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Gunther KE, Fu X, MacNeill LA, Jones M, Ermanni B, Pérez-Edgar K. Now it's your turn!: Eye blink rate in a Jenga task modulated by interaction of task wait times, effortful control, and internalizing behaviors. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0294888. [PMID: 38457390 PMCID: PMC10923458 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0294888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Dopamine is a versatile neurotransmitter with implications in many domains, including anxiety and effortful control. Where high levels of effortful control are often regarded as adaptive, other work suggests that high levels of effortful control may be a risk factor for anxiety. Dopamine signaling may be key in understanding these relations. Eye blink rate is a non-invasive proxy metric of midbrain dopamine activity. However, much work with eye blink rate has been constrained to screen-based tasks which lack in ecological validity. We tested whether changes in eye blink rate during a naturalistic effortful control task differ as a function of parent-reported effortful control and internalizing behaviors. Children played a Jenga-like game with an experimenter, but for each trial the experimenter took an increasingly long time to take their turn. Blinks-per-second were computed during each wait period. Multilevel modeling examined the relation between duration of wait period, effortful control, and internalizing behaviors on eye blink rate. We found a significant 3-way interaction between effortful control, internalizing behaviors, and duration of the wait period. Probing this interaction revealed that for children with low reported internalizing behaviors (-1 SD) and high reported effortful control (+1 SD), eye blink rate significantly decreased as they waited longer to take their turn. These findings index task-related changes in midbrain dopamine activity in relation to naturalistic task demands, and that these changes may vary as a function of individual differences in effortful control and internalizing behaviors. We discuss possible top-down mechanisms that may underlie these differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelley E. Gunther
- Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States of America
| | - Xiaoxue Fu
- Department of Psychology, The University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, United States of America
| | - Leigha A. MacNeill
- Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, United States of America
| | - Morgan Jones
- Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United States of America
| | - Briana Ermanni
- Department of Psychology, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, United States of America
| | - Koraly Pérez-Edgar
- Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, United States of America
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Vrantsidis DM, Clark CAC, Volk A, Wakschlag LS, Andrews Espy K, Wiebe SA. Exploring the interplay of dopaminergic genotype and parental behavior in relation to executive function in early childhood. Dev Psychopathol 2023; 35:1147-1158. [PMID: 34779374 PMCID: PMC9107528 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579421001061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Child genotype is an important biologically based individual difference conferring differential sensitivity to the effect of parental behavior. This study explored dopaminergic polygenic composite × parental behavior interactions in relation to young children's executive function. Participants were 135 36-month-old children and their mothers drawn from a prospective cohort followed longitudinally from pregnancy. A polygenic composite was created based on the number of COMT, DAT1, DRD2, and DRD4 alleles associated with increased reward sensitivity children carried. Maternal negative reactivity and responsiveness were coded during a series of structured mother-child interactions. Executive function was operationalized as self-control and working memory/inhibitory control. Path analysis supported a polygenic composite by negative reactivity interaction for self-control. The nature of the interaction was one of diathesis-stress, such that higher negative reactivity was associated with poorer self-control for children with higher polygenic composite scores. This result suggests that children with a higher number of alleles may be more vulnerable to the negative effect of negative reactivity. Negative reactivity may increase the risk for developing behavior problems in this population via an association with poorer self-control. Due to the small sample size, these initial findings should be treated with caution until they are replicated in a larger independent sample.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daphne M Vrantsidis
- Center for Biobehavioral Health, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Caron A C Clark
- Department of Educational Psychology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA
| | - Auriele Volk
- Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Lauren S Wakschlag
- Department of Medical Social Sciences, Feinberg School of Medicine and Institute for Innovations in Developmental Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Kimberly Andrews Espy
- Departments of Psychology and Biology, University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, University of Texas Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Sandra A Wiebe
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
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Factors related to the development of executive functions: A cumulative dopamine genetic score and environmental factors predict performance of kindergarten children in a go/nogo task. Trends Neurosci Educ 2023; 30:100200. [PMID: 36925267 DOI: 10.1016/j.tine.2023.100200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2022] [Revised: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 02/11/2023] [Indexed: 02/19/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND This study aimed at investigating the interaction between genetic and environmental factors in predicting executive function in children aged four to six years. METHODS Response inhibition as index of EF was assessed in 197 children using a go/nogo task. A cumulative dopamine (DA) genetic score was calculated, indexing predisposition of low DA activity. Dimensions of parenting behavior and parental education were assessed. RESULTS Parental education was positively related to accuracy in nogo trials. An interaction between the cumulative genetic score and the parenting dimension Responsiveness predicted go RT indicating that children with a high cumulative genetic score and high parental responsiveness exhibited a careful response mode. CONCLUSION The development of EF in kindergarten children is related to parental education as well as to an interaction between the molecular-genetics of the DA system and parenting behavior.
