Characterizing the Association Between Material Hardship Across Development and Connectome-Wide Brain Connectivity in Adolescents

Experiencing poverty during childhood may prompt experience-dependent neural adaptations. These manifest through functional connectivity patterns across networks thought to support cognitive and socio-emotional processing. Interrelated network connectivity disruptions have been associated with the development of internalizing disorders. Connectome-wide network characterizations of functional connectivity in adolescents who grew up in poverty are lacking. To this end, this dissertation aimed to characterize the association between family material hardship, connectome-wide network connectivity and internalizing symptoms in adolescence. The introductory chapter proposes material hardship, which directly measures a family's experiences with unmet basic needs (e.g., no access to food) as a better alternative to income-based measures used in research. Subsequently, in Chapters Two and Three, network contingency analyses were conducted to characterize connectome-wide connectivity associated with lifetime family material hardship for adolescents drawn from a national longitudinal study. Correlational analyses evaluating the association between network connectivity and current adolescent internalizing symptoms were done. Notably, the mixed findings across the two studies suggest that connectome-wide adaptations confer both cost and benefits to youth who experienced material hardship. Data suggests that altered network connectivity may be protective and that not everyone who experiences material hardship develops internalizing symptoms. In the final chapter, the limitations and implications of the present findings are discussed. Recommendations for more multi-method research to better characterize the association between brain function and poverty are made.PHDPsychologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/167916/1/jaimemv_1.pd

Measurement matters: An individual differences examination of family socioeconomic factors, latent dimensions of children\u27s experiences, and resting state functional brain connectivity in the ABCD sample

The variation in experiences between high and low-socioeconomic status contexts are posited to play a crucial role in shaping the developing brain and may explain differences in child outcomes. Yet, examinations of SES and brain development have largely been limited to distal proxies of these experiences (e.g., income comparisons). The current study sought to disentangle the effects of multiple socioeconomic indices and dimensions of more proximal experiences on resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) in a sample of 7834 youth (aged 9-10 years) from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. We applied moderated nonlinear factor analysis (MNLFA) to establish measurement invariance among three latent environmental dimensions of experience (material/economic deprivation, caregiver social support, and psychosocial threat). Results revealed measurement biases as a function of child age, sex, racial group, family income, and parental education, which were statistically adjusted in the final MNLFA scores. Mixed-effects models demonstrated that socioeconomic indices and psychosocial threat differentially predicted variation in frontolimbic networks, and threat statistically moderated the association between income and connectivity between the dorsal and ventral attention networks. Findings illuminate the importance of reducing measurement biases to gain a more socioculturally-valid understanding of the complex and nuanced links between socioeconomic context, children\u27s experiences, and neurodevelopment

Depression in Adolescence: Risk Factors, Prevention, and Intervention - An argument for trauma-informed care in the community

BEAUTY DAVIS Depression in Adolescence: Risk Factors, Prevention, and Intervention - An argument for trauma-informed care in the community Depression is an unfortunately common mental illness that can lead to negative life outcomes such as substance abuse, suicide, lower quality of life, and anxiety. The stage of adolescence is known as a pivotal, transitional time of life as there are many changes in an individual’s physical, cognitive, emotional, and social development. The research reviewed throughout this paper discusses risk factors that contribute to the development of depressive symptoms in adolescence. Observing how genetic, physiological, environmental, and social components contribute to cognitive vulnerabilities that may compromise an adolescent’s ability to regulate emotions may give an insight of the importance of implementing treatment practices and other prevention methods. Accessibility of mental health resources has been shown to be a beneficial intervention and preventative measure for depression in adolescents. Trauma-informed care given by non-practitioners, such as teachers, has also been shown to be beneficial in protecting against negative outcomes associated with youth at risk for developing depression. Overall, the concepts of this research analysis support the idea that receiving timely treatment for depressive symptoms in childhood could alleviate subsequently negative life outcomes that were to occur if left untreated or unrecognized

Radically reframing studies on neurobiology and socioeconomic circumstances: A call for social justice-oriented neuroscience

