Sensitive caregiving is an essential aspect of positive parenting that influences executive functions development, but the mechanisms underlying this association are less clear. Using data from the Family Life Project, a large prospective longitudinal sample of 1292 families residing in rural, predominately low-income communities, the current…

Aim: There is a lack of evidence-based tools for measuring problem-solving in young children with motor delays. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the construct validity and responsiveness of the Assessment of Problem-Solving in Play. Methods: 125 young children (10.72, SD 2.62 months) with mild, moderate, and severe motor delays were…

The present study examines the relationship between sex, infant temperament, and childhood psychophysiological reactivity via electrodermal activity (EDA). Both temperament and EDA are known to be relatively stable traits across the lifespan reflecting individual reactivity and regulation linked to suboptimal behavioral development and risk for…

Substantial evidence endorses the early assessment of cognitive development to promote children's developmental health and well-being. Especially in the Brazilian context, there is a paucity of standardized screening and assessment tools with normative data to evaluate young children. This study provided initial reliability and validity evidence…

The study aim was to explore the relationship between a developmental assessment at preschool age and an intelligence quotient (IQ) assessment at school age. One hundred sixty-two children were assessed at 2.5 years with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development--Third Edition (Bayley-III) and then at 6.5 years with the Wechsler…

This review is intended to point out the role played by motor skills proficiency in the academic achievement of typically and atypically developing pupils who are attending primary school. First, the interplay between motor and cognitive development will be presented. Next, the cognitive phenotype, not yet deeply investigated, of a…

Background: Temperament has been associated with child anxiety in a number of studies; however, research examining possible mechanisms of effect using longitudinal designs is scarce. Objective: This study tested a theoretically-derived model of anxiety development spanning infancy (6 months) to early childhood (approximately 72 months) that…

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to quantify the relationship between early motor skills, such as sitting, and the development of problem-solving skills in children with motor delays. Methods: Motor (Gross Motor Function Measure) and problem-solving (Assessment of Problem-Solving in Play) skills of 134 children 7-16 months adjusted age…

High rates of error and variability in early word production may signal speech sound disorder. However, there is little consensus regarding the degree of error and variability that may be expected in the typical range. Relatedly, while variables including child age, word frequency and word phonological neighbourhood density are associated with…

Infants in low-resource settings are at heightened risk for compromised cognitive development due to a multitude of environmental insults in their surroundings. However, the onset of adverse outcomes and trajectory of cognitive development in these settings is not well understood. The aims of the present study were to adapt the Mullen Scales of…

Parent adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and caregiver reports of harsh parenting were examined in relation to the executive function (EF) abilities in young low-income children. Data were collected from 55 "mother-child" dyads; 17-40 months of age. Parent measures included the ACEs questionnaire and harsh parenting items from the…

The standard model of the role of early experience in human development assumes that children's environments in their first years of life are dominant influences on who they become as adults. The standard model favors interventions to improve children's long-term outcomes that start early in life and are intensive in time and attention from…

Both early childhood maternal language input and the quality of classroom instruction in elementary school have been shown to be important environmental supports in predicting children's literacy skill development. However, no studies have simultaneously examined these two environmental supports in relation to children's early language skills and…

Using existing longitudinal data from 570 infants in the Maternal Lifestyle Study, we explored the predictive value of maternal and infant affect and maternal vocalizations during 2 minutes of face-to-face interactions at 4 months on IQ scores at 4.5 and 7 years. After controlling for demographic factors, maternal depression, and prenatal drug…

Stunting has been negatively associated with children's development. We examined the range of height by testing hypotheses: (a) height is positively associated with children's development, with associations moderated by inflammation and (b) home environments characterized by nurturance and early learning opportunities is positively associated with…