RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to examine respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), an indicator of parasympathetic nervous system-linked cardiac activity, and skin conductance level (SCL), a sympathetic indicator, as moderators of the link between child maltreatment and adolescent aggression. METHOD: Participants were 234 maltreated (48.3% male) and 128 (57.8% male) comparison youth aged 9-16 years participating in wave 2 of a longitudinal study. RESULTS: Regression analyses suggest that among boys, high RSA may be protective against the effects of maltreatment on aggressive behavior. Among girls, the moderating effect of RSA was further moderated by SCL reactivity such that low levels of both baseline RSA and SCL reactivity, or conversely high levels of both baseline RSA and SCL reactivity, exacerbated the link between maltreatment and aggression. CONCLUSIONS: High RSA may protect against the effects of maltreatment on aggressive behavior, though this effect may be moderated by SCL reactivity among girls.
Assuntos
Agressão/fisiologia , Nível de Alerta/fisiologia , Arritmia Sinusal/fisiopatologia , Arritmia Sinusal/psicologia , Abuso Sexual na Infância/psicologia , Maus-Tratos Infantis/psicologia , Eletrocardiografia , Resposta Galvânica da Pele/fisiologia , Adolescente , Criança , Transtornos do Comportamento Infantil/fisiopatologia , Transtornos do Comportamento Infantil/psicologia , Feminino , Humanos , Estudos Longitudinais , Masculino , Fatores de Risco , Fatores Sexuais , Sistema Nervoso Simpático/fisiopatologiaRESUMO
This study examined whether a self-reported family history of alcohol abuse (FH+) moderated the effects of a female-specific group motivational enhancement intervention with first-year college women. First-year college women (N=287) completed an initial questionnaire and attended an intervention (n=161) or control (n=126) group session, of which 118 reported FH+. Repeated measures ANCOVA models were estimated to investigate whether the effectiveness of the intervention varied as a function of one's reported family history of alcohol abuse. Results revealed that family history of alcohol abuse moderated intervention efficacy. Although the intervention was effective in producing less risky drinking relative to controls, among those participants who received the intervention, FH+ women drank less across five weeks of follow-up than FH- women. The current findings provide preliminary support for the differential effectiveness of motivational enhancement interventions with FH+ women.