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Differential Relations of Parental Behavior to Children's Early Executive Function as a Function of Child Genotype: A Systematic Review. Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev 2022; 25:435-470. [PMID: 35195834 DOI: 10.1007/s10567-022-00387-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Child genotype is an important biologically based indicator of sensitivity to the effects of parental behavior on children's executive function (EF) in early childhood, birth to age 5. While evidence for gene × parental behavior interactions on children's early EF is growing, researchers have called the quality of evidence provided by gene × environment interaction studies into question. For this reason, this review comprehensively examined the literature and evaluated the evidence for gene × parental behavior interactions on children's early EF abilities. Psychology and psychiatry databases were searched for published peer-reviewed studies. A total of 18 studies met inclusion criteria. Twenty-nine of 89 (33%) examined interactions were significant. However, a p-curve analysis did not find the significant interactions to be of evidential value. A high rate of false positives, due to the continued use of candidate gene and haplotype measures of child genotype and small sample sizes, likely contributed to the high rate of significant interactions and low evidential value. The use of contemporary molecular genetic measures and larger sample sizes are necessary to advance our understanding of child genotype as a moderator of parental effects on children's EF during early childhood and the biopsychosocial mechanisms underlying children's EF development during this critical period. Without these changes, future research is likely to be stymied by the same limitations as current research.
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Kryski KR, Olino TM, Dyson MW, Durbin CE, Klein DN, Hayden EP. Associations between observed temperament in preschoolers and parent psychopathology. Personal Ment Health 2018; 12:131-144. [PMID: 29160041 PMCID: PMC5962380 DOI: 10.1002/pmh.1406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2017] [Revised: 10/18/2017] [Accepted: 10/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Parent history of psychopathology is an established marker of children's own risk for later disorder and can therefore be used as a means of validating other risks, such as child temperament. While associations between children's temperament and parent psychopathology have been reported, few studies have used observational measures of child temperament or examined trait interactions, particularly between children's affective and regulatory traits such as effortful control (EC). In this bottom-up family study of 968 three-year-olds and their parents, we examined interactions between preschoolers' observed positive and negative affectivity (NA) and EC as predictors of a known marker of psychopathology risk: parent history of disorder. Children with lower positive affectivity had an increased probability of paternal depression history in the context of higher child NA. In addition, children with lower EC and higher NA had an increased probability of maternal anxiety. Findings shed new light on the main effects and interactions that account for associations between child temperament and parent history of disorder, one of the best-established markers of an individual's own risk for future disorder, implicating reactive and regulatory traits that merit special consideration in future longitudinal work. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katie R Kryski
- Department of Psychology, Western University, London, ON, Canada
| | - Thomas M Olino
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Margaret W Dyson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - C Emily Durbin
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
| | - Daniel N Klein
- Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
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Nikolas MA, Momany AM. DRD4 Variants Moderate the Impact of Parental Characteristics on Child Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Exploratory Evidence from a Multiplex Family Design. JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL CHILD PSYCHOLOGY 2017; 45:429-442. [PMID: 28138806 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-017-0264-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Parental ADHD symptomatology and related impairments have been robustly associated with youth ADHD across decades of work. Notably, these factors may impede typical development of child self-regulation capabilities through both neurobiological and interpersonal processes. High heritability of estimates for the disorder further suggest that these effects are likely genetically-mediated, at least in part. Variation within the dopamine D4 receptor gene (DRD4) has been shown to moderate parental influences on youth ADHD. Use of a multiplex family design (i.e., samples of families that included multiple affected members) may facilitate identification of additional gene variants of interest and advance understanding of gene-environment interplay in regard to parenting. Thirty multiplex families consisting of 114 individuals (66 youth, 48 parents) completed a multi-stage, multi-informant diagnostic and neurocognitive assessment, measures of parenting, and provided saliva samples for DNA analyses. Sanger sequencing of the DRD4 gene yielded 16 rare variants; a polygenic risk score was computed for both parents and youth. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) examined the predictive effects of parental ADHD symptoms, parental neurocognitive functioning, and poor parenting dimensions on youth ADHD as well as moderation of these effects by parental and youth DRD4 variants. Findings indicated that parental DRD4 variants moderated the impact of parental ADHD and neurocognitive functioning on youth ADHD symptoms. Youth DRD4 variants moderated the impact of parental inconsistent discipline on child ADHD. In all cases, stronger associations were observed for those individuals with more risk variants. These exploratory findings highlight the potential utility of a multiplex family design for examining the interplay between parent and child characteristics in predicting youth outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly A Nikolas
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, E11 Seashore Hall, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA.
