title: The impact of stress on the life history strategies of African American adolescents: cognitions, genetic moderation, and the role of discrimination.
abstract: The impact of 3 different sources of stress--environmental, familial (e.g., low parental investment), and interpersonal (i.e., racial discrimination)--on the life history strategies (LHS) and associated cognitions of African American adolescents were examined over an 11-year period (5 waves, from age 10.5 to 21.5). Analyses indicated that each one of the sources of stress was associated with faster LHS cognitions (e.g., tolerance of deviance, willingness to engage in risky sex), which, in turn, predicted faster LHS behaviors (e.g., frequent sexual behavior). LHS, then, negatively predicted outcome (resilience) at age 21.5 (i.e., faster LHS → less resilience). In addition, presence of the risk ("sensitivity") alleles of 2 monoamine-regulating genes, the serotonin transporter gene (5HTTLPR) and the dopamine D4 receptor gene (DRD4), moderated the impact of perceived racial discrimination on LHS cognitions: Participants with more risk alleles (higher "sensitivity") reported faster LHS cognitions at age 18 and less resilience at age 21 if they had experienced higher amounts of discrimination and slower LHS and more resilience if they had experienced smaller amounts of discrimination. Implications for LHS theories are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA. Frederick.x.gibbons@dartmouth.edu
authors.forename: Frederick X
authors.initials: FX
authors.lastname: Gibbons
authors.forename: Megan E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.forename: Meg
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gerrard
authors.forename: Zhigang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Steven R H
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Beach
authors.forename: Ronald L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Simons
authors.forename: Chih-Yuan
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Weng
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Philibert
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D003153:Community Health Services; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological; D004777:Environment; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4 / Q000235:genetics*; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012649:Self Concept; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D012919:Social Behavior; D012933:Social Identification; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000208:ethnology / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: C493599:DRD4 protein, human; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4