Children's Social-emotional Outcomes Research Articles

Distinct patterns of grandparental involvement in childrearing and Chinese preschoolers' social-emotional development.

Grandparental involvement in childrearing has been associated with children's social-emotional development, yet findings are mixed. Grandparental involvement is a multidimensional concept that includes both quantity (i.e., the degree of grandparental involvement) and quality aspects (i.e., the quality of parent-grandparent coparenting and the quality of grandparenting practices). This study included both quantity and quality aspects to identify heterogeneous patterns of grandparental involvement and examined the associations between distinct patterns of grandparental involvement and children's social-emotional outcomes. Participants were 428 families with Chinese preschoolers (Mage = 53.75 months, SD = 10.32; 51.4% boys). Primary parental and grandparental caregivers completed the questionnaires. Four patterns of grandparental involvement emerged: the low-involvement mediocre-quality, the median, the high-involvement uneven-quality, and the high-involvement high-quality groups. Heterogeneous patterns of grandparental involvement exist and are differentially associated with children's social-emotional development. Children with grandparents in the high-involvement high-quality group demonstrated higher levels of social skills than those in the low-involvement mediocre-quality group and the high-involvement uneven-quality group. They also showed the lowest level of problem behaviors. This study highlights variations in grandparental involvement and helps to clarify previous inconsistent findings regarding the role of grandparental involvement in child development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Prenatal and postnatal small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements and children’s social–emotional difficulties at ages 9–11 y in Ghana: follow-up of a randomized controlled trial

BackgroundProvision of small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements (SQ-LNSs) during early life improves growth and development. In the International Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements DYAD–Ghana trial, prenatal and postnatal SQ-LNS reduced social–emotional difficulties at age 5 y, with greater effects among children in less-enriched home environments. ObjectivesWe aimed to investigate the effect of prenatal and postnatal SQ-LNS on children's social–emotional problems at age 9–11 y. MethodsIn 2009–2011, 1320 pregnant women ≤20 wk gestation were randomly assigned to receive the following daily until 6 mo postpartum: 1) iron and folic acid until delivery, then placebo, 2) multiple micronutrients (MMNs), or 3) SQ-LNS (20 g/d). Children in group 3 received SQ-LNS from 6 to 18 mo. In 2021, we evaluated children's social–emotional outcomes with 6 assessment tools that used caregiver, teacher, and/or self-report to measure socioemotional difficulties, conduct problems, temperament, mood, anxiety, and emotion management. ResultsWe assessed outcomes in 966 children, comprising 79.4% of 1217 participants eligible for re-enrolment. No significant differences were found between the SQ-LNS and control (non-LNS groups combined) groups. Few children (<2%) experienced high parent-reported social–emotional difficulties at 9–11 y, in contrast to the high prevalence at age 5 in this cohort (25%). Among children in less-enriched early childhood home environments, the SQ-LNS group had 0.37 SD (−0.04 to 0.82) lower self-reported conduct problems than the control group (P-interaction = 0.047). ConclusionsOverall positive effects of SQ-LNS on social–emotional development previously found at age 5 y are not sustained to age 9–11 y; however, there is some evidence of positive effects among children in less-enriched environments. The lack of effects may be owing to low prevalence of social–emotional problems at preadolescence, resulting in little potential to benefit from early nutritional intervention at this age in this outcome domain. Follow-up during adolescence, when social-emotional problems more typically onset, may yield further insights.This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00970866. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/record/NCT00970866

