Free-play Session Research Articles

Identifying popular, rejected and neglected children in Chinese preschool: An exploratory study on the educational application of spatial positioning data

Amidst the rapid advancement of Internet of Things (IoT) technology and the burgeoning field of Multimodal Learning Analytics (MMLA), this study employs spatial positioning technology as a case study to investigate the potential of multimodal data in assessing children's social development. This study combines the spatial positioning data of preschool children collected during free play sessions in natural educational settings and the spatial metrics constructed based on observational studies to establish and validate a sociometric status Decision Tree classification model. The findings suggest that the model can overall accurately identify children with three distinct sociometric statuses, albeit with some variability in efficacy across different sociometric groups and age groups. Notably, the model demonstrates a high hitting rate in identifying the potentially neglected children, providing valuable support for educators in understanding and fostering children's developmental needs. This study also highlights the advantages of emerging technology and multimodal data application in child development assessment.

Can behaviorally inhibited preschoolers make friends?

Preschoolers who display extremely inhibited behavior are at risk for the development of anxiety disorders. However, behavioral inhibition (BI) is a multifaceted characteristic. Some children with BI are fearful when confronted by unfamiliar adults, peers, and objects; others are fearful when separated from their parents. In the present study, we examined specific features of BI that predicted observed friendship formation among preschoolers who are behaviorally inhibited. We also examined whether teacher ratings of classroom behaviors predicted friendship formation. Sixty highly inhibited children (35 female, Mage = 52.57 months) were observed during eight weekly free-play sessions with initially unfamiliar inhibited peers. Free-play periods occurred before weekly intervention sessions for children with BI and their parents. An observational protocol was developed to identify children who made a friend during the eight weekly sessions. Before the first session, different subtypes of BI were assessed by parents; preschool teachers assessed the children's classroom behaviors with familiar peers. Twenty-six children met the criteria for having made and kept a friend. Probit regression analyses revealed that parent ratings of BI among unfamiliar peers and teacher ratings of children's social anxiety before the intervention were associated with a decreased probability of making a friend. No evidence was found linking children's responses to the intervention and friendship formation. Results suggest that extremelyinhibited preschoolers are capable of making friends. Implications for future research and intervention efforts that focus on individual differences of children with BI are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

The Effect of Play-Based Occupational Therapy on Playfulness and Social Play of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review

ABSTRACT Since play is the main occupation of children, occupational therapists often use play as an approach to improve playfulness. However, for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), there is some uncertainty as to whether playfulness and social play can be improved through play-based interventions. To determine the effect of play-based occupational therapy on playfulness and social play of children with ASD, PubMed, EBSCOhost, OT seeker, Scopus, Sabinet, Cochrane, and ProQuest were searched. Rayyan was used to sort studies and extract data, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The methodological quality of the 12 eligible studies was reviewed using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) checklist tool and data were synthesized using meta-analysis techniques. This review found moderate to strong evidence for 11 of the 12 studies, that play programmes, with a combination of guided and free play, individual, and group therapy sessions, effectively promoted playfulness and social play.

Caregiver reactions to babbling organize turn-taking interactions: Facilitative effects of vocal versus non-vocal responses.

Turn-taking interactions are foundational to the development of social, communicative, and cognitive skills. In infants, vocal turn-taking experience is predictive of infants' socioemotional and language development. However, different forms of turn-taking interactions may have different effects on infant vocalizing. It is presently unknown how caregiver vocal, non-vocal and multimodal responses to infant vocalizations compare in extending caregiver-infant vocal turn-taking bouts. In bouts that begin with an infant vocalization, responses that maintain versus change the communicative modality may differentially affect the likelihood of further infant vocalizing. No studies have examined how caregiver response modalities that either matched or differed from the infant acoustic (vocal) modality might affect the temporal structure of vocal turn-taking beyond the initial serve-and-return exchanges. We video-recorded free-play sessions of 51 caregivers with their 9-month-old infants. Caregivers responded to babbling most often with vocalizations. In turn, caregiver vocal responses were significantly more likely to elicit subsequent infant babbling. Bouts following an initial caregiver vocal response contained significantly more turns than those following a non-vocal or multimodal response. Thus prelinguistic turn-taking is sensitive to the modality of caregivers' responses. Future research should investigate if such sensitivity is grounded in attentional constraints, which may influence the structure of turn-taking interactions.

