Browsing by Subject "Child Psychology"

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ADHD symptoms, executive attention, and electrophysiological activity in post-institutionalized children.
(2010-08) Wiik Cruden, Kristen Louise
Prior research indicates children who experience early deprivation in institutional care have increased rates of attentional problems (e.g., ADHD) years after adoption. Limited and conflicting evidence suggests post-institutionalized (PI) children may demonstrate behavioral deficits on measures of attentional control, response inhibition, and conflict monitoring and resolution, capacities broadly referred to as executive attention. Previous research has documented increased concentration of electroencephalogram (EEG) relative power in low frequency (e.g., theta) bands in PI children, compared to never institutionalized children. Similar patterns of low frequency EEG power have been observed in individuals with ADHD, suggesting a potentially shared neurobiological correlate. The current study examined both behavioral and electrophysiological correlates of attention in PI children. Parent reported ADHD symptoms, behavioral performance on two computerized executive attention measures, and resting EEG power were collected in a sample of 5 ½-year-old internationally adopted PI children (n = 25) and compared to same age non-adopted (NA) children (n = 33). Resting EEG collected when the children were 18 months of age was examined in longitudinal analyses. Consistent with prior research, PI children had increased levels of ADHD symptoms, although most children's symptoms were below a clinical threshold. No group differences were found in behavioral performance on executive attention measures. Analysis of longitudinal EEG data indicated PI children demonstrated greater concentration of low frequency EEG power (e.g., theta) than NA children at 18 months of age, and this group difference remained at age 5 ½, despite the PI group having spent an average of 4 ½ years in adoptive care. Contrary to hypotheses, concentration of frontal relative EEG power in the theta band at age 5 ½ was associated for PI children with more accurate performance on an executive attention task. In addition, in PI children increased concentration of low frequency frontal relative EEG power at age 18 months was associated with lower ADHD symptoms at age 5 ½ years. Interpretation of these results is limited by small sample size, particularly for the EEG analyses. However, these findings suggest the importance of considering brain-behavior relationships in respect to developmental context (e.g., resource poor vs. resource rich environments).
Adolescent popularity: its relation to friendship characteristics and Its contagion among friends.
(2010-07) Marks, Peter E.
Since the late 1990s, quantitative researchers have differentiated between popularity, defined as a form of status determined by the group consensus, and preference, which is based on emotional reactions of individual peers. Although a great deal of work has gone into establishing correlates and consequences of popularity, very little work has investigated how popularity interacts with particular types of social relationships. The current study aimed to investigate the relation between popularity and friendships by replicating and expanding upon early findings of Rose, Swenson, & Carlson (2004) and by providing initial findings relevant to the theory of popularity contagion. This theory, proposed in the current study, posits that popularity should spread among friends (or other relationship partners) spontaneously and regardless of behavioral changes. Data were collected annually between 6th grade and 12th grade from a total of 1062 participants as part of a larger longitudinal study of peer relationships. Peer nominations assessed adolescents' friendships as well as popularity, social preference, overt aggression, relational aggression, and prosocial behavior. Self-reports assessed friendship quality (i.e., companionship and conflict with best friends; Bukowski, Hoza, & Boivin, 1994). Replicating earlier findings of Rose et al. (2004), correlational results indicated that popular adolescents had a higher number of mutual friends, but did not seem to have friendships that lasted longer or were substantially higher in quality. Correlations between individual levels of popularity and mutual friends' levels of popularity were fairly high across all time points, indicating that popular individuals tended to have popular friends. Finally, longitudinal hypotheses generated from the theory of popularity contagion were mostly supported using path analyses, and showed (a) that individual popularity could be predicted by friends' popularity levels over time, even when controlling for stability of individual popularity; (b) that this prediction was not accounted for by behavioral contagion of aggressive or prosocial behaviors; and (c) that individual social preference generally could not be predicted by friends' preference levels over time. Implications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.
