Social Support for Stress in Children and Adolescents
Recruiting in Palo Alto (17 mi)
Age: < 18
Sex: Any
Travel: May Be Covered
Time Reimbursement: Varies
Trial Phase: Academic
Recruiting
Sponsor: University of Minnesota
Must not be taking: Glucocorticoids, Beta-blockers
Disqualifiers: Premature birth, Autism, Psychiatric illness, others
No Placebo Group
Trial Summary
What is the purpose of this trial?The purpose of this experiment is to determine the mechanisms through which parental buffering of stress physiology during aversive conditioning diminishes with pubertal development and whether this diminution of effectiveness extends to social buffering by peers (best friends) and/or other unfamiliar social partners (e.g., experimenters).
Will I have to stop taking my current medications?
If you are taking systemic glucocorticoids or beta-adrenergic medications, you cannot participate in this trial. The protocol does not specify about other medications.
What data supports the effectiveness of the treatment Social Buffering for stress in children and adolescents?
Research shows that social support, a key part of Social Buffering, can help reduce stress by affecting the body's stress response system, especially in children. Studies indicate that support from parents and peers can lower stress and improve mental health, suggesting that Social Buffering may be effective in managing stress in young people.
12345How does the treatment of social support for stress in children and adolescents differ from other treatments?
This treatment is unique because it focuses on providing social support from parents, peers, and classmates to help reduce stress and internalizing problems in children and adolescents. Unlike traditional treatments that might involve medication or therapy, this approach leverages the natural support systems around the child to buffer against stress and improve mental health outcomes.
12346Eligibility Criteria
This trial is for adolescents with normal hearing, vision, and language skills. It's not for those with autism, tattoos that interfere with MRI scans, severe claustrophobia, certain medications like beta-blockers or glucocorticoids, psychiatric or neurological disorders, serious medical conditions like cancer or organ transplants, pregnancy, congenital/chromosomal disorders (e.g., Down Syndrome), or metal implants/piercings/braces.Inclusion Criteria
Sufficient hearing to complete assent and study procedures
Sufficient language skills to provide verbal and written assent
Sufficient vision to complete assent and study procedures
Exclusion Criteria
Premature birth (less than 37 weeks)
Known pregnancy
Autism Spectrum Disorders
+8 more
Trial Timeline
Screening
Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial
1 visit
1 visit (in-person)
Initial Assessment
Participants undergo a pubertal assessment exam, complete questionnaires, and experience a simulated MRI
1 visit
1 visit (in-person)
Conditioning and MRI
Participants undergo MRI safety screening and complete aversive conditioning paradigms with different social partners
2 hours
1 visit (in-person)
Follow-up
Participants are monitored for safety and effectiveness after the conditioning session
2 weeks
Participant Groups
The study aims to understand how parental support helps reduce stress in teenagers during scary situations and if this changes as they grow up. It also looks at whether friends or strangers can provide similar comfort. Participants will answer questionnaires and undergo MRI scans.
4Treatment groups
Experimental Treatment
Group I: Primary ParentExperimental Treatment2 Interventions
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 4 conditions that differ by who is with them in the MRI scanner room: Primary Parent, Close Friend, Experimenter, No Social Partner.
Group II: No Social PartnerExperimental Treatment2 Interventions
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 4 conditions that differ by who is with them in the MRI scanner room: Primary Parent, Close Friend, Experimenter, No Social Partner.
Group III: ExperimenterExperimental Treatment2 Interventions
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 4 conditions that differ by who is with them in the MRI scanner room: Primary Parent, Close Friend, Experimenter, No Social Partner.
Group IV: Close FriendExperimental Treatment2 Interventions
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 4 conditions that differ by who is with them in the MRI scanner room: Primary Parent, Close Friend, Experimenter, No Social Partner.
Find a Clinic Near You
Research Locations NearbySelect from list below to view details:
University of MinnesotaMinneapolis, MN
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Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?
University of MinnesotaLead Sponsor
References
Parent and peer social support compensation and internalizing problems in adolescence. [2021]The general benefits of social support are well-documented; however, little is understood about the unique contributions of social support from specific sources, such as parents and peers. In addition, it is unknown whether social support from some sources might buffer against a lack of social support from another source for the outcome of internalizing problems. The current study investigated two research questions: (a) What is the association between social support from mothers, fathers, classmates, and close friends and internalizing problems for adolescent boys and girls? and (b) Can social support from one source (e.g., mothers) buffer against internalizing problems when social support from another source (e.g., fathers) may be lacking? Do these associations vary by gender? These research questions were examined with a sample of 364 middle school students (61.3% female). Students completed a series of self-report questionnaires assessing social support and internalizing symptoms. Multiple group structural equation models indicated that social support provided general benefits from all sources for early adolescent boys and girls. Regarding stress-buffering with low support as a stressor, no evidence was found for compensation between mothers and fathers. Mother support compensated for low classmate support for both boys and girls and father support compensated for low classmate support for boys. Classmate support compensated for low close friend support for boys. Implications in the context of the school environment for both boys and girls are discussed.
