Contexts of youth stress exposure: Implications for biological processes and internalizing problems in adolescence and early adulthood

Abstract

Adolescence and early adulthood are recognized as times of rapid development, during which social experiences have heightened importance. These developmental stages also involve increased risk for psychopathology, including depression and other internalizing problems. This symposium aims to highlight how youth stress contexts, ranging from early life adversity to adult social relationships, can impact both biological processes and internalizing symptoms. The four papers in this symposium present data from diverse samples of US-based adolescents and young adults, using cross-sectional and prospective methods. Measures of biological functioning include neural sensitivity to reward, salivary sampling of diurnal cortisol, and DNA methylation. The first paper (Yang) finds that greater reward sensitivity is associated with reduced risk for internalizing symptoms—but that this beneficial association is not present for youth who live in high-conflict family environments. The second paper (Collier Villaume) identifies profiles of diurnal cortisol that are associated with depressive symptoms, finding evidence that both high and low diurnal rhythms are associated with elevated depressive symptoms, compared to those of adolescents with more typical diurnal rhythms. The third paper (Cook), which also examines diurnal cortisol, does so in relation to the social relationships of young sexual minority men. This work finds that race/ethnicity moderates associations between adult attachment and dysregulation of the cortisol awakening response. In the fourth paper (Koning), authors establish that early life adversity is associated with greater methylation of the stress-regulating SLC6A4 gene. Importantly, adversity experienced during adolescence is more strongly associated with DNA methylation than that reported during childhood. The overarching aim of this symposium is to better understand the varied contexts of stress that can affect biological processes and, in turn, young people’s internalizing problems. The panelists will discuss this work with attention to opportunities for minimizing harm or disrupting negative sequelae, in order to support the development and wellbeing of diverse adolescents and young adults.