Description du projet
Un examen plus approfondi des problèmes de santé mentale chez l’enfant
Dans un monde confronté à une crise de santé mentale en plein essor, environ 12 % des enfants souffrent de problèmes de santé mentale. Avec le soutien du programme Actions Marie Skłodowska-Curie, le projet DevSocMH entend faire la lumière sur la relation complexe entre la cognition sociale et le comportement socio-émotionnel au cours des années formatrices de l’enfance. Si ce lien a été établi chez les enfants plus âgés et les adolescents, la compréhension de ses manifestations chez les nourrissons et les jeunes enfants demeure lacunaire. L’approche consiste à valider une technique de neuro-imagerie portable, la spectroscopie fonctionnelle dans le proche infrarouge, pour retracer les schémas neuronaux. Cette approche pourrait révolutionner les stratégies de détection précoce en cartographiant les fondements neuronaux de la cognition sociale et leur interaction avec le comportement socio-émotionnel.
Objectif
Mental health problems affect approximately 12% of children and have dramatic consequences at the individual and societal level. This mental health crisis is rapidly worsening as a consequence of the pandemic. Understanding mechanisms contributing to mental health outcomes is critical to identify children at risk of unfavorable mental health outcomes and to devise targeted and effective interventions. Since precursors of mental health problems manifest in childhood as altered social behavior, my research project aims to uncover developmental pathways to altered socio-emotional behavior in preschool children. First, I aim to identify cognitive processes underlying socio-emotional behavior that can be directly targeted in interventions. To this end, I propose to study the relationship between social cognition and socioemotional behavior in preschool children. Even though the relationship has been established in older children and adolescents, we lack research focusing on infancy and early childhood. Evidence of this relationship earlier in life promises to have important implications for clinical interventions. Second, I aim to help identify a neural marker of altered behavior that can be leveraged for early detection of at-risk individuals. To this end, I propose to use neuroimaging (functional magnetic resonance imaging or fMRI) to measure the brain network underlying social cognition and examine its association with socioemotional behavior. A critical novel aspect of my work is that I will validate the use of a portable neuroimaging technique (functional near infrared spectroscopy or fNIRS), which can be more easily deployed in clinical practice for early detection strategies.
Champ scientifique
Mots‑clés
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Régime de financement
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European FellowshipsCoordinateur
10117 Berlin
Allemagne