Buchheim Anna, Ziegenhain Ute, Kindler Heinz, Waller Christiane, Gündel Harald, Karabatsiakis Alexander, Fegert Jörg
Department of Clinical Psychology II, Institute of Psychology, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ulm University Hospital, Ulm, Germany.
Front Hum Neurosci. 2022 Jul 18;16:890262. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.890262. eCollection 2022.
Childhood maltreatment (CM) is a developmental risk factor and can negatively influence later psychological functioning, health, and development in the next generation. A comprehensive understanding of the biopsychosocial underpinnings of CM transmission would allow to identify protective factors that could disrupt the intergenerational CM risk cycle. This study examined the consequences of maternal CM and the effects of psychosocial and biological resilience factors on child attachment and stress-regulatory development using a prospective -disciplinary approach.
Mother-child dyads ( = 158) participated shortly after parturition ( ), after 3 months ( ), and 12 months later ( ). Mothers' CM experiences were assessed at , attachment representation at and psychosocial risk and social support were assessed at and . At , dyads participated in the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP). Children's attachmen status were classified as organized vs. disorganized, including their level of disorganized behavior, and heart rate (HR) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) were recorded as stress response measures of the autonomic nervous system. Maternal caregiving during SSP was assessed using the AMBIANCE scale. Child's single nucleotide polymorphisms rs within the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) and rs of the oxytocin gene were genotyped using DNA isolated from cord blood.
Maternal CM experiences (CM+) were significantly associated with an unresolved attachment status, higher perceived stress and more psychological symptoms. These negative effects of CM were attenuated by social support. As expected, maternal unresolved attachment and child disorganized attachment were significantly associated. Maternal caregiving did not mediate the relationship between maternal and child attachment but influenced children's HR and RSA response and disorganized behavior. Moreover, the rs genotype of the OXTR gene moderated the stress response of children from mothers with CM. Children carrying the rs risk allele of the OXT gene showed more disorganized behavior independent from maternal CM experiences.
We replicated and extended existing CM and attachment models by co-examining maternal attachment, social support, and child genetic susceptibility on child attachment and cardiovascular stress regulation. The findings contribute to an extended understanding of risk and resilience factors and enable professionals to target adequate services to parents and children at risk.
儿童期受虐（CM）是一种发育风险因素，会对下一代后期的心理功能、健康和发育产生负面影响。全面了解CM传播的生物心理社会基础，有助于识别能够打破代际CM风险循环的保护因素。本研究采用前瞻性多学科方法，考察了母亲CM的后果以及心理社会和生物复原力因素对儿童依恋和应激调节发育的影响。
母婴二元组（n = 158）在产后不久（T1）、3个月后（T2）和12个月后（T3）参与研究。在T1评估母亲的CM经历，在T2评估依恋表征，在T2和T3评估心理社会风险和社会支持。在T3，二元组参与陌生情境程序（SSP）。将儿童的依恋状态分为组织型与混乱型，包括其混乱行为水平，并记录心率（HR）和呼吸性窦性心律不齐（RSA）作为自主神经系统的应激反应指标。使用AMBIANCE量表评估SSP期间母亲的照料行为。利用从脐带血中分离的DNA对儿童催产素受体（OXTR）内的单核苷酸多态性rs和催产素基因的rs进行基因分型。
母亲的CM经历（CM+）与未解决的依恋状态、更高的感知压力和更多的心理症状显著相关。社会支持减轻了CM的这些负面影响。正如预期的那样，母亲未解决的依恋与儿童混乱的依恋显著相关。母亲的照料行为并未介导母婴依恋之间的关系，但影响了儿童的HR和RSA反应以及混乱行为。此外，OXTR基因的rs基因型调节了来自患有CM母亲的儿童的应激反应。携带OXT基因rs风险等位基因的儿童表现出更多的混乱行为，与母亲的CM经历无关。
我们通过共同考察母亲依恋、社会支持和儿童遗传易感性对儿童依恋和心血管应激调节的影响，复制并扩展了现有的CM和依恋模型。这些发现有助于更深入地理解风险和复原力因素，并使专业人员能够为处于风险中的父母和儿童提供适当的服务。
