Domains Of Cognitive Development Research Articles

Neuropsychological profile in tuberous sclerosis complex: a study of clinical and cognitive variables in a cohort from Brazil.

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder with a wide clinical, cognitive, and behavioral expressivity. To assess the neuropsychological profile of individuals clinically diagnosed with TSC and the factors that could significantly impact their cognitive development. A total of 62 individuals with ages ranging from 3 to 38 years were followed up in a tertiary attention hospital in Southern Brazil, and they were assessed using a standard battery and the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales, when intellectual disability was observed. History of epilepsy was found in 56 participants (90.3%), and 31 (50%) presented an intellectual disability. Among the other half of TSC individuals without intellectual disability, 8 (12.9%) presented borderline classification, 20 (32.2%) presented average scores, and 3 (4.8%) were above average. In total, 17 participants (27.4%) fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorder. The results of the multiple linear regression analysis suggested that seizures, age at diagnosis, visual perception, and general attention significantly impact cognitive performance indexes. The present study suggests that the occurrence of epileptic seizures and older age at diagnosis contribute to higher impairment in the domains of cognitive development, underlining the importance of early diagnosis and the prevention of epileptic seizures or their rapid control. The development of attentional skills, visual perception, and executive functions must be followed up.

Daytime sleep duration during infancy as an indicator for cognitive development at school age: a prospective cohort study.

The reduction in daytime sleep during early life is considered one of the indicators of the maturation of sleep patterns, which is closely associated with cognitive development. The current study aims to analyze the relationships between daytime sleep duration (DSD) during infancy and cognitive development at 6 and 10 years. The study included 262 mothers with their newborns from the Shanghai Sleep Birth Cohort Study, spanning 11 follow-ups from 42 days to 10 years. Sleep parameters were assessed using parent-reported questionnaires at each follow-up, and cognitive development was evaluated with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, fourth edition at 6 and 10 years. Two distinct DSD trajectories in early childhood were identified: "typical DSD" (66.7%) and "infancy excessive DSD" (33.3%). Children in the "infancy excessive DSD" trajectory exhibited lower working memory scores than those in the "typical DSD" trajectory at 6 years (mean difference = 5.90, 95% confidence interval [1.83, 9.96], P = .005) and 10 years (mean difference = 4.37, 95% confidence interval [0.26, 8.48], P = .037). Additional analysis in a relatively homogeneous sample consistently showed correlations between DSD trajectories and working memory performance. No consistent significant differences were found in other domains of cognitive development. Excessive daytime sleep during infancy may serve as an early indicator for poor working memory at school age. These findings raise concerns about the long-term cognitive development of infants with excessive DSD. Lin J, Jiang Y, Xiao X, etal. Daytime sleep duration during infancy as an indicator for cognitive development at school age: a prospective cohort study. J Clin Sleep Med. 2024;20(7):1069-1077.

Investigation of Mobile Applications for Children to Support the Acquisitions in the Preschool Education Program

Nowadays, with the widespread use of mobile devices and the internet, the age range of users has decreased to the preschool period. Games in application stores do not always contain educational content. The content encountered is important for children who spend some of their time playing games on mobile devices. In line with this, the present study aimed to examine the support status of mobile applications for children regarding the acquisitions in the Preschool Curriculum. The sample of the study, in which the document analysis method was employed, consists of 24 mobile applications for children in the Google Play Store. While examining the applications, the data were processed into the Application Review Form created on Google Forms by the researcher, and all the data were analyzed at the end of the review process. According to the study results, it was revealed that the examined mobile applications could support 28 acquisitions out of a total of 63 acquisitions in the Preschool Curriculum and the highest number of supportable acquisitions belonged to the cognitive development domain. It was concluded that mobile applications were insufficient to support the acquisitions in other development domains and mobile applications could be used as an educational tool only for some acquisitions, and suggestions were presented in this direction.