Socioeconomic circumstances are associated with symptoms and diagnostic status of nearly all mental health conditions. Given these robust relationships, neuroscientists have attempted to elucidate how socioeconomic-based adversity “gets under the skin.” Historically, this work emphasized individual proxies of socioeconomic position (e.g., income, education), ignoring the effects of broader socioeconomic contexts (e.g., neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage) which may uniquely contribute to chronic stress. This omission represented a disconnect between neuroscience and other allied fields that have recognized health is undeniably linked to interactions between systems of power and individual characteristics. More recently, neuroscience work has considered how sociopolitical context affects brain structure and function; however, the products of this exciting line of research have lacked critical sociological and historical perspectives. While empirical evidence on this topic is burgeoning, the cultural, ethical, societal, and legal implications of this work have been elusive. Although the mechanisms by which socioeconomic circumstances impact brain structure and function may be similar across people, not everyone is exposed to these factors at similar rates. Individuals from ethnoracially minoritized groups are disproportionally exposed to neighborhood disadvantage. Thus, socioeconomic inequities examined in neuroscience research are undergirding with other forms of oppression, namely structural racism. We utilize a holistic, interdisciplinary approach to interpret findings from neuroscience research and interweave relevant theories from the fields of public health, social sciences, and Black feminist thought. In this perspective piece, we discuss the complex relationship that continues to exist between academic institutions and underserved surrounding communities, acknowledging the areas in which neuroscience research has historically harmed and/or excluded structurally disadvantaged communities. We conclude by envisioning how this work can be used; not just to inform policymakers, but also to engage and partner with communities and shape the future direction of human neuroscience research

Neurocognitive Mechanisms Associated with Real-world Financial Savings among Individuals from Lower Income Households

Lower financial savings among individuals experiencing adverse social determinants of health (SDoH) such as low socioeconomic status (low-SES) increases health inequities during times of crisis. Despite evidence suggesting that economic stability established by better money-saving behavior may minimize socioeconomic disparities, neurocognitive mechanisms that regulate money-saving behavior remains to be understood. In the current studies, we utilized neuroimaging, behavioral, self-report, and real-world behavior data to examine neurocognitive mechanisms associated with money-saving behavior among low-SES population. In study 1, we utilized Balloon Analogue Risk task (BART) to probe decision-making (DM) related brain activity and further examined the relationship between brain activity, BART-performance, and real-world money-saving behavior. In study 2, we utilized n-back task to probe working memory (WM) mechanism and characterized the relationship between WM-related brain activity, WM-performance, and money-saving behavior. In study 3, we utilized resting-state fMRI data to characterize the resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) of the brain regions associated with WM and their relationship with money-saving behavior. Regarding DM related brain-behavior relationship, elevated risk-related amygdala activity was associated with improved strategic-DM (i.e., BART task-performance measure) and improved strategic-DM, in turn, predicted better savings. Additionally, in an exploratory analysis, personality trait (i.e., alexithymia) moderated this mediation such that for individuals with low alexithymia (versus higher alexithymia), elevated risk-related amygdala activity was associated with better savings. Regarding WM related brain activity and associated behavior, laboratory WM performance (dprime) mediated the association between WM related DMN deactivation and real-world savings behavior such that increased DMN deactivation improves dprime which, in turn, results in better savings. Further, considering the rsFC of brain regions related to WM and associated behavior, dprime mediated the effect of fronto-limbic and fronto-frontal connectivity on real-world saving behavior such that higher frontal-limbic connectivity predicted worsened WM performance, which in turn, predicted reduced savings. Similarly, higher fronto-frontal connectivity predicted better WM performance, and, in turn, better WM performance predicted improved savings. This present study provides evidence that interventions targeting brain activity related to higher order executive function (DM and WM) and associated cognitive performance can augment success in terms of real-world money-saving behavior

Behavioral and neurostructural correlates of childhood physical violence victimization:Interaction with family functioning

Violence victimization may cause child behavior problems and neurostructural differences associated with them. Healthy family environments may buffer these effects, but neural pathways explaining these associations remain inadequately understood. We used data from 3154 children (x̅age  = 10.1) to test whether healthy family functioning moderated possible associations between violence victimization, behavior problems, and amygdala volume (a threat-responsive brain region). Researchers collected data on childhood violence victimization, family functioning (McMaster Family Assessment Device, range 0-3, higher scores indicate healthier functioning), and behavior problems (Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist [CBCL] total problem score, range 0-117), and they scanned children with magnetic resonance imaging. We standardized amygdala volumes and fit confounder-adjusted models with "victimization × family functioning" interaction terms. Family functioning moderated associations between victimization, behavior problems, and amygdala volume. Among lower functioning families (functioning score = 1.0), victimization was associated with a 26.1 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 9.9, 42.4) unit higher CBCL behavior problem score, yet victimized children from higher functioning families (score = 3.0) exhibited no such association. Unexpectedly, victimization was associated with higher standardized amygdala volume among lower functioning families (ŷ = 0.5; 95% CI: 0.1, 1.0) but lower volume among higher functioning families (ŷ = -0.4; 95% CI: -0.7, -0.2). Thus, healthy family environments may mitigate some neurobehavioral effects of childhood victimization.</p

The effects of low socioeconomic status on decision-making processes: power, status and hierarchy

Low income groups are often criticised for making decisions that harm their long-term life outcomes. This article reviews research that attempts to understand these decision-making patterns as a product of adaptive responses to the situation of low socioeconomic status. It proposes that low income contexts present socioecological cues concerning resource scarcity, environmental instability, and low subjective social status, which trigger a regulatory shift towards the present and the tuning of cognitive skills and focus to address immediate needs. These shifts in psychological processes lead to decisions that are rational in the proximal context of socioeconomic threat, but may hinder the achievement of more distal goals

