Early Adolescent Development Research Articles

Wealth and Child Development: Differences in Associations by Family Income and Developmental Stage

Wealth inequality is at a historic high in the United States. Yet little is known about the implications of wealth on children’s development because research has focused mainly on the role of wealth in shaping outcomes in adulthood. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (N = 8,095), we examine how family wealth relates to achievement and behavior problems during early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence. Further, we explore whether links between wealth and children’s development vary by level of income and income volatility. Results show that wealth, controlling for income level and volatility, is uniquely related to both academic and behavioral development in early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence. Moreover, evidence suggests that wealth plays a buffering role when it comes to protecting children’s development from the deleterious effects of low family income, especially as children grow older.

One size does not fit all: Trajectories of body image development and their predictors in early adolescence.

Background: Negative body image predicts many adverse outcomes. The current study prospectively examined patterns of body esteem development in early adolescence and identified predictors of developmental subtypes. Methods: 328 girls and 429 boys reported annually across a 4-year period (Mage at baseline = 11.14, SD = 0.35) on body esteem, appearance ideal internalization, perceived sociocultural pressures, appearance comparisons, appearance-related teasing, self-esteem, positive and negative affect, and dietary restraint. We performed latent class growth analyses to identify the most common trajectories of body esteem development and examine risk and protective factors for body image development. Results: Three developmental subgroups were identified: (a) high body esteem (39.1%); (b) moderate body esteem (46.1%); and (c) low body esteem (14.8%). Body esteem was stable within the low trajectory and there were minor fluctuations in the high and moderate trajectories. Greater appearance-related teasing, lower self-esteem, less positive affect, and higher dietary restraint predicted the low trajectory, whereas higher self-esteem and lower dietary restraint best predicted the high trajectory. Conclusions: Low body esteem appears to be largely stable from age 11 years. Prevention programming may be enhanced by incorporating components to address transdiagnostic resilience factors such as self-esteem and positive affect.

Parent-early adolescent relationship quality and problem behavior in Hungary, the Netherlands, India, and Iceland.

Higher parent-child relationship quality has been associated with less internalizing and externalizing problem behavior. However, it remained less clear whether these associations are universal or depend on the country under investigation. Furthermore, fathers are still understudied, even though there is increasing evidence of their important role in early adolescent development. Our study compared the association of mother-child as well as father-child relationship quality with early adolescents' problem behavior in four culturally different countries, namely Hungary (N=293; Mage =11.22; 53% boys), the Netherlands (N=242; Mage =11.20; 48% boys), India (N=230; Mage =10.68; 61% boys), and Iceland (N=261; Mage =10.90; 53% boys). Early adolescents filled out questionnaires in their classroom, assessing warmth and conflict with fathers and mothers and internalizing and externalizing problem behavior. Stepwise multi-group path analysis demonstrated no cross-cultural differences in associations between quality of the parent-child relationship and problem behavior. We did not find any effects of maternal or paternal warmth. However, across samples conflict with mothers was associated with more internalizing and externalizing problem behavior, and conflict with fathers was associated with more externalizing problem behavior. Our findings highlight the need to target conflict with both fathers and mothers in interventions across different countries, especially when addressing externalizing problem behavior.

Investigating the association between sleep quality and diffusion-derived structural integrity of white matter in early adolescence

IntroductionPoor sleep quality has been linked to reduced neural connectivity through decreased white matter (WM) structural integrity. WM tract development has been shown to continue throughout adolescence with studies reporting positive correlations between diffusion-derived estimates of structural integrity and reduced sleep quality in adult samples. Few studies have investigated this relationship exclusively within a sample of young adolescents. MethodsN = 51 participants aged 12 years (M = 151.5 months, SD = 4 months) completed a self-report questionnaire which included the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and underwent Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) as part of their baseline assessment in the Longitudinal Adolescent Brain Study (LABS) being undertaken in Queensland, Australia. Fractional anisotropy (FA) were extracted using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS) to investigate associations between sleep quality and WM integrity across the brain. ResultsSignificant correlations were found between the posterior limb of the internal capsule and the PSQI total sleep quality and sleep latency scores. There was also a significant difference in sleep duration between male and female participants. ConclusionThese findings provide an important insight of the impact that sleep may have on early adolescent WM development. Ongoing longitudinal assessment of sleep on WM development across adolescence is likely to provide further important information about how WM maturation relates to variations in sleep quality as circadian rhythm changes occur during middle and late adolescence.

