Abstract
ABSTRACT
Performance monitoring (PM) has been suggested as a promising cognitive factor to explain individual differences in the association between early maltreatment and depression, yet evidence remains limited. From a monitoring vs. executive perspective, this study thus comprehensively examined whether and how the neurophysiological (ERN and its time‐frequency decomposition components) and behavioral (posterror accuracy) indicators of PM interacted with childhood maltreatment on young adult depressive symptoms. A total of 192 Chinese university students (
M
age
= 21.08 ± 1.91 years; 59.4% girls) completed self‐report questionnaires and an Eriksen Flanker task while EEG activity was recorded. The results showed that blunted vs. heightened ERN and error‐related delta were more likely to amplify the adverse effect of childhood maltreatment, especially emotional neglect, on young adult depressive symptoms. However, error‐related theta and posterror accuracy did not show such interaction effects. The findings showed strong robustness across a series of sensitivity analyses. The results provide preliminary evidence that blunted error monitoring but not executive ability, reflected by ERN and error‐related delta, may be a neurobiological moderator that underlies maltreatment‐related depression, which deepens the cognitive control underpinnings of depression. However, given the high‐functioning sample, caution is warranted when generalizing these findings in high‐risk clinical samples.