| | - Allison M Momany
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, E11 Seashore Hall, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
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Treble-Barna A, Wade SL, Martin LJ, Pilipenko V, Yeates KO, Taylor HG, Kurowski BG. Influence of Dopamine-Related Genes on Neurobehavioral Recovery after Traumatic Brain Injury during Early Childhood. J Neurotrauma 2017; 34:1919-1931. [PMID: 28323555 DOI: 10.1089/neu.2016.4840] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The present study examined the association of dopamine-related genes with short- and long-term neurobehavioral recovery, as well as neurobehavioral recovery trajectories over time, in children who had sustained early childhood traumatic brain injuries (TBI) relative to children who had sustained orthopedic injuries (OI). Participants were recruited from a prospective, longitudinal study evaluating outcomes of children who sustained a TBI (n = 68) or OI (n = 72) between the ages of 3 and 7 years. Parents completed ratings of child executive function and behavior at the immediate post-acute period (0-3 months after injury); 6, 12, and 18 months after injury; and an average of 3.5 and 7 years after injury. Thirty-two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in dopamine-related genes (dopamine receptor D2 [DRD2], solute carrier family 6 member 3 [SLC6A3], solute carrier family 18 member A2 [SLC18A2], catechol-o-methyltransferase [COMT], and ankyrin repeat and kinase domain containing 1 [ANKK1]) were examined in association with short- and long-term executive function and behavioral adjustment, as well as their trajectories over time. After controlling for premorbid child functioning, genetic variation within the SLC6A3 (rs464049 and rs460000) gene was differentially associated with neurobehavioral recovery trajectories over time following TBI relative to OI, with rs464049 surviving multiple testing corrections. In addition, genetic variation within the ANKK1 (rs1800497 and rs2734849) and SLC6A3 (rs464049, rs460000, and rs1042098) genes was differentially associated with short- and long-term neurobehavioral recovery following TBI, with rs460000 and rs464049 surviving multiple testing corrections. The findings provide preliminary evidence that genetic variation in genes involved in DRD2 expression and density (ANKK1) and dopamine transport (SLC6A3) plays a role in neurobehavioral recovery following pediatric TBI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amery Treble-Barna
- 1 Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine , Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Shari L Wade
- 2 Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center , Cincinnati, Ohio
| | - Lisa J Martin
- 3 Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center , Cincinnati, Ohio
| | - Valentina Pilipenko
- 3 Division of Human Genetics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center , Cincinnati, Ohio
| | - Keith Owen Yeates
- 4 Department of Psychology, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary , Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - H Gerry Taylor
- 5 Division of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics and Psychology, Department of Pediatrics, Case Western Reserve University and Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital , Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Brad G Kurowski
- 2 Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center , Cincinnati, Ohio
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Chiao JY. Cultural Neuroscience of the Developing Brain in Childhood. MINNESOTA SYMPOSIA ON CHILD PSYCHOLOGY 2016. [DOI: 10.1002/9781119301981.ch1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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Petersen IT, Hoyniak CP, McQuillan ME, Bates JE, Staples AD. Measuring the development of inhibitory control: The challenge of heterotypic continuity. DEVELOPMENTAL REVIEW 2016; 40:25-71. [PMID: 27346906 PMCID: PMC4917209 DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2016.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Inhibitory control is thought to demonstrate heterotypic continuity, in other words, continuity in its purpose or function but changes in its behavioral manifestation over time. This creates major methodological challenges for studying the development of inhibitory control in childhood including construct validity, developmental appropriateness and sensitivity of measures, and longitudinal factorial invariance. We meta-analyzed 198 studies using measures of inhibitory control, a key aspect of self-regulation, to estimate age ranges of usefulness for each measure. The inhibitory control measures showed limited age ranges of usefulness owing to ceiling/floor effects. Tasks were useful, on average, for a developmental span of less than 3 years. This suggests that measuring inhibitory control over longer spans of development may require use of different measures at different time points, seeking to measure heterotypic continuity. We suggest ways to study the development of inhibitory control, with overlapping measurement in a structural equation modeling framework and tests of longitudinal factorial or measurement invariance. However, as valuable as this would be for the area, we also point out that establishing longitudinal factorial invariance is neither sufficient nor necessary for examining developmental change. Any study of developmental change should be guided by theory and construct validity, aiming toward a better empirical and theoretical approach to the selection and combination of measures.