Özel Yetenekli Bireyleri Konu Edinen Filmlerin İncelenmesi

Introduction: The mass media tools, which affect all areas of life, also influence the perceptions of gifted individuals. The perception of the gifted individual drawn by these tools shapes the perspective on gifted individuals and special abilities. Films, among these tools, take an important place in terms of their power to reach socioeconomic audiences of all ages and all levels. The objective of this study is to reveal how gifted characters are presented in films about gifted individuals.Method: The characteristics of characters in demographic and different developmental domains (cognitive, personality, social-emotional, and language) were evaluated by examining 36 films about gifted individuals. Films with a gifted individual in the lead role were included in the study. The 36 films reached by meeting this criterion constitute the research objects of the study. The data of the study, designed with the case study method, were collected by document analysis and analyzed by the descriptive analysis method. A checklist including demographic characteristics and cognitive, social-emotional, language, and personality development characteristics of gifted individuals prepared by the researchers based on the literature was used to analyze the films reached. The characteristics of gifted characters were examined by considering the checklist.Findings: According to the research findings, gifted characters were usually depicted as males in the examined films, and some characters had various diagnoses accompanying their special abilities. Concerning developmental domains, the following dimensions were observed to come to the forefront: strong memory in the domain of cognitive development, self-awareness in the domain of social-emotional development, using the language correctly and fluently in the domain of language development, and self-discipline in the domain of personality development.Conclusion: It is observed that the characteristics of gifted characters are usually reflected in films in a way overlapping with the literature. In this context, it can be recommended that films about gifted individuals should be shot in Turkey by taking the opinions of experts working in the field of gifted education.

Maternal expression of miR-let-7d-3p and miR-451a during gestation influences the neuropsychomotor development of 90 days old babies: "Pregnancy care, healthy baby" study

IntroductionStudies on maternal microRNA expression have emerged to better understand regulatory mechanisms during the gestational period, since microRNA expression has been associated with pregnancy disorders. ObjectivesThis study aims to investigate the association between the expression of the maternal microRNAs miR-let-7d-3p and miR-451a during the second gestational trimester and neuropsychomotor development at 90 days of life of infants. MethodsThis is a case-control study nested within a cohort, with the groups being divided into dyads in which pregnant women presented Major Depressive Episode (MDE) (n = 64), these being the cases, and their respective controls (no MDE; n = 64). The Bayley Scale III was used to assess the outcome of child development, and MDE was assessed through the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview Plus. The analysis of miR-let-7d-3p and miR-451a was done via serum from the pregnant women, utilizing the qRT-PCR (n = 128). ResultsThe results indicated a negative association between expression levels of miR-451a (β −3.3 CI95% −6.4;-0.3) and a positive associated of the miR-let-7d-3p with the cognitive development domain (β 1.7 CI95% 0.1; 3.0), and a positive association between expression of miR-let-7d-3p with motor development of the infants (β 1.6 CI95% 0.3; 2.9). ConclusionThis is a pioneering study on the topic that indicates a biological interrelationship between the miRNAs miR-let-7d-3p and miR-451a evaluated during the pregnancy and the motor and cognitive domains of infant development at 90 days postpartum.

Associations between antenatal corticosteroid exposure and neurodevelopment in infants

