Mapping gray and white matter volume abnormalities in early-onset psychosis: an ENIGMA multicenter voxel-based morphometry study.

INTRODUCTION: Regional gray matter (GM) alterations have been reported in early-onset psychosis (EOP, onset before age 18), but previous studies have yielded conflicting results, likely due to small sample sizes and the different brain regions examined. In this study, we conducted a whole brain voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis in a large sample of individuals with EOP, using the newly developed ENIGMA-VBM tool. METHODS: 15 independent cohorts from the ENIGMA-EOP working group participated in the study. The overall sample comprised T1-weighted MRI data from 482 individuals with EOP and 469 healthy controls. Each site performed the VBM analysis locally using the standardized ENIGMA-VBM tool. Statistical parametric T-maps were generated from each cohort and meta-analyzed to reveal voxel-wise differences between EOP and healthy controls as well as the individual-based association between GM volume and age of onset, chlorpromazine (CPZ) equivalent dose, and other clinical variables. RESULTS: Compared with healthy controls, individuals with EOP showed widespread lower GM volume encompassing most of the cortex, with the most marked effect in the left median cingulate (Hedges' g = 0.55, p = 0.001 corrected), as well as small clusters of lower white matter (WM), whereas no regional GM or WM volumes were higher in EOP. Lower GM volume in the cerebellum, thalamus and left inferior parietal gyrus was associated with older age of onset. Deficits in GM in the left inferior frontal gyrus, right insula, right precentral gyrus and right superior frontal gyrus were also associated with higher CPZ equivalent doses. CONCLUSION: EOP is associated with widespread reductions in cortical GM volume, while WM is affected to a smaller extent. GM volume alterations are associated with age of onset and CPZ equivalent dose but these effects are small compared to case-control differences. Mapping anatomical abnormalities in EOP may lead to a better understanding of the role of psychosis in brain development during childhood and adolescence.

Strengthening self-regulation and reducing poverty to prevent adolescent depression and anxiety: Rationale, approach and methods of the ALIVE interdisciplinary research collaboration in Colombia, Nepal and South Africa.

AIMS: Depression and anxiety are the leading contributors to the global burden of disease among young people, accounting for over a third (34.8%) of years lived with disability. Yet there is limited evidence for interventions that prevent adolescent depression and anxiety in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where 90% of adolescents live. This article introduces the 'Improving Adolescent mentaL health by reducing the Impact of poVErty (ALIVE)' study, its conceptual framework, objectives, methods and expected outcomes. The aim of the ALIVE study is to develop and pilot-test an intervention that combines poverty reduction with strengthening self-regulation to prevent depression and anxiety among adolescents living in urban poverty in Colombia, Nepal and South Africa. METHODS: This aim will be achieved by addressing four objectives: (1) develop a conceptual framework that identifies the causal mechanisms linking poverty, self-regulation and depression and anxiety; (2) develop a multi-component selective prevention intervention targeting self-regulation and poverty among adolescents at high risk of developing depression or anxiety; (3) adapt and validate instruments to measure incidence of depression and anxiety, mediators and implementation parameters of the prevention intervention; and (4) undertake a four-arm pilot cluster randomised controlled trial to assess the feasibility, acceptability and cost of the selective prevention intervention in the three study sites. RESULTS: The contributions of this study include the active engagement and participation of adolescents in the research process; a focus on the causal mechanisms of the intervention; building an evidence base for prevention interventions in LMICs; and the use of an interdisciplinary approach. CONCLUSIONS: By developing and evaluating an intervention that addresses multidimensional poverty and self-regulation, ALIVE can make contributions to evidence on the integration of mental health into broader development policy and practice.

Desensitized gamers? Violent video game exposure and empathy for pain in adolescents - an ERP study.

