Research

IDHP Research Summaries

Guide to Navigating this Research Archive

Here you will find research articles published by IDHP researchers that are related to our primary scientific foci: the interconnected mental health of children and their caregivers, the intergenerational impact of stressful experiences on mental and physical health, and interventions and other buffers that support family wellness. 

 

In the right sidebar, you can search this archive by research topic, as well as by research study (you can read about each study on the Current Projects page). Each archive entry has a simple summary, the full scientific abstract, and a link to the full article. Most of the articles in this research archive are available open access (i.e., you can access it without a subscription). If you are trying to access an article and aren't able to see the full version, please email us at [email protected], and we would be happy to assist. 

 

 

February 16, 2024
Biomarkers
Child mental & behavioral health
ECHO PATHWAYS Study

Sex-specific associations between placental corticotropin releasing hormone and problem behaviors in childhood

Placental corticotropin-releasing hormone (pCRH) is a hormone that plays a critical role in various aspects of pregnancy and fetal development. In this study, exposure to increased levels of pCRH during mid-late gestation seemed to confer little risk for children’s future neurodevelopmental outcomes. However, some of the analyses suggested that links between pCRH exposure and child mental health may depend upon fetal sex - increasing levels of pCRH was associated with more problem behaviors for boys but fewer problems for girls. These results require replication and follow-up at later stages of child development. 
February 3, 2023
Child mental & behavioral health
Childhood adversity
ECHO PATHWAYS Study
Stress during pregnancy

Intergenerational transmission of stress: Multi-domain stressors from maternal childhood and pregnancy predict children’s mental health in a racially and socioeconomically diverse, multi-site cohort

This study looked at how a mother's exposure to stressful events in childhood and during pregnancy can affect her child's mental health. The researchers studied over 1,900 mother-child pairs and found that mothers who had experienced more childhood trauma and pregnancy stress had children with more mental health problems. The study highlights the importance of preventing and treating childhood trauma and stress during pregnancy to improve the well-being of both mothers and their children.
December 3, 2022
Child mental & behavioral health
Childhood adversity
ECHO PATHWAYS Study
Stress during pregnancy

A multi-cohort examination of the independent contributions of maternal childhood adversity and pregnancy stressors to the prediction of children's anxiety and depression

This study explored how women's experiences of childhood adversity and stressful events during pregnancy can impact their children's anxiety and depression symptoms. Researchers found that stress exposures during pregnancy had a positive association with children's anxiety and depression symptoms, while no significant link was observed with maternal childhood traumatic events. This suggests that policies and programs aimed at preventing childhood internalizing symptoms should consider prenatal origins and the potential impact of pregnancy stress prevention and intervention on the next generation.
October 21, 2022
Child mental & behavioral health
Child physical health
ECHO PATHWAYS Study
Stress during pregnancy

Cohort profile: The ECHO prenatal and early childhood pathways to health consortium (ECHO-PATHWAYS)

This paper profiles the ECHO-PATHWAYS cohort, which harmonizes data from three pregnancy studies in various regions of the U.S. with the goal of studying how chemical and psychosocial stress exposures impact child neurodevelopment and airway health.