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Neurocognitive deficits, such as cognitive flexibility impairments, are common in bipolar disorder (BD) and predict poor academic, occupational, and functional outcomes. However, the association between neurocognition and illness trajectory is not well understood, especially across developmental transitions. This study examined cognitive flexibility and subsequent mood symptom and suicidal ideation (SI) course in young adults with childhood-onset BD-I (with distinct mood episodes) vs. BD-not otherwise specified (BD-NOS) vs. typically-developing controls (TDCs). Sample included 93 young adults (ages 18-30) with prospectively verified childhood-onset DSM-IV BD-I (n = 34) or BD-NOS (n = 15) and TDCs (n = 44). Participants completed cross-sectional neuropsychological tasks and clinical measures. Then participants with BD completed longitudinal assessments of mood symptoms and SI at 6-month intervals (M = 39.18 ± 16.57months of follow-up data). Analyses included ANOVAs, independent-samples t tests, chi-square analyses, and multiple linear regressions. Participants with BD-I had significant deficits in cognitive flexibility and executive functioning vs. BD-NOS and TDCs, and impaired spatial working memory vs. TDCs only. Two significant BD subtype-by-cognitive flexibility interactions revealed that cognitive flexibility deficits were associated with subsequent percentage of time depressed and with SI in BD-I but not BD-NOS, regardless of other neurocognitive factors (full-scale IQ, executive functioning, spatial working memory) and clinical factors (current and prior mood and SI symptoms, age of BD onset, global functioning, psychiatric medications, comorbidity). Thus, cognitive flexibility may be an important etiological brain/behavior mechanism, prognostic indicator, and intervention target for childhood-onset BD-I, as this deficit appears to endure into young adulthood and is associated with worse prognosis for subsequent depression and SI.

Objective The current study investigated associations between appraisals of shame and alienation related to mothers' own experiences of child maltreatment and symptoms across generations-in mothers themselves as well as their toddler/preschool-aged children. Method Mothers who survived maltreatment (N = 113) with a child between the ages of 2 and 5 were recruited to participate in an online study on Maternal Coping, Attachment and Health. Mother participants completed a series of questionnaires, including those that asked about posttrauma appraisals of their own maltreatment experiences as well as their child's and their own mental health symptoms. Results When taking into account other posttrauma appraisals (e.g., fear, betrayal, anger, self-blame), maternal shame and alienation were both significantly associated with maternal trauma-related distress (a composite of anxiety, PTSD, dissociation, and depressive symptoms). Maternal shame was also significantly linked to child internalizing symptoms and externalizing symptoms. Lower levels of fear and higher levels of betrayal were associated with externalizing symptoms as well. Maternal trauma-related distress mediated the relationship between maternal shame and child externalizing symptoms, and partially mediated the relationship between shame and internalizing symptoms. Conclusion This study is the first of its kind to examine the role of posttrauma appraisals among mother survivors of maltreatment as they relate to symptoms in their young children. Although additional research is necessary, findings suggest that mothers' posttrauma appraisals, such as shame, could be a relevant factor in the early social-emotional development of survivors' children. (PsycINFO Database Record

The purpose of this study was to elucidate possible cognitive mechanisms involved in the intergenerational transmission of trauma from maltreatment-survivor mothers to their toddler/preschool-aged children. This study investigated whether maternal trauma–related cognitions—posttrauma appraisals and disorganized memory for maltreatment—were associated with higher levels of toddler internalizing and externalizing symptoms and more dysfunction in the mother–child relationship. A community sample of mothers with histories of maltreatment and a child between the ages of 2 and 5 years was recruited for a study on maternal attachment, coping, and health ( N = 113). Path analysis results showed that posttrauma appraisals and disorganized memory were significantly related to toddler internalizing symptoms, even with maternal trauma symptoms included in the model. Maternal posttrauma appraisals and disorganized memory were also linked to more dysfunction in the mother–child relationship. These findings provide preliminary evidence in support of maternal trauma–related cognitions as potential mechanisms for the intergenerational transmission of trauma.

The purpose of this study was to elucidate mechanisms involved in the intergenerational transmission of trauma-related distress. This study investigated whether betrayal trauma (BT; abuse by a person close to the victim) and specific parenting attitudes and behaviors among mothers with child abuse histories predicted internalizing and externalizing symptoms in their children. Mothers and children (ages 7–11) were recruited for a project on parenting and stress (N = 72). Maternal betrayal trauma predicted both internalizing (β = 0.33, p

The objective of this study was to investigate whether experiences of high betrayal trauma (BT; maltreatment by a parent/caregiver) during mothers' own childhoods may influence the intergenerational transmission of maltreatment and its associated psychopathology from mothers to their children. A prospective, longitudinal design was utilized to assess maternal physical and sexual betrayal trauma in relation to children's own maltreatment experiences, and child mood and behavioral symptoms during pre-adolescence. Data from 706 mothers and children who participated in the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) was analyzed, including: mothers' physical and sexual maltreatment histories, child protective services' documented physical and sexual maltreatment during children's first twelve years of life, and mother- and child-reports of child internalizing and externalizing symptoms at age 12. Children of mothers who survived high BT (maltreatment by a caregiver) were 4.52 times more likely to experience maltreatment than children of no BT mothers (mothers whom were not maltreated), and 1.58 times more likely than children whose mothers survived low BT (maltreatment by a non-caregiver). Higher levels of maternal physical BT significantly predicted more internalizing and externalizing symptoms in children at age 12, according to both mother (CBCL) and child (YSR) reports. More incidents of child physical maltreatment partially mediated associations between maternal physical BT and child symptoms. Incidents of sexual maltreatment also partially mediated associations between maternal sexual BT and child internalizing and externalizing symptoms (CBCL only). These findings have implications for understanding the role of betrayal trauma in perpetuating the cycle of maltreatment across generations.