{"title":"Potential Mechanism Linking Peer Relationships and Adolescent Prosocial Behavior: Mediation of Cognitive Empathy and Moderations of OXTR and DRD2.","authors":"Xi Li, Wenxin Zhang, Linqin Ji, Yanmiao Cao","doi":"10.1007/s10964-024-02023-5","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Peers are important socializers of adolescent prosocial behavior. Still, the proximal cognitive and emotional process underlying this link and the sources of individual differences in sensitivity to peer influence have yet to be explored. Utilizing the gene-gene-environment (G × G × E) approach and multi-informant measurement, this study investigated how peer relationships operate to influence adolescent prosocial behavior by examining the mediating role of cognitive and emotional empathy, and the moderating role of the OXTR and DRD2 genes. The study utilized longitudinal data from a community sample of Chinese adolescents (N = 1080, M<sub>age</sub> = 13.32 years at T1). Results showed that cognitive empathy rather than emotional empathy mediated the link between peer acceptance/rejection and prosocial behavior. Furthermore, the association among peer acceptance, cognitive empathy, and prosocial behavior was moderated by OXTR and DRD2. Specifically, adolescents with the combinations of AA/AA or G/G genotypes of OXTR/DRD2 benefited more from peer acceptance compared to their counterparts carrying other combined genotypes. The findings highlight cognitive empathy as a proximal process linking peer interaction to prosocial behavior and lend support to the interaction between oxytocinergic and dopaminergic systems on environmental sensitivity.</p>","PeriodicalId":17624,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Youth and Adolescence","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.7000,"publicationDate":"2024-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Youth and Adolescence","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-024-02023-5","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2024/6/4 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENTAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Peers are important socializers of adolescent prosocial behavior. Still, the proximal cognitive and emotional process underlying this link and the sources of individual differences in sensitivity to peer influence have yet to be explored. Utilizing the gene-gene-environment (G × G × E) approach and multi-informant measurement, this study investigated how peer relationships operate to influence adolescent prosocial behavior by examining the mediating role of cognitive and emotional empathy, and the moderating role of the OXTR and DRD2 genes. The study utilized longitudinal data from a community sample of Chinese adolescents (N = 1080, Mage = 13.32 years at T1). Results showed that cognitive empathy rather than emotional empathy mediated the link between peer acceptance/rejection and prosocial behavior. Furthermore, the association among peer acceptance, cognitive empathy, and prosocial behavior was moderated by OXTR and DRD2. Specifically, adolescents with the combinations of AA/AA or G/G genotypes of OXTR/DRD2 benefited more from peer acceptance compared to their counterparts carrying other combined genotypes. The findings highlight cognitive empathy as a proximal process linking peer interaction to prosocial behavior and lend support to the interaction between oxytocinergic and dopaminergic systems on environmental sensitivity.
期刊介绍:
Journal of Youth and Adolescence provides a single, high-level medium of communication for psychologists, psychiatrists, biologists, criminologists, educators, and researchers in many other allied disciplines who address the subject of youth and adolescence. The journal publishes quantitative analyses, theoretical papers, and comprehensive review articles. The journal especially welcomes empirically rigorous papers that take policy implications seriously. Research need not have been designed to address policy needs, but manuscripts must address implications for the manner society formally (e.g., through laws, policies or regulations) or informally (e.g., through parents, peers, and social institutions) responds to the period of youth and adolescence.