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.
August 14, 2024
Biomarkers
Caregiving behaviors
Childhood adversity
CTRP-Health Study
Intervention effects
Protective factors
SEED Study
This study explored whether a psychosocial treatment to promote safe and responsive parenting in trauma-affected families could reduce epigenetic age acceleration, a health-risk biomarker. Before the treatment, both the intervention and community comparison groups had similar age acceleration levels. After the treatment, the intervention group showed lower age acceleration, suggesting that interventions designed to promote better parent-child relationships may reduce children's biological stress and improve future health.
August 12, 2021
Biomarkers
Child mental & behavioral health
Childhood adversity
CTRP-Health Study
Intervention effects
This study looked at how cortisol levels, measured through hair samples, are related to behavior problems in young children from low-income families. The researchers studied two groups of children: those who had experienced trauma and participated in therapy, and a community group of children from families experiencing high stress. They found that increases in cortisol over time were associated with greater improvements in child behavior problems, and that changes in hair cortisol levels over time may be more informative than looking at hair cortisol levels at one point in time.
July 20, 2021
Biomarkers
Childhood adversity
CTRP-Health Study
Stress during pregnancy
This study looked at how adversity during childhood and pregnancy affects the immune system in a sample of women who have experienced interpersonal violence. Researchers found that higher levels of adversity during childhood and pregnancy, but not total lifetime adversity, were associated with a type of immune system imbalance, which could lead to increased risk for chronic diseases. These findings suggest that experiencing adversity during childhood and pregnancy can have long-term impacts on health.
July 20, 2021
Child mental & behavioral health
Childhood adversity
CTRP-Health Study
Intervention effects
Maternal mental health
This study looked at how inflammation in the body might affect how well people respond to a behavioral treatment for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The researchers measured the levels of certain proteins in the blood of mothers and their young children before treatment and found that those with higher levels of inflammation were less likely to improve with the treatment. This suggests that inflammation could be an important factor to consider when treating depression and PTSD.
July 30, 2020
Child mental & behavioral health
Childhood adversity
CTRP-Health Study
This study examined whether trauma exposure, trauma symptoms, and executive functioning are related in childhood. Associations between trauma exposure, trauma-related symptomatology and children’s executive functioning were not detected, suggesting that associations between child maltreatment, neglect, and other traumas and EF-related outcomes may be particularly nuanced. The null findings here highlight the need for consideration of this complexity in future research examining pathways between trauma exposure and cognitive functioning.
December 5, 2017
Child mental & behavioral health
Childhood adversity
CTRP-Health Study
Interconnected maternal-child health
Intervention effects
Maternal mental health
This study focused on Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) and its effects on trauma symptoms in both parents and children. The researchers examined a group of 199 parent-child pairs who participated in an open treatment study of CPP. They found that both parents and children showed significant decreases in posttraumatic stress symptomatology (PTSS) during treatment and, further, that improvements in parent mental health symptoms were related to improvements in child mental health symptoms. The study also explored various factors that influenced the improvement, such as parental lifetime stressors, treatment duration, child's gender, and clinician expertise.