Early life stress and development: potential mechanisms for adverse outcomes
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(2020) 12:34
REVIEW
Open Access
Early life stress and development: potential mechanisms for adverse outcomes Karen E. Smith*
and Seth D. Pollak
Abstract Background: Chronic and/or extreme stress in early life, often referred to as early adversity, childhood trauma, or early life stress, has been associated with a wide range of adverse effects on development. However, while early life stress has been linked to negative effects on a number of neural systems, the specific mechanisms through which early life stress influences development and individual differences in children’s outcomes are still not well understood. Main text: The current paper reviews the existing literature on the neurobiological effects of early life stress and their ties to children’s psychological and behavioral development. Conclusions: Early life stress has persistent and pervasive effects on prefrontal–hypothalamic–amygdala and dopaminergic circuits that are at least partially mediated by alterations in hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis function. However, to date, this research has primarily utilized methods of assessment that focus solely on children’s event exposures. Incorporating assessment of factors that influence children’s interpretation of stressors, along with stressful events, has the potential to provide further insight into the mechanisms contributing to individual differences in neurodevelopmental effects of early life stress. This can aid in further elucidating specific mechanisms through which these neurobiological changes influence development and contribute to risk for psychopathology and health disorders. Keywords: Early life stress, Early adversity, Neurobiological development, Developmental disorders
Background Early life experiences represent an important influence on children’s neural, behavioral, and psychological development, having long-lasting effects across a wide range of domains [1, 2]. Experience shapes neural plasticity and through this behavior and psychological processes throughout the lifespan [3, 4]. Infancy and early childhood are periods of particularly high rates of synaptic regrowth and remodeling in the brain, during which experience can have long-lasting effects on development [5, 6]. Neuroscience has greatly illuminated our understanding of how both positive and negative early life experiences affect brain development, with implications for children’s mental and physical health. In this paper, we review the literature examining the neurobiological * Correspondence: [email protected] Department of Psychology and Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin– Madison, 1500 S Highland Blvd, Rm 399, Madison, WI 53705, USA
effects of early experiences and discuss where there is a need for further research related to individual differences in children’s responses to their early environments. An early experience that has garnered much attention is that of chronic and/or extreme stress in early life. Experiences of chronic and/or severe stress during early childhood, often also conceptualized as early lif
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