Wei Zhang1, Khushmand Rajendran2, Jacob Ham3, Jackie Finik4, Jessica Buthmann5, Kei Davey6, Patricia M Pehme5, Kathryn Dana5, Alexandra Pritchett5, Holly Laws7, Yoko Nomura8. 1. Queens College, CUNY, Psychology, New York, NY, United States. 2. Borough of Manhattan Community College, Social Science, Human Service and Criminal Justice, New York, NY, United States. 3. Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Psychiatry, New York, NY, United States. 4. Queens College, CUNY, Psychology, New York, NY, United States; Graduate School of Public Health, CUNY, New York, NY, United States. 5. Queens College, CUNY, Psychology, New York, NY, United States; The Graduate Center, CUNY, Psychology, New York, NY, United States. 6. Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. 7. Yale University, School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, United States; VA CT Healthcare System, New Haven, CT, United States; University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Amherst, MA, United States. 8. Queens College, CUNY, Psychology, New York, NY, United States; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Psychiatry, New York, NY, United States; The Graduate Center, CUNY, Psychology, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address: Yoko.nomura@qc.cuny.edu.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Little is known about the impact of prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) on the developmental trajectory of temperament and few studies have been able to incorporate a natural disaster as a quasi-experimental stressor. The current study investigated PNMS related to Superstorm Sandy ('Sandy'), a hurricane that struck the New York metropolitan area in October 2012, in terms of objective exposure during pregnancy, subjective stress reaction as assessed by maternal symptoms of post-traumatic stress, and their impact on the developmental changes in temperament during early childhood. METHOD: A subsample of 318 mother-child dyads was drawn from the Stress in Pregnancy Study. Temperament was measured at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months of age. RESULTS: Objective exposure was associated with greater High-Intensity Pleasure, Approach, Perceptual Sensitivity and Fearfulness, but lower Cuddliness and Duration of Orientation at 6 months. Objective exposure and its interaction with subjective stress reaction predicted developmental changes in temperament. In particular, objective exposure was linked to greater increases in Activity Level but decreases in High-Intensity Pleasure, Approach, and Fearfulness. The combination of objective exposure and subjective stress reaction was also associated with greater increases in Activity Level. LIMITATIONS: Temperament was measured solely via maternal report. Trimester-specific effects of Sandy on temperament were not examined. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to examine the effects of prenatal maternal exposure to a natural disaster on trajectories of early childhood temperament. Findings suggest that both objective stress exposure and subjective stress reaction in-utero predict developmental trajectories of temperament in early childhood.
BACKGROUND: Little is known about the impact of prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) on the developmental trajectory of temperament and few studies have been able to incorporate a natural disaster as a quasi-experimental stressor. The current study investigated PNMS related to Superstorm Sandy ('Sandy'), a hurricane that struck the New York metropolitan area in October 2012, in terms of objective exposure during pregnancy, subjective stress reaction as assessed by maternal symptoms of post-traumatic stress, and their impact on the developmental changes in temperament during early childhood. METHOD: A subsample of 318 mother-child dyads was drawn from the Stress in Pregnancy Study. Temperament was measured at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months of age. RESULTS: Objective exposure was associated with greater High-Intensity Pleasure, Approach, Perceptual Sensitivity and Fearfulness, but lower Cuddliness and Duration of Orientation at 6 months. Objective exposure and its interaction with subjective stress reaction predicted developmental changes in temperament. In particular, objective exposure was linked to greater increases in Activity Level but decreases in High-Intensity Pleasure, Approach, and Fearfulness. The combination of objective exposure and subjective stress reaction was also associated with greater increases in Activity Level. LIMITATIONS: Temperament was measured solely via maternal report. Trimester-specific effects of Sandy on temperament were not examined. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to examine the effects of prenatal maternal exposure to a natural disaster on trajectories of early childhood temperament. Findings suggest that both objective stress exposure and subjective stress reaction in-utero predict developmental trajectories of temperament in early childhood.
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