Normal birth weight variation and children's neuropsychological functioning: links between language, executive functioning, and theory of mind

Growth and physical development of children at apparent risk of sarcopenia

BACKGROUND

The consequences of sarcopenia on growth have received little attention. We analysed the potential risk resulting from the low lean mass for age expressed through the appendicular lean body mass index (aLBMI) and the ratio aLBM/trunk fat mass (trFM).

METHODS

The sample consisted of 580 participants 10-13 yrs evaluated twice in a 12-month interval: height, trFM, total and aLBM, whole-body bone mineral density less head (WBLH BMD), tibia and radius SOS, maturity and handgrip strength were measured. All variables except maturity and BMI were standardised according to sex and age group (Z-score) using the sample as a reference. A high risk of sarcopenia was identified for Z-scores ≤ -1 on aLBMI (Group B) or aLBM/trFM (Group C), while Z-scores > -1 on both markers were considered at low risk for sarcopenia (Group A). The ANCOVA adjusted for maturity was used to compare the three groups.

RESULTS

Girls showed a more significant decrease in the total BMC/LBM ratio in Group B and a minor increase in WBLH BMD in Group C (p < 0.050); boys in Group B showed a tendency to gain less height (p = 0.053).

CONCLUSION

The high risk of sarcopenia expressed through aLBMI or aLBM/trFM Z-score ≤ -1 compromises bone mineralisation in girls.

IMPACT

The findings emphasise the necessity of implementing routine screening protocols for sarcopenia risk within clinical environments and educational institutions. Such screenings should extend beyond merely assessing body mass index to encompass broader body composition variables like lean body mass. By integrating these assessments into routine health evaluations, healthcare professionals and educators can proactively identify at-risk individuals and initiate timely interventions for suboptimal physical growth and development.

From terrible twos to sassy sixes: The development of vocabulary and executive functioning across early childhood

Across the early childhood period of development, young children exhibit considerable growth in their executive functioning (EF) and vocabulary abilities. Understanding the developmental trajectory of these seemingly interrelated processes is important as both early vocabulary and EF have been shown to predict critical academic and socio-emotional outcomes later in childhood. Although previous research suggests that EF and vocabulary are correlated in early childhood, much of the existing longitudinal research has focused on unidirectional relations among preschool child samples. The current large-scale study, therefore, sought to examine whether children's vocabulary and EF abilities are bidirectionally related over time across four measurement waves in early childhood (i.e., at ages 2, 3, 4, and 6). At each timepoint, children's vocabulary skills were positively correlated with their concurrent EF abilities. After controlling for child sex and maternal education status, the best-fitting, cross-lagged panel model was a unidirectional model whereby children's early vocabulary scores predicted their later EF performance at each timepoint. Although age 2 EF significantly predicted age 3 vocabulary size, this association was no longer significant after accounting for maternal education status. Our results illustrate that vocabulary size plays an important role in predicting children's later EF performance across various timepoints in early childhood, even after controlling for children's initial EF scores. These findings have important implications for intervention research as fostering early vocabulary acquisition may serve as a possible avenue for improving EF outcomes in young children. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Children's vocabulary size is positively correlated with their concurrent executive functioning skill at ages 2, 3, 4, and 6 Young children's early vocabulary scores predict their later EF performance across measurement waves, even after controlling for initial EF skill There is stability in children's relative vocabulary size and executive functioning performance over time in early childhood.

Relations between Positive Parenting Behavior during Play and Child Language Development at Early Ages

Parental behavior in interactions with children has been related to child language development. Our study contributes to the literature about relations between the characteristics of parent–child interactions during play and a child’s language development in typically developing children at early ages, with data from mothers and fathers from the same families in Spain. Our aim was to analyze the relation between positive parenting behaviors assessed with the Spanish version of the Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO) and child language development assessed with the Bayley-III scales. We controlled for some sociodemographic variables. The participants were 90 children aged 15–31 months and their mothers and fathers. Bivariate analysis showed significant positive relations between mothers’ responsive, encouraging and teaching behaviors and a child’s language scores. Relations were found between fathers’ encouraging and teaching behaviors and a child’s language. Regression models indicate that maternal and paternal encouraging behaviors predicted 18% of the variability in the child’s receptive language, and maternal responsive and teaching behaviors predicted 16% of the variability in the child’s expressive language and total language scores. The study provides new data that support the relevance of positive parental behaviors to improve a child’s linguistic development.

