Feasibility of an Online Acute Stressor in Preschool Children of Mothers with Depression

Abstract

Maternal depression is a risk factor for future mental health problems in offspring, with stress-system function as a candidate vulnerability factor. Here we present initial validation of an online matching-task paradigm in young children exposed to maternal depression (N=40), a first in stressor-paradigm research for this age group. Investigations of stress-system reactivity that can be conducted online are an innovative assessment approach, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Results indicate high feasibility, with ~80% success across measures, similar-to or better-than in-person success rates in young children. Overall, the online matching task elicited significant HR but not cortisol reactivity. Individual differences in child mental health symptoms were a moderator of reactivity to the stressor such that children with lower, but not higher, behavioural problems exhibited the expected pattern of cortisol reactivity to the online matching task. Results are aligned with allostatic load models, which suggest down-regulation of stress-system reactivity as a result of experiencing adversity and mental health vulnerability. Consistent with in-person research, this suggests an early phenotype for the emergence of behaviour problems may be linked to altered stress-system reactivity. Results hold potential clinical implications for intervention development and the future of online stress-system research.

Virtual assessment of stress reactivity in young children: Practical guidelines & lessons learned

“…As noted, research in our lab and others reveal promise in delivering various assessments and stressor paradigms to childhood samples through virtual platforms (Paton et al, 2021;Tabachnick et al, 2021). Our online delivery of the matching task stressor paradigm highlights the feasibility of remote stress-system assessments in families of young children with approximately 80% success across measures, similar to in-person data collection success rates with young children (Paton et al, 2021).…”

“…In conducting virtual visits with families, the use of clear scripts and documentation strengthens methodology and standardization efforts. Across projects, our team has used PowerPoint slides with presenter notes and full assessor scripts outlining exact assessment procedures (Harvie et al, 2021;Paton et al, 2021;Penner-Goeke et al, 2021). Our assessment team undergoes intensive training to ensure standardization and adherence to the script but practices it frequently enough prior to conducting the real assessments so they do not appear to the families to be "reading from a script."…”

“…For example, we recently assessed the feasibility of an online acute stressor task in preschool-aged children using a matching task paradigm (Kryski et al, 2011;Roos et al, 2017). In this task mothers were asked to sit further away from their child and not intervene during the task (Paton et al, 2021). In piloting the task, we discovered many mothers were either fully or partially involved in the task by helping the child directly with the task or providing words of encouragement.…”

“…In response, the use of various strategies can decrease parental involvement during online stress eliciting tasks by diverting parental attention elsewhere . Giving parents "a job" to complete (e.g., completing a questionnaire, reading a magazine) while the child completes the task serves as an effective distraction, decreasing the probability of unwanted parental involvement (Paton et al, 2021;.…”

“…Our own research team remotely collected salivary cortisol from children aged 3-5 years during an acute stressor task (Paton et al, 2021). To facilitate remote sampling, saliva vials that were pre-numbered and pre-labelled with coloured stickers were delivered to families' homes prior to assessments.…”