# Intergenerational Vestiges of Childhood Maltreatment: Physiological Mediating Mechanisms of Parenting

> **NIH NIH F31** · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · 2022 · $46,752

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
 Childhood maltreatment constitutes a grave public health crisis associated with devastating lifelong costs,
including heightened risk for psychopathology1,2 and substance use,3 poorer socioemotional functioning,4,5
impaired cognitive functioning,6,7 lower educational attainment,8 and physical health problems9 such as heart
disease,10 obesity,11 and even early death.12 Crucially, the deleterious costs of childhood maltreatment are not
limited to those directly affected, but can also spillover into future generations via disrupted parenting and
caregiving practices.13 Thus, identification of intervening mechanisms that may explain associations between
maltreatment histories and parenting in the next generation can inform theory in this area of research and
illuminate meaningful points of intervention in clinical practice. The long-term objective of the proposed
project is to examine multisystem physiological stress reactivity indicators as mediators of associations
between maternal maltreatment histories and parenting during the perinatal period. The novelty of this
project is twofold. First, this project will examine both Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal reactivity (Aim 1) and
Parasympathetic Nervous System reactivity (Aim 2) as intervening links between maltreatment and parenting
during a key developmental period. This is the first study to examine more than one physiological mediator of
this association concurrently, as well as the first study to examine parasympathetic reactivity specifically.
Second, informed by a Domain-Specific Approach14 to parenting, this project provides much-needed specificity
in differential associations between physiology and parenting outcomes across the protection and reciprocity
domains. This work addresses limitations of prior research by leveraging an existing prospective, longitudinal,
study (n=85) of diverse, low-income women. The applicant’s dedicated mentorship team of expert investigators
will foster the applicant's development in this important research area. Finally, the award and completion of this
project will substantially aid in providing strong research training to a promising young scientist in developmental
psychopathology, intergenerational transmission processes, and human physiology through quality mentoring
and training opportunities for advanced research skills and enhanced interdisciplinary knowledge in relevant
content areas. Moreover, the proposed translational research is highly novel and will contribute to knowledge of
biopsychosocial parenting processes in the perinatal period, particularly among high-risk mothers.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10533944
- **Project number:** 1F31HD110160-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Hannah Grace Swerbenski
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $46,752
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-01 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10533944

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10533944, Intergenerational Vestiges of Childhood Maltreatment: Physiological Mediating Mechanisms of Parenting (1F31HD110160-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10533944. Licensed CC0.

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