depression on the relationship between child maltreatment and biological aging.

Childhood maltreatment and psychiatric morbidity are associated with biological aging. We used data from a prospective longitudinal study of children with documented histories of maltreatment and demographically matched control participants followed and interviewed in adulthood. Depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were assessed at ages 29 and 40 years, and biological age was measured from blood chemistries collected later. Adults with histories of childhood maltreatment showed more symptoms of depression, PTSD, and anxiety and more advanced biological aging compared with control participants. PTSD symptoms predicted accelerated biological aging longitudinally. Anxiety and depression amplified the relationship between child maltreatment and biological aging.

Child Contact, Partner Conflict, and Psychological Distress Among Incarcerated Fathers: Testing the Mediating Role of Perceived Social Support.

The mechanism(s) through which child contact can lead to more positive mental health and romantic relationship outcomes among incarcerated fathers are not sufficiently studied. The present study tests whether the associations between frequency of child contact and later psychological distress and conflict in romantic relationships are mediated by perceived social support. Self-reported longitudinal data from a sample of incarcerated men who participated in a fatherhood education program (n = 2,096) were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Variables were assessed pre- and post-program participation. As hypothesized, more frequent child contact was associated with greater perceived social support, which predicted reduced psychological distress and reduced partner conflict. There were significant indirect effects of child contact on psychological distress and partner conflict via perceived social support. The findings may inform policies aiming to help incarcerated fathers to better manage psychological distress and conflictual relationships, preparing them for a more successful return to society.

Developmental changes in school burnout: The importance of sleep and problematic Internet use.

INTRODUCTION: School burnout remains a prevalent problem among adolescents; it is associated with low academic achievement and school dropout risk, in turn linked to a whole host of deleterious developmental outcomes. The current longitudinal study sought to better understand the developmental course of school burnout by testing whether poor sleep and problematic internet use each uniquely and additively explained the variance in school burnout over time. METHOD: Data were collected four times over 18 months, 6 months apart from N = 405 adolescents, grades 9 to 11. RESULTS: Sleep quality, but not quantity, was significantly associated with the school burnout intercept (ß = -0.29); no effects were found for the slope. Problematic internet use was also significantly associated with the intercept (ß = .44), but not the slope. In a combined model, both sleep quality and problematic internet use significantly predicted the school burnout intercept. The slope was only predicted by age (ß = -0.21). CONCLUSIONS: The study found partial support for the hypotheses that both poor sleep quality and problematic internet use predicted school burnout, intercept only, not the rate of change. The evidence suggests that school burnout increased across high school; however, the rate of increase slowed with age. In contrast to some previous work, study findings highlight the importance of separately considering both poor sleep and problematic internet use in understanding the development of school burnout during adolescence. N = 229.

Is the Effect of Parenting on Substance Use among Adolescents and Young Adults Context Dependent? Evidence from Ten Countries of Southeastern Europe.

Related to some inconsistent evidence in the literature, the current study tested the links between three parenting styles and four measures of substance use in samples of adolescents and young adults from ten, socio-economically diverse countries in Southeastern Europe (N = 10,909, 50.3% males, Mage = 21.70, SD = 4.5); it also tested whether these links were moderated by a measure of social progress. Results indicated that only authoritative parenting style was negatively associated with substance use; both authoritarian and permissive parenting styles were positively associated with substance use. The country-level effect on substance use was modest, yet significant; it explained between 1% and 4% of the total variance. Findings also provided some evidence of a moderation effects by social progress. Exploratory follow-up HLM analyses also provided evidence of significant country level social progress effects on alcohol use, soft drug use, and hard drug use; however, no significant cross-level interactions effects were found. Key study implications include positive effects by both authoritarian and permissive parenting on young adult substance use, but importantly, negative ones by authoritative parenting. Findings have important implications for potential intervention and prevention efforts, in addition to addressing potential country-level differences.

Out-of-home placement, sleep problems, and later mental health and crime: A prospective investigation.

Previous research suggests that out-of-home placement experiences increase the risk for mental health problems and criminal involvement. However, few studies have examined the mechanisms whereby out-of-home placement increases the risk for these outcomes. The present study examines whether sleep problems in part explain the relationship between childhood placement experiences and depression and anxiety and criminal arrests in adulthood. Data are from a prospective longitudinal study of 531 children with documented cases of childhood maltreatment (14% with no out-of-home placement, 68% placed solely for abuse and/or neglect, and 18% placed for maltreatment and delinquency) who were followed up into adulthood. Cases are from 1967 to 1971 from a metropolitan county in the Midwest. Sleep problems were assessed in young adulthood (Mage = 29 years). Depression and anxiety symptoms and arrest records were assessed in middle adulthood (Mage = 40 years). Structural equation modeling was used to test hypotheses. Both types of out-of-home placement experiences (for maltreatment only and for maltreatment and delinquency) predicted more sleep problems in adulthood across all models. Sleep problems in young adulthood predicted higher levels of anxiety and depression in middle adulthood, but not criminal arrests. Sleep problems mediated the relationship between placement only and internalizing symptoms and results differed for male, female, White, and Black individuals examined separately. Using court-substantiated cases of childhood abuse and neglect, this study demonstrates the long-term negative consequences of out-of-home placement experiences for sleep problems and anxiety and depression in adulthood. More attention is needed to insure adequate sleep for maltreated children. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Does Self-control Outdo IQ in Predicting Academic Performance?

