Risk and Protective Factors for Executive Function in Vulnerable South African Preschool-Age Children

Executive function (EF) theory and research continues to under-represent the contexts in which the majority of the world's children reside, despite their potential to support, refute, or refine our current understandings. The current study sought to contribute to our understanding of EF in low-income settings in South Africa by investigating longitudinal associations of context-specific risk and protective factors for EF development in three- to five-year-old children who had limited access to ECCE services before the age of five. Child-caregiver dyads (N = 171) participated in two rounds of data collection (approximately seven months apart) during which child EF was assessed using the Early Years Toolbox; context-specific risk and protective factors were assessed through a caregiver questionnaire. Hierarchical linear regressions revealed that after controlling for age, attending ECCE services at time 2 (β = 0.30, p < 0.001), and diversity of caregivers at time 1 (β = 0.14, p = 0.041) were the only factors positively associated with EF at time 2. Other factors commonly associated with EF such as caregiver education, and household income were not significant, while resources in the home were significantly associated with EF (β = -0.18, p = 0.007) but in the opposite direction to what was expected. These results add to accumulating evidence that predictors of EF established in Minority World contexts may not be consistent across contexts, emphasising the need to broaden the EF evidence base. For instance, future studies could incorporate qualitative and ethnographic methods to better capture the cultural and contextual nuances relating to EF, to better inform our statistical and theoretical models.

Effects of homicide timing on test scores: Quasi-experimental evidence from two cities in Colombia

This study examines the effect of homicides around schools on the standardized test scores of fifth and ninth graders (N = 4729; Mage = 12.71 years, SDage = 2.13) using a quasi-experimental design in two Colombian cities. Exposure to homicides occurring within 7 days of the test and within 500 m of the school decreases test scores by 0.10 SD. Effects show a greater sensitivity to timing than distance, becoming null as the time to the testing date increases but remaining consistent across larger radii. Since students in the study are on average exposed to 12.1 homicides per year, even short-lived learning losses can accumulate to impair learning for substantial portions of the school year. Findings are discussed, considering previous empirical work.

The acute effects of community violence on young children's regulatory, behavioral, and developmental outcomes in a low-income urban sample in Brazil

BACKGROUND

Existing research on the impacts of adversity on young children's psychological well-being has largely focused on household-level risk factors using observational methods in high-income countries. This study leverages natural variation in the timing and location of community homicides to estimate their acute effects on the regulatory, behavioral, and developmental outcomes of Brazilian 3-year-olds.

METHODS

We compared the outcomes of children who were assessed soon after a recent neighborhood homicide to those of children from the same residential neighborhoods who had not recently experienced community violence. Our sample included 3,241 3-year-olds (Mage = 41.05 months; 53% female; 45% caregiver education less than middle school; 26% receiving a public assistance program) from seven neighborhoods in São Paulo, Brazil. Child outcome measures included parent reports of effortful control and behavior problems as well as direct assessments of children's developmental (cognitive, language, and motor) skills. Community homicides were measured using police records.

RESULTS

Recent exposure to community homicides was associated with lower effortful control, higher behavior problems, and lower overall developmental performance for children (d = .05-.20 standard deviations; p = ns - <.001). Effects were consistent across subgroups based on sociodemographic characteristics and environmental supports, but generally largest when community violence exposure was geographically proximal (within 600 m of home) and recent (within 2 weeks prior to assessment).

CONCLUSIONS

Results highlight the pervasive effects that community violence can have on young children as well as the need to expand support to mitigate these effects and prevent inequities early in life.

Community violence and early childhood language development: The moderating role of maternal efficacy and satisfaction

This paper estimates the acute effect of community-level homicides on early childhood language development and explores the moderating role of maternal efficacy and satisfaction in Chile. It uses data from the 2017 wave of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey of Chilean Children (N = 1194, Mage: 52.8 months, 52% girls). Children in municipalities with homicides 1 month before the Peabody Picture Vocabulary assessment scored between 0.18 and 0.41 SDs lower compared to children in the same municipality but for whom homicides happened after the assessment. On average, higher maternal satisfaction appears to have a protective effect, though it dissipates in the most violent municipalities. Evidence that higher maternal efficacy protects children from the negative effects of violence is inconclusive.

Exploring the complex links between childhood exposure to intimate partner violence, maltreatment, and self-regulation: A three-wave cross-lagged study

BACKGROUND

Intimate partner violence (IPV) often co-occurs with childhood maltreatment and negatively impacts children's development. While previous research has shown a direct link between these experiences and children's self-regulation, less is known about the potential unique effect and bidirectional associations between them.

OBJECTIVE

The present study aims to investigate the bidirectional effects among maternal IPV experiences, child maltreatment, and children's behavioral self-regulation.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

4,402 participants from three waves of the longitudinal study of the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) were included in the study.

METHODS

Cross-lagged path analyses were conducted to examine the longitudinal reciprocal relationships among IPV, child maltreatment, and children's behavioral regulation when children were 3, 5, and 9 years old.

RESULTS

IPV exposure at ages 3 and 5 was negatively associated with levels of behavioral self-regulation at ages 5 and 9, even after accounting for physical maltreatment, psychological maltreatment, or neglect. Neglect at ages 3 and 5 was found to be associated with lower levels of behavioral self-regulation at later ages, when IPV exposure was considered in the models. Lower levels of behavioral self-regulation at age 3 were found to be linked with higher levels of psychological maltreatment, physical maltreatment, neglect, and IPV exposure at age 5.

