Social Support for Stress in Children and Adolescents

Overseen By Bonny Donzella

Age: < 18

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: University of Minnesota

Must not be taking: Glucocorticoids, Beta-blockers

Disqualifiers: Premature birth, Autism, Psychiatric illness, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 3

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial explores how different types of social support help kids and teens manage stress. Researchers aim to determine if having a parent or a close friend nearby affects stress levels differently during certain tasks. This process, known as "Social Buffering," involves randomly assigning participants to have either a parent, a close friend, or no one with them during an MRI scan to measure the effects. Kids and teens with normal vision and hearing who can communicate well might be a good fit for this trial.

As an unphased study, this trial offers a unique opportunity to contribute to understanding how social support can improve stress management in young people.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

If you are taking systemic glucocorticoids or beta-adrenergic medications, you cannot participate in this trial. The protocol does not specify about other medications.

What prior data suggests that this social buffering method is safe for children and adolescents?

Research shows that social support, such as having a parent or friend nearby, can help reduce stress. This support lowers the body's stress reactions, possibly by affecting brain areas related to stress. For example, having someone present might calm you by releasing hormones like oxytocin.

Studies suggest that while parents effectively provide support when children are younger, their effectiveness may decrease as children become teenagers. During the teen years, friends often play a bigger role in offering comfort and reducing stress.

No serious negative effects have been reported in studies using social support to manage stress. This indicates that social support is generally safe and well-tolerated by children and teens, making it a promising and low-risk method for managing stress. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Researchers are excited about the Social Buffering trial because it explores how different social relationships can help reduce stress in children and adolescents. Unlike traditional treatments that might focus on medication or therapy sessions, this approach examines the calming effects of having a primary parent or a close friend present during stressful situations. By studying these social dynamics in real-time, researchers hope to understand which type of support is most effective and potentially develop new, non-invasive ways to help young people manage stress. This trial could pave the way for more personalized and natural stress-relief strategies that harness the power of social connections.

What evidence suggests that social buffering is effective for stress in children and adolescents?

Research has shown that support from others can lower stress by influencing how bodies manage it. For children, family support is linked to reduced stress. However, as children become teenagers, parents' ability to alleviate stress seems to diminish. Friends do not fully assume this role by ages 15-16, but they still play an important part. This trial will explore different social support conditions: some participants will have their Primary Parent with them, others will have a Close Friend, and some will have No Social Partner. Support from close relationships is a valuable way to cope with stress, especially during childhood. ^{1 2 3 5 6}

Who Is on the Research Team?

Megan Gunnar, PhD

Principal Investigator

University of Minnesota

Kathleen Thomas, PhD

Principal Investigator

University of Minnesota

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

This trial is for adolescents with normal hearing, vision, and language skills. It's not for those with autism, tattoos that interfere with MRI scans, severe claustrophobia, certain medications like beta-blockers or glucocorticoids, psychiatric or neurological disorders, serious medical conditions like cancer or organ transplants, pregnancy, congenital/chromosomal disorders (e.g., Down Syndrome), or metal implants/piercings/braces.

Inclusion Criteria

Sufficient hearing to complete assent and study procedures

Sufficient language skills to provide verbal and written assent

Sufficient vision to complete assent and study procedures

Exclusion Criteria

Premature birth (less than 37 weeks)

Known pregnancy

Autism Spectrum Disorders

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

1 visit

1 visit (in-person)

Initial Assessment

Participants undergo a pubertal assessment exam, complete questionnaires, and experience a simulated MRI

1 visit

1 visit (in-person)

Conditioning and MRI

Participants undergo MRI safety screening and complete aversive conditioning paradigms with different social partners

2 hours

1 visit (in-person)

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for safety and effectiveness after the conditioning session

2 weeks

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• Social Buffering

Trial Overview The study aims to understand how parental support helps reduce stress in teenagers during scary situations and if this changes as they grow up. It also looks at whether friends or strangers can provide similar comfort. Participants will answer questionnaires and undergo MRI scans.

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: Primary Parent Experimental Treatment 2 Interventions

Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 3 conditions that differ by who is with them in the MRI scanner room: Primary Parent, Close Friend, No Social Partner.

Group II: No Social Partner Experimental Treatment 2 Interventions

Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 3 conditions that differ by who is with them in the MRI scanner room: Primary Parent, Close Friend,No Social Partner.

