British Journal of Developmental Psychology最新文献

Mental health has a profound impact on how we interact with the world. How it shapes prosocial behaviour during middle childhood, a period crucial for establishing healthy relationships, remains poorly understood. Moreover, whilst child mental health and prosocial behaviour are influenced by caregiving experience more broadly, less is known about how they are shaped by parental reflective functioning (PRF), that is parents' capacity to represent their child's underlying mental states. A longitudinal design, with assessments at baseline and 1 year follow-up, was used with 233 children (111 boys; 6-13 years old; 54.9% White, 17.2% Asian, 2.58% Black, 14.2% Multiple ethnic groups, 2.58% Other, 8.58% data unavailable). Using path modelling, we examined interrelations between baseline PRF, baseline child internalizing symptoms, and follow-up child altruistic prosocial behaviour. At baseline, PRF was associated with child internalizing symptoms, whilst PRF and internalizing symptoms positively predicted altruistic behaviour 1 year later. These findings suggest that mental health and caregiving experience are key influences on altruistic behaviour in childhood.

The instability and unpredictability of Western societies challenge how individuals plan their life courses shaping the expectations that emerging adults develop in their future. Although there is a well-established interest in studying emerging adulthood, there is limited information regarding the role of family and individual contexts on how emerging adults perceive their futures. The current study examined the association between attachment to parents and emerging adults' values of future expectations (optimism, pessimism, and hope) and self-efficacy's mediating role in that association. The sample was composed of 676 emerging adults, aged between 18 and 30 years (M = 23.04; SD = 3.37). Results showed that attachment to parents and self-efficacy is associated with values of future expectations of emerging adults, and self-efficacy mediates the following links: from the quality of the emotional bond with both parents and the separation anxiety regarding the mother to values of future expectations. These findings are discussed based on attachment theory.

The article listed below, intended for publication in the Special Issue ‘New insights and approaches to early learning’, was inadvertently published in a regular issue, volume 41, Issue 3. This article should be cited as shown below.

Huang, Q., Sun, J., Lau, E. Y. H., & Zhou, Y.-L. (2023). Parental scaffolding and children's math ability: The type of activities matters. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 41, 246–258. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjdp.12444.

We apologize for this error.

The article listed below, intended for publication in the Special Issue ‘New insights and approaches to early learning’, was inadvertently published in a regular issue, Volume 41, Issue 3. This article should be cited as shown below.

Mulvihill, A., Armstrong, R., Casey, C., Redshaw, J., Scarinci, N., & Slaughter, V. (2023). Early childhood educators' mental state language and children's theory of mind in the preschool setting. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 41, 227–245. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjdp.12449.

We apologize for this error.

This study investigates whether the context in which a word is learnt affects noun and verb learning. There is mixed evidence in studies of noun learning, and no studies of background perceptual context in verb learning. Two-, three-, and four-year-olds (n = 162) saw a novel object moved in a novel way while hearing four novel words, either nouns or verbs. They were asked to generalize the word to a similar action or object shown in the same or different context. Results demonstrate that 2- and 3-year-olds were more accurate at test when learning nouns than verbs, demonstrating that verb learning is difficult; 4-year-olds were successful at learning both word types. For all ages, and both word types, context changes did not impact word learning. These results extend previous findings that context does not influence noun learning, while suggesting perceptual context may not play a major role in verb learning, which is a new finding.

Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices (CPM) is a widely used assessment tool for measuring general cognitive ability in developmental and educational research, particularly in studies involving young children. However, administering the full set of the 36-item CPM can be burdensome for young participants, hindering its practicality in large-scale studies and reducing research efficiency. In the current study, a short form of the CPM was developed based on a sample of preschoolers (n = 336, mean age = 5.8 years) using penalised regression, a machine learning approach that allows for variable selection. The resulting 12-item CPM short form demonstrated a very strong correlation with the total score of the 36-item full form (r = .94). Further investigations into the short form's item stability, content validity, and concurrent validity collectively supported its psychometric properties as a reliable and valid alternative to the full form. The significance of the CPM short form is also discussed.

This study investigated the relationships between counting, Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN), and reading and arithmetic abilities in Chinese children at different developmental stages. Study 1 examined 51 kindergarteners (mean age 5.43 years) for character reading accuracy and arithmetic accuracy before formal schooling. Study 2 extended the investigation to 158 primary school children in Grades 1-3, assessing word and sentence reading fluency, arithmetic fluency, and associated cognitive factors. The findings from both studies revealed that RAN significantly predicts reading abilities across all age groups, with its importance increasing in older children. Counting was a crucial predictor for arithmetic skills, especially in early grades. While counting correlated with reading abilities in Chinese, it did not explain unique variance beyond RAN and phonological awareness. These results highlight differences across age groups in cognitive and academic skills, emphasizing the increasing role of RAN in both reading and arithmetic fluency as children progress through primary school. The study underscores the need for linguistically sensitive frameworks in education and suggests potential targets for early screening and intervention to enhance academic outcomes in Chinese children.

The aim of this study was to examine whether attachment to each parent moderates the relationship between bullying victimisation and self-esteem. The sample consisted of 250 junior high school students (114 males, 136 females; mean age: 11.3 years). The administered scales were the Bully/Victim Questionnaire Revised, the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment for Children and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Results showed that early adolescents subjected to bullying had lower self-esteem than non-bullied peers. For girls, attachment to mother also accounted for self-esteem over and above the effect of bullying. For boys, attachment with the father appeared as a pure moderator of the effect of bullying as the association with self-esteem was non-significant when attachment scores were high. The findings suggest that attachment to same sex parents may foster better self-esteem in the face of bullying. Parents' participation in preventive measures could be encouraged.

Misinformation poses a significant threat to modern society. Children and adolescents, highly active on social media, are particularly vulnerable to encountering misinformation from peers. Assessing whether intentionality impacts moral evaluations of misinformers, considering age and group norms, is crucial. Theory of Mind (ToM) plays a key role in understanding false beliefs and intentions. In a study involving 266 UK-based children (8-11-years-old) and adolescents (12-15-years-old), participants evaluated a misinformer in a scenario involving a school competition. Deliberate misinformation led to harsher judgements and a higher likelihood of punishment. However, children tended to be more inclusive than adolescents regardless of intentionality. Adolescents with higher ToM believed in the misinformation less. Higher ToM correlated with harsher misinformer evaluations across the sample. These findings underscore the impact of intentionality, ToM and age on moral evaluations, suggesting that high ToM may mitigate positive feelings towards misinformers, potentially reducing misinformation acceptance.