The human brain is plastic -- which means the brain changes its connectivity and even its structure in response to learning. This brief report highlights the following points: (1) A human's first learning experiences are foundational for later education, and experiences in the early years of life can greatly impact on later achievement; (2) Waves…

This research investigates whether and how two fundamental environmental factors--harshness and unpredictability--interact in regulating child and adolescent development, informed by life-history theory and drawing on data from the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (N =…

This research investigated the prospective contribution of childhood maltreatment to low self-worth, low relationship quality, and symptoms during adolescence. Further, the stability and cross-lagged effects of these sequelae of maltreatment were examined over time. History of maltreatment during childhood was obtained, and youth (407 maltreated,…

This study investigated how early experience with racial discrimination affected the subsequent risky sexual behaviors of a diverse sample of African American youths (N = 745). The analyses focused on 3 risk-promoting factors thought to mediate the hypothesized discrimination--risky sex relation: negative affect, affiliation with deviant peers,…

This study compared early parenting practices and adolescent behavior to determine whether parental attachment-promoting behaviors in the first year of life were associated with psychosocial adjustment in teenagers. The mothers of 22 adolescents completed a behavioral assessment of their teenager and an inventory of their recollected parenting…

Research findings on the early precursors of substance use and related adjustment difficulties have led to interest in developmental models to explain problem behavior. This paper examines five major themes that characterize the relationship among social context, individual disposition, and syndromes of problem behaviors that include substance use…

The 21st Century Learning Initiative is a transnational program concerned with improving education by changing outdated assumptions about how humans learn. This paper summarizes issues behind the organization's work. The first is the biological nature of learning; discussion of this issue includes a description of new research on the very young…