Dataset Information

Associations between early-life stress exposure and internalizing symptomatology during the COVID-19 pandemic: Assessing the role of neurobehavioral mediators.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is a major stressor that has been associated with increased risk for psychiatric illness in the general population. Recent work has highlighted that experiences of early-life stress (ELS) may impact individuals' psychological functioning and vulnerability for developing internalizing psychopathology in response to pandemic-related stress. However, little is known about the neurobehavioral factors that may mediate the association between ELS exposure and COVID-related internalizing symptomatology. The current study sought to examine the mediating roles of pre-pandemic resting-state frontoamygdala connectivity and concurrent emotion regulation (ER) in the association between ELS and pandemic-related internalizing symptomatology.

Methods

Retrospective life-stress histories, concurrent self-reported ER strategies (i.e., reappraisal and suppression), concurrent self-reported internalizing symptomatology (i.e., depression- and anxiety-related symptomatology), and resting-state functional connectivity data from a sample of adults (N = 64, M _age = 22.12, female = 68.75%) were utilized.

Results

There were no significant direct associations between ELS and COVID-related internalizing symptomatology. Neither frontoamygdala functional connectivity nor ER strategy use mediated an association between ELS and COVID-related internalizing symptomatology (ps > 0.05). Exploratory analyses identified a significant moderating effect of reappraisal use on the association between ELS and internalizing symptomatology (β = -0.818, p = 0.047), such that increased reappraisal use buffered the impact of ELS on psychopathology.

Conclusions

While frontoamygdala connectivity and ER do not appear to mediate the association between ELS and COVID-related internalizing symptomatology, our findings suggest that the use of reappraisal may buffer against the effect of ELS on mental health during the pandemic.

SUBMITTER: Foster JC

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9356644 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Associations between early-life stress exposure and internalizing symptomatology during the COVID-19 pandemic: Assessing the role of neurobehavioral mediators.

Foster Jordan C JC Cohodes Emily M EM Brieant Alexis E AE McCauley Sarah S Odriozola Paola P Zacharek Sadie J SJ Pierre Jasmyne C JC Hodges H R HR Kribakaran Sahana S Haberman Jason T JT Holt-Gosselin Bailey B Gee Dylan G DG

Biological psychiatry global open science 20220806

<h4>Background</h4>The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is a major stressor that has been associated with increased risk for psychiatric illness in the general population. Recent work has highlighted that experiences of early-life stress (ELS) may impact individuals' psychological functioning and vulnerability for developing internalizing psychopathology in response to pandemic-related stress. However, little is known about the neurobehavioral factors that may mediate the association between ELS exposu ...[more]

PMID: 35959474

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Dataset Information

Associations between early-life stress exposure and internalizing symptomatology during the COVID-19 pandemic: Assessing the role of neurobehavioral mediators.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Associations between early-life stress exposure and internalizing symptomatology during the COVID-19 pandemic: Assessing the role of neurobehavioral mediators.

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