It has been well recognized that antenatal administration of dexamethasone to pregnant women at risk of preterm delivery may markedly accelerate fetal maturation and reduce the risk of adverse perinatal outcomes in their preterm infants, particularly for births before 34 weeks of gestation. Since 2015, antenatal corticosteroid administration has been extended beyond 34 weeks of gestation by clinical guidelines, as it might have beneficial effects on fetal maturation and perinatal outcomes. However, concerns regarding the potential influence of antenatal corticosteroid treatment on offspring neurodevelopment have been raised. This study aimed to investigate whether maternal antenatal corticosteroid administration was associated with neurodevelopment in infants at 1 year of age. In this prospective and longitudinal birth cohort study, women were followed up throughout gestation, and their infants underwent a Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition, screening test at 1 year of age between December 2018 and September 2020. Finally, 1609 pregnant women and 1759 infants were included in the current study. Using a generalized linear mixed model, we examined the association between antenatal corticosteroid exposure and infant neurodevelopment in cognitive, receptive communication, expressive communication, fine motor, and gross motor functions. Of the 1759 infants eligible for this study, 1453 (82.6%) were singletons. A total of 710 infants were exposed to antenatal corticosteroids, among whom 415 were dexamethasone exposed and 483 were prednisone exposed. Dexamethasone was prescribed most often in late pregnancy, whereas prednisone was often used before 8 weeks of gestation among women who conceived through assisted reproductive technology. Compared with those who had no exposure, antenatal corticosteroid exposure was associated with an increased risk of infants being noncompetent in the cognitive development domain after adjusting for conventional risk factors (adjusted risk ratio, 1.53; 95% confidence interval, 1.08-2.18; P=.017). For medication-specific exposure, those exposed vs not exposed to antenatal dexamethasone were 1.62-fold (95% confidence interval, 1.10-2.38; P=.014) more likely to be noncompetent in the cognitive development domain at 1 year. The association did not vary markedly between preterm and term infants, singletons and twins, or assisted reproductive technology-conceived and spontaneously conceived infants (all P>.05 for heterogeneity). In contrast, a null association was observed for the risk of being noncompetent in any domain of neurodevelopment with antenatal prednisone exposure at early pregnancy. Here, antenatal corticosteroid, particularly dexamethasone exposure, was markedly associated with an increased risk of infants being noncompetent in the cognitive development domain at 1 year of age. These findings may provide new information when weighing the benefits and potential risks of maternal antenatal corticosteroid administration.

Adolescent parenthood and HIV-infection in South Africa-Associations with child cognitive development.

HIV, both directly and indirectly, impacts child development outcomes. The most severe impacts are for children infected with HIV, and those exposed but uninfected are also shown to have challenges-though less severe. However, little is known regarding the development of children born to adolescent mothers affected by HIV. This study aims to examine cognitive development for children born to adolescent mothers, comparing those children living with HIV, those HIV exposed and uninfected (HEU) and those HIV unexposed (HU). Analyses utilise cross-sectional data from 920 adolescent mother (10-19 years)-first born child dyads residing in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Participants completed detailed study questionnaires inclusive of validated and study specific measures relating to sociodemographic characteristics, HIV, and maternal and child health. Trained assessors administered standardised child development assessments (using the Mullen Scales of Early Learning) with all children. Chi-square tests and ANOVA tests were used to explore maternal and child characteristics according to child HIV status (HIV, HEU, HU) on cognitive development. Linear regression models were used to explore the cross-sectional associations between child HIV status and child cognitive development. 1.2% of children were living with HIV, 20.5% were classified as being HEU and, 78.3% were classified as HU. Overall, children living with HIV were found to perform lower across developmental domains compared to both HEU and HU groups (composite score of early learning: 73.0 vs 91.2 vs. 94.1, respectively: F = 6.45, p = 0.001). HEU children on average scored lower on all developmental domains compared to HU children, reaching significance on the gross motor domain (p<0.05). Exploratory analyses identified maternal education interruption as a potential risk factor for lower child cognitive development scores and, higher maternal age to be protective of child cognitive development scores. These exploratory findings address a critical evidence gap regarding the cognitive development of children born to adolescent mothers affected by HIV in South Africa. Analyses identify stepwise differences in the average scoring on child cognitive development domains according to child HIV status among children born to adolescent mothers affected by HIV; with children living with HIV performing worse overall. Young mothers and their children may benefit from adapted interventions aimed at bolstering child development outcomes. Targeted programming particularly among younger adolescent mothers and those experiencing education interruption may identify those families, particularly in need. Attention to maternal continuity of education and age of conception may be interventions to consider.

