Advisor(s)
Sylvie Mrug
Committee Member(s)
Christopher Henrich
Hemant Tiwari
School
College of Arts and Sciences
Document Type
Thesis
Department (new version)
Psychology
Date of Award
9-11-2025
Abstract
Adolescent antisocial behavior (ASB) has been consistently linked to parenting behaviors, yet individual variability in response to parenting remains poorly understood. Grounded in the differential susceptibility theory, this study examined how candidate plasticity genes interact with poor parenting to predict ASB in adolescents. A sample of 272 youth from the Birmingham Youth Violence Study provided genetic data and participated in two waves of behavioral and parenting assessments. Parenting behaviors were measured using a composite index of harsh, inconsistent, and low-nurturance parenting. ASB was assessed through self- and parent-reported measures of delinquency, aggression, and conduct problems. The study tested whether individual plasticity gene variants, BDNF, NR3C1, FKBP5, DRD2, 5HT2A, and COMT, and a composite gene score moderated the relationship between poor parenting and ASB. Structural equation modeling revealed that poor parenting predicted higher ASB only among adolescents with heightened genetic susceptibility. Notably, significant gene-by-environment (G×E) interactions were observed for NR3C1, COMT, and the gene composite score. In contrast, BDNF, DRD2, and FKBP5 did not significantly moderate parenting effects, while the 5HT2A variant moderated the association in the opposite direction of expectations, Findings partially support differential susceptibility theory and emphasize the importance of genetic context in interpreting the impact of parenting on youth behavior. These results suggest that composite plasticity scores may be more informative than single-gene models for capturing individual sensitivity to environmental influences. Implications include potential avenues for personalized interventions targeting at-risk youth based on genetic sensitivity.
ProQuest ID
Recommended Citation
Moore, Amanda, "Differential Susceptibility: How Parenting Behaviors Predict Adolescent Antisocial Behavior In The Context Of Candidate Plasticity Genes" (2025). All ETDs from UAB. 7420.
https://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/etd-collection/7420
