Genetic and Environmental Influences on Anxiety and Depression in Adolescents

Anxiety and depression are among the most prevalent mental health concerns in adolescence, a developmental window marked by rapid biological, psychological and social change. Twin and family studies consistently demonstrate that genetic factors account for a substantial proportion of individual differences in risk—typically around 40–50 per cent for both anxiety and depressive symptoms. These heritable influences often overlap, contributing to high rates of co-occurrence and shared liability across internalising disorders. At the same time, environmental exposures—from parenting styles and peer relationships to socioeconomic adversity and life events—shape both onset and course. Non-shared environmental effects, in particular, drive much of the fluctuation in symptom severity over time and underlie individual trajectories. Emerging evidence highlights dynamic interplay between genes and environment: certain genetic profiles may amplify sensitivity to stressors, while adolescents’ behaviours can evoke distinct environmental responses, creating feedback loops that reinforce risk or resilience. Neurobiological pathways involving the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, inflammatory mediators and epigenetic modifications further modulate this interplay, suggesting targets for prevention and personalised intervention. Globally, insights into genetic and environmental aetiology inform transdiagnostic approaches that aim to interrupt the development of comorbid symptoms and to tailor strategies according to individual risk profiles.

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Genetic and Environmental Influences on Anxiety and Depression in Adolescents publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in genetic and environmental influences on anxiety and depression in adolescents across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Heritability: Proportion of variance in a trait attributable to genetic differences among individuals.

Shared environment: Environmental factors that make family members more similar to one another.

Non-shared environment: Environmental influences unique to each individual that contribute to differences among family members.

Polygenic risk score (PRS): Aggregate measure of genetic liability calculated from multiple common genetic variants.

Gene–environment interaction (G×E): Situation in which the effect of genetic variation on a trait depends on specific environmental exposures.

Gene–environment correlation (rGE): Process by which genetic predispositions influence exposure to particular environments, reinforcing genetic effects.

References

1. The stability and change of etiological influences on depression, anxiety symptoms and their co-occurrence across adolescence and young adulthood. Psychological Medicine (2015).
2. The relationship between personality throughout adolescence and social anxiety disorder in young adulthood. A longitudinal twin study. PLOS ONE (2024).
3. Familial genetic and environmental transmission of depression: A multi‐informant twin family study. PsyCh Journal (2024).
4. Aetiology of shame and its association with adolescent depression and anxiety: results from a prospective twin and sibling study. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry (2021).