Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 2022-8
Time Dimension of Childhood Adversities and Externalizing Behavior Among Children of Teen Mothers: Sensitive Period Hypothesis vs. Accumulation Hypothesis
Childhood adversities are associated with compromised behavioral health later in life. However, less attention has been paid to how time contributes to the damaging effects of adversity exposure. In addition, the differential impact of childhood maltreatment and household dysfunction has been understudied. The current study tested (a) the sensitive period hypothesis regarding timing of childhood adversity on externalizing behavior, (b) the accumulation hypothesis regarding the associations between the duration of childhood adversity and externalizing behavior, and (c) the domain-specific impact of childhood adversity on externalizing behavior. Data came from the Young Women and Child Development Study (N = 240). Childhood adversity was measured at seven periods (age range: 5.5–16), which were used to test the sensitive period hypothesis. Childhood adversity at each time period was summed across seven time periods to test the accumulation measure representing the duration of childhood adversity. Least angle and multiple regression analyses were conducted. Results supported the sensitive period hypothesis—the effect of childhood adversity was the most prominent at age 11.5, whereas the accumulation of childhood adversity time periods was not a significant predictor of later externalizing behavior. Probing childhood adversity by subdomains revealed maltreatment primarily accounted for externalizing behavior (p < .05). Findings suggest intervention efforts for children of teen mothers during early adolescence to prevent externalizing behavior in later adolescence. Unpacking childhood adversity may illuminate key areas of vulnerability to externalizing behavior.
AchenbachT.AchenbachT. M.AchenbachT. (1991). Integrative guide to the 1991 CBCL/4-18, YSR, and TRF profiles. University of Vermont.
2.
AchenbachT. M.RescorlaL. A. (2001). Manual for the ASEBA school-age forms & profiles. University of Vermont, Research Center for Children, Youth, & Families.
3.
AndaR. F.WhitfieldC. L.FelittiV. J.ChapmanD.EdwardsV. J.DubeS. R.WilliamsonD. F. (2002). Adverse childhood experiences, alcoholic parents, and later risk of alcoholism and depression. Psychiatric Services, 53(8), 1001–1009. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.53.8.1001
4.
AtzlV. M.NarayanA. J.RiveraL. M.LiebermanA. F. (2019). Adverse childhood experiences and prenatal mental health: Type of ACEs and age of maltreatment onset. Journal of Family Psychology, 33(3), 304–314.
5.
BarnesJ. C.BoutwellB. B.BeaverK. M.GibsonC. L. (2013). Analyzing the origins of childhood externalizing behavioral problems. Developmental Psychology, 49(12), 2272–2284.
6.
BoeldtD. L.RheeS. H.DiLallaL. F.MullineauxP. Y.Schulz-HeikR. J.CorleyR. P.YoungS. E.HewittJ. K. (2012). The association between positive parenting and externalizing behaviour. Infant and Child Development, 21(1), 85–106.
7.
BosM. G.WierengaL. M.BlankensteinN. E.SchreudersE.TamnesC. K.CroneE. A. (2018). Longitudinal structural brain development and externalizing behavior in adolescence. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 59(10), 1061–1072.
8.
BrownS. M.ShillingtonA. M. (2017). Childhood adversity and the risk of substance use and delinquency: The role of protective adult relationships. Child Abuse & Neglect, 63, 211–221.
9.
BurkeJ.PardiniD.LoeberR. (2008). Reciprocal relationships between parenting behavior and disruptive psychopathology from childhood through adolescence. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 36(5), 679−692.
10.
ChenW. Y.ProppJ.DelaraE.CorvoK. (2011). Child neglect and its association with subsequent juvenile drug and alcohol offense. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 28(4), 273.
11.
CohenS.Janicki-DevertsD.ChenE.MatthewsK. A. (2010). Childhood socioeconomic status and adult health. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1186(1), 37–55.
12.
DagenaisC.BéginJ.BouchardC.FortinD. (2004). Impact of intensive family support programs: A synthesis of evaluation studies. Children and Youth Services Review, 26(3), 249–263.
13.
DahlR. E.GunnarM. R. (2009). Heightened stress responsiveness and emotional reactivity during pubertal maturation: Implications for psychopathology. Development and Psychopathology, 21(1), 1–6.
14.
