Title:  The Enduring Relationship of Early Life Poverty and the Development of Brain Structure and Function

This talk will present results from a line of developmental research examining the relationship of early childhood poverty and early adversity to the development of the structure and functional connectivity of the human brain.  The results highlight the important role of  disruptions to subcortical brain structure and function.  Further, this talk will evaluate the relative contributions of neighborhood versus the individual family, how such relationships evolve over the course of development, the mediating role of parenting, and their relationships to depression and cognitive function but early in life and at the transition to adulthood.   Many of the findings in humans parallel more experimental research in animal models, and highlight the critical need to address childhood poverty as a means to enhance adaptive outcomes across the lifespan.

Dr. Barch is the chairperson and the Gregory B. Couch Professor of Psychiatry in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.

NACS Seminars are free and open to the public.