TRANSLATING RODENT MODELS OF THREATENING REARING ENVIRONMENTS

Experiences of threat, or interpersonal violence, are strongly linked with behavioral and social problems across the lifespan. Contemporary neuroscientific theories of childhood adversity propose that separate dimensions of adversity increase risk through distinct developmental pathways. The hypotheses behind these neuroscientific models are built on elegant rodent models demonstrating that rough maternal care (i.e., threat) shapes multiple aspects of behavioral, social, and neural development. Based on this rodent literature, the present work identified behavioral, physiological, and neural mechanisms by which threat potentially increases risk for negative mental and social outcomes in early human development. Results suggest unique associations between threat and aversive learning in the context of the caregiver. Additionally, threat was associated with altered neural responses to caregiver cues and increased anger bias. These studies contribute to understanding developmental mechanisms linking childhood adversity to behavioral and social problems in children.