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Bullying victimization and brain development: a longitudinal structural magnetic resonance imaging study from adolescence to early adulthood

This study investigated associations between bullying victimization and brain development using longitudinal structural MRI data from the IMAGEN cohort (n = 2094; 1009 females) across three time points (∼14, ∼19, and ∼22 years). A data-driven analysis revealed that higher bullying victimization was...

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Main Authors: Connaughton, Michael (Author) , Mitchell, Orla (Author) , Cullen, Emer (Author) , O’Connor, Michael (Author) , Banaschewski, Tobias (Author) , Barker, Gareth J. (Author) , Bokde, Arun L. W. (Author) , Brühl, Rüdiger (Author) , Desrivières, Sylvane (Author) , Flor, Herta (Author) , Garavan, Hugh (Author) , Gowland, Penny (Author) , Grigis, Antoine (Author) , Heinz, Andreas (Author) , Lemaitre, Herve (Author) , Martinot, Jean-Luc (Author) , Paillère Martinot, Marie-Laure (Author) , Artiges, Eric (Author) , Nees, Frauke (Author) , Orfanos, Dimitri Papadopoulos (Author) , Poustka, Luise (Author) , Smolka, Michael (Author) , Hohmann, Sarah (Author) , Holz, Nathalie E. (Author) , Vaidya, Nilakshi (Author) , Walter, Henrik (Author) , Schumann, Gunter (Author) , Whelan, Robert (Author) , Roddy, Darren (Author)
Format: Article (Journal)
Language:English
Published: 10 April 2026
In: Translational Psychiatry
Year: 2026, Volume: 16, Pages: 1-10
ISSN:2158-3188
DOI:10.1038/s41398-026-04010-9
Online Access:Verlag, kostenfrei, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-026-04010-9
Verlag, kostenfrei, Volltext: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-026-04010-9
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Author Notes:Michael Connaughton, Orla Mitchell, Emer Cullen, Michael O’Connor, Tobias Banaschewski, Gareth J. Barker, Arun L.W. Bokde, Rüdiger Brühl, Sylvane Desrivières, Herta Flor, Hugh Garavan, Penny Gowland, Antoine Grigis, Andreas Heinz, Herve Lemaitre, Jean-Luc Martinot, Marie-Laure Paillère Martinot, Eric Artiges, Frauke Nees, Dimitri Papadopoulos Orfanos, Luise Poustka, Michael N. Smolka, Sarah Hohmann, Nathalie Holz, Nilakshi Vaidya, Henrik Walter, Gunter Schumann, Robert Whelan and Darren Roddy
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Summary:This study investigated associations between bullying victimization and brain development using longitudinal structural MRI data from the IMAGEN cohort (n = 2094; 1009 females) across three time points (∼14, ∼19, and ∼22 years). A data-driven analysis revealed that higher bullying victimization was significantly associated with accelerated volumetric growth in subcortical and limbic regions, including the putamen (β = 0.12, 95% CI: 0.10-0.15), amygdala (β = 0.07, 95% CI: 0.05-0.09), hippocampus (β = 0.06, 95% CI: 0.04-0.08), and anterior cingulate cortex (caudal: β = 0.05, 95% CI: 0.03-0.07; rostral: β = 0.06, 95% CI: 0.04-0.08). In contrast, bullying victimization was also significantly associated with reduced volumetric growth in the cerebellum (β = −0.09, 95% CI: −0.11 to −0.07), entorhinal cortex (β = −0.10, 95% CI: −0.13 to −0.07), and insula (β = −0.08, 95% CI: −0.11 to −0.06). Exploratory analyses indicated that females exhibited more pronounced changes in emotional processing regions, while males showed greater changes in motor and sensory areas. Overall, the findings indicate that bullying victimization is associated with widespread structural differences in brain development from adolescence to early adulthood, with sex-specific trajectories.
Item Description:Gesehen am 22.06.2026
Physical Description:Online Resource
ISSN:2158-3188
DOI:10.1038/s41398-026-04010-9

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