Observing Preschoolers’ Social-Emotional Behavior: Structure, Foundations, and Prediction of Early School Success

Associations between adherence to 24-hour movement guidelines and socio-emotional competence among preschool children: A cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

This study investigated the association between adherence to 24-h movement guidelines and socioemotional competence among Chinese preschool children.

METHODS

A total of 1288 parents of Chinese preschoolers (54.64 % boys, 45.36 % girls; Mage = 4.48, SD = 0.97) reported the time their children spent on physical activity (PA), screen time (ST), and sleep duration (SD), and completed questionnaires measuring socioemotional competence. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to explore the associations between individual and combined measures of PA, ST, and SD, and the risk of low socioemotional competence.

RESULTS

The risk of low socioemotional competence was significantly lower for children aged 4 (odds ratio [OR] = 0.47, 95 % CI: 0.31-0.71), 5 (OR = 0.23, 95 % CI: 0.15-0.35), and 6 (OR = 0.16, 95 % CI: 0.10-0.25) compared to 3-year-olds. Children with a family income level higher than 20,000CNY had a significantly lower risk of low socioemotional competence than those with a family income level not higher than 3000CNY (OR = 0.21, 95 % CI: 0.08-0.59). Urban residency was associated with significantly lower odds of low socioemotional competence than rural residency (OR = 0.41, 95 % CI: 0.21-0.82). Adherence to the PA-only guidelines (OR = 0.45, 95 % CI: 0.22-0.94), SD-only guidelines (OR = 0.25, 95 % CI: 0.08-0.72), ST + SD guidelines (OR = 0.33, 95 % CI: 0.16-0.67), and PA + ST + SD guidelines (OR = 0.36, 95 % CI: 0.18-0.70) were associated with a lower risk of low socioemotional competence. In addition, among boys, only adherence to the PA + ST + SD guidelines (OR = 0.36, 95 % CI: 0.14-0.90) was associated with a lower risk of low socioemotional competence. Among girls, adherence to SD guidelines only (OR = 0.22, 95 % CI: 0.04-0.90), ST + SD guidelines (OR = 0.17, 95 % CI: 0.06-0.49), and PA + ST + SD guidelines (OR = 0.37, 95 % CI: 0.14-0.91) were all associated with a lower risk of low socioemotional competence.

CONCLUSIONS

Adhering to 24-h movement guidelines is crucial for enhancing socioemotional competence in preschool children, especially girls. Interventions should focus on promoting physical activity, reducing screen time, and ensuring adequate sleep.

Peers' Emotionality and Children's Academic Achievement in Second Grade: Testing the Moderating Role of Children's Behavioral Self-Regulation

Although there is interest in the role of peers in children's schooling experiences, few researchers have examined associations and related underlying processes between peers' emotionality, an aspect of temperament, and children's academic achievement. This study evaluated whether target children's (N = 260) own self-regulation, assessed with two behavioral measures, served a moderating function for associations between peers' emotionality and children's own academic achievement in second grade. There was a positive association between peers' positive emotionality and reading scores for children with higher self-regulation. Peers' negative emotionality was negatively related to target children's reading scores, particularly for children with higher self-regulation levels, but was unrelated to math scores. Peers' positive and negative emotionality did not predict math scores, and there was no strong evidence for the moderating role of target children's self-regulation in this association. This study highlights the potential role of children's self-regulation in modulating peer effects on academic achievement, particularly reading.

Callous-unemotional traits and externalizing problem behaviors in left-behind preschool children: the role of emotional lability/negativity and positive teacher-child relationship

BACKGROUND

Callous-unemotional traits and emotional lability/negativity of young children have been regarded as the markers of externalizing problem behaviors. Based on the sensitivity to threat and affiliative reward model and the general aggression model, emotional lability/negativity may act as a mediator in the relationship between callous-unemotional traits and externalizing problem behaviors. Additionally, a positive teacher-child relationship could act as a buffer given the parental absence in left-behind children. However, these links remain unexplored in left-behind preschool children. Therefore, this study explored the link between callous-unemotional traits of left-behind preschool children and externalizing problem behaviors, as well as the mediating role of emotional lability/negativity and the moderating role of a positive teacher-child relationship.

METHOD

Data were collected on 525 left-behind children aged 3 to 6 years from rural kindergartens in China. Preschool teachers reported all data through an online survey platform. Moderated mediation analysis was performed to examine whether the mediated relation between callous-unemotional traits and externalizing problem behaviors was moderated by a positive teacher-child relationship.

RESULTS

The results showed callous-unemotional traits significantly predicted externalizing problem behaviors and lability/negativity acted as a mediator, while a positive teacher-child relationship acted as a protective factor in moderating the relationship between callous-unemotional traits and emotional lability/negativity. This study identified a moderated mediation effect among the four variables in left-behind preschool children in China.

CONCLUSION

The findings provide support for the advancement of theoretical foundations, and provide an avenue for further exploration to support the mental health and overall development of left-behind children during early childhood.

