Effects of Parental Internalizing and Externalizing Behavior Problems on Children’s Limbic Brain Structures—An MRI Study

Parental behavior problems have long-term effects on children’s limbic brain structures and functions. Parental behavior problems-related brain changes in children may lead to mental disorders and behavior dysfunction later in life. However, our understanding of the relationship between parental behavior and children’s brain structures is less obvious when children and adolescents are studied in a general population without mental disorders. The majority of studies on the relationship between parental behavior and adolescent brain structure have been focused on severe forms of the following parental behavior problems: (1) internalizing behavior associated with mood and anxiety disorders, and (2) externalizing behavior associated with substance use and violence. A few studies examined the effect of normative variations or subtle differences in parental behavior. Therefore, we utilized a large study—Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD)—to determine relationships between normative variation in parental internalizing and externalizing behavior and limbic brain structures in children and adolescents without mental disorders. Quantile (median) regression models were used to compute associations between parental behavior and children’s limbic structures. We found that parental internalizing and externalizing behaviors are uniquely associated with children’s limbic structures after adjustment for biological confounders and parental socioeconomic status. Our findings indicate that normative parental behavior may have a significant early influence on limbic structures of normally developing children and adolescents. Accelerated or delayed limbic structure maturation may account for children’s and adolescents’ behavioral inadequacies and a risk of developing specific mood disorders or substance abuse problems later in life.