Adolescent girls’ neural response to reward mediates the relation between childhood financial disadvantage and depression
Sarah E. Romens
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorMelynda D. Casement
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorRose McAloon
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorKate Keenan
Department of Psychiatry, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAlison E. Hipwell
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburg, Pittsburg, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAmanda E. Guyer
Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Erika E. Forbes
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburg, Pittsburg, PA, USA
Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Correspondence
Erika E. Forbes, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, 3811 O'Hara Street, Loeffler 319, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA; Email: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorSarah E. Romens
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorMelynda D. Casement
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorRose McAloon
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorKate Keenan
Department of Psychiatry, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAlison E. Hipwell
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburg, Pittsburg, PA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorAmanda E. Guyer
Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Erika E. Forbes
Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburg, Pittsburg, PA, USA
Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Correspondence
Erika E. Forbes, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, 3811 O'Hara Street, Loeffler 319, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA; Email: [email protected]
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
Background
Children who experience socioeconomic disadvantage are at heightened risk for developing depression; however, little is known about neurobiological mechanisms underlying this association. Low socioeconomic status (SES) during childhood may confer risk for depression through its stress-related effects on the neural circuitry associated with processing monetary rewards.
Methods
In a prospective study, we examined the relationships among the number of years of household receipt of public assistance from age 5–16 years, neural activation during monetary reward anticipation and receipt at age 16, and depression symptoms at age 16 in 123 girls.
Results
Number of years of household receipt of public assistance was positively associated with heightened response in the medial prefrontal cortex during reward anticipation, and this heightened neural response mediated the relationship between socioeconomic disadvantage and current depression symptoms, controlling for past depression.
Conclusions
Chronic exposure to socioeconomic disadvantage in childhood may alter neural circuitry involved in reward anticipation in adolescence, which in turn may confer risk for depression.
Supporting Information
| Filename | Description |
|---|---|
| jcpp12410-sup-0001-Supinfo.docxWord document, 36.2 KB |
Table S1. Whole-brain associations between number of years receiving public assistance and neural response to reward anticipation. Table S2. Task effects on neural response to reward within the composite ROI of critical reward circuitry, by task condition. Table S3. Associations between number of years receiving public assistance and neural response to reward outcome. Appendix S1. Supplemental analyses. |
Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.
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