Association between duration of breastfeeding based on maternal reports and dorsal and ventral striatum and medial orbital gyrus volumes in early adolescence

Maternal breastfeeding has an impact on motor and emotional development in children of the next generation. Elucidating how breastfeeding during infancy affects brain regional structural development in early adolescence will be helpful for promoting healthy development. However, previous studies that have shown relationships between breastfeeding during infancy and cortical brain regions in adolescence are usually based on maternal retrospective recall of breastfeeding, and the accuracy of the data is unclear. In this study, we investigated the association between breastfeeding duration and brain regional volume in a population-neuroimaging study of early adolescents in Japan (N ​= ​207; 10.5–13.4 years) using voxel-based morphometry, which enabled us to analyze the whole brain. We evaluated breastfeeding duration as indexed by maternal and child health handbook records during infancy. The results showed a significant positive correlation between the duration of breastfeeding and gray matter volume in the dorsal and ventral striatum and the medial orbital gyrus. Post hoc exploratory analyses revealed that the duration of breastfeeding was significantly correlated with emotional behavior. Additionally, the volume in the medial orbital gyrus mediated an association between breastfeeding duration and emotional behavior. This is the first study to evaluate the effect of breastfeeding during infancy on regional brain volumes in early adolescence based on maternal and child health handbook records. Our findings shed light upon the importance of maternal breastfeeding for brain development related to emotional and motivational processing in early adolescence.

Influence of Verbal Behavior Training on Performance for Sustainable Development in Childhood and Early Adolescence

The effective teaching of language is an aspect of special relevance regarding the good adjustment of children in contexts such as school, family, or community. This article performs an experimental procedure to check which language teaching methodology is most effective in a sample of children. The objective was to analyze the influence of training, Condition 1 (pure tacts more intraverbal) or Condition 2 (pure tacts more impure tacts), on emergence of two tests involving impure tacts (AB-C, AB-D) and four new complex intraverbals (BC-D, BD-C) for each of two sets of stimuli (Set 1 and Set 2). The sample comprised 54 children aged between 6 and 12 years, divided into two groups of different experimental conditions. The results revealed statistically significant differences in performance on the tests of impure tacts and complex intraverbal, obtaining highly effective results in Condition 2. This teaching method using compound stimuli (impure tacts) clearly favors the expansion of language. The practical implications of this work can be more effective language teaching methodologies implemented that favor the good psychosocial adjustment of children in contexts such as family, school, or the community in general.

Youth’s Expectations for Their Teacher’s Handling of Peer Victimization and Their Socioemotional Development

Evidence suggests that children’s expectations for how their teacher responds to students’ aggression moderate concurrent links between peer victimization and adjustment. This study extends this work by examining these associations longitudinally. Youth ( N = 366; 196 girls; [Formula: see text]) reported on their teacher’s use of five responses to peer victimization, two reflecting active intervention and three reflecting passive responses. Physical aggression, relational aggression, prosocial behavior, depressive symptoms, and anxiety were measured over two school years. Perceiving the teacher as contacting parents or separating students buffered the link between victimization and emotional maladjustment. Perceiving the teacher as advising independent coping or avoidance amplified links between victimization and behavioral problems. Some of these associations were sustained or emerged over time. These results underscore the potential importance of children’s perceptions of their teachers’ responses with peer victimization to their socioemotional development in early adolescence.

Meaning in Life as Mediator of Family Allocentrism and Depressive Symptoms Among Chinese and Italian Early Adolescents

Establishing a coherent meaning in life has long been considered to be a protective factor of well-being, but this construct has been understudied in early adolescent development. The current study investigated the relationships between family allocentrism and depressive symptoms as well as the mediation effect of meaning in life in 214 Chinese and 201 Italian early adolescents. Although family allocentrism was higher in Chinese than Italian participants, it was significantly associated to lower depressive symptoms in both countries. Moderated mediational analyses showed that in both countries: (a) family allocentrism was positively related with presence of meaning; (b) family allocentrism and presence of meaning were negatively related to depressive symptoms; and (c) presence of meaning mediated the relationship between family allocentrism and depressive symptoms. In conclusion, family allocentrism and presence of meaning in life are important preventive factors of early adolescents’ depressive symptoms in both collectivistic and in individualistic countries.

