Abstract
To explore this, we conducted the largest structural MRI analysis to date (n=2094, including 1009 females), across three time points from the IMAGEN study, tracking region-specific brain volume trajectories from adolescence to early adulthood using a data-driven approach. Generally, experienced bullying showed increased subcortical volumes in the putamen (β=0.12), caudate (β=0.06), accumbens (β=0.06), amygdala (β=0.07), hippocampus (β=0.06), paired with decreased cerebellar (β=-0.10), entorhinal, (β=-0.12), and insula (β=-0.11) volumes. Females exhibited more volumetric changes in emotional processing areas whereas males had more changes in motor and sensory regions. These findings point to widespread associations between bullying victimization and brain development, offering a potential neurobiological framework to explain the emotional and behavioral difficulties observed. Importantly, this study emphasizes the need for a sex-sensitive approach in future research and interventions related to bullying.
Competing Interest Statement
Dr Banaschewski served in an advisory or consultancy role for Lundbeck Medice Neurim Pharmaceuticals Oberberg GmbH Shire. He received conference support or speakers fee by Lilly Medice Novartis and Shire. He has been involved in clinical trials conducted by Shire and Viforpharma. He received royalties from Hogrefe Kohlhammer CIP Medien Oxford University Press. The present work is unrelated to the above grants and relationships. Dr Barker has received honoraria from General Electric Healthcare for teaching on scanner programming courses. Dr Poustka served in an advisory or consultancy role for Roche and Viforpharm and received speakers fee by Shire. She received royalties from Hogrefe Kohlhammer and Schattauer. The present work is unrelated to the above grants and relationships. The other authors report no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest.