This Event-Related Potential (ERP) study aimed to test how habitual and short-term violent video game exposure (VVGE) may affect empathy for pain responses in adolescents. In a within-subjects design, boys (N = 56; aged 12-16 years) performed a pain judgment task before and immediately after playing a violent video game. In this task, participants judged whether photos of hands depicted on their screen were in a painful situation or not. While both the P3 and the LPP components were not related to habitual violent video game exposure, general exposure to antisocial media content predicted lower P3 amplitudes to painful pictures. Further, 40 min of violent gameplay did not affect the P3 responses; however, it temporarily decreased LPP responses to painful pictures, suggesting a modest short-term desensitization effect. However, this latter interpretation is limited by a strong LPP pain effect - a significant amplitude difference between painful and non-painful pictures - that remained present in the post-game condition. Such persistent LPP effect may relate to the notion that adolescents are still learning how to properly regulate their emotional reactions. This study contributes to the limited literature on violent video games' desensitization in adolescents' brains, opening new avenues for media violence research.

The Effect of Relative Pubertal Maturation and Perceived Popularity on Symptoms of Depression and Social Anxiety in Adolescent Boys and Girls.

Research has shown that adolescents - particularly girls - who mature relatively early often experience more internalizing problems. This effect is thought to be partially driven by psychosocial mechanisms, but previous research based relative pubertal maturation on complete samples or population standards, instead of considering the adolescents' direct peer environment. In the current study the level of adolescents' pubertal development was assessed relative to their classmates in order to examine relative pubertal maturation. The effects of adolescents' relative pubertal status, and their perceived popularity, on symptoms of social anxiety and depression in adolescents were studied. All analyses were also performed for absolute pubertal maturation. Participants were 397 young adolescents (Mage = 13.06, SD = 0.36, 49.9% girls) at timepoint 1, and 307 (Mage = 14.08, SD = 0.36, 50.5% girls) at timepoint 2. A significant positive relationship was found between relative pubertal timing and symptoms of depression for girls but not boys. Social anxiety symptoms were not significantly related to relative pubertal timing in either sex. Relative pubertal maturation had no effect on change in or persistence of depressive and social anxiety symptoms one year later. The effects of the comparison with the immediate peer environment, did not seem to explain more variance in internalizing symptoms than the effects of early maturation.

How, when and why abilities go social: researching children's empathy and prosocial behaviors in context.

Introduction: The current paper undertakes interdisciplinary research on empathy in children by combining insights and methodological tools from the fields of psychology, education and anthropology. The researchers aim to map how children's individual empathic abilities studied on a cognitive level do or do not coincide with their empathic expressions as part of group dynamics in daily life at the classroom level. Method: We combined qualitative and quantitative methods within three different classrooms at three different schools. In total, 77 children aged between 9 to 12 years participated. Results: The results indicate how such an interdisciplinary approach can provide unique insights. Through the integration of data from our different research tools we could reveal the interplay between different levels. More specifically this meant showing the possible influence of rule-based prosocial behaviors versus empathy based prosocial behaviors, the interplay between community empathic abilities and individual empathic abilities, and the role of peer culture and school culture. Discussion: These insights can be seen as encouragement toward a research approach that extends beyond the single disciplinary field in social science research.

Increased interference from conflicting perspectives and gender differences: A longitudinal study during adolescence.

Adolescents need to develop adequate perspective-taking skills to successfully navigate their increasingly complex social environments. This study investigated adolescents' development of the cognitive processes of egocentric and altercentric interference that influence perspective-taking abilities. Using the Dot Perspective Task, participants' (N = 803; 50.9% female) egocentric and altercentric interference was measured during 3 consecutive years from 12 to 14 years of age. Linear mixed model analyses showed that whereas overall task performance improved over time, egocentric and altercentric interference increased over time. These results suggest that perspective taking develops at slower rates when there are conflicting perspectives than in situations with no conflict. Moreover, we found that girls showed less egocentric interference than boys. This result provides task-based evidence that supports previous findings of higher self-reported perspective taking in adolescent girls than in adolescent boys.

A Few Close Friends? Adolescent Friendships' Effect on Internalizing Symptoms Is Serially Mediated by Desire for More Friends and Social Goal Orientation.

