Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood
Early adversity can alter the maturation and function of neural regions that support affective functioning, including threat and safety learning. A growing body of cross-species research has specifically focused on the role of unpredictability in childhood environments in shaping affective functioni...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-08-01
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| Series: | Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929325000738 |
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| author | Jessica M. Duda Taylor J. Keding Sahana Kribakaran Paola Odriozola Elizabeth R. Kitt Emily M. Cohodes Sadie J. Zacharek Sarah McCauley Jason T. Haberman Jutta Joormann Dylan G. Gee |
| author_facet | Jessica M. Duda Taylor J. Keding Sahana Kribakaran Paola Odriozola Elizabeth R. Kitt Emily M. Cohodes Sadie J. Zacharek Sarah McCauley Jason T. Haberman Jutta Joormann Dylan G. Gee |
| author_sort | Jessica M. Duda |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Early adversity can alter the maturation and function of neural regions that support affective functioning, including threat and safety learning. A growing body of cross-species research has specifically focused on the role of unpredictability in childhood environments in shaping affective functioning; however, the links between childhood unpredictability and neural function related to extinction learning in adulthood remain unclear. In this study, we probed the association between childhood unpredictability, extinction learning, and neural activation in four regions implicated in extinction learning in healthy young adults (N = 45; aged 18–30 years). Results revealed that adults exposed to more unpredictable childhood environments showed greater basolateral amygdala activity to the former (i.e., extinguished) threat cue during early, but not late, extinction, including when controlling for current anxiety and childhood trauma exposure. An exploratory analysis showed that exposure to unpredictable caregiving, but not distal unpredictability (e.g., unpredictability of the physical home or community), specifically drove findings in the amygdala. Childhood unpredictability was not associated with activity in the other regions of interest or with skin conductance response during extinction. These findings add to a growing literature on longstanding impacts of unpredictable caregiving environments, with implications for promoting healthy neurodevelopment and targeted clinical interventions. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1a6981bfce984dbcb9c5e8303da9f500 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1878-9293 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj-art-1a6981bfce984dbcb9c5e8303da9f5002025-08-20T02:33:12ZengElsevierDevelopmental Cognitive Neuroscience1878-92932025-08-017410157810.1016/j.dcn.2025.101578Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthoodJessica M. Duda0Taylor J. Keding1Sahana Kribakaran2Paola Odriozola3Elizabeth R. Kitt4Emily M. Cohodes5Sadie J. Zacharek6Sarah McCauley7Jason T. Haberman8Jutta Joormann9Dylan G. Gee10Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA; Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Psychology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USADepartment of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USASilberman School of Social Work at Hunter College, New York, NY, USADepartment of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USADepartment of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA; Corresponding author at: Department of Psychology, Yale University, 100 College Street, New Haven, CT 06510, USA.Early adversity can alter the maturation and function of neural regions that support affective functioning, including threat and safety learning. A growing body of cross-species research has specifically focused on the role of unpredictability in childhood environments in shaping affective functioning; however, the links between childhood unpredictability and neural function related to extinction learning in adulthood remain unclear. In this study, we probed the association between childhood unpredictability, extinction learning, and neural activation in four regions implicated in extinction learning in healthy young adults (N = 45; aged 18–30 years). Results revealed that adults exposed to more unpredictable childhood environments showed greater basolateral amygdala activity to the former (i.e., extinguished) threat cue during early, but not late, extinction, including when controlling for current anxiety and childhood trauma exposure. An exploratory analysis showed that exposure to unpredictable caregiving, but not distal unpredictability (e.g., unpredictability of the physical home or community), specifically drove findings in the amygdala. Childhood unpredictability was not associated with activity in the other regions of interest or with skin conductance response during extinction. These findings add to a growing literature on longstanding impacts of unpredictable caregiving environments, with implications for promoting healthy neurodevelopment and targeted clinical interventions.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929325000738Childhood adversityCaregivingUnpredictable stressExtinction learningAmygdalaFMRI |
| spellingShingle | Jessica M. Duda Taylor J. Keding Sahana Kribakaran Paola Odriozola Elizabeth R. Kitt Emily M. Cohodes Sadie J. Zacharek Sarah McCauley Jason T. Haberman Jutta Joormann Dylan G. Gee Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Childhood adversity Caregiving Unpredictable stress Extinction learning Amygdala FMRI |
| title | Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood |
| title_full | Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood |
| title_fullStr | Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood |
| title_short | Exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood |
| title_sort | exposure to unpredictable childhood environments is associated with amygdala activation during early extinction in adulthood |
| topic | Childhood adversity Caregiving Unpredictable stress Extinction learning Amygdala FMRI |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878929325000738 |
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