Prenatal predictors of childhood anxiety disorders: An exploratory study of the role of attachment organization.
Dev Psychopathol
; 35(3): 1296-1307, 2023 08.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34911592
Childhood anxiety disorders (CAD) are a common childhood mental disorder and understanding early developmental pathways is key to prevention and early intervention. What is not understood is whether early life stress predictors of CAD might be both mediated by infant cortisol reactivity and moderated by infant attachment status. To address this question, this exploratory study draws on 190 women recruited in early pregnancy and followed together with their children until 4 years of age. Early life stress is operationalized as maternal depression measured using the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Parenting Stress Index, and antenatal maternal hair cortisol concentrations. Infant cortisol reactivity was measured at 12 months together with the Strange Situation Procedure and CAD assessed at 4 years of age using the Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment. There was no direct association between attachment classification and CAD. Furthermore, infant cortisol reactivity neither mediated nor attachment moderated the association of early life stress predictors and CAD. However, only for infants with organized attachment classifications, higher maternal antenatal depression, and hair cortisol were associated with a higher risk of CAD.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Hydrocortisone
/
Depression
Type of study:
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Child
/
Child, preschool
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Infant
/
Pregnancy
Language:
En
Journal:
Dev Psychopathol
Journal subject:
PSICOLOGIA
/
PSIQUIATRIA
Year:
2023
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Australia
Country of publication:
United States