The cognitive effects of bilingualism: does knowing two languages impact children’s ability to reason about mental states?
(2010-04) Millett, Katherine Ruth Gordon
In a number of studies, bilingual children have been shown to outperform monolingual children in false belief tasks, thus providing evidence that bilingualism affects children's ability to reason about the mental states of others. However, there are two limitations to this past work. The first limitation is that false belief tasks only measure a limited aspect of children's mental state reasoning abilities. Thus, performance in false belief tasks cannot be assumed to reflect a general ability to reason about the mental states of others. Secondly, the language skills of the bilingual groups included in this past work were only reliably measured in one language. Thus, we do not have a good understanding of how language proficiency across both languages impacts mental state reasoning abilities. In order to address these limitations, 3- to 5-year-old Spanish-English bilingual children and English monolingual children were tested using Wellman and Liu's (2004) scale which assesses a variety of aspects of mental state reasoning. The scale includes the following tasks: a Diverse Desires task, a Diverse Beliefs task, a Knowledge Access task, a Contents False Belief task, an Explicit False Belief task, a Belief-Emotion task, and a Real-Apparent Emotion task. Additionally, the language proficiency of the bilingual group was measured in both English and Spanish using standardized measures of vocabulary comprehension (the PPVT and the TVIP). Results indicate that when English vocabulary level was controlled, the bilingual children outperformed the monolingual children in the Diverse Desires task. Furthermore, effect sizes suggest that the bilingual children also outperformed the monolingual children in the Knowledge Access, Belief-Emotion, and Real-Apparent Emotion tasks when English vocabulary level was controlled. Overall, these findings provide evidence that bilingualism contributes to a broader effect on mental state reasoning than has been previously found.
Context, cortisol, and executive functions among children experiencing homelessness.
(2011-08) Cutuli, Joseph J.
Homelessness represents a context of risk for child development. Yet, many homeless children show good develop outcomes, nonetheless. The processes of risk and resilience that contribute to this variability involve adaptive systems impacted by factors across levels of analysis, such as cortisol and physiology, executive functions (EF) and other aspects of psychological functioning, and parenting behavior and the family context. This study employs a resilience framework that is grounded in developmental-ecological theory and recognizes factors at multiple levels of analysis. The goal is to elucidate explanatory models of the processes of risk and resilience by incorporating relationships with cortisol, a component of physiological adaptive systems related to the stress response, self-regulation, and other functions. Families in this study were all staying in an emergency homeless shelter and contained a child entering kindergarten or first grade. Children were separated from caregivers and completed a session of cognitive tasks that assessed executive functions and other abilities, followed by a session of parent-child interaction tasks. Saliva samples were collected throughout both sessions and assayed for cortisol concentrations. Parents reported on risk factors and stressful negative life events for each child. Initial levels of child cortisol were negatively related to EF, affirming a proposed inverted-U relationship between cortisol and cognition among this sample of high-risk children. Higher rates of stressful, negative life events were not related to cortisol, nor was positive parenting behavior. However, harsh, hostile, and insensitive parenting behaviors were related to higher levels of child cortisol, but only during the session when parent and child were together. There were no differences based on variables of interested when it came to changes in cortisol over either session. Results are discussed with respect to proposed mechanisms of the interface between cortisol, parenting and EF at different levels of analysis in the context of high developmental risk.
The continuity of parenting across two generations using a prospective, longitudinal design.
(2009-01) Kovan, Nikki M.