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Interacting effects of maternal responsiveness, infant regulatory problems and dopamine D4 receptor gene in the development of dysregulation during childhood: A longitudinal analysis. J Psychiatr Res 2015; 70:83-90. [PMID: 26424426 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2015.08.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2014] [Revised: 08/13/2015] [Accepted: 08/28/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Recent longitudinal studies have indicated that affective and behavioral dysregulation in childhood is associated with an increased risk for various negative outcomes in later life. However, few studies to date have examined early mechanisms preceding dysregulation during early childhood. Aim of this study was to elucidate early mechanisms relating to dysregulation in later life using data from an epidemiological cohort study on the long-term outcome of early risk factors from birth to adulthood. At age 3 months, mothers and infants were videotaped during a nursing and playing situation. Maternal responsiveness was evaluated by trained raters. Infant regulatory problems were assessed on the basis of a parent interview and direct observation by trained raters. At age 8 and 11 years, 290 children (139 males) were rated on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Additionally, participants were genotyped for the dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4) exon 3 VNTR polymorphism. A significant three-way interaction between maternal responsiveness, DRD4 genotype and infant regulatory problems was detected predicting the CBCL-dysregulation profile (CBCL-DP). Carriers of the DRD4 7r allele with regulatory problems at age 3 months showed significantly more behavior problems associated with the CBCL-DP during childhood when exposed to less maternal responsiveness. In contrast, no effect of maternal responsiveness was observed in DRD4 7r carriers without infant regulatory problems and in non-carriers of the DRD4 7r allele. This prospective longitudinal study extends earlier findings regarding the association of the CBCL-DP with early parenting and later psychopathology, introducing both DRD4 genotype and infant regulatory problems as important moderators.
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Pappa I, Mileva-Seitz VR, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, Tiemeier H, van IJzendoorn MH. The magnificent seven: A quantitative review of dopamine receptor d4 and its association with child behavior. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2015; 57:175-86. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.08.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2015] [Revised: 07/16/2015] [Accepted: 08/16/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Johnson AJ, Tottenham N. Regulatory skill as a resilience factor for adults with a history of foster care: a pilot study. Dev Psychobiol 2014; 57:1-16. [PMID: 25270099 PMCID: PMC4302248 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2013] [Accepted: 05/05/2014] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Individuals with a history of foster care (FC) are at elevated risk for emotion regulation-related mental illness. The purpose of the current study was to characterize regulatory function in a group of adults with a history of FC (N = 26) relative to those without a history of FC (N = 27) and how regulatory function moderates adverse caregiving-related outcomes (daily cortisol production and trait anxiety). Self-report items (anxiety, emotion regulation strategies, inhibitory control, caregiving history) were collected along with more objective measures (computerized task and salivary cortisol). Inhibitory control was assessed via self-report and a computerized task (emotional face go/nogo). Results showed that for adults with a history of FC, higher levels of inhibitory control were associated with higher accuracy on the emotional face go/nogo task and greater reported use of the emotion regulation strategy cognitive reappraisal. Greater use of cognitive reappraisal in turn was associated with healthier stress-related outcomes (decreased trait anxiety and steeper sloped cortisol production throughout the day). Dose-response associations were observed between self-reported regulatory skills and FC experiences (i.e., number of placements and age when exited foster care). These findings suggest that adverse caregiving can have long-term influences on mental health that extend into adulthood; however, individual differences in regulatory skills moderate these outcomes and may be an important target for intervention following caregiving adversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela J Johnson
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, CA
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