DahlS. K.LarsenJ. T.PetersenL.UbbesenM. B.MortensenP. B.Munk-OlsenT.MuslinerK. L. (2017). Early adversity and risk for moderate to severe unipolar depressive disorder in adolescence and adulthood: A register-based study of 978,647 individuals. Journal of Affective Disorders, 214, 122–129.
15.
DunnE. C.NishimiK.NeumannA.RenaudA.CecilC. A.SusserE. S.TiemeierH. (2020). Time-dependent effects of exposure to physical and sexual violence on psychopathology symptoms in late childhood: In search of sensitive periods in development. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 59(2), 283–295.
16.
DunnE. C.NishimiK.PowersA.BradleyB. (2017). Is developmental timing of trauma exposure associated with depressive and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms in adulthood?Journal of Psychiatric Research, 84, 119–127.
17.
DunnE. C.SoareT. W.RaffeldM. R.BussoD. S.CrawfordK. M.DavisK. A.FisherV. A.SlopenN.SmithA. D. A. C.TiemeierH.SusserE. S. (2018). What life course theoretical models best explain the relationship between exposure to childhood adversity and psychopathology symptoms: Recency, accumulation, or sensitive periods?Psychological Medicine, 48(15), 2562–2572.
18.
EasterbrooksM. A.KatzR. C.MenonM. (2019). Adolescent parenting. In BornsteinM. H. (Ed.), Handbook of parenting: Being and becoming a parent (Vol. 3, pp. 199–231). Routledge.
19.
EfronB.HastieT.JohnstoneI.TibshiraniR. (2004). Least angle regression. The Annals of Statistics, 32(2), 407–499.
20.
EnlowM. B.EgelandB.BloodE. A.WrightR. O.WrightR. J. (2012). Interpersonal trauma exposure and cognitive development in children to age 8 years: A longitudinal study. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 66(11), 1005–1010.
21.
EvansG. W.LiD.WhippleS. S. (2013). Cumulative risk and child development. Psychological Bulletin, 139(6), 1342–1396.
22.
FantiK. A.HenrichC. C. (2010). Trajectories of pure and co-occurring internalizing and externalizing problems from age 2 to age 12: Findings from the national institute of child health and human development study of early child care. Developmental Psychology, 46(5), 1159–1175.
23.
FavaN. M.TruccoE. M.MartzM. E.CopeL. M.JesterJ. M.ZuckerR. A.HeitzegM. M. (2019). Childhood adversity, externalizing behavior, and substance use in adolescence: Mediating effects of anterior cingulate cortex activation during inhibitory errors. Development and Psychopathology, 31(4), 1439–1450.
24.
FelittiV. J.AndaR. F. (2010). The relationship of adverse childhood experiences to adult medical disease, psychiatric disorders, and sexual behavior: Implications for healthcare. In LaniusR. A.VermettenE.PainC. (Eds.), The impact of early life trauma on health and disease: The hidden epidemic (pp. 77–87). Cambridge University Press.
25.
FelittiV. J.AndaR. F.NordenbergD.WilliamsonD. F.SpitzA. M.EdwardsV.KossM. P. (1998). Relationship of childhood abuse and household dysfunction to many of the leading causes of death in adults: The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 14(4), 245–258.
26.
FiggeC. J.Martinez-TorteyaC.WeeksJ. E. (2018). Social–ecological predictors of externalizing behavior trajectories in at-risk youth. Development and Psychopathology, 30(1), 255–266.
27.
FineA.KotelchuckM. (2010). Rethinking MCH: The life course model as an organizing framework. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
28.
GreesonJ. K. P.BriggsE. C.LayneC. M.BelcherH. M.OstrowskiS. A.KimS.LeeR. C.VivretteR. L.PynoosR. S.FairbankJ. A. (2014). Traumatic childhood experiences in the 21st century: Broadening and building on the ACE studies with data from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 29(3), 536–556.
29.
HandleyE. D.ChassinL. (2013). Alcohol-specific parenting as a mechanism of parental drinking and alcohol use disorder risk on adolescent alcohol use onset. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 74(5), 684–693.
30.
HarpurL. J.PolekE.van HarmelenA. L. (2015). The role of timing of maltreatment and child intelligence in pathways to low symptoms of depression and anxiety in adolescence. Child Abuse & Neglect, 47, 24–37.
31.
