The impact of early neglect on defensive and appetitive physiology during the pubertal transition: A study of startle and postauricular reflexes. Issue 3 (13th March 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Quevedo, Karina; Johnson, Anna E.; Loman, Michelle M.; Lafavor, Theresa; Moua, Bao; Gunnar, Megan R.
• Is Part Of: Developmental psychobiology. Volume 57:Issue 3(2015)
• Page Start: 289
• Page End: 304
• Publication Date: 2015-03-13
• Subjects: neglect -- physiology of emotion -- neural development -- puberty -- startle -- postauricular reflex -- adolescence -- fast emotional processing -- behavior; Psychobiology -- Periodicals; 155
• DOI: 10.1002/dev.21283
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0012-1630

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This study tested the effect of early neglect on defensive and appetitive physiology during puberty. Emotion‐modulated reflexes, eye‐blink startle (defensive) and postauricular (appetitive), were measured in 12‐to‐13‐year‐old internationally adopted youth (from foster care or from institutional settings) and compared to non‐adopted US born controls.Startle Reflex : adopted youth displayed lower overall startle amplitude across all valences and startle potentiation to negative images was negatively related to severity of pre‐adoption neglect.Postauricular reflex (PAR): adopted youth showed larger PAR magnitude across all valences.Puberty : adopted youth showed diminished PAR potentiation to positive images and startle potentiation during mid/late puberty versus the opposite pattern in not‐adopted. Early neglect was associated with blunted fast defensive reflexes and heightened fast appetitive reflexes. After puberty, early neglected youth showed physiological hyporeactivity to threatening and appetitive stimuli versus heightened reactivity in not adopted youth. Behavioral correlates in this sample and possible neurodevelopmental mechanisms of psychophysiological differences are discussed. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc . Dev Psychobiol 57: 289–304, 2015.