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Do trait-level emotion regulation strategies moderate associations between retrospective reports of childhood trauma and... 2022 Jones et al

Discussion in 'Other psychosomatic news and research' started by Andy, Oct 21, 2022.

  1. Andy

    Andy Committee Member

    Messages:
    22,397
    Location:
    Hampshire, UK
    Abstract

    Background
    Childhood trauma may confer risk for poorer adult health through changes in systemic inflammation. Emotion regulation may plausibly moderate associations between childhood trauma and adult psychological well-being, but it remains unclear whether moderation effects extend to differences in systemic inflammation.

    Purpose
    To examine whether childhood trauma and emotion regulation separately and interactively predict prospective changes in C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) and whether biopsychosocial factors account for observed associations.

    Methods
    Healthy midlife adults (N = 331) retrospectively reported on childhood trauma, current trait-level cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression, and had their blood drawn. At baseline and then a median of 2.85 years later, 279 of the 331 participants had their blood drawn, body mass index calculated, and reported on health behaviors (smoking, sleep), psychological distress (perceived stress, depressive symptoms), and years of education.

    Results
    Childhood trauma predicted prospective increases in CRP (B=.004, p=.049), which were partially accounted for by differences in adiposity, psychological distress, and health behaviors. In contrast, cognitive reappraisal predicted prospective decreases in IL-6 (B=-.007, p=.006), which were independent of biopsychosocial influences. Cognitive reappraisal further moderated the association between childhood trauma and prospective changes in IL-6 (B=-.001, p=.012) such that childhood trauma predicted greater IL-6 increases but only among adults lower in cognitive reappraisal (B=.006, p=.007). There were no main or moderation effects of expressive suppression (ps>.05).

    Discussion
    Cognitive reappraisal may attenuate IL-6 changes over time and may moderate the prospective association between childhood trauma and systemic inflammation in midlife.

    Paywall, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/smi.3205
     
    Andy, Oct 21, 2022
    #1
    RedFox, Hutan, Peter Trewhitt and 2 others like this.
  2. Hutan

    Hutan Moderator Staff Member

    Messages:
    27,985
    Location:
    Aotearoa New Zealand
    Gosh, the researchers must have been relieved - with a p of 0.049 that finding came perilously close to being statistically insignificant.
    But, with adiposity, smoking and poor sleep partially explaining 'prospective CRP increases', maybe if you took those things out of the equation, there'd be nothing left that amounts to much. The abstract suggests that neither cognitive reappraisal nor expressive suppression have any impact on CRP levels. But, of course, we don't get a title 'Emotional regulation strategies have no impact on CRP'.

    The differences are just over a period of, on average, 2.85 years and it's not clear if there was any intervention.
    If there was no intervention, then I don't know why a person's emotion regulation strategies should be expected to suddenly reduce or increase IL-6 over a period of less than 3 years, years after childhood.

    Cherry-picking.
     
    Last edited: Oct 21, 2022
    Hutan, Oct 21, 2022
    #2
    RedFox, alktipping, obeat and 7 others like this.

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