Adoptive Parent-Child Interaction Quality During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Brazil

ABSTRACT This study presents findings derived from an investigation into parent-child interactions among Brazilian adoptive families conducted through online recording and analysis. Participating parents enrolled in an online Parental Training Program titled Adoption: Beginning of New Bonds, which emphasized parental reflective function. Data collection spanned from March to November 2021, coinciding with the isolation measures imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. The study aimed to delineate interaction patterns within the sampled group and assess whether any alterations occurred in these patterns pre- and post-program participation. The sample consisted of 23 adoptive parents who had adopted a child under the age of five from the public child welfare system. Video recordings of parent-child free play sessions were collected online both before and after program participation. Results indicated a significant difference in the proportion of parents demonstrating sensitivity toward their child, accompanied by a noticeable trend toward enhanced quality in child interaction with their caregivers. Furthermore, this study offers valuable insights for refining observational instruments within the context of adoption.

Developmental cascades of vocal turn-taking connect prelinguistic vocalizing with early language

Conversational turn-taking is ubiquitously found in caregiver-infant interactions, and robustly predictive of infant communicative development. Over the first year, infants take quick adult-like vocal turns with caregivers. Many studies have documented the consistency of caregiver responsiveness and its influence on infant rapid language growth. However, few have examined how caregiver responsiveness facilitates extended vocal turn-taking in real-time with infants over the first year. The influence of prelinguistic vocal turn-taking on the emergence of language has also been under-investigated. We analyzed free-play sessions of 30 caregivers and their infants at both 5 and 10 months, and obtained infant language outcomes at 18 months. We examined the developmental consistency (group-level continuity and dyad-order stability) and change of infant volubility, caregiver responses to babbling in vocal, non-vocal and multimodal modalities, and the influence of modality on caregiver-infant vocal turn-taking. Caregiver contingent responsiveness to infant babbling at 5 months predicted vocal turn-taking at 10 months. Developmental increases in prelinguistic vocalizing and vocal turn-taking from 5 to 10 months predicted infant language outcomes at 18 months. At both 5 and 10 months, caregiver vocal responses were more effective in extending turn-taking than non-vocal or multimodal responses. In summary, prelinguistic vocal turn-taking, facilitated by caregiver vocal responsiveness, is positively related to the emergence of early language.

Quality of mother-infant interaction, breastfeeding, and perinatal mental health

IntroductionThe quality of mother-infant interactions is crucial for child development. Studies show that breastfeeding contributes to maternal sensitivity and the development of a positive mother-infant bond. Maternal mental health difficulties negatively impact both maternal sensitivity and breastfeeding. Thus, it is unclear whether breastfeeding contributes to the quality of mother-infant interactions independent from mental health. The purpose of this study is to examine the contribution of exclusive breastfeeding at 3 months postpartum to the quality of the mother-infant relationship at 6 months postpartum, controlling for maternal mental health in a community sample of mothers in Chile. Materials and methodEighty women completed self-report measures of mental health and breastfeeding during the third trimester of pregnancy and 3 and 6 months postpartum. At 6 months after childbirth, the mother-infant interaction was assessed by coding a free-play session between mothers and infants. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the contribution of breastfeeding practices and mental health to the quality of mother-infant interactions. ResultsExclusive breastfeeding at 3 months postpartum increased the likelihood of displaying positive mother-infant interactions controlling for maternal mental health. Mothers who continued to breastfeed at 6 months postpartum reported less symptoms of antenatal depression and anxiety and higher levels of sensitivity and cooperation towards their infants. ConclusionBreastfeeding contributes to maternal sensitivity and cooperation even when controlling for maternal mental health. Implications for health practitioners and limitations due to the sample characteristics are discussed.

Association between the use of mobile touchscreen devices and the quality of parent-child interaction in preschoolers

The early use of mobile touchscreen devices (MTSDs), including smartphones and tablets, may reduce the frequency and quality of social interactions between children and parents, which could impact their relationship and have negative consequences on children's socio-cognitive development. In this study, we applied a parental questionnaire and a behavioral observational method in a laboratory setting (free and structured play sessions) to examine the association between preschool MTSD use and the quantity and quality of parent–child relationships. Our findings revealed that preschoolers who regularly use MTSDs (n = 47, aged 4–7 years, engaging in MTSD use for at least 2 h per week) are spending less time with their parents and exhibited lower quality interactions compared to non-users (n = 25). However, shared offline leisure time with parents serves as a protective factor among MTSD-users. Furthermore, our study demonstrated a positive association between parents' and children's media use. The results suggest that preschool MTSD use may have unfavorable effects on parent–child interactions, both in terms of quantity and quality. Alternatively, lower quantity and quality of parent–child interaction may lead to higher MTSD use in the child. Based on the results, the importance of engaging in sufficient offline family interactions besides digital media use should be emphasized to parents of preschoolers, and health organizations and governments should include this in their recommendations and policies concerning childhood digital media use.