Paternity leave, family dynamics, and children's behavior in Singapore

AbstractObjectiveConduct the first empirical study to examine whether a father taking paternity leave is related to children's social–emotional development in Asia and the extent to which family dynamics mediate this relationship.BackgroundThe provision of paid paternity leave in Asia is relatively recent compared to many western societies. The impact of this policy on family dynamics and children's well‐being in Asia, where patriarchal ideology is more prevalent and women's labor force participation is high, is understudied. This study investigates this relationship in Singapore where government‐paid paternity leave was initiated in 2013.MethodThis study uses data from the Singapore Longitudinal Early Development Study which consists of 3895 children aged under 7. Multivariate regressions and propensity score matching analyses are conducted to assess the relationships between paternity leave‐taking, family dynamics, and children's behavioral outcomes. The KHB method is used to test the mediation effects of family dynamics.ResultsA 2‐week or longer paternity leave is significantly associated with lower family conflicts, mothers' parenting aggravation, higher marital satisfaction, fathers' involvement, and closer father–child relations. Paternity leave‐taking, mediated through positive family dynamics, is significantly associated with lower behavior problems in children.ConclusionRelatively short paternity leave (2 weeks) can benefit both family dynamics and children's social–emotional outcomes. These results have implications for policies that aim to enhance work‐family life balance and gender equality in society.

Associations of adverse maternal experiences and diabetes on postnatal maternal depression and child social-emotional outcomes in a South African community cohort.

Previous literature has identified associations between diabetes during pregnancy and postnatal maternal depression. Both maternal conditions are associated with adverse consequences on childhood development. Despite an especially high prevalence of diabetes during pregnancy and maternal postnatal depression in low- and middle-income countries, related research predominates in high-income countries. In a South African cohort with or without diabetes, we investigated associations between adverse maternal experiences with postnatal maternal depression and child social-emotional outcomes. South African mother-child dyads were recruited from the Bishop Lavis community in Cape Town. Participants consisted of 82 mother-child dyads (53 women had GDM or type 2 diabetes). At 14-20 months postpartum, maternal self-report questionnaires were administered to assess household socioeconomic status, food insecurity, maternal depressive symptoms (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS)), maternal trauma (Life Events Checklist), and child social-emotional development (Brief Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment, Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional, Second Edition). Lower educational attainment, lower household income, food insecurity, living without a partner, and having experienced physical assault were each associated with postnatal maternal depressive symptoms and clinical maternal depression (EPDS ≥ 13). Maternal postnatal depression, lower maternal educational attainment, lower household income, household food insecurity, and living in a single-parent household were each associated with child social-emotional problems. Stratified analyses revealed maternal experiences (education, income, food insecurity, trauma) were associated with postnatal maternal depressive symptoms and child social-emotional problems only among dyads with in utero exposure to diabetes. Women with pre-existing diabetes or gestational diabetes in LMIC settings should be screened for health related social needs to reduce the prevalence of depression and to promote child social-emotional development.

The role of household chaos on levels and trajectories of socioemotional behavior in the second year.

The second year of life is a time of formative developmental change as basic behavioral systems undergo rapid integration and expansion. This study examined the developmental trajectories of social-emotional (SoE) outcomes and the effects of infant sex and household chaos (HC) on the development of SoE outcomes across the second year of life. The participating families (N = 143) were ethnically homogenous (88% Caucasian) but economically diverse (31% low-to-very-low income). Mothers reported on their children's SoE outcomes including externalizing, internalizing, dysregulating problem behaviors as well as SoE competence when infants (54% girls) were 12, 18, and 24 months old. At each age point, HC was assessed through observations during home visits and compliance to the study protocols. Multilevel modeling revealed increasing developmental trajectories in all of the domains of SoE outcomes across the second year of life, reflecting the premise that these behavioral systems continue to form and become increasingly part of the infant's behavioral repertoire as development unfolds. However, compared to infants in less chaotic homes, infants in more chaotic households experienced steeper increases in both externalizing and internalizing problem behaviors across the second year, and girls showed higher levels of internalizing problem behaviors compared to boys. Results emphasize the increasing trajectories of problem behaviors in relation to ongoing chaotic caregiving environment among infants as young as 2 years of age. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Program-wide implementation of the Pyramid Model: Supporting fidelity at the program and classroom levels

Many early childhood programs are not prepared to meet the needs of children who have significant social, emotional, and behavioral challenges. Program-Wide Supports for Pyramid Model Implementation (PWS-PMI) provides a systematic approach to supporting early childhood programs using Pyramid Model practices and enhancing children's social-emotional outcomes that is grounded in implementation science. We designed the current study to test the PWS-PMI intervention and examine its feasibility of implementation in community-based early childhood programs serving children from low-income environments. In this study, we found programs increased their implementation of PWS-PM and improved classroom practices after only one year of support. Our findings indicate a program-wide approach is effective, although more time and support will be necessary to sustain high fidelity implementation and produce robust effects on children.