Longitudinal associations of subjectively-measured physical activity and screen time with cognitive development in young children

PurposeTo examine the longitudinal associations of subjectively-measured physical activity (PA) and screen time with multiple domains of cognitive development in a sample of young children. MethodsParticipants were 96 children (baseline age: 3.69 ± 0.78 years) and their parents from Edmonton, Canada in the Physical Activity and Cognition in Early Childhood (PACE) study. Different types of PA (organized, non-organized) and screen time (television viewing, video games) were measured using a parental questionnaire at baseline and at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. Total proxy-reported PA, total screen time, and meeting/not meeting the screen time recommendations (2–4 years: ≤1 h/d; 5 years: ≤2 h/d) of the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines were also calculated. Working memory (Nebraska Barnyard task) and inhibitory control (Fish-Shark Go/No-Go task) were assessed at the three time points. Intellectual ability, including language development, inductive reasoning, and perceptual speed, were assessed using the Woodcock-Johnson III test battery at 6- and 12-month follow-ups. Multilevel growth modeling was conducted. ResultsOrganized PA (B = 1.26; 95%CI: 0.19,2.33), non-organized PA (B = 0.89, 95%CI: 0.08, 1.71), and total proxy-reported PA (B = 1.03, 95%CI: 0.41,1.66) were positively associated with intellectual ability. In particular, positive associations in regard to language development and inductive reasoning were observed. As for screen time, most associations were not significant, except for positive associations of meeting the screen recommendation with intellectual ability (B = 3.19; 95%CI: 0.002,6.38) and language development (B = 4.32; 95%CI: 0.34,8.30). ConclusionFor young children, promoting PA participation in organized and non-organized activities, as well as meeting the screen time recommendations, appears important for cognitive development.

Children\u2019s screen use and school readiness at 4-6 years: prospective cohort study

BackgroundThe primary aim of this study was to determine if screen use in early childhood is associated with overall vulnerability in school readiness at ages 4 to 6 years, as measured by the Early Development Instrument (EDI). Secondary aims were to: (1) determine if screen use was associated with individual EDI domains scores, and (2) examine the association between screen use and EDI domains scores among a subgroup of high screen users.MethodsThis prospective cohort study was carried out using data from young children participating in a large primary care practice-based research network in Canada. Logistic regression analyses were run to investigate the association between screen use and overall vulnerability in school readiness. Separate linear regression models examined the relationships between children’s daily screen use and each separate continuous EDI domain.ResultsA total of 876 Canadian participants participated in this study. Adjusted logistic regression revealed an association between increased screen use and increased vulnerability in school readiness (p = 0.05). Results from adjusted linear regression demonstrated an association between higher screen use and reduced language and cognitive development domain scores (p = 0.004). Among high screen users, adjusted linear regression models revealed associations between increased screen use and reduced language and cognitive development (p = 0.004) and communication skills and general knowledge domain scores (p = 0.042).ConclusionsScreen use in early childhood is associated with increased vulnerability in developmental readiness for school, with increased risk for poorer language and cognitive development in kindergarten, especially among high users.

Ανάλυση παραγόντων για Ελληνικό WISC-III: Τομείς γνωστικής ανάπτυξης

Η ΠΕΡΙΛΗΨΗ ΒΡΙΣΚΕΤΑΙ ΜΕΣΑ ΣΤΟ ΑΡΧΕΙΟ PDF

Psychometric properties and contextual appropriateness of the German version of the Early Development Instrument

BackgroundAssessing the early development of children at a population level in educational settings, may be useful for public health and policy decision making. In this study, we evaluated the psychometric properties and the contextual appropriateness of a German language version of the Early Development Instrument (EDI), a survey-based instrument originally developed in Canada, which assesses developmental vulnerability for children in preschool settings.MethodsSixty preschool teachers from six preschool organizations (22% of organizations contacted) in three cities in southwest Germany participated. They administered a German version of the EDI (GEDI) to 225 children (51% of eligible children). We assessed internal consistency, test-retest and interrater reliability. Preschool teachers assisted in determining face-validity by reviewing item coverage and comprehensibility. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was used to evaluate convergent validity. Concurrent validity was measured using correlations and agreements (Bland-Altman plots) between GEDI and other validated instrument scores. Additionally, we compared associations between GEDI domain scores and sociodemographic characteristics with similar associations in EDI studies worldwide.ResultsGEDI domains showed good to excellent internal consistency (0.73 < α > 0.99) and moderate to good test-retest and interrater reliability (0.50 to 0.81 and 0.48 to 0.71, respectively [p-value < 0.05]). Face validity was considered acceptable. EFA showed a factor structure similar to the original EDI. Correlations (range: 0.32 to 0.67) and agreements between GEDI scores and other German language instruments suggested good external reliability. Scoring within the lowest 10th percentile was strongly associated with age.ConclusionsOur psychometric assessment suggests good reliability and consistency of the GEDI. Differences in the age distribution of children, pedagogical objectives and educational system features of German preschools require future work to determine score thresholds indicative of vulnerability. Aside from dropping selected items from the original EDI that were inconsistent with features of the German educational system, the distribution of values in the language and cognitive development domain also suggested that context-specific cut-offs must be established for the German version. Such efforts are needed to account for relevant contextual differences between the educational systems.

