Parenting as a moderator of the neural mechanisms between irritability and inhibition in young children
- 1Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, 92182, USA.
- 2Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA.
- 3San Diego State University/University of California San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, USA.
Abstract
Objective: Elevated irritability is a common and impairing feature of early childhood psychopathology and is closely linked to deficits in inhibitory control, alterations in fronto-limbic neural circuitry, and emotional and behavioral difficulties across development. Despite evidence implicating inhibition-related neural mechanisms in irritability, less is known about how environmental factors, particularly parenting behavior, shape these neural associations during this sensitive developmental window. The present study examined whether negative parenting moderates the relationship between irritability symptoms and inhibition-related brain connectivity in school-aged children.
Method: Participants were 182 children aged five to seven years who completed a child-friendly go/no-go (“Whack-a-Mole”) task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We examined whole-brain activation and left/right amygdala functional connectivity across differing levels of irritability symptoms and negative parenting. Neural connectivity contrasts of interest included negative parenting and irritability interaction effects. Positive parenting was controlled in the model.
Results: Results revealed significant negative parenting by irritability interactions for right amygdala connectivity. Children with higher irritability exhibited different patterns of amygdala connectivity during the task as a function of negative parenting, with higher negative parenting associated with less discrimination in connectivity across task demands. Findings were robust to post hoc adjustment for biological sex, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and motion.
Conclusion: These findings highlight negative parenting as a key moderator of neural pathways underlying inhibition and irritability, emphasizing the importance of interventions that reduce vulnerability and support regulatory development in early childhood.
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BibTeX
@article{duran2026parenting,
title = {{Parenting as a moderator of the neural mechanisms between irritability and inhibition in young children}},
author = {Alexa N Duran and Victoria Medina and Lea R Dougherty and Jillian Lee Wiggins},
journal = {Journal of Mood and Anxiety Disorders},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.xjmad.2026.100208},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjmad.2026.100208},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Parenting as a moderator of the neural mechanisms between irritability and inhibition in young children
AU - Alexa N Duran
AU - Victoria Medina
AU - Lea R Dougherty
AU - Jillian Lee Wiggins
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/14
JO - Journal of Mood and Anxiety Disorders
DO - 10.1016/j.xjmad.2026.100208
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xjmad.2026.100208
AB - Objective: Elevated irritability is a common and impairing feature of early childhood psychopathology and is closely linked to deficits in inhibitory control, alterations in fronto-limbic neural circuitry, and emotional and behavioral difficulties across development. Despite evidence implicating inhibition-related neural mechanisms in irritability, less is known about how environmental factors, particularly parenting behavior, shape these neural associations during this sensitive developmental window. The present study examined whether negative parenting moderates the relationship between irritability symptoms and inhibition-related brain connectivity in school-aged children. Method: Participants were 182 children aged five to seven years who completed a child-friendly go/no-go (“Whack-a-Mole”) task during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We examined whole-brain activation and left/right amygdala functional connectivity across differing levels of irritability symptoms and negative parenting. Neural connectivity contrasts of interest included negative parenting and irritability interaction effects. Positive parenting was controlled in the model. Results: Results revealed significant negative parenting by irritability interactions for right amygdala connectivity. Children with higher irritability exhibited different patterns of amygdala connectivity during the task as a function of negative parenting, with higher negative parenting associated with less discrimination in connectivity across task demands. Findings were robust to post hoc adjustment for biological sex, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and motion. Conclusion: These findings highlight negative parenting as a key moderator of neural pathways underlying inhibition and irritability, emphasizing the importance of interventions that reduce vulnerability and support regulatory development in early childhood.
SN - 2950-0044
ER -