Interpersonal connection is a fundamental human motivation, and the extent to which it is fulfilled is a strong predictor of symptoms of internalizing disorders such as social anxiety and depression, perhaps especially during the "social reorienting" period of adolescence. However, little is known about the contribution to this effect of the individual's social motivations, which are intensified during adolescence. Furthermore, social goal orientation - an individual's priorities and intentions in social interactions - is an important predictor of vulnerability to internalizing symptoms. Adolescents spend most of their waking lives in classrooms, bounded social networks with a limited pool of candidates for befriending. This study investigated whether friendships within one's class protects against internalizing symptoms in part by reducing the desire for more classmate friendships, which may tend to promote maladaptive social goals. Participants were 423 young adolescents (M age = 13.2, sd = 0.52 years; 49.4% girls). As predicted, adolescents' number of reciprocated classroom friendships had a protective effect on internalizing symptoms which was serially mediated by desire for more such friendships, and social goal orientation. However, only demonstration-avoidance goals significantly predicted internalizing symptoms. Unreciprocated friendship nominations were unexpectedly associated with stronger desire and more social anxiety symptoms. The results suggest that the effect of number of friends is mediated by the individual's thoughts and feelings about their number of friendships, such that a strong desire for more friendships promotes maladaptive goals, oriented toward social status and consequently less oriented toward the cultivation of interpersonal intimacy with the friends they already have.

Social network position, trust behavior, and neural activity in young adolescents.

Our social interactions take place within numerous social networks, in which our relationships with others define our position within these networks. In this study, we examined how the centrality of positions within social networks was associated with trust behavior and neural activity in 49 adolescents (Mage = 12.8 years, SDage = 0.4 years). The participants played a trust game with a cartoon animation as a partner, which showed adaptive behavior in response to the participant and was generally untrustworthy. Social network positions were obtained in secondary school classrooms where the participants and their classmates reported on who their friends were. Using social network analysis, a score was calculated that indicated the centrality of everyone's position within the friendship network. The results showed that more central social network positions were associated with higher levels of initial trust behavior, although no evidence was found for a relationship between network position and the adaptation of trust behavior. The results of the functional MRI analyses showed that the centrality of the network positions was positively associated with caudate activity when making trust decisions. Furthermore, the adolescents with more central network positions also showed stronger increases of caudate activity when the partner's return was processed compared to the adolescents with less central network positions. The current study provides initial evidence that social network positions in friendship networks relate to socio-cognitive behavior and neural activity in adolescents.

Predicting academic success of autistic students in higher education.

LAYMEN SUMMARY: What is already known about the topic?Autistic youths increasingly enter universities. We know from existing research that autistic students are at risk of dropping out or studying delays. Using machine learning and historical information of students, researchers can predict the academic success of bachelor students. However, we know little about what kind of information can predict whether autistic students will succeed in their studies and how accurate these predictions will be.What does this article add?In this research, we developed predictive models for the academic success of 101 autistic bachelor students. We compared these models to 2,465 students with other health conditions and 25,077 students without health conditions. The research showed that the academic success of autistic students was predictable. Moreover, these predictions were more precise than predictions of the success of students without autism.For the success of the first bachelor year, concerns with aptitude and study choice were the most important predictors. Participation in pre-education and delays at the beginning of autistic students' studies were the most influential predictors for second-year success and delays in the second and final year of their bachelor's program. In addition, academic performance in high school was the strongest predictor for degree completion in 3 years.Implications for practice, research, or policyThese insights can enable universities to develop tailored support for autistic students. Using early warning signals from administrative data, institutions can lower dropout risk and increase degree completion for autistic students.

Adolescent development: From neurobiology to psychopathology.

Adolescence is a time of major psychological development in the cognitive, affective, and social domains. Development in these domains can also show interactions with each other. One way in which these interactions between these domains become apparent is in the form of risk-taking behavior in adolescence. Compared to children and adults, adolescents show increased risky decision-making. An example of risk-taking behavior is substance use, including smoking and the use of e-cigarettes (Huizink). A leading explanation for risk-taking behavior has been an increase in reward sensitivity in adolescence. However, adolescents also show differential processing of risk compared to children and adults. A focus on risk processing could broaden the perspective on adolescent risk-taking behavior (van Duijvenvoorde).

