This research examines how the human genome and SES jointly and interactively shape verbal ability among youth in the U.S. The youth are aged 12-18 when the study starts. The research draws on findings from the latest GWAS as well as a rich set of longitudinal SES measures at individual, family and neighborhood levels from Add Health (N = 7194).…

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate language growth in individuals with fragile X syndrome (FXS) from early childhood to adolescence and the influence of maternal responsivity on language growth. Method: We conducted a longitudinal analysis of language development in 55 youths (44 males, 11 females) with FXS. Data collection spanned…

Identifying change at the individual level is an important goal for researchers, educators, and clinicians. We present a set of statistical procedures for identifying individuals who depart from a normative change. Using Latent Change Scores models (LCS), we illustrate how the Individual Likelihood computed from a statistical model for change…

Recent studies have begun to uncover the genetic architecture of educational attainment. We build on this work using genome-wide data from siblings in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health). We measure the genetic predisposition of siblings to educational attainment using polygenic scores. We then test how…

Dyslexia is a developmental disability affecting the acquisition of reading and writing skills, and its developmental nature makes longitudinal research of great importance. This study therefore investigated the cognitive-linguistic profiles of the typical-functioning dyslexics and high-functioning dyslexics with longitudinal cohorts of…

A wealth of literature has examined the association between breastfeeding and the development of cognitive abilities in childhood. In particular, at least some evidence exists suggesting that breastfed children perform better on measures of intelligence later in life. Although a correlation appears to be present, fewer observational studies have…

Family processes and parenting practices help explain developmental differences between children in low- versus higher-income households. There are, however, few studies addressing the question of: what are the key family processes and parenting practices for promoting low-income children's growth? We address this question in the present study,…

This study examines the developmental trajectories of ability and trait emotional intelligence (EI) in the Portuguese secondary school. Within a three-wave longitudinal design, 395 students (M[subscript age] = 15.4; SD = 0.74) completed both the Emotional Skills and Competence Questionnaire (ESCQ) and the Vocabulary of Emotions Test (VET). Results…

Literacy rates among male adolescents continue to fall below those of female adolescents, and this trend shows no indication of improving (Cheung & Slavin, 2014; Gurian & Stevens, 2007; Weins, 2005; Clark, 2006; Cantrell & Carter, 2009). This study aims to examine this trend by measuring the effects of extended literacy learning…

Purpose: To investigate the longitudinal trajectories of verbal and nonverbal skills in individuals with a history of specific language impairment (SLI) from childhood to adolescence. This study focuses on SLI only and investigates within-participant measures across abilities. Method: Verbal and nonverbal skills were assessed in 242 children with…

Compared to high school graduates, adolescents who drop out of school are more likely to have a range of negative outcomes, including lower verbal capacities; however, the true nature of this association is not well-understood. Dropping out of school could have an important effect on reducing verbal skills, or the link between dropping out of…

A number of studies, both small scale and of nationally-representative student samples, have reported substantial associations between school entry math ability and later elementary school achievement. However, questions remain regarding the persistence of the association between early growth in math ability and later math achievement due to the…

Longitudinal research on the links between intelligence and health behaviors among adolescents is rare. We report longitudinal data in which we assessed the relationships between intelligence as assessed in Grade 7 and consequential health outcomes in Grade 11. The mean age of respondents (N = 420; 188 males, 232 females) was 12.30 years (SD =…

Background: This study addresses to what extent child and adolescent explanatory factors predict male perpetrated intimate partner violence (IPV) in adulthood. Methods: We use prospective longitudinal data from the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development (CSDD). The CSDD is a survey of 411 male born in the 1950s in an inner London area. The men…

This study of economically disadvantaged 13-year-olds examined the relations between serious reading difficulties and clinical levels of externalizing behaviors in school. The variable-centered results showed that family variables, adolescent verbal ability, and negative emotion patterns differed in uniquely predicting reading achievement and…