Characteristics of Infant Stress

摘要本研究涉及婴儿对压力反应的个体差异的来源和后果。它集中在压力、皮质醇释放(压力的一种生理指标)和婴幼儿行为障碍测量之间的关系。它涉及一项从出生到18个月大的纵向研究。将在出生时评估肾上腺皮质和行为应激反应，并在出生时进行PKU筛查，如果年龄在6个月和18个月时进行常规接种。当婴儿3个月大时，将评估母亲的照料做法和家庭压力。母婴依恋的质量以及婴儿的视觉自我认知、自我意识情绪和健康状况将在婴儿18个月大时进行评估。这项研究不仅将通过行为反应和肾上腺皮质反应来了解婴儿对应激的反应，而且还将了解母婴关系在婴儿应激反应中的影响，以及婴儿应激反应和早期母婴关系对婴儿健康和社会情绪功能领域后续结果的影响。这些信息在理论和实践上都很重要，并将丰富我们对婴儿期基本发展过程的理解。

ABSTRACT This research concerns the origins and consequences of individual differences in infants' reactions to stress. It is focused on the relation between stress, cortisol release (a physiological indicator of stress), and measures of behavioral distress in infants and toddlers. It involves a longitudinal study between birth and 18 months of age. Adrenocortical and behavioral stress responses will be assess for PKU screening at birth and routine inoculation at 6 and 18 months if age. Maternal caregiving practices and family stress will be assessed when infants are 3 months of age. Quality of mother-infant attachment as well as infant visual self-recognition, self- conscious emotion, and health will be assessed when infants are 18 months of age. The research will inform us not only about infant reactivity to stress using both behavioral and adrenocortical responses, but also the impact of the mother- infant relationship in infant stress reactivity as well as the impact of both infant stress reactivity and he mother-infant relationship in early infancy on subsequent outcomes in the domains of infant health and socioemotional functioning. This information is important both theoretically and practically, and will enrich our understanding of fundamental developmental processes in infancy.