Past Events

Childhood maltreatment, occurring in up to 20-30% of the population, incorporates a range of active and passive factors, from abuse, to neglect, to the impacts of broader structural and systemic adversity. Despite the effects of childhood maltreatment and adversity on a wide range of adult physical and psychological negative outcomes, not all individuals respond similarly. Understanding the differential biological mechanisms contributing to risk vs. resilience in the face of developmental adversity is critical to improving preventions, treatments, and policy recommendations. I will provide a brief overview of childhood abuse, neglect, maltreatment, threat, and toxic stress, and the effects of these forms of adversity on the developing body, brain, and behavior. I will then discuss the neurobiology of threat and fear formation and PTSD, with evidence that developmental trauma increases the risk for adult trauma-related disorders, along with examples of genomic, epigenomic, and transcriptomic discoveries and biomarkers that may help to understand risk and resilience in the aftermath of trauma and potential targets for intervention and prevention. Both human and preclinical studies will be presented. Ongoing and future work aimed at understanding the biology of trauma across the lifespan from model systems to human biology may provide targets for intervention and prevention.

In this seminar, we'll discuss risk and protective factors for childhood abuse and neglect, what actions you can take if you suspect child abuse or neglect, and some ways that we can work as a community of caregivers and providers to protect kids and set them up for success.

False confessions are an empirically established problem and undeniable failure of the American criminal legal system, especially when they lead to wrongful conviction and incarceration. Young people are especially vulnerable to suggestion and coercion during police interrogations compared to adults, and they are overrepresented in documented cases of false confessions. This presentation explicates the causes, correlates, and consequences of false confessions among adolescent suspects. It explains the mechanisms through which youths’ ongoing development—neurological, psychosocial, and experiential—creates vulnerabilities in the interrogation room and beyond. This presentation highlights the important role of the mental health professional as clinical evaluators, researchers, and potentially expert witnesses who can assist legal factfinders in applying scientific principles in the courtroom.

In this seminar, we'll discuss what anxiety is, how it functions, and how children experience anxiety. We'll also review evidence-based treatments for anxiety in youth and provide some skills that parents can use to support their anxious child at home.

This presentation will address parent perspectives on the treatment of children with anxiety disorders and ADHD. It will review the major child anxiety and ADHD treatments with an emphasis on parent-based interventions. Parental attitudes and preferences will be discussed. Innovative approaches will be presented.