Predicting childhood effortful control from interactions between early parenting quality and children's dopamine transporter gene haplotypes. (30th April 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Li, Yi; Sulik, Michael J.; Eisenberg, Nancy; Spinrad, Tracy L.; Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn; Stover, Daryn A.; Verrelli, Brian C.
• Is Part Of: Development and psychopathology. Volume 28:Number 1(2016:Feb.)
• Page Start: 199
• Page End: 212
• Publication Date: 2015-04-30
• Subjects: Child psychopathology -- Periodicals; Developmental psychology -- Periodicals; Psychology, Pathological -- Periodicals; 618.9289
• DOI: 10.1017/S0954579415000383
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0954-5794

Abstract

Abstract: Children's observed effortful control (EC) at 30, 42, and 54 months ( n = 145) was predicted from the interaction between mothers' observed parenting with their 30-month-olds and three variants of the solute carrier family C6, member 3 ( SLC6A3 ) dopamine transporter gene (single nucleotide polymorphisms in intron8 and intron13, and a 40 base pair variable number tandem repeat [VNTR] in the 3′-untranslated region [UTR]), as well as haplotypes of these variants. Significant moderating effects were found. Children without the intron8-A/intron13-G, intron8-A/3′-UTR VNTR-10, or intron13-G/3′-UTR VNTR-10 haplotypes (i.e., haplotypes associated with the reduced SLC6A3 gene expression and thus lower dopamine functioning) appeared to demonstrate altered levels of EC as a function of maternal parenting quality, whereas children with these haplotypes demonstrated a similar EC level regardless of the parenting quality. Children with these haplotypes demonstrated a trade-off, such that they showed higher EC, relative to their counterparts without these haplotypes, when exposed to less supportive maternal parenting. The findings revealed a diathesis–stress pattern and suggested that different SLC6A3 haplotypes, but not single variants, might represent different levels of young children's sensitivity/responsivity to early parenting.