早期应激对情绪调节的影响及其神经机制

The effects of early life stress on emotion regulation and the underlying mechanisms

在个体生命早期遭遇的长期或重大的应激经历会显著增加个体罹患抑郁、焦虑等心理疾患的风险,而情绪调节能力的损伤是引发这些心理疾患的重要因素之一。以人类为对象的行为实验和调查研究表明,早期应激不仅会影响日常生活中情绪调节策略的使用,还会对情绪调节能力造成影响,其影响方向可能与早期应激的严重程度有关。目前,大部分研究表明严重的早期应激会损伤情绪调节能力,但中度的早期应激也可能提高情绪调节能力。更为整合性的研究表明情绪调节能力中介了早期应激和各类疾患之间的关系。进一步,我们从神经层面上阐述了早期应激对情绪调节相关脑区和神经环路的影响。未来研究应当注意控制无关变量,进一步探究不同早期应激对于情绪调节的影响。

Individuals experiencing early life stress（ELS） are at a higher risk of mental/behavioral disorders such as depression and violence, the difficulties of emotion regulation might be one of the underlying mechanisms. ELS individuals use maladaptive strategies（such as avoidance and rumination） more frequently than normal individuals. And most of the studies found that ELS impaired the ability of emotion regulation. However, moderate ELS may enhance the ability of emotion regulation. Besides, emotion regulation moderated the relationship between ELS and mental/behavior disorders. Furthermore, we explored the neural mechanisms of how ELS influences emotion regulation. Finally, we made a summary and pointed out future directions.