Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Leen-Feldner, Ellen W.
• Feldner, Matthew T.
• Knapp, Ashley
• Bunaciu, Liviu
• Blumenthal, Heidemarie
• Amstadter, Ananda B.

Titel

Offspring psychological and biological correlates of parental posttraumatic stress: Review of the literature and research agenda

Ist Teil von

• Clinical psychology review, 2013-12, Vol.33 (8), p.1106-1133

Ort / Verlag

United States: Elsevier Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

2013

Quelle

Elsevier ScienceDirect Journals

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Millions of individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are parents. A burgeoning literature suggests that offspring of parents with this condition may be at increased risk for psychological problems. The current paper provides an integrative and comprehensive review of the diverse research literature examining the sequelae of parental posttraumatic stress among offspring. Over 100 studies that evaluated psychological and/or biological variables among children of parents with PTSD are reviewed. Findings suggest parental symptoms of posttraumatic stress are uniquely related to an array of offspring outcomes, including internalizing-type problems, general behavioral problems, and altered hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis functioning. Although very little work has directly evaluated mechanisms of transmission, there is increasing support for genetic and epigenetic effects as well as parenting behaviors. These and other mechanisms are discussed; drawing upon findings from other literatures to consider how parental PTSD may impart psychobiological vulnerability upon offspring. We conclude with a detailed discussion of the methodological strengths and challenges of the extant research, along with a recommended agenda for future research in this important area of study. •We review over 100 studies on offspring sequelae of parental posttraumatic stress.•Parental posttraumatic stress relates to an array of negative offspring outcomes.•Offspring outcomes include psychological problems (e.g., internalizing/externalizing).•Offspring outcomes include biological alterations (e.g., HPA-axis function).•Mechanisms of transmission may include parenting and (epi)genetics.