Work

Examining systemic inflammation as a pathway linking peer victimization to depressive symptoms in adolescence

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Adolescents exposed to victimization are at an increased risk for a variety of adverse mental health outcomes, including depressive symptoms. Yet, the biological pathways underlying these associations remain poorly understood. Focusing on within-person processes, we examined whether low-grade systemic inflammation mediated the longitudinal associations between peer victimization and depressive symptoms in adolescence. METHODS: = 12.69 years; SD = 0.49; 43.5% female) participated in a multi-wave longitudinal study, with assessments repeated every 6 months over 1.5 years. At each assessment wave, participants self-reported their peer victimization experiences and depressive symptoms. Dried blood spots were collected at each wave using a finger prick procedure to assay a key marker of low-grade systemic inflammation, interkeukin-6 (IL-6). Data were analyzed using random-intercept cross-lagged panel models. RESULTS: = .08), indicating that when adolescents' levels of low-grade systemic inflammation were above their person-specific average, they reported increased levels of depressive symptoms in the subsequent months. However, no significant cross-lagged within-person associations emerged between peer victimization and either IL-6 or depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The findings provide no evidence for the hypothesized mediating role of inflammation in the within-person associations between peer victimization and depressive symptoms. Nevertheless, they extend prior research by indicating that elevated levels of low-grade systemic inflammation predict the development of depressive symptoms in adolescence.

Source: Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry

DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.14060

Authors: Tamara Lorenz, Nathalie Michels, George M. Slavich, Matteo Giletta

Institutions: Ghent University, University of California, Los Angeles

Language: English

Topic: Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression

Subfield: Social Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Good health and well-being, Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: green

Funders: Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, HORIZON EUROPE European Research Council, Governor's Office of Planning and Research