# Predicting Young Adult Health: Family Aggression and Bioregulatory Pathways

> **NIH NIH R01** · AUBURN UNIVERSITY AT AUBURN · 2020 · $640,405

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Hostile marital conflict and harsh parenting (family aggression) are highly prevalent. Chronic
exposure to family aggression elevates individuals’ risk for antisocial and risky behavior,
depressed mood, and cognitive decrements. Significant gaps in this research include scarce
investigations of long-term developmental trajectories of adaptation and maladaptation
associated with exposure to family aggression. Furthermore, explaining variability in trajectories
of health in the context of family aggression—why some individuals exhibit resilience and others
deteriorate—is a critical need for science and practice. The proposed study addresses these
open questions and will illuminate autonomic nervous system activity and sleep regulation
parameters (bioregulatory processes), as well as social context variables (socioeconomic
status), which may mediate the risk of family aggression or operate to exacerbate or protect
against its effects on emotional and behavioral maladjustment from childhood through early
adulthood. The design builds on a well-characterized 6-wave study and involves 2 additional
waves. The sample consists of youth between 8 and 18 years across the six study waves who
will be ~22-23 years at the seventh wave. Strengths of the design include the large and diverse
sample, high retention rates, breadth of measurement across important outcome domains, and
8 study waves, permitting analyses of long-term trajectories of mental health, substance use,
and cognitive functioning. Constructs are assessed with well-validated measures and
procedures. The study will advance understanding of the long-term effects of family aggression;
elucidate bioregulatory processes that transmit risk or function as vulnerability or protective
factors in the context of family aggression; and document young adult outcomes of family
aggression in domains of public health priority, such as substance use and mental health
(Healthy People 2020). The diverse community sample allows tests of research questions
across a wide range of socioeconomic status. Results will help identify youth at greatest risk for
negative mental and behavioral health outcomes in early adulthood and identify family and
bioregulatory targets for prevention and intervention.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9869903
- **Project number:** 5R01HD046795-12
- **Recipient organization:** AUBURN UNIVERSITY AT AUBURN
- **Principal Investigator:** Mona M El-Sheikh
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $640,405
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2004-06-01 → 2023-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9869903

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9869903, Predicting Young Adult Health: Family Aggression and Bioregulatory Pathways (5R01HD046795-12). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9869903. Licensed CC0.

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