Camelia Hostinar

I am seeking to understand the development of individual differences in stress reactivity and their potential influence on psychological and physical health. A vast body of research has shown that social support is an important moderator of life stress and a protective factor against physical and psychological illness. However, we have yet to deconstruct the active ingredients and the underlying psychobiological mechanisms of action for this natural stress buffer. In pursuit of this goal, my research aims to investigate five general questions: a) what are the neurobiological pathways that transduce social support and how do they interact with stress physiology (the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the sympathetic-adreno-medullary system); b) how do individual genetic characteristics related to the neurobiological systems described above interact with life experiences to shape different levels of stress reactivity as well as varying levels of receptivity to social support?; c) how do individual differences in stress reactivity and in receptivity to the benefits of social support relate to immune competence and other important biomarkers of overall health? d) what types of social support interventions could be shown to impact these systems, and which dimensions of support are effective under what contexts?; e) what are the optimal developmental periods for these interventions, given what is known about normative social development and the development of brain systems involved in stress-responding? These questions have important implications for understanding ways to capitalize on social support for reducing the burden of stress-related mental and physical illnesses and for promoting beneficial health outcomes across the lifespan.

Peer-reviewed Journal Articles

Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (accepted, pending minor revisions). Future directions in the study of social relationships as stress regulators across development. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology.

Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (accepted). The developmental effects of early life stress: A review of current theoretical frameworks. Current Directions in Psychological Science.

Hostinar, C. E., Sullivan, R. M., & Gunnar, M. R. (in press). Psychobiological mechanisms underlying the social buffering of the HPA axis: A review of animal models and human studies across development. Psychological Bulletin.

Hostinar, C. E., Stellern, S. A., Schaefer, C., Carlson, S. M., & Gunnar, M. R. (2012). Associations between early life adversity and executive function in children adopted internationally from orphanages. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA, 109(2), 17208-12.

Güler, E. O, Hostinar C. E., Frenn, K. A, Nelson, C. A, Gunnar, M. R., & Thomas, M. R. (2012). Electrophysiological evidence of altered memory processing in children experiencing early deprivation. Developmental Science, 15(3), 345-58.

Osterholm, E. A., Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (2012). Alterations in stress responses of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in small for gestational age infants. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 37(10), 1719-25.

Chapters

Hostinar, C. E. & Gunnar, M. R. (2013). The developmental psychobiology of stress and emotion in childhood. In I. B. Weiner, D. K. Freedheim, & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of Psychology (2nd edition, pp. 121-141). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

Gunnar, M. R., Herrera, A., & Hostinar, C. E. (2009). Stress and early brain development. In R. E. Tremblay, R. G. Barr, R. D. Peters, & M. Boivin (Eds.), Encyclopedia on Early Childhood Development (pp. 1-8). Montreal, Quebec: Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development.

Under Review

Lawler, J. M., Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (revised and resubmitted). Disinhibited social approach in post-institutionalized children: Differentiating normal from atypical behavior.

Lucas-Thompson, R. G., & Hostinar, C. E. (revised and resubmitted). Family income and appraisals of parental conflict as predictors of psychological adjustment and diurnal cortisol in emerging adulthood.

Hostinar, C. E., Cicchetti, D., & Rogosch, F. A. (under review). Oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) polymorphism and perceived social support predict total psychological symptoms in maltreated adolescents.

Carlson, E. A., Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (under review). The emergence of attachment following early social deprivation.

In Preparation (selected)

Hostinar, C. E., Donzella, B., & Gunnar, M. R. (in prep). Early deprivation and HPA axis function in children adopted internationally from orphanages.

Hostinar, C. E., Quevedo, K., Johnson, A. E., Loman, M. L., Lafavor, T. L., & Gunnar, M. R. (in prep). Early life stress and conflict with family predicts cortisol awakening responses in adolescents.

Conference Presentations

Hostinar, C. E., Johnson, A. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (2013, April, accepted). Parent support dampens cortisol stress reactivity in children but not adolescents. Paper accepted for presentation at the SRCD Biennial Meeting in Seattle, WA.

Gunnar, M. R., & Hostinar, C. E. (2013, April, accepted). An overview of current theoretical frameworks on stress and disease. Paper accepted for presentation at the SRCD Biennial Meeting in Seattle, WA.

Johnson, A. E., Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (2013, April, accepted). Early life stress and psychosocial stress reactivity before and after the pubertal transition. Paper accepted for presentation at the SRCD Biennial Meeting in Seattle, WA.

Pintar, A. I., Hostinar, C. E., Frenn, K. A., Donzella, B., & Gunnar, M. R. (2013, April, accepted). EEG power and behavioral measures of self-regulation in post-institutionalized children. Poster accepted for presentation at the SRCD Biennial Meeting in Seattle, WA.

Hostinar, C. E., Osterholm, E. A., & Gunnar, M. R. (2012, June). Alterations in cortisol stress responses in small for gestational age neonates. Poster presented at the International Conference on Infant Studies, Minneapolis, MN.

Hostinar, C. E., Doom, J. R., Mliner, S. B.., & Gunnar, M. R. (2012, June). The effects of early life stress and parenting characteristics on stress physiology in early childhood. Poster presented at the International Conference on Infant Studies, Minneapolis, MN.

Lawler, J. M., Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (2012, June). Parenting quality among international adoption families. Paper presented at the International Conference on Infant Studies, Minneapolis, MN.

Hostinar, C. E., Mliner, S. B., & Gunnar, M. R. (2011, November). Parenting dimension impacting HPA axis function during recovery from early life stress. Paper presented at the International Society for Developmental Psychobiology, Washington, DC.

Lawler, J. M., Hostinar, C. E., & Gunnar, M. R. (2011, November). HPA functioning soon after adoption predicts continuing indiscriminate friendliness behavior in internationally adopted children. Paper presented at the International Society for Developmental Psychobiology, Washington, DC.

Gunnar, M. R., & Hostinar, C. E. (2011, December). The developmental effects of early life stress: Adaptations or impairments? Paper presented at the Sackler Colloquium of the National Academy of Sciences, Irvine, CA.

Hostinar, C. E., Frenn, K. A., McQuillan, M. T., Schaefer, C., Carlson, S. M., & Gunnar, M. R. (2011, March). Executive function deficits in post-institutionalized children one year after adoption. Poster presented at the Society for Research in Child Development Biennial Meeting, Montreal, Canada.

Hostinar, C. E., Mliner, S. B., & Gunnar, M. R. (2010, March). The emergence of secure attachment and indiscriminate friendliness in post-institutionalized adopted children. Poster presented at the International Conference on Infant Studies, Baltimore, MD.

Hostinar, C. E., & Johnson, C. T. (2010, March). The relationship between depression, personality, and the cortisol response to psychological stress. Poster presented at the Eastern Psychological Association Annual Conference, New York, NY.

Hostinar, C. E., & Brand, B. L. (2007, April). Trauma prevalence among college students. Poster presented at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Conference for the Dissemination of Research on Addiction, Infectious Disease and Public Health, Baltimore, MD.