Structural invariance of General Behavior Inventory (GBI) scores in Black and White young adults

Ethnic-Racial Socialization, Ethnic-Racial Identity, and Depressive Symptoms in Korean Adolescents in the United States and China

The United States and China are top two receiving countries of Korean immigrants in modern history. Minority families in ethnically-racially diverse societies, such as the US and China, use various ethnic-racial socialization practices (cultural socialization, promotion of mistrust, preparation for bias) to help their children navigate the world, yet research in non-U.S. contexts is scarce. To examine the specificity versus generalizability of ethnic-racial socialization and its implications, this study compared the prevalence of ethnic-racial socialization reported by Korean American (n = 408; M_age = 14.76, SD = 1.91; 48.30% female) and Korean Chinese (n = 267; M_age = 15.24, SD = 1.66; 58.90% female) youth. Moreover, this study examined how various ethnic-racial socialization practices relate to the youth's ethnic-racial identity, and subsequently, depressive symptoms. Although Korean American youth reported more frequent ethnic-racial socialization compared to their Korean Chinese counterparts, cultural socialization (but not preparation for bias nor promotion of mistrust) had a comparable negative indirect association with depressive symptoms via ethnic-racial identity across both groups. Thus, although the rates of parental ethnic-racial socialization are context-specific, parental cultural socialization may be similarly beneficial for Korean ethnic-racial minority youth's identity development, and in turn, psychological outcomes, whether in a Western individualistic society or an Eastern collectivistic society.

Glutamatergic Correlates of Bipolar Symptoms in Adolescents

Objectives: Prior studies demonstrate elevated cortical glutamate (Glu) in patients with bipolar disorder (BD). Studies assessing neurochemistry in early stages of bipolar illness before the emergence of manic symptoms are lacking. This study aimed to examine neurochemical correlates measured by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (¹H-MRS) and a dimensional measure of bipolarity in a sample of depressed adolescents. Methods: Adolescent participants (aged 13-21 years) underwent a semistructured diagnostic interview and clinical assessment, which included the General Behavior Inventory Parent Version (P-GBI), a 73-item, parent-rated assessment of symptoms and behaviors. ¹H-MRS scans of a left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (L-DLPFC) voxel (8 cm³) were collected using a two-dimensional J-averaged sequence to assess N-acetylaspartate (NAA), Glu, Glx (glutamate + glutamine), and NAA/Glx concentrations. We used generalized linear models to assess the relationships between P-GBI scores and metabolite levels in L-DLPFC. Results: Thirty-six participants (17 healthy controls, 19 depressed) underwent ¹H-MRS scans and clinical evaluation with the P-GBI. There was a significant negative relationship between P-GBI score and L-DLPFC NAA/Glx in the whole sample. However, the magnitude of the effect was small and statistical significance was lost after correcting for multiple comparisons. Conclusions: These preliminary results suggest that NAA/Glx may have utility as a marker of bipolar traits in healthy and depressed adolescents. If replicated, ¹H-MRS measures of glutamatergic metabolism anomalies might have a role in identifying depressed adolescents at risk for mixed symptom presentations or BD. Identifying bipolarity in the early stages of the disease would have a significant impact on treatment planning and prognosis. Further longitudinal studies should examine neurochemical correlates of mood state during the developmental emergence of BD.

Traits related to bipolar disorder are associated with an increased post-illumination pupil response

Mood states in bipolar disorder appear to be closely linked to changes in sleep and circadian function. It has been suggested that hypersensitivity of the circadian system to light may be a trait vulnerability for bipolar disorder. Healthy persons with emotional-behavioural traits associated with bipolar disorder also appear to exhibit problems with circadian rhythms, which may be associated with individual differences in light sensitivity. This study investigated the melanopsin-driven post-illumination pupil response (PIPR) in relation to emotional-behavioural traits associated with bipolar disorder (measured with the General Behavior Inventory) in a non-clinical group (n = 61). An increased PIPR was associated with increased bipolar disorder-related traits. Specifically, the hypomania scale of the General Behavior Inventory was associated with an increased post-blue PIPR. Further, both the full hypomania and shortened '7 Up' scales were significantly predicted by PIPR, after age, sex and depressive traits were controlled. These findings suggest that increased sensitivity to light may be a risk factor for mood problems in the general population, and support the idea that hypersensitivity to light is a trait vulnerability for, rather than symptom of, bipolar disorder.

Time-varying associations of parent-adolescent cultural conflict and youth adjustment among Chinese American families

The purpose of this study was to examine time-varying associations of parent-adolescent cultural conflict with depressive symptoms and grade point average (GPA) among Chinese Americans from ages 11-22. We pooled two independently collected longitudinal data sets (N = 760 at Wave 1) and used time-varying effect modeling (TVEM) to show that the frequency of parent-adolescent conflict increased during early adolescence (12 years), peaked at mid adolescence (16 years), and gradually decreased throughout late adolescence and young adulthood. In general, parent-adolescent conflict was associated with negative adjustment (more depressive symptoms and lower GPA) more strongly during mid- to late-adolescence (15 to 17 years) compared with other developmental periods. These time-varying associations differed slightly by gender, at least for GPA. Our findings provide important developmental knowledge of parent-adolescent conflict for Chinese American youth and suggest that attention to conflict and links to adjustment is especially relevant during mid to late adolescence. Our study also illustrates the usefulness of integrative data analysis and TVEM to investigate how the strength of conflict-adjustment associations might change throughout development. (PsycINFO Database Record

Longitudinal measurement equivalence of subjective language brokering experiences scale in Mexican American adolescents

OBJECTIVE

Language brokering occurs frequently in immigrant families and can have significant implications for the well-being of family members involved. The present study aimed to develop and validate a measure that can be used to assess multiple dimensions of subjective language brokering experiences among Mexican American adolescents.

METHOD

Participants were 557 adolescent language brokers (54.2% female, Mage.wave1 = 12.96, SD = .94) in Mexican American families.

RESULTS

Using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, we were able to identify 7 reliable subscales of language brokering: linguistic benefits, socioemotional benefits, efficacy, positive parent-child relationships, parental dependence, negative feelings, and centrality. Tests of factorial invariance show that these subscales demonstrate, at minimum, partial strict invariance across time and across experiences of translating for mothers and fathers, and in most cases, also across adolescent gender, nativity, and translation frequency. Thus, in general, the means of the subscales and the relations among the subscales with other variables can be compared across these different occasions and groups. Tests of criterion-related validity demonstrated that these subscales correlated, concurrently and longitudinally, with parental warmth and hostility, parent-child alienation, adolescent family obligation, depressive symptoms, resilience, and life meaning.

CONCLUSION

This reliable and valid subjective language brokering experiences scale will be helpful for gaining a better understanding of adolescents' language brokering experiences with their mothers and fathers, and how such experiences may influence their development. (PsycINFO Database Record