Maternal early exposure to violence, psychopathology, and child adaptive functioning: pre- and postnatal programming

BACKGROUND

The pre- and postnatal programming mechanisms, timing, and direction of effects linking maternal early exposure to violence (MEEV), psychopathology, and child adaptive functioning are understudied. Thus, the following hypotheses were tested: (H1) higher pre- and postnatal maternal psychopathology will predict lower adaptive functioning, (H2) lower adaptive functioning will predict higher subsequent maternal psychopathology, (H3) cumulative effects of MEEV on maternal psychopathology and adaptive functioning will be observed, and (H4) higher MEEV will predict lower adaptive functioning via maternal psychopathology both pre- and postnatally.

METHODS

Prospective pregnancy cohort study including 1503 mother-child dyads with associations between MEEV, psychopathology, and child adaptive functioning examined using cross-lagged panel analysis. Assessment occurred in the third trimester and annually across the first four years of life.

RESULTS

Higher pre- and postnatal maternal psychopathology predicted lower child adaptive functioning at 12 and 24 months, respectively. MEEV predicted maternal psychopathology cumulatively and offered a repeated prediction of adaptive functioning across the first two years of the child's life, operating predominantly through maternal psychopathology during pregnancy. Child effects on mothers were not observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Like in socioemotional assessment, pediatric assessment of child adaptive functioning should consider the intergenerational transmission of MEEV.

IMPACT

Associations between maternal early exposure to violence (MEEV), psychopathology, and child socioemotional development is well documented. Much less is known about the pre- and postnatal programming mechanisms, timing, and direction of effects between MEEV, maternal psychopathology, and child adaptive functioning. Findings suggest associations of both prenatal and postnatal maternal psychopathology with child adaptive functioning, though the effects of MEEV were more strongly operative through the prenatal pathway. Pediatric assessment and interventions surrounding adaptive functioning should consider the potential role of MEEV in shaping children's health and development, in addition to potential consequences of pre- and postnatal maternal mental health.

The association between birth weight and proxy-reported health-related quality of life among children aged 5 - 10 years old: A linked data analysis

Background

Birth weight has a substantial effect on children’s cognitive development, physical capability, and emotional development, which in turn impact on Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). Generally, evidence indicates that children born with low birth weight tend to have poorer proxy-reported HRQoL, particularly at school age. However, there is limited evidence on whether variation in HRQoL exists across the entire range of possible birth weights. This study aimed to examine the association between birth weight and proxy-reported HRQoL among children aged 5–10 years old.

Methods

Data from the 1973–78 cohort of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health were linked with state-based Perinatal Data Collections and the Mothers and their Children’s Health study for 1,589 mothers and 2,092 children aged 5 − 10 years old. Generalized estimating equations were used to model the association between birth weight and proxy-reported HRQoL measured by the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0. Results are presented as odds ratios with 95 % confidence intervals.

Results

In this study, 15.61 % of children were at risk of impaired proxy-reported HRQoL. Each 100-gram increase in birth weight was associated with a 3 % reduction in the odds of impaired HRQoL (AOR = 0.97; 95 % CI: 0.94, 0.99). However, there was only limited evidence of an effect within the normal birth weight range (AOR = 0.97; 95 % CI: 0.94, 1.01).

Conclusions

The findings indicate that increased birth weight was protective against impaired HRQoL, although there was limited evidence of variability within the normal birth weight range. This study contributes to the existing literature by not only emphasizing the impact of low birth weight on children’s health and health-related outcomes but also by focusing on the variability within the normal birth weight range, particularly in a setting where low birth weight is less prevalent.

