1. Daniel Messinger, Ph.D.

2.  Individual change over time  Reorganizes ▪Multiple systems (entire person)  Successive, sequential ▪Crawl before you walk  Non-reversible (stable) ▪You can’t go back  Normative ▪Everyone’s doing it -- but what if everyone’s not doing it? ▪Continued education (or earlier employment) ▪marriage, divorce, childrearing, ▪immigration  Continues over lifespan?

5.  What biological mechanisms are implicated during birth and postnatal bonding?  Parent-infant relationship affects brain development and social regulation  What can we learn from rodents?  How does that differ from humans? Ehrlich

6.  Estrogen  Progesterone  Oxytocin  Prolactin  Testosterone Their roles are fairly conserved across taxa, but involve more cortical regulation in humans. Will M.

7.  Virgin rodents (and other species) find infant stimuli aversive  Postpartum rodent moms demonstrate a switch in the valence of infant stimuli  Blood transfusions from a pregnant to a virgin rodent resulted in increased maternal responsiveness  Why?  Estrogen and progesterone during pregnancy + progesterone at birth maximizes brain sensitivity to oxytocin and prolactin

8.  Ventral tegmental area: maternal motivation Medial Preoptic Area robustly activated by infant stimuli Ventral tegmental area: maternal motivation

9.  Oxytocin  Implicated broadly in social bonding / parenting  Released centrally during birth ▪ role in approach behavior in mothers  Rodents are promiscuous parents  Sheep form selective mother-infant bonds  Oxytocin signaling at play

10.  fMRI studies demonstrate activation in mesolimbic dopamine system  VTA  Nucleus accumbens  Medial orbitofrontal cortex  Evident for both mothers and fathers  Different from rodents  Nonparents activate these regions as well  Nulliparous women: nucleus accumbens activation directly related to baby cuteness

12.  Infant crying triggers neural responses  Mesolimbic dopamine system  Anterior insula (empathy)  Prefrontal cortex (emotion regulation)

13.  Oxytocin:  Is positively correlated with affectionate contact and positive engagement  Studied via intranasal administration in fathers  Genetic studies demonstrate oxytocin’s relationship to parenting

14. 00 APRIL 2015 | VOL 0 | NATURE | 1

15. BJ Marlin et al. Nature 000, 1-6 (2015) doi:10.1038/natur e14402 www.nature.com/n ature/journal/vaop/ ncurrent/full/nature 14402.html#videos After recording responses to pup calls in virgin left AI, we paired calls for 3–5 min with either topical oxytocin application (oxytocin pairing) or optical stimulation of AI in Oxt- IRES-Cre animals (optogenetic pairing

16.  Role of VTA is similar  Not enough research on the MPOA  Anterior insula and prefrontal cortex are important for regulating responses to infant distress  Oxytocin is important for maternal responsiveness, but measurement problems make things in humans ambiguous  Androgen makes males into cads, not dads. Will M.

17.  Rats are absentee dads  Little attention paid to oxytocin in nonhuman dads  Mixed evidence surrounding testosterone  Some mammals: increase in vasopressin

18.  Higher testosterone implicated in mating effort, but ▪ Less sympathy for other crying babies ▪ Lower paternal caregiving ▪ Lower responsiveness to infants  Testosterone decreases when men become fathers, ▪ Increased empathy ▪ Increased frustration tolerance ▪ Decreased sexual motivation (that could compete with parenting effort)

19. 1. Older men (n = 371; mean: 61.2 years of age) reporting support 2. Support from two or more sources lower testosterone than men with no support. 3. Emotional support from kin + non-kin or multiple kin sources lower testosterone than those with no support 4. More nurturing through (family) lifecycle.. 1.Lee T. Gettler, Rahul C. Oka. Hormones and Behavior, 2015; DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.10.00310.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.10.003

20.  Less parenting effort can result in reduced sensitivity to parenting hormones in offspring, who go on to parent less.  Also less pair bonding behavior.  Increased amygdala and internalizing problems in humans  Oxytocin implicated in attachment Will M.

