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Intergenerational transmission of error-related negativity in mothers and their adolescents

Olivia Wallace1, Greg Hajcak2, Nader Amir1

  • 1Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, Center for Understanding and Treating Anxiety (CUTA), 6386 Alvarado Court, Suite 301, San Diego, CA 92120, USA.

Biological Psychology
|December 22, 2025
PubMed

Adolescents of mothers with internalizing symptoms are at higher risk of developing these symptoms than those of unaffected mothers. The error-related negativity (ERN) is a proposed neural endophenotype of anxiety and depression risk, but it is unclear whether a mother's ERN predicts intergenerational risk. Identifying biomarkers that predict such risk could strengthen biological models of transmission and inform prevention. We used path analysis to examine the intergenerational transmission of the ERN, anxiety, and depression symptoms in 162 adolescents aged 11-14 and their mothers. Participants completed a Flanker task while we recorded their brain activity using electroencephalography (EEG) to measure the ERN, correct related negativity (CRN) and their difference (ΔERN). Greater maternal ΔERN predicted higher offspring anxiety and depression, after controlling for maternal symptoms. These findings suggest that enhanced maternal ΔERN may be one mechanism through which internalizing disorder risk is transmitted to offspring.

Keywords:
AnxietyDepressionError-related negativityIntergenerational transmission

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