Psychophysiological Methods and Developmental Psychopathology

Abstract

Abstract Psychophysiology—the study of interactions between physiological systems and psychological states and traits—has a long history of use in psychopathology research. Developmental psychopathologists routinely use psychophysiological methods to investigate how individual‐level vulnerabilities (e.g., neural, autonomic) interact with environmental risk factors (e.g., familial, social) to shape and maintain maladaptive behavior. Two overarching goals of such research are to (1) elucidate the etiology and course of psychopathology, including mechanisms of equifinality and multifinality; and (2) prospectively identify individuals who are most vulnerable to psychopathology. In this chapter, we describe several peripheral psychophysiological methods (e.g., cardiovascular, electrodermal, pupillary, electromyographic), review research contexts in which these methods are used, and offer suggestions for designing and executing developmentally sensitive quasi‐experiments aimed at furthering our understanding of emerging psychopathology.

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