Students' beliefs about the nature of intelligence (mindset).

Important adolescents' career-related decisions might be influenced by their beliefs about malleability of intelligence and learning (mindset). We combined quantitative and qualitative data to provide in-depth insights in the beliefs that 13-14-year-olds hold about learning and intelligence, the factors influencing these beliefs, and the consequences of these beliefs in relation to classroom behaviour and study choices. To establish students' mindsets quantitatively, we categorised theory of intelligence questionnaire (TOI; Dweck, 1999) averaged scores into three levels: entity, intermediate or incremental mindsets, to provide insight into the distribution of the different mindset types in our sample (N = 492). The results of this quantitative study show that more than half of the students believed intelligence is "fixed" (entity mindset), these data showed no effect of gender. To gain more in-depth insight in the views of these students, focus groups about mindset and its influences and consequences were held in a subsample (n = 176). The qualitative data provide more nuanced insights, for example they reveal subtle gender differences regarding effort beliefs and motivation. Integrated discussion of the quantitative and qualitative results demonstrates that this multi-method approach reflects the complexity of the concept mindset better than only the widely used TOI questionnaire.

Development of the neural correlates of self- and other-referential processing across adolescence.

During adolescence, major changes in brain mechanisms take place and differentiated representations of both the self and of others are developed. Although studies have investigated the neural mechanisms of self- and other-referential processing in adolescents, the development of these mechanisms remain largely unaddressed. Here, we report a three-year longitudinal study with annual measurements, and investigate the developmental trajectories of activity and connectivity underlying self- and other-referential processes in 34 participants from early to mid-adolescence (mean age timepoints 1, 2, 3 = 12.9, 13.9, 15.0 years). Moreover, we probe whether these correlates continue to develop from mid-adolescence to young adulthood by comparing neural correlates of the adolescents at the last measurement to an independent group of 42 young adults (mean age 22 years). Participants underwent functional MRI while performing a trait judgement task in which they indicated whether an adjective described themselves, a similar or a dissimilar peer. Brain activity within the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dMPFC) and right temporal parietal junction (TPJ) showed a quadratic change from early to mid-adolescence, with a peak in activity at the second measurement when evaluating the self, the similar and dissimilar peer. No differential activity was observed when comparing the adolescents to young adults. Functional connectivity did not change from early to mid-adolescence, however, connectivity of the dMPFC with a posterior midline region during self- and other-referential processing relative to the control condition reduced from mid-adolescence to young adulthood. Together, these findings provide insight in the developmental trajectories of brain activity and connectivity underlying the development of the self-concept and representations of peers in adolescence.

Intracranial and subcortical volumes in adolescents with early-onset psychosis: A multisite mega-analysis from the ENIGMA consortium.

Early-onset psychosis disorders are serious mental disorders arising before the age of 18 years. Here, we investigate the largest neuroimaging dataset, to date, of patients with early-onset psychosis and healthy controls for differences in intracranial and subcortical brain volumes. The sample included 263 patients with early-onset psychosis (mean age: 16.4 ± 1.4 years, mean illness duration: 1.5 ± 1.4 years, 39.2% female) and 359 healthy controls (mean age: 15.9 ± 1.7 years, 45.4% female) with magnetic resonance imaging data, pooled from 11 clinical cohorts. Patients were diagnosed with early-onset schizophrenia (n = 183), affective psychosis (n = 39), or other psychotic disorders (n = 41). We used linear mixed-effects models to investigate differences in intracranial and subcortical volumes across the patient sample, diagnostic subgroup and antipsychotic medication, relative to controls. We observed significantly lower intracranial (Cohen's d = -0.39) and hippocampal (d = -0.25) volumes, and higher caudate (d = 0.25) and pallidum (d = 0.24) volumes in patients relative to controls. Intracranial volume was lower in both early-onset schizophrenia (d = -0.34) and affective psychosis (d = -0.42), and early-onset schizophrenia showed lower hippocampal (d = -0.24) and higher pallidum (d = 0.29) volumes. Patients who were currently treated with antipsychotic medication (n = 193) had significantly lower intracranial volume (d = -0.42). The findings demonstrate a similar pattern of brain alterations in early-onset psychosis as previously reported in adult psychosis, but with notably low intracranial volume. The low intracranial volume suggests disrupted neurodevelopment in adolescent early-onset psychosis.