21.  Licking and grooming (L&G)  Rats reared by low L&G moms demonstrate low L&G when they become mothers ▪ Effects seen in mesolimbic dopamine pathway through adulthood  Later-life pair bonding  Disrupted by repeated neonatal social isolations  Oxytocin neurons stimulated pharmacologically facilitate better later-life pair bonding  Paternal Care  Prairie voles raised with absentee dads show impairments in pair bonding behavior and less L&G

22.  Research on children raised in orphanages  Focus on amygdala and prefrontal cortex  Postinstitutionalized children demonstrate ▪ Larger amygdala volumes ▪ Increased amygdala response to fearful faces ▪ Altered connectivity between amygdala and medial prefrontal cortex

23.  Oxytocin  Girls who experience childhood neglect or abuse show lower oxytocin in cerebrospinal fluid as adults  Implicated in attachment ▪ High levels of oxytocin in securely attached parents might facilitate more affectionate behavior toward child, who then becomes more securely attached. ▪ Insecurely attached mothers have lower oxytocin response to their children

25. Father’s Brain is Sensitive to Childcare Experiences Bichay

26.  Current socio-cultural changes increased father’s involvement in childrearing  Structures associated with caregiving  Emotional Processing Network  Cortical Mentalizing Network  Oxytocin supports development of parental caregiving Bichay

27.  To understand the brain basis of human fatherhood, its comparability with the maternal brain, and its sensitivity to caregiving experiences Bichay

28.  89 first-time parents  20 primary-caregiving (PC) heterosexual mothers  21 secondary-caregiving (SC) heterosexual fathers  48 primary caregiving (PC) homosexual fathers  First session  Salivary samples collected for oxytocin  Parents interviewed and completed self-report measures  Videotaped interacting with infants and alone  Second session  fMRI imaging Bichay

29.  Neural parental caregiving network found across all parents raising infants  PC mothers  amygdala activation  SC Fathers  STS activation  PC Fathers  amygdala and STS activation Bichay

30.  PC Mothers  Parent-infant synchrony correlated with amygdala  Oxytocin correlated with ventral anterior cingulate cortex (vACC) ▪ another component of emotional processing network  PC and SC Fathers  Parent-infant synchrony correlated with STS  Oxytocin correlated with STS  PC Fathers  connectivity between the amygdala and STS necessary for optimal caregiving Bichay

31.  For all fathers, direct responsibility alone with child correlated with amygdala-STS connectivity  Caregiving role  parent-infant synchrony  Caregiving role  amygdala activation  Mothers:  Caregiving role  amygdala  synchrony  Fathers:  STS  synchrony  STS  oxytocin  synchrony Bichay

32.  Parenting related to global parental caregiving neural network  Caregiving experiences involve structural and functional changes in the father’s brain  What are some of the implications of this study? Bichay

33. Kelly Shaffer

34.  Oxytocin (OT) underlies formation of social bonds and is associated with positive parenting behaviors for mothers and fathers  Parent-infant OT responses are related – a “cross-generational link” Parental OT system functioning likely shapes the capacity for social engagement in the child

35.  Intranasal OT administration increases peripheral OT  OT related to many social and parenting behaviors and cognitions cross-sectionally  Do manipulations in parental OT increase parents’ social engagement with their child?  Do manipulations in parental OT have parallel effects on the infant?

36.  OT administration to Fathers will  Enhance father’s peripheral OT, parasympathetic activity (RSA), and father-typical social behavior  Have parallel effects on infants’ OT, RSA, and behavioral responses to the father RSA = Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia Measure of parasympathetic activity indexing capacity to respond flexibly to environment  enhances ability to be socially engaged RSA = Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia Measure of parasympathetic activity indexing capacity to respond flexibly to environment  enhances ability to be socially engaged

37.  35 father-infant (5 mo) dyads at 2 visits Baseline Fathers only: PANAS Saliva RSA OT/PL admin Face-to-Face/ Still-Face 0 mins40 mins Reunite Fathers & Infants: Saliva 45 mins Fathers & Infants: RSA Behavioral coding 65 mins85 mins Fathers & Infants: Saliva FathersInfants Social gaze Positive affect Father vocalizationsExploratory play Follow-up Saliva Assessments Repeated 1 week later

39. http://www.psy.miami.edu/faculty/mmccullough/Papers/McCullough-Churchland-Mendez-Final.pdf