Assessing the effectiveness and the mechanisms of the Social-Emotional Prevention Program for Preschoolers: Findings from a universal school-based intervention

The Social-Emotional Prevention Program (SEP) encompasses a multifaceted approach (classroom curriculum, with teacher and parent training) intended to increase preschool children's social adjustment, as well as to reduce risk of emotional and behavioral problems. The present study's focus was on implementing the technology-assisted SEP version and was aimed at (a) investigating the program's effectiveness on children's social-emotional competencies and parental practices, as well as (b) testing the program's conceptual framework, with an emphasis on children's emotion regulation (ER) skills and parental emotion socialization practices as explanatory intervention mechanisms. A randomized-controlled trial (RCT) was conducted with five schools assigned to either the intervention or to a comparison condition (wait-list control). Structural equation models (SEM) and complier average causal effects (CACE) were conducted to evaluate SEP effectiveness on teacher- and parent-rated child outcomes (primary outcomes) and parenting behaviors (secondary outcomes). Findings from the present study indicated that (a) SEP fosters increased social-emotional competencies and increased use of adaptive ER strategies, with teacher and parent ratings converging to support these outcomes; (b) parental participation in the program increased the use of reappraisal and emotion coaching strategies; and (c) children's ER mediated the intervention's effect on social competence, whereas parental coaching and parental ER mediated SEP effects on children's ER. This study's findings suggest that the SEP may be an effective universal intervention for promoting preschoolers' social-emotional competence and may provide emerging evidence to support the program's hypothesized mechanisms of change.

Effects of a Portuguese social-emotional learning program on the competencies of elementary school students

Introduction

It is widely recognized that socio-emotional learning (SEL) interventions can contribute to supporting students' positive development of socio-emotional skills (SES) and positive relationships with peers and teachers. Thus, interest in promoting students' SES through universal evidence-based programs is spreading around the world, including in Portuguese schools.

Methods

This quasi-experimental study examines the efficacy of a SEL classroom-based program, infused into the curriculum, on students' communication, self-regulation, and classroom peer relationships. Participants included 208 third- to fourth-grade students from three Portuguese public elementary schools: 143 in the intervention group (54.5% boys; M_age = 8.72; SD = 0.61); 65 in the comparison group (52.3% boys; M_age = 8.66; SD = 0.59). Measures included: Study on Social and Emotional Skills, parent, child, and teacher versions; and Classroom Peer Context Questionnaire, completed by students. The study followed a pre- and post-test design, with a 16-week intervention.

Results

For the overall participants, results show a positive effect of the program on students' assertiveness (family report), peer conflict and peer cooperation. Effects were analyzed separately by school grade. A statistically significant positive effect of the program on third-grade students' assertiveness and sociability was found. For fourth-grade students, a positive effect was found on - emotional control). classroom conflicts, isolation, cooperation and cohesion behaviors.

Discussion

These positive effects support the expansion of universal interventions when aiming at strengthening SEL in Portuguese school settings, underlining the relevance of embedding SEL into the curricula and daily practices at schools.

Moving beyond dosage and adherence: A protocol for capturing dimensions of active child engagement as a measure of fidelity for social-emotional learning interventions

Social-emotional competencies are important for school-readiness and can be supported through social-emotional learning (SEL) interventions in the preschool years. However, past research has demonstrated mixed efficacy of early SEL interventions across varied samples, highlighting a need to unpack the black box of which early interventions work, under what conditions, and for whom. In the present article we discuss the critical implementation component of active child engagement in an intervention as a potential point of disconnect between the intervention as designed and as implemented. Children who are physically present but unengaged during an intervention may lead to decreased average impacts of an intervention. Furthermore, measuring young children's active engagement with an intervention may help to guide iterative intervention development. We propose a four-step protocol for capturing the multi-dimensional and varied construct of active child engagement in a SEL intervention. To illustrate the utility of the protocol, we apply it to data from a pilot study of a researcher-implemented, semi-structured block play intervention focused on supporting the development of SEL and math skills in preschoolers. We then present future directions for the integration of active participant engagement into the measurement of implementation of SEL interventions for young children.

Promote Positive Behaviors in Preschoolers by Implementing an Innovative Educational Program for the Training and Development of Social and Emotional Skills (DeCo-S.E.)

The purpose of our research is to determine emotional and behavioural modelling in an emotionally safe environment in a group of kindergarten preschoolers, following the application of an innovative curriculum project, designed and implemented for the first time, Educational Program for the training and development of social and emotional skills (DeCo-S.E.). Eighteen teachers, involved in the research, were divided into two samples: the experimental group (EG) consisting of 10 preschool teachers who were trained to take up the DeCo-S.E. program, and the control group (GC) including eight preschool teachers who applied the classic educational strategies. The DeCo-S.E. program is aimed at developing social and emotional skills (emotion identification, frustration tolerance), reducing behavior problems, and solving problems with peers as part of the training process. The study also included 142 children in their last year at kindergarten, aged X ± SD 5.87 ± 2.87 years old, divided into two groups: the EG consisting of 74 children to whom the experimental program was implemented and the GC comprising 72 children who did not take part in the training program. In the present study, we applied only the Preschool and Kindergarten Behavior Scales for Teachers (PKBS-2) questionnaire to children in the pre- and post-experimental phases. The results were processed with the statistical software SPSS 22. The analysis of the scores of the questionnaire applied to the children highlighted a significant improvement in EG on both scales. The study reveals the effectiveness of the Development of social and emotional skills programs in preschool children has proven its effectiveness by reducing undesirable/maladaptive behaviours and positively developing socio-emotional skills in preschool children.