Socioeconomic gradient in the developmental health of Canadian children with disabilities at school entry: a cross-sectional study

ObjectiveTo examine the relationship between developmental health and neighbourhood socioeconomic status (SES) in kindergarten children with disabilities.DesignCross-sectional study using population-level database of children’s developmental health at school entry (2002–2014).Setting12 of...

Digital Entertainment to Support Toddlers’ Language and Cognitive Development

This current research aimed at seeing how English nursery rhymes and kids’ songs as learning media support toddlers who are not living in an English speaking country (Indonesia) but exposed to the English language media during their normal baby-sitting times to learning English. To observe how two Indonesian toddlers learned English language in their early critical period of language acquisition through co-watching activity, Early Development Instrument which focuses on language and cognitive development domain with reading awareness and reciting memory subdomain was applied to observe two subjects after 15 month treatments (from age 10-24 months). The results show that the media and the co-watching activity are able to support the toddlers’ understanding of the English words spoken and their ability to produce the intelligent pronunciation of those words. The interesting fact reveals that English which is normatively learned merely as a foreign language to most Indonesian people is no longer something far-off to the toddlers who are exposed to it through English nursery rhymes and kids’ songs online since they are at the very young age. They naturally tend to be bilingual since at the same time they learn their mother tongue.

The Shape of the Socioeconomic Gradient: Testing to Functional Form of the Relationship between Socioeconomic Status and Early Child Development

IntroductionThe literature provides abundant evidence of socioeconomic gradients in health outcomes. However, it is unclear, and particularly understudied in early child development research, whether these observed gradients are linear, whether they diminish as socioeconomic status (SES) increases, and if they ultimately reverse in slope at the highest SES values.&#x0D; Objectives and ApproachWe linked neighbourhood-level Census and Tax Filer data with Early Development Instrument (EDI) data across Canada. The EDI is a kindergarten teacher-completed measure of five domains of early child development. We used this linked database to statistically compare and choose the most appropriate functional form of the relationship between each of the EDI domains (dependent variables), and the Canadian Neighbourhoods and Early Child Development (CanNECD) study's SES index (predictor) in regression models. Model comparison approaches included: visual checks of lines fitted using Generalized Additive Models, Akaike and Bayesian Information Criterions, Ramsay’s RESET, J and Cox tests.&#x0D; ResultsThe results indicate the optimal functional form of the gradient varies across domains of the EDI. The best model for the Physical Health and Well-Being domain was quadratic, suggesting there may be some reversal in slope at higher values of SES. The best models for the Social Competence and Language and Cognitive Development domains were logarithmic, indicating diminishing returns to SES but with no slope reversal. The best model for the Emotional Maturity domain was linear, suggesting the gradient was consistent across all values of SES. The best fit for the Communication Skills and General Knowledge domain was a cubic ‘S’ curve, suggesting the curve is positive and concave for lower levels of SES but curves upwards beyond a certain SES threshold.&#x0D; Conclusion/ImplicationsThe results demonstrate the importance of examining functional forms when modeling socioeconomic gradients. Assuming linear relationships between SES and health outcomes (early child development, in this case) may distort and bias the true nature of the relationships, thus leading to misinterpretations, especially at the highest and lowest values of SES.

Growth and Development of Children with Microcephaly Associated with Congenital Zika Virus Syndrome in Brazil.

