In the second paper, I conducted 12 months of tri-generational (child-mother-grandmother) ethnographic research in a population highly affected by intergenerational trauma- a community of former refugees of the Guatemalan Civil War who repatriated to northwestern Guatemala in 1994. I conclude with suggestions for attention to the inheritance of social adversity in epigenetic studies of intergenerational trauma. I then conducted a systematic review of the published literature examining pre-conception trauma and offspring epigenetic changes I found little consistent evidence for an epigenetic signature of trauma experienced prior to conception. In the first paper, I created a biocultural conceptual model for understanding how trauma experienced by a parent (or grandparent) prior to conception can result in epigenetic changes in subsequent generations (see Figure 1). The dissertation contains three separate studies or papers. I focused especially on the emergent science of social epigenetics: the study of how environmental changes related to psychosocial stress can molecularly alter the ways our genes are expressed. I used a biocultural anthropological lens to analyze the different ways trauma is experienced, its impacts on the body, and ways it can affect future generations.
This doctoral dissertation research project examined the relationship between epigenetic changes and intergenerational experiences of trauma. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation NSF has not approved or endorsed its content. This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. Community-engaged research in this context provides a unique opportunity to study the transgenerational epigenetic transmission of trauma-related changes to the stress response and to learn about the risk and resilience factors that shape child development in the wake of war. The present research will use questionnaire, hormone, and DNA methylation data to examine how maternal and grandmaternal experiences of trauma - especially those that occurred while the mother or child was in utero - impact child genetic expression and regulation of the stress response. In recent decades, researchers have begun to investigate mechanisms that may help to explain the greater rates of psychological distress and chronic disease seen in children within populations that have experienced extreme stress and adversity. Resulting data will allow other researchers to validate or replicate findings in the growing research area of biological embedding and toxic stress. The project will also support student training in a STEM field, and the research will be shared with local partners in education and health, as well as research and practice communities in early childhood development nationally and internationally. Project outcomes may inform public health research and interventions for at-risk communities. The project will advance knowledge about human biology and interactions between biology, culture and environment. The process by which trauma experienced by one generation impacts the environment and biology of subsequent generations is referred to as "transgenerational transmission." This doctoral research project will examine how maternal and grandmaternal experiences of trauma impact the epigenetic DNA methylation profile of grandchildren, within a population that has experienced highly adverse social and environmental conditions. Primary Place of Performance Congressional District:Ġ1001920DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Rebecca Ferrell (703)292-7850 BCS Division Of Behavioral and Cognitive Sci SBE Direct For Social, Behav & Economic Scie Doctoral Dissertation Research: Transgenerational Trauma and Resilience NSF Org:īCS Division Of Behavioral and Cognitive Sci