Biobehavioral Markers in Risk and Resilience Research

This comprehensive reference explores the current and future state of biobehavioral markers in family resilience research, with special focus on linking biological and physiological measures to behavioral and health outcomes. It brings together the latest biobehavioral data on child-parent and couple relationships, adversity, and other key areas reflecting new technological advances in biobehavioral studies and translates these findings into implications for real-world practice and policy. The contributors' insights on biomarkers apply to emerging topics of interest (e.g., molecular genetics) as well as familiar ones (e.g., stress). Their interdisciplinary perspective helps to elaborate on risk and resilience factors for those creating the next generation of evidence-based interventions.
Among the topics covered:

• The immune system as a sensor and regulator of stress: implications in human development and disease
  
• The psychobiology of family dynamics: bidirectional relationships with adrenocortical attunement
  
• Intergenerational transmission of poverty: how low socioeconomic status impacts the neurobiology of two generations
  
• The influence of teacher-child relationships on preschool children's cortisol levels
  
• Challenges and strategies for integrating molecular genetics into behavioral science
  

Besides its worth to researchers and practitioners studying and working with families at risk, Biobehavioral Markers in Risk and Resilience Research also has utility as a training text, offering a highly accessible presentation and discussion questions suited to classroom use.

Amanda W. Harrist received her Ph.D. in Child and Family Studies from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She is currently a Professor of Human Development and Family Science at Oklahoma State University, where she is also Associate Director for Education and Translation at the Center for Family Resilience and Core Director, Human & Community Research Training Core for the Center for Integrative Research on Childhood Adversity. Her research is focused on understanding psychosocial risk and protective processes in children's social contexts, particularly the parent-child relationship and peer relations at school.

Brandt C. Gardner received his Ph.D. in Marriage & Family Therapy from Texas Tech University. He is currently an Associate Professor of Human Development and Family Science at Oklahoma State University. He spends the majority of his professional time teaching about and studying communication processes and interaction dynamics in marital and couple relationships.