Date of Award

Summer 2025

Embargo Period

4-29-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

Department of Psychology

Program

Clinical Psychology

First Advisor

Elana B. Gordis

Committee Members

James Boswell, Drew Anderson

Keywords

Parasympathetic Nervous System, Synchrony, Romantic Couples, Childhood Maltreatment, Threat, Deprivation

Subject Categories

Clinical Psychology

Abstract

Early responsive caregiving hones children’s physiological systems and subsequently supports social interactions (Feldman, 2007; Porges 2001; Steelman et al, 2002). Conversely, mis-attuned interactions with caregivers, such as exposure to maltreatment subtypes, might hinder social engagement capacities at both behavioral and biological levels (Kim & Cicchetti, 2004; Sheridan & McLaughlin et al., 2014). These early adverse influences endure across development and can affect behavioral and physiological interactions with romantic partners (Mayo et al., 2021; River et al., 2020; Zamir, 2022). Specifically, temporally coordinated patterns of physiological responses between partners (i.e., synchrony) are linked with important relationship behaviors, including conflict behaviors and relationship satisfaction (Mayo et al., 2021). Couples’ physiological activity may rise and fall at the same time as one another (in-phase synchrony), at alternating times (anti-phase synchrony), or show no significant relation to each other (nonconcordance). The current study investigated the influences of maltreatment subtypes on individual physiological reactivity and romantic partners’ patterns of physiological synchrony. A sample of 61 emerging adults (30 couples) engaged in a research study that collected high frequency heartrate variability (HRV) during a conflict discussion and retrospective reports of exposure to three childhood maltreatment subtypes: physical threat, nonphysical threat, and deprivation. Results revealed no significant associations between maltreatment subtypes and individual HRV reactivity. Maximum nonphysical threat exposure across the couple was predictive of anti-phase HRV synchrony (β =-.49, t(24)=.-2.70, p=.01 R2=.27). Follow-up analyses found a significant interaction such that heterosexual couples with males with higher nonphysical threat exposure and females with lower nonphysical threat exposure were more likely to exhibit anti-phase HRV synchrony values (F(3, 18)=3.51, p=.04 R2=.37, ΔR2=.16). Albeit nonsignificant, the summation of partner’s nonphysical threat exposure scores yielded a medium effect size with the same directionality as the above nonphysical threat finding (β =-.37, t(24)=.-1.94, p=.06, R2=.16). Couples’ physical threat and deprivation scores did not significantly predict HRV synchrony. These findings add to and challenge the existing literature on the implications of HRV reactivity and synchrony patterns. Previous literature shows that physiological functioning can be a moderator for psychotherapy treatment outcomes (Mathewson et al., 2013). As such, results from this study might aid in matching couples to appropriate treatments to reduce severe couple mis-attunement, such as intimate partner violence, and potentially disrupt future cycles of maltreatment.

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This work is licensed under the University at Albany Standard Author Agreement.

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