Date of Award
Spring 2-4-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Kimberly D'Anna-Hernandez
Second Advisor
Jacklynn Fitzgerald
Third Advisor
Lindsay Holly
Abstract
Stress in the perinatal period is associated with long term maternal and infant health outcomes and is disproportionately experienced by marginalized groups, worsening existing health disparities. Mexican-Americans, the largest subgroup of Latines in the United States, experience stressors including discrimination and acculturative stress (i.e., stress resulting from adapting to mainstream culture while maintaining ties the culture of origin). These stressors are associated with adverse maternal mental health outcomes which are in turn associated with adverse infant outcomes. According to the prenatal programming theory, environmental factors experienced during pregnancy can impact the developing fetal nervous system, leading to long-term health impacts. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA-axis) develops in utero and is involved in stress regulation. This study aims to determine the association between maternal sociocultural stressors and infant HPA-axis functioning. Women of Mexican descent were recruited during their first trimester of pregnancy and self-reported on experiences of discrimination and acculturative stress. Infant saliva samples were collected at 1-2 weeks and 6-8 weeks postpartum following a mock-medical exam and a vaccine paradigm, respectively. Infant salivary cortisol output was classified into three groups via k-means clustering for each type of cortisol measurement (AUC, reactivity, and recovery). One-way analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were conducted to examine whether maternal sociocultural stress differed by patterns of infant cortisol responses. Acculturative stress did not differ across any cortisol response type, and discrimination was not associated with infant cortisol reactivity or AUC. However, discrimination was significantly associated with infant cortisol recovery following a stressor (p < .05). Infants exposed prenatally to higher maternal discrimination showed slower cortisol recovery, despite having typical initial responses and overall cortisol output. The present study’s findings indicate that infants’ capacity to regulate cortisol responses after a stressor are impaired even if their initial cortisol reaction and overall cortisol output is typical and unrelated to social stressors. This slower return to baseline indicates that the stress-response system remains “on” for longer than it should. Understanding physiological responses related to prenatal exposure to sociocultural stressors highlights the need for culturally responsive intervention and support during pregnancy for marginalized women who experience discrimination.