Editorial: Are Neural Biomarkers Valid for All Children?

Abstract

Poverty-like all life experiences-can change the developing brain. Psychopathology can, too. But how? And when? And why? And what happens to brain development when children face both poverty and pathology at the same time? With 1 in 5 children growing up poor in the United States today-each at higher risk for developing depression-answering these questions remains among public mental health's most important imperatives. Yet doing so is wickedly challenging: investigators must decipher a wide array of interacting social and biological processes.