We aimed to evaluate the validity of the Ages and Stages Questionnaires Edition 3 (ASQ-3) and the MacArthur communicative development inventory (CDI) as a screening measure for children at risk of language development delay in western rural China, by comparing them to the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID-III). We administered…

Parental engagement in positive activities with the child may show significant variation across time, assuming a crucial influence on child development. In dual-earner families, work-family conflict can interfere with parental engagement, with negative consequences for children's behavior. The current study examined the change trajectories of…

This study examines relations among Chinese parents' expectations for children's development of social-emotional skills, parenting styles, and child social competence. A total of 154 parents with preschool-aged children from mainland China completed questionnaires measuring their timing of expectations for children's mastery of social-emotional…

Consistent with models of environmental sensitivity (Pluess, 2015), research suggests that the effects of parents' behaviors on child adjustment are stronger among children who struggle to regulate their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors compared with children with better self-regulation. This study extended prior research by assessing maternal…

The purpose of this study was to examine correlates of non-residential father-child involvement with their children at age 2. This study utilized secondary analysis of data collected through the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study--Birth Cohort. Participants included 650 biological fathers who did not reside with their child at age 2. Significant…

Recent re-conceptualisation of paternal involvement (Pleck, J. H. (2010). Paternal involvement: Revised conceptualization and theoretical linkages with child outcomes. In M. Lamb (Ed.), "The role of the father in child development" (5th ed., pp. 67-107). London: Wiley), while proving fruitful, has yet to be applied to investigations into…

Dysregulated cortisol is a risk factor for poor health outcomes. Children of distressed mothers exhibit dysregulated cortisol, yet it is unclear whether maternal distress predicts cortisol activity in later developmental stages. This longitudinal study examined the prospective relation between maternal distress during late childhood (9-12 years)…

Mothers experiencing psychological distress in the postpartum period may have difficulties parenting their children. Inconsistent and unresponsive parenting may increase the risk of later emotional and behavioural problems in children. The purpose of this study was to identify how maternal psychological characteristics cluster at eight weeks…

Parenting style has been shown to have significant impact on a child's development. Baumrind developed the concept of three parenting styles that is still used today including: Authoritarian/controlling, authoritative/directive, and permissive. Of these, the authoritative/directive parenting style has proven the most effective with children.…

The present investigation explored (1) fathers' contributions to children's theory of mind (ToM) development, (2) the similarity between maternal and paternal mind-mindedness (MM) in relation to children's ToM, and (3) the relative predictive strength of two concurrently administered measures of MM (an online and an interview assessment) in…

Investigating heterogeneity in antisocial behavior early in life is essential for understanding the etiology, development, prognosis, and treatment of these problems. Data from the longitudinal National Institute of Child Health and Development (NICHD) study of Early Child Care were used to identify homogeneous groups of young antisocial children…

Teenage mothers are more likely to use drugs, and their children are more likely to use substances and become pregnant during adolescence. Teenage mothers' substance use may play a role in the intergenerational risk for adolescent pregnancy. Pregnant adolescents (12-18 years) were seen during pregnancy and postnatal years 6, 10, 14, and 16 (n =…

Bidirectional theories of social development have been around for over 40 years (Bell, 1968), yet they have been applied primarily to the study of antisocial development. In the present study, the reciprocal relationship between parenting behavior and children's socially competent behaviors were examined. Using the National Institute of Child…

Emerging evidence suggests that parenting style may directly or indirectly influence school-aged children's activity behaviour. Given that relatively fewer studies have been conducted among preschool-aged children, this study's primary purpose was to examine the direct relationships between parental support and parenting style on preschool…

Outdoor environmental education and provision of unstructured exploration of nature are often forgotten aspects of the early childhood experience. The aim of this study was to understand how adults' early experiences in nature relate to their attitudes and practices in providing such experiences for young children. This study surveyed 33 parents…