Chronic illness in childhood and early adolescence: A longitudinal exploration of co-occurring mental illness.

Chronic health conditions are hypothesized to disrupt the typical trajectory of child and adolescent development, and subsequently lead to increased levels of mental illness. However, due to methodological limitations in existing studies, this theory remains to be fully substantiated by empirical research. This study aimed to more thoroughly test hypotheses in the field. This study used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children to examine the co-occurrence of mental illness among children with chronic illness in late childhood into early adolescence and explore mediating factors in these outcomes. Children with chronic health problems presented with a disproportionate rate of psychiatric illness at 10 years, and these chronic health problems continued to be associated with poor mental health outcomes at 13 years and 15 years. These outcomes were mediated by high levels of peer victimization and health-related school absenteeism. This study suggests that chronic illness may impact on functioning and social development in early adolescence, and consequently lead to increased rates of mental illness. Examining rates of school absenteeism and peer victimization may be key to identifying children at risk over time.

Timing of menarche and abnormal hippocampal connectivity in youth at clinical-high risk for psychosis

The “estrogen hypothesis” suggests that estrogen is a protective factor against psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia. Although the precise protective mechanisms are still unclear, one potential explanation lies in the role that increased estrogens play in mediating hippocampal plasticity, as this may reduce hippocampal dysconnectivity that is characteristically observed in psychosis. In support of this view, later age at menarche- less available estrogen during critical early adolescent development- is related to earlier onset of psychosis and increased symptom severity. Furthermore, if estrogens have protective effects, then we should see this effect in the psychosis risk period in those at clinical high-risk (CHR) for psychosis — i.e., individuals showing attenuated symptoms at imminent risk for transitioning to a psychotic diagnosis. This study examined whether earlier age at menarche would result in more normative hippocampal connectivity in CHR youth; menarche is an easily assessed, developmental marker associated with the availability of estrogens. Resting-state connectivity was examined in sixty female participants (26 CHR and 34 healthy control; age 12–21) using a cross-sectional approach; hippocampal connectivity was found to relate to age at menarche. Later age at menarche in the CHR group related to increased hippocampal dysconnectivity to the occipital cortex (a region with a neurotrophic response to estrogen) compared to the controls. Results suggest that earlier availability of estrogens may have neuroprotective effects on hippocampal plasticity. Findings have relevance for understanding sex differences and etiology, as well as guiding novel treatments.

Growth to early adulthood following extremely preterm birth: the EPICure study

ObjectiveTo investigate growth trajectories from age 2.5 to 19 years in individuals born before 26 weeks of gestation (extremely preterm; EP) compared with term-born controls.MethodsMultilevel modelling of growth data from...

Appraising Child Upbringing Values and its Influence on the Psycho-Social Development of Early Adolescents in Buea SubDivision, South West Region, Cameroon

Appraising Child Upbringing Values and its Influence on the Psycho-Social Development of Early Adolescents in Buea SubDivision, South West Region, Cameroon

Reading and Oral Vocabulary Development in Early Adolescence

ABSTRACT International assessments show that 20% of adolescents cannot read simple texts with understanding. Despite this, research has focused on early reading in childhood and skilled reading in adulthood, neglecting reading development during adolescence. We report a longitudinal study assessing reading and vocabulary development at 12, 13 and 14 years in a sample of 210 adolescents who were unselected for ability. Word reading accuracy, word reading fluency, reading comprehension, receptive vocabulary and expressive vocabulary were assessed using standardized assessments. Latent variable models showed consistent rank order amongst individuals (high stability), significant progress over time, and evidence that achievement gaps between the least and most able adolescents were narrowing. Oral vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension were best conceptualized as indices of a common language construct. Low levels of reading proficiency were also observed in a substantial proportion of this sample, underlining the importance of providing ongoing reading and language support during adolescence.

Association of infant and young child feeding practices with cognitive development at 10-12 years: a birth cohort in rural Western China.