This study aims to extend the literature on the continuity of parenting across two generations using prospective, longitudinal data. 61 mothers and fathers were followed for an average of 32 years and were studied at multiple time points and in multiple settings. Parent-child interactions were videotaped at 24 months of age in both generations. The goals of the study were: (1) to examine the role of first generation parenting as it influences the quality of parenting provided by the second generation, controlling for parental IQ in both generations, second generation childhood life stress, second generation childhood SES and first generation parenting during adolescence; (2) to investigate the role of contextual similarity at the time of the 24 month parenting assessment in both generations; (3) to explore the role of gender in the continuity of parenting across two generations; and (4) to examine the moderating role of second generation romantic relationship support in the continuity of parenting. Multiple regression analyses revealed that first generation parenting quality predicted the quality of parenting provided by second generation parents, above and beyond first and second generation IQ and childhood life stress, with the exception of hostility. Second generation SES averaged across childhood and first generation parenting during adolescence were not related to second generation parenting, while second generation IQ was also significantly related to the quality of parenting provide by second generation parents. Correlation analyses indicated that life stress measured concurrently to parenting quality was not related to the quality of parenting provided in either generation, and therefore does not provide any additional explanation of the continuity of parenting. An unexpected finding was that the role of first generation parenting appeared to be important only for fathers based on bivariate correlations. Finally, none of the moderation analyses examining second generation romantic relationship support in the continuity of parenting were significant. Taken together, these findings suggest that a person's earliest experiences of parenting continue to be important and play a significant role in the quality of parenting provided to the next generation, above and beyond many of the contextual factors known to relate to parenting quality. This may be true especially for fathers, although this finding needs to be replicated given the small number of fathers examined in this study. Finally, romantic relationship support did not appear to moderate the impact of early parenting experiences.
Developing interactions between executive function and emotion during adolescence.
(2010-10) Cohen, Julia E.
Adolescence is reputed to be a time of heightened emotionality and limited impulse control. Furthermore, emotion is frequently cited as the instigator of impulsive actions within this developmental period. That is, adolescents' powerful emotions may disrupt efforts to self-regulate and lead to impulsive actions that do not, in fact, serve the individual's long-term goals. Additionally, poor decision-making during this age range frequently has serious negative consequences. Understanding the cognitive and neurobiological mechanisms underlying the developing relationship between emotion and cognitive control may ultimately help us encourage teens to avoid potentially dangerous decisions and actions. To this end, this dissertation presents four studies aimed at better understanding the influence of emotion on higher-level cognition and self-regulation during adolescence. The first study introduces a task that requires participants to ignore emotional images while exercising inhibitory motor control (a go-nogo task). The second study uses functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to explore age differences in brain activation during performance of the emotional-distraction go-nogo task introduced in the first study. The third study extends the emotional distraction paradigm to a second form of higher-level cognition by using emotional images as backgrounds in an n-back working memory task. The fourth study examines the influence of early institutional care and BDNF genotype on performance of the emotional-distraction go-nogo task. Together these studies inform us regarding developmental changes in the interface between emotion and cognition during adolescence.
The Development of Emotion Regulation & Children’s Age-Related Performance on the Emotional Interference Task
(2012) McGarrah, Michael W.;
The present study examined the relative impact of differentially valenced affective pictures on the performance of a cognitive task in young children, ages 5-9 years (N=24). Stimuli consisted of a set of 90 positive, neutral, and negatively valenced pictures (30 in each category) taken from the International Affective Pictures System, and a pair of simple tones. Participants were required to indicate whether a tone heard was high or low within a four-second window, while viewing the affective pictures. Simple reaction times (RT’s) were recorded and compared by valence to investigate the relative “interference” of the emotional stimuli on task performance. Results indicated that both negative and positive pictures yielded slower RT’s when compared to neutral pictures. This effect was largest for 5-year olds, only modest in 7-year olds, and was minimally active in 9-year olds. These findings demonstrate a positive developmental progression in the capacity for emotion regulation in young children—and/or an increasingly fortified ability to direct attentional resources—at the intersection of emotion and cognition.
A developmental perspective of Self-regulatory failure in preschool and middle childhood.