The unique relevance of executive functions and self-regulation behaviors for understanding early childhood experiences and preschoolers' outcomes in rural Pakistan

Performance-based measures of children's executive functions (EFs) do not capture children's application of these skills during everyday emotionally-laden and socially-mediated interactions. The current study demonstrates the value of using assessor report of self-regulation behaviors (inhibitory control and positive affect/engagement) in addition to EF tasks when studying early childhood experiences and development in a rural lower-middle-income country setting. In a sample of 1302 disadvantaged 4-year-olds living in rural Pakistan, we found that directly assessed EFs were significantly related to assessor observations of children's inhibitory control and positive affect/engagement during a structured assessment protocol. However, EFs and two types of self-regulation behaviors demonstrated unique associations with children's (1) contextual experiences, as indexed by family socio-economic resources, participation in parenting interventions, and children's physical growth; and (2) age-salient developmental outcomes, as indexed by direct assessment of pre-academic skills and maternal report of prosocial behaviors and behavior problems. First, family wealth uniquely predicted only observed positive affect/engagement, whereas maternal education uniquely predicted only EFs. Second, children's antecedent linear growth was a significant predictor of both EFs and positive affect/engagement, but exposure to an enhanced nutrition intervention during the first 2 years of life and preschoolers' hair cortisol concentration were associated only with observed self-regulation behaviors. Finally, both EFs and observed positive affect/engagement uniquely predicted children's pre-academic skills. In contrast, only assessors' ratings of positive affect/engagement uniquely predicted maternal report of prosocial behaviors and only assessors' ratings of inhibitory control uniquely predicted maternal report of behavioral problems.

Mother-Child Social Cognition Among Multicultural Families in South Korea

Objective

Despite the rapidly growing number of multicultural families in South Korea, factors influencing parenting and mother-child interactions have not been well-understood. To our knowledge, the present study is the first to have examined how maternal social-cognitive capacity is associated with children's social cognition (e.g., theory of mind and emotion recognition) among multicultural families dwelling in South Korea.

Methods

Forty-seven multicultural mother-child dyads were recruited. The comprehensive measures on social cognition were administered to both the mothers and children, and social functioning and emotion regulation were administered to the children.

Results

A series of hierarchical regressions indicated that mothers' social cognition significantly explained children's ability to recognize static and dynamic emotional expressions, accounting for 27 and 34% of the variance, respectively. Furthermore, mothers' social cognition was significantly correlated to children's social functioning and emotion regulation. However, mothers' social cognition and children's theory of mind were non-significantly related.

Discussion

The current study examined the effects of social cognition of immigrant mothers on their children's socio-emotional development. As the findings indicated an important role of maternal factors (i.e., social cognition) for children's social cognition and their functions, psycho-social approaches (e.g., social cognition parenting education and training) should be incorporated in services for multicultural families.

Drawing from and Expanding their Toolboxes: Preschool Teachers' Traditional Strategies, Unconventional Opportunities, and Novel Challenges in Scaffolding Young Children's Social and Emotional Learning During Remote Instruction Amidst COVID-19

Building on aspects of Vygotsky's sociocultural theory centering around social interaction and adult scaffolding as essential to children's learning, this study investigated the most prominently used strategies by eight teachers to scaffold social and emotional learning (SEL) in preschool children (ages 3-4) in the context of remote instruction during the 2021-2022 school year amidst COVID-19. These teachers (seven females and one male) came from two urban preschools funded by their local Board of Education in the state of New Jersey in the United States. These teachers (ages 28-44 years, M = 32 years) varied in teaching experience from five to 29 years (M = 13 years). Each teacher was interviewed for an average of 40 min virtually via Zoom. The interviews were digitally recorded and then transcribed for analysis. A thematic analysis of the data revealed that the three most salient strategies the teachers implemented to virtually scaffold the children's SEL were: (1) involving book reading and discussion, (2) utilizing visuals, and (3) engaging in targeted conversations. In addition to adapting these three traditional strategies applied during in-person instruction to remote instruction, the teachers creatively and appropriately leveraged online resources to further scaffold and enhance children's SEL in the unconventional virtual environment, thereby expanding their toolboxes. Despite their intentional efforts, these teachers found that there were unconventional opportunities and novel challenges in scaffolding children's SEL during remote instruction not traditionally found during in-person instruction. Collectively, the findings of this study suggest that in-person instruction, due to its social nature, is still the most optimal condition for promoting children's SEL.

Predictors of Functional School Outcome in Children With Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury

Objective

Among the variety of domains that may be impacted after pediatric acquired brain injury (pABI) are functional school outcomes. The purpose of this study was to identify demographic, medical, and psychological factors associated with impairments in functional school outcomes, defined as school absence, need of educational and psychological services, quality of life (QoL) in the school setting, and academic performance in children with pABI, with a specific emphasis on the significance of fatigue.

