The association between parenting and the error-related negativity across childhood and adolescence

Abstract

Anxiety is the most common form of psychopathology, and it is often characterized by chronic impairment across the lifespan. Researchers have identified core neural markers that confer risk for anxious outcomes. An increased error-related negativity (ERN) in anxious individuals has been shown to prospectively predict onset of anxiety disorders across development. Hence, it is critical to examine environmental factors that may shape the ERN. In the current study, we use a large sample of 170 female adolescents aged 10-17 to investigate whether the ERN mediates the relationship between parenting style and anxiety diagnostic status. This study replicates previous findings, and it extends previous work by suggesting that this relationship is more robust in young children as compared to adolescents. Interventions targeting the ERN via parenting may be most effective during childhood.

Keywords: Anxiety; Development; Electroencephalogram; Error-related negativity; Parenting.