(2012-08) Cowell, Jason Michael
The present studies were intended to detail developmental differences in self-regulatory failure. Study 1 is a downward extension (4-year-old children) of the standard dual-task approach to investigating self-regulatory failure in adults. In Study 1, 4-year-old participants (N = 61) were administered a consecutive dual-task paradigm (Baumeister et al., 1998). While this approach has been quite fruitful in the study of adult self-regulation, individual differences in self-control in children likely overshadowed any potential evidence for self-regulatory failure in Study 1. Indeed, 4-year-old children are in the early stages of the development of self-control, and demonstrate marked differences in performance and ability to self-regulate. Study 2 utilized a modified approach to the study of self-regulatory failure, informed by the extensive individual differences seen in Study 1. Participants ages 4 (n = 45), 6 (n = 55), and 8 years (n = 46), were given a within-subjects, pre-post self-control task. Each participant completed a tangram task, a 5-minute direction following task, and then another tangram task. While Study 2 does replicate the null findings of Study 1 with respect to condition differences in future persistence (direction following versus neutral), Study 2 also provides potential evidence for an alternative manifestation of performance failure. Wherein persistence on a difficult tangram after a direction following task is significantly less than persistence before the direction task (F (2, 144) = 8.76, p < .01). This effect was consistently found in all three age groups, even though older children (6 and 8 years) were found to persist significantly longer than younger children (4 years) (Tukey HSD = -85.07, p < .05; Tukey HSD = -119.29, p < .01, respectively). These results highlight the potential early onset of self-regulatory failure, as well as the necessity for the study of individual differences leading to differential magnitude of self-regulatory failure.
Direct and indirect approaches to emotion regulation in children.
(2010-09) Kesek, Amanda Christine
The current study examined the impact of both relatively direct and relatively indirect approaches to emotion regulation in children. In Study 1, 5-year-old children (N = 83) were assigned to 1 of 2 conditions in which they were either trained to reappraise emotional pictures or trained in an irrelevant classification task. The efficacy of reappraisal training was assessed in terms of self-reported arousal, physiological response (skin conductance response), and performance on tasks thought to be influenced by mood (verbal fluency and the Children's Embedded Figures Test, a measure of global and local processing). Children who were trained to reappraise emotional stimuli demonstrated attenuated emotional reactivity to negative stimuli relative to children in the control condition. Furthermore, reappraisal training was related to enhanced performance on the verbal fluency task, thought to be influenced by positive mood, although these effects were only evident when the task was administered immediately after the post-training assessment. However, there was no reduction in self-reported valence and arousal associated with reappraisal training, and there was no relation between physiological responding and executive function (EF), temperament, or parenting. Study 2 used EEG to examine the neural correlates of emotion regulation in the context of relatively indirect task instructions, with a particular focus on the late positive potential (LPP), in children between 6 and 12 years (N = 49) As expected, the amplitude of the LPP was influenced by both valence and response. In particular, the amplitude of the LPP associated with an evaluative response (i.e. decide whether you like or dislike the picture) was larger than the amplitude of the LPP associated with a non-evaluative response (i.e. decide whether or not there is a person in the picture), but only for the older children. Furthermore, this modulation was related to better performance on the Dimensional Change Card Sort, a measure of EF, controlling for age and IQ. These results add to our knowledge of the development of emotion regulation, suggesting that diverse strategies, including both direct and indirect approaches to emotion regulation, may be an effective means of modulating arousal in children, but at different points in development.
Does age of language acquisition affect the relation between American sign language and mental rotation?
(2009-10) Martin, Amber J.
