Association between childhood maltreatment and adult emotional dysregulation in a low-income, urban, African American sample: moderation by oxytocin receptor gene
| Autor: | Tanja Jovanovic, Aliza P. Wingo, Bekh Bradley, Kristina B. Mercer, Elisabeth B. Binder, Drew Westen, Christine Heim, Daniel F. Crain |
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| Rok vydání: | 2013 |
| Předmět: |
Low income
Child abuse Adult Male Adolescent Urban Population Emotions Polymorphism Single Nucleotide Article Developmental psychology Life Change Events Surveys and Questionnaires Developmental and Educational Psychology Attachment theory Humans Child Abuse Association (psychology) Child Poverty Aged Aged 80 and over Adult Survivors of Child Abuse Middle Aged Emotional dysregulation Moderation Mental health Oxytocin receptor Black or African American Psychiatry and Mental health Mental Health Receptors Oxytocin Female Psychology Stress Psychological |
| Zdroj: | Development and psychopathology. 23(2) |
| ISSN: | 1469-2198 |
| Popis: | The ability to effectively regulate emotions and a secure attachment style are critical for maintaining mental health across the life span. The experience of childhood maltreatment interferes with normal development of emotional regulation and dramatically increases risk for a wide range of psychiatric disorders in adulthood. The central nervous system oxytocin systems are critically involved in mediating social attachment and buffering psychophysiological responses to stress. We therefore investigated the impact of childhood maltreatment and an oxytocin receptor (OXTR) single nucleotide polymorphism (rs53576) and their interaction on emotional dysregulation and attachment style in adulthood in a sample of low-income, African American men and women recruited from primary care clinics of an urban, public hospital. Consistent with prior research, we found that the severity of childhood maltreatment was associated with increased levels of emotional dysregulation in adulthood. Childhood maltreatment was also positively associated with ratings of disorganized/unresolved adult attachment style and negatively associated with ratings of secure adult attachment style. There was no direct association between rs53576 and emotional dysregulation or ratings of adult attachment style. However, there were significant interactions between rs53576 and childhood maltreatment in predicting level of adult emotional dysregulation and attachment style. Specifically, G/G genotype carriers were at risk for increased emotional dysregulation when exposed to three or more categories of childhood abuse. In addition, G/G genotype carriers exhibited enhanced disorganized adult attachment style when exposed to severe childhood abuse compared to A/A and A/G carriers. Our findings suggest that A allele carriers of OXTR rs53576 are resilient against the effects of severe childhood adversity, by protection against emotional dysregulation and disorganized attachment. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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