Reciprocity of Social Connection and Well-Being: Convergence of Temporal and Neural Underpinnings of Adolescent Social Connection Quality, Quantity, and Need - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Humans are inherently social creatures, wherein social connection (SC) is essential for optimizing well-being
(WB),1–3 including positive feelings, perceptions, and functioning in daily life and the absence of psychological
problems and pathological distress.4,5 This is especially critical during adolescence, a sensitive developmental
period with substantial and rapid changes in their general social connections (and in peer and family domains in
particular).6 Social isolation (i.e. lacking SC) is one of the primary risk factors for adolescent mental and physical
health problems,7–9 while having sufficient SC is a strong facilitative factor for their long-term WB and civic
engagement in adulthood.7,10,11 SC is a multi-faceted construct that includes the facets of quality of, quantity of,
and need for social interactions,2,12–14 each demonstrating unique influences on adolescent health and WB.14–21
However, little is known about how these facets converge and predict (or are predicted by) adolescent WB over
time or the extent by which neurobiological markers of SC relate to WB.22–24 The overall objective of the project
is to evaluate the integrative facets of SC quality, quantity, and need, and their reciprocal associations
with adolescent WB, in daily fluctuations, long-term trajectories, and neurobiological processes.
Proposed project scientific goals are to: (1) Evaluate short-term reciprocal process between SC and WB; (2)
Examine the long-term reciprocity between SC constellations and WB trajectories; and (3) Identify the
convergence of behavioral and neurobiological markers of SC and their prospective associations with WB.
Exploratory analyses will (a) explore modulation of these processes by sex, gender, age, pubertal status, and
race and (b) consider the above three goals in peer- and family- specific SC contexts. Study design: The first
two goals will be addressed via an online platform to ensure a large sample of 12-17-year-old adolescents using
a 14-day daily diary design nested within a longitudinal study design (N=914 enrolled; T1-T2-T3, every 0.5 year).
A subset of participants (n=104 enrolled) will also complete an in-person battery (at T1 and T3) of SC
experimental tasks targeting each of the three SC facets during electroencephalography (EEG) and eye tracking
(ET) acquisition. To evaluate the short-term reciprocal process, we will use daily questionnaire assessments of
SC and WB to examine the same-day and next-day associations between SC and WB (Aim 1). To provide a
holistic consideration of the three SC facets, we will identify adolescent subgroups based upon their experience
of SC quality, quantity, and need (at T1, T3, respectively) and WB trajectories (T1-T2-T3), and examine the
prospective transition probabilities between SC constellations and WB trajectories (Aim 2). Lastly, we will assess
the convergence of behavioral and neurobiological markers of SC (at T1 and T3) and their prospective
associations with WB (Aim 3). Significance: A deeper understanding of the reciprocal relationship between SC
and WB and the neurobiological mechanisms underlying these associations will be crucial for mechanism-
informed prevention programming.
