ERIC Number: EJ1386097
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023-Aug
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0012-1649
EISSN: EISSN-1939-0599
Gene-Environment Interplay in Internalizing Problem Behavior
Developmental Psychology, v59 n8 p1470-1483 Aug 2023
Behavior genetic methods are useful for examining mechanisms underlying the interaction between genetic and family environmental factors of internalizing problem behavior (INT). Previous twin studies, however, have shown little consistency in interaction patterns, depending on type and operationalization of measured environments. The aim of the current study was to explore different gene-by-environment interaction patterns among different family-level environmental risk factors and resources known to correlate with INT. Using an empirical-based approach, we combined various indicators of the family environment to derive four dimensions: "positive parenting," "negative parenting," "lack of parental resources," and "socioeconomic status." We then used a genetically informed design of twins raised in the same family to test whether interaction patterns followed a diathesis stress or vantage sensitivity model formulation. The sample consisted of 2,089 twin pairs and their families from two twin birth cohorts (ages 11 and 17) participating in Wave 1 of the German TwinLife study of social inequalities. In line with a vantage sensitivity pattern of interaction and with the bioecological model of development (Bronfenbrenner & Ceci, 1994), evidence for a general mechanism of gene-environment interaction with increasing nonshared environmental variance for more adverse and less propitious family conditions was found. In preadolescence, parenting behavior had a greater moderating influence on INT compared to general family conditions like socioeconomic status. Interventions for INT that directly involve parents, thus, may be more important in preadolescent populations whereas individual interventions for adolescents may be more successful if they are adapted to different levels of socioeconomic status.
Descriptors: Genetics, Family Environment, Behavior Problems, Interaction, Risk, Child Rearing, Parenting Styles, Resources, Socioeconomic Status, Twins, Foreign Countries, Child Behavior, Children, Employment Level, Immigrants, Parent Background, Environmental Influences
American Psychological Association. Journals Department, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002. Tel: 800-374-2721; Tel: 202-336-5510; Fax: 202-336-5502; e-mail: order@apa.org; Web site: http://www.apa.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Data File: URL: https://osf.io/fdznt/?view_only=52574e27010b410284c1bcc05a1ac329