Contextual startle responses moderate the relation between behavioral inhibition and anxiety in middle childhood

Psychophysiology
Tyson V BarkerNathan A Fox

Abstract

Behavioral inhibition (BI), a temperament characterized in early childhood by wariness and avoidance of novelty, is a risk factor for anxiety disorders. An enhanced startle response has been observed in adolescents characterized with BI in childhood, particularly when they also manifest concurrent symptoms of anxiety. However, no prior study has examined relations among BI, startle responsivity, and anxiety in a prospective manner. Data for the present study were from a longitudinal study of infant temperament. Maternal reports and observations of BI were assessed at ages 2 and 3. At age 7, participants completed a startle procedure, while electromyography was collected, where participants viewed different colors on a screen that were associated with either the delivery of an aversive stimulus (i.e., puff of air to the larynx; threat cue) or the absence of the aversive stimulus (i.e., safety cue). Parental reports of child anxiety were collected when children were 7 and 9 years of age. Results revealed that startle responses at age 7 moderated the relation between early BI and 9-year anxiety. These findings provide insight into one potential mechanism that may place behaviorally inhibited children at risk for anxiety.

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Jul 25, 2009·Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry·Andrea Chronis-TuscanoNathan A Fox
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Jan 24, 2013·Developmental Psychobiology·Tyson V BarkerNathan A Fox
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Citations

Jul 14, 2016·Behaviour Research and Therapy·Susan H Spence, Ronald M Rapee
Dec 15, 2016·Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, and Allied Disciplines·Jennifer Y F Lau, Allison M Waters
Jul 19, 2018·Development and Psychopathology·Jerome Kagan
Oct 24, 2019·Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology·Andrea SandstromBarbara Pavlova
Dec 24, 2020·Biological Psychiatry·Nathan A FoxHeather A Henderson

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