CONCLUSION

This study revealed bidirectional effects between maternal IPV experiences, child maltreatment, and children's behavioral self-regulation. Furthermore, the study demonstrated that exposure to IPV during early childhood significantly predicts long-term behavioral self-regulation difficulties, even after controlling for the effects of child maltreatment.

Leveraging the developmental neuroscience of caregiving to promote resilience among youth exposed to adversity

Early adversity is a major risk factor for the emergence of psychopathology across development. Identifying mechanisms that support resilience, or favorable mental health outcomes despite exposure to adversity, is critical for informing clinical intervention and guiding policy to promote youth mental health. Here we propose that caregivers play a central role in fostering resilience among children exposed to adversity via caregiving influences on children's corticolimbic circuitry and emotional functioning. We first delineate the numerous ways that caregivers support youth emotional learning and regulation and describe how early attachment lays the foundation for optimal caregiver support of youth emotional functioning in a developmental stage-specific manner. Second, we outline neural mechanisms by which caregivers foster resilience-namely, by modulating offspring corticolimbic circuitry to support emotion regulation and buffer stress reactivity. Next, we highlight the importance of developmental timing and sensitive periods in understanding caregiving-related mechanisms of resilience. Finally, we discuss clinical implications of this line of research and how findings can be translated to guide policy that promotes the well-being of youth and families.

Characterizing experiential elements of early-life stress to inform resilience: Buffering effects of controllability and predictability and the importance of their timing

Key theoretical frameworks have proposed that examining the impact of exposure to specific dimensions of stress at specific developmental periods is likely to yield important insight into processes of risk and resilience. Utilizing a sample of N = 549 young adults who provided a detailed retrospective history of their lifetime exposure to numerous dimensions of traumatic stress and ratings of their current trauma-related symptomatology via completion of an online survey, here we test whether an individual's perception of their lifetime stress as either controllable or predictable buffered the impact of exposure on trauma-related symptomatology assessed in adulthood. Further, we tested whether this moderation effect differed when evaluated in the context of early childhood, middle childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood stress. Consistent with hypotheses, results highlight both stressor controllability and stressor predictability as buffering the impact of traumatic stress exposure on trauma-related symptomatology and suggest that the potency of this buffering effect varies across unique developmental periods. Leveraging dimensional ratings of lifetime stress exposure to probe heterogeneity in outcomes following stress - and, critically, considering interactions between dimensions of exposure and the developmental period when stress occurred - is likely to yield increased understanding of risk and resilience following traumatic stress.

The Protective Effects of Parent-Child Emotion Dialogues for Preschoolers Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence

Exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) during early childhood is associated with self-regulation difficulties. Caregivers can facilitate children's self-regulation through emotion-focused conversations about past experiences, buffering downstream effects. However, caregivers experiencing violence may avoid distressing emotions activated by such conversations. This paper explores two different models of relational stress responses, one involving indirect effects (i.e. spillover effects) and the other moderation (i.e. buffering effects). Mothers (n = 117), oversampled for violence exposure, self-reported on IPV and participated in an emotional reminiscing task with children (aged 3-5 years); narratives were coded for maternal sensitive guidance. Maternal sensitive guidance was related to children's self-regulation. Sensitive guidance did not have indirect effects in the association between IPV exposure and children's self-regulation, but did buffer the association between physical IPV and self-regulation; this pattern did not hold for psychological IPV. Results suggest sensitive guidance during reminiscing may promote self-regulation in contexts of high IPV.

Introduction to the Special Section: Developmental Perspectives on Trauma Exposure and Posttraumatic Stress

This article provides an introduction and overview of the current special section devoted to developmental perspectives on trauma exposure and posttraumatic stress reactions. Although there have been many revisions to the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis in the four decades that have ensued since its inclusion in our diagnostic systems, and many decades of empirical and clinical work investigating the differential effects of traumatic stress on children and adolescents, a truly developmental perspective is still lacking in the diagnosis. In a call to address this gap, this article outlines principles of developmental psychopathology as applied to the phenomenology of trauma and points to potential developmental transformations in the expression of posttraumatic stress across developmental epochs. The introduction then goes on to describe the valuable contributions to the literature represented by the six teams of contributing authors to this present special section, in which they discuss stability and change in posttraumatic symptom expression across development, the current state of validation research on the proposed diagnosis of Developmental Trauma Disorder, complex symptom arrays in children who have been complexly traumatized, distinctions between Complex PTSD and emerging personality pathology, developmental perspectives on prolonged grief, and developmental considerations for understanding the intersection between trauma and moral injury. It is hoped that this collection of articles will serve to stimulate new research and inform effective interventions for young persons affected by traumatic stress.

Area level indirect exposure to extended conflicts and early childhood anthropometric outcomes in India: a repeat cross-sectional analysis

BACKGROUND

Protracted, internal conflicts with geographic variations within countries, are an important understudied community exposure for adverse child health outcomes.

METHODS

Violent events from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP) between January 2016-December 2020 and January 2010-December 2015, were included as exposure events for children sampled in National Family Health Surveys (NFHS) 5 (2019-21) and NFHS 4 (2015-16), respectively. Geocoded data from UCDP were merged with residential clusters from NFHS, to identify children living in villages or urban blocks situated at <= 50 km from conflict sites. Within these clusters, which we defined as conflict exposed, we studied risks of stunting, underweight and wasting in children, prenatally, and in 0-3 years. We assessed sensitivity on a subsample of siblings with discordant conflict exposures.

