Adverse Parenting Is Indirectly Linked to Delayed Reward Discounting via Blunted RSA Reactivity: the Protective Role of a Shift-and-Persist Coping Strategy

Abstract

Exposure to adverse parenting experiences, either from being reared under conditions of threat or deprivation, is a major source of chronic stress that is linked to youths’ dysregulated stress responses and impulsive decision-making. Many youth, however, adapt well and develop optimal decision-making despite the experience of adversity. Research has shown that the use of cognitive strategies to cope with stress, such as accepting and adapting to an acute stressor (i.e., shifting) and effortfully pursuing future goals (i.e., persisting), can mitigate the influence of adverse parenting experiences on impulsive decision-making and risk behaviors. However, scarce research examines the role of shift-and-persist in mitigating the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the effects of adverse parenting on youths’ decision-making. The current study investigated whether shift-and-persist strategy can buffer the indirect link between adverse parenting and youths’ impulsive decision-making via dysregulated stress reactivity gauged by blunted respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) reactivity. Data were obtained from a longitudinal sample of mostly minority (75.2% African American) low-SES preadolescents and their primary caregivers (N = 101). The youths’ decision-making was indexed by an assessment of delayed reward discounting (DRD). Results indicated that the threat dimension of adverse parenting was significantly linked to youths’ blunted RSA reactivity. Further, employing a shift-and-persist coping strategy significantly mitigated the indirect effect of threatening parenting behaviors on youths’ impulsive DRD via blunted RSA reactivity. Findings from the current study can inform prevention and intervention programs that aim to promote the development of resilience among youth who experience adverse and threatening rearing environments.