Social Stress Reactivity: Links with Early Environmental Instability and Adolescent Anxiety
Open Access
- Author:
- Fry, Cassidy
- Graduate Program:
- Human Development and Family Studies
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- August 07, 2023
- Committee Members:
- Heidemarie Laurent, Program Head/Chair
Lori Francis, Outside Field Member
Timothy Brick, Major Field Member
Lisa Kopp, Chair & Dissertation Advisor
Suzy Scherf, Outside Unit Member - Keywords:
- cortisol
stress
trait anxiety
social anxiety
puberty
peer problems
caregiver support
caregiver lability
adolescence
childhood
household chaos - Abstract:
- Although developmental increases in social sensitivity across adolescence are likely adaptive for aiding in the successful navigation of their changing social landscape, some teens might be placed at greater risk for internalizing symptom development (Pfeifer & Allen, 2021). Two studies within the present dissertation seek to better understand for whom, and in what social and developmental contexts, HPA responsivity to social stress might be associated with elevated anxiety in adolescence. Both studies drew from an epidemiological sample of 1292 diverse, lower-income families from rural communities, followed repeatedly from infancy through adolescence. Study 1 focused on developmental unpredictability within the home environment, measuring cumulative household chaos across early life, as well as wave-to-wave fluctuations in caregiver support from infancy through adolescence. Adolescent HPA functioning was additionally examined as, 1) a potential mechanism by which the early environment influenced later anxiety symptoms, and 2) a child-level marker of biological sensitivity that modulated the effects of the environment on anxiety. Results indicated that lability in caregiver support from infancy through adolescence was associated with lesser cortisol reactivity to social stress, though cortisol did not significantly mediate the effects of caregiver support or household chaos on anxiety symptoms. However, for those who displayed greater cortisol reactivity to social stress or lower cortisol at baseline, greater early household disorganization was associated with elevated anxiety. Effects were buffered for those who displayed lesser cortisol reactivity or higher cortisol levels at rest. These results are partly consistent with the biological sensitivity to context framework, highlighting certain patterns of HPA functioning that might increase children’s susceptibility to ongoing or future stressors – or that might impact regulatory abilities – within their surrounding environment. Study 2 focused on salient contexts within adolescence, examining the association between concurrent cortisol functioning and anxiety, and the moderating role of peer problems and perceived pubertal stage. Results indicated no direct association between cortisol and anxiety, emphasizing the importance of incorporating developmental and contextual factors when considering the effects of physiological functioning on behavior. Lesser cortisol reactivity was associated with higher trait anxiety for adolescents who reported an earlier perceived pubertal stage. Conversely, greater reactivity was associated with higher risk for a social anxiety diagnosis for those who reported a mid-perceived pubertal stage. Trait anxiety symptoms might be more enduring, such that cortisol hyporeactivity could reflect physiological burnout within the context of developmentally less mature coping skills. However, for those who view themselves as undergoing physical pubertal changes, high physiological sensitivity to social stress might be a more potent risk factor for elevated social anxiety. Overall, these findings point to the complex role of pubertal maturation in anxiety symptom development.