Uncovering the science of stress

Feelings of stress, anxiety, and instability are a part of daily life. But when those feelings get out of control, they can have lifelong ramifications on our mental and physical health.

Developmental scientists at the University of Georgia are helping us understand where those feelings come from and how we can manage them through critical, practical research.

Understanding the Impact of Stress

Combining social science, psychology, neuroscience, and other disciplines, developmental science explores connections between our behavior, our circumstances, and our well-being. In recent years, Assaf Oshri, with the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, has published groundbreaking research on stress and its impact on our bodies and minds.

In 2022, Oshri’s research revealed that while chronic, uncontrollable stress becomes toxic, time-limited stress in supportive, manageable contexts helps us build mental resilience and reduce our risk of developmental disorders. In addition, low to moderate levels of stress can improve our brain functioning and memory, Oshri found. With a new $3.2 million NIH grant, he is now studying how environmental stressors, socioeconomic status, and more can affect children’s brain development.

“There are specific experiences that can help you evolve or develop skills that will prepare you for the future,” Oshri said, referring to how some stress can be psychologically beneficial. “But at a certain point, stress becomes toxic. Chronic stress, like the stress that comes from living in abject poverty or being abused, can have very bad health and psychological consequences.”

Keeping Families Strong & Helping Kids Thrive

Oshri founded and directs the Georgia Center for Developmental Science, an interdisciplinary research hub that brings together faculty across the University of Georgia and supports student training. Research from this center has explored the impact of phone usage on adolescent social connection, how to support children with anxiety, and how improving children’s sleep quality and duration may reduce their mental health struggles, garnering widespread attention from global news outlets.

But adolescents aren’t this field’s only focus. Professors in UGA’s Department of Human Development and Family Science recently outlined the nuanced impacts of stressors like strained finances and time constraints on parents’ overall happiness, and how mindfulness can help couples tackle challenges together.

This ongoing research into the complexities of child development, parenting, and overall family health not only shows the impacts of stress on our lives and relationships but points us toward practical solutions. Maybe it’s limiting a child’s phone usage, being more mindful, or even just getting more sleep. Thanks to the work of UGA’s developmental scientists, solutions like these are becoming clearer.

This story originally appeared on the UGA impact page.