Neural activation during processing of emotional faces as a function of resilience in adolescents

Steve Eaton; Harriet Cornwell; Jack Rogers; Stephane De Brito; Nicola Toschi; Christina Stadler; Nora Raschle; Kerstin Konrad; Gregor Kohls; Areti Smaragdi; Karen Gonzalez-Madruga; Maaike  Oosterling; Anne Martinelli; Anka Bernhard; Christine M. Freitag; Catherine Hamilton-Giachritsis; Graeme Fairchild

doi:10.1007/s00787-025-02703-y

Neural activation during processing of emotional faces as a function of resilience in adolescents

Steve Eaton
, Harriet Cornwell
, Jack Rogers
, Stephane De Brito
, Nicola Toschi
, Christina Stadler
, Nora Raschle
, Kerstin Konrad
, Gregor Kohls
, Areti Smaragdi
, Karen Gonzalez-Madruga
, Maaike Oosterling
, Anne Martinelli
, Anka Bernhard
, Christine M. Freitag
, Catherine Hamilton-Giachritsis
, Graeme Fairchild

University of Birmingham
Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata
University of Zurich
RWTH Aachen University
Child Development Institute, Toronto
King's College London
Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universitat Frankfurt am Main
Fresenius University of Applied Sciences Frankfurt am Main

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

1 Citation (SciVal)

Abstract

Neuroimaging studies suggest that resilience to adversity is linked to reduced emotional reactivity or enhanced emotion regulation. However, such studies are scarce and mainly use adult samples and categorical definitions of resilience. Using a novel, data-driven approach to define resilience dimensionally, based on cumulative adversity exposure across childhood and psychopathology, we investigated associations between resilience and brain activation during facial emotion processing in youth. We also tested for sex differences in the relationship between resilience and brain activation. fMRI data were acquired from 208 youths (aged 9–18 years; Mean age = 13.28), while viewing angry, fearful, and neutral faces. Whole-brain analyses were performed, followed by region-of-interest analyses focusing on the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex. Resilience was positively correlated with bilateral inferior frontal gyrus responses to fearful (versus neutral) faces, and negatively correlated with right superior temporal gyrus, left hippocampal, and right inferior frontal gyrus responses to neutral faces (versus fixation). Sex-by-resilience interactions were observed in the medial prefrontal cortex: males showed positive, while females showed negative, associations between resilience and brain activation, though these results did not survive correction for multiple comparisons. These findings provide further evidence that resilience in youth is associated with enhanced emotion regulation at a neural level.

Original language	English
Article number	116189
Pages (from-to)	2943-2955
Number of pages	13
Journal	European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
Volume	34
Issue number	9
Early online date	10 Apr 2025
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-025-02703-y
Publication status	Published - 30 Sept 2025

Data Availability Statement

No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.

Acknowledgements

The authors thank the participants of the FemNAT-CD study, and their families. We also thank the other members of the FemNAT-CD consortium. C. M. F receives royalties for books on Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, and depressive disorder. S. d. B has received speaker fees from the Child Mental Health centre and the centre for Integrated Molecular Brain Imaging. N. R. has received grant support as a Jacobs Foundation Early Career Fellow 2017 – 2019 (grant number 2016 1217 13). K. K. has received speaker fees from Shire Pharmaceuticals and Medice and receives royalties for various books. C. S. receives royalties for a book on aggression.

Funding

SE was funded by a University Research Studentship Award from the University of Bath. HC was funded by a PhD studentship from the MRC GW4 BioMed Doctoral Training Partnership (grant number MR/N0137941/1 awarded to the Universities of Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter by the Medical Research Council). The FemNAT-CD study was funded by the European Union\u2019s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement no. 602407 (coordinator: Christine M. Freitag, MD, PhD).

Funders	Funder number
Cardiff and Exeter
University of Bath
Jacobs Foundation	2016 1217 13
Medical Research Council	MR/N0137941/1
Seventh Framework Programme	602407, FP7/2007-2013
European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration	FP7/2007-2013

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being

Keywords

Adversity
Emotion
Face processing
Resilience
Youth
fMRI

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Pediatrics, Perinatology, and Child Health
Developmental and Educational Psychology
Psychiatry and Mental health

Access to Document

10.1007/s00787-025-02703-yLicence: CC BY

Cite this

Eaton, S., Cornwell, H., Rogers, J., De Brito, S., Toschi, N., Stadler, C., Raschle, N., Konrad, K., Kohls, G., Smaragdi, A., Gonzalez-Madruga, K., Oosterling, M., Martinelli, A., Bernhard, A., Freitag, C. M., Hamilton-Giachritsis, C., & Fairchild, G. (2025). Neural activation during processing of emotional faces as a function of resilience in adolescents. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 34(9), 2943-2955. Article 116189. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-025-02703-y

Eaton, S, Cornwell, H, Rogers, J, De Brito, S, Toschi, N, Stadler, C, Raschle, N, Konrad, K, Kohls, G, Smaragdi, A, Gonzalez-Madruga, K, Oosterling, M, Martinelli, A, Bernhard, A, Freitag, CM, Hamilton-Giachritsis, C & Fairchild, G 2025, 'Neural activation during processing of emotional faces as a function of resilience in adolescents', European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, vol. 34, no. 9, 116189, pp. 2943-2955. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-025-02703-y

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Neural activation during processing of emotional faces as a function of resilience in adolescents

Abstract

Data Availability Statement

Acknowledgements

Funding

UN SDGs

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Access to Document

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