RESULTS

For NFHS 5, exposure to violence between 0 and 3 years was associated with 1.16 times (95% CI 1.11-1.20) higher risks of stunting, 1.08 (1.04, 1.12) times higher risks of underweight, and no change in wasting. In-utero violence exposure was associated with 1.11 times (95% CI 1.04-1.17) higher risks of stunting, 1.08 (95% CI 1.02-1.14) times higher risks of underweight, and no change in wasting, among children <= 2 years. In 17,760 siblings of 8333 mothers, exposure to violence during 0-3 years, was associated with a 1.19 times higher risk of stunting (95% CI - 0.24 to 0.084). Incremental quartiles of violence exposure had higher risks of stunting and underweight until quartile 3.

CONCLUSION

In-utero and early childhood indirect exposure to protracted conflicts were associated with increased stunting and underweight in India. Given the continued exposures of such historically and contextually rooted internal conflicts in many LMICs, chronic violence exposures should be targeted in public health policies as important social and political determinant of child health.

Development and validation of the Dimensional Inventory of Stress and Trauma Across the Lifespan (DISTAL): A novel assessment tool to facilitate the dimensional study of psychobiological sequelae of exposure to adversity

Decades of research underscore the profound impact of adversity on brain and behavioral development. Recent theoretical models have highlighted the importance of considering specific features of adversity that may have dissociable effects at distinct developmental timepoints. However, existing measures do not query these dimensions in sufficient detail to support the proliferation of this approach. The Dimensional Inventory of Stress and Trauma Across the Lifespan (DISTAL) was developed with the aim to thoroughly and retrospectively assess the timing, severity (of exposure and reaction), type, persons involved, controllability, predictability, threat, deprivation, proximity, betrayal, and discrimination inherent in an individual's exposure to adversity. Here, we introduce this instrument, present descriptive statistics drawn from a sample of N = 187 adults who completed the DISTAL, and provide initial information about its psychometric properties. This novel measure facilitates the expansion of research focused on assessing the relative impact of exposure to key dimensions of adversity on the brain and behavior across development.

Maternal History of Childhood Adversities and Later Negative Parenting: A Systematic Review

Adverse childhood experiences negatively impact future violence, victimization, perpetration, health, and lifelong development. The aim of the present study was to systematically review the scientific evidence of empirical studies on the association between maternal childhood adversity in a familial context, including maltreatment, household challenges, and later maternal negative parenting. A search was performed in the PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, SciELO, and LILACS databases, using the combination of the following keywords: (neglect OR abuse OR maltreatment OR harsh parenting OR punishment OR discipline OR negative parenting practices) AND (adverse childhood experiences OR early adversity OR cycle of violence OR cycle of maltreatment OR history of maltreatment) AND (mother OR maternal). The results of 29 studies showed predominantly significant direct associations between maternal childhood adversities and negative parenting with their children (83%). Parental stress was also significantly associated with a maternal history of childhood adversities. Focusing on the type of maltreatment practices, there were similar intergenerational transmission types: homotypic and heterotypic. Few studies have examined the protective factors that could buffer the negative impact of a maternal childhood history of adversities on later negative parenting.

Community Violence Exposure and Generalized Anxiety Symptoms: Do Callous-Unemotional Behaviors Moderate this Relation Among Urban Youth?

Community violence exposure (CVE; i.e., direct victimization and witnessed violence) is a major public health concern among youth who reside in low income, urban neighborhoods, who tend to experience CVE chronically and disproportionately. Frequent CVE is associated with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) symptoms, such as persistent or excessive worry and difficulty concentrating. However, not all youth experiencing CVE exhibit such symptoms. One understudied factor that may moderate this relation is callous-unemotional (CU) behaviors (e.g., behaviors consistent with lack of guilt, low levels of empathy). CU behaviors are associated with lower levels of responsiveness to contextual processes; as such, CU behaviors may be associated with lower levels of GAD symptoms in the context of CVE. However, little research considers CU behaviors and GAD symptoms concurrently. To address this gap, the present study examined associations among witnessed and direct CVE, CU behaviors, and GAD symptoms among low-income, urban youth (N = 104, 50% male, Mage = 9.93 ± 1.22 years old, 95% African-American/Black). Multiple regression analyses indicated teacher-reported CU behaviors moderated the relations between CVE and caregiver-reported GAD symptoms. Post-hoc probing revealed that among youth with higher levels of CVE, higher levels of CU behaviors were associated with elevated GAD symptoms compared to their peers with lower levels of CU behaviors. Youth with lower levels of CU behaviors evidenced moderate levels of GAD symptoms regardless of their levels of CVE. Thus, low-income, urban youth who experience elevated levels of CVE may be at increased risk for co-occurring GAD and CU symptoms.

Transactional Relations between Child Functioning and Parenting Stress in the First Years of Life: A Longitudinal Study among Psychosocially Burdened Families

INTRODUCTION

Previous research reported transactional relations between child functioning and parenting stress. There is limited evidence whether a transactional developmental model also fits children below the age of 12 months, especially in psychosocially burdened families. This study aims to test the fit of a transactional model during the first 3 years of life and examines whether the model differs between families with low and high psychosocial burden.

METHODS

A total of 302 psychosocially burdened families were observed over 3 years at age 4, 12, 24, and 36 months. Child behavioral problems and parenting stress were assessed via self-report while psychosocial burden was assessed via external rating at baseline. Cross-lagged panel analysis was used to investigate the fit of a transactional model.

