Neurodevelopment: attachment, social function and borderline personality

社会问题和与亲密、依恋的人的关系中断是危险因素 和/或许多精神疾病的症状。越来越多的理论家和研究人员 共同的结论：人类是社会动物，当社会关系受到干扰时， 情绪和自我控制的出现。检查社会功能和依恋关系的障碍， 青春期，使用大脑和行为作为干扰性质的标志，可以更好地促进 了解社会因素如何引发心理健康问题。青春期尤为重要 因为支持社会和情感处理的大脑系统迅速地 发展在这个时候。具体而言，迫切需要更好地了解这些困难， 边缘型人格障碍（BPD）青少年，一种严重的精神健康障碍，其特征是 社会和情感领域的问题交织在一起。BPD是主要的公共卫生问题，因为它与 极度痛苦和虚弱。然而，这种疾病还没有得到充分的研究，特别是在青少年中。的 本研究的主要目的是：（1）研究人际依恋关系之间的关系， 社会功能和与同龄人的联系的大脑和行为迹象，（2）决定是否神经和 社会功能障碍的行为迹象预测BPD症状，和（3）辨别是否社会功能和 同伴关系在依恋与BPD之间起中介作用。将测量附件 用一种创新的方法来编码青少年与青少年的冲突互动。社会功能将是 使用基于fMRI的信任任务在9个月时进行评估，该任务提供信任和协作指数。 大脑网络的连接性，特别是在高度信任和信任的情况下， 在这项任务中的合作将与依恋障碍和BPD症状相关联 在基线和18个月期间。Beeney博士是一名临床心理学博士，他希望 过渡到一个独立的研究计划，重点是社会和发展神经科学的 人际关系和情绪障碍以及BPD。上述项目是实现这一目标的第一步。 在培训期间，他寻求在（1）发展精神病理学，特别是在有关 青少年的大脑发育，（2）学会分析大脑作为一个系统的神经网络，而不是 谨慎的地区，和（3）学习一个终身的依恋方法和青少年发展的培训。Drs. 匹兹堡大学的副教授斯蒂芬妮·斯特普和埃里卡·福布斯将指导博士。 比尼Stepp博士是BPD青少年发展方面的专家，福布斯博士是BPD青少年发展方面的专家。 情感障碍的发展神经科学匹兹堡大学精神病学系 领先的研究机构，拥有广泛的研究支持，世界一流的发育和神经成像 研究人员和最先进的脑成像设备

Social problems and disrupted relationships with close, attachment figures are difficulties that are risk factors and/or symptoms of many mental health disorders. Theorists and researchers are increasingly coming to common conclusions: humans are social creatures and when social relationships are disturbed, problems with emotion and self-control arise. Examining disturbance in social functioning and attachment relationships in adolescence, using the brain and behavior as markers of the nature of the disturbance, could facilitate better understanding of how social factors prompt mental health difficulties. Adolescence is particularly important developmental period because brain systems supporting social and emotional processing are rapidly developing at this time. There is, specifically, an urgent need to better understand these difficulties among adolescents with borderline personality disorder (BPD), a severe mental health disorder, characterized by a mix of problems in social and emotional domains. BPD is major public health issue, given its association with extreme misery and debilitation. And yet, the disorder is understudied, particularly within adolescents. The major aims of this project are to (1) examine the relationship between caregiver-attachment relationships and brain and behavioral signs of social functioning and affiliation with peers, (2) determine whether neural and behavioral signs of social dysfunction predict BPD symptoms, and (3) discern whether social functioning and affiliation with peers mediates the relationship between attachment and BPD. Attachment will be measured with an innovative approach to coding caregiver-adolescent conflict interactions. Social functioning will be assessed at 9-months using an fMRI-based Trust Task, which provides indices of trust and collaboration. Connectivity in brain networks, particularly the attachment/affiliation network, during instances of high trust and collaboration within this task will be examined in association with attachment disturbance and BPD symptoms at baseline and over 18-months. Dr. Beeney, the award candidate, is a clinical psychology PhD, seeking to transition to an independent research program focused on social and developmental neuroscience of interpersonal and emotional disturbance and BPD. The above project represents a first step towards this goal. Within the training period, he seeks to train in (1) developmental psychopathology, particularly in relation to adolescent brain development, (2) to learn to analyze the brain as a system of neural networks rather than discreet regions, and (3) learn a life span approach to attachment and train in adolescent development. Drs. Stephanie Stepp and Erika Forbes, both Associate Professors at University of Pittsburgh, will mentor Dr. Beeney. Dr. Stepp is an expert in adolescent development of BPD and Dr. Forbes is an expert in developmental neuroscience of affective disorders. University of Pittsburgh, Department of Psychiatry is a leading research institution, with extensive research support, world-class developmental and neuroimaging researchers, and state-of-the-art brain imaging facilities.