Animal and human studies have emphasized the primacy of early life experience on later development. However, much of the existing research on precisely how early life shapes development is founded on studies that rely on mono-theoretical, non-integrated perspectives. Typically, for example, neurobiologists using animal models focus exclusively on the effects of discrete stressors on the subsequent physiological changes and development of the organism, without considering some of the rich and varied contextual factors at play outside the laboratory that may also influence physiology. Likewise, anthropologists focus on culture and meanings with respect to the individual and social group, without considering their impact on neurobiological mechanisms that influence development. As a result, both the biological and social sciences may have, understandably, failed to consider multiple factors that both interact with each other and mutually influence human development, particularly those factors that happen to fall outside their respective disciplines. We propose a conference that seeks to fill this gap by examining how early experiences in the first several years of life contribute to resilience and mental well being or vulnerability to psychopathologies, such as anxiety, depression, and stress-related disorders. In particular, we will look at normative child development from combined neurobiological and cross-cultural perspectives, especially at how socially constructed contexts and normative environments impact physiological, social, and psychological development. The conference will bring together a multi-disciplinary team of researchers and scholars, representing the fields of anthropology, neurobiology, cognitive neuroscience, psychology, and psychiatry. Through presentations and roundtable discussions we want to involve a diverse audience of scholars interested in interactions between biology, psychology, and cultural anthropology that will collectively explore how cultural settings and brain development interact and affect early life experience and development.