Materials and Method

We used baseline data from a randomized controlled trial. The sample consisted of seventy-six children aged 10 to 17 (M = 13 yrs) with pABI in the chronic phase (>1 year). All completed assessments of school-related QoL, academic performance, global functioning, fatigue, IQ, behavioral problems, and executive function.

Results

Fatigue, IQ, global functioning, behavioral problems, and sex emerged as potential predictors for functional school outcomes. Of note, overall fatigue emerged as the strongest potential predictor for parent-reported QoL in school (β = 0.548; p < 0.001) and self-reported QoL in school (β = 0.532; p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Following pABI, specific psychological, medical, and demographic factors are associated with functional school outcomes. Neither of the injury-related variables age at insult and time since insult were associated with functional school outcomes. Overall, our findings may suggest that a reintroduction to school with personalized accommodations tailored to the child's specific function and symptoms, such as fatigue, is recommended.

The Next Generation of Edutainment Applications for Young Children—A Proposal

Edutainment applications are a type of software that is designed to be entertaining while also being educational. In the current COVID-19 pandemic context, when children have to stay home due to the social distancing rules, edutainment applications for young children are more and more used each day. However, are these applications ready to take the place of an in-person teacher? In this paper, we propose a new generation of edutainment applications that are more suitable for preschoolers (aged 3–6 years old in our country) and closer to the in-person student–teacher interaction: emotions aware edutainment applications. We discuss the most important challenges that must be overcome in developing this kind of applications (i.e., recognizing children’s emotions, enhancing the edutainment application with emotion awareness, and adapting the interaction flow) and the first steps that we have taken for developing them.

Effects of Body-Oriented Interventions on Preschoolers' Social-Emotional Competence: A Systematic Review

OBJECTIVE

A growing body of evidence supports the effectiveness of body-oriented interventions (BOI) in educational contexts, showing positive influences on social-emotional competence. Nevertheless, there is a lack of systematization of the evidence regarding preschool years. This is a two-part systematic review. In this first part, we aim to examine the effects of BOI on preschoolers' social-emotional competence outcomes.

DATA SOURCES

Searches were conducted in Pubmed, Scopus, PsycInfo, ERIC, Web of Science, Portal Regional da BVS and CINAHL.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

English, French and Portuguese language articles published between January 2000 and October 2020, that evaluated the effects of BOI implemented in educational contexts on social-emotional competence of preschool children. Only randomized controlled trials (RCT) or quasi-RCT were included.

DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS

Two reviewers independently completed data extraction and risk-of-bias assessment. The level of scientific evidence was measured through the Best Evidence Synthesis.

RESULTS

Nineteen studies were included. There was strong evidence that BOI do not improve anger/aggression, delay of gratification and altruism. Nevertheless, there was moderate evidence that BOI effectively improve other social-emotional outcomes, such as empathy, social interaction, social independence, general internalizing behaviors, and general externalizing behaviors. The lack of scientific evidence was compromised by the methodological quality of the studies.

CONCLUSION

BOI effectively improve specific social-emotional competences of preschool children.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION

PROSPERO, identifier CRD42020172248.

Comparing Informants for Mental Health Screening at the Preschool Level

Universal screening for mental health in preschools provides the opportunity for early identification and early intervention, but guidance regarding which informants to use is needed. Preschoolers' (N = 535) parent and teacher reports across two screening forms were analyzed to determine similarities and discrepancies for classification results and screener scores. The analyses also examined if an additional rater provided incrementally valid information to the prediction of longitudinal kindergarten outcomes. Parents' and teachers' screening scores were significantly correlated across forms by rater and across raters. However, categorical classification results indicated that teachers were more likely than parents to rate preschoolers in at-risk ranges across forms. Finally, hierarchical regression analyses revealed teacher ratings were predictive of kindergarten social-emotional, cognitive, and academic outcomes, and that the addition of parent ratings did not significantly improve prediction of outcomes. Implications are discussed in the context of multiple raters within multiple-gating screening procedures.

The Role of Vocabulary Skills in a Storybook-Based Intervention to Stimulate Emotion Comprehension in Preschoolers

Understanding emotions is an important predictor of children's mental health and school adjustment. However, interventions to improve this skill are not always accessible to all children. In 2019, Roy, Dénommée, and Quenneville developed stories with content specifically designed to 'teach' about emotions. Because it is a literacy-oriented intervention, it is possible that vocabulary may play a role in learning. This project explored the role of vocabulary in understanding emotion in preschool children and its learning. Forty-three preschoolers (19 control and 24 experimental) were evaluated on vocabulary skills and emotion comprehension. For multiple components, results showed an effect of time of measure, regardless of group. However, the addition of receptive vocabulary as a covariate made this effect non-significant. Results revealed that the stories were an effective strategy in promoting emotion comprehension for Components Belief and Reminder; two skills that are in the process of development in this age group. Furthermore, vocabulary skills did not impact the interaction for Belief for post-test gains and, for Reminder, while emotional vocabulary skills impacted the interaction at post-test, receptive vocabulary did not.

