Text Box:      Meet Dr. Jones 

Text Box: Nancy Aaron Jones is an Associate Professor of Psychology and Biomedical Science.  She directs the Developmental Psychophysiology Lab, which investigates biological and socio-emotional factors that influence development, specifically focusing on the processes by which maternal psychopathology influences infant and childhood development. Developmental psychophysiology recognizes that both biological factors and social factors interact during development Current theories and research into brain development note that the frontal lobes continue to develop throughout early childhood. Our goal is to examine the factors that contribute to risk and resilience in the development of frontal lobe function and emotional competence, specifically the development of empathic and pro-social versus anti-social responding. Individual differences in temperament and social interactive attachments to parents impact the trajectory to emotionally competent functioning during childhood and into adulthood. Our current research, funded in part by the National Institutes of Mental Health, is designed to explore and understand the contributors to optimal infant development. We are currently conducting projects to understand the frontal lobe development across infancy, the influence of maternal depression on the physiological and behavioral patterns during infancy, and the role of emotional and nutritional factors as protective factors for optimal infant development. Understanding the risks associated with maternal depression during development is also a topic we strive to investigate further. These topics are investigated with laboratory experiments utilizing measures of EEG and ECG activation patterns, measures of infant temperament, and by microanalytic coding of patterns of mother-infant interactions.  For Dr. Jones' complete C.V., click here.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                            

 

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