The Continuity of Adversity: Negative Emotionality Links Early Life Adversity With Adult Stressful Life Events

Author:

Brennan Grace M.12ORCID,Moffitt Terrie E.1234,Bourassa Kyle J.5ORCID,Harrington HonaLee2,Hogan Sean6,Houts Renate M.2,Poulton Richie6,Ramrakha Sandhya6,Caspi Avshalom1234ORCID

Affiliation:

1. Duke Aging Center, Duke University School of Medicine

2. Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University

3. Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London

4. Promenta, University of Oslo

5. Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham VA Healthcare System, Durham, North Carolina

6. Department of Psychology and Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Research Unit, University of Otago

Abstract

Adversity that exhibits continuity across the life course has long-term detrimental effects on physical and mental health. Using 920 participants from the Dunedin Study, we tested the following hypotheses: (a) Children (ages 3–15) who experienced adversity would also tend to experience adversity in adulthood (ages 32–45), and (2) interim personality traits in young adulthood (ages 18–26) would help account for this longitudinal association. Children who experienced more adversity tended to also experience more stressful life events as adults, β = 0.11, 95% confidence interval [CI] = [0.04, 0.18], p = .002. Negative emotionality—particularly its subfacet alienation, characterized by mistrust of others—helped explain this childhood-to-midlife association (indirect effect: β = 0.06, 95% CI = [0.04, 0.09], p < .001). Results were robust to adjustment for sex, socioeconomic origins, childhood IQ, preschool temperament, and other young-adult personality traits. Prevention of early life adversity and treatment of young-adult negative emotionality may reduce vulnerability to later life stress and thereby promote the health of aging adults.

Funder

New Zealand Health Research Council

National Institute on Aging

New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment

Medical Research Council

Publisher

SAGE Publications

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