Stefanie Pilkay (SWK) PI and Xiafei Wang (SWK) co-PI, Investigating the Complex Pathway from Environmental Adversity during Childhood (9-11 years of age) to Young Adult (age 18-20) Social Functioning and Behavior
Based on a sample from the Syracuse Lead Study, the proposed research examines the complex pathway from environmental adversity (EA) during childhood to young adult social functioning and behavior, cognition, and mental health to identify novel targets for interventions to improve health and development throughout the lifespan. We have the following aims: 1) To examine how childhood EA is associated with adult social functioning and behavior as sequentially mediated by DNA methylation patterns and self-regulation mechanisms; 2) To examine how mothers’ adverse childhood experiences would moderate the pathways from child EA to adult social functioning and behavior; and 3) We will examine if mothers’ emotion regulation, mentalization, and social functioning and behavior moderate those pathways from child EA to young adult social functioning and behavior.