评论
打印
The brains of children are affected by family violence in the same way as combat affects soldiers, according to a study, In both cases the brain becomes increasing wary of potential threats. (1)____ Children who suffer abuse or witness domestic violence are known to be at greater risk of anxiety and depression in late life.(2)____
Scientists carried out magnetic resonance imaging brain scans on 20 London children with an average age of 12 who have been exposed to documented violence at home.(3)____ All had referred tn local social services.(4)____ While in the scanner the children were hown pictures of male or female faces with sad, calm or angry expressions.(5)____ Their patterns of brain activity were compared with that of 23 matched children with no history of family violence. (6)____ The children exposed to violence responded in the distinct way to angry faces, the study found Their brains showed heightened activation in two regions associated with threat detection.(7)____
Previous research has shown a similar pattern in the brains of soldiers exposed to violence combat situations. The scans suggest both combat veteran soldiers and children who witness violence tuning their brains to be hyper-aware of environmental danger.(8)____
Lead author Dr Eamon McCrory, from UCL's Division of Psyehology and Language Sciences, said: "We are only now begining to understand how child abuse influences function of the brain's emotional systems.(9)____ This research isimportant because it provides with our first clues as to how regions in the child’s brain may adapt to early experiences of abuse in the home."(10)____
