Sample Of Preadolescent Children Research Articles

Construct-Related Validity of the Emotional Skills and Competence Questionnaire – Children’s Form (ESCQ-C)

Social and emotional skills have an important role in children’s general functioning and social relationships (e.g., with peers, and family). Questionnaires measuring these competencies should be carefully developed and validated and be in accordance with the developmental stage of children. The Emotional Skills and Competence Questionnaire – Children’s form (ESCQ-C) is a self-report measure of one’s ability to perceive and understand emotions, to express and label emotions, and to manage and regulate emotions. It was developed within the theoretical framework from the Mayer and Salovey (1997) emotional intelligence model. Structural validity of the ESCQ-C was assessed in a sample of preadolescent children (N = 639, 53% girls, Mage = 11.24, SDage = 0.71), and convergent validity was tested by correlating ESCQ-C subscales scores with the social, emotional and academic self-efficacy (The Self-Efficacy Questionnaire for Children, Muris, 2001). Our results suggest the four-factor structure for the ESCQ-C. Manage and regulate emotions subscale was divided into two subscales: the self-perceived ability to regulate one’s own emotions and other’s emotions. Correlations with the self-efficacy scales were moderate, suggesting good convergent validity. The ESCQ-C can be considered a valid measure of the emotional skills and competences for children.

How is weight stigma related to children's health-related quality of life? A model comparison approach.

Obesity is a highly stigmatizing condition for both adults and children, and both obesity and stigma experiences are negatively related with health-related quality of life (HRQoL). However, the relations among these constructs have been modeled in different and sometimes inconsistent terms in past research, and have been the object of surprisingly few studies in pediatric populations. The present study addresses this gap by comparing, in a sample of preadolescent children, four competing models (i.e., additive, mediation, moderation, and moderated mediation models) accounting for the role of stigma experiences in the concurrent relation between body weight and HRQoL. A community sample of 600 children aged 8-11years completed the Perception of Teasing Scale to assess weight-based teasing experiences and the PedsQL 4.0 to assess HRQoL. Parent-reported height and weight were used to calculate age- and gender-adjusted zBMI. Log-likelihood test, BIC difference, and Wald test were used for model comparisons. The mediation model outperformed both additive and moderation models and was found to be equally informative (but more parsimonious) as compared to the moderated mediation account. The same pattern of results was replicated for both global HRQoL and domain-specific quality of life domains (i.e., physical, emotional, social, and scholastic). The mediation model provided the best fitting and more parsimonious representation of the relations between body weight, stigma experiences, and HRQoL, meaning that an increased likelihood of experiencing weight-based teasing episodes, rather than excess weight per se, is associated with reduced quality of life in middle childhood.

Micronutrient intakes of pre-adolescent children living in London

The aim of the current study was to report on the micronutrient intakes of a sample of pre-adolescent children from a range of socio-economic backgrounds. Eighty-five children aged 7–10 years completed 7-day weighed food diaries, which were used to assess habitual intake of selected micronutrients. Intakes were then compared with the current Department of Health reference values and the findings of the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey for young people. These children failed to meet the reference values set by the Department of Health for zinc (73% of sample) and potassium (68% of sample), and intakes of calcium, potassium, vitamin B12, vitamin D and folate were lower than the findings of the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Among this sample, dietary changes are required to ensure that children follow a well-balanced diet for optimum health and development.

Body Dissatisfaction and Patterns of Media Use Among Preadolescent Children

This study examined school‐age children's satisfaction/dissatisfaction with their body sizes and their media consumption and image perception patterns. A sample of preadolescent children at the ages between 8 and 11 (N = 50) was recruited for in‐depth individual interviews from a university‐sponsored child care facility in a mid‐Atlantic state. Results suggested that boys and girls were significantly different in their ideal body preferences. Similar to the results from previous studies on young adults and older teens, preadolescent boys desired to have a heavier body size, whereas girls desired to be thinner than their perceived actual body size. For the pattern of media use, boys showed a greater attraction toward and recall of muscular appearances and athletic ability in all media venues, whereas girls' responses indicated a greater proclivity toward beauty and looks. Results suggest a need to address the development and maintenance of healthy body images among children.

Precursors, consequences and implications for stability and change in pre-adolescent antisocial behaviors.

Although much of the evidence stresses the stability of dysfunctional behavior throughout the life cycle, other evidence suggests that stability of antisocial behavior is a matter of degree. In this work we determine the degree of stability of such behavior in preadolescence and how this is influenced by age, gender, social structures, and family processes. Also, we explore whether change in the level of antisocial behavior impacts upon other important developmental regimes such as health and educational performance. We use a large, 2 wave, nationally representative sample of preadolescent children, and focus on children 4-9 years of age at wave 1 (n=6,846). We employ a cluster analysis across a series of behavioral variables to determine levels of antisocial behavior and then examine the stability of antisocial behavior over time and identify the precursors and consequences associated with movement into and out of these behavioral clusters. Antisocial behavior is more stable in boys and older children. Structural factors--age of the mother, number of children in the household, and having a single parent--along with family factors--hostile parenting and maternal depression--raise the likelihood of increases in and lower the likelihood of decreases in antisocial behavior, although there are notable differences by gender of the child and initial level of antisocial behavior. Consequences of change in antisocial behavior include scholastic performance, high levels of school mobility, school-parent contacts, and health perceptions. The implications of these findings for prevention and intervention programs are discussed.

A comparison of parents' and children's knowledge of brands and advertising slogans in the United States: implications for consumer socialization

Research in the area of consumer socialization suggests that parents act in an agent–learner relationship with their preadolescent children and have the greatest influence on their young children's purchase behaviour. The present study examines this assumption in light of changes in family roles and composition, media exposure and marketing efforts aimed at children. A cognitive recognition test of advertising slogans drawn from recent television commercials is used to determine knowledge levels of a sample of preadolescent children and their parents. Results suggest that children, beginning at age nine, have as much knowledge of advertising slogans as do their parents, even in product categories targeted at adults.

Family Perceptions among Pre-Adolescent Children in Israel

Family studies concentrating on power, conflict and exchange theory both tend to abscure “emic” approaches to the subject and contain inherent adult-centered biases. The study overcomes both these difficulties by employing a Q-technique whereby a sample of pre-adolescent children in Israel described their families as they perceive them both in the actual and in the ideal. The difference between actual and ideal perceptions, conceived as “perceptual dissonance”, indicated areas of desired change by children and showed that the quest for independence concurrent with dependence upon parents characterized the pre-adolescent stage.