RESULTS

A transactional model fitted the data significantly better (Δχ2 = 81.87, p < 0.001) than an autoregressive model reaching acceptable to good fit indices (CFI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.09). The model indicated moderate stability within and reciprocal effects between child behavioral problems and parenting stress from age 12 to 36 months. From age 4 to 12 months, parenting stress predicted child behavioral problems but not vice-versa. Model fit indices and transactional relations did not substantially differ between families with low and high psychosocial burden, except for child effects on parenting stress during the first year of life, which were only evident in higher burdened families.

CONCLUSION

Transactional relations among child and parent variables are evident in the first 3 years of life. Child effects in the first year of life may be restricted to highly psychosocially burdened families. Future research may focus on potential mediating variables such as parental sensitivity or contextual variables like significant life events. Targeted prevention strategies should be adapted to the level of psychosocial burden to account for the differing transactional relations.

Child exposure to violence and self-regulation in South African preschool-age children from low-income settings

Biological and psychosocial stressors that have been associated with income include family dynamics such as household chaos, family conflict, maternal depression, harsh parenting, lower parental responsiveness, and exposure to violence. Research from high income countries has shown that exposure to violence may have detrimental effects on children's self-regulation, with possible flow-on implications for broad later-life outcomes, but less is known about such links in low- and- middle income countries, where many children live in violent communities and households and where physical punishment remains the norm. This study aimed to investigate exposure to violence, in addition to coercive parenting, and its associations with self-regulation among 243 3- to 5-year-olds (M = 4.7 ± 0.6; 51.9 % female) from low-income settings in Cape Town and who were not attending Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE). Results showed that self-regulation was not associated with child exposure to community violence, but it was positively associated with coercive parenting (β = 0.17; p = 0.03). The null concurrent associations between exposure to violence and self-regulation suggest the need for additional research aimed at understanding later potential developmental sequelae. It is important that findings regarding coercive parenting are contextualised within local social norms around parenting styles, as well as the influence of living in dangerous communities on parenting practices.

Neighborhood influences on the development of self-regulation among children of color living in historically disinvested neighborhoods: Moderators and mediating mechanisms

We present a conceptual model of the ways in which built and social environments shape the development of self-regulation in early childhood. Importantly, in centering children of color growing up in historically disinvested neighborhoods, we first describe how systemic structures of racism and social stratification have shaped neighborhood built and social environment features. We then present evidence linking these neighborhood features to children's development of self-regulation. Furthermore, we take a multilevel approach to examining three potential pathways linking neighborhood contexts to self-regulation: school environment and resources, home environment and resources, and child health behaviors. Finally, we consider how racial-ethnic-cultural strengths and multilevel interventions have the potential to buffer children's development of self-regulation in disinvested neighborhood contexts. Advancing multilevel approaches to understand the development of self-regulation among children of color living in historically disinvested neighborhoods is an important step in efforts to promote equity in health and education.

The Directionality of the Relationship Between Executive Functions and Language Skills: A Literature Review

It has been demonstrated that executive functions play a significant role in different aspects of the development of children. Development of language is also one of the most important accomplishments of the preschool years, and it has been linked to many outcomes in life. Despite substantial research demonstrating the association between executive function and language development in childhood, only a handful of studies have examined the direction of the developmental pathways between EF skills and language skills, therefore little is known about how these two constructs are connected. In this review paper, we discuss three possible directional relationships between EFs and language development throughout childhood. First, we discuss how EF might affect language functioning. Next, we discuss how language functioning might affect EF. Lastly, we consider other possible relationships between EF and language. Given that children with better EF and language skills are more likely to succeed in educational settings and demonstrate greater social–emotional competencies, investigating the relationship between EF and language in the preschool period provides insight into mechanisms that have not been extensively studied. Furthermore, it could create new opportunities for designing effective and efficient interventions aimed at addressing EF and language deficits during the preschool period which could in turn influence later development.

Changes in Children's Behavioral Health and Family Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic

OBJECTIVE

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and associated public health measures have influenced all aspects of life for children and families. In this study, we examine changes in children's behavioral health and families' well-being at the start of the pandemic.

METHOD

We used longitudinal data on 2880 children from 1 US state collected over 3 waves to compare family and child well-being before and after a state-wide stay-at-home advisory set in March 2020. We descriptively examined levels and changes in 4 child behavioral health outcomes (externalizing, internalizing, adaptive, and dysregulated behaviors) and 4 family well-being outcomes (parental mental health, parental stress, parent-child relationship conflict, and household chaos) across the preshutdown and postshutdown periods. Fixed effects regression models were used to predict within-child and within-family differences in preshutdown and postshutdown outcomes.

RESULTS

Fixed effects analyses showed children's externalizing (0.09 points; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.05-0.13), internalizing (0.04 points; 95% CI, 0.01-0.08), and dysregulated (0.11 points; 95% CI, 0.06-0.16) behaviors increased after the shutdown, whereas children's adaptive behaviors declined (-0.10 points; 95% CI, -0.15 to -0.05). Parental mental health issues (0.22 points; 95% CI, 0.17-0.27), parental stress (0.08 points; 95% CI, 0.03-0.12), parent-child relationship conflict (0.10 points; 95% CI, 0.04-0.16), and household chaos (0.10 points; 95% CI, 0.05-0.14) all increased relative to preshutdown levels.

CONCLUSION

Many children experienced declines in behavioral health and many families experienced declines in well-being in the early months of the public health crisis, suggesting the need for family-focused and child-focused policies to mitigate these changes.