Past research has shown a relation between knowledge of American Sign Language (ASL) and mental rotation. The goal of the current study was to examine factors related to American Sign Language use that contribute to mental rotation skills. In particular, the factors examined were age of acquisition of ASL, hearing status, gender, spatial language comprehension, spatial language production and amount of use of ASL. Many studies have examined the role of language on cognition, but few have examined which aspects of language knowledge (comprehension or production) contribute to those effects. Further, this study examines the role of age of acquisition of ASL on mental rotation. Participants were adults who had learned ASL at different ages across development. Participants completed a spatial language production task, spatial language comprehension task and a computerized-nonlinguistic mental rotation task that recorded participants' accuracy and reaction times. Results showed that native male signers were significantly faster on mental rotation compared to other groups based on the slope of change across degrees of rotation. Further, male native signers were also slightly more likely to interpret spatial relations in the comprehension task by rotating the signer's description. There were no overall differences between the age of acquisition groups in mental rotation. Men and women did not differ overall in mental rotation nor did hearing and Deaf participants. These results indicate that age of acquisition of ASL after infancy does not affect mental rotation. Implications are discussed for age of acquisition effects on language-cognition relations, for the effects of practice on male native signers' speed of mental rotation, and implications for findings on the language tasks. Further research should examine the effects of age of acquisition of a first language on general speed of processing.
Examining Moderators of Response to Executive Function Reflection Training: Initial Skill and Socioeconomic Status
(2016-06) Schubert, Erin
The achievement gap between children of different socioeconomic status (SES) is a grand challenge for developmental psychologists. Fortunately, not all low SES children develop adverse outcomes. Research has identified executive function (EF) as an import-ant characteristic of resilient functioning. EF can be improved through a diverse array of training programs. Yet, these programs do not improve the EF of all participants. An understanding of which individuals benefit from EF training is essential to wide scale dissemination of empirically validated interventions. The objective of this research was to determine the characteristics of children who are most likely to benefit from EF training. Participating families (N = 134) were recruited from group childcare centers, representing a broad range of SES. Children were randomly assigned to a control or intervention group. Parents provided information on children’s demographic and socioeconomic characteristics. All children participated in individual pre- and post- sessions during which their EF and IQ were assessed with direct behavioral measures. Experimenters completed a report on child EF after each session. Between assessment sessions, children in the intervention group received two 10-15 minute sessions of EF reflection training. Children in the control group participated in two 10-15 minute sessions in which they practiced EF tasks but were not given training or feedback. Children in the intervention group as a whole demonstrated marginally significantly better EF performance at post-test than children in the control group. Further, children from lower SES families showed more improvement following the intervention than children from families with higher SES. Children’s initial EF was not a significant moderator of response to intervention while controlling for SES.
Factors related to the development, maintenance, and/or resolution of unresolved/disorganized states of mind regarding abuse in a sample of maltreated individuals.
(2010-05) Whaley, Gloria J. L.
This is the first prospective study of male and female child abuse survivors to investigate the rates of unresolved/disorganized states of mind with respect to abuse (U/d abuse) classifications and factors that increase or decrease the risk of being classified as U/d abuse during late adolescence and/or adulthood. Participants were drawn from an ongoing longitudinal study of families from low socioeconomic backgrounds. The present sample (n = 42; 19 males, 23 females) includes only individuals who were identified prospectively as having experienced childhood physical and/or sexual abuse by a caregiver and for whom scores from the Adult Attachment Interview for U/d abuse were available at age 19 and/or 26 years. The following constructs were included in analyses: infant attachment representations; maltreatment circumstances; dissociative symptoms across childhood and adolescence; relationships with parents, friends, and romantic partners over time. Based on findings from previous longitudinal studies and attachment theory, it was hypothesized that disorganized/disoriented (D/d) attachment classifications in infancy would relate significantly to U/d abuse classifications, but that the circumstances of abuse (type, chronicity, or age of onset) would not relate significantly to U/d abuse status. Dissociative symptoms over time were anticipated to predict U/d abuse classifications. Positive and supportive relationships with others over time were expected to predict lower rates of U/d abuse classifications. Finally, following a cumulative risk perspective, it was expected that the added influence of severe trauma, a history of D/d infant attachment, high degrees of dissociation, poor relationships over time, and insecure states of mind would significantly predict U/d abuse status. Results revealed that approximately 36 percent of participants received U/d abuse classifications at age 19 and 41 percent at age 26, with little stability between the two assessments. Cumulative risk was significantly predictive of U/d abuse classifications. D/d infant attachment was a strong predictor of U/d abuse at age 19 but not at age 26 years. The circumstances of abuse, dissociative symptoms, secure infant attachment status, or the quality of important relationships by themselves were not significantly related to U/d abuse status at either age. Findings and needed future areas of research are discussed.