School Readiness and Achievement in Early Elementary School: Moderation by Students' Temperament

The goals of this study were to examine the longitudinal relations between school readiness and reading and math achievement and to test if these relations were moderated by temperament. The sample included socio-economically and ethnically diverse twins (N=551). Parents reported on school readiness when children were five years old. Teachers reported on temperament (effortful control, anger, and shyness) three years later. Standardized measures of reading and math were obtained when children were eight years old. Effortful control and shyness moderated the effect of school readiness on reading. Prediction of reading from school readiness was strongest when students were high in effortful control and low in shyness. Effortful control and shyness predicted math beyond school readiness. There were no relations involving anger. Findings demonstrate that temperament can potentiate the relations between school readiness and reading and highlight the importance of promoting school readiness and effortful control, while decreasing shyness.

Effortful control moderates the relation between negative emotionality and socially appropriate behavior

The current study investigated the relation between negative emotionality and socially appropriate behavior in a diverse sample of preschool and kindergarten children (N = 74). More specifically, we tested whether effortful control would moderate this relation. A computerized task measured children's effortful control by assessing their accuracy in shifting attention between different emotionally valenced faces (happy and angry) while inhibiting their responses to neutral faces. Teachers completed the Affect Intensity Scale-Child Version to assess child negative emotionality as well as the Preschool and Kindergarten Behavior Scales to assess two aspects of socially appropriate behavior (social cooperation and inhibition of externalizing behavior). Regression analyses indicated that children with high negative emotionality and strong effortful control had fewer externalizing problems and greater social cooperation compared with their counterparts with weaker effortful control. These findings support and extend previous research suggesting that effortful control may protect children, particularly those with high negative emotionality, from poor social outcomes. A novel contribution of this study is its use of an attention shifting task that incorporates emotionally salient stimuli. These findings have important implications for educators working with young children who encounter increased expectations for regulating their behavior during preschool and kindergarten.

Exploring relationship between self-regulation dimensions and cardiac autonomic functioning in preschoolers

The present study examined the association between behavioural dimensions of self-regulation and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), a marker of cardiac autonomic functioning in a sample of preschool children in the United States. Sixty-six children's emotion- and cognitive-oriented dimensions of self-regulation were examined with respect to changes in RSA (reactivity and recovery). Results showed that children's recovery RSA, which indicates the ability to return to homeostasis, but not reactivity, was significantly associated with the cognitive-oriented self-regulation.

Empathy in Toddlers: The Role of Emotion Regulation, Language Ability, and Maternal Emotion Socialization Style

We investigated, through a cross-sectional study, whether and to what extent toddlers' empathy is associated with a set of individual and family factors known to foster positive social skills in early childhood: children's own emotion regulation, language ability, and maternal emotion socialization style. Participants were 320 toddlers (M _age = 28.8 months; SD = 3.55) and their mothers. The children came from middle-SES families and were recruited at 34 infant-toddler centers. We used parent-report measures to assess the toddlers' competences and a self-report questionnaire to evaluate maternal emotion socialization style (coaching vs. dismissing). Toddlers' empathic responses, as reported by their mothers, were positively and significantly correlated, respectively, with their positive emotion regulation, language skills, and maternal emotion-coaching style. Stepwise regression analysis revealed that emotion regulation and maternal emotion-coaching style contributed to explaining variance in toddlers' empathy, after controlling for the effects of children's age and language ability. Moderation analysis showed that emotion regulation skills did not moderate the relationship between maternal emotion-coaching style and children's empathy. We discuss the implications of these findings.

Gender gaps in preschool age: A study of behavior, neurodevelopment and pre-academic skills

Background: Female educational advantage is evident from elementary school and throughout the education system. Understanding the gender differences that precede school entry might provide important insight as to why girls outperform boys later in their educational careers. Aims: The aim of this study was to explore gender differences in early literacy and numeracy skills, as well as a range of neurodevelopmental and behavioral domains between the age of five and six years. Methods: We used questionnaire data from preschool teachers in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study reported for 7467 children attending the final year in preschool, to explore gender differences and age patterns by fitting flexible regression models predicting pre-academic, behavioral and neurodevelopmental outcomes. Results: We found gender differences favoring girls for all outcomes except internalizing behavior. For neurodevelopment and behavior, differences in adjusted standardized scores ranged from 46% of a standard deviation (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.41, 0.50) in overall school readiness to 31% of a standard deviation difference in externalizing behavior problems (CI 0.21, 0.41). We found gender differences for all literacy skills in favor of girls. The gender gap in naming and adding numbers was small, but in favor of girls. Increasing age was associated with improved pre-academic skills and school readiness, as well as reduction of attention problems and language difficulties, the latter especially for boys. Conclusions: We conclude that gender differences favoring girls exist prior to school entry for a broad range of pre-academic, behavioral and neurodevelopmental skills relevant to school functioning.

