Michelle Bosquet, PhD

Department	Psychiatry
Hospital Title	Assistant in Psychology
Academic Title	Instructor in Psychology
Phone	617-919-4680
Fax	617-730-0759
Email	Michelle Bosquet
Location	21 Autumn Street, 1st floor Boston MA 02115

Research Overview

I am primarily interested in understanding the ways in which children become vulnerable to developing mental health problems early in development. I have specifically focused on studying the impact of maternal anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) on infant emotional and biological development. I am currently investigating associations between mothers' traumatic life experiences and mothers' and infant's abilities to regulate their emotions and their physiological responses to stress. I hope that the information from these studies will help us design intervention programs to prevent the development of mental health problems in vulnerable children.

The three major goals of my research are:

1. To elucidate the specific ways in which patterns of reactivity and regulation among children of mothers with anxiety, depression, and/or PTSD may be maladaptive and the mechanisms by which these patterns develop to inform the design of focused interventions that address the particular areas of risk in these populations.
2. To examine the role of pre-trauma regulation abilities in the risk for PTSD to identify areas of vulnerability and resilience that may be targeted in future interventions with at-risk populations.
3. To demonstrate the ways in which various regulatory systems develop over time and how these systems are interrelated to inform our understanding of various disorders marked by regulatory difficulties.

Translational implications:

Research suggests that children of mothers with mental health difficulties are at increased risk for developing emotional and behavioral problems. My research attempts to elucidate the specific mechanisms by which this increased risk is conferred, particularly in early development. When we understand the nature of the mechanisms involved, we can design more effective interventions that target the relevant pathways. By focusing on early development, I hope to maximize the chances of preventing problems from emerging.

About Michelle Bosquet

Michelle Bosquet received her PhD from the University of Minnesota. She completed her internship and postdoctoral training at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center.

Key Publications

• Bosquet M, Egeland B. The development and maintenance of anxiety symptoms from infancy through adolescence in a longitudinal sample. Dev Psychopathol. 2006;18:517-50.
• Bosquet M, Egeland B. Associations among maternal depressive symptomatology, state of mind and parent and child behaviors: implications for attachment-based interventions. Attach Hum Dev. 2001;3:173-99.
• Bosquet M, Egeland B. Predicting parenting behaviors from Antisocial Practices content scale scores of the MMPI-2 administered during pregnancy. J Pers Assess. 2000;74:146- 62.