Columbia University Department of Psychiatry Sponsored Symposium: NEUROBIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE EFFECTS OF ATTACHMENT ON DEVELOPMENT ACROSS SPECIES

Chairs: Camelia E. Hostinar, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, University of California-Davis Psychology Department and Paul D. Hastings, Ph.D., Professor, University of California-Davis Psychology Department

Presenters:

Lynea Witczak, California National Primate Research Center and University of California-Davis Psychology Department

Paul D. Hastings, Ph.D., University of California-Davis Psychology Department, Co-Chair

Stefania Vacaru, Ph.D., Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behavior, Radboud University Medical Center, Netherlands

Sydney Yi, University of California-Davis Psychology Department

Symposium Abstract: 

Attachment bonds shape social-developmental outcomes across mammalian species, yet the neurobiological mechanisms underlying these effects remain to be understood. This translational, international, multi-disciplinary symposium examines neurobiological mechanisms that explain the influential role of attachment bonds in the development of social behavior and stress physiology across age groups and across human and nonhuman primate species. The first talk will focus on coppery titi monkeys, a socially monogamous species in which infants develop selective bonds with their fathers, and present novel evidence that blockade of the juveniles’ oxytocin receptors causes large rises in plasma cortisol, inhibiting the stress-buffering effects of fathers. The second talk will present evidence from Canada that fathers’ positive parenting predicts higher social and general self-esteem in children four years later, and this association is mediated by children’s parasympathetic nervous system regulation at preschool. The third talk will report an association between infant colic and steeper cortisol circadian rhythms overall across ages 1, 2.5, 6, and 10 years in a longitudinal study from the Netherlands, while also testing the moderating role of secure attachment. The final talk will report evidence from the United States that attachment security is associated with a stress-response profile of increased pro-sociality and reduced anxiety after acute stress exposure in 9-11-year-olds. Consistent with the ISDP mission, this symposium will survey multiple neurobiological mechanisms across species and throughout multiple developmental periods to shed light on the mechanisms by which attachment bonds orchestrate the developmental process. 

List of abstracts and presenters: 

FATHER-DAUGHTER ATTACHMENT BONDS MEDIATE DISTRESS RESPONSES FOLLOWING AN ACUTE SOCIAL SEPARATION IN COPPERY TITI MONKEYS (PLECTUROCEBUS CUPREUS) 

Authors and Affiliations:

Lynea R. Witczak1,2, Emilio Ferrer1,Ph.D., and Karen L. Bales1,2, Ph.D.

1University of California-Davis, Department of Psychology

2California National Primate Research Center

Social interactions regulate our behavior and physiology, and strong social bonds can buffer us from stress. Coppery titi monkeys (Plecturocebus cupreus) are socially monogamous South American monkeys that display classic attachment behaviors. Infants form selective bonds with their fathers, making them ideal for studying father-daughter bonds. We established a novel method for determining the strength of an attachment bond in females (n =12). We also investigated how manipulations of oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (AVP) influenced juvenile attachment. Subjects received acute intranasal treatments of saline, low/medium/high OT, low/high AVP, or OT antagonist (OTA) prior to an acute social separation. General linear mixed-effects model results revealed fathers were significant behavioral and physiological stress buffers for their daughters, as evidenced by lower distress vocalizations (p < .001), locomotion (p < .001), and plasma cortisol (p < .001). Additionally, females vocalized less if they exhibited stronger attachments to their fathers as infants (p = .01), and this stress-buffering effect remains even when the daughter is separated from the father (p = .001). While treatments did not alter behaviors, OTA treatments caused the largest rise in plasma cortisol (p < .001), suggesting blockade of OT receptors can inhibit fathers’ stress-buffering effects. Remarkably, females with strong father-daughter bonds exhibited an overall reduced physiological separation distress response (p = .04). Findings from the present study advance current knowledge of the neurobiological mechanisms foundational to female attachment relationships and help inform how social disruptions may differently impact individuals based on the quality of their social bonds.

FATHERS’ SOCIALIZATION CONTRIBUTES TO CHILDREN’S SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT VIA THEIR PARASYMPATHETIC REGULATION 

Authors and affiliations:

Paul D. Hastings1,2, Ph.D. and Elisa Ugarte2,3

1 University of California Davis, Department of Psychology

2 University of California Davis, Center for Mind and Brain

3 University of California Davis, Department of Human Ecology

Socialization research shows that fathers contribute to children’s social competence with peers. Few studies have examined potential mechanisms of paternal socialization effects. Parasympathetic regulation is an essential component of the social engagement system. In 133 families (113 two-parent) with preschoolers (M=3.50y, SD=0.76; 72 girls), we assessed positive (warmth, support, structuring) and negative (criticism, punitive, inflexible) paternal and maternal parenting at home with observations and questionnaires. One day 2 to 5 months later, children were met as they arrived at preschool and outfitted with an ambulatory monitor to record cardiac and gross motor activity during the first 5 minutes of free play with peers. Four years later, 101 children, mothers and teachers reported on children’s social competence. Controlling for motor activity, age and gender, SEM analyses showed that fathers’ positive parenting predicted higher RSA (b=.25, p<.05) and lower HR (b=-.26, p<.01) at preschool, and fathers’ negative parenting predicted higher HR (b=.24, p<.05). Mothers’ parenting did not predict children’s cardiac measures. Preschoolers’ with higher RSA subsequently reported, 4 years later, greater social (b=.30, p<.01) and general (b=.27, p<.05) self-esteem. Analyses of indirect effects revealed that RSA significantly mediated predictive associations of fathers’ positive parenting with children’s social (b=.08, 95% C.I. [.01-.12]) and general (b=.07, 95% C.I. [.01-.11]) self-esteem (see Figure 1). Mothers’ positive parenting directly predicted child-, mother- and teacher-reported social competence (all p<.05), with no mediation via children’s cardiac activity. Hence, paternal positive socialization supports young children’s effective parasympathetic regulation during real-world peer interactions, contributing to their future positive self-evaluations.