Parental Attunement, Insightfulness, and Acceptance of Child Diagnosis in Parents of Children With Autism: Clinical Implications

Early parent-child relationships are an important factor influencing many domains of child development, even in the presence of autism. In this study, we investigated the associations between parent-child attunement during play, parental insightfulness, and parental acceptance of their child's diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder. A sample of 50 parents (26 mothers and 24 fathers) of 26 children aged between 24 and 58 months were videotaped during parent-child play interactions and then interviewed about what they thought had gone through their child's head during the play interaction, and about their feelings and thoughts about their child's diagnosis. Play interactions were evaluated using a coding protocol to assess parental attunement. The results showed that parents who were more able to accept their child's diagnosis and to see things from their child's perspective were more likely to also be attuned during play interactions with their children. These findings highlight the importance of studying the parental ability of insightfulness and acceptance of their child diagnosis of ASD for the implementation of intervention programs for supporting parental attunement and improving the interactions between the parents and the children with autism spectrum disorders.

Skin color and academic achievement in young, Latino children: Impacts across gender and ethnic group

OBJECTIVES

The present study investigates the association between skin color and academic achievement in young Latino students.

METHOD

Data were drawn from a longitudinal study of the early development of Latino children that took place in 24 public elementary schools in New York City. Students included in the present analyses (N = 750) were 4 and 5 years old when they were enrolled (baseline) and were followed through the end of first grade. Structural equation models and bootstrapping mediation tests were conducted to examine the effects of skin color on academic achievement at the end of first grade, partially mediated by academic and social emotional domains of school readiness in prekindergarten or kindergarten. This study considered the intersectionality of ethnicity and gender in the models.

RESULTS

The findings showed that for Dominican-origin boys, being "collectively black" was indirectly associated with lower academic achievement in first grade, mediated by lower teacher-rated adaptive behavior in prekindergarten or kindergarten.

CONCLUSIONS

Discussion focuses on the need for educational policies and practices to be conscious of phenotypicality bias. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Pathways to Kindergarten Readiness: The Roles of Second Step Early Learning Curriculum and Social Emotional, Executive Functioning, Preschool Academic and Task Behavior Skills

Efforts to improve the achievement gap between low-income children and their more affluent peers has led to the development of classroom interventions and curricula to increase executive functioning (EF) and social-emotional skills (SE), thought to be foundational for learning. The Second Step Early Learning (SSEL) curriculum is a commercially available curriculum designed to improve school readiness by building EF and SE skills. However, although widely used, it has not been widely studied. Modeling SSEL's underlying theory of change, structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to longitudinally examine the effects of the curriculum on low-income preschool children's kindergarten school readiness through the hypothesized mediating role of EF and SE skills in improving pre-academic skills and task behavior in preschool. In a cluster randomized trial, 972 children attending 63 preschool classrooms within 13 low-income Head Start or community preschools were individually tested at the beginning (T1) and end of preschool (T2, n = 836) and followed into kindergarten. Children's average age at T1 was 53 months, with 51% male, 42% Anglo-American, 26% African-American, and 40% Hispanic-American. Children's EF, social skills, pre-literacy/language, and pre-math skills were assessed by trained child assessors blind to study conditions at T1 and T2. Assessors also rated children's task behavior in the testing situation at T1 and T2. School records of children's kindergarten screening scores were obtained on 345 children at T3. It was expected that SSEL would have both direct and indirect effects on kindergarten readiness through improvements in children's SE and EF skills preschool academic skills and on-task behavior. We found no direct effects of SSEL on either pre-academic or on-task behavior outcomes in preschool, nor on later kindergarten readiness. However, SSEL significantly increased EF, and as expected by SSEL's theory of change, growth in EF predicted gains in both pre-academics (particularly pre-math), and on-task behavior in preschool. End-of-year pre-academic skills and on task behavior in turn predicted better kindergarten readiness. Further, SE (although not impacted by SSEL) had direct and indirect effects on kindergarten readiness. Thus, overall, our findings largely support SSEL's theory of change, particularly in relation to EF.

Emotions in school and symptoms of psychological maladjustment from kindergarten to first grade

The associations between children's (N = 301) observed expression of positive and negative emotion in school and symptoms of psychological maladjustment (i.e., depressive and externalizing symptoms) were examined from kindergarten to first grade. Positive and negative emotional expressivity levels were observed in school settings, and teachers reported on measures of children's externalizing and depressive symptoms. In longitudinal panel models testing bidirectional paths, depressive symptoms in kindergarten were negatively associated with positive expressivity in first grade but not vice versa. Children's externalizing symptoms in kindergarten predicted higher negative expressivity in school in first grade. There was also significant prediction of externalizing in first grade by negative expressivity during kindergarten. Implications about child psychological maladjustment in early schooling are discussed.

