Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University.
Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya.
J Abnorm Psychol. 2017 Nov;126(8):1087-1103. doi: 10.1037/abn0000307.
While chronic early stress increases child susceptibility to psychopathology, risk and resilience trajectories are shaped by maternal social influences whose role requires much further research in longitudinal studies. We examined the social transmission of risk by assessing paths leading from war-exposure to child symptoms as mediated by 3 sources of maternal social influence; stress physiology, synchronous parenting, and psychiatric disorder. Mothers and children living in a zone of continuous war were assessed in early childhood (1.5-5 years) and the current study revisited families in late (9-11years) childhood (N = 177; N = 101 war-exposed; N = 76 controls). At both time-points, maternal and child's salivary cortisol (SC), social behavior, and externalizing and internalizing symptoms were assessed. In late childhood, hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) were also measured and mother and child underwent psychiatric diagnosis. The social transmission model was tested against 2 alternative models; 1 proposing direct impact of war on children without maternal mediation, the other predicting late-childhood symptoms from early childhood variables, not change trajectories. Path analysis controlling for early childhood variables supported our conceptual model. Whereas maternal psychopathology was directly linked with child symptoms, defining direct mediation, the impact of maternal stress hormones was indirect and passed through stress contagion mechanisms involving coupling between maternal and child's HCC and SC. Similarly, maternal synchrony linked with child social engagement as the pathway to reduced symptomatology. Findings underscore the critical role of maternal stress physiology, attuned behavior, and well-being in shaping child psychopathology amid adversity and specify direct and indirect paths by which mothers stand between war and the child. (PsycINFO Database Record
虽然慢性早期压力会增加儿童患精神病理学的易感性，但风险和适应力轨迹是由母亲的社会影响塑造的，其作用需要在纵向研究中进一步研究。我们通过评估从战争暴露到儿童症状的途径，考察了风险的社会传递，这些途径通过 3 种母亲的社会影响源来介导：压力生理、同步育儿和精神障碍。在幼儿期（1.5-5 岁）评估生活在持续战争地区的母亲和儿童，本研究在晚期（9-11 岁）再次评估家庭（N=177；N=101 战争暴露；N=76 对照组）。在两个时间点上，评估了母亲和儿童的唾液皮质醇（SC）、社会行为以及外化和内化症状。在晚期，还测量了头发皮质醇浓度（HCC），并对母亲和儿童进行了精神病诊断。该社会传递模型与 2 个替代模型进行了比较；1 个模型提出了战争对儿童的直接影响，没有母亲的中介作用，另一个模型则预测了从幼儿期变量到晚期儿童症状的变化轨迹。考虑到幼儿期变量的路径分析支持了我们的概念模型。虽然母亲的精神病理学与儿童的症状直接相关，定义了直接中介作用，但母亲的应激激素的影响是间接的，通过涉及母子 HCC 和 SC 耦合的应激传染机制传递。同样，母亲的同步性与儿童的社交参与相关，是减轻症状的途径。研究结果强调了母亲的应激生理学、协调行为和幸福感在逆境中塑造儿童精神病理学的关键作用，并具体说明了母亲处于战争和儿童之间的直接和间接途径。