HeimC.BinderE. B. (2012). Current research trends in early life stress and depression: Review of human studies on sensitive periods, gene–environment interactions, and epigenetics. Experimental Neurology, 233(1), 102–111.
32.
HerrenkohlT. I.HerrenkohlR. C. (2007). Examining the overlap and prediction of multiple forms of child maltreatment, stressors, and socio-economic status: A longitudinal analysis of youth outcomes. Journal of Family Violence, 22, 553–562. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-007-9107-x
33.
HerrenkohlT. I.KostermanR.MasonW. A.HawkinsJ. D.McCartyC. A.McCauleyE. (2010). Effects of childhood conduct problems and family adversity on health, health behaviors, and service use in early adulthood: Tests of developmental pathways involving adolescent risk taking and depression. Development and Psychopathology, 22(3), 655–665.
34.
HigginsD. J.McCabeM. P. (2003). Maltreatment and family dysfunction in childhood and the subsequent adjustment of children and adults. Journal of Family Violence, 18(2), 107–120.
35.
HindelangM. J.HirschiT.WeisJ. G. (1981). Measuring delinquency (Vol. 123). Sage.
36.
HsuY. T.KawachiI. (2019). Timing of family adversity during adolescence and its impact on alcohol and tobacco initiation: A longitudinal study among Taiwanese adolescents. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 50(2), 257–267.
37.
HuntT. K.SlackK. S.BergerL. M. (2017). Adverse childhood experiences and behavioral problems in middle childhood. Child Abuse & Neglect, 67, 391–402.
38.
JaffeeS. R.Maikovich-FongA. K. (2011). Effects of chronic maltreatment and maltreatment timing on children’s behavior and cognitive abilities. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 52(2), 184–194.
39.
KnudsenE. I. (2004). Sensitive periods in the development of the brain and behavior. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 16(8), 1412–1425.
40.
KuhD.Ben-ShlomoY.LynchJ.HallqvistJ.PowerC. (2003). Life course epidemiology. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 57(10), 778–783.
41.
LanierP.Maguire-JackK.LombardiB.FreyJ.RoseR. A. (2018). Adverse childhood experiences and child health outcomes: Comparing cumulative risk and latent class approaches. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 22(3), 288–297.
42.
LeeJ. O.GilchristL. D.BeadnellB. A.LohrM. J.YuanC.HartiganL. A.MorrisonD. M. (2017). Assessing variations in developmental outcomes among teenage offspring of teen mothers: Maternal life course correlates. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 27(3), 550–565.
43.
LeeJ. O.JeongC. H.YuanC.BodenJ. M.Umaña-TaylorA. J.NorisM.CederbaumJ. A. (2020). Externalizing behavior problems in offspring of teen mothers: A meta-analysis. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 49, 1146–1161.
44.
MandaraJ.MurrayC. B.TelesfordJ. M.VarnerF. A.RichmanS. B. (2012). Observed gender differences in African American mother-child relationships and child behavior. Family Relations, 61(1), 129–141.
45.
McLaughlinK. A.BasuA.WalshK.SlopenN.SumnerJ. A.KoenenK. C.KeyesK. M. (2016). Childhood exposure to violence and chronic physical conditions in a national sample of US adolescents. Psychosomatic Medicine, 78(9), 1072–1083.
46.
NealS.RiceF.Ng-KnightT.RiglinL.FredericksonN. (2016). Exploring the longitudinal association between interventions to support the transition to secondary school and child anxiety. Journal of Adolescence, 50, 31–43.
47.
NegriffS. (2020). ACEs are not equal: Examining the relative impact of household dysfunction versus childhood maltreatment on mental health in adolescence. Social Science & Medicine, 245, 112696.
48.
NelsonC. A.IIIGabard-DurnamL. J. (2020). Early adversity and critical periods: Neurodevelopmental consequences of violating the expectable environment. Trends in Neurosciences, 43(3), 133–143.
49.
OxfordM. L.LeeJ. O.LohrM. J. (2010). Predicting markers of adulthood among adolescent mothers. Social Work Research, 34(1), 33–44. https://doi.org/10.1093/swr/34.1.33
50.
PrinzR. J.SandersM. R.ShapiroC. J.WhitakerD. J.LutzkerJ. R. (2009). Population-based prevention of child maltreatment: The US Triple P system population trial. Prevention Science, 10(1), 1–12.
