Projects

The project investigates how maternal and child stress alters brain activity across infancy and early childhood and how such alterations predict neurocognitive and socioemotional functioning. Elucidating the direct influence of chronic physiological stress on alterations in brain development and the functional significance of such alterations provides important insights for early identification and intervention of future long-term cognitive and socioemotional outcomes.

Core PI: Sonya Troller-Renfree

Select Publications:

1. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Morales, S., Leach, S.C., Bowers, M.E., Debnath, R., Fifer, W.P., Fox, N.A., & Noble, K.G. (2021). Feasibility of Assessing Brain Activity using Mobile, In-home Collection of Electroencephalography: Methods and Analysis. Developmental Psychobiology, 1-11. doi: 10.1002/dev.22128 - Preprint | Journal Link

2. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Costanzo, M.A., Duncan, G.J., Magnuson, K., Gennetian, L.A., Yoshikawa, H., Halpern-Meekin, S., Fox, N.A., and Noble, K.G. (2022). The impact of a poverty reduction intervention on infant brain activity. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 119(5), e2115649119. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2115649119. Journal Link | Academic Talk

3. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Hart, E.R., Sperber, J.F., Fox, N.A., & Noble, K.G. (in press). Associations among stress and language and socioemotional development in a low-income sample.  Development and Psychopathology, 1-9. doi:10.1017/S0954579421001759. Journal Link

4. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Hart, E.R., Sperber, J.F., Costanzo, M. A., Gennetian, L. A., Meyer, J.S., Fox, N.A., & Noble K.G. (under review). Associations between maternal stress and infant brain activity among families residing in poverty in the U.S.

Throughout the first decade of life, children become increasingly adept at planning ahead for and complete goals.  The ability to manage activational and motivational resources in order to complete a goal is known as Cognitive Control.  The Development of Cognitive Control Project aims to understand why children elect to use different cognitive control strategies to prepare for the same goal.  To better understand the use of cognitive control strategies, I examine behavioral performance, brain activity (EEG), and executive functioning (a grouping of cognitive skills utilized in goal completion).   

Funding: National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (NSF-GRFP),  SRCD Dissertation Award

Core PI: Sonya Troller-Renfree

Select Publications:

1. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Buzzell, G.A., & Fox, N.A. (2020). Changes in working memory facilitate the transition from reactive to proactive cognitive control during childhood. Developmental Science, 00:e12959. doi: /10.1111/desc.12959.  Self-Archive Link

2. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Buzzell, G.A. Pine, D.S., Henderson, H. & Fox, N.A. (2019).  Developmental consequences of not planning ahead: reduced proactive control moderates longitudinal relations between behavioral inhibition and anxiety.  Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.  Self-Archive Link

3. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Buzzell, G., Salo, V., Bowers, M., Forman-Alberti, A., Smith, E., Papp, L., McDermott, J.M., Pine, D.S., & Fox, N.A. (2019).  Development of inhibitory control during childhood and its relations to early temperament and later social anxiety: Unique insights provided by latent growth modeling and signal detection theory.  Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. doi: 10.31234/osf.io/tj4hn.  Self-Archive Link

For more information see the study website here.

See some news coverage of the study here.

In response to the growing body of research examining the effects of socioeconomic disparities on cognitive development, Baby's First Years is the first randomized experiment testing causal connections between poverty reduction and brain development among very young children. 

Funding: NICHD (R01HD087384-01) and a consortium of private funders.

Core PIs: Drs. Kimberly Noble, Greg Duncan, Katherine Magnuson, Lisa Gennetian, Hirokazu Yoshikawa

Role: Co-Investigator

Select Publications:

1. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Costanzo, M.A., Duncan, G.J., Magnuson, K., Gennetian, L.A., Yoshikawa, H., Halpern-Meekin, S., Fox, N.A., and Noble, K.G. (under review). The impact of a poverty reduction intervention on infant brain activity.

2. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Morales, S., Leach, S.C., Bowers, M.E., Debnath, R., Fifer, W.P., Fox, N.A., & Noble, K.G. (2021). Feasibility of Assessing Brain Activity using Mobile, In-home Collection of Electroencephalography: Methods and Analysis. Developmental Psychobiology, 1-11. doi: 10.1002/dev.22128 - Preprint | Journal Link

3. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Hart, E.R., Sperber, J.F., Fox, N.A., & Noble, K.G. (in press). Associations among stress and language and socioemotional development in a low-income sample.  Development and Psychopathology.

Recent findings have demonstrated SES disparities in language and memory development emerging by 15 months (Noble et al., 2015, Developmental Psychobiology) and a significant role of the home environment as early as 9 months (Melvin et al., 2016, Infancy). To explore these findings further, we are examining the ways in which early experiences such as home language environment, parent-child interactions, and parent stress impact language, memory, and brain development. For more information, visit the NEED Lab Website here.

