Do Benevolent Childhood Experiences Buffer Genetic and Environmental Risk for Depressive Symptoms in Adolescence?

Adolescent depressive symptoms are influenced by multiple sources of risk, including both genetics and environmental experiences. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction, are well-established environmental risk factors for poorer mental health outcomes across development (Cunha et al., 2025; Fabio et al., 2025; Hou et al., 2022; Nahar et al., 2025). In parallel, polygenic risk scores (PRS) for depressive symptoms capture an individual’s inherited genetic liability for depressive symptoms and have been shown to predict variation in depressive symptoms across adolescence (Kwong et al., 2021). Although both ACEs and depressive symptoms PRS independently contribute to risk for depressive symptoms, less is known about how positive environmental experiences may buffer these risks. Benevolent childhood experiences (BCEs) capture positive experiences before the age of 18 such as having a safe caregiver, supportive relationships, and positive home, school, and community environments (Cunha et al., 2025; Lateef et al., 2025; Narayan et al., 2018). These experiences are thought to promote resilience and psychosocial well-being and may counteract the negative effects of adversity. However, research examining whether BCEs moderate genetic and environmental risk for depressive symptoms remains limited. This study uses longitudinal birth cohort data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) to examine how BCEs interact with depressive symptoms PRS and ACEs to shape depressive symptoms in adolescence. Specifically, the study investigates whether cumulative BCEs moderate the association between depressive symptoms PRS and depressive symptoms at age 17, and whether cumulative BCEs attenuate the interaction effects of PRS and cumulative ACE exposure.