Dopamine receptor D4 gene moderates the effect of positive and negative peer experiences on later delinquency: the Tracking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey study.
The quality of adolescents' relationships with peers can have a lasting impact on later psychosocial adjustment, mental health, and behavior. However, the effect of peer relations on later problem behavior is not uniformly strong, and genetic factors might influence this association. This study used four-wave longitudinal (11-19 years) data (n = 1,151) from the Tracking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey, a Dutch cohort study into adolescent development to test whether the dopamine receptor D4 polymorphism moderates the impact of negative (i.e., victimization) and positive peer experiences (i.e., social well-being) on later delinquency. Contrary to our expectations, results showed that carriers of the dopamine receptor D4 gene 4-repeat homozygous variant instead of those carrying the 7-repeat allele were more susceptible to the effects of both peer victimization and social well-being on delinquency later in adolescence. Findings of our study are discussed in light of other studies into genetic moderation of peer effects on adolescent development and the possibility that developmental specifics in adolescence, such as maturation processes in brain structure and functioning, may affect the interplay of environmental and genetic factors in this period in life.
University of Groningen.
Tina
T
Kretschmer
Jan Kornelis
JK
Dijkstra
Johan
J
Ormel
Frank C
FC
Verhulst
René
R
Veenstra
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D000483:Alleles; D002648:Child; D019548:Crime Victims; D005260:Female; D059647:Gene-Environment Interaction; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007604:Juvenile Delinquency / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4 / Q000235:genetics*; D012917:Social Adjustment; D055815:Young Adult
C493599:DRD4 protein, human; D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4