Funding: NICHD (R01), Teachers College, Columbia University, the Russell Sage Foundation, and the Presidential Scholars in Society and Neuroscience at Columbia University

Core PI: Kimberly G. Noble

Select Publications:

1. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Brito, N.H., Desai, P.M., Leon‐Santos, A.G., Wiltshire, C.A., Motton, S.N.,  Meyer, J.S., Isler, J., Fifer, W.P., & Noble, K.G. (in press). Infants of high-stress mothers show alterations in brain function. Developmental Science. Self-Archive Link

2.  Brito, N.H., Troller-Renfree, S.V., Isler, J., Fifer, W.P., & Noble, K.G. (in press). Associations between the home linguistic environment and neural activity during infancy are impacted by household chaos. doi: 10.1016/j.dcn.2020.100780. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience. Self-Archive Link

3. Wiltshire C.A., Troller-Renfree, S.V., Giebler, M.E., & Noble, K.G. (in press). Associations among average parental educational attainment, maternal stress, and infant screen exposure at 6 months of age.

Bucharest Early Intervention Project (B.E.I.P.): Infants and young children raised in institutions are deprived of typical social and emotional stimulation and interaction as well as typical cognitive and language stimulation during infancy and early childhood. This places them at risk for a number of social and behavioral abnormalities such as disturbances of attachment, inattention/hyperactivity, externalizing behavior problems, and a syndrome that mimics autism. With funding from the John D. and Catherine T. Macarthur Foundation, investigators at Boston Children's Hospital (Professor Charles Nelson), University of Maryland (Professor Nathan Fox), and Tulane University (Professor Charles Zeanah) began studying the effects of a foster care intervention in institutionalized children in Bucharest, Romania. This project is the first random control intervention trial with institutionalized infants and children. We have followed two groups of young children through their 16th year of age. Half of these children were placed into foster care under our study’s supervision, while half remained in the institution. Over the course of the study, we are charting the effects of early deprivation as well as the consequences of early intervention on children’s cognitive, physical, and socio-emotional development. This study is supported by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Program Project MH56193. You can learn more about this study here.

Core PIs: Nathan A. Fox, Charles A. Nelson, Charles H. Zeanah

Select Publications:

1. Troller-Renfree, S., Zeanah, C.H., Nelson, C.A., & Fox, N.A. (2018).  Neural and cognitive markers of psychopathology: Insights from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project. Child Development Perspectives, 12(1), 28-33. doi: 10.1111/cdep.12251. Self-Archive Link

2. Troller-Renfree, S., McLaughlin, K. A., Sheridan, M. A., Nelson, C. A., Zeanah, C. H., & Fox, N. A. (2017). The beneficial effects of a positive attention bias amongst children with a history of psychosocial deprivation.  Biological Psychology, 122, 110-120. doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2016.04.008. Self-Archive Link

3. Troller-Renfree, S., Nelson, C. A., Zeanah, C. H., & Fox, N.A. (2016).  Deficits in error monitoring are associated with externalizing but not internalizing symptoms amongst children with a history of institutionalization.  Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 57, 1145–1153. doi:10.1111/jcpp.12604. Self-Archive Link

4. Troller-Renfree, S., McDermott, J.M., Nelson, C.A., Zeanah, C.H., & Fox, N.A. (2015). The effects of early foster care intervention on attention biases in previously institutionalized children in Romania. Developmental Science, 18(5), 713-22. doi:10.1111/desc.12261.  Self-Archive Link

5. Troller-Renfree, S. & Fox, N.A. (2016).   Sensitive Periods of Development:  Implications for Risk and Resilience. In J. Luby (Ed.), Handbook of Preschool Mental Health (pp. 1-25). New York, NY:  The Guilford Press.

Temperament Over Time Study (T.O.T.S.): This project is a large longitudinal study investigating the individual and environmental factors associated with social development from infancy through childhood. Some of our participants have been involved in the study since they were four months old, others since they were two years old. We are currently seeing these participants for the 15-year visit! A BIG thank you goes out to all of the families that have helped make this project possible over the years!

Funding: NICHD (R01HD087384).

Core PIs: Nathan A. Fox, Heather H. Henderson, Daniel S. Pine

Select Publications:

1. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Buzzell, G., Salo, V., Bowers, M., Forman-Alberti, A., Smith, E., Papp, L., McDermott, J.M., Pine, D.S., & Fox, N.A. (2019).  Development of inhibitory control during childhood and its relations to early temperament and later social anxiety: Unique insights provided by latent growth modeling and signal detection theory.  Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. doi: 10.31234/osf.io/tj4hn.  Self-Archive Link

2. Troller-Renfree, S.V., Buzzell, G.A. Pine, D.S., Henderson, H. & Fox, N.A. (2019).  Developmental consequences of not planning ahead: reduced proactive control moderates longitudinal relations between behavioral inhibition and anxiety.  Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. Self-Archive Link

3. Troller-Renfree, S., Barker, T.V., Pine, D.S., & Fox, N.A. (2015). Cognitive functioning of socially anxious adults: Insights from the NIH Toolbox Cognitive Battery. Frontiers in psychology, 6, 764. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00764. Self-Archive Link

4. Buzzell, G. A., Troller-Renfree, S., Barker, T. V., Bowman, L. C., Chronis-Tuscano, A., Henderson, H. A., Kagan, J., Pine D. S. & Fox, N. A. (2017).  A Neurobehavioral Mechanism Linking Behaviorally Inhibited Temperament and Later Adolescent Social Anxiety. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 56(12), 1097-1105. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2017.10.007. Self-Archive Link