Does supportive parenting mitigate the longitudinal effects of peer victimization on depressive thoughts and symptoms in children? [2021]Cohen and Wills (Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A., 1985, Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98, 310-357) described two broad models whereby social support could mitigate the deleterious effects of stress on health: a main effect model and stress-buffering model. A specific application of these models was tested in a three-wave, multimethod study of 1888 children to assess ways parental support (social support) mitigates the effects of peer victimization (stress) on children's depressive symptoms and depression-related cognitions (health-related outcomes). Results revealed that (a) both supportive parenting and peer victimization had main effects on depressive symptoms and cognitions; (b) supportive parenting and peer victimization did not interact in the prediction of depressive thoughts and symptoms; (c) these results generalized across age and gender; and (d) increases in depressive symptoms were related to later reduction of supportive parenting and later increase in peer victimization. Although supportive parenting did not moderate the adverse outcomes associated with peer victimization, results show that its main effect can counterbalance or offset these effects to some degree. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
The role of social buffering on chronic disruptions in quality of care: evidence from caregiver-based interventions in foster children. [2019]There is growing evidence that social support can buffer the physiological stress response, specifically cortisol reactivity. We use a developmental framework to review the importance of social buffering in early childhood, a period of heightened plasticity for programming of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The social environment, in which parents play the largest role in early life, is a critical agent in the developmental trajectory of the HPA axis. A prevailing model of social buffering primarily focuses on the role of social support in the context of acute stressors and cortisol response. This review expands this model to provide evidence of the mechanism of social buffering, or lack thereof, across periods of chronic stress by applying the social buffer model to children involved in the child welfare system. We also highlight current interventions that capitalize on the mechanism of social buffering to modify HPA axis functioning across childhood. Last, we synthesize our findings using the social buffering framework to inform future targeted interventions.
The social buffering of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis in humans: Developmental and experiential determinants. [2023]Social buffering, a subset of social support, is the process through which the availability of a conspecific reduces the activity of stress-mediating neurobiological systems. While its role in coping and resilience is significant, we know little about its developmental history in humans. This brief review presents an integrative developmental account of the social buffering of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) stress reactivity in humans, from infancy to adulthood. During infancy, parents are powerful stress-regulators for children, but child temperament also plays a role and interacts with parenting quality to predict the magnitude of stress responses to fear or pain stimuli. Recent work indicates that parental support remains a potent stress buffer into late childhood, but that it loses its effectiveness as a buffer of the HPA axis by adolescence. Puberty may be the switch that alters the potency of parental buffering. Beginning in middle childhood, friends may serve as stress buffers, particularly when other peers are the source of stress. By adulthood, romantic partners assume this protective role, though studies often reveal sex differences that are currently not well understood. Translational research across species will be critical for developing a mechanistic understanding of social buffering and the processes involved in developmental changes noted in this review.
A meta-analytic review of the association between perceived social support and depression in childhood and adolescence. [2022]This meta-analysis evaluated the relation between social support and depression in youth and compared the cumulative evidence for 2 theories that have been proposed to explain this association: the general benefits (GB; also known as main effects) and stress-buffering (SB) models. The study included 341 articles (19% unpublished) gathered through a search in PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, ERIC, and ProQuest, and a hand search of 11 relevant journals. Using a random effects model, the overall effect size based on k = 341 studies and N = 273,149 participants was r = .26 (95% CI [.24, .28]), with robust support for the GB model and support for the SB model among medically ill youth. Stress-buffering analyses suggest that different stressful contexts may not allow youth to fully draw on the benefits of social support, and we propose value in seeking to better understand both stress-buffering (effects of social support are enhanced) and reverse stress-buffering (effects of social support are dampened) processes. Key findings regarding other moderators include a different pattern of effect sizes across various sources of support. In addition, gender differences were largely absent from this study, suggesting that social support may be a more critical resource for boys than is typically acknowledged. Results also demonstrated the importance of using instruments with adequate psychometric support, with careful consideration of methodological and conceptual issues. Building upon these collective findings, we provide recommendations for theory and practice, as well as recommendations for addressing limitations in the extant literature to guide future investigations. (PsycINFO Database Record
Life stress, social support and psychological distress in late adolescence. [2019]Psychological distress in high-school students was examined in relation to negative life events, long-lasting adversities and perceived social support from the family, friends and the school class. Academic problems increased the symptom levels of psychological distress, and social support from family and social support from friends reduced the symptoms among males and females. For females, social support from school class-mates and problems with parents and friends also had direct independent effects on symptom levels. An effect of the total number of long-lasting adversities was significantly stronger for females than males. The buffer hypothesis was supported: both an increase in social support from parents and social support from peers reduced the effect of negative life events.