Bringing Diverse Experiences into Development: Considering Race, Ethnicity, And Identity In The Development Of Adolescent Social Cognition

Together, the united purpose of this dissertation is to study how developing in a racialized social context relates to three aspects of youths’ social development: how ERI relates to longitudinal growth in perspective taking, how ERI relates to neural activation when engaging in perspective taking, and how racial/ethnic background may moderate the association between the social environment and neural sensitivity to social threats and rewards. Study 1 examined the association between ERI exploration and resolution and longitudinal change in perspective taking using a large sample of Black, Latinx, and Multiracial adolescents. Results showed that perspective taking generally increased across the adolescent years, but importantly, that exploring and gaining a sense of ERI in early adolescence related to higher levels of perspective taking, which stayed consistently high across adolescence. Study 2 tested the association of early adolescents’ ERI exploration and resolution with neural activation during a self- and other-related perspective taking task, and found no significant associations. Study 3 tested the interaction of racial/ethnic background and the neighborhood environment on adolescent processing of social threat and reward. Results showed that living in a more disadvantaged neighborhood relates to adolescents’ neural responses to social threats and rewards, but these results differ based on racial/ethnic background. Collectively, these three studies contribute to our understanding of how diverse experiences and perspectives within the context of systemic racism are important for youth development, but also how these perspectives can inform our overall conceptions of social development in adolescence.Doctor of Philosoph

SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, AMYGDALA REACTIVITY, AND SELECTIVE ATTENTION TO THREAT

In this study, a pathway through which low socioeconomic status (SES) might heighten risk for disorders of mood and affect via a social information-processing bias is investigated. Here, we examined whether measures of social status covary with attentional bias toward threat and with greater threat-related amygdala reactivity in a sample of healthy community volunteers. Participants were middle-aged men and women (30 – 55, M = 42.1 years; 41% female, 87% white) who participated in the second Adult Health and Behavior project (AHAB II). SES indices included objective (individuals’ education and income, parental education) and subjective (individuals rated themselves and their parents on the MacArthur Scale of Subjective Social Status) indicators. Participants’ attentional bias toward threat was assessed using a visual probe-detection task, utilizing angry, fearful, happy, and neutral facial expressions from the Karolinska Directed Emotional Faces stimulus set. Blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was employed to investigate amygdala reactivity, using facial stimuli derived from the MacArthur Network Face stimulus set. Correlational analyses failed to show any relationship between SES and attentional bias for any of the affective stimuli. Linear regression analyses accounting for age, race, and sex showed lower education (β = -.116, SE = .056, p = .041) and lower composite SES (fear > shapes: β = -.142, SE = .059, p = .018; fear > neutral: β = -.122, SE = .058, p = .037) associated with higher left amygdala reactivity to fearful facial stimuli. No significant relationships between SES and amygdala reactivity were detected for the remaining SES indicators, and findings were limited only to the left amygdala relationship with fearful faces. Thus, our prediction of an inverse association between indices of social standing and heightened responses to threatening stimuli was largely unsupported by the results. Future investigations should include participants representing a broader range of age, ethnicity, and socioeconomic standing in order to more accurately characterize individuals’ responses to threat. Despite the shortcomings of the current study, these findings provide initial (albeit limited) evidence that heightened neurobiological responses to threat may be associated with lower SES

Contextual Influences on Youth Socioemotional and Corticolimbic Development

The formation of adaptive socioemotional skills is a key developmental competency in childhood and such behaviors are supported, in part, by neural function within the corticolimbic system. Multiple features of the social context (e.g., harsh parenting) and individual-level markers of maturation (e.g., pubertal development) are robust predictors of youth socioemotional outcomes, but several gaps in the literature remain. However, more research is needed to investigate the timing and specificity of contextual and maturation effects on youth socioemotional and corticolimbic development, using population-based studies that allow for generalization of the results to a broader population. This three study dissertation integrates research on socioeconomic disadvantage, neural correlates of emotion processing, and internalizing and externalizing behaviors in childhood in service of these goals. Study 1 tests a longitudinal Family Stress Model using prospectively-collected data from a population-based nationwide study of children followed from birth through age 9, with an oversample of disadvantaged families. Study 2 builds on the results of Study 1 by examining the influence of initial levels and changes in harsh parenting across childhood on corticolimbic function during adolescence. Finally, Study 3 evaluates the effects of age and puberty on amygdala-prefrontal connectivity during face processing, using a large cross-sectional population-based sample of twins from Southeast Michigan. The general discussion chapter of this dissertation highlights theoretical and empirical considerations for this research, as well as outlines several future directions.PHDPsychologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/153437/1/arigard_1.pd