2-Year-olds' free play during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Free play is a natural activity in toddlerhood, depending on environmental conditions like available objects and the social environment. The COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences for parents' mental health held the potential to change toddlers' play environment. This cross-sectional study investigated 2-year-olds' (N=97) free play with objects, and aspects of caregiver mental well-being in three cohorts during the pandemic in Germany. Caregivers reported their positive mental health (PMH), threat perception, perception of current family situation from negative to positive, and workload. We categorized toddlers' behavior in free play sessions in their homes with a fixed set of objects through behavioral coding. Play behavior did not differ between cohorts and did not correlate with caregivers' positive mental health, threat perception, and perception of family situation. A MANOVA revealed a significant main effect of cohort on PMH, threat perception and perception of family situation, qualified by two discriminant functions. Full sample analyses revealed that toddlers of caregivers perceiving a workload increase compared to the time before the pandemic showed less pretend play, and less functional and nonfunctional play. The results provide insights into 2-year-olds' play behavior during a global pandemic and highlight the role of caregiver availability for children's play.

Evaluating the effects of prenatal intervention on parenting in women exposed to intimate partner violence.

The Pregnant Moms' Empowerment Program (PMEP) is a brief, group intervention for pregnant women who have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV). This study was a quasirandomized trial of the effects of PMEP on parenting. Participants were 137 pregnant women exposed to IPV in the past year; 82 received PMEP and 55 were in a no-treatment control condition. Participants completed four assessments (pretest [T1], posttest [T2], 3-month postpartum[T3], and 12-month postpartum [T4]). At T1-T4, women self-reported on their parenting attitudes (i.e., expectations of children, parental empathy, corporal punishment, parent-child family roles) and parenting confidence. At the postpartum assessments, mother-infant dyads participated in a videorecorded free play session that was coded for warm-sensitive parenting. Results showed that women who received PMEP had more appropriate expectations of children (β = 0.51, 95% CI [0.03, 0.99], dr = 0.53, 95% CI [0.31, 1.02]) and higher empathy toward children (β = 0.64, 95% CI [0.05, 1.23], dr = 0.53, 95% CI [0.04, 1.02]) at T2, as compared to women in the control group. Women who received PMEP also showed more warm-sensitive parenting at T4 (Wald χ² = 4.01, p = .045; R² = 5.58%, d = 0.41, 95% CI [0.07, 0.88]) as compared to women in the control group. No differences emerged on corporal punishment, parent-child family roles, postpartum empathy and expectations of children, parenting confidence, or 3-month postpartum parenting behaviors. Thus, results were mixed, with some short-term positive effects and other benefits emerging only at 1-year postpartum. Findings highlight the potential clinical utility of brief interventions for pregnant, IPV-exposed women. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

No concurrent correlations between parental mental state talk and toddlers' language abilities.

Mental State Talk (MST) is utterances describing invisible mental aspects. The first aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of Parental MST and Child MST and their concurrent association in a Swedish population, and the second aim was to relate these MST measures to the children's general language abilities. Seventy-seven dyads of parents and their 25-month-old toddlers participated. MST was assessed by videotaping the dyads during free-play sessions in a laboratory and general language abilities were based on parental reports. Forty-nine toddlers did not produce MST, while all parents used MST. Child MST was positively associated with vocabulary and grammar. Parental MST was not associated with Child MST nor the children's general language abilities. In exploratory analyses, Parental MST referred to another than the child was positively correlated with vocabulary and grammar. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings and continue studying MST in different linguistic contexts.

When I move, you move: Associations between automatic and person-coded measures of infant-mother synchrony during free-play using virtual in-home data collection

The relationship between movement synchrony and global scores of behavioral synchrony were investigated during a naturalistic free-play between 33 infants (ages 12- to 24-months) and their mothers using a video-conferencing platform. We assessed movement synchrony by applying an automatic tool, motion-energy analysis (MEA), to the obtained video data. Dyadic movement synchrony was associated with higher levels of maternal sensitivity, infant involvement, dyadic reciprocity, and a child-led interaction pattern. This demonstrates the feasibility of using MEA as an automatic tool for assessing movement synchrony in mother-infant dyads and its application for investigating naturalistic at-home free play sessions in a remote setting.

