International Journal of Behavioral Development This is an RSS file. You can use it to subscribe to this data in your favourite RSS reader or to display this data on your own website or blog.

On the empirical identification and evaluation of "expert nominators"
The current study aims to evaluate and empirically investigate Prinstein’s (2007) conclusions regarding "expert nominators," a subsample of individuals in a peer group whose peer nominations might substitute for nominations from the full sample. The current study empirically identified experts based on comparative accuracy, the extent to which each participant’s nominations matched full sample nominations across items. Eighth-graders at two schools (Ns = 273 and 334) completed 16 nomination items. Participants were labeled "experts" if they showed above-average comparative accuracy on at least 75% of items; how...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Marks, P. E. L., Babcock, B., Cillessen, A. H. N. Tags: Methods and Measures Source Type: research

Selection, optimization, and compensation: The structure, reliability, and validity of forced-choice versus Likert-type measures in a sample of late adolescents
Intentional self-regulation (ISR) undergoes significant development across the life span. However, our understanding of ISR’s development and function remains incomplete, in part because the field’s conceptualization and measurement of ISR vary greatly. A key sample case involves how Baltes and colleagues’ Selection, Optimization, and Compensation (SOC) model of ISR, which was developed with adult populations, may be applied to understand and measure adolescent self-regulation. The tripartite structure of SOC identified in older populations has not been replicated in adolescent samples. This difference ma...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Geldhof, G. J., Gestsdottir, S., Stefansson, K., Johnson, S. K., Bowers, E. P., Lerner, R. M. Tags: Methods and Measures Source Type: research

Quality of institutional care and early childhood development
In this study, 72 preschoolers institutionalised for at least 6 months were evaluated by their caregiver using the Child Behavior Checklist and the Disturbances of Attachment Interview. Distal and proximate indices of institutional caregiving quality were assessed using both staff reports and direct observation. Results revealed that greater caregiver sensitivity predicted reduced indiscriminate behaviour and secure-base distortions. A closer relationship with the caregiver predicted reduced inhibited attachment behaviour. Emotional and behavioural problems proved unrelated to caregiving quality. Results are discussed in t...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Oliveira, P. S., Fearon, R. M. P., Belsky, J., Fachada, I., Soares, I. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

A neurogenetics approach to defining differential susceptibility to institutional care
We examined whether extreme differences in the early caregiving environment, defined as exposure to severe psychosocial deprivation associated with institutional care compared to normative rearing, interacted with a biologically informed genoset comprising BDNF (rs6265), COMT (rs4680), and SIRT1 (rs3758391) to predict distinct outcomes of neurodevelopment at age 8 (N = 193, 97 males and 96 females). Ethnicity was categorized as Romanian (71%), Roma (21%), unknown (7%), or other (1%). We identified a significant interaction between early caregiving environment (i.e., institutionalized versus never institutionalized children...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Brett, Z. H., Sheridan, M., Humphreys, K., Smyke, A., Gleason, M. M., Fox, N., Zeanah, C., Nelson, C., Drury, S. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

Inhibitory control in preschool predicts early math skills in first grade: Evidence from an ethnically diverse sample
Preschoolers’ inhibitory control and early math skills were concurrently and longitudinally examined in 255 Chinese, African American, Dominican, and Mexican 4-year-olds in the United States. Inhibitory control at age 4, assessed with a peg-tapping task, was associated with early math skills at age 4 and predicted growth in such skills from age 4 to age 6 among these ethnic minority children after adjusting for ethnic background. Chinese children outperformed other groups on inhibitory control at age 4 and early math skills across ages. Mediation analyses indicated that their advanced inhibitory control at age 4 part...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Ng, F. F.-Y., Tamis-LeMonda, C., Yoshikawa, H., Sze, I. N.-L. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

Early mother-child attachment: Longitudinal prediction to the quality of peer relationships in middle childhood
Although it is hypothesized that children with different insecure attachment patterns may experience a variety of peer difficulties, the question has been investigated almost exclusively for externalizing and internalizing behaviors with peers. The purpose of this study was to investigate how each of the insecure attachment patterns is related to other features of peer relationships using data from the NICHD SECC (N = 1,140 families). Secure children were rated by mothers and teachers as less excluded by peers than avoidant and disorganized children, although the latter was only significant for boys. No behaviors were uniq...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Seibert, A., Kerns, K. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

Stability of child behavioral style in the first 30 months of life: Single timepoint and aggregated measures
The current study examined the stability of temperament over time. Observers and mothers rated child behavior at eight timepoints across three assessment waves (8, 15, and 30 months of age). Internal consistency reliability of aggregates of the eight observer reports and eight mother reports were high. When considering single timepoint assessments, stability of temperament between assessment waves was generally low to moderate in magnitude. When the eight observations were aggregated, rather than when single timepoints were considered, between-wave stability of temperament increased. Mother reports of temperament were gene...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Parade, S. H., Dickstein, S., Schiller, M., Hayden, L., Seifer, R. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

