This K-01 Award will allow the candidate to gain the skills and knowledge necessary to become a leading expert and independent investigator of child maltreatment and developmental psychopathology with focused expertise in the processes contributing to psychopathology in children and adolescents who have experienced maltreatment and other forms of trauma. Child maltreatment has been identified as a profound risk factor for compromised normal development and psychopathology. To understand the etiology, process, and sequelae of child abuse and neglect and to inform prevention and intervention efforts, it is crucial to study mechanisms and processes that eventuate in adaptive versus maladaptive outcome. Research on child maltreatment and psychopathology will particularly benefit from applying advanced methodology for longitudinal analyses to study dynamic processes in the development of psychopathology among maltreated children. The proposed line of research focuses on longitudinal analyses of developmental pathways to psychopathology among maltreated children. Project #1 involves secondary data analyses of 814 children (492 maltreated and 322 nonmaltreated) ages of 5.5 to approximately 11.5 years who participated in a summer camp research program. The goals of Project #1 are: 1) to specify risk and protective mechanisms (self-esteem, social competence, and mother-child relationship quality) that are involved in negative developmental outcomes of child abuse and neglect, and 2) to investigate the longitudinal trajectory of psychopathology and maladjustment in maltreated children. Project #2 involves new data collection of 150 children (75 maltreated and 75 nonmaltreated), ages of 5.5 to approximately 11.5 years who participate in a summer camp research program, and their parents. The goal of Project #2 is to examine the associations of these parental context variables (marital conflict, depressive symptoms, PTSD, religiosity and perceived social support) with children's internalizing and externalizing symptomatology and PTSD. To achieve these research and career goals, the candidate will follow a career development plan that consists of: 1) mentorship and consultation with nationally and internationally recognized experts in child maltreatment, developmental psychopathology, and longitudinal data methodology; 2) academic course work to further develop research skills and to enhance knowledge of developmental psychopathology; 3) longitudinal analyses of developmental pathways of behavioral and psychological adjustment in children who have been abused and neglected. The proposed research will help the field move toward more focused research questions about the causes and consequences of child maltreatment and the multiple developmental pathways leading toward and away from lifelong patterns of psychopathology. Furthermore, the proposed research will provide critical information for the development of effective preventive interventions for child abuse and neglect.
