Using data from a large longitudinal sample (N = 1,292) of children and their caregivers in predominantly low-income, nonurban communities, we investigated longitudinal relations between attuned caregiving in infancy, joint attention in toddlerhood, and executive functions in early childhood. The results from path analysis demonstrated that…

Our study extends the understanding of how three distinct environments including home, childcare, and neighbourhood may influence young children's problematic behaviours among a sample of predominantly unmarried mothers residing in urban communities in the United States. With a sample of 791 mothers we examined whether neighbourhood disadvantage…

Using data from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project, a cross-lag mediation model was tested to examine longitudinal relations among low-income mothers' sensitivity; toddlers' engagement of their mothers; and toddler's self-regulation at ages 1, 2, and 3 years (N = 2,958). Age 1 maternal sensitivity predicted self-regulation at…

The present study used a subsample of 450 children from the ECLS-B data set to examine longitudinal associations between multiple features of nonparental care at age 2 and socioemotional development at kindergarten entry, taking into account parents' attitudes and behaviors, family composition, poverty status, and child characteristics.…

Amid growing controversy about the oft-cited "30-million-word gap," this investigation uses language data from five American communities across the socioeconomic spectrum to test, for the first time, Hart and Risley's (1995) claim that poor children hear 30 million fewer words than their middle-class counterparts during the early years…

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…

In the current article, we contrast 2 analytical approaches to estimate the relation of parenting to executive function development in a sample of 1,292 children assessed longitudinally between the ages of 36 and 60 months of age. Children were administered a newly developed and validated battery of 6 executive function tasks tapping inhibitory…

Taiwan has over the past three decades been experiencing demographic changes that may pose important concerns for children's quality of life. This study examines the relationships and potential pathways between family structure transitions and early childhood development. Our analysis is based on 19,499 children from the 2005 birth cohort who…

Background: Previous research has indicated positive effects of early developmental intervention (EDI) on the development of children in developing countries. Few studies, however, have examined longitudinally when differential treatment effects may be observed and whether differential outcomes are associated with exposure to different risk…

Positive outcomes for children with developmental disabilities (DD) can be affected by children's behavior problems. This study examined the family environment of 125 children with DD at age 3, and the extent to which that environment, as well as children's cognitive and adaptive functioning, predicted the problematic behaviors that children with…

A longitudinal study of low income North Carolina mothers (N=842) found that variables significantly associated with a substantiated maltreatment report in the second or third year of life were first year maltreatment reports and participation in Medicaid. Also, three interactions between a stressful life indicator variable and a social support…

Within a longitudinal design, the present study assessed parental attitudes, quality of stimulation in the environment, historical factors, and children's temperament to identify determinants of cognitive ability at 54 months. Children (n=147) were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups: a center-based intervention, a home-based…

Many children who are born into poverty face increased challenges. But different factors can ameliorate such risks and some findings on resilience and protective factors are reported in this paper. The data are based on the Parent-Child Project, a 22-year study of high-risk children. The focus is on protective factors identified in the first three…

Against the backdrop of evolving welfare policies in California following the approval of federal welfare reforms in 1996, the Growing Up in Poverty Project is examining how single mothers and their children fare as they move from cash aid to jobs, the types and quality of child care arrangements selected, and if mothers' access to child care…

Examined psychometric properties of Parenting Stress Index. Subjects were 191 low-income, urban African American mothers. Found acceptable subscale internal consistency and stability over six months. Concurrent validity revealed high convergence across measures among mothers reporting consistent stress. Subjects reported elevated stress levels in…