The impact of executive function on reward processing in children: neural correlates and individual differences.
(2011-09) Langworthy, Sara Elizabeth
Executive function (EF) involves the integration of cognitive processes in order to support and sustain goal-directed behaviors that are crucial in the development of behavioral regulation (Sergeant, Geurts, & Oosterlaan, 2002). Motivational and rewarding information may alter the underlying cognitive processes surrounding the implementation of these goal-directed behaviors. Previous research indicates that both behavior and brain systems associated with reward and executive function (EF) processes may be interacting in children with ADHD (Luman, Van Meel, Oosterlaan, Sergeant, & Geurts, 2009b; Scheres, Milham, Knutson, & Castellanos, 2007). However, little research has been conducted within middle childhood to explore the intersection of EF and reward processing in typical development. Furthermore, little is know about the degree to which reward processing may be interacting with low EF ability on a behavioral and neural level during middle childhood. The current study examined behavioral performance as well as functional and structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) data to address the degree to which executive function (EF) ability may be related to reward processing behaviors and brain circuitry in middle childhood. Chapter 2 addresses the overlap of EF and reward processing in behavioral task performance and parent questionnaire measures. Chapter 3 describes brain activation pattern differences in children with high versus low EF ability in a reward processing task. This portion of the study was conducted to determine whether children with lower EF ability process reward information similarly to children with high EF ability. In Chapter 4, the links between behavioral performance on EF and reward processing measures and structural volumes of related brain areas are discussed. Finally, in Chapter 5, general conclusions, limitations and future directions are outlined.
Improving the quality of early care and education through professional development: evaluation of an observational assessment tool.
(2012-03) Pleuss, Jessica Catherine
High quality early childhood care and education providers fill an essential societal role preparing children to be socially, behaviorally, and cognitively “ready to learn” upon school entry, yet many care settings in the United States are mediocre to poor in quality, particularly for infants and toddlers. Many professional development opportunities aim to change provider characteristics such as knowledge, attitudes, or beliefs, assuming that this will lead to a change in caregiving behavior, but the relationship between such characteristics and actual behavior has not been well-established. In the current study, data were analyzed from a longitudinal randomized control intervention study examining the use of the Ounce Scale™—an authentic, observational assessment tool—by 98 child care providers of infants and toddlers. It was hypothesized that provider characteristics would be positively associated with, and predictive of, caregiving behavior, and that use of the Ounce Scale™ would deepen providers’ complexity of thought regarding children’s behavior and actual caregiving behavior as reflected in the provider-child relationship. Knowledge of infant development and complexity of thought regarding child behavior predicted many aspects of caregiving behavior. Beliefs about spoiling, traditionalism of child-rearing, and dissatisfaction with caregiving predicted specific aspects of caregiving behavior, and many other attitudes and beliefs did not predict caregiving behavior at all. Although learning and using the Ounce Scale™ had little overall effect, several interaction effects suggest that it did impact the caregiving behavior of providers with certain characteristics.
Indiscriminate Friendliness and Executive Functioning in Post-Institutionalized Children
(2011-07-19) Lepp, Kelsey
Previous studies have found children internationally adopted from institutions more likely to exhibit socioemotional and cognitive deficits. This study examined the relationship between indiscriminate friendliness and executive functioning behaviors in postinstitutionalized (PI) children. Internationally adopted children and non-adopted children were observed and coded for indiscriminate friendliness and assessed using five executive function tasks. Subjects per analysis varied because the study is still ongoing (see participant information, Table 1). The study is part of a larger longitudinal research project. Preliminary data found that post-institutionalized children displayed higher levels of indiscriminate friendliness and lower levels of executive functioning, however no relationship was found between the two variables. When children with IQ levels below 70 were removed from the analysis, a significant relationship was found between working memory and the social disinhibition factor at both sessions. Results suggest that by one year post-adoption, post-institutionalized children continue to show deficits compared to non-adopted children. Further research is necessary to determine appropriate means of intervention.