We aimed to comprehensively examine the association of breast-feeding, types and initial timing of complementary foods with adolescent cognitive development in low- and middle-income countries. We conducted a prospective cohort study of 745 adolescents aged 10-12 years who were born to women who participated in a randomised trial of prenatal micronutrient supplementation in rural Western China. An infant feeding index was constructed based on the current WHO recommendations. Full-scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ) was assessed and derived by the fourth edition of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children. The duration of exclusive or any breast-feeding was not significantly associated with adolescent cognitive development. Participants who regularly consumed Fe-rich or Fe-fortified foods during 6-23 months of age had higher FSIQ than those who did not (adjusted mean differences 4·25; 95 % CI 1·99, 6·51). For cows'/goats' milk and high protein-based food, the highest FSIQ was found in participants who initially consumed at 10-12 and 7-9 months, respectively. A strong dose-response relationship of the composite infant feeding index was also identified, with participants in the highest tertile of overall feeding quality having 3·03 (95 % CI 1·37, 4·70) points higher FSIQ than those in the lowest tertile. These findings suggest that appropriate infant feeding practices (breast-feeding plus timely introduction of appropriate complementary foods) were associated with significantly improved early adolescent cognitive development scores in rural China. In addition, improvement in Fe-rich or Fe-fortified foods complementary feeding may produce better adolescent cognitive development outcomes.

Prenatal and postnatal polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) exposure and behavioral development in early adolescence.

OPS 22: Behavioral effects of chemical exposures, Room 117, Floor 1, August 27, 2019, 4:30 PM - 5:30 PM Background/Aim: Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) has been linked with neurodevelopment outcomes in children. The aim of our study was to assess the relationship between exposure to PAHs in prenatal period as well as in early childhood and behavioral outcomes during the early adolescence. Methods: 168 adolescents (girls: 51.2%) from birth cohort, for whom PAHs exposure data (both prenatally and age of 3 years) were available and Child Behavioral Checklist (CBCL) was completed by mother between ages of 12 and 15 years. The multivariable Poisson regression model was used to estimate the betas for the association between the raw score for all CBCL outcomes and PAH exposure dichotomized according to median. Results: The median PAH exposure levels in the population under the study were 21.6 ng/m3 in prenatal period and 22.8 ng/m3 for the assessment in are of 3 years. Adolescents below the median for total prenatal PAH exposure compared to those above, were more likely to be withdrawn/depressed (beta=0.30; p=0.016), have somatic complaints (beta=0.44; p=0.002), present Rule-breaking (beta=0.65; p<0.001) and Aggressive behaviors (beta=0.29; p=0.001) as well as both summary outcomes - externalizing (beta=0.39; p<0.001) and internalizing problems (beta=0.27; p<0.001). While the highest exposure to PAHs at age of 3 years was related to Rule-Breaking (beta=0.55; p<0.001) and Aggressive behaviors (beta=0.26; p=0.003) and Externalizing problems (beta=0.33; p<0.001). Conclusions: The high exposure PAHs in prenatal period as well as during early childhood was related to higher likelihood of aggressive and rule-breaking behaviors during early adolescence.

Early Adolescent Gender Development: The Differential Effects of Felt Pressure from Parents, Peers, and the Self.

Most empirical research examining youth's gender development measures felt pressure to conform to gender norms using a composite value of felt pressure from multiple sources; however, because of the different socialization processes at work from parents, peers, and the self, analyzing these sources separately may elucidate different effects on gender development. Thus, the purpose of this study was to (a) differentiate the effects of perceived gender socialization pressure from parents, peers, and the self on early adolescents' own- and other-gender typicality, and (b) to examine whether a bi-directional relation between gender typicality and felt pressure is evident when distinguished across sources. With a sample of 212 early adolescents (54% girls; Mage = 11.11 years), felt pressure was found to be distinguishable by socialization source: adolescents' perceptions of parents, peers, and their own pressures were distinct, and each contributed differently to gender development. Pressure from self and peers were both found to relate concurrently to typicality (i.e., positively to own-gender typicality, negatively to other-gender typicality); only pressure from the self was found to have a longitudinal effect on adolescents' developing gender identity (i.e., an increase in own-gender typicality). Interestingly, other-gender typicality did not elicit higher felt pressure; in fact, it was negatively related to later felt pressure from the self, suggesting that adolescents may be developing self-acceptance of their levels of gender typicality. The findings suggest that the development of gender identity may involve a complex interplay with various sources of socialization pressures (e.g., parent, peers, self), and may further shift in relation to the adolescent's own levels of gender typicality.