Maternal recognition of positive emotion predicts sensitive parenting in infancy.

Research on parent-child relationships demonstrates the importance of maternal sensitivity for the development of children's emotion regulation, social competence, and health; thus, it is important to understand the emotional-cognitive capacities underlying maternal sensitivity. We followed 120 mothers and their full-term infants from the newborn period to 5 months postpartum. Mothers' emotion recognition during the newborn period was measured using a validated facial emotion recognition task assessing discrimination (d') of six facial expressions of emotion: happiness, fear, anger, sadness, disgust, and neutrality. Maternal behavior at 5 months postpartum was coded from a mother-infant free-play session using Ainsworth's Sensitivity Scales. Preregistered analyses revealed that mothers' ability to detect happiness specifically (but not other emotions such as fear or sadness) in the neonatal period predicted greater observed sensitivity 4 months later, β = .30, p = .002, ΔR² = .08. Results suggest that maternal recognition of positive emotion may be uniquely predictive of sensitive behavior in low-stress parent-infant interaction contexts. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

To what extent do home numeracy practices and parental number talk relate to children's math skills? A pre-registered study in 5-year-old children

A growing number of studies suggest a relation between young children's math skills and their home numeracy environment (HNE), typically assessed through home numeracy practices and parental number talk. However, studies are characterized by heterogeneity in methods, analytic strategies, and results. Here we tested prevalent models of the HNE via a pre-registered study to reduce analytic flexibility and distinguish between confirmatory and exploratory findings. A wide range of mathematical skills was measured in 128 5-year-old children, while their HNE was assessed via a parental questionnaire evaluating the frequency of home numeracy practices and a direct measure of parental number talk during a free-play session in the lab. Contrary to our hypotheses, we did not find any predicted relation between children's mathematical skills and parental number talk or frequency of informal practices at home. However, as predicted, we confirmed a relation between formal advanced numeracy practices and symbolic mathematical skills.

Effect of carrying objects on walking characteristics and language abilities in 13- and 24-month-olds.

Learning to walk leads to an increase in language abilities; however, the underlying mechanisms accounting for this relation remain unclear. Investigating the quality of early gait control may offer some insights. The purpose of this study was to (a) quantify how 13-month-olds (n = 39; 39% male) and 24-month-olds (n = 39; 59% male) adapt gait based on task (carrying vs. not carrying objects), object characteristics (size and weight), and environmental constraints (free play vs. structured) and to (b) assess how changes in gait relate to language abilities. To assess gait differences, Midwestern participants engaged in a free-play session and structured task with toys varying in size and weight while wearing motion capture markers. Parents completed an age-appropriate version of the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory to measure language abilities. During free play, 13-month-olds were selective when choosing what to carry basing their decisions on object weight over size and adapting their upper-body control based on weight. Neither age group modified lower-body gait due to object characteristics but did reorganize their upper-body control. These upper-body adaptations were dependent upon age, environmental context, and task. Importantly, more mature upper-body control and more time spent in motion during free play were significant predictors of 13-month-olds' language abilities. Gait improvements may offer new opportunities for language learning; increased stability may allow young children to better focus on the objects, potentially enhancing word learning opportunities. Early movements and functional behavior during free play may be important predictors underlying the association between the onset of walking and language development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Changes in patterns of Early Mother-Child Interaction: A longitudinal study of the first 18 months of life

ObjectiveThe main objective of the present longitudinal study is to describe the progression of early adult-child interactions between the first and second years of life. Changes identified in interactions are described, focusing on both the qualitative aspects of maternal responses, as well as maternal response latency to the child's behavior using a microanalytical methodology that collected data on maternal and child behavior in real-time without losing sight of the temporal dimension. ParticipantsThis study examined 52 mother-child dyads from intact families that presented no psychological, social, or biological risk factors at 6, 12 and 18 months of age. InstrumentCITMI-R (early mother-child interaction coding system, revised edition) was used to assess early mother-infant interactions during free play sessions between mother and child the. ResultsThe results indicate that some components of maternal sensitivity improve as children progress towards the second year of life, detecting an increase in sensitive maternal behavior and a decrease in intrusive behavior in the evolutive observed period; moreover, regarding latency of maternal response, we observed that mothers of older children give more time for their children to explore, which stimulates autonomy. Finally, the implication of these results for intervention directed to optimizing early adult-child interactions are addressed.

