Community Violence Exposure In Childhood And Depressive Symptoms Among Young Adults

Community violence(CV)exposure,one type of adverse childhood experience,has long-term impacts on psychosocial adjustment in adulthood.There are potential factors thought to moderate the associations between CV exposure and depressive symptoms.Studies suggest that the autonomic nervous system(ANS)functioning may be one of the individual factors.ANS functioning,particularly the coordination of the parasympathetic nervous system(PNS)and the sympathetic nervous system(SNS)in response to stress,may serve as a protective factor.The current study examined the moderation role of ANS reactivity during social stress in the associations between childhood CV exposure and depressive symptoms among young adults.We recruited 258 young adults living and working in Shanghai,China and invited them to a university laboratory to take part in the Trier Social Stress Test.Participants’ physiological data of respiratory sinus arrhythmia(RSA,an indicator of PNS functioning)and pre-ejection period(PEP,an indicator of SNS functioning)during baseline and speech stage were used to calculate RSA and PEP reactivity scores as indicators of ANS reactivity.Participants reported on childhood CV exposure and current depressive symptoms via questionnaires.Findings revealed that childhood CV exposure positively predicted depressive symptoms among young adults exhibiting ANS reactivity profiles of coactivation(RSA increases and PEP decreases)and PNS inhibition predominantly(RSA decreases and PEP increases or maintenance),whereas these associations were not significant for individuals showing reciprocal SNS activation(RSA and PEP decreases),and PNS activation predominately(RSA increases and PEP increases or maintenance).Our results supported the autonomic space model,and suggested that ANS reactivity profiles with the two ANS branches operating in relatively reciprocal or coordinated manners and PNS activation predominantly in response to social stress may indicate adaptive physiological functioning and buffer the effects of childhood CV exposure on young adults’ depressive symptoms.Findings highlighted the importance of considering multiple nervous systems functioning to better understand the effects of physiological responses.