Linking Quality and Quantity of Parental Linguistic Input to Child Language Skills: A Meta-Analysis

This meta-analysis examined associations between the quantity and quality of parental linguistic input and children's language. Pooled effect size for quality (i.e., vocabulary diversity and syntactic complexity; k = 35; N = 1,958; r = .33) was more robust than for quantity (i.e., number of words/tokens/utterances; k = 33; N = 1,411; r = .20) of linguistic input. For quality and quantity of parental linguistic input, effect sizes were stronger when input was observed in naturalistic contexts compared to free play tasks. For quality of parental linguistic input, effect sizes also increased as child age and observation length increased. Effect sizes were not moderated by socioeconomic status or child gender. Findings highlight parental linguistic input as a key environmental factor in children's language skills.

Patterns of growth in executive functioning during school years: Contributions of early mother-child attachment security and maternal autonomy support

Executive functioning (EF) undergoes marked developmental improvements during the early school years. Given the crucial role of EF in learning and school adjustment, it is important to document the factors that bolster the development of executive competence, especially during a period of growth. Although substantial evidence suggests that parent-child relationships relate to EF, few longitudinal studies have examined the parental antecedents of EF developmental trajectories during the school years. Accordingly, this multiyear longitudinal study (N = 102) explored the respective roles of early mother-child attachment security and maternal autonomy support in the prediction of patterns of growth in working memory, cognitive flexibility, and planning skills across Grades 2 to 4. Multilevel growth curve analyses revealed a unique positive relation between attachment security and all EF skills, whereas autonomy support was mainly independently associated with initial planning performance. These findings provide further suggestion for a global contribution of secure attachment relationships to children's executive competence and highlight the importance of supporting children's autonomy to foster the emergence of more complex EF abilities such as planning. This study also supports the relevance of considering multiple aspects of parent-child relationships to delineate how early caregiving experiences contribute to children's EF development.

[Formula: see text] Social cognition, adaptive functioning, and behavior problems in preschoolers born extremely preterm

Despite medical advances, prematurity is associated with a higher risk of neurodevelopmental problems. Although social impairments are commonly reported in preterm children, their origins are not clearly determined though they may be associated with the integrity of social cognitive skills, such as theory of mind. This study aimed to assess social cognitive, social adaptive, and social behavior functioning in children born extremely prematurely. Thirty children born between 22 and 28 weeks of gestation and 30 children born at term completed measures of social cognition (theory of mind, affect recognition) between 4:6, 5:11 years of age (mean = 5.29, standard deviation = 0.28 years). Parents completed questionnaires measuring their child's adaptive social functioning and social behavior. Analyses of covariance controlling for cognitive, attentional, executive, sociodemographic, and perinatal characteristics were performed. Children born between 22 and 28 weeks displayed poorer theory of mind (p < 0.01) and affect recognition (p < 0.01) than term controls, and their parents reported lower adaptive social functioning (p < 0.01) and prosocial behavior (p = 0.04). Social cognitive, adaptive, and behavior functioning appear to be affected by extreme preterm birth. These findings may explain the social challenges experienced by extremely preterm children and provide potential loci for targeted interventions to optimize social functioning.

Evaluating the effect of birth weight on brain volumes and depression: An observational and genetic study using UK Biobank cohort

Background.

Birth weight influences not only brain development, but also mental health outcomes, including depression, but the underlying mechanism is unclear.

Methods.

The phenotypic data of 12,872–91,009 participants (59.18–63.38% women) from UK Biobank were included to test the associations between the birth weight, depression, and brain volumes through the linear and logistic regression models. As birth weight is highly heritable, the polygenic risk scores (PRSs) of birth weight were calculated from the UK Biobank cohort (154,539 participants, 56.90% women) to estimate the effect of birth weight-related genetic variation on the development of depression and brain volumes. Finally, the mediation analyses of step approach and mediation analysis were used to estimate the role of brain volumes in the association between birth weight and depression. All analyses were conducted sex stratified to assess sex-specific role in the associations.

Result.

