Premium
Deconstructing Cumulative Risk: Poverty and Aspects of Instability Relate Uniquely to Young Children’s Basal Cortisol
Author(s) -
Brown Eleanor D.,
Holochwost Steven J.,
Laurenceau JeanPhilippe,
Garnett Mallory L.,
Anderson Kate E.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/cdev.13512
Subject(s) - psychology , cumulative risk , developmental psychology , poverty , cortisol awakening response , multilevel model , basal (medicine) , clinical psychology , hydrocortisone , endocrinology , medicine , machine learning , computer science , insulin , economics , economic growth
This study deconstructs cumulative risk to probe unique relations to basal cortisol for family income and four distinct aspects of poverty‐related instability. Participants were 288 children aged 3–5 years who attended Head Start preschool. Parents reported on poverty risks. Children provided samples of salivary cortisol at four times of day on 6 days. Results of hierarchical linear modeling with piecewise latent growth curves representing basal cortisol indicated unique relations for family income, household chaos, neighborhood risk, attachment‐disruptive residential changes, and non‐attachment changes. The findings support an equifinality implied by cumulative risk models in demonstrating that multiple risks relate to cortisol dysregulation yet also suggest the utility of considering unique effects of different risks for neurophysiological stress response functioning.