Moderating processes in the link between early caregiving and adult individual and romantic functioning: the distinctive contributions of early adult romantic relationships.
(2011-08) Salvatore, Jessica Elizabeth
This study tested a model of early adulthood romantic relationships as moderators of the effects of early caregiving experiences in predicting life satisfaction, romantic relationship quality, and depression/anxiety in later adulthood. Participants (n = 83) were a subsample from a 35-year longitudinal study of risk and adaptation. The quality of early caregiving was measured using a composite of infant attachment at 12 and 18 months, maternal supportive presence and hostility at 24 and 42 months, and maternal verbal and emotional responsivity at 30 months were included. The quality of early and later adulthood romantic relationships was assessed from in-depth interviews conducted with participants at ages 23 and 32. Life satisfaction was measured at age 32. Depression/anxiety symptoms were measured at ages 23, 26, and 32. Results indicated that early adulthood romantic relationships moderate early caregiving to predict trajectories of depression/anxiety symptoms between ages 23-32, but not the single measures of life satisfaction and romantic quality at age 32. The depression/anxiety findings are consistent with the organizational-developmental principle that individual functioning is a product of one's developmental history and current circumstances, and offer a possible interpretation for the null interaction effects obtained in the life satisfaction and romantic quality analyses. Results underscore the importance of taking a developmental perspective on turning point phenomena.
Nutritional status and neurodevelopment in International Adoptees.
(2010-06) Fuglestad, Anita J.
Adequate intake and assimilation of all nutrients is important for brain health and function; however, several nutrients have more marked effects on brain development. Based on the timing, the extent of deprivation, and the pathophysiology of a given nutrient, specific hypothesis can be made regarding the effects of a given nutrient on specific neural systems. Internationally adopted children present a unique opportunity to study the effects of early nutrient deficiencies on neurodevelopment under relatively controlled conditions, given that the time of adoption into a stable environment clearly demarcates the end of a period of adversity. Although micronutrient deficiencies have an adverse impact on development in other populations, little is known about the nutritional status at arrival or the role of nutritional status in neurodevelopment in international adoptees, a population in which some neurobehavioral problems persist years after adoption. The goals of this set of studies were to investigate (1) the macro- and micronutritional status of internationally adopted children and (2) the association between nutritional status and neurodevelopment during the early adoption period. Studies one and two investigated iron status in children adopted from Eastern Europe. In study one, international adoptees had compromised iron status, with iron deficiency more prevalent in participants with G. lamblia, a parasite which may interfere with iron absorption. There was persistent iron deficiency at follow-up, likely due to the erythropoietic demands of catch-up growth. In study two, iron deficiency was associated with general cognitive and behavioral development during the early adoption period. Specifically, those with iron deficiency were more fearful at arrival and had problems with activity and cooperation at the six-month follow-up. Cognitive performance was likely mediated by behaviors during testing. In study three, a comprehensive nutritional battery was completed for children adopted from Eastern Europe, Ethiopia, and China. 56% of the children had at least one micronutrient deficiency, with iron, zinc and vitamin D insufficiency/deficiency the most common deficiencies. Iron deficiency was associated with lower cognitive scores, slower speed of processing, as well as altered socioemotional behaviors and altered parent behaviors. Zinc deficiency was associated with lower quality exploratory behaviors and altered parent behaviors. These studies show that internationally adopted children are at risk for micronutrient deficiencies and that micronutrient status is associated with neurodevelopment during the early adoption period. Continued research will be important to understand the effects of these nutritional deficiencies on specific neurodevelopmental domains, to determine whether the developmental effects persist long-term, and to inform nutritional and neurodevelopmental principles that can be applied to develop interventions and services for children living in adverse and rehabilitating environments.