41. Shaffer | Weisman et al., 2012 Positive affective expression?

42.  Infants’ OT increases correlated with  Fathers’ OT increases after administration  Synchronous social behavior with Father  No differences in father’s self-reported emotions between OT and placebo visits

43.  OT administration to a parent:  Enhances parent’s functioning in physiological and behavioral systems that facilitate parent-child bond ▪ Salivary OT ▪ Autonomic response to free play ▪ Parenting behavior (touch, social reciprocity)  Has parallel effects on infant’s functioning ▪ Salivary OT ▪ Autonomic response to free play ▪ Greater social engagement (social gaze, exploration)

44.  Synchronized OT between humans may be critical biological basis for human social cognition by representing another’s state in one’s own physiology

45.  OT administration improves symptoms of autism and schizophrenia  Maternal postpartum depression and premature birth associated with disruptions in OT, parasympathetic NS, and social-behavioral systems  What are your reactions to OT therapy?  What additional research would you want to see done before recommending (or not)?

46. (Doss et al., 2009) Rubenstein

47. Different methods Cross-sectional studies of parenthood Longitudinal studies beginning in pregnancy Inclusion of nonparents in longitudinal samples Interrupted time-series (ITS) design Isolates change that can be attributed to birth from change that was expected based on ongoing changes in the couples’ relationship. Rubenstein Little agreement on the impact of the transition to parenthood on marital functioning

48. Predictors of relationship changes over the transition to parenthood Vulnerability-Stress-Adaptation (VSA) model (Karney & Bradbury, 1995) Enduring vulnerabilities (e.g., family of origin, cohabitation before marriage, religiosity) Stressful event (e.g., unplanned pregnancy, timing of birth after marriage, income at birth, child’s gender) Adaptive processes (e.g., relationship qualities) Rubenstein

49. Premarital education Marriage T1T2T3-T10 Relationship Variables Marital satisfaction Observed negative communication Relationship confidence Relationship dedication Poor conflict management Problem intensity Enduring Vulnerabilities Demographic information (e.g., income, religiosity) Family of origin Premarital cohabitation history Nature of Stressful Event Child’s gender Timing of pregnancy Planned or unplanned pregnancy Financial stress Other variables that are likely important to relationship functioning after birth?

50. Rubenstein 1a: No change in construct either before, immediately following, or after the birth of the baby 2a: Linear changes in the construct both before and after birth 3a: Initial steep decreases in the construct with a gradual slowing of those decreases; however, this slowing is not attributable to birth 1a: No change in construct either before, immediately following, or after the birth of the baby 2a: Linear changes in the construct both before and after birth 3a: Initial steep decreases in the construct with a gradual slowing of those decreases; however, this slowing is not attributable to birth

51.  The majority of relationship constructs showed an immediate or delayed impact of the transition to parenthood.  All relationship constructs showing change exhibited sudden worsening of the relationship in either mothers or fathers.

52. Rubenstein ParentsNonparents Parents: dotted = fathers, solid = mothers Nonparents: dotted = males, solid = females dotted = males, solid = females

53.  For mothers and fathers, sudden changes in marital satisfaction, problem intensity, and relationship dedication varied significantly between individuals.  Mothers’ sudden changes in poor conflict management and relationship confidence showed significant between-individual variability

54. Rubenstein Enduring vulnerabilities History of parental divorce or conflict  larger decreases in marital satisfaction [mothers] Living together before marriage  greater observed negative communication [mothers and fathers] Nature of stressful event Female children  larger decreases in marital satisfaction [mothers] and larger increases in problem intensity [fathers] Having a child quickly after marriage  greater decreases in marital satisfaction [fathers] Lower income (but not more financial stress) at birth  larger decreases in marital satisfaction [fathers] * Not predictive: planned or unplanned pregnancy, financial stress *Not predictive: ethnicity, level of religiosity before birth

55. Rubenstein Higher marital satisfaction  larger decreases in marital satisfaction [mothers and fathers] Higher relationship confidence  smaller decreases in marital satisfaction [fathers] Higher relationship confidence and/or higher reported poor conflict management  larger increases in problem intensity [mothers and fathers] Higher relationship confidence and/or higher observed negative communication  larger increases in poor conflict management [mothers] Q5: Are similar changes in relationship functioning found in nonparents? Nonparents showed no sudden changes Gradual deterioration in marital satisfaction; Men reported sig decreases in relationship dedication over time Negative observed communication sig improved over time

