TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The University of Alabama is preparing to spearhead a study on the effects natural disasters have on children.
AL.com reported Monday that the university has been given a $1.9 million grant to fund a five-year study to focus on the impact natural disasters, like the April 27, 2011 tornado, have on externalized behaviors in children - like aggression and bullying.
Aside from behavioral data, clinical psychology professor John Lochman says researchers will also collect data on children's nervous system functioning. He says some believe traumatic events impact children's nervous system functions and can make them hyperactive afterward.
Lochman says researchers from the University of Alabama are partnering with researchers from the University of Kansas, the University of Minnesota and King's College in London.