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Stress-induced elevation of oxytocin in maltreated children: evolution, neurodevelopment, and social behavior

Leslie J Seltzer1, Toni Ziegler, Michael J Connolly

  • 1University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Child Development
|July 20, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Childhood physical abuse impacts girls' stress regulation. Abused girls showed altered oxytocin (OT) and cortisol levels after stress, unlike boys, suggesting disrupted development.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Child Psychology
  • Endocrinology

Background:

  • Child maltreatment negatively affects social behavior and health.
  • The biobehavioral pathways linking adversity to negative outcomes are not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of early life adversity on social behavior development.
  • To examine changes in oxytocin (OT) levels in children following a laboratory stressor.

Main Methods:

  • Studied 73 children aged 8.1-11.5 years.
  • Assessed urinary oxytocin (OT) and salivary cortisol levels post-stressor.
  • Compared hormone levels between children with and without histories of physical abuse.

Main Results:

  • Girls with physical abuse histories exhibited higher urinary OT levels post-stressor.
  • Abused girls also showed lower salivary cortisol levels compared to controls.
  • No significant hormonal differences were found between abused and control boys.

Conclusions:

  • Early adversity may disrupt stress regulation systems in girls during middle childhood.
  • Oxytocin (OT) and cortisol responses to stress differ by sex following early abuse.
  • Findings highlight sex-specific biobehavioral mechanisms in child maltreatment outcomes.

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