Behavioral and physiological linkage in people with frontotemporal dementia and spousal caregivers

项目总结 这一独立之路奖将使候选人具备学习人际关系的关键技能 通过检查行为和生理联系(例如，人们的心率和 额颞痴呆(FTD)患者及其配偶的情绪行为是同步的 照顾者(CG)。FTD与额叶和颞叶区域的严重神经变性有关 大脑和严重的社会情绪症状(例如，冷漠，去抑制)，这些症状不仅对人很难 患有痴呆症(PWD)，但也适用于CG。照顾患有精神障碍的亲人是家庭中有意义的一部分 然而，生活中的破坏性症状可能会产生有害影响，损害CGs的健康和福祉。 鉴于密切的人际联系与健康/福祉之间建立了很强的联系， 候选人计划采取新的步骤来检查(A)残疾人和CG的人际联系是如何 FTD改变(目标1和3)，以及(B)改变的PWD-CG连接性如何提供连接的桥梁 PWD的社会情绪症状对CG的健康影响下降(目标2)。重要的是，候选人计划学习 通过评估PWD-CG的行为和生理指标来评估PWD-CG的连接性 连通性。这种新的方法将提供更客观、更少的认知要求和更多 PWD-CG连接性的连续衡量标准，而不是单一的自我报告衡量标准 通常在过去的研究中使用。候选人还计划开发最佳方法方法 用于在实验室和自然环境中量化PWD-CG连接性(例如，确定 最能预测不良CG健康的生理关联；目标4)。候选人在以下方面接受了扎实的培训 认知神经科学，在使用综合方法研究情绪和社交方面有很好的记录 在健康和临床人群中发挥作用。为了支持候选人进行拟议的研究， 计划在3个领域进行培训：(A)二元行为和生理时间序列数据分析；(B)诊断 和FTD的临床评估，以及(C)痴呆症护理。培训将在以下指导下进行 每个领域的知名专家(包括一名临床心理学家、一名行为神经学家和一名护士 专家)。加州大学伯克利分校心理学系的培训环境 (主要)，加州大学旧金山分校(次要)的记忆和衰老中心将是理想的 用于拟议的培训和研究，以及发展候选人的专业技能。一起， 该奖项将帮助候选人作为一名拥有独特专业知识的独立科学家开始他的研究生涯。 在情绪和心理生理学、神经退行性疾病和照顾方面。拟议的研究 将有助于增进对FTD对CGs造成附带损害的途径的理解，以及 提供一种新的、客观的、连续的、潜在的便携测量方法来量化PWD-CG连通性 用于未来的研究和临床使用。

PROJECT SUMMARY This Pathway to Independence Award will equip the candidate with the key skills to study interpersonal connectedness by examining behavioral and physiological linkage (e.g., how closely people’s heart rates and emotional behaviors are synchronized) in individuals with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and their spousal caregivers (CGs). FTD is associated with profound neurodegeneration in the frontal and temporal regions of the brain and severe socioemotional symptoms (e.g., apathy, disinhibition) that are difficult not only for the person with dementia (PWD) but also for the CG. Caring for a loved one with FTD can be a meaningful part of family life, however, disruptive symptoms can produce deleterious effects and undermine CGs’ health and well-being. Given the strong associations established between close interpersonal connectedness and health/well-being, the candidate plans to take novel steps to examine (a) how interpersonal connectedness of the PWD and CG is altered in FTD (Aims 1 and 3), and (b) how altered PWD-CG connectedness provides a bridge that links PWD’s socioemotional symptoms to CG’s health declines (Aim 2). Importantly, the candidate plans to study PWD-CG connectedness by assessing both behavioral and physiological indicators of PWD-CG connectedness. This novel approach will provide more objective, less cognitively-demanding, and more continuous measures for PWD-CG connectedness, as compared to single self-report measures that have typically been used in past research. The candidate also plans to develop the optimal methodological approach for quantifying PWD-CG connectedness in both laboratory and naturalistic settings (e.g., identify the measure of physiological linkage that best predicts poor CG health; Aim 4). The candidate has received solid training in cognitive neuroscience and has a strong track record using integrative methods to study emotion and social functioning in healthy and clinical populations. To support the candidate in conducting the proposed research, training in 3 areas is planned: (a) dyadic behavioral and physiological time series data analysis, (b) diagnosis and clinical assessment of FTD, and (c) dementia caregiving. Training will occur under the mentorship of renowned experts in each field (including a clinical psychologist, a behavioral neurologist, and a nurse specialist). The training environment at the Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley (primary), and the Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco (secondary), will be ideal for the proposed training and research, as well as for developing the candidate’s professional skills. Together, the award will help the candidate launch his research career as an independent scientist with unique expertise in dyadic emotion and psychophysiology, neurodegenerative disease, and caregiving. The proposed research will help advance the understanding of the pathways through which FTD yields collateral damage on CGs, and provide a novel, objective, continuous, and potentially portable measure to quantify PWD-CG connectedness for future research and clinical use.