Head Start emphasises parent engagement as a critical strategy in promoting children's long-term learning. Parents can support children's positive development by engaging them in stimulating activities. The following study assessed whether a service that delivered parenting tips via text message could prompt parents of children enrolled in Head…

Epidemiological studies have highlighted a strong male bias in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), however few studies have examined gender differences in autism symptoms, and available findings are inconsistent. The aim of the present study is to investigate the longitudinal gender differences in developmental profiles of 30 female and 30 male…

Background: Language impairments are associated with an increased likelihood of emotional difficulties later in childhood or adolescence, but little is known about the impact of LI on the growth of emotional problems. Aims: To examine the link between early language status (language impaired (LI), typical language (TL)) and the pattern and…

Past research suggests robust positive associations between household socioeconomic status and children's early cognitive development in Western countries. Relatively little is known about these relations in low-income country settings characterized by economic adversity, high prevalence of malnutrition and infectious disease, and relatively lower…

Early childhood educators frequently look for new ways to help children build social and emotional skills. Teachers want to use effective tools and strategies whether they are redirecting aggressive behavior or encouraging self-esteem and friendship. Persona dolls are one approach to supporting children's social-emotional development. Persona…

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the Primary Movement programme on the fine motor skills of children in an early years setting in an area of high social disadvantage. Primary Movement is a programme which can be used as an early intervention technique to help children inhibit persistent primary reflexes that have been shown to…

Given the omnipresent role of gender in children's and adolescents' development, it seems necessary to better understand how gender affects the process of emotion socialization. In this introductory chapter, the authors discuss the overarching themes and key concepts discussed in this volume, as well as outline the distinct contribution of each…

The term "representational momentum" (RM) refers to the idea that our memory representations for moving objects incorporate information about movement--a fact that can lead us to make errors when judging an object's location (the RM effect). In this study, we explored the RM effect in a sample of children born very prematurely and a sample born at…

This phenomenological multi-case study investigated the influence of women engineers' childhood exposure to engineering concepts on their preparation for an engineering profession. An ecologic model (Bronfenbrenner, 1979) was used as the conceptual framework of this research. Twelve professional women engineers from various age and…

Choosing toys and activities that are suitable for infants and toddlers can challenge even the most experienced teacher. By being mindful of the basic principles of child development and the role of play, teachers can intentionally select toys to meet young children's unique needs and interests, supporting learning. It is also important to be…

Sagacious wisdom finds much support from more than 80 years of research: play is crucial to the development of creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, anticipatory planning, and even complex brain structures. The benefits of play go well beyond physical fitness. Recent research demonstrates the positive effects interactive play and…

One of the main tenets of the mental model theory is that when individuals reason, they think about possibilities. According to this theory, reasoning on what is possible from the truth of a sentence would be psychologically basic, whereas reasoning the other way round, on the truth or falsity of a sentence from a given state of affairs, would…

There is accumulating correlational evidence that the effect of specific types of reading instruction depends on children's initial language and literacy skills, called child characteristics x instruction (CxI) interactions. There is, however, no experimental evidence beyond first grade. This randomized control study examined whether CxI…

Over the past several decades in Pakistan, an increasing number of women with young children are joining the workforce, which is one of the biggest social changes in the later half of the twentieth century. More children are being raised in households where mothers work for pay as compared with the scenario a generation ago. This change has…

In an effort to improve understanding of the mechanisms that link early maltreatment to later outcomes, this study investigated the mediation effects of adult attachment processes on the association between childhood emotional abuse and later romantic relationships among heterosexual couples. College students and their dating partners (N = 310;…