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Hoffmann F, Linz R, Steinbeis N, Bauer M, Dammering F, Lazarides C, Klawitter H, Bentz L, Entringer S, Winter SM, Buss C, Heim C. Children with maltreatment exposure exhibit rumination-like spontaneous thought patterns: association with symptoms of depression, subcallosal cingulate cortex thickness, and cortisol levels. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2024; 65:31-41. [PMID: 37402634 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Childhood maltreatment is associated with pervasive risk for depression. However, the immediate cognitive and neural mechanisms that mediate this risk during development are unknown. We here studied the impact of maltreatment on self-generated thought (SGT) patterns and their association with depressive symptoms, subcallosal cingulate cortex (SCC) thickness, and cortisol levels in children. METHODS We recruited 183 children aged 6-12 years, 96 of which were exposed to maltreatment. Children performed a mind wandering task to elicit SGTs. A subgroup of children underwent structural magnetic resonance imaging (N = 155) for SCC thickness analyses and saliva collection for quantification of free cortisol concentrations (N = 126) was collected. Using network analysis, we assessed thought networks and compared these networks between children with and without maltreatment exposure. Using multilevel analyses, we then tested the association between thought networks of children with maltreatment exposure with depressive symptoms, SCC thickness, and cortisol levels. RESULTS Children exposed to maltreatment generated fewer positively valenced thoughts. Network analysis revealed rumination-like thought patterns in children with maltreatment exposure, which were associated with depressive symptoms, SCC thickness, and cortisol levels. Children with maltreatment exposure further exhibited decreased future-self thought coupling, which was associated with depressive symptoms, while other-related and past-oriented thoughts had the greatest importance within the network. CONCLUSIONS Using a novel network analytic approach, we provide evidence that children exposed to maltreatment exhibit ruminative clustering of thoughts, which is associated with depressive symptoms and neurobiological correlates of depression. Our results provide a specific target for clinical translation to design early interventions for middle childhood. Targeting thought patterns in children with maltreatment exposure may be an effective strategy to effectively mitigate depression risk early in life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ferdinand Hoffmann
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
| | - Roman Linz
- Research Group "Social Stress and Family Health", Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Nikolaus Steinbeis
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Martin Bauer
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
| | - Felix Dammering
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
| | - Claudia Lazarides
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
| | - Heiko Klawitter
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lea Bentz
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sonja Entringer
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
- Development, Health, and Disease Research Program, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA, USA
| | - Sibylle M Winter
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Berlin, Germany
| | - Claudia Buss
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
- Development, Health, and Disease Research Program, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA, USA
| | - Christine Heim
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany
- Center for Safe & Healthy Children, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
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