Parent-child relationships in young homeless families: co-regulation as a predictor of child self-regulation and school adjustment
(2011-08) Herbers, Janette E.
Developing adaptive behaviors are particularly important for children growing up in contexts of risk and adversity. This study examined the role of effective parenting for school success in a high-risk sample of children, focusing on co-regulation experiences with parents in relation to child self-regulation skills. In early childhood, it is largely through experiences of co-regulation within the caregiver-child relationship that children develop self-regulation. These skills are carried forward into other contexts of learning and development, including the school environment. The current thesis examined parent-child relationships among 138 families residing in emergency homeless shelter prior to the children entering kindergarten and first grade. Using observational data and state space grid methodology, I examined the parent-child relationship as a dynamic system with implications for children‟s school success and executive function (a central component of self-regulation). Results indicated that the positive co-regulation experiences were related to executive function capabilities and IQ in the child, which in turn were related to school outcomes. Parent responsiveness in particular was related to positive school outcomes. Person-oriented cluster analyses of individual state space grids revealed distinct types of dyads among the homeless families, highlighting individual differences in dyadic functioning. Findings support theory and earlier findings in developmental and resilience science implicating effective parenting in the acquisition of adaptive skills among children who overcome adversity, in part through processes of co-regulation that shape or scaffold the development of self-regulation and related cognitive skills in young children.
Pathways to generalized and partner-specific attachment representations in adulthood: A developmental perspective on the organization of romantic behavior.
(2008-07) Haydon, Katherine C.
This study tested a model of developmental processes by which generalized and romantic-partner specific attachment representations emerge was tested, and tested the joint contribution of both representations to concurrent romantic functioning. Participants (N = 112) in a 32-year longitudinal study of risk and adaptation were grouped based on the security of their generalized and partner-specific attachment representations (Sec/Sec, Ins/Ins, Ins/Sec, and Sec/Ins). The four groups were compared on antecedent measures of infant attachment, parenting quality at 24 months, 54-month ego resilience, middle childhood peer competence, adolescent friendship quality, adjustment prior to the romantic partnership, and concurrent observed and self-reported romantic functioning in early adulthood. Results indicated that both early and later experience shaped developmental pathways to configurations of adult attachment representations. The InsAAI/SecCRI group differed from their concordant-insecure counterparts on measures of both earlier and concurrent relationship functioning. SecAAI/InsCRI individuals functioned similarly to SecAAI/SecCRI individuals in their romantic partnerships, but differed on earlier individual functioning. Results provided evidence that attachment functioning in adulthood is multiply and probabilistically determined by both earlier and later experiences. Implications for process approaches to the study of developmental organization of romantic behavior are discussed.
Physiological and social cognitive correlates of preschool physical and relational aggression: a short-term longitudinal study.
(2011-08) Gower, Amy Lynn
This study examined physiological correlates and predictors of relational and physical aggression in early childhood. Preschoolers' baseline heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) were measured in the fall. At the same assessment, heart rate and RSA reactivity were measured while listening to stories of peer conflict, and participants engaged in two effortful control tasks. Teachers reported on physical and relational aggression in the fall and the spring. With respect to baseline physiology, low baseline heart rate and higher RSA were associated with increased physical aggression only among children with lower effortful control scores. Higher baseline RSA predicted increased relational aggression, again only for children with lower effortful control scores. Among children with poorer effortful control, diastolic blood pressure positively predicted relational aggression and negatively predicted physical aggression. Greater heart rate increases and RSA decreases to stories of peer conflict were uniquely associated with elevated classroom physical aggression. These findings suggest the utility of examining the roles of baseline physiology and physiological reactivity in the development of aggressive behavior. Implications of these findings for the development of intervention and prevention programs targeting early physical and relational aggression are discussed.

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