The Interplay Between Peer Rejection and Acceptance in Preadolescence and Early Adolescence, Serotonin Transporter Gene, and Antisocial Behavior in Late Adolescence: The TRAILS Study

Gene–environment  studies  on  adolescents’  peer  contexts  are  important  for understanding the interplay between biological and social antecedents of adolescent psychopathology. To this end, this study examined the roles of serotonin transporter  (5-HTTLPR)  and  preadolescent  and  early  adolescent  peer  rejection and acceptance, as well as the interaction between genotype and environment as  predictors  of  antisocial  behavior.  Longitudinal  data  from  TRAILS  (TRacking Adolescents’ Individual Lives Survey), a Dutch cohort study into adolescent development that includes peer reports of rejection and acceptance assessed at 11.1 and 13.6 years and self-reported antisocial behavior at 19.1 years was used. The  interaction  between  5-HTTLPR  and  preadolescent  peer  rejection  predicted  antisocial behavior with arriers of the 5-HTTLPR short–short variant most strongly affected. No main or interaction effects were found for early adolescent rejection  or  interactions  involving peer acceptance.  Our  results  extend  the  gene–environment interaction literature by focusing on peer relationship experiences.