Trajectories of the Expression of Negative Emotion from Kindergarten to First Grade: Associations with Academic Outcomes

We examined individual trajectories, across four time points, of children's (N = 301) expression of negative emotion in classroom settings and whether these trajectories predicted their observed school engagement, teacher-reported academic skills, and passage comprehension assessed with a standardized measure in first grade. In latent growth curve analyses, negative expressivity declined from kindergarten to first grade with significant individual differences in trajectories. Negative expressivity in kindergarten inversely predicted first grade school engagement and teacher-reported academic skills, and the slope of negative expressivity from kindergarten to first grade inversely predicted school engagement (e.g., increasing negative expressivity was associated with lower school engagement). In addition, we examined if prior academic functioning in kindergarten moderated the association between negative expressivity (level in kindergarten and change over time) and academic functioning in first grade. The slope of negative expressivity was negatively associated with first grade school engagement and passage comprehension for children who had lower kindergarten school engagement and passage comprehension, respectively, but was unrelated for those with higher academic functioning in kindergarten. That is, for children who had lower kindergarten school engagement and passage comprehension, greater declines in negative expressivity were associated with higher first grade school engagement and passage comprehension, respectively. The findings suggest that negative emotional expressivity in school is associated with academic outcomes in first grade and, in some cases, this association is more pronounced for children who had lower kindergarten academic functioning.

The added value of a family-centered approach to optimize infants' social-emotional development: A quasi-experimental study

Objective

Family-centered care (FCC) has been related to positive healthcare outcomes in pediatric care. Our aim was to assess whether an FCC approach also leads to better and earlier identification of social-emotional problems and less child psychosocial problems at age 18 months.

Methods

In a quasi-experimental study within routine well-child care in the Netherlands, we compared those regions in which an FCC approach was implemented (FCC-JointStart) to those regions with “care-as-usual” (CAU), including all children. In all regions, professionals performed well-child visits (2–18 months) and assessed social-emotional problems, or risks developing these, by rating outcomes of assessments as “not optimal” or as “a problem.” We compared FCC-JointStart and CAU regarding the rates of newly identified (risks for) social-emotional problems, the pace of identification over time, and the child’s psychosocial wellbeing at eighteen months as measured by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). For participants that received extra care, we compared FCC-JointStart and CAU regarding the severity of parent-reported problems. Parents were blinded, professionals were not.

Results

5658 parents (68%) agreed to participate in the study. In the FCC-JointStart group, risks were identified more frequently, though differences were small (24.7% versus 22.0%, odds ratio (95%-confidence interval) adjusted for confounders: 1.44 (0.96; 2.18), Phi = .03). Risks were also identified earlier (p = .008), and additional care was provided to more severe cases than in CAU. Effect sizes r ranged from 0.17 (PSBC) to 0.22 (FAD). CBCL scores at 18 months did not differ between groups.

Conclusions

FFC-JointStart may contribute to more and earlier identification of risks for social-emotional problems and of families that need additional care, but not to fewer child psychosocial problems at age 18 months.

Trial registration

Netherlands Trial Register NTR2681

Temperamental Anger and Positive Reactivity and the Development of Social Skills: Implications for Academic Competence during Preadolescence

RESEARCH FINDINGS

This study examines whether the development of social skills during childhood serves as a mechanism through which temperamental anger and positive reactivity in toddlerhood influences children's academic competence during preadolescence (N = 406). Temperamental anger at age 2 was negatively associated with children's social skills at age 7; in turn, children's social skills at age 7 were negatively associated with teacher report of academic competence and child and teacher report of school problems at age 10. All three indirect effects were significant suggesting that children's social skills at age 7 is one mechanism through which temperamental anger at age 2 is associated with age 10 child- and teacher-reported school problems. Temperamental positive reactivity was not associated with children's social skills or academic competence.

PRACTICE OR POLICY

Results provide support for early entry points to teach toddlers, especially those high in anger reactivity, the skills to engage in socially appropriate interactions with classmates and teachers, which may lessen subsequent academic challenges.

Bidirectional associations between emotions and school adjustment

OBJECTIVE

We examined the relations of children's (N = 301) observed expression of negative and positive emotion in classes or nonclassroom school contexts (i.e., lunch and recess) to school adjustment from kindergarten to first grade.

METHOD

Naturalistic observations of children's emotional expressivity were collected, as were teachers' reports of children's school engagement and relationship quality with teachers and peers.

RESULTS

In longitudinal panel models, greater teacher-student conflict and lower student engagement in kindergarten predicted greater negative expressivity in both school contexts. School engagement and peer acceptance in kindergarten positively predicted first grade positive emotion in the classroom. Suggestive of possible bidirectional relations, there was also small unique prediction (near significant) from negative expressivity at lunch and recess to higher teacher-student conflict, from negative expressivity in the classroom to low peer acceptance, and from positive expressivity in the classroom to higher peer acceptance.

CONCLUSIONS

The pattern of findings suggests that the quality of experience at school uniquely predicts children's emotional expressivity at school more consistently than vice versa-a finding that highlights the important role of school context in young children's emotionality at school.