We observed associations between birth weight and depression (odds ratio [OR] = 0.968, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.957–0.979, p = 2.29 × 10⁻⁶). Positive associations were observed between birth weight and brain volumes, such as gray matter (B = 0.131, p = 3.51 × 10⁻⁷⁴) and white matter (B = 0.129, p = 1.67 × 10⁻⁷⁴). Depression was also associated with brain volume, such as left thalamus (OR = 0.891, 95% CI = 0.850–0.933, p = 4.46 × 10⁻⁵) and right thalamus (OR = 0.884, 95% CI = 0.841–0.928, p = 2.67 × 10⁻⁵). Additionally, significant mediation effects of brain volume were found for the associations between birth weight and depression through steps approach and mediation analysis, such as gray matter (B = –0.220, p = 0.020) and right thalamus (B = –0.207, p = 0.014).

Conclusions.

Our results showed the associations among birth weight, depression, and brain volumes, and the mediation effect of brain volumes also provide evidence for the sex-specific of associations.

Inattention Symptoms Are Associated With Academic Achievement Mostly Through Variance Shared With Intrinsic Motivation and Behavioral Engagement

Objective: The main goal of the current study is to investigate whether intrinsic motivation and behavioral engagement mediate the association between inattention symptoms and academic achievement (reading, writing, and mathematics), as well as to document the extent to which inattention symptoms contribute to academic achievement due to variance overlapping with intrinsic motivation and behavioral engagement. Method: Participants were 92 children (Grades 1-4). Data were gathered using a combination of parent and teacher reports as well as objective assessments. Results: Results did not support the mediating role of intrinsic motivation and behavioral engagement. A commonality analysis showed that 77.44% to 82.10% of the variance explained in each academic achievement domains was due to variance shared by inattention symptoms, intrinsic motivation, and behavioral engagement. Conclusion: These results suggest more commonality than differences between inattention symptoms, intrinsic motivation, and behavioral engagement with regard to their association with academic achievement. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Parenting Behavior and Child Language: A Meta-analysis

CONTEXT

Early language development supports cognitive, academic, and behavioral success. Identifying modifiable predictors of child language may inform policies and practices aiming to promote language development.

OBJECTIVE

To synthesize results of observational studies examining parenting behavior and early childhood language in typically developing samples.

DATA SOURCES

Searches were conducted in Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Dissertation Abstracts (1967 to 2017).

STUDY SELECTION

Studies had 1 of 2 observational measures of parenting behavior (i.e., sensitive responsiveness or warmth) and a measure of child language.

DATA EXTRACTION

Data from 37 studies were extracted by independent coders. Estimates were examined by using random-effects meta-analysis.

RESULTS

Two meta-analyses were conducted, which examined (1) the association between sensitive-responsive parenting and child language (k = 36; r = 0.27; 95% confidence interval: 0.21 to 0.33); and (2) the association between parental warmth and child language (k = 13; r = 0.16; 95% confidence interval: 0.09 to 21). The pooled effect size for the association between sensitive responsiveness and child language was statistically higher than that of warmth and child language. The association between sensitive responsiveness and child language was moderated by family socioeconomic status (SES): effect sizes were stronger in low and diverse SES groups compared with middle to upper SES groups. Effect sizes were also stronger in longitudinal versus cross-sectional studies.

LIMITATIONS

Results are limited to typically developing samples and mother-child dyads. Findings cannot speak to causal processes.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings support theories describing how sensitive parenting may facilitate language and learning.

Social Cognition in Autism and Other Neurodevelopmental Disorders: A Co-twin Control Study

Alterations in social cognition (SC) are hypothesized to underlie social communication and interaction challenges in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The aetiological underpinnings driving this association remain unclear. We examined SC in 196 twins with ASD, other neurodevelopmental disorders or typical development using the naturalistic Movie for the Assessment of Social Cognition. Autism and its severity were assessed with the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2, and autistic traits with the Social Responsiveness Scale-2. Using within twin-pair regression models, controlling for age, sex, IQ, and unmeasured familial confounders such as genetic background and shared-environment, SC correlated with ASD diagnosis, autism severity, and autistic traits. Our findings highlight the importance of SC alterations in autism and suggest a non-shared environmental impact on the association.

