A Causal Mediation Model for Longitudinal Mediators and Survival Outcomes with an Application to Animal Behavior

Zeng, Shuxi; Lange, Elizabeth C.; Archie, Elizabeth A.; Campos, Fernando A.; Alberts, Susan C.; Li, Fan

doi:10.1007/s13253-022-00490-6

Cited by 3 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…We fit two models in each of our mediation analyses ( 40 ). The first model captures the relationship between early adversity and the mediator.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Details of the sensitivity analysis can be found in the supplement and Zeng, Lange, Archie, Campos, Alberts and Li (40).…”

Section: Causal Assumptionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For each of our mediators, we estimated the links between early life adversity ( A ), social bond strength ( M ), and survival ( Y , measured by the hazard ratio λ ) by fitting three equations as proposed by Zeng, Lange, Archie, Campos, Alberts and Li ( 40 ); for more details see Materials and Methods). The first equation evaluates the effect of early life adversity on observed values for the mediator, conditional on covariates, C , and random effects, r (orange arrow in Figure 1C): where i is individual and t is age class.…”

Section: Mediation and Moderation Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Note that the effects β 2 and β 3 in Figure 1C are not numerically identical to the coefficients and in Equation 2 and 3, respectively. While they are analogous to β 2 and β 3 in terms of the effects they represent, they differ because of the nonlinear hazard scale and complex functional model adopted in the analysis (i.e., in practice, we analyze a decomposition of a functional form fit to the social relationship data rather than the estimated social bond values directly; see Zeng, Lange, Archie, Campos, Alberts and Li ( 40 )). Similary, the bond effect γ does not directly correspond to a specific model parameter.…”

Section: Mediation and Moderation Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similary, the bond effect γ does not directly correspond to a specific model parameter. Instead, β 2, β 3, and γ are calculated from functions involving all parameters in Equations 1, 2 and 3 (see the Materials and Methods and derivations in Zeng, Lange, Archie, Campos, Alberts and Li ( 40 )).…”

Section: Mediation and Moderation Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Early life adversity and adult social relationships have independent effects on survival in a wild animal model of aging

Lange

Zeng

Campos

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Does social isolation in adulthood predict survival because socially isolated individuals are already unhealthy due to adversity earlier in life ("health selection")? Or do adult social environments directly cause poor health and increased mortality risk ("social causation")? These alternative hypotheses are difficult to disentangle in humans because prospective data on survival and the environment for both early life and adulthood are rarely available. Using data from the baboon population of Amboseli, Kenya, a model for human behavior and aging, we show that early adversity and adult social isolation contribute independently to reduced adult survival, in support of both health selection and social causation. Further, strong social bonds and high social status can buffer some negative effects of early adversity on survival. These results support a growing change in perspective, away from "either-or" hypotheses and towards a multi-causal perspective that points to multiple opportunities to mitigate the effects of social adversity.

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“…We fit two models in each of our mediation analyses ( 40 ). The first model captures the relationship between early adversity and the mediator.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Details of the sensitivity analysis can be found in the supplement and Zeng, Lange, Archie, Campos, Alberts and Li (40).…”

Section: Causal Assumptionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Mediation and Moderation Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Mediation and Moderation Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Mediation and Moderation Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Early life adversity and adult social relationships have independent effects on survival in a wild animal model of aging

Lange

Zeng

Campos

et al. 2022

Preprint

Self Cite

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Time-varying mediation analysis for incomplete data with application to DNA methylation study for PTSD

Wei,

Xue,

et al. 2024

Preprint

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DNA methylation (DNAm) has been shown to mediate causal effects from traumatic experiences to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the scientific question about whether the mediation effect changes over time remains unclear. In this paper, we develop time-varying structural equation models to identify cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) sites where DNAm mediates the effect of trauma exposure on PTSD, and to capture dynamic changes in mediation effects. The proposed methodology is motivated by the Detroit Neighborhood Health Study (DNHS) with high-dimensional and longitudinal DNAm measurements. To handle the non-monotone missing DNAm in the dataset, we propose a novel Longitudinal Multiple Imputation (LMI) method utilizing dependency among repeated measurements, and employ the generalized method of moments to integrate the multiple imputations. Simulations confirm that the proposed method outperforms existing approaches in various longitudinal settings. In DNHS data analysis, our method identifies several CpG sites where DNAm exhibits dynamic mediation effects. Some of the corresponding genes have been shown to be associated with PTSD in the existing literature, and our findings on their time-varying effects could deepen the understanding of the mediation role of DNAm on the causal path from trauma exposure to PTSD risk.

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Early life adversity and adult social relationships have independent effects on survival in a wild primate

et al. 2023

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Adverse conditions in early life can have negative consequences for adult health and survival in humans and other animals. What variables mediate the relationship between early adversity and adult survival? Adult social environments represent one candidate: Early life adversity is linked to social adversity in adulthood, and social adversity in adulthood predicts survival outcomes. However, no study has prospectively linked early life adversity, adult social behavior, and adult survival to measure the extent to which adult social behavior mediates this relationship. We do so in a wild baboon population in Amboseli, Kenya. We find weak mediation and largely independent effects of early adversity and adult sociality on survival. Furthermore, strong social bonds and high social status in adulthood can buffer some negative effects of early adversity. These results support the idea that affiliative social behavior is subject to natural selection through its positive relationship with survival, and they highlight possible targets for intervention to improve human health and well-being.

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A Causal Mediation Model for Longitudinal Mediators and Survival Outcomes with an Application to Animal Behavior

Cited by 3 publications

References 65 publications

Early life adversity and adult social relationships have independent effects on survival in a wild animal model of aging

Early life adversity and adult social relationships have independent effects on survival in a wild animal model of aging

Time-varying mediation analysis for incomplete data with application to DNA methylation study for PTSD

Early life adversity and adult social relationships have independent effects on survival in a wild primate

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