Exploring the association between social behaviour, trust, and its neural correlates in first episode psychosis patients and in individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis.

OBJECTIVES: Psychosis is characterized by paranoid delusions, social withdrawal, and distrust towards others. Trust is essential for successful social interactions. It remains unknown which aspects of social functioning are associated with reduced trust in psychosis. Therefore, we investigated the association between social behaviour, trust, and its neural correlates in a group of individuals with psychotic symptoms (PS-group), consisting of first episode psychosis patients combined with individuals at clinical high risk. METHODS: We compared 24 PS individuals and 25 healthy controls. Affect and social withdrawal were assessed using the Experience Sampling Method. Trust was measured during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning, using a trust game with a cooperative and unfair counterpart. RESULTS: The PS-group showed lower baseline trust compared to controls and reported less positive and more negative general affect. Social withdrawal did not differ between the groups. Social withdrawal and social reactivity in affect (i.e., changes in affect when with others compared to when alone) were not associated with trust. On the neural level, in controls but not in the PS-group, social withdrawal was associated with caudate activation during interactions with an unfair partner. An increase in positive social reactivity, was associated with reduced insula activation in the whole sample. CONCLUSIONS: Social withdrawal and social reactivity were not associated with reduced initial trust in the PS-group. Like controls, the PS-group showed a positive response in affect when with others, suggesting a decrease in emotional distress. Supporting patients to keep engaging in social interactions, may alleviate their emotional distress. PRACTITIONER POINTS: Individuals with psychotic symptoms show reduced initial trust towards unknown others. Trust in others is not associated with social withdrawal and reported affect when with others, nor when alone. Like controls, individuals with psychotic symptoms showed reduced negative affect and increased positive affect when with others compared to when alone. We emphasize to support individuals with psychotic symptoms to keep engaging in social interactions, given it may reduce social withdrawal and alleviate their emotional distress.

The importance of home: Satisfaction with accommodation, neighborhood, and life in adults with autism.

Although good quality housing and a socially cohesive neighborhood are associated with a higher well-being in the general population, housing is a rarely studied topic in autism research. In the present study, we describe the housing situation of a large sample of adults with autism and mostly (above) average intellectual abilities (n = 1429; 17 to 84 years), and examine predictors of independent living, accommodation satisfaction, neighborhood satisfaction, and satisfaction with life based on an online survey. The outcomes of independently living adults were compared with those from a Dutch community sample (n = 929). Nearly 80% of the autistic adults lived independently. Older participants, women, and those with higher self-reported IQ's were more likely to live independently. Autistic adults living independently were equally satisfied with their accommodation and neighborhood as the comparison group, but were less satisfied with their life in general. In both groups, higher satisfaction with accommodation and neighborhood was associated with higher life satisfaction. We advocate further research to better understand and anticipate the housing needs of the growing group of adults with autism. LAY SUMMARY: The living situation of autistic adults has rarely been studied. We found that 79% of autistic adults with mostly (above) average intellectual abilities lived independently. Women, older adults, and those with higher IQ's were more likely to live independently. They were equally pleased with their house and neighborhood as adults from a Dutch community sample, but autistic adults were less satisfied with their life in general.

Emotion Recognition and Inhibitory Control in Adolescent Players of Violent Video Games.

Developmental changes during adolescence may make youth susceptible to violent media effects. Two studies with male adolescents (N1 = 241; N2 = 161; aged 12-17) examined how habitual and short-term violent video gaming may affect emotion recognition and inhibitory control. We found that not habitual exposure to violent video games, but to antisocial media content predicted worse emotion recognition. Furthermore, higher habitual exposure to violent games predicted better inhibitory control over emotional stimuli in a stop signal task. However, short-term causal effects of violent gameplay on adolescents were not found. While these results do not indicate a negative impact of violent video games on young players, future research may further investigate possible effects of antisocial media content on adolescents.