The outbreak of Zika virus in Latin America in the period 2015–2016 has caused a sudden increase in the number of severe manifestations and reports of congenital changes in newborns in Brazil. This is the first study that evaluated and compared the growth and cognitive and motor development of children with microcephaly due to Congenital Zika Virus Syndrome (CZS) in relation to typical children. It was an observational, analytical, cross-sectional study with 8 children with CZS and 16 typical children, with a mean age of 20.5 months (±2.1), in a region of northeastern Brazil. Considering the mean, children with CZS presented extremely low performance in the motor domain and in the cognitive development domain, whereas typical children presented average performance in the cognitive and motor development domains. Children with CZS presented a mean growth rate (head circumference and weight) lower than typical children. Therefore, children with CZS are at risk for growth retardation and development compared to typical children.

No effect of IVF culture medium on cognitive development of 9-year-old children

STUDY QUESTIONDo embryo culture media used during an IVF/ICSI treatment have an effect on cognitive development of singleton IVF children at 9 years of age?SUMMARY ANSWERCognitive development of children born after culture in two different embryo culture media is comparable.WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADYPreviously, we have shown that the culture medium used in an IVF/ICSI treatment affects birthweight and weight at 2 years of age after alternating assignment to embryo culture in either K-SCICM (Cook) or G1™ Version 3 (Vitrolife). Children with low birthweight are known to have an increased risk for learning disabilities. Data on cognitive development in general of children born after ART are still conflicting, and the only study reporting on the effects of culture medium on cognitive development shows significant differences in cognitive development between two culture medium groups.STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATIONIn this observational cohort follow-up study (MEDIUM-KIDS), parents of all singletons from our abovementioned study were approached after the ninth birthday of their child to participate in an additional follow-up study. Of the 294 eligible children included in the original study, 119 children (70 Vitrolife and 49 Cook) participated in the current study.PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODSAll follow-up measurements were performed between March 2014 and December 2016. CITO (Dutch Central Institute for Test Development) developed the Dutch pupil monitoring system, which involves nationwide independent, standardized, academic achievement score tests to monitor the child’s school performance twice a year at fixed time points from third grade onward. The tests include language skills (vocabulary and orthography), mathematics and reading capability and comprehension. Results from the tests performed between third and sixth grades, expressed as ability scores, were obtained from the school. To investigate school performance development over the years, we used a mixed effects multilevel model. The least complex model with the best fit was selected to analyze whether culture medium affects cognitive development in our cohort. The study had enough power to detect a difference in ability score that reflects at least one performance category between the two groups.MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCENo differences were seen in baseline characteristics between participants and non-participants (both parental and children characteristics). For all domains, the random intercept model was used. All analyses showed comparable results for the two culture medium groups. No significant differences were observed for any of the cognitive development domains, even after correction for potential confounders. Parental level of education was higher in the IVF group (45%) if compared to the national average level of education (35%), which most likely explains the higher CITO scores for the IVF children if compared to the National ability scores.LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTIONA limitation of the study was its pseudo-randomized design and the relatively low participation rate of 40.5%. This and the number of missing data prevent us from drawing robust causal conclusions. However, as this is the first and therewith oldest cohort of children where culture medium was allocated alternatingly and used in a blinded setting, in the same period, with all other conditions identical this study gives up until now the best available evidence.WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGSOur study analyzes the effects of culture medium on school performance of children born after IVF/ICSI in a prospective cohort study. Although further research on long-term academic skills and also on behavior is essential, our results are reassuring and should make parents of children born after IVF/ICSI feel comfortable with their children’s cognitive development.STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S)The study was financially supported by the March of Dimes (Grant no. #6-FY13-153). The sponsor of the study had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation or writing of the report. The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBERNTR4220

Night awakening in infancy: Developmental stability and longitudinal associations with psychomotor development.