How do movements to produce letters become automatic during writing acquisition? Investigating the development of motor anticipation
Learning how to write involves the automation of grapho-motor skills. One of the factors that determine automaticity is motor anticipation. This is the ability to write a letter while processing information on how to produce following letters. It is essential for writing fast and smoothly. We investigated how motor anticipation processes build up during the period of handwriting automation. Children aged 8, 9 and 10 years had to write two letters (ll, le, ln) in cursive writing on a digitizer. Motor anticipation referred to processing changes in size (ll vs. le) and rotation direction (le vs. ln) of the second letter while...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Kandel, S., Perret, C. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

The influence of auditory short-term memory on behavior problem development
The purpose of this research was to determine the influence of two subcomponents of auditory short-term memory on the developmental trajectories of behavior problems. The sample included 7,058 children from the NLSY79 – Children and Young Adult survey between the ages 5 and 14 years. Results suggested that anxious/depressed behavior increases during childhood and hyperactive and antisocial behavior problems decrease over the course of childhood. Children who scored higher on the Digit Span Backwards test demonstrated lower initial anxious/depressed, antisocial, and hyperactive behaviors, and children who scored highe...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Low, J., Keith, T. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

Children's and adults' automatic processing of proportion in a Stroop-like task
This current study examined human children’s and adults’ automatic processing of proportion using a Stroop-like paradigm. Preschool children and university students compared the areas of two sectors that varied not only in absolute areas but also in the proportions they occupied in their original rounds. A congruity effect was found in both age groups. The dimension of proportion interfered with adults’ and children’s area comparison greatly and comparatively. These findings strongly suggest that preschool children automatically represent proportion and provide evidence that this representation is i...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - January 28, 2015 Category: Child Development Authors: Yang, Y., Hu, Q., Wu, D., Yang, S. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

Estimating and interpreting latent variable interactions: A tutorial for applying the latent moderated structural equations method
This article compiles state-of-the-science techniques for assessing LMS model fit, obtaining standardized coefficients, and determining the size of the latent interaction effect in order to create a tutorial for new users of LMS models. The recommended sequence of model estimation and interpretation is demonstrated via a substantive example and a Monte Carlo simulation. Finally, extensions of this method are discussed, such as estimating quadratic effects of latent factors and interactions between latent slope and intercept factors, which hold significant potential for testing and advancing developmental theories. (Source:...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - December 15, 2014 Category: Child Development Authors: Maslowsky, J., Jager, J., Hemken, D. Tags: Methods and Measures Source Type: research

Nominating under constraints: A systematic comparison of unlimited and limited peer nomination methodologies in elementary school
Children’s peer relationships are frequently assessed with peer nominations. An important methodological issue is whether to collect unlimited or limited nominations. Some researchers have argued that the psychometric differences between both methods are negligible, while others have claimed that one is superior over the other. The current study compared both methods directly in a counterbalanced design among 112 8–12-year-old elementary school children. Overall, both methods revealed comparable results, although some significant and noteworthy differences were found. The use of unlimited nominations was recomm...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - December 15, 2014 Category: Child Development Authors: Gommans, R., Cillessen, A. H. N. Tags: Methods and Measures Source Type: research

Longitudinal study on reciprocity between personality traits and parenting stress
Reciprocal associations between the Big Five personality traits and parenting stress—including both parents’ feelings of their distress and perception of their incompetence as parents—were studied with 248 participants (49% of which were males). Longitudinal data, collected at ages 33/36, 42 and 50 years, were used. Cross-lagged path analysis revealed that in case of both mothers and fathers, neuroticism at age 33 predicted high parenting stress, and extraversion at age 33 predicted low parenting stress at age 42. Also, parenting stress at age 36 predicted high neuroticism and low extraversion at age 42. ...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - December 15, 2014 Category: Child Development Authors: Rantanen, J., Tillemann, K., Metsapelto, R.-L., Kokko, K., Pulkkinen, L. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

Social understanding and self-regulation predict pre-schoolers' sharing with friends and disliked peers: A longitudinal study
This study examined longitudinal relations between early measures of prosocial action in infancy as well as cognitive and social-cognitive abilities, and the sharing behaviour of preschool children. The results reveal relations between delay-of-gratification at 24 months and inhibitory control at 30 months, and children’s sharing at 5 years. Moreover, the analyses showed specific relations between distress understanding at 24 months and preschool children’s sharing with friends, and a relation between goal encoding at 7 months and sharing with a disliked other at 5 years. Yet, there were no relations between ea...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - December 15, 2014 Category: Child Development Authors: Paulus, M., Licata, M., Kristen, S., Thoermer, C., Woodward, A., Sodian, B. Tags: Articles Source Type: research

Association between parental emotional symptoms and child antisocial behaviour: What is specific and is it mediated by parenting?
Parental anxiety and depression are associated with antisocial behaviour of children. Several mechanisms may mediate this association. The aim of this study was to test whether parenting is a mediator of the association of parental anxiety and depression with the antisocial social behaviour of preschool children. The analysis was based on cross-sectional data and 106 German families of children with elevated externalizing behaviour problems were considered. Mothers and fathers were analysed separately. Depression and anxiety in parents were both associated with children’s antisocial behaviour and this association was...
Source: International Journal of Behavioral Development - December 15, 2014 Category: Child Development Authors: Hautmann, C., Eichelberger, I., Hanisch, C., Pluck, J., Walter, D., Dopfner, M. Tags: Articles Source Type: research