Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Experiences Of Covid-19-Related Racism And Impact On Depression Trajectories Among Racially/Ethnically Minoritized Adolescents, Sabrina R. Liu, Elysia Poggi Davis, Anton M. Palma, Hal S. Stern, Curt A. Sandman, Laura M. Glynn

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Purpose

In 2020, racially/ethnically minoritized (REMD) youth faced the “dual pandemics” of COVID-19 and racism, both significant stressors with potential for adverse mental health effects. The current study tested whether short- and long-term trajectories of depressive symptoms from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic differed between REMD adolescents who did and did not endorse exposure to COVID-19-era-related racism (i.e., racism stemming from conditions created or exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic).

Methods

A community sample of 100 REMD adolescents enrolled in an ongoing longitudinal study of mental health was assessed before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were 51% girls, mean …

Exposure To Unpredictability And Mental Health: Validation Of The Brief Version Of The Questionnaire Of Unpredictability In Childhood (Quic-5) In English And Spanish, Natasha G. Lindert, Megan Y. Maxwell, Sabrina R. Liu, Hal S. Stern, Tallie Z. Baram, Elysia Poggi Davis, Victoria B. Risbrough, Dewleen G. Baker, Caroline M. Nievergelt, Laura M. Glynn

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Unpredictability is increasingly recognized as a primary dimension of early life adversity affecting lifespan mental health trajectories; screening for these experiences is therefore vital. The Questionnaire of Unpredictability in Childhood (QUIC) is a 38-item tool that measures unpredictability in childhood in social, emotional and physical domains. The available evidence indicates that exposure to unpredictable experiences measured with the QUIC predicts internalizing symptoms including depression and anxiety. The purpose of the present study was to validate English and Spanish brief versions (QUIC-5) suitable for administration in time-limited settings (e.g., clinical care settings, large-scale epidemiological studies). Five representative items were identified from …

The Acute And Persisting Impact Of Covid-19 On Trajectories Of Adolescent Depression: Sex Differences And Social Connectedness, Sabrina R. Liu, Elyssia Poggi Davis, Anton M. Palma, Curt A. Sandman, Laura M. Glynn

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Background

The COVID-19 era is a time of unprecedented stress, and there is widespread concern regarding its short- and long-term mental health impact. Adolescence is a sensitive period for the emergence of latent psychopathology vulnerabilities, often activated by environmental stressors. The present study examined COVID-19′s impact on adolescent depression and possible influences of different domains of social connectedness (loneliness, social media use, social video game time, degree of social activity participation).

Methods

A community sample of 175 adolescents (51% boys, mean age = 16.01 years) completed questionnaires once before and twice during the COVID-19 pandemic. Piecewise growth modeling examined the …

A Predictable Home Environment May Protect Child Mental Health During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Laura M. Glynn, Elyssia Poggi Davis, Joan L. Luby, Tallie Z. Baram, Curt A. Sandman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objective

Information about the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent and adult mental health is growing, yet the impacts on preschool children are only emerging. Importantly, environmental factors that augment or protect from the multidimensional and stressful influences of the pandemic on emotional development of young children are poorly understood.

Methods

Depressive symptoms in 169 preschool children (mean age 4.1 years) were assessed with the Preschool Feelings Checklist during a state-wide stay-at-home order in Southern California. Mothers (46% Latinx) also reported on externalizing behaviors with the Strengths & Difficulties Questionnaire. To assess the role of environmental factors in …

Identifying Depression In The National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey Data Using A Deep Learning Algorithm, Jihoon Oh, Kyongsik Yun, Uri Maoz, Tae-Suk Kim, Jeong-Ho Chae

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Background

As depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide, large-scale surveys have been conducted to establish the occurrence and risk factors of depression. However, accurately estimating epidemiological factors leading up to depression has remained challenging. Deep-learning algorithms can be applied to assess the factors leading up to prevalence and clinical manifestations of depression.

Methods

Customized deep-neural-network and machine-learning classifiers were assessed using survey data from 19,725 participants from the NHANES database (from 1999 through 2014) and 4949 from the South Korea NHANES (K-NHANES) database in 2014.

Results

A deep-learning algorithm showed area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUCs) …

Does Breastfeeding Offer Protection Against Maternal Depressive Symptomatology? A Prospective Study From Pregnancy To 2 Years After Birth, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook, Martie G. Haselton, Christine Dunkel Schetter, Laura M. Glynn

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Depression is the leading cause of disability in women (Nobel 2005) and is the most prevalent of all childbearing-related illnesses, affecting approximately 13% of women worldwide within the first 12 [...] Mothers who breastfeed typically exhibit lower levels of depressive symptomatology than mothers who do not. However, very few studies have investigated the directionality of this relationship. Of the prospective studies published, all but one focus exclusively on whether maternal depression reduces rates of subsequent breastfeeding. This study again examines this relationship, but also the reverse--that breastfeeding might predict lower levels of later depression. Using multilevel modeling, we investigated the …

Prenatal Maternal Stress Programs Infant Stress Regulation, Elyssia Poggi Davis, Laura M. Glynn, Feizal Waffarn, Curt A. Sandman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Objective: Prenatal exposure to inappropriate levels of glucocorticoids (GCs) and maternal stress are putative mechanisms for the fetal programming of later health outcomes. The current investigation examined the influence of prenatal maternal cortisol and maternal psychosocial stress on infant physiological and behavioral responses to stress.

Methods: The study sample comprised 116 women and their full term infants. Maternal plasma cortisol and report of stress, anxiety and depression were assessed at 15, 19, 25, 31 and 36 + weeks' gestational age. Infant cortisol and behavioral responses to the painful stress of a heel-stick blood draw were evaluated at 24 hours after …

Elevated Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone In Human Pregnancy Increases The Risk Of Postpartum Depressive Symptoms, Ilona S. Yim, Laura M. Glynn, Christine Dunkel Schetter, Calvin J. Hobel, Aleksandra Chicz-Demet, Curt A. Sandman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Postpartum depression (PPD) is common and has serious implications for the mother and her newborn. A possible link between placental corticotropin-releasing hormone (pCRH) and PPD incidence has been discussed, but there is a lack of empirical evidence.