From early in life, children learn to perform actions on the objects in their environments. Although children learn from observing others' actions, actively engaging with the material to be learned can be important for learning. This study tested whether instruction that included opportunities for children to be active supported toddlers' action…

Research Findings: Prior research has demonstrated the importance of young children's executive functioning (EF) skills for their success in schooling and beyond. However, the field lacks an understanding of how children's EF skills manifest in context. In the present study, we relate children's classroom off-task behavior to their EF skills.…

Continuity of pre-k and kindergarten classroom experiences is a key area of interest for early childhood researchers interested in supporting public pre-k children's development over time. To advance the empirical evidence on this topic, this study examined whether differences in classroom experiences as children transition from pre-k to…

Data from multiple school sources, including informant ratings, systematic direct observations (SDOs), and school wide data (e.g., office disciplinary referrals [ODRs]) are routinely used to guide decision making in the delivery of evidence based practices for students with externalizing and internalizing behavior problems. Over 50 years of…

Attempts to understand "subjectivity" have historically involved distinguishing the strengths of subjective methods (e.g., survey ratings from informants) from those of alternative methods (e.g., observational/performance-based tasks). Yet, a movement is underway in Psychology that considers the merits of "intersubjectivity":…

Social-emotional factors associated with youth aggression have largely been studied in the context of social information-processing models. The ability to accurately encode and appropriately interpret others' emotions has yet to be fully examined in the context of aggressive behavior, particularly during adolescence. Using cross-sectional data…

This study employs data from both kindergarten cohorts of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (n ~ 12,450 in 1998; n ~ 11,000 in 2010) to assess whether associations between preschool participation and children's academic and behavioral outcomes--both at school entry (Mean age = 5.6 years in both cohorts) and through third grade--have changed…

Measures of young children's social development are needed in the MultiTier System of Supports (MTSS) approach to early childhood. In 2004, we reported initial development of an observational measure of infants' and toddlers' social skills designed for early educators, the Early Social Indicator (ESI). Here, we report preliminary findings on the…

Whether and to what extent kindergarten children's executive functions (EF) constitute promising targets of early intervention is currently unclear. This study examined whether kindergarten children's EF predicted their second-grade academic achievement and behavior. This was done using (a) a longitudinal and nationally representative sample (N =…

Growing up in poverty increases youth risk for developing aggressive behavior problems which, in turn, are associated with a host of problematic outcomes, including school drop-out, substance use, mental health problems, and delinquency. In part, this may be due to exposure to adverse school contexts that create socialization influences supporting…

Parents of children with developmental disabilities (DD) are at increased risk of experiencing psychological stress compared to other parents. Children's high levels of internalizing and externalizing problems have been found to contribute to this elevated level of stress. Few studies have considered the reverse direction of effects, however, in…

Preschool parent interventions may produce downstream benefits if initial intervention gains are sustained and improve later socialization experiences. This study explored associations between initial effects of the REDI (Research-based Developmentally Informed) Parent program and later benefits. A randomized trial involving 200 Head Start…