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Prenatal predictors of childhood anxiety disorders: An exploratory study of the role of attachment organization

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 December 2021

Megan Galbally Open the ORCID record for Megan Galbally [Opens in a new window] ,
Stuart J. Watson ,
Marinus H. van IJzendoorn Open the ORCID record for Marinus H. van IJzendoorn [Opens in a new window] ,
Anne Tharner ,
Maartje Luijk ,
E. Ron de Kloet ,
Elisabeth F.C. van Rossum  and
Andrew J. Lewis
Megan Galbally*
Affiliation:
Psychology, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Australia School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Australia King Edward Memorial Hospital, Subiaco, Perth, WA, Australia
Stuart J. Watson
Affiliation:
Psychology, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Australia School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame, Australia
Marinus H. van IJzendoorn
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Education and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, Faculty of Brain Sciences, UCL, UK
Anne Tharner
Affiliation:
Department of Educational and Family Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Maartje Luijk
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Education and Child Studies, Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
E. Ron de Kloet
Affiliation:
Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
Elisabeth F.C. van Rossum
Affiliation:
Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Andrew J. Lewis
Affiliation:
Psychology, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Australia
*
Corresponding author: Megan Galbally, email: m.galbally@murdoch.edu.au
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Abstract

Childhood anxiety disorders (CAD) are a common childhood mental disorder and understanding early developmental pathways is key to prevention and early intervention. What is not understood is whether early life stress predictors of CAD might be both mediated by infant cortisol reactivity and moderated by infant attachment status. To address this question, this exploratory study draws on 190 women recruited in early pregnancy and followed together with their children until 4 years of age. Early life stress is operationalized as maternal depression measured using the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Parenting Stress Index, and antenatal maternal hair cortisol concentrations. Infant cortisol reactivity was measured at 12 months together with the Strange Situation Procedure and CAD assessed at 4 years of age using the Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment. There was no direct association between attachment classification and CAD. Furthermore, infant cortisol reactivity neither mediated nor attachment moderated the association of early life stress predictors and CAD. However, only for infants with organized attachment classifications, higher maternal antenatal depression, and hair cortisol were associated with a higher risk of CAD.

Keywords

attachmentchildhood anxiety disorderscortisoldepressionpregnancy
Type
Regular Article
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 35 , Issue 3 , August 2023 , pp. 1296 - 1307
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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