Parenting Mediates Associations Between Intimate Partner Violence at Different Life Stages and Toddler Social-Emotional Problems.

Researchers have linked parent experiences of intimate partner violence (IPV) to engagement in more negative and less positive parenting behaviors with their own children. This parenting behavior is associated with more negative child social-emotional outcomes. There is little research examining the impact of exposure to IPV during childhood on subsequent parenting and child outcomes in the next generation. This study aimed to better understand the complex relationship between IPV, parenting, and child social-emotional development among mothers of toddler-aged children, using both mothers' self-reported and observed parenting. This study utilized longitudinal data from an economically disadvantaged, racially diverse sample of 120 women who participated in data collection across the perinatal period, until children were 2 years of age. Measures included self-reported and observed parenting, mother-reported IPV history, and mother-report of toddler social-emotional difficulties. Childhood exposure to IPV predicted observed parenting problems, which in turn predicted greater toddler social-emotional problems. Conversely, adult experiences of IPV predicted self-reported parenting difficulties, which predicted greater toddler social-emotional problems. Findings suggest that exposure to IPV at different time points may influence parenting in different ways, representing unique pathways between maternal IPV experiences and child social-emotional difficulties.

Effects of Parenting Environment on Child and Adolescent Social-Emotional Brain Function.

The caregiving environment that children and adolescents experience is critically important for their social-emotional development. Parenting may affect child social-emotional outcomes through its effects in shaping the child's developing brain. Research has begun to investigate effects of parenting on child and adolescent brain function in humans using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Here we review these initial studies. These studies find associations between parenting behavior and child and adolescent functional activation in neural networks involved in emotional arousal, emotion regulation (ER), reward processing, cognitive control, and social-emotional information processing. Findings from these studies suggest that higher negative parenting and lower positive parenting are generally associated with heightened activation in emotional arousal networks in response to negative emotional stimuli in youth. Further, findings indicate that lower positive parenting is associated with higher response in reward processing networks to monetary reward in youth. Finally, findings show that lower positive parenting predicts lower activation in cognitive control networks during cognitive control tasks and less adaptive neural responses to parent-specific stimuli. Several studies found these associations to be moderated by child sex or psychopathology risk status and we discuss these moderating factors and discuss implications of findings for children's social-emotional development.

Maternal emotion regulation strategies, internalizing problems and infant negative affect

Recent work has identified links between mothers' self-regulation and emotion regulation (ER) and children's social-emotional outcomes. However, associations between maternal ER strategies (e.g., reappraisal, suppression), known to influence internalizing problems in adults, and children's negative affect (NA) have not been considered. In the current study, the direct and indirect relationships, through maternal internalizing problems, between maternal use of ER strategies and infant NA are examined. The potential effects of infant NA on maternal internalizing difficulties are also considered. Ninety-nine mothers and their infants participated across three time points during the first year postpartum. Higher maternal suppression was indirectly related to higher infant NA, through maternal internalizing problems; lower maternal reappraisal also was indirectly related to higher infant NA through maternal internalizing problems. Infant NA at four months postpartum was related to mothers' internalizing problems 6months postpartum. The implications of these findings for future research and intervention are discussed.

Parental Book Reading and Social-Emotional Outcomes for Head Start Children in Foster Care

This study examines the associations between parental book reading and social-emotional outcomes for Head Start children in foster care. Despite no main Head Start impact on parental book reading, subgroup effects were found. Foster parents in Head Start provided more book reading for children with disabilities but less for children with low preacademic scores. Head Start enhanced social-emotional outcomes for children in foster care. The positive impacts of Head Start on children's social-emotional outcomes were greater when parents read books frequently. Head Start should include more foster families and provided parenting skills to enhance social-emotional outcomes for children in foster care.

