Executive control (EC) emerges in the first year of life, with the ability to inhibit prepotent responses (inhibitory control [IC]) and to flexibly readapt (cognitive flexibility [CF]) steadily improving. Simultaneously, electrophysiological brain activity undergoes profound reconfiguration, which has been linked to individual variability in EC.…

Cognitive tasks are seldom evaluated on their ability to provide valid and reliable measurements of the construct they intend to measure. This scarcity of psychometric evaluations makes it challenging to evaluate replications of experimental effects and to relate performance in cognitive tasks to other constructs of interest. In developmental…

In the field of educational robotics, it is important to understand the processes trough which child-robot interactions are established during play activities. In terms of socio-material characteristics, robots can vary widely, from more mechanical robots to more anthropomorphic ones. Research has shown that the degree of anthropomorphization of…

This study investigated the complex relationship between false-belief (FB) understanding, structural language and pragmatic communication in typically developing children. A total of 78 Finnish children, aged from 4 to 6 years, including an equal number of boys and girls, participated in this study. In the first instance, the study explored the…

This study considered the influences of the home learning environment and preschool quality on the development of 5-year-old Chinese (N = 43) and South Asian (N = 32) children in Hong Kong. Children were recruited from two preschools--one admitted only South Asian children, and the other admitted only Chinese children. Children were assessed in…

Multicultural literature allows children to gain greater understanding of themselves and others through exploration of lives, realities and experiences of characters within texts. In this article, we discuss the importance of integrating multicultural children's literature (MCL) in an early childhood setting with representation of specific…

Recognizing character strengths in others, such as kindness and honesty, can encourage children to apply these strengths themselves. Developing character strengths is associated with various positive outcomes, such as improved life satisfaction and connectedness with others. As films are omnipresent in children's lives nowadays, this qualitative…

Background: Access to quality early childhood development (ECD) is a fundamental right for all children. However, many children worldwide are deprived of quality early childhood outcomes because of the non-compliance of ECD programmes with the sector's quality standards and the regulatory landscape. Aim: This article, therefore, aimed to explore…

Every year in America, more than half a million parents of late-talking children face agonizing questions: What should I do if my two- or even three-year-old has not yet begun to talk? Should I worry that my child is autistic or intellectually disabled? Are expensive therapies or medications needed? Will my child ever speak normally? In this…

This book explores the online behavior and safeguarding of children with special education needs (SEN) in the digital world. Founded in research which evidences key stakeholder perspectives, this book informs and guides stakeholders towards sensibly balancing risk and opportunities online with an understanding that SEN children may face some…

The purpose of this report was to investigate how early childhood educators, specifically in preschool and kindergarten classrooms, can shift the curriculum from a traditional teaching approach to a project-based approach due to the significant changes in the educational curriculum. By exploring various research articles from around the world on…

Objectives: Participation in organised extracurricular social activities (OESAs) can provide wide-ranging positive developmental benefits for children. This study investigated whether participation and experiences differ for children aged 4- to 12-years with a developmental language disorder (DLD) compared to their typical language developing…

Maternal substance use is a pressing public health issue that confers risk for maternal health, the parent-infant relationship, and child development. Integrated interventions that jointly address maternal substance use and child development have shown promise for enhancing child outcomes. No research to date has focused exclusively on the…

The early childhood stage is a time of basic foundation in which children are engaged in pretend play and creative activities. The objective of this study was to explore the role of pretend play on the creativity development of preschool children. Data were collected from four purposefully selected preschool children (two male and two female)…

An emerging body of literature suggests that early motor skills may be a key predictor of language development in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, characteristics of subject groups, targeted skill areas and their assessment tools, and methodological approaches significantly vary across existing studies. This scoping review…