Group III: Close Friend Experimental Treatment 2 Interventions

Participants will be randomly assigned to one of 3 conditions that differ by who is with them in the MRI scanner room: Primary Parent, Close Friend,No Social Partner.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

University of Minnesota

Lead Sponsor

Trials

1,459

Recruited

1,623,000+

Published Research Related to This Trial

Social support from various sources, including mothers, fathers, classmates, and close friends, generally benefits early adolescents in reducing internalizing problems, as shown in a study of 364 middle school students.

Mother support can help mitigate the negative effects of low classmate support for both boys and girls, while father support specifically helps boys when classmate support is lacking, highlighting the importance of different support sources in adolescent mental health.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Parent and peer social support compensation and internalizing problems in adolescence. Lyell, KM., Coyle, S., Malecki, CK., et al.[2021]

High-school students experiencing academic problems showed increased psychological distress, but social support from family and friends helped reduce these symptoms for both genders.

For females, social support from classmates and issues with parents and friends had significant impacts on psychological distress, and the negative effects of long-lasting adversities were more pronounced compared to males.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Life stress, social support and psychological distress in late adolescence. Ystgaard, M.[2019]

In a study of 1888 children, both supportive parenting and peer victimization independently influenced depressive symptoms and negative thoughts, indicating that parental support plays a crucial role in children's mental health.

While supportive parenting did not buffer against the negative effects of peer victimization, it still had a significant main effect that could help mitigate some of the adverse outcomes associated with stress from peer victimization.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Does supportive parenting mitigate the longitudinal effects of peer victimization on depressive thoughts and symptoms in children? Bilsky, SA., Cole, DA., Dukewich, TL., et al.[2021]

Social support, particularly from parents, plays a crucial role in shaping the stress response system (HPA axis) in early childhood, which is a critical period for development.

The review highlights that social buffering can be effective not only during acute stress but also in chronic stress situations, suggesting that interventions aimed at enhancing social support could positively influence HPA axis functioning in children, especially those in the child welfare system.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The role of social buffering on chronic disruptions in quality of care: evidence from caregiver-based interventions in foster children. Flannery, JE., Beauchamp, KG., Fisher, PA.[2019]

This meta-analysis of 341 studies involving 273,149 participants found a moderate positive relationship (r = .26) between social support and reduced depression in youth, supporting the general benefits model of social support.

The study highlights that while social support is generally beneficial, its effectiveness can vary based on stressful contexts, and suggests that understanding both stress-buffering and reverse stress-buffering effects is crucial for future research.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A meta-analytic review of the association between perceived social support and depression in childhood and adolescence. Rueger, SY., Malecki, CK., Pyun, Y., et al.[2022]

Social buffering is crucial for regulating stress responses throughout human development, starting with parents in infancy and transitioning to friends and romantic partners in later stages of life.

The effectiveness of parental support as a stress buffer diminishes during adolescence, potentially due to changes associated with puberty, highlighting the evolving nature of social support systems in managing stress.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The social buffering of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis in humans: Developmental and experiential determinants. Gunnar, MR., Hostinar, CE.[2023]

Citations

1. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5538015/

Social Stress Buffering by Friends in Childhood and ... These results indicate that friends do not take over the social buffering role by age 15–16, which may inform interventions in at-risk children and adolescents.

2. withpower.com withpower.com/trial/social-support-for-stress-in-children-and-adolescents-e9835

Social Support for Stress in Children and Adolescents Research shows that social support, a key part of Social Buffering, can help reduce stress by affecting the body's stress response system, especially in ...

3. researchgate.net researchgate.net/publication/387955211_THE_ROLE_OF_SOCIAL_SUPPORT_IN_REDUCING_STRESS_IN_PRE-ADOLESCENT_CHILDREN

the role of social support in reducing stress in pre- ... The findings reveal that social support from family significantly correlates with lower stress levels, emphasizing the importance of emotional ...

4. sciencedirect.com sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306453025003038

Social buffering by siblings in childhood and adolescence Parent support is less effective in buffering cortisol stress reactivity for adolescents compared to children. Developmental Science, 18 (2) ...

5. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4607089/

Social Support Can Buffer against Stress and Shape Brain ... Social support from close relationship partners is an important resource for coping with stress, particularly during childhood.

6. apa.org apa.org/monitor/2025/04-05/teen-social-emotional-support

U.S. teens need far more emotional and social support Only 58.5% of US teens always or usually receive the social and emotional support they need, according to a report by researchers at the US Centers for Disease ...