Computer use at schools and associations with social-emotional outcomes – A holistic approach. Findings from the longitudinal study of Australian Children

In drawing upon cultural-historical theory, this paper reports on the use of computers in Australian schools where a holistic analysis was undertaken to explore the possible associations with social-emotional outcomes. By conducting a quantitative analysis framed around a conceptual model that used the concept of perezhivanie, it was possible to examine a sample of 3345 children (8–9 years old) who participated in the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (wave 5) and to fill a gap in the literature on whether computer use has an influence on three social-emotional outcomes: self-concept, emotional problems and school liking. Findings suggest that Australian children are using computers in school in a very similar way, mainly practicing specific learning skills (e.g. maths and literacy) and rarely engaged in creative activities. In addition, findings reveal that overall computer use does not appear to have a significant impact on children's social-emotional outcomes. One exception, a small significant association between creativity and self-concept was found and further explored. Implications for practice and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Examining the associations between daily caregiving discontinuity and children's social-emotional outcomes.

Many child care centers temporarily move children and teachers in and out of their assigned classrooms throughout the day. Such practices create frequent discontinuity in children's experiences in child care, including discontinuity in their peer and teacher relationships. This study examined the prevalence and patterns of teacher and child movement between classrooms, the characteristics of teachers and children who were more likely to move between classrooms on a daily basis, and the associations between children's and teachers' rate of daily movement between classrooms with children's social-emotional outcomes. A moderate to high prevalence of child and teacher movement between classrooms was observed (29% and 83%, respectively). Children who were younger, considered solitary, and who had been enrolled in their classroom for shorter periods of time were less likely to transition between classrooms. Children's rate of movement was a positive predictor of teachers' perceived conflict with children in their care, and a negative predictor of teachers' perceived closeness. In addition, the more frequently teachers moved, the less children were inclined to indicate liking their teachers or centers. However, the more frequently children moved, the more likely children were to indicate liking their peers and for their peers to indicate liking them. Results are interpreted in light of additional research avenues that can inform sensible daily teacher continuity practices.

An evaluation of the intensity of mentoring: child outcomes

This study examines the intensity effect of a mentoring intervention for Head Start teachers, the Individualised Learning Intervention (ILI), as it impacts child social emotional outcomes. Pairs of Mentor and Protégé teachers across three sites in two states were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Mentors in the intervention group participated in a 50-hour mentor seminar and supported the intervention Protégé teachers’ professional growth and development across one Head Start school year. Mentors themselves were also supported by a Mentor Coordinator. As part of a quasi-experimental study of implementation fidelity effects, the intensity of mentoring intervention was measured by the Intensity of Intervention Scale and the intervention group was divided into high and moderate intensity levels. Evidence is presented for the effects of high intensity levels of the ILI Mentoring programme, relative to moderate intensity and control conditions, on the children in the Protégé teachers’ classrooms. These results lead to practice and policy implications regarding the implementation of mentoring programmes such as the ILI which are designed for early childhood educators and built upon adult self-directed learning experiences and collaborative support.

Neighborhood economic disadvantage and children's cognitive and social-emotional development: Exploring Head Start classroom quality as a mediating mechanism

Past research has shown robust relationships between neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and children's school achievement and social-emotional outcomes, yet the mechanisms for explaining these relationships are poorly understood. The present study uses data from 1904 Head Start participants enrolled in the Head Start Impact Study to examine the role that classroom structural and relational quality play in explaining the association between neighborhood poverty and children's developmental gains over the preschool year. Results suggest that neighborhood poverty is directly related to lower levels of classroom quality, and lower gains in early literacy and math scores. Indirect relationships were also found between neighborhood poverty and children's social-emotional outcomes (i.e., approaches to learning and behavior problems) via differences in the physical resources and negative student–teacher relationships within classrooms. These findings highlight the need for policy initiatives to consider community characteristics as potential predictors of disparities in classroom quality and children's cognitive and social-emotional development in Head Start.

