title: The role of stress reactivity in the long-term persistence of adolescent social anxiety symptoms.
abstract: Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) symptoms demonstrate a marked persistence over time, but little is known empirically about short-term processes that may account for this long-term persistence. In this study, we examined how self-reported and physiological stress reactivity were associated with persistence of SAD symptoms from early to late adolescence. A community sample of 327 adolescents (56% boys, Mage=13.01 at T1) reported their SAD symptoms for 6 successive years and participated in a public speaking task, during which self-reported (i.e., perceived nervousness and heart rate) and physiological (i.e., cortisol and heart rate) measures of stress were taken. Overall, our results point to a developmental process in which adolescents with a developmental history of higher SAD symptoms show both heightened perceived stress reactivity and heart rate reactivity, which, in turn, predict higher SAD symptoms into late adolescence.
authors.affiliation: Research Centre Adolescent Development, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80.140, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: s.a.nelemans@uu.nl.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Nelemans
authors.affiliation: Research Centre Adolescent Development, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80.140, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: W W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Hale
authors.affiliation: Research Centre Adolescent Development, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80.140, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: S J T
authors.initials: SJT
authors.lastname: Branje
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental Psychology, VU Amsterdam, Van Der Boechorstraat 1, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: P A C
authors.initials: PAC
authors.lastname: van Lier
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental Psychology, VU Amsterdam, Van Der Boechorstraat 1, 1081 BT Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: H M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Koot
authors.affiliation: Research Centre Adolescent Development, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80.140, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands; Department of Developmental Psychology, Tilburg University, P.O. Box 90.153, 5000 LE Tilburg, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: W H J
authors.initials: WHJ
authors.lastname: Meeus
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001007:Anxiety / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000032:analysis; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D057566:Self Report; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone
keywords: Adolescence; Developmental processes; Public speaking task; Social anxiety disorder (SAD) symptoms; Stress reactivity