Early experience unpredictability in child development as a model for understanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: A translational neuroscience perspective

Extensive evidence links adverse experiences during childhood to a wide range of negative consequences in biological, socioemotional, and cognitive development. Unpredictability is a core element underlying most forms of early adversity; it has been a focus of developmental research for many years and has been receiving increasing attention recently. In this article, we propose a conceptual model to describe how unpredictable and adverse early experiences affect children's neurobiological, behavioral, and psychological development in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. We first highlight the critical role of unpredictability in child development by reviewing existing conceptual models of early adversity as they relate to subsequent development across the lifespan. Then, we employ a translational neuroscience framework to summarize the current animal- and human-based evidence on the neurobiological alterations induced by early experience unpredictability. We further argue that the COVID-19 pandemic serves as a global "natural experiment" that provides rare insight to the investigation of the negative developmental consequences of widespread, clustered, and unpredictable adverse events among children. We discuss how the pandemic helps advance the science of unpredictable early adverse experiences. As unpredictability research continues to grow, we highlight several directions for future studies and implications for policymaking and intervention practices.

Early Adversity and Development: Parsing Heterogeneity and Identifying Pathways of Risk and Resilience

Adversity early in life is common and is a major risk factor for the onset of psychopathology. Delineating the neurodevelopmental pathways by which early adversity affects mental health is critical for early risk identification and targeted treatment approaches. A rapidly growing cross-species literature has facilitated advances in identifying the mechanisms linking adversity with psychopathology, specific dimensions of adversity and timing-related factors that differentially relate to outcomes, and protective factors that buffer against the effects of adversity. Yet, vast complexity and heterogeneity in early environments and neurodevelopmental trajectories contribute to the challenges of understanding risk and resilience in the context of early adversity. In this overview, the author highlights progress in four major areas-mechanisms, heterogeneity, developmental timing, and protective factors; synthesizes key challenges; and provides recommendations for future research that can facilitate progress in the field. Translation across species and ongoing refinement of conceptual models have strong potential to inform prevention and intervention strategies that can reduce the immense burden of psychopathology associated with early adversity.

Um Compasso Para Aprender: A Randomized Trial of a Social-Emotional Learning Program in Homicide-Affected Communities in Brazil

Despite global demand, the large-scale effects of social-emotional learning (SEL) programming in developing countries remain underexplored. Using a randomized control trial, this study examined the effectiveness of a school-wide SEL intervention-Programa Compasso (PC)-among 3,018 sociodemographically diverse, Portuguese-speaking children (M_age  = 9.85 years) attending 90 public primary schools across Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2017. Average impacts of PC on children's executive function, emotion knowledge, and behavior problems after one school year were null. Moderation analyses did, however, reveal evidence for positive impacts of PC on children's labeling of emotional expressions and inhibitory control within low-homicide communities (d = 0.15 SDs), and null effects on these same outcomes in high-violence areas. Implementation and cultural considerations are discussed.

Decomposing complex links between the childhood environment and brain structure in school-aged youth

Childhood experiences play a profound role in conferring risk and resilience for brain and behavioral development. However, how different facets of the environment shape neurodevelopment remains largely unknown. Here we sought to decompose heterogeneous relationships between environmental factors and brain structure in 989 school-aged children from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study. We applied a cross-modal integration and clustering approach called 'Similarity Network Fusion', which combined two brain morphometrics (i.e., cortical thickness and myelin-surrogate markers), and key environmental factors (i.e., trauma exposure, neighborhood safety, school environment, and family environment) to identify homogeneous subtypes. Depending on the subtyping resolution, results identified two or five subgroups, each characterized by distinct brain structure-environment profiles. Notably, more supportive caregiving and school environments were associated with greater myelination, whereas less supportive caregiving, higher family conflict and psychopathology, and higher perceived neighborhood safety were observed with greater cortical thickness. These subtypes were highly reproducible and predicted externalizing symptoms and overall mental health problems. Our findings support the theory that distinct environmental exposures are differentially associated with alterations in structural neurodevelopment. Delineating more precise associations between risk factors, protective factors, and brain development may inform approaches to enhance risk identification and optimize interventions targeting specific experiences.

The dimensionality of early executive functions in young preschoolers: Comparing unidimensional versus bidimensional models and their ecological validity

The study analyses the dimensionality of executive functions (EF) and its relationship with behavior in typically developing 3- and 4-year-old children. In study 1, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to investigate the validity of a one-factor model in 117 preschoolers. Since this model was not confirmed, a two-factor model was identified through exploratory factor analysis. In study 2, the validity of the new two-factor versus one-factor model was tested on a new sample of 128 children through a series of CFAs. The relationship between the models and specific behavioral aspects of the children was investigated. The results suggest that a bidimensional structure showed a better fit to the data and more ecological validity than a unitary structure.

Maternal Immune activity during pregnancy and socioeconomic disparities in children's self-regulation

Maternal immune activity during pregnancy has been associated with risk for psychiatric disorders in offspring, but less is known about its implications for children's emotional and behavioral development. This study examined whether concentrations of five cytokines assayed from prenatal serum were associated with socioeconomic status (SES) and racial disparities in their offspring's self-regulation abilities. Participants included 1628 women in the Collaborative Perinatal Project (CPP). Seven behavioral items conceptually related to self-regulation were rated by CPP psychologists when children were 4 years old. Concentrations of interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-8, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, and IL-10 were assessed. Covariates included child sex and mother's age, psychiatric disorders, and medical conditions during pregnancy. There were significant SES differences in child self-regulation, with higher SES children scoring higher on self-regulation (β = 0.18, 95% CI [0.11, 0.25]), but no racial differences. The concentration of IL-8 in maternal serum was associated with higher child self-regulation, β = 0.09, 95% CI [0.02, 0.16]. In mediation analyses, variation in maternal IL-8 contributed to the association between family SES and child self-regulation (β = 0.02, 95% CI [0.003, 0.030]), explaining about one-tenth of the SES disparities. This study suggests pregnancy as an early sensitive period and maternal immune activity as an important context for child development.