Comparisons among quality measures in child care settings: Understanding the use of multiple measures in North Carolina's QRIS and their links to social-emotional development in preschool children

Quality Rating and Improvement Systems (QRIS) include the assessment of classroom quality as one component of how early childhood programs are monitored and licensed in many states across the United States. However, varying measures and foci of quality exist and have led to challenges in accurately depicting program quality across programs and improvement efforts. The current validation study explores several measures of classroom quality and their associations with components and overall star ratings of the North Carolina QRIS and preschool children's social-emotional outcomes within center-based child care programs. Data for this study were collected in 2009, 10 years after the start of North Carolina's QRIS. Results indicate that individual levels of star ratings did not generally represent distinctive levels of classroom quality, but did differentiate classrooms at the lower and higher levels of quality. Structural features of the environments such as teacher education and teacher–child ratio were associated with classroom quality across these measures in the expected directions; however, teacher experience was not. Further, children's social-emotional outcomes were predicted to a varying degree by star levels and different aspects of classroom quality as represented by these various measures. Results are discussed in terms of the differing levels of quality and teaching processes in classrooms. Future directions for research are presented to contribute to an increased understanding of QRIS and children’ experiences in early care and education programs.

Associations of Preschool Type and Teacher–Child Relational Quality With Young Children's Social-Emotional Competence

Research Findings: This study examined associations of preschool type (i.e., urban and suburban Head Start and university-affiliated center) and teacher–child variables with positive and negative child outcomes among 145 preschoolers (74 boys). Differences emerged across preschools, with urban Head Start children scoring lowest on the emotional competence measures and university-affiliated preschoolers experiencing less peer victimization than urban and suburban Head Start preschoolers. Differences across preschool types were also found for the teacher–child variables, such that teacher–child closeness was lower and teacher–child conflict and dependence were highest in the urban Head Start preschool. Regression analyses revealed significant and meaningful interactions between preschool type and teacher–child relational quality in the prediction of children's social-emotional outcomes. Teacher–child conflict was negatively associated with emotion regulation and teacher–child dependence was associated with the highest levels of emotion regulation, but only for university-affiliated preschoolers. Suburban Head Start preschoolers experienced less prosocial attention than urban Head Start preschoolers, but only when teacher–child closeness was high. Teacher–child closeness was also a negative predictor of urban Head Start preschoolers’ prosocial attention. Practice or Policy: Results point to the importance of understanding the role of teacher–child relational quality in the social-emotional development of children exposed to different preschool and environmental contexts.

Family risks and protective factors: Pathways to Early Head Start toddlers’ social–emotional functioning

Early Head Start children may be more likely to exhibit difficulties with social–emotional functioning due to the high-risk environments in which they live. However, positive parenting may serve as a protective factor against the influence of risk on children's outcomes. The current study examines the effects of contextual and proximal risks on children's social–emotional outcomes and whether these effects are mediated by maternal sensitivity. One-hundred and fourteen low-income, high-risk mother–toddler dyads participated in this longitudinal study designed to examine the relationships between family risk, mothers’ sensitivity, and children's social–emotional functioning in Early Head Start families. Researchers conducted two 2.5-h home visits, approximately six months apart, during which they assessed mothers’ levels of family risk, maternal sensitivity, and their children's social–emotional functioning. A theoretically derived structural equation model was tested to examine the direct paths from family risk variables to children's social–emotional functioning and the indirect paths by way of the mediator variable, maternal sensitivity. Support was found for a model that identified maternal sensitivity as a mediator of the relationship between parenting stress and children's social–emotional functioning. Results have implications for providing services through Early Head Start programs that are aimed at alleviating parenting stress and enhancing maternal sensitivity.

Losing the safety net: How a time-limited welfare policy affects families at risk of reaching time limits.

The authors examined the effects of Florida's Family Transition Program (FTP), one of the first welfare reform initiatives to include a time limit on the receipt of federal cash assistance with other welfare requirements, on single-mother welfare-receiving families. Using a regression-based subgroup approach, they identified a group of families who were at risk of reaching the welfare time limit and subsequently assessed the experimental effects of the time-limited welfare policy on this group as compared to an otherwise comparable group of single-mother welfare-recipient families. For the families who were at risk of reaching the welfare time limit, FTP had few effects. FTP decreased mothers' depressive symptoms, and mothers in the FTP group reported higher levels of children's school achievement. There were no effects on parenting behavior or mothers' reports of children's social-emotional outcomes.