Fragmented sleep is common in infancy. Although night awakening is known to decrease with age, in some infants night awakening is more persistent and continues into older ages. However, the influence of fragmented sleep on development is poorly known. In the present study, the longitudinal relationship between fragmented sleep and psychomotor development (Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development [Bayley-III]; Bayley, 2009) was investigated in infants with (≥3 night awakenings, n = 81) and without fragmented sleep (≤1 night awakening, n = 70) within the CHILD-SLEEP birth cohort at 8 and 24 months of age. Differences in parent-reported (Brief Infant Sleep Questionnaire [BISQ]) sleep parameters were studied at 8, 18, and 24 months of age. Group differences in night awakening were stable across all assessment points. Infants with fragmented sleep slept less in total than infants without fragmented sleep and they did not compensate their nocturnal sleep during daytime. Additionally, infants with fragmented sleep spent more time awake at night than infants without fragmented sleep. However, psychomotor development did not differ between infants with and without fragmented sleep at 8 or 24 months of age. Our findings indicate that early onset fragmented sleep did not have a negative effect on psychomotor development within the first 2 years despite the differences in sleep length among infants with and without fragmented sleep. In the future, more specific domains of cognitive development and various factors affecting sleep fragmentation should be taken into account when studying the developmental effects of night awakening in infancy. (PsycINFO Database Record

Pengaruh Penambahan Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) Peningkatan Tonus Otot Pada Penderita DD

Delayed Development (DD) is the classification of characteristics of children which is showeda significant delay in one or more domains of cognitive development, emotional or physical. The problemsthat arise in the DD are hypotonus of the muscles that cause delays in functional abilities ofchildren.The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of Electrical Muscle Stimulation(EMS)to increase muscle tone of DD patients. Quasi-experimental research method using two pre andpost-testgroup design. Sample of this research was 12 children 1-3 years of age. Measurement ofmuscletone using a sphygmomanometer before and after treatment for 4 weeks. The effect measuredusing Wilcoxon tes and the different effect measured using Mann Whitney test. Wilcoxon test resultshowedthat the effect of electrical muscle stimulation on muscle tone was seen from the right quadricepsp value (p = 0.026), the left quadriceps (p = 0.024), right tibialis anterior (p = 0.024) and left tibialisanterior(p = 0.024). It can be concluded that there is an effect of Electrical Muscle stimulation onincreasingthe muscle tone in people with DD.

FATHER-CHILD INTERACTIONS AT 3 MONTHS AND 24 MONTHS: CONTRIBUTIONS TO CHILDREN'S COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT AT 24 MONTHS.

ABSTRACTThe quality of father–child interactions has become a focus of increasing research in the field of child development. We examined the potential contribution of father–child interactions at both 3 months and 24 months to children's cognitive development at 24 months. Observational measures of father–child interactions at 3 and 24 months were used to assess the quality of fathers’ parenting (n = 192). At 24 months, the Mental Developmental Index (MDI) of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development, Second Edition (N. Bayley, 1993) measured cognitive functioning. The association between interactions and cognitive development was examined using multiple linear regression analyses, adjusting for paternal age, education and depression, infant age, and maternal sensitivity. Children whose fathers displayed more withdrawn and depressive behaviors in father–infant interactions at 3 months scored lower on the MDI at 24 months. At 24 months, children whose fathers were more engaged and sensitive as well as those whose fathers were less controlling in their interactions scored higher on the MDI. These findings were independent of the effects of maternal sensitivity. Results indicate that father–child interactions, even from a very young age (i.e., 3 months) may influence children's cognitive development. They highlight the potential significance of interventions to promote positive parenting by fathers and policies that encourage fathers to spend more time with their young children.

Measurement Invariance of Early Development Instrument (EDI) Domain Scores Across Gender and ESL Status

The Early Development Instrument (EDI) is a widely used teacher rating tool to assess kindergartners’ developmental outcomes in Canada and a number of other countries. This paper examines the measurement invariance of EDI domains across ESL status and gender by means of multi-group confirmatory factor analysis. The results suggest evidence of measurement invariance for physical health and well-being, social competence, emotional maturity and language and cognitive development domains. Moreover, the communication skills and general knowledge domain did not show acceptable fit in terms of RMSEA. The results and potential explanations are discussed.