56. Parents and nonparents generally show similar amounts of decline in overall relationship functioning over the first 8 years of marriage but these changes tend to occur suddenly following the birth of the baby for parents and more gradually over time for nonparents. Rubenstein Parents showed clear increases in negativity, conflict, and problem intensity following the birth of a child, whereas nonparents did not show such changes at the same point in time, nor did they show such declines over time more generally.

57. Danzi

58.  Study 1  Large, nationally representative survey to assess if parents are happier overall than nonparents ▪ World Values Survey (n = 6,906; ages 17 – 96) ▪ Single-item measures of happiness, life satisfaction, and thinking about meaning in life  Study 2  Experience-sampling study to assess if parents feel better moment-to-moment than nonparents ▪ 329 adults (ages 18 – 94) ▪ Participants randomly paged 5 times per day over 7 days to complete brief questionnaire ▪ Rated how much they were feeling 19 emotions on 7-point scale and asked how meaningful the moment was  Study 3  Within-subjects study to assess how positive feelings derived from parenting compares to other daily activities Danzi

59.  Parents reported higher levels of life satisfaction, happiness, and meaning in life than nonparents  Having more children was correlated with life satisfaction and meaning in life (but not happiness) Danzi Potential factors that could affect these relationships?

60.  Parents reported more happiness, more positive emotion, more meaning in life, and less depressive symptoms than nonparents Danzi Parent’s gender, age, race, and SES did not moderate relationship for any variables

61.  Fathers scored better than childless men on all variables  Mothers had fewer depressive symptoms than childless women  Other variables were not significantly different (trend for positive emotion) Danzi

62.  Parents reported more positive emotions and more meaningfulness during childcare than other daily activities Danzi

63. Waldinger, Vaillant, & Orav (2007) Marchante

68. Model-fitted trajectories for initiative scores by education at age 31 and cohort. Younger cohort: High education began with higher initiative; but declines slightly; Low education slight increase through 30s then slight downward. older cohort: No clear difference for education

69. Committed relationship (especially younger cohort) show elevated trajectory, while not committed relationship show low intimacy and then slow increase

70. Emotion Regulation in Older Age Heather L. Urry and James J. Gross R. Bernstein

71.  Older adults are more effective at situational selection and attentional deployment  Older adults report being better at controlling their emotions relative to younger adults  Older adults construct smaller, but closer social networks  Younger adults are more successful using cognitive reappraisal  Older adults are less successful as using detached reappraisal, but more successful at using positive reappraisal, compared to younger adults  Younger adults and older adults are similarly successful at reducing outward expressions of emotion (response modulation) R. Bernstein

72.  Study 1. Parents more happy, satisfied, thinking about meaning in life ▪ Holds for fathers and mid-age, not for mothers, young or single parents ▪ Young parents and single parents less happy than nonparents ▪ No difference between mothers and childless women  Study 2. Parents had more positive emotions and meaningfulness from moment-to-moment ▪ Fathers had more positive scores than childless men on all variables ▪ Mothers only showed a significant difference from childless women in having less depression  Study 3. Parents reported more positive emotions and more meaningfulness during childcare than other daily activities Danzi

73. Maguire-Jack, K., A. N. Gromoske, et al. (2012). "Spanking and Child Development During the First 5 Years of Life." Child Development 83(6): 1960-1977. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 3,870) and cross-lagged path analysis, the authors examined whether spanking at ages 1 and 3 is adversely associated with cognitive skills and behavior problems at ages 3 and 5. The authors found spanking at age 1 was associated with a higher level of spanking and externalizing behavior at age 3, and spanking at age 3 was associated with a higher level of internalizing and externalizing behavior at age 5. The associations between spanking at age 1 and behavioral problems at age 5 operated predominantly through ongoing spanking at age 3. The authors did not find an association between spanking at age 1 and cognitive skills at age 3 or 5. Maguire-Jack, K., A. N. Gromoske, et al. (2012)..