The Value of Nature During Psychotherapy: A Qualitative Study of Client Experiences.

Nature is considered to have restorative qualities that can potentially improve psychotherapy success. However, little is known about how clients experience nature during psychotherapy. The research aim of this phenomenological qualitative study was to study how clients experience nature during individual outpatient psychotherapy that took place while walking in nature. More specifically we were interested in clients' inner world experiences. All participants (N = 12) received treatment through licensed therapists for a DSM-5 classified disorder. Semi-structured interviews were conducted. To uncover true lived experiences during these interviews, participants were asked to close their eyes and envision themselves during a psychotherapy session in nature. The verbatim transcripts were coded by means of inductive thematic analysis and the results were member checked. Results showed that nature brings clients closer to their inner worlds. How nature brings this about is unfolded in a conceptual model of lived experience. We argue that psychotherapy can be enriched by considering nature as a supportive environment because bringing clients closer to their inner worlds is of essential value in facilitating successful treatment interventions.

Integrating Cognitive Developmental Neuroscience in Society: Lessons Learned From a Multidisciplinary Research Project on Education and Social Safety of Youth.

Integrating fundamental science in society, with the goal to translate research findings to daily practice, comes with certain challenges. Successfully integrating research projects into society requires (1) good collaboration between scientists and societal stakeholders, (2) collaboration partners with common expectations and goals, and (3) investment in clear communication. Here we describe an integrative research project conducted by a large Dutch consortium that consisted of neuroscientists, psychologists, sociologists, ethicists, teachers, health care professionals and policy makers, focusing on applying cognitive developmental neuroscience for the benefit of youth in education and social safety. We argue that to effectively integrate cognitive developmental neuroscience in society, (1) it is necessary to invest in a well-functioning, diverse and multidisciplinary team involving societal stakeholders and youth themselves from the start of the project. This aids to build a so-called productive interactive network that increases the chances to realize societal impact in the long-term. Additionally, we propose that to integrate knowledge, (2) a different than standard research approach should be taken. When focusing on integration, the ultimate goal of research is not solely to understand the world better, but also to intervene with real-life situations, such as education or (forensic) youth care. To accomplish this goal, we propose an approach in which integration is not only started after the research has been conducted, but taken into account throughout the entire project. This approach helps to create common expectations and goals between different stakeholders. Finally, we argue that (3) dedicating sufficient resources to effective communication, both within the consortium and between scientists and society, greatly benefits the integration of cognitive developmental neuroscience in society.

Viewing Nature Lets Your Mind Run Free: Three Experiments about the Influence of Viewing a Nature Video on Cognitive Coping with Psychological Distress.

Viewing nature has restorative qualities that might help people cope with their personal struggles. Three lab experiments (N = 506) studied whether environment (nature vs. built) influences cognitive coping with psychological distress. Psychological distress was induced with an autobiographical recall task about serious regret, whereafter participants were randomly assigned to view a nature or built video. Cognitive coping (i) Quantity, (ii) Content, and (iii) Quality were hereafter assessed as well as extent and vividness of the regretful memory during the video. Results showed a higher cognitive coping Quantity (Study 1 and 3) and a higher cognitive coping Quality (All studies) for the nature (vs. built) condition. Regarding cognitive coping Content, results varied across the studies. Additionally, participants reported to have thought about the experienced psychological distress to a greater extent while viewing the nature (vs. built) video. Yet they did rate viewing nature as more relaxing. We propose a two-step pathway as an underlying mechanism of restoration. In the first step the capacity for directed attention replenishes. Secondly, this renewed capacity is directed towards internal processes, creating the optimal setting for reflection. Hence, viewing nature allows people to truly process whatever is occupying their minds, which is ultimately relieving and beneficial for mental health.