Prenatal Risk Predicts Preschooler Executive Function: A Cascade Model

Little research has considered whether prenatal experience contributes to executive function (EF) development above and beyond postnatal experience. This study tests direct, mediated, and moderated associations between prenatal risk factors and preschool EF and IQ in a longitudinal sample of 1,292 children from the Family Life Project. A composite of prenatal risk factors (i.e., low birth weight, prematurity, maternal emotional problems, maternal prepregnancy obesity, and obstetric complications) significantly predicted EF and IQ at age 3, above quality of the postnatal environment. This relationship was indirect, mediated through infant general cognitive abilities. Quality of the postnatal home and child-care environments did not moderate the cascade model. These findings highlight the role of prenatal experience as a contributor to individual differences in cognitive development.

Disentangling Child-Specific and Family-Wide Processes Underlying Negative Mother-Child Transactions

The current study examines the transactional processes between maternal negativity and child disruptive behavior during early childhood, using a sibling comparison design. This design allows for a more sophisticated test of the behavioral training hypothesis than is possible when only one child per family is included in the analysis as it excludes two confounders (passive gene-environment correlation and family-wide environmental influence). Three hundred and ninety-seven families were visited on three occasions when the target child was 1.5, 3 and 4.5 years old (920 children, 51.5% female). The target child and up to three older siblings per family were included in data collection and analysis. Mothers and fathers reported on children's disruptive behavior and mothers reported on their negativity to children. Within-family cross-lag pathways, as well as a significant indirect effect through which children increased their own disruptive behavior via maternal negativity confirmed a behavioral training effect. Family level maternal negativity and sibling disruptive behavior showed high levels of stability over three to four years and no context effect for maternal negativity or sibling disruptive behavior was seen. The theoretical and clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

Associations of gestational age and birth anthropometric indicators with brain white matter maturation in full-term neonates

Newborn assessments, including gestational age (GA) and anthropometric measurements (birth weight, crown-heel length, head circumference) are routinely performed in pediatric settings, being used as important indicators in assessing neonatal development. Close associations of these birth indicators with later cognitive abilities were also reported. However, specific associations of these indicators with white matter (WM) development during the neonatal period remain unclear, as well as the extent to which they influence WM maturation. To address this issue, 51 full-term neonates (GA range, 37-42 weeks) with no abnormalities on MRI were retrospectively recruited. Specific correlations between birth indicators and WM maturation, quantified by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)-metrics (fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, axial diffusivity, radial diffusivity), were identified by using DTI tract-based spatial statistics and automated fiber-tract quantification. Our findings suggest that (a) higher GA, birth weight, and crown-heel length may indicate greater WM maturation in full-term neonates, while head circumference presented weak correlation with WM maturation during early newborn period; (b) among the four indicators examined, GA was the one most associated with WM maturation. We believe that this study advances our knowledge of specific correlations between birth indicators and neonatal brain development and provides a valuable reference for future neonatal studies.

Low muscle mass and strength in pediatrics patients: Why should we care?

Skeletal muscle plays major roles in metabolism and overall health across the lifecycle. Emerging evidence indicates that prenatal (maternal diet during pregnancy and genetic defects) and postnatal factors (physical activity, hormones, dietary protein, and obesity) influence muscle mass acquisition and strength early in life. As a consequence, low muscle mass and strength contributes to several adverse health outcomes during childhood. Specifically, studies demonstrated inverse associations of muscle mass and strength to single and clustered metabolic risk factors. The literature also consistently reports that low muscle mass and strength are associated with reduced bone parameters during growth, increasing the risk of osteoporosis in old age. Furthermore, muscle mass gains are associated with improved neurodevelopment in the first years of life. Given these negative implications of low muscle mass and strength on health, it is crucial to track muscle mass and strength development from childhood to adolescence. Several body composition techniques are currently available for estimation of muscle mass, all with unique advantages and disadvantages. The value of ultrasound as a technique to measure muscle mass is emerging in pediatric research with potential for translating the research findings to clinical settings. For the assessment of muscle strength, the handgrip strength test has been widely employed but without a standardized protocol. Although further research is needed to define normative data and cut points for the low muscle mass and strength phenotype, the use of such non-invasive medical monitoring is a promising strategy to identify early abnormalities and prevent low muscle mass in adulthood.