Duckworth and Seligman's seminal work found that self-discipline (self-control) was more salient for academic achievement than intelligence. Very little replication work exists, including in different cultures; the current study addressed these gaps. Data were collected from 6th and 7th grade cohorts of early adolescents (N = 589; age: Mean = 12.34 years, and SD = 0.89; 58% female) over two years. The study tested whether self-control was a stronger predictor than intelligence in explaining academic performance two years later as well as in explaining developmental changes over the course of two years. Path analyses provided evidence that both self-control and intelligence longitudinally predicted teacher-reported academic competence as well as school-reported grades; however, intelligence was a significantly stronger predictor than self-control. In addition, only intelligence predicted developmental changes in each measure of academic performance over time, self-control did not.

Links Between Parenting and Internalizing and Externalizing Problems: Cross-Cultural Evidence from Ten Countries.

The present study tested the links between perceived maternal and paternal parenting and internalizing and externalizing problems across ten cultures (China, Czech Republic, Hungary, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey, and the United States). Self-report data were collected from N = 12,757 adolescents (Mage = 17.13 years, 48.4% female). Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses and structural equation models tested whether: (1) the six parenting processes (closeness, support, monitoring, communication, peer approval, and conflict; Adolescent Family Process, Short Form (AFP-SF, 18 items) varied across cultures, and (2) the links between parenting processes and measures of internalizing and externalizing problems varied across cultures. Study findings indicated measurement invariance (configural and metric) of both maternal and paternal parenting processes and that the parenting-internalizing/externalizing problems links did not vary across cultures. Findings underscore the ubiquitous importance of parenting processes for internalizing and externalizing problems across diverse Asian, European, Eurasian, and North American cultures.

Empathy, Self-control, Callous-Unemotionality, and Delinquency: Unique and Shared Developmental Antecedents.

The current investigation tested childhood developmental antecedents of adolescent empathy, self-control, callous-unemotionality, and delinquency, namely difficult temperament, positive socialization experiences, and intelligence; it also tested potential mediation effects of temperament via socialization. Data were collected as part of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Early Child Care and Youth Development Study, which followed N = 1364 children from birth through 15 years (51% female, 80% European American). Early positive socialization (maternal sensitivity, secure attachment, and quality home environment) and temperament variables were assessed from 1 to 36 months, intelligence at age 9, and self-control, empathy, callous-unemotionality, and delinquency at age 15. Based on structural equation modeling hypothesis tests, early positive socialization positively predicted self-control and empathy, and negatively predicted callous-unemotionality and delinquency. Intelligence uniquely and positively predicted empathy. Difficult infant temperament indirectly predicted each of the four traits through early positive socialization. Important research and practical implications are discussed.

Childhood Maltreatment, Sleep Disturbances, and Anxiety and Depression: A Prospective Longitudinal Investigation.

This research sought to determine whether inadequate sleep conditions in childhood and sleep problems in young adulthood in part explain the relationship between childhood abuse and neglect and anxiety and depression later in life. Children with documented histories of abuse and neglect and matched controls were followed up and assessed in young and middle adulthood. Abused and neglected children were more likely to report experiencing inadequate sleep conditions in childhood, sleep problems in young adulthood, and higher levels of depression and anxiety later in middle adulthood. Results revealed significant indirect paths from childhood maltreatment to anxiety and depression in middle adulthood through inadequate sleep conditions in childhood and sleep problems in young adulthood. This longitudinal follow-up of children with documented cases of maltreatment reveals the important role of sleep disturbances in the lives of maltreated children and adults and sleep disturbances in the development of subsequent anxiety and depression.

Sleepless: The developmental significance of sleep quality and quantity among adolescents.

The current study tested the developmental significance of both early adolescent sleep quantity and quality for academic competence and internalizing and externalizing problems over the course of 2 years. As part of an accelerated longitudinal study, data were collected from N = 586 Czech adolescents (Mage = 12.34 years, SD = .89, 58.4% female). Data analyses included a series of logistic regressions that controlled for adolescent sex, age, family structure, and socioeconomic status. Findings showed that sleep quality at Wave 1 predicted developmental changes 1 year later (Wave 3) in depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem (ORrange = 1.7-1.8) and 2 years later (Wave 5) in externalizing behaviors (OR = 2.6). Importantly, despite the associations observed with Wave 3 anxiety and deviance, Wave 1 sleep quantity was unrelated to subsequent developmental changes in adjustment measures, both 1 and 2 years later. No sleep effects at all were observed on a variety of measures of academic competence. Study findings underscore the developmental significance of sleep and indicate greater salience of sleep quality vis-à-vis sleep quantity. They also replicate some of the observed relationships found in previous longitudinal work on the sleep-mood link but extend the sleep-adolescent adjustment literature in a number of important ways. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Depressive symptoms among adolescents in Georgia: the role of ethnicity, low self-control, parents, and peers.

OBJECTIVES: The present study tested the role of low self-control, positive parental and peer relationships, and ethnic minority status (Armenian or Azeri), in explaining variability in depressive symptoms in Georgian youth. METHODS: Self-report data were collected from N = 8254 adolescents in Georgia (55.5% female, M age = 15.57, SD 1.03). Hypotheses were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) with latent constructs. RESULTS: Low self-control significantly and positively predicted depressive symptoms, while perceived parental warmth did so negatively; peer friendship quality was unrelated. Ethnic minority status explained a very small amount of unique variance in depressive symptoms for Azeri youth only, not for Armenian adolescents. Multi-group SEM moderation tests provided evidence that the links between constructs were invariant across ethnic groups. The model explained 15.6% of variance in depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Findings support the salience of the tested depressive symptom correlates among Georgian adolescents, consistent with previous evidence from other countries. Adolescent ethnic minority status did not increase risk of depressive symptoms. Self-control emerged as the strongest correlate.