Timing matters: A multi-contextual, within-individual approach to understanding age-related changes in psychopathology in the ABCD Study

Abstract

Psychopathology is associated with features of the family, neighborhood, and school environments. During adolescence, increased autonomy and novel social relationships may influence the strength of these associations over time. Characterizing these processes is key to understanding how and when different factors may contribute to psychopathology. Participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (n = 11,823) were 9–10 years old at baseline and 12–13 years old at the three-year follow-up. At each time point, internalizing symptoms (INT) and externalizing symptoms (EXT), family features (e.g., conflict, parental monitoring, acceptance, and financial hardship), neighborhood safety, and school supportiveness were assessed. Fixed effect regression models were estimated separately for male and female youth to examine the age-varying, within-individual associations between symptoms and family, neighborhood, and school factors. INT and EXT significantly decreased among male adolescents over time, while female adolescents exhibited increases in INT and decreases in EXT. Family conflict, financial hardship, neighborhood safety, and school support predicted INT and EXT, with some variation by sex (e.g., neighborhood safety only predicted INT and EXT for male adolescents). Many of these associations were consistent over time. However, for male adolescents, the association between financial hardship and EXT weakened over time, while the family conflict and EXT association strengthened. Understanding how timing and specific environmental factors interact to shape adolescent mental health is critical to identifying periods of heightened sensitivity to risk or protective influences.