Chicago Youths' Exposure to Community Violence: Contextualizing Spatial Dynamics of Violence and the Relationship With Psychological Functioning

This study explores where and when community violence exposure (CVE) matters for psychological functioning in a sample of low-income, racial/ethnic minority youth (M) age = 16.17, 55% female, 69% Black, and 31% Non-Black/Latinx) living in Chicago. CVE was measured with violent crime data that were geocoded in terms of distance from youths' home and school addresses, and then calculated in terms of three distinct spatial dynamics: chronicity, pervasiveness, and spatial proximity. These measures reflect indirect/objective CVE across different conceptualizations of time, space, and neighborhood context. We tested the relationship between each CVE measure and trait anxiety and behavioral and cognitive dysregulation while controlling for youth-reported, direct violent victimization (e.g., being attacked) to examine how indirect/objective CVE occurring within youths' neighborhood contexts matters beyond direct/subjective violence exposure. Results revealed that long-term chronic, pervasive, and spatially proximal CVE was related to higher levels of behavioral dysfunction. In contrast, CVE within home- and school-based neighborhoods interacted to predict trait anxiety; youth living in low-crime neighborhoods and attending schools in high-crime neighborhoods had the highest rates of trait anxiety. Measuring CVE within both home and school neighborhoods at specific spatial measurements and time frames is critical to understand and prevent the consequences of CVE.

Influences of early-life stress on frontolimbic circuitry: Harnessing a dimensional approach to elucidate the effects of heterogeneity in stress exposure

Early-life stress confers profound and lasting risk for developing cognitive, social, emotional, and physical health problems. The effects of stress on the developing brain contribute to this risk, with frontolimbic circuitry particularly susceptible to early experiences, possibly due to its innervation with glucocorticoid receptors and the timing of frontolimbic circuit maturation. To date, the majority of studies on stress and frontolimbic circuitry have employed a categorical approach, comparing stress-exposed versus non-stress-exposed youth. However, there is vast heterogeneity in the nature of stress exposure and in outcomes. Recent forays into understanding the psychobiological effects of stress have employed a dimensional approach focused on experiential, environmental, and temporal factors that influence the association between stress and subsequent vulnerability. This review highlights empirical findings that inform a dimensional approach to understanding the effects of stress on frontolimbic circuitry. We identify the timing, type, severity, controllability, and predictability of stress, and the degree to which a caregiver is involved, as specific features of stress that may play a substantial role in differential outcomes. We propose a framework for the effects of these features of stress on frontolimbic development that may partially determine how heterogeneity in stress exposure influences this circuitry and, ultimately, mental health.

Exposure to community violence and Children's mental Health: A quasi-experimental examination

RATIONALE

Community violence and mental health problems are global health concerns. Yet, assessing the causal links between community violent crime and mental health is challenging due to problems of selection bias.

OBJECTIVE

This study examines the link between community violent crime and children's mental health problems, as well as the moderating role of parents' mental health.

METHOD

The study employs a representative sample of 404 children (M_age=8.99, range=7-11) from Bogotá, Colombia, as well as longitudinal geocoded data on violent crimes from the national police. To account for problems of selection bias, the empirical strategy exploits naturalistic exogenous variation in the timing and location of an incident of violent crime relative to assessment of children's mental health problems, combined with matching techniques.

RESULTS

Findings suggest an incident of violent crime in close proximity to children's homes is associated, on average, with increases in children's mental health problems by 0.28-0.38 SD; having parents with worse mental health exacerbates children's problems. Results from sensitivity checks and falsification tests further support the internal validity of the findings.

CONCLUSIONS

Collectively, the results from the present study and those of previous research suggest that community violent crime has the potential to affect local residents negatively beyond direct victims, placing a heavy burden on individuals and society.

The Latent Threat of Community Violence: Indirect Exposure to Local Homicides and Adolescents' Mental Health in Colombia

This study examines the relation between adolescents' indirect exposure to local homicides and mental health disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. We employ a sample of 300 adolescents ( Mage=14.52,range=12-17) representative for Bogotá, Colombia, and geocoded data on violent crimes recorded by the national police. Findings show that one SD increment in local homicides is associated with increments by 0.17 SD in the mental health disorder index and a 0.14 SD increase in the PTSD score index, even after accounting for adolescents' direct exposure to violence. The estimated effect for PTSD was larger for adolescents' who were directly exposed to violence and for those living in multidimensionally poor households, whereas no detectable effects were found for adolescents who perceived their residential neighborhood as relatively safe.

Measuring Young Children's Executive Function and Self-Regulation in Classrooms and Other Real-World Settings

A number of different approaches are currently used for assessing young children's executive function (EF) and self-regulation (SR) skills. Nevertheless, guidance for stakeholders aiming to assess EF and SR in real-world settings (e.g., preschool classrooms) is currently lacking. In the present article, I review the properties, strengths, and weaknesses of three common approaches to EF and SR measurement: direct assessments, adult reports, and observational tools. Building on this general review, I next highlight several considerations specific to EF and SR measurement of young children in everyday contexts. In particular, I consider the ecological validity, interpretability, and scalability of each approach to EF and SR measurement, concluding with future directions for research.

