Child Anxiety and Mood Lab

About 

We are a developmental psychopathology laboratory that conducts multi-method, multi-informant longitudinal research to better understand childhood risk for the onset and course of anxiety, mood dysregulation and related difficulties (e.g., eating disorders). We investigate factors such as child temperament, psychosocial functioning, stressors, sleep, as well as parenting behavior and psychopathology We are particularly interested in characterizing the spectrum of emotions and behaviors in preschool-aged children to better understand risk for psychological difficulties over time. We use intensive longitudinal methods (e.g., ecological momentary assessment), questionnaires, diagnostic interviews, structured laboratory observations and behavioral tasks and physiological assessment. 

Key Research Areas

• Developmental psychopathology
• Child psychology
• Anxiety
• Mood dysregulation (e.g., irritability, depression)
• Temperament
• Sleep
• Interoception
• Parenting
• Stress
• Eating disorders

Current Projects

• Youth Eating Study (YES)
• Child and Parent Emotions & Sleep Study (ChESS)
• Daily Interactions and Life with Young Children Study (DAILY)
• Pediatric Providers’ Experiences Assessing Young Children’s Anxiety and Mood (PEDS) study
• Preschool Emotion Project (PEP)

Recent Publications

• Alacha, H. F., Isaac, A., Gemmell, N., Dougherty, L. R., Olino, T. M., & Bufferd, S. J. (2026). Comparison of global and daily ratings of associations between anxiety and depressive behaviors and impairment in preschool-aged children. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 57, 89-100. doi: 10.1007/s10578-024-01697-z 
• Faulkner, L. M., Levinson, C. A., Klein, D. N. & Bufferd, S. J. (In press). Impact of parent lifetime depression and anxiety on youth body dissatisfaction and disordered eating symptoms during adolescence. Behavior Therapy.
• Rodriguez, A., Isaac, A., Dougherty, L. R., Klein, D. N., & Bufferd, S. J. (2025). Sleep difficulties across preschool age: Associations with parenting behavior and parental psychopathology. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 34, 1031-1047. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-025-03020-3
• Bufferd, S. J., Isaac, A., Olino, T., M., & Dougherty, L. R. (2024). Mapping the duration and severity of preschool-aged children’s depressive behaviors. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 65, 1156-1164. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13954
• Grieshaber, A., Silver, J., Bufferd, S. J., Dougherty, L. R., Carlson, G. A., & Klein, D. N. (2024). Early childhood anxiety disorders: continuity and predictors in adolescence. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 33, 1817-1825.https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-023-02287-5
• Isaac, A., Rodriguez, A., D’Anna-Hernandez, K., Gemmell, N., Acedo, G., Dougherty, L. R., & Bufferd, S. J. (2023). Preschool-aged children’s hair cortisol and parents’ behavior, psychopathology, and stress. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 151,106052. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2023.106052
• Bufferd, S. J., Olino, T. M., & Dougherty, L. R. (2023). Quantifying severity of preschool-aged children’s internalizing behaviors: A daily diary analysis. Assessment, 30, 190-209. doi: 10.1177/10731911211046661
• Bufferd, S. J., Levinson, C. A., Olino, T. M., Dougherty, L. R., Dyson, M. W., Carlson, G. A., & Klein, D. N. (2022). Temperament and psychopathology in early childhood predict body dissatisfaction and eating disorder symptoms in adolescence. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 151, 104039. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2022.104039   
• Chad-Friedman, E., Leppert, K. A., Olino, T. M., Bufferd, S. J., & Dougherty, L. R. (2022). Affective dynamics and mean levels of preschool irritability and sadness: Predictors of children’s psychological functioning two years later. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 53, 244-255. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-021-01121-w
• Leppert, K. A., Bufferd, S. J., Olino, T. M., & Dougherty, L. R. (2019). A daily diary analysis of preschool depressive behaviors: Prospective associations and moderators across 14 days. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 47, 1547-1558. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10802-019-00535-4
• Bufferd, S. J., Dougherty, L. R., & Olino, T. M. (2019). Mapping the frequency and severity of anxiety in preschool-aged children. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 63, 9-17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2019.01.006
• Bufferd, S. J., Dougherty, L. R., Olino, T. M., Dyson, M. W., Carlson, G. A., & Klein, D. N. (2018). Temperament distinguishes persistent/recurrent from remitting anxiety disorders across early childhood. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 47, 1004-1013. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2016.1212362
• Bufferd, S. J., Dougherty, L. R., & Olino, T. M. (2017). Mapping the frequency and severity of depressive behaviors in preschool-aged children. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 48, 934–943. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10578-017-0715-2
• Bufferd, S. J., Dyson, M. W., Hernandez, I. G., & Wakschlag, L. S. (2016). Explicating the “developmental” in preschool psychopathology. In D. Cicchetti (Ed.), Developmental Psychopathology, Third Edition (pp. 152-186). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Team 

Sara Bufferd, Lab Director

Sara.Bufferd@louisville.edu | 502-852-9174
View Research Profile

• PhD Students:
  • Akira Isaac
  • Loie Faulkner
  • Lucy Block
  • Rakshitha Yelimineti
• Postdoctoral Fellows:
  • Aubrey Hoffer
  • Amy Jordan
• Study Coordinators:
  • Anna Jane Anderson
  • Zeeba Fatehimanesh