Impact of Traumatic Life Events in a Community Sample of Toddlers

• Published in: Journal of abnormal child psychology Vol. 37; no. 4; pp. 455 - 468
• Main Authors: Mongillo, Elizabeth A., Briggs-Gowan, Margaret, Ford, Julian D., Carter, Alice S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer US 01.05.2009; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Abnormal psychology; Adaptation, Psychological; Anxiety disorders; Arousal Patterns; At Risk Persons; Behavior Problems; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Biological and medical sciences; Child and School Psychology; Child Behavior Checklist; Child clinical studies; Child Development; Child psychology; Child, Preschool; Cohort Studies; Connecticut; Emotional Development; Externalizing behaviour; Female; Humans; Infant; Infants; Internalization; Language Skills; Life Change Events; Male; Medical sciences; Neurosciences; Parents; Post traumatic stress disorder; Posttraumatic Stress Disorder; Preschool children; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Public Health; Social behavior disorders; Social Development; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - epidemiology; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - etiology; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic - psychology; Stress Variables; Stress, Psychological - complications; Stress, Psychological - psychology; Surveys and Questionnaires; Symptoms; Symptoms (Individual Disorders); Toddlers; Trauma; Young Children; Connecticut; Life events; Toddlers; Emotion regulation; Post-traumatic stress disorder; Behavior problems; Human; Affect affectivity; Behavior problems . Post-traumatic stress disorder; Toddlers . Life events . Emotion regulation; Anxiety disorder; Self regulation; Infant; Emotion emotionality; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Stress; Behavioral disorder
• ISSN: 0091-0627; 2730-7166; 1573-2835; 2730-7174
• DOI: 10.1007/s10802-008-9283-z

Toddlers may be at particularly high risk for a number of psychiatric, developmental and neurobiological consequences in the aftermath of trauma. The social and emotional impact of potentially traumatic life events experienced between 6 and 36-months of age was assessed in an epidemiological birth cohort of 18- to 36-month-olds from the Greater New Haven Area. Event-exposed toddlers evidenced greater symptom severity on the ITSEA Internalizing, Externalizing, Dysregulation, Atypical and Maladaptive scales, as well on the CBCL Internalizing and Externalizing scales than those not exposed. Approximately one-fifth of event-exposed toddlers were reported by their parents to have experienced a dramatic change in functioning following the event, and were described as experiencing higher levels of symptoms consistent with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), namely re-experiencing and arousal, than exposed toddlers whose parents did not report a change in their functioning. Implications for clinicians and child care providers working with toddlers and their parents are discussed.