Alajääskö Lyydia, Aguiar-Palma Marina, Abdellaoui Abdel, Galama Titus
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU), The Netherlands.
Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Res Sq. 2025 Aug 29:rs.3.rs-7328005. doi: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7328005/v1.
This study examines the genetic underpinnings of (problematic) socioemotional behaviors in children (6-18 years old) by leveraging a within-family trio design using data from the Lifelines cohort (N=3,090-4,510). Socio-emotional development is key to understanding long-term educational, occupational, and mental health outcomes. Yet, their genetic foundations are not fully understood. We estimate direct genetic effects of educational attainment (EA)-related polygenic indices (PGIs), as a whole and decomposed into cognitive (Cog) and non-cognitive (NonCog) components, on a comprehensive set of internalizing and externalizing behaviors assessed via self- and parental-reported Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA) measures. Our findings reveal that higher EA-related PGIs, particularly their cognitive component, are robustly associated with lower levels of attention problems, rule-breaking, and somatic complaints. These effects persist after adjusting for parental genetics, supporting a causal interpretation. Some associations-such as those of the NonCog EA PGI with attention problems and rule-breaking, and of the full EA PGI with externalizing behaviors-lose statistical significance when parental genetics are included, suggesting that small environmentally mediated parental influences may play a role. We also find notable sex differences, with stronger associations in girls, especially for internalizing traits, and observe modest (although insignificant) differences between self- and parent-reported outcomes. Our findings contribute novel evidence that cognitive genetics influence behavioral development and highlight the value of family-based genetic designs for uncovering the complex interplay of genes and environment in socio-emotional functioning.
本研究通过利用来自生命线队列（N = 3,090 - 4,510）的数据，采用家庭三人组设计，探究6至18岁儿童（有问题的）社会情感行为的遗传基础。社会情感发展是理解长期教育、职业和心理健康结果的关键。然而，其遗传基础尚未完全明了。我们估计了教育成就（EA）相关多基因指数（PGIs）作为一个整体，并分解为认知（Cog）和非认知（NonCog）成分，对通过自我和父母报告的基于实证评估的阿肯巴克系统（ASEBA）测量所评估的一系列内化和外化行为的直接遗传效应。我们的研究结果表明，较高的EA相关PGIs，尤其是其认知成分，与较低水平的注意力问题、违规行为和躯体主诉密切相关。在调整了父母的遗传因素后，这些效应仍然存在，支持了因果关系的解释。当纳入父母的遗传因素时，一些关联——如NonCog EA PGI与注意力问题和违规行为的关联，以及完整的EA PGI与外化行为的关联——失去了统计学意义，这表明父母在环境介导下的微小影响可能起到了一定作用。我们还发现了显著的性别差异，女孩中的关联更强，尤其是在内化特质方面，并且观察到自我报告和父母报告结果之间存在适度（尽管不显著）的差异。我们的研究结果提供了新的证据，证明认知遗传学影响行为发展，并强调了基于家庭的遗传设计在揭示社会情感功能中基因与环境复杂相互作用方面的价值。