Early childhood exposure to non-violent discipline and physical and psychological aggression in low- and middle-income countries: National, regional, and global prevalence estimates

BACKGROUND

Advocates for children's rights have recommended the elimination of all forms of violent discipline given its detrimental effects on children's development. Yet, little is known about the global prevalence of various forms of discipline, including physical and psychological aggression, as well as alternative forms of non-violent discipline, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to obtain national, regional, and global prevalence estimates of the percentage and number of 2- to- 4-y-olds in LMICs exposed to these disciplinary practices by their caregivers.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

We use data collected between 2010 and 2016 from 107,063 2- to- 4-y-old children living in 49 LMICs as part of the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS).

METHODS

Using the best-fitting model based on cross-validation techniques, we performed predictive modeling to generate country-level prevalence estimates for 131 LMICs in 2013, as well as 95% confidence intervals around these estimates.

RESULTS

We estimate that 296.2 million 2- to- 4-y-olds (95% CI 256.9, 300.9) were exposed to non-violent discipline in 2013, which corresponds to 83.9% of the population. Furthermore, 220.4 million (95% CI 138.1, 283.7) and 230.7 million (95% CI 128.4, 300.6) children were exposed to aggressive physical and psychological discipline, respectively, which corresponds to prevalence of 62.5% and 65.4%. We also identify a high heterogeneity in the estimates across and within regions, finding a higher prevalence of both violent disciplinary methods in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest the need for new policies and programs to minimize violent discipline around the world.

Civil conflict, domestic violence, and poverty as predictors of corporal punishment in Colombia

BACKGROUND

With lingering effects from more than 50 years of war, young children in Colombia are exposed to multiple risk factors such as poverty, civil conflict, and domestic violence. In addition to these environmental stressors, public and legal support for corporal punishment remains high, which is shown by the high prevalence of young children exposed to corporal punishment in Colombia.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study is to identify individual, family, and municipality-level predictors of corporal punishment (i.e., hitting with objects and spanking) in Colombia in order to inform prevention and intervention strategies.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

We use information gathered in 2015 from a representative sample of 11,759 mothers of children younger than five in Colombia.

METHODS

We employed multi-level models to account for the clustering of families in 217 municipalities.

RESULTS

Results show that mothers' prior exposure to corporal punishment by their own parents (β=0.229;p<0.01), attitudes towards domestic violence β=0.013;p<0.05, municipality homicide rates β=0.028;p<0.05 and presence of armed groups β=0.031;p<0.05, household poverty β=0.030;p<0.01 and poverty of the municipality β=0.022;p<0.05 predicted mothers' hitting their young children with an object. However, family β=-0.028;p<0.05 and municipality poverty β=-0.016;p<0.05 had a negative association with mothers' use of spanking.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest that both family and neighborhood level factors have simultaneous associations with parents' use of corporal punishment. Given the accumulating evidence concerning the adverse effects of corporal punishment on child well-being and development, legislative efforts aimed at reducing and ultimately banning corporal punishment are warranted.

Resilience and Poly-Victimization among Two Cohorts of Norwegian Youth

Previous research shows that there is a significant and positive relationship between being a victim of violence and experiencing high levels of psychological problems among young people. Conversely, resilience is negatively associated with psychological problems among young people in general, and this negative association is particularly strong among victims of violence. Our study examines resilience among young people (aged ≥ 18 years) who reported being victims of multiple forms of violence during childhood and adolescence using data from two national youth surveys administered in Norway in 2007 (N = 7033) and 2015 (N = 4531), respectively. We first compared the score of resilience, as measured by the Resilience Scale for Adolescents (READ), and the prevalence of poly-victimization, as identified by the number of young people in our study who were exposed to three of the four forms of violence (i.e., non-physical violence, witnessing violence against parents, physical violence, and sexual abuse). Second, we tested our hypothesis using our data and found that resilience-individuals' capacity to handle adversity, as well as their use of social and cultural resources when facing adversity-moderates the association between poly-victimization and the onset of psychological problems.

Behavioral Self-Regulation, Early Academic Achievement, and the Effectiveness of Urban Schools for Low-Income Ethnic Minority Children

The independent and joint associations between child behavioral self-regulation ability and school effectiveness in relation to academic achievement were examined in a sample of low-income African American (n = 132) and Latino (n = 198) children attending kindergarten and first grade across a large metropolitan area. Child behavioral self-regulation and school effectiveness were positively associated with both reading and mathematics performance. School effectiveness moderated the effect of behavioral self-regulation on reading but not math achievement. Lower child behavioral self-regulation during early elementary school was associated with lower reading achievement the following year but only among children attending less effective schools. Behavioral self-regulation was not related to reading achievement among children attending more effective schools. Implications of these findings for policies addressing disparities in early academic achievement are discussed.

Neighborhood crime undermines parenting: Violence in the vicinity of households as a predictor of aggressive discipline

Child discipline is a central component of parent-child interactions. Evidence suggests corporal discipline impairs children's physical, cognitive, and socioemotional development and compromises their future chances, especially since it is more frequently used against at-risk children. Using geocoded data for 1209 children under the age of five and their mothers, this study analyses the relation between the occurrence of crimes in close proximity to households in four major urban municipalities of Colombia and a particularly violent corporal discipline practice: hitting children with objects. Results indicate that exposure to violent crimes, such as homicides and personal injuries, predicts a higher probability of hitting children with objects, even after controlling for a set of individual, family, and neighborhood characteristics. Sensitivity analyses suggest violent crimes are not related to other discipline methods, and less threatening crimes, such as robbery and drug trafficking, are not associated with hitting children with objects. These findings suggest households' walls are permeable, and outside threats may interfere with families' dynamics and well-being. Future directions and implications are discussed.