51.
QuinlivanJ.TanL.SteelA.BlackK. (2004). Impact of demographic factors, early family relationships and depressive symptomatology in teenage pregnancy. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 38(4), 197–203.
52.
RiglinL.FredericksonN.SheltonK. H.RiceF. (2013). A longitudinal study of psychological functioning and academic attainment at the transition to secondary school. Journal of Adolescence, 36(3), 507–517. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2013.03.002
53.
RyanK. D.KilmerR. P.CauceA. M.WatanabeH.HoytD. R. (2000). Psychological consequences of child maltreatment in homeless adolescents: Untangling the unique effects of maltreatment and family environment. Child Abuse & Neglect, 24(3), 333–352.
54.
SchillingE. A.AseltineR. H.GoreS. (2008). The impact of cumulative childhood adversity on young adult mental health: Measures, models, and interpretations. Social Science & Medicine, 66(5), 1140–1151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2007.11.023
55.
SchillingE. A.AseltineR. H.JrGoreS. (2007). Adverse childhood experiences and mental health in young adults: A longitudinal survey. BMC Public Health, 7, 30. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-7-30
56.
SchleiderJ. L.ChorpitaB. F.WeiszJ. R. (2014). Relation between parent psychiatric symptoms and youth problems: Moderation through family structure and youth gender. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 42(2), 195–204.
57.
SchlomerG. L.BaumanS.CardN. A. (2010). Best practices for missing data management in counseling psychology. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 57(1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018082
58.
SchroederA.SlopenN.MittalM. (2018). Accumulation, timing, and duration of early adversity and behavior problems at age 9. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 49(1), 36–49.
59.
ShinS. H.MillerD. P.TeicherM. H. (2013). Exposure to childhood neglect and physical abuse and developmental trajectories of heavy episodic drinking from early adolescence into young adulthood. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 127(1–3), 31–38.
60.
SlopenN.KoenenK. C.KubzanskyL. D. (2012). Childhood adversity and immune and inflammatory biomarkers associated with cardiovascular risk in youth: A systematic review. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 26(2), 239–250.
61.
SlopenN.McLaughlinK. A.DunnE. C.KoenenK. C. (2013). Reply to letter Re: Childhood adversity and cell-mediated immunity in young adulthood. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 34, 177–179.
62.
SmithA. D.HeronJ.MishraG.GilthorpeM. S.Ben-ShlomoY.TillingK. (2015). Model selection of the effect of binary exposures over the life course. Epidemiology, 26(5), 719–726.
63.
SmithBattleL. (2007). Legacies of advantage and disadvantage: The case of teen mothers. Public Health Nursing, 24(5), 409–420.
64.
SmithBattleL.LeonardV. (2012). Inequities compounded: Explaining variations in the transition to adulthood for teen mothers’ offspring. Journal of Family Nursing, 18(3), 409–431.
65.
Sonuga-BarkeE. J.KennedyM.KumstaR.KnightsN.GolmD.RutterM.MaughanB.SchlotzW.KreppnerJ. (2017). Child-to-adult neurodevelopmental and mental health trajectories after early life deprivation: The young adult follow-up of the longitudinal English and Romanian Adoptees study. The Lancet, 389(10078), 1539–1548.
StrongC.TsaiM. C.LinC. Y.ChengC. P. (2016). Childhood adversity, timing of puberty and adolescent depressive symptoms: A longitudinal study in Taiwan. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 47(3), 347–357.
68.
ThornberryT. P.HenryK. L.IrelandT. O.SmithC. A. (2010). The causal impact of childhood-limited maltreatment and adolescent maltreatment on early adult adjustment. Journal of Adolescent Health, 46(4), 359–365.
69.
ThornberryT. P.IrelandT. O.SmithC. A. (2001). The importance of timing: The varying impact of childhood and adolescent maltreatment on multiple problem outcomes. Development and Psychopathology, 13(4), 957–979.
70.
TylerK. A.JohnsonK. A.BrownridgeD. A. (2008). A longitudinal study of the effects of child maltreatment on later outcomes among high-risk adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 37(5), 506–521.
71.
WayN.ReddyR.RhodesJ. (2007). Students’ perceptions of school climate during the middle school years: Associations with trajectories of psychological and behavioral adjustment. American Journal of Community Psychology, 40(3–4), 194–213.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