Early Adolescent Critical Consciousness Development in the Age of Trump

Political elections have been shown to influence youth civic development. The election of Donald Trump is historic and has elevated precarity for people of color and immigrants, yet we know little about how young people with these identities experienced this potentially catalytic event. Using ethnographic methods, we examined youth and adult discussions that occurred during youth participatory action research in four sites of one after-school program between October 2016 and May 2017, to investigate how the development of critical consciousness occurs among early adolescent youth of color in the context of catalyzing political events. We identified emergent patterns in how young people (a) engaged in critical reflection, (b) weighed political efficacy, and (c) considered engagement in critical action in the wake of Trump’s election. The data revealed that young people’s critical consciousness development ranged from basic to advanced levels. This research highlights the ways that politically catalytic events shape critical consciousness development among early adolescents of color.

Differential Influence of Same- and Cross-Ethnic Friends on Ethnic-Racial Identity Development in Early Adolescence.

Recent research has shown that peers influence ethnic-racial identity (ERI) development during early adolescence. Arguments based on social identity theory, however, suggest that only same-ethnic but not cross-ethnic friends are important for ERI development. Using longitudinal social network analysis, we examined peer influence of both same- and cross-ethnic friends on ERI attachment and private regard. Data were drawn from six ethnically diverse schools in Western Germany (N=1,349; Mage =13.3). Our results provide empirical evidence for early adolescents' ERI being influenced by same- but less by cross-ethnic friends. Considering peers' ethnicity therefore is crucial for understanding peer influence on ERI development.

Effect of antenatal and infant micronutrient supplementation on middle childhood and early adolescent development outcomes in Tanzania

Background:There is growing evidence that nutritional interventions in the first 1,000 days of life may influence long-term health and development outcomes. Few studies have examined the effect of maternal and infant micronutrient supplementation on development outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa.Methods:We conducted a follow-up study of two randomized trials of antenatal and infant micronutrient supplementation conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. We assessed the effect of maternal multiple micronutrient (MMN) supplementation in pregnancy on development of children at 11–14 years of age. We also examined the effect of infant zinc and MMN supplementation on development at 6–8 years of age. We use generalized linear models to assess standardized mean differences (SMDs) in general intelligence, executive function and mental health scores.Results:We followed-up 446 children whose mothers were enrolled in the maternal MMN supplementation trial and 365 children who were enrolled in the infant zinc and MMN supplementation trial. We found no effect of maternal MMN supplementation on general intelligence (SMD: −0.03; 95% CI: −0.15, 0.09), executive function (SMD: 0.00; 95% CI: −0.11, 0.11) and mental health scores (SMD: 0.06; 95% CI: −0.10, 0.22). We also found no effect of either infant zinc or MMN supplementation on any of the three development domains (p-values >0.05).Conclusions:We found that antenatal MMN supplementation and infant zinc and MMN supplementation did not have a large effect on development outcomes in middle childhood and early adolescence in Tanzania.

Race/ethnic inequalities in early adolescent development in the United Kingdom and United States.

Comparative literature investigating race/ethnic patterning of children's health has found racial/ethnic minority status to be linked to health disadvantages. Less is known about differences during early adolescence, a period during which health outcomes are linked to later life health. Using the UK Millennium Cohort Study (n = 10,188) and the US Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey-Kindergarten Cohort (n ~ 6,950), we examine differences in socioemotional and cognitive development among 11-year-old adolescents and the contribution of family resources in explaining any observed differences, including socioeconomic, cultural traditions, and psychosocial resources. Adverse socioemotional health and cognitive development were associated with race/ethnic minority status in both countries. In the United States, we found that cultural resources and family socioeconomic capital played a large role in attenuating differences in problem behaviors between Asian American, Black, and Latino adolescents and their White peers. In the United Kingdom, the explanatory factors explaining differences in problem behaviors varied by racial/ethnic group. In both contexts, family resources cannot explain the sizable cross-country differences in verbal skills. In the United Kingdom, Indian adolescents had nearly one-third of a standard deviation increase in their verbal scores whereas in the United States, Black and Latino adolescents had scores nearly two-fifths and one-fifth of a standard deviation below the mean, respectively. We use a detailed race/ethnic classification in the investigation of racial/ethnic inequalities across the United States and United Kingdom. There are strong family resource effects, suggesting that relative family advantages and disadvantages do have meaningful associations with adolescent socioemotional and cognitive development. Although levels of resources do explain some cross-national differences, there appears to be a broader range of family background variables in the United Kingdom that influence adolescent development. Our findings point to the critical role of both the extent and nature of family social capital in affecting adolescent development.