# Interactive effects of prenatal adversity and COVID-19 hardship on youth psychological distress: a longitudinal study

## TL;DR

This study finds that youth exposed to early adversity may be more resilient to pandemic-related stress, showing how early life challenges can help buffer against later psychological distress.

## Contribution

The study introduces a novel perspective on how early adversity may foster resilience during later crises like the pandemic.

## Key findings

- Youth who experienced high perinatal maternal adversity showed resilience during pandemic disruptions.
- Youth-reported pandemic hardship, especially daily life changes, predicted psychological distress and PTSD symptoms.
- Interactive effects suggest that early adversity may mitigate distress during later crises.

## Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in severe loss of life and increased anxiety as well as fear worldwide. This study explored whether pre-pandemic exposure to varying levels of perinatal maternal adversity coupled with pandemic-related experiences are related to youth distress levels.

Data from 119 youth (aged 9–17) and their mothers were analyzed to assess the interactive effects of perinatal maternal adversity and pandemic-related objective hardship on youth psychological distress.

Youth-reported hardship models consistently explained more variance in their psychological distress. Youth-reported hardship, specifically daily life changes, predicted psychological distress, including PTSD symptoms and peritraumatic experiences during the pandemic.

Youths exposed to high perinatal maternal socio-environmental adversity demonstrated resilience when faced with pandemic disruptions, suggesting that alignment between early adversity and later stress can mitigate distress during crises.