Characterizing Resting-State Frontoparietal-Amygdala Network Connectivity as a Potential Moderator of the...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Internalizing behaviors may be influenced by attentional mechanisms like inhibitory control and attention shifting.
• Research findings are inconsistent regarding the protective role of these executive functions.
• Behavioral rigidity linked to inhibitory control might worsen internalizing issues, while attention shifting appears consistently beneficial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify data-driven subgroups based on resting-state functional connectivity in adolescents.
• To examine how these subgroups differ in executive functioning (EF) and internalizing symptoms over time.
• To investigate the interaction between subgroup membership and EF in relation to longitudinal changes in internalizing symptoms.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study dataset.
• Applied subgrouping group iterative multiple model estimation (S-GIMME) to resting-state functional connectivity data.
• Analyzed differences in EF, internalizing symptoms, and their interactions across identified subgroups.

Main Results:

• Identified four distinct network-based subgroups.
• Subgroups with greater frontoparietal network (FPN) connectivity, especially dlPFC-IPS connections, exhibited higher EF.
• No significant differences in internalizing symptoms or EF interactions were found between subgroups; however, inhibitory control differences persisted over time.

Conclusions:

• Frontoparietal network (FPN) connectivity, particularly dlPFC-IPS coupling, supports enhanced inhibitory control and attention shifting during development.
• The precise mechanisms linking executive functioning to internalizing symptoms remain unclear.
• Future research should focus on specific attentional processes to understand their role in risk and resilience for internalizing symptoms.