Body composition during early infancy and developmental progression from 1 to 5 years of age: the Infant Anthropometry and Body Composition (iABC) cohort study among Ethiopian children

Early nutrition and growth have been found to be important early exposures for later development. Studies of crude growth in terms of weight and length/height, however, cannot elucidate how body composition (BC) might mediate associations between nutrition and later development. In this study, we aimed to examine the relation between fat mass (FM) or fat-free mass (FFM) tissues at birth and their accretion during early infancy, and later developmental progression. In a birth cohort from Ethiopia, 455 children who have BC measurement at birth and 416 who have standardised rate of BC growth during infancy were followed up for outcome variable, and were included in the statistical analysis. The study sample was restricted to mothers living in Jimma town who gave birth to a term baby with a birth weight ≥1500 g and no evident congenital anomalies. The relationship between the exposure and outcome variables was examined using linear-mixed regression model. The finding revealed that FFM at birth was positively associated with global developmental progression from 1 to 5 years (β=1·75; 95 % CI 0·11, 3·39) and from 4 to 5 years (β=1·34; 95 % CI 0·23, 2·44) in the adjusted model. Furthermore, the rate of postnatal FFM tissue accretion was positively associated with development at 1 year of age (β=0·50; 95 % CI 0·01, 0·99). Neither fetal nor postnatal FM showed a significant association. In conclusion, fetal, rather than postnatal, FFM tissue accretion was associated with developmental progression. Intervention studies are needed to assess whether nutrition interventions increasing FFM also increase cognitive development.

Executive functioning in low birth weight children entering kindergarten

OBJECTIVES

Poor executive functioning is associated with life-long difficulty. Identification of children at risk for executive dysfunction is important for early intervention to improve neurodevelopmental outcomes.

STUDY DESIGN

This study is designed to examine relationships between birthweight and executive functioning in US children during kindergarten. Our hypothesis was that children with higher birthweights would have better executive function scores. We evaluated data from 17506 US children from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten 2011 cohort. Birthweight and gestational age were obtained by parental survey. Executive functions were directly assessed using the number reverse test and card sort test to measure working memory and cognitive flexibility, respectively. Teacher evaluations were used for additional executive functions. Data were analyzed using SAS to run all linear and logistical regressions.

RESULTS

For every kilogram of birthweight, scores of working memory increased by 1.47 (P<0.001) and cognitive flexibility increased by 0.28 (P<0.001) independent of gender, gestational age, parental education, and family income. Low birthweight infants were 1.5 times more likely to score in the bottom 20% of children on direct assessment OR=1.49 (CI 1.21-1.85) and OR=1.55 (CI 1.26-1.91).

CONCLUSIONS

Infants born low birthweight are at increased risk of poor executive functioning. As birthweight increases executive function scores improve, even among infants born normal weight. Further evaluation of this population including interventions and progression through school is needed.

Birth weight interacts with a functional variant of the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) to predict executive functioning in children

Genetic variation in the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) is associated with several psychiatric conditions characterized by deficits in executive functioning (EF). A specific OXTR variant, rs2254298, has previously been associated with brain functioning in regions implicated in EF. Moreover, birth weight variation across the entire range is associated with individual differences in cortical structure and function that underlie EF. This is the first study to examine the main and interactive effect between rs2254298 and birth weight on EF in children. The sample consisted of 310 children from an ongoing longitudinal study. EF was measured at age 4.5 using observational tasks indexing working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control. A family-based design that controlled for population admixture, stratification, and nongenomic confounds was employed. A significant genetic association between rs2254298 and EF was observed, with more copies of the major allele (G) associated with higher EF. There was also a significant interaction between rs2254298 and birth weight, such that more copies of the major allele in combination with higher birth weight predicted better EF. Findings suggest that OXTR may be associated with discrete neurocognitive abilities in childhood, and these effects may be modulated by intrauterine conditions related to fetal growth and development.

