title: The stress response and adolescents' adjustment: the impact of child maltreatment.
abstract: Experience with and management of stress has implications for adolescents' behavioral and socioemotional development. This study examined the relationship between adolescents' physiological response to an acute laboratory stressor (i.e., Trier Social Stress Test; TSST) and anger regulation and interpersonal competence in a sample of 175 low-income urban adolescents (51.8% girls). Findings suggested that heightened reactivity as indicated by cortisol, heart rate, and blood pressure was associated with increased interpersonal competence and anger regulation. However, these findings were context dependent such that, for youth high in self-reported child maltreatment, heightened reactivity was associated with decreased interpersonal competence and anger regulation. Results highlight the importance of considering how context may condition the effect of stress reactivity on functioning during adolescence.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Rhode Island College, 600 Mt. Pleasant Ave., Providence, RI 02908, USA. ecook@ric.edu
authors.forename: Emily C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: Tara M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Chaplin
authors.forename: Rajita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sinha
authors.forename: Jacob K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Tebes
authors.forename: Linda C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Mayes
mesh_terms: D000275:Adjustment Disorders / Q000378:metabolism*; D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000378:metabolism; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone