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Peer Connectedness and Pre-Existing Social Reward Processing Predicts U.S. Adolescent Girls' Suicidal Ideation During
Emily A Hutchinson1, Stefanie L Sequeira1, Jennifer S Silk1
1University of Pittsburgh.
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted adolescent girls, with nearly 40% experiencing suicidal ideation. Strong peer connections and brain responses to social reward helped reduce this risk.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Public Health
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic raised concerns about adolescent mental health, particularly suicidal ideation (SI).
- Peer relationships and neural responses to social reward are critical factors in adolescent well-being.
- Understanding these factors during the pandemic is crucial for targeted interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the rates of suicidal ideation among adolescent girls during the initial COVID-19 stay-at-home orders.
- To investigate the predictive role of peer connectedness and neural activation to social reward on SI.
- To examine these factors in a longitudinal sample of adolescent girls.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study with 93 adolescent girls (mean age 15.06).
- Daily diary methods assessed peer connectedness.
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) measured neural activation to social reward.
- Data collected during April-May 2020 stay-at-home orders.
Main Results:
- Nearly 40% of adolescent girls reported suicidal ideation during the study period.
- Increased peer connectedness was associated with lower odds of SI.
- Greater neural responsivity to anticipated social reward predicted reduced odds of SI.
Conclusions:
- Adolescent girls experienced high rates of suicidal ideation during the early pandemic.
- Peer connectedness and neural sensitivity to social reward are protective factors against SI.
- These findings highlight the importance of social support and neural mechanisms in adolescent mental health during crises.
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