Social Cognition in Preschoolers: Effects of Early Experience and Individual Differences

Social cognition is the way in which people process, remember, and use information in social contexts to explain and predict their own behavior and that of others. Children's social cognition may be influenced by multiple factors, both external and internal to the child. In the current study, two aspects of social cognition were examined: Theory of Mind and Emotion Understanding. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of type of early care (0-3 years of age), maternal education, parents' country of birth, and child's language on the social cognition of 118 Italian preschoolers. To our knowledge, the joint effect of these variables on social cognition has not previously been investigated in the literature. The measures used to collect social cognition and linguistic data were not parent- or teacher-reports, but based on direct assessment of the children through two standardized tests, the Test of Emotion Comprehension and the ToM Storybooks. Relationships among the variables showed a complex pattern. Overall, maternal education and linguistic competence showed a systematic effect on social cognition; the linguistic competence mediated the effect of maternal education. In children who had experienced centre-base care in the first 3 years of life, the effect of maternal education disappeared, supporting the protective role of centre-base care for children with less educated mothers. The children with native and foreign parents did not significantly differ on the social cognition tasks. Limits of the study, possible educational outcomes and future research lines were discussed.

Executive Functioning Deficits Increase Kindergarten Children's Risk for Reading and Mathematics Difficulties in First Grade

Whether executive functioning deficits result in children experiencing learning difficulties is presently unclear. Yet evidence for these hypothesized causal relations has many implications for early intervention design and delivery. We used a multi-year panel design, multiple criterion and predictor variable measures, extensive statistical control for potential confounds including autoregressive prior histories of both reading and mathematics difficulties, and additional epidemiological methods to preliminarily examine these hypothesized relations. Results from multivariate logistic regression analyses of a nationally representative and longitudinal sample of 18,080 children (i.e., the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort of 2011, or ECLS-K: 2011) indicated that working memory and, separately, cognitive flexibility deficits uniquely increased kindergarten children's risk of experiencing reading as well as mathematics difficulties in first grade. The risks associated with working memory deficits were particularly strong. Experimentally-evaluated, multi-component interventions designed to help young children with reading or mathematics difficulties may also need to remediate early deficits in executive function, particularly in working memory.

Cumulative biomedical risk and social cognition in the second year of life: prediction and moderation by responsive parenting

At 18 months, children show marked variability in their social-cognitive skill development, and the preponderance of past research has focused on constitutional and contextual factors in explaining this variability. Extending this literature, the current study examined whether cumulative biomedical risk represents another source of variability in social cognition at 18 months. Further, we aimed to determine whether responsive parenting moderated the association between biomedical risk and social cognition. A prospective community birth cohort of 501 families was recruited at the time of the child's birth. Cumulative biomedical risk was measured as a count of 10 prenatal/birth complications. Families were followed up at 18 months, at which point social-cognitive data was collected on children's joint attention, empathy, cooperation, and self-recognition using previously validated tasks. Concurrently, responsive maternal behavior was assessed through observational coding of mother-child interactions. After controlling for covariates (e.g., age, gender, child language, socioeconomic variables), both cumulative biomedical risk and maternal responsivity significantly predicted social cognition at 18 months. Above and beyond these main effects, there was also a significant interaction between biomedical risk and maternal responsivity, such that higher biomedical risk was significantly associated with compromised social cognition at 18 months, but only in children who experienced low levels of responsive parenting. For those receiving comparatively high levels of responsive parenting, there was no apparent effect of biomedical risk on social cognition. This study shows that cumulative biomedical risk may be one source of inter-individual variability in social cognition at 18 months. However, positive postnatal experiences, particularly high levels of responsive parenting, may protect children against the deleterious effects of these risks on social cognition.