Differential susceptibility in a developmental perspective: DRD4 and maternal sensitivity predicting externalizing behavior
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Published on: March 14, 2018
Dafna A Windhorst1, Viara R Mileva-Seitz, Mariëlle Linting
1Centre for Child and Family Studies, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands; The Generation R Study Group, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Erasmus University Medical Center-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Abstract:
This study is the first to investigate the longitudinal effects of gene-environment interplay between DRD4 genotype and maternal sensitivity on child externalizing behavior. Multiple measures of maternal sensitivity (14, 36, and 48 months) and externalizing behavior (18 months, 36 months, and 5 years) were assessed in a large cohort study (N = 548). Early maternal insensitivity (14 months) was associated with early externalizing behavior (18 months) in a for better and for worse manner, but only in children with at least one DRD4 7-repeat, consistent with a differential susceptibility model. Later insensitivity (48 months) predicted externalizing behavior at age 5 independent of DRD4 genotype. A structural equation model including all measures across time supported the differential susceptibility model: The overall effect of early maternal sensitivity on later externalizing behavior was significant only for children with a DRD4 7-repeat allele. The results highlight the importance of studying gene-environment interactions across development.
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