title: Children's skin conductance level and reactivity: are these measures stable over time and across tasks?
abstract: The stability of children's skin conductance level during baselines (SCL-B) and SCL reactivity (SCL-R) were examined longitudinally. During two laboratory sessions (T1 and T2), 2 years apart, children participated in procedures during which they were exposed to two stressors namely exposure to an audiotaped conflict between two adults, and a problem solving task. Children ranged in age between 6 and 13 years at T1. Measures of SCL-B and SCL-R during the two stressors were obtained. Findings illustrated the temporal stability of SCL-B and SCL-R to the star-tracing task over 2 years. Results also indicated stability in SCL-R to the two stressors (argument and problem-solving) examined within the same session at either T1 or T2. These results support the proposition that SCL-B and SCL-R constitute stable individual differences at the ages examined, and build on the scant longitudinal literature on psychophysiological development in children.
authors.affiliation: Human Development and Family Studies 203 Spidle Hall, Auburn University Auburn, Alabama 36849, USA. elshemm@auburn.edu
authors.forename: Mona
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: El-Sheikh
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D011627:Puberty / Q000502:physiology; D013997:Time Factors