Parental scaffolding in play: A comparison of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and autism spectrum disorder

BackgroundParental support of child play varies based on child needs; however, how parental play level differs from child play level remains an understudied area of research, especially in relation to specific developmental disabilities. AimsTo preliminarily explore differences in child and parent play levels in age- and IQ-matched children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Methodsand Procedures: Parent-child dyads were recorded during free-play sessions. Parent/child play levels were coded for highest level achieved during each minute of play. Mean play level and dPlay (difference in parent versus child play level) were calculated across play sessions for each dyad. Outcomes and ResultsOn average, parents of children with FASD demonstrated higher levels of play than other parents. Children with FASD demonstrated higher levels of play than their own parents. In contrast, the play level of parents of children with ASD did not differ from their child’s. There were no between-group differences in dPlay. Conclusions and ImplicationsThis preliminary exploratory study suggests that parents of children with developmental disabilities may differentially ‘match’ their child’s play level. Further research on developmental play levels during parent-child play is warranted.

The Talk Test to Measure Exercise Intensity in Children

The Talk Test (TT) is a measure of exercise intensity that has been used in a variety of populations. This study extends the use of the TT as a method to measure exercise intensity in prepubertal children. Healthy children performed an incremental exercise test and then either an interval-based exercise session on the treadmill or a 30-min free-play activity session in the gymnasium. The subject read a short (~100 word) passage and responded to “can you speak comfortably?” If the subject was able to speak comfortably, it was recorded as the positive (+) stage of the TT. If the individual was able to speak but with some difficulty, it was recorded as the equivocal stage (+/-). If the subject was unable to speak comfortably, it was recorded as the negative (-) stage. Ventilatory threshold (VT) was determined in the laboratory through respiratory gas exchange. During the interval-based activity and free-play session, the TT was used in the prediction of whether the subject was exercising at an intensity below or above their VT. Data analysis was performed with a chi-squared test for determining statistical significance. In both the interval-based exercise session and the free-play activity, the TT was effective at predicting whether the subject was exercising at an intensity below or above their VT. Correct predictions were made 73.3% of the time for the interval-based exercise group and 81.6% of the time for the free-play session. The TT appears to be a valid predictor of exercise intensity in prepubertal children participating in interval exercise or free play.

Playing at the Schoolyard: “The Who’s, the What’s and the How Long’s” of Loose Parts

Play has a key role in children psychomotor development, and the quality of play spaces can be a facilitator of the former. The physical properties of the environment, such as equipment or material available, can influence children's behavior. However, it is not clear how the provision of different loose parts impacts children's play patterns. This study aimed to analyze the influence of four types of loose parts on the time, frequency and number of children using them during free play sessions. We recorded the 1st, 5th and 10th sessions delivered by playworkers in a primary school, with 14 children (Mage = 9.96 years). The available loose parts were categorized, and four types of materials were chosen: tarpaulin/fabrics, cardboard boxes, plastic crates and plastic tubes. The influence of these materials on the time spent using them, frequency of use and number and sex of users (dependent variables) was analyzed. Some tendencies emerged, such as the popularity of tarpaulin/fabrics, but results showed no significant differences between materials. This could mean that the specific physical qualities of each loose part were not determiners of the behavioral domains analyzed. These findings suggest that all types of materials studied can be meaningful for children to engage with in diverse play opportunities.

Dataset of parent-child hyperscanning functional near-infrared spectroscopy recordings

The term “hyperscanning” refers to the simultaneous recording of multiple individuals’ brain activity. As a methodology, hyperscanning allows the investigation of brain-to-brain synchrony. Despite being a promising technique, there is a limited number of publicly available functional Near-infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning recordings. In this paper, we report a dataset of fNIRS recordings from the prefrontal cortical (PFC) activity of 33 mother-child dyads and 29 father-child dyads. Data was recorded while the parent-child dyads participated in an experiment with two sessions: a passive video attention task and a free play session. Dyadic metadata, parental psychological traits, behavioural annotations of the play sessions and information about the video stimuli complementing the dataset of fNIRS signals are described. The dataset presented here can be used to design, implement, and test novel fNIRS analysis techniques, new hyperscanning analysis tools, as well as investigate the PFC activity in participants of different ages when they engage in passive viewing tasks and active interactive tasks.