Measuring preschool learning engagement in the laboratory

Learning engagement is a critical factor for academic achievement and successful school transitioning. However, current methods of assessing learning engagement in young children are limited to teacher report or classroom observation, which may limit the types of research questions one could assess about this construct. The current study investigated the validity of a novel assessment designed to measure behavioral learning engagement among young children in a standardized laboratory setting and examined how learning engagement in the laboratory relates to future classroom adjustment. Preschool-aged children (N = 278) participated in a learning-based Tangrams task and Story sequencing task and were observed based on seven behavioral indicators of engagement. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the construct validity for a behavioral engagement factor composed of six of the original behavioral indicators: attention to instructions, on-task behavior, enthusiasm/energy, persistence, monitoring progress/strategy use, and negative affect. Concurrent validity for this behavioral engagement factor was established through its associations with parent-reported mastery motivation and pre-academic skills in math and literacy measured in the laboratory, and predictive validity was demonstrated through its associations with teacher-reported classroom learning behaviors and performance in math and reading in kindergarten. These associations were found when behavioral engagement was observed during both the nonverbal task and the verbal story sequencing tasks and persisted even after controlling for child minority status, gender, and maternal education. Learning engagement in preschool appears to be successfully measurable in a laboratory setting. This finding has implications for future research on the mechanisms that support successful academic development.

The Relations of Preschool Children's Emotion Knowledge and Socially Appropriate Behaviors to Peer Likability

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relations of children's emotion knowledge (and its components) and socially appropriate behavior to peer likability in a sample of Italian preschool children at two time-points. At both Time 1 (T1; n = 46 boys, 42 girls) and a year later at Time 2 (T2; n = 26 boys, 22 girls), children's emotion knowledge (i.e., emotion recognition, situation knowledge) was assessed, teachers evaluated children's socially appropriate behavior, and peer likability was measured using a sociometric procedure. A two-wave Autoregressive Cross-lagged (ARC) model indicated that children's T1 emotion recognition was associated with higher T2 socially appropriate behavior, and children's T1 socially appropriate behavior was related to higher T2 peer likability, even after controlling for stability in the constructs. Socially appropriate behavior mediated the relation between preschool children's emotion recognition and peer likability. No bidirectional associations were found. The results support the notion that teacher training should focus on promoting children's emotion knowledge to create a classroom atmosphere characterized by positive social behaviors and harmonious peer relationships across the preschool years.

Emotion Understanding, Social Competence and School Achievement in Children from Primary School in Portugal

This study analyzes the relationship between emotion understanding and school achievement in children of primary school, considering age, gender, fluid intelligence, mother’s educational level and social competence. In this study participated 406 children of primary school. The instruments used were the Test of Emotion Comprehension, Colored Progressive Matrices of Raven, Socially Action and Interpersonal Problem Solving Scale. The structural equation model showed the relationship between the emotion understanding and school performance depends on a mediator variable that in the context of the study was designated social competence. Age appear as an explanatory factor of the differences found, the mother’s educational level only predicts significantly social emotional competence, fluid intelligence is a predictor of emotion understanding, school achievement and social emotional competence. Regarding the influence of sex, emotional understanding does not emerge as a significant predictor of social emotional competence in girls or boys. Multiple relationships between the various factors associated with school achievement and social emotional competence are discussed as well as their implications in promoting child development and school success.

Concurrent and longitudinal associations of peers' acceptance with emotion and effortful control in kindergarten

The purpose of the study was to evaluate bidirectional associations between peer acceptance and both emotion and effortful control during kindergarten (N = 301). In both the fall and spring semesters, we obtained peer nominations of acceptance, measures of positive and negative emotion based on naturalistic observations in school (i.e., classroom, lunch/recess), and observers' reports of effortful control (i.e., inhibitory control, attention focusing) and emotions (i.e., positive, negative). In structural equation panel models, peer acceptance in fall predicted higher effortful control in spring. Effortful control in fall did not predict peer acceptance in spring. Negative emotion predicted lower peer acceptance across time for girls but not for boys. Peer acceptance did not predict negative or positive emotion over time. In addition, we tested interactions between positive or negative emotion and effortful control predicting peer acceptance. Positive emotion predicted higher peer acceptance for children low in effortful control.

Positively Biased Processing of Mother's Emotions Predicts Children's Social and Emotional Functioning

Risk for internalizing problems and social skills deficits likely emerges in early childhood when emotion processing and social competencies are developing. Positively biased processing of social information is typical during early childhood and may be protective against poorer psychosocial outcomes. We tested the hypothesis that young children with relatively less positively biased attention to, interpretations of, and attributions for their mother's emotions would exhibit poorer prosocial skills and more internalizing problems. A sample of 4- to 6-year-old children (N=82) observed their mothers express happiness, sadness and anger during a simulated emotional phone conversation. Children's attention to their mother when she expressed each emotion was rated from video. Immediately following the phone conversation, children were asked questions about the conversation to assess their interpretations of the intensity of mother's emotions and misattributions of personal responsibility for her emotions. Children's prosocial skills and internalizing problems were assessed using mother-report rating scales. Interpretations of mother's positive emotions as relatively less intense than her negative emotions, misattributions of personal responsibility for her negative emotions, and lack of misattributions of personal responsibility for her positive emotions were associated with poorer prosocial skills. Children who attended relatively less to mother's positive than her negative emotions had higher levels of internalizing problems. These findings suggest that children's attention to, interpretations of, and attributions for their mother's emotions may be important targets of early interventions for preventing prosocial skills deficits and internalizing problems.