Effect of Victimization on Impulse Control and Binge Drinking among Serious Juvenile Offenders from Adolescence to Young Adulthood

A vast literature has found longitudinal effects of early life stress on substance use and self-regulatory processes. These associations may vary by period-specific development among youth involved in the juvenile justice system. The current study used an accelerated longitudinal design and auto-regressive latent trajectory with structure residuals (ALT-SR) model to examine the within-person cross-lagged associations between binge drinking, impulse control, and victimization from 15 to 25 years of age. A large sample (N = 1100) of justice-involved youth were followed longitudinally for 7 years (M age baseline  = 15.8, M age conclusion  = 22.8). In general, the sample was ethnically diverse (41% Black, 34% Hispanic, 21% White, 4.3% Other) and primarily male (87.2%). Participants reported on their frequency of binge drinking, impulse control, and frequency of victimization at each time point. The results indicated that, during adolescence, victimization and binge drinking attenuated impulse control, which resulted in more binge drinking and victimization during young adulthood. The current study highlights the importance of assessing developmental processes and period-specific transitions among at risk youth, especially for youth experiencing early life stress.

Community Violence Exposure and Generalized Anxiety Symptoms: Does Executive Functioning Serve a Moderating Role Among Low Income, Urban Youth?

Although community violence exposure (CVE) confers risk for generalized anxiety symptoms, not all youth who are exposed to violence exhibit such symptoms, suggesting that other factors moderate this relation. One candidate for moderation is executive functioning (EF), which is linked to both CVE and generalized anxiety symptoms. Nevertheless, little research has examined whether EF moderates the CVE-anxiety relation. To address this gap, we examined associations among CVE (i.e., direct victimization and witnessed violence), EF abilities (i.e., emotional control and shifting), and parent- and child-reported generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) symptoms among low income, urban youth (N = 104, 50 % male, M = 9.93 ± 1.22 years). In terms of main effects, lower levels of emotional control were associated with increased parent-reported GAD symptoms, whereas lower levels of shifting abilities were associated with increased parent- and child-reported GAD symptoms across both subtypes of CVE. EF abilities moderated the relation between direct victimization and both parent- and child-reported GAD symptoms, but did not moderate the relation between witnessed violence and GAD symptoms. Post-hoc probing indicated that when youth were exposed to higher levels of direct victimization, those with lower EF abilities exhibited elevated GAD symptoms. However, the level of direct victimization did not impact the level of GAD symptoms among youth with higher EF abilities. Findings have implications for prevention and intervention programs among at-risk youth who are exposed to community violence.

Context Matters for Social-Emotional Learning: Examining Variation in Program Impact by Dimensions of School Climate

This paper examines whether three dimensions of school climate-leadership, accountability, and safety/respect-moderated the impacts of the INSIGHTS program on students' social-emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes. Twenty-two urban schools and N = 435 low-income racial/ethnic minority students were enrolled in the study and received intervention services across the course of 2 years, in both kindergarten and first grade. Intervention effects on math and reading achievement were larger for students enrolled in schools with lower overall levels of leadership, accountability, and safety/respect at baseline. Program impacts on disruptive behaviors were greater in schools with lower levels of accountability at baseline; impacts on sustained attention were greater in schools with lower levels of safety/respect at baseline. Implications for Social-Emotional Learning program implementation, replication, and scale-up are discussed.

Children's cognitive performance and selective attention following recent community violence

Research has shown robust relationships between community violence and psychopathology, yet relatively little is known about the ways in which community violence may affect cognitive performance and attention. The present study estimates the effects of police-reported community violence on 359 urban children's performance on a computerized neuropsychological task using a quasi-experimental fixed-effects design. Living in close proximity to a recent violent crime predicted faster but marginally less accurate task performance for the full sample, evolutionarily adaptive patterns of "vigilant" attention (i.e., less attention toward positive stimuli, more attention toward negative stimuli) for children reporting low trait anxiety, and potentially maladaptive patterns of "avoidant" attention for highly anxious children. These results suggest that community violence can directly affect children's cognitive performance while also having different (and potentially orthogonal) impacts on attention deployment depending on children's levels of biobehavioral risk. Implications for mental health and sociological research are discussed.

Household instability and self-regulation among poor children

Past research suggests that poverty may negatively influence children's psychological and behavioral health by increasing their exposure to chaotic living conditions in the household. The present study provides a descriptive 'snapshot' of instability in low-income households, and examines the associations between exposure to major destabilizing events over the course of a year and three domains of poor urban children's self-regulation. Descriptive analyses suggest that although caregivers from unstable households report higher average levels of health problems and depression, they also have greater assets/savings, are more educated, and are less likely to be immigrants than caregivers from stable households. Results of propensity score-matched regression analyses reveal that high levels of household instability are significantly and negatively associated with preschoolers' effortful control and global attention/impulsivity control, but not with their executive function. Children from mildly unstable homes (i.e., those who had experienced a single destabilizing event in the past year) showed no significant differences in any domain of self-regulation relative to their peers from stable households, suggesting a dose-response relationship between the number of destabilizing events experienced by children and their outcomes. Implications for theories of poverty-related adversity, stress, and parenting are discussed in addition to future directions for research.