title: Parental depression and child cognitive vulnerability predict children's cortisol reactivity.
abstract: Risk for depression is expressed across multiple levels of analysis. For example, parental depression and cognitive vulnerability are known markers of depression risk, but no study has examined their interactive effects on children's cortisol reactivity, a likely mediator of early depression risk. We examined relations across these different levels of vulnerability using cross-sectional and longitudinal methods in two community samples of children. Children were assessed for cognitive vulnerability using self-reports (Study 1; n = 244) and tasks tapping memory and attentional bias (Study 2; n = 205), and their parents were assessed for depression history using structured clinical interviews. In both samples, children participated in standardized stress tasks and cortisol reactivity was assessed. Cross-sectionally and longitudinally, parental depression history and child cognitive vulnerability interacted to predict children's cortisol reactivity; associations between parent depression and elevated child cortisol activity were found when children also showed elevated depressotypic attributions as well as attentional and memory biases. Findings indicate that models of children's emerging depression risk may benefit from the examination of the interactive effects of multiple sources of vulnerability across levels of analysis.
authors.affiliation: Western University.
authors.forename: Elizabeth P
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Hayden
authors.affiliation: University of Denver.
authors.forename: Benjamin L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Hankin
authors.affiliation: Western University.
authors.forename: Sarah V M
authors.initials: SV
authors.lastname: Mackrell
authors.affiliation: Western University.
authors.forename: Haroon I
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Sheikh
authors.affiliation: Western University.
authors.forename: Patricia L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Jordan
authors.affiliation: Western University.
authors.forename: David J A
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Dozois
authors.affiliation: Western University.
authors.forename: Shiva M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
authors.forename: Thomas M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Olino
authors.affiliation: Metropolitan State University of Denver.
authors.forename: Lisa S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Badanes
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D016241:Child of Impaired Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000503:physiopathology*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D012306:Risk; D012649:Self Concept; D012737:Sex Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone