Children's Social Development Research Articles

Preschool and child health: Evidence from China's universal child care reform

Early childhood education programs have been found to effectively promote children's social and cognitive development. However, the health impact of these programs is less understood. Using a quasi-experiment of the first universal child care reform in China from 2010, this paper aims to identify whether the preschool reform produces any short-term effects on health-related outcomes of preschoolers (3-6 years old). Specifically, this reform expands access to affordable preschools that provide full-day center-based education, with school meals and essential health services on campus. I exploit the variation in the number of newly established preschools across provinces and implement difference-in-differences and triple-difference strategies. Results confirm the effectiveness of this reform by showing a strong and positive impact on preschool attendance. This paper then documents the benefits to alleviating underweight among preschoolers. Estimates show a larger effect in rural areas, suggesting that the reform narrows rural-urban disparities in education access and undernutrition prevention. I also explore the impact on caregivers’ health consciousness and find improved health-seeking behavior when children get sick.

How Narrative Skills Associate With Peer Relations

Narrative skills are essential for children's social development. However, existing research primarily focuses on narratives' impact on children's cognitive abilities, with limited attention given to the relationship between narrative skills and peer interactions. This study aims to explore how oral and written narrative skills are associated with peer relations from a social perspective. 166 Chinese primary school children were randomly assigned to tasks of oral and written narratives, as well as peer nominations. Results indicate that grade 5 students performed significantly better than grade 3 students in both written and oral narrative tasks. Moreover, the level of written narrative proficiency surpassed that of oral skills. Significant interactions were also found among grade level, gender, and narrative modes. Crucially, narrative skills exhibited positive correlations with peer nominations, with stronger correlations seen for written narratives. These findings have important implications for narrative research and language instruction.

The Relationship Between Parental Communication Patterns and Children's Personal Social Development in Post-Pandemic COVID-19

The growth and development of preschool-aged children need to be considered by parent, one of which is their personal social development. Social development at the preschool age is considered important because it will be an introduction to children's readiness to enter school. incorporating parents into the social development of pre-school age children, one of which is through good communication patterns. One of the post-pandemic conditions of COVID-19 can cause communication between parents and children to be not optimal. The research objective was to determine the readiness of parents through communication patterns as a mitigation strategy in children's social development in the post-COVID-19 pandemic. The research method uses quantitative research with a cross-sectional study approach. the study group in this study was 38 parents of children in Kindergarten Al-Hidayah V Mangli-Jember Kindergarten. Bivariate analysis using the Pearson correlation test used for this research. There is a very strong relationship between parents' communication patterns and children's social development. Parents have good readiness as a form of strategic mitigation in improving children's social development through good communication patterns in the post-COVID-19 pandemic.  

Development and Initial Validation of the Parenting Styles Circumplex Inventory (PSCI).

Parenting style refers to the emotional climate in which parents nurture and guide their child's social development. Despite the prominence of parenting style research, many studies still create their own psychometrically untested measures of parenting styles, use measures that do not capture the uninvolved parenting style, or use median splits to convert dimensional assessments into parenting style typologies. To address these measurement issues, the current studies developed the Parenting Styles Circumplex Inventory (PSCI) which is rooted in Contemporary Integrative Interpersonal Theory and provides a framework to unite typology and dimensional parenting style measurement approaches. The current article describes the development and initial validation of the PSCI across three samples of college students (Ns = 571, 361, 385). The 32-item PSCI consists of eight octant scales which each assess unique combinations of parental responsiveness and demandingness. The measure asks respondents to answer each question about their mother- and/or father-figure. The circumplex structure of the PSCI was confirmed and replicated across studies and the PSCI demonstrated meaningful associations with indicators of parenting practices, relationship functioning, psychopathology symptoms, and substance use. Results from this study provide initial support for the PSCI as a path forward for measuring parenting styles.

Improving Recess through Collaboration: Exploring the Facilitators and Barriers to Sustaining Positive Playground Behavior.

School recess quality is vital to children's social and emotional skill development. However, there is a research-to-practice gap where academic findings are ineffectively translated back to schools. The aims of this study were to examine how a co-designed intervention would impact negative behaviors observed during recess and to explore the facilitators and barriers to recess implementation over the course of a school year. Utilizing a research-practice partnership, the authors collaborated with staff at an elementary school to design, implement, and assess an intervention focused on improving recess quality. The intervention offered training in research-supported recess practices through professional development training and teaching students transitions and games. The school's recess behavioral report log of negative playground behaviors across the academic year and notes from recess staff meetings were analyzed. Quantitative results pointed to a stable decrease in negative playground behaviors post-intervention compared to pre-intervention. Qualitative analyses suggest school leadership and practitioners should focus on "reculturing" recess prior to making structural changes, and empowering recess staff to sustain change. Prior to considering interventions at recess, there is a need to assess both school and recess culture. In doing so, reculturing around the importance of recess during the school day and the roles of adults in the process is needed to ensure the sustainability of any changes made.

The Influence of Peer Relationships on Children's Social Development

The Influence of Peer Relationships on Children's Social Development

PEMBENTUKAN KARAKTER ANAK DENGAN POLA ASUH DEMOKRATIS

This article discusses the influence of democratic parenting on the formation of children's character, the aim of which is for us to know what impacts the application of democratic parenting has on children, both good and bad. The author uses the literature observation method to summarize the results from various references which are then differentiated based on the type of research from each source used as a reference. In this context, democratic parenting patterns have positive and negative impacts on the formation of children's character, positive impacts include tolerance, independence, superior personality, the ability to share, respect for differences, and an attitude of not imposing the will of others. The impact of democratic parenting on children's social and emotional development includes children's ability to make friends easily, be willing to collaborate, show independence, and be willing to share. ant role of democratic parenting in shaping children’s character in a positive way.

The whys and wherefores of home creativity support: A cross-cultural reflexive thematic analysis between British and French parents

Although creativity research increasingly documents how parents support their children's creativity at home, previous work has been mostly quantitative in nature, while qualitative studies almost exclusively report data from mothers. Thus, we conducted online qualitative interviews of 14 parents (9 mothers and 5 fathers) of children aged between 4 and 6 years, who were living in France or in the United Kingdom during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a cross-cultural reflexive thematic analysis, we explored questions around what views of early childhood creativity parents shared; whether (and if so why) they are motivated to engage in dyadic home creative activities with their children; and their perceptions of the benefits of these activities, both on themselves, and on their children. The parents shared views and definitions of creativity in line with creativity research. Moreover, they explained how they used creative activities to teach their children social rules, self-expression, independence, and skills development. They also appreciated creative activities as a strategy to help their children vent and calm down or, in contrast, to foster in them a sense of joy and vitality. Parents also reported the extent to which creative activities contribute to parent—child relationship quality. We discuss these findings through the lens of Self-Determination Theory.

Cultivating young minds: Exploring the relationship between child socio-emotional competence, early childhood education and care quality, creativity and self-directed learning

Creativity and self-directed learning (SDL) have been identified as two key skills that children need to develop for success in the 21st century. As such, developing such skills has become a priority. High quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) can play a pivotal role in supporting a myriad of children's developmental outcomes. This study uses multi-level modeling on 484 children between 30 and 75 months of age (Mean age = 48) across 87 ECEC classrooms in Toronto. We tested associations between two skills (creativity and SDL), children's social and emotional competence (hyperactivity, prosocial behaviour, and emotional problems) and ECEC quality (professional development, ratios and emotional support). We found significant relationships between children's social and emotional outcomes and their creativity skills, but not their SDL. In addition, the proportion of professional development opportunities conducted onsite was positively associated with children's creativity. Implications for future research, policy and practice are discussed. Educational relevance statementThis study contributes to the understanding of how to support two skills needed in the wake of the fourth industrial revolution. First, we examine the relationship between children's social and emotional development and their creativity and self-directed learning. We then examine the role played by the quality of their early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings as contexts to learn these important skills when accounting for their children's social and emotional development. Finally, we test the robustness of these associations by controlling for important contextual factors (age, months in the program, family income, and maternal education).

LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT OF PRESCHOOL AND SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN AT RISK FOR LANGUAGE DISORDERS IN RESIDENTIAL CARE SETTINGS

Adequate language development is central to a child's academic and social development. This study aimed to assess the language of 35 preschool and school-aged Portuguese children in residential care in four social institutions, using the Grelha de Observação da Linguagem (GOL-E) developed by Kay and Santos (2014), a validated tool in Portuguese. The results of the study showed that in terms of language competence, compared to the normative results expected for their age: a) Of the thirty-five children assessed, only three were at or above the 50th percentile; b) Twelve children were between the 5th and 25th percentiles; c) Eight children were in the 10th percentile; d) Of the children between the 11th and 12th percentiles, only one was in the 90th and 75th percentiles; e) Eleven children were in the 10th and 25th percentiles; f) One child at the age of 12 was in the 5th percentile. Most of the children were in percentiles below those expected for their age group. According to the definition of speech and language disorders, we can observe that a group of these children fall under the condition of speech and language disorders, but have not been formally identified in the educational system, putting them at risk of failure in school and life. This study highlights the importance of language assessment and special education services for children living in institutions in Portugal. More studies with this population in these age groups are needed to better understand the language competencies of children living in residential care.<p> </p><p><strong> Article visualizations:</strong></p><p><img src="/-counters-/edu/0058/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /></p>

Is autonomic functioning distinctly associated with anxiety and unsociability in preschoolers?

There are many benefits of peer interactions for children's social, emotional, and cognitive development, and isolation from peers may have negative consequences for children. Although biological processes may underlie social withdrawal broadly, distinct patterns may be associated with withdrawal behaviors depending on their underlying motivation (e.g., shy versus disinterested). This study investigated the role of autonomic nervous system activity, as assessed via skin conductance level (SCL) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) in predicting changes in unsociability (e.g., lack of interest in peers) and anxious-fearfulness (e.g., discomfort among peers). Data were collected using a community sample of 92 US preschool children (45.7 % female; Mage = 45.51 months, SDage = 3.81 months) at two time points one year apart. Gender differences were also explored. Baseline physiology was assessed while viewing a neutral video clip, and reactivity was assessed while viewing social exclusion and post-aggression discussion videos. For all children, coinhibition (i.e., SCL inhibition accompanied by RSA inhibition) to the post-aggression discussion video and blunted SCL activation to the exclusion video were prospectively associated with higher levels of anxious-fearfulness one year later. For boys only, baseline reciprocal sympathetic activation (i.e., SCL activation and RSA inhibition) was prospectively related to higher levels of unsociability one year later. For girls only, RSA inhibition in response to the post-aggression discussion video was prospectively related to higher levels of unsociability one year later. Findings contribute to a growing literature on autonomic reactivity in preschoolers' adjustment and suggest possible differences in the physiological processes underlying unsociability and anxious-fearfulness.

Hearing and Language Skills in Children Using Hearing Aids: Experimental Intervention Study.

Hearing loss in childhood compromises a child's auditory, linguistic, and social skill development. Stimulation and early intervention through therapy and the use of personal sound amplification devices (PSAPs) are important for improving communication. To verify the effectiveness of speech therapy intervention on the auditory and linguistic skills of Brazilian children aged between 6 and 8 years using PSAPs. Experimental study analyzing the intervention process in children aged between 6 and 8 years with mild to severe bilateral hearing loss and prelingual deafness who are PSAP users. Diagnostic information was analyzed, and assessments and interventions were carried out using the Glendonald Auditory Screening Procedure (GASP), a phoneme discrimination test with figures (TFDF), an expressive language category classification test, and an Infant-Toddler Meaningful Auditory Integration Scale (IT-MAIS) questionnaire. Sixteen children participated in the study; they were divided into a control group (CG) of six children and an intervention group (IG) of ten children. All research subjects underwent two protocol application sessions, and the IG underwent six speech therapy intervention sessions. In the IT-MAIS, the CG had a 9% increase in score, and the IG had an increase of 3% after intervention. The TFDF obtained a 5% increase in the IG in terms of phonemic discrimination ability. The expressive language category classification tests and GASP were considered not sensitive enough to modify the parameters of auditory and linguistic skills. The study found a significant improvement amongst the IG in the TFDF protocol and an increase in IT-MAIS scores in both groups.

CHILD SAFEGUARDING POLICY IN LEMBAGA PENYELENGGARA KESEJAHTERAAN SOSIAL (LPKS)

Lembaga Penyelenggaraan Kesejahteraan Sosial (LPKS) is an institution that organizes social rehabilitation programs for children in conflict with the law. LPKS applies a social work and child rights approach to achieve children's social functioning, growth, and development in a safe environment while participating in social rehabilitation programs. LPKS chose the Child Safeguarding Policy (CSP) to uphold a safe environment. CSP is a system or collection of activities, procedures, documents, and responses in addressing child protection issues in the context of the institution. It covers a range of activities from prevention to response to child abuse issues. This article aims to describe the process of the Social Welfare Institution in implementing the Child Protection Policy. This article is a qualitative article based on the framework of constructivism and interpretivism, using ethnographic methods. Its selection is based on the benefits of collecting information through involvement in implementation, participatory observation, field notes, and report documents. The process of LPKS in implementing the Child Protection Policy implies (1) the role of leaders in demonstrating the commitment of the institution to protecting children from the risk of abuse, (2) the Child Protection Policy must be carried out integrally through awareness, prevention, reporting, and response to child abuse issues, (3) the Protection Policy must be carried out in an integrated manner.

Biological basis of temperament: Respiratory sinus arrhythmia and inhibitory control across childhood.

Temperamental inhibitory control is a foundational capacity for children's social, emotional, and behavioral development. Even though temperament is suggested to have a biological basis, the physiological indicators of inhibitory control remain unclear amid mixed empirical results. In this study, we leveraged a multicohort longitudinal design to examine resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) as a physiological correlate of inhibitory control across the early and middle childhood years. Data were collected annually across four time points from cohorts of 4- (n = 150, Mage = 4.53; SD = 0.30; 49.7% female) and 8- (n = 150; Mage = 8.53; SD = 0.29; 49.7% female) year-old children and their caregivers. There were weak, albeit significant, associations between resting RSA and caregiver-reported inhibitory control in middle childhood but not in early childhood. A stronger association was found for older children when latent trait assessments of RSA and inhibitory control were derived from commonalities across the four annual assessments. We conclude that using repeated measures to extract latent trait scores increases power to detect potential physiological indicators of temperament. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Let's Hear Children's Emotions: The Play-Based Psychoeducation Program for the Socio-Emotional Development of Primary School Children

The acquisition of empathy, emotional literacy and prosocial skills is important for children's social, emotional and moral development. If these skills are supported through play in children, their acquisition will be faster and easier. Therefore, in this study, the Play-Based Socio-Emotional Psychoeducation Program including empathy, emotional literacy and prosocial skills was prepared and its effect on children was examined. The present research was the pretest-posttest quasi-experimental study. The sample of the study consisted of primary school students between the ages of 7-10. 23 children were included in the experimental group and 23 children were included in the control group. An average of 45 minutes of practice was applied to the experimental group for 10 weeks. The findings of the study showed that there was an increase in empathy, emotional literacy, and prosocial skills of the children in the experimental group after the application, but there was no change in their behaviors. These results provided evidence that the program was effective on these skills. It can be said that the current study will shed light on field workers and the play-based psychoeducation program will be an effective program that they can integrate into their practices.

Meningkatkan Kemampuan Kognitif Anak Usia Dini Melalui Metode Karyawisata Di Paud Tk Alkhairaat Bungi Kabupaten Morowali

Early childhood education is a form of education that aims to optimize children's physical, intellectual and social growth and development. The stimuli given to early childhood must of course be adapted to the stages of development that occur in them. Early childhood has potential that must be developed through stimulation. These potentials are in the form of developmental aspects. To improve the cognitive abilities of early childhood through the field trip method at Paud Tk Alkhairaat Bungi, this research uses qualitative research methods, where an effort or effort by the author can pour ideas or thoughts based on the formation of substantive theories based on empirical data. Data obtained by being present or on location, to conduct research so as to understand all activities and behaviors and things that can help this research. It can be concluded that students can think operationally, by touching, seeing, feeling and intersecting directly with the original source it turns out that it can be easier for students to understand and can develop cognitive abilities in students. If students learn with happy conditions, the material will be more easily digested and well received by students.

Rational combination of program modules from sports games within the framework of the "New Ukrainian School" concept to optimize the process of physical education in 5th and 6th grades

Building a rational and effective system of physical education in the field of secondary education is extremely important for Ukraine, especially considering the challenges that our country is facing. Given this, the task of developing a system for students' physical education in general secondary education institutions is of primary importance. The aim of this work is to determine a rational, effective, and expedient method of combining individual program modules available in the content of the model physical education curriculum for 5th and 6th grades, in order to organize a high-quality process of students' physical education. To achieve this goal, modules from such game sports as basketball, handball, and volleyball were selected. Additionally, the aim of the work was to determine the nature of students' and their parents' subjective perception of these sports. Understanding this will allow for a more effective organization of the physical education process according to the proposed program. The research methodology includes a theoretical analysis of available scientific literature and a questionnaire method. The scientific novelty of the work lies in improving the process of organizing physical education in general secondary education institutions, in line with the current educational concept "New Ukrainian School". In conclusion, it is stated that the annual physical education program version, which is based on the combination of such program modules as "basketball", "handball", and "volleyball", can be an extremely effective and productive system of physical education for 5th and 6th grade students. It is predicted that the combination of these types of sports will more comprehensively affect the development of various physical and psychomotor skills. Also it will contribute to the general physical and social development of children.

Exploring Disparities in Emotional Intelligence among Hearing Impaired Students from Segregated and Inclusive Education Systems

Background: Hearing impairment presents unique challenges in the educational and social development of children. Emotional Intelligence (EI) is a key factor in their ability to navigate these challenges effectively. Disparities in EI among hearing-impaired students may vary significantly depending on whether they are educated in segregated or inclusive systems. Objective: The study aimed to compare the levels of EI in hearing-impaired students attending segregated and inclusive educational institutions in Punjab, Pakistan, to determine how different educational settings influence their emotional competencies. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 742 hearing-impaired students from various secondary and higher secondary schools and universities. The research employed a non-probability purposive sampling technique. Ethical approval was obtained from the Social Sciences Review Committee of the University of Management and Technology (UMT), and all procedures were in line with the Declaration of Helsinki. EI was measured using a standardized scale encompassing dimensions such as Self-Regard, Assertiveness, Empathy, and Stress Tolerance. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25 was used for data analysis. Results: Students in segregated settings scored higher in most EI components, with Interpersonal Skill (Mean=3.10, SD=0.63), Self-Regard (Mean=2.69, SD=0.63), and Assertiveness (Mean=2.75, SD=0.60) showing significant differences with p-values of less than .001. Empathy was higher in inclusive settings (Mean=3.16, SD=0.49; p=0.039). Overall EI was higher in segregated settings (Mean=2.81, SD=0.47; p<.001). Conclusion: The educational setting is a significant determinant of EI levels in hearing-impaired students, with segregated education systems showing more favorable outcomes in EI development, except for Empathy. This insight is crucial for devising educational strategies and healthcare interventions that support the emotional and social well-being of hearing-impaired students.

Substituting Book Reading for Screen Time Benefits Preschoolers' Sleep Health: Results from the Ulm SPATZ Health Study.

Healthy sleep is essential for the physical, cognitive, and social development of children. Several studies have reported the increase in digital media use in preschool children and its association with impaired sleep. However, there is relatively little evidence on the effects of book reading as a potentially safe alternative. The objective of this study, therefore, was to investigate whether sleep in children could benefit from book reading, and whether the negative effects of media use on sleep can be mitigated by substituting book reading for screen time. We used longitudinal data from three consecutive waves of the SPATZ Health study, including children at the ages of 4 (n=581), 5 (n=508), and 6 (n=426) years. All data were collected by self-administered questionnaires. Parent-reported child sleep was assessed by the Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire. Across the three waves, screen-based media use increased and was associated with lower sleep quality. In contrast, the time spent with book reading decreased; however, book reading appeared to be beneficial for children's sleep. Substitution models revealed that the theoretical substitution of an equal amount of book reading for 50% of the time spent with screen-based media benefits several domains of preschoolers' sleep health, including parasomnias, sleep anxiety, daytime sleepiness, and sleep onset delay. Besides implications for population-wide and individual prevention, book reading may also be incorporated as a useful intervention to improve sleep quality in children who are already affected by sleep problems. Given that book reading is perceived as a safe alternative, the presented evidence may suffice to support recommendations in this direction.

Possible unintended consequences of pediatric clinician strategies for communicating about social-emotional and developmental concerns in diverse young children.

Screening to promote social-emotional well-being in toddlers has positive effects on long-term health and functioning. Communication about social-emotional well-being can be challenging for primary care clinicians for various reasons including lack of time, training and expertise, resource constraints, and cognitive burden. Therefore, we explored clinicians' perspectives on identifying and communicating with caregivers about social-emotional risk in toddlers. In 2021, semistructured interviews were conducted with pediatric clinicians (N = 20) practicing in Federally Qualified Health Centers in a single metropolitan area. Most participants identified as female (n = 15; 75%), white non-Hispanic/Latino (n = 14; 70%), and were Doctors of Medicine or Osteopathic Medicine (n = 14; 70%). Thematic analysis was conducted on audio-recorded interview transcripts. Clinicians used various approaches to identify social-emotional concerns which were sometimes difficult to distinguish from other developmental concerns. The clinician-caregiver relationship guided identification and communication practices and cut-across themes. Themes include: starting with caregivers' concerns, communicating concerns with data and sensitivity, navigating labels, culture, and stigma, and limiting communication based on family capacity and interest. Prioritizing the clinician-caregiver relationship is consistent with best practice and family-centered care. Yet, the dearth of standardized decision support may undermine clinician confidence and impede timely conversations about social-emotional concerns. An evidence-based approach with developmentally based culturally informed quantitative tools and standardized decision supports could help ensure equitable management and decision making about young children's social and emotional well-being and development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).