Pub Date : 2025-07-01DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101612
Alessia Bandettini, David Giofrè, Sabrina Panesi, Sergio Morra, Laura Traverso
In the last decades, an impressive amount of research demonstrated the importance of the early development of executive function for concurrent and subsequent psychological development and adjustment. Nevertheless, the structure of executive function in this age range is still a matter of debate. The present systematic review and meta-analysis followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Statement and focused on studies that used confirmatory factor analysis with at least two indicators for identifying executive function components in preschool and toddler children. In addition to highlighting methodological issues and points of convergence and divergence across studies through the systematic review (sample size, age range, type of indicators, relationship between indicators and latent variables), the meta-analysis provided a quantitative synthesis of the correlations between the most frequently studied latent constructs. In particular, we found a substantial correlation (r = .66) between working memory and inhibition, suggesting that while these functions are closely related in early development, they remain distinguishable components of EF. To move forward in understanding early executive function development, future research should benefit from taking into account some of the issues identified.
{"title":"Latent structure of executive function in preschoolers: A systematic review and meta-analysis","authors":"Alessia Bandettini, David Giofrè, Sabrina Panesi, Sergio Morra, Laura Traverso","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101612","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101612","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the last decades, an impressive amount of research demonstrated the importance of the early development of executive function for concurrent and subsequent psychological development and adjustment. Nevertheless, the structure of executive function in this age range is still a matter of debate. The present systematic review and meta-analysis followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Statement and focused on studies that used confirmatory factor analysis with at least two indicators for identifying executive function components in preschool and toddler children. In addition to highlighting methodological issues and points of convergence and divergence across studies through the systematic review (sample size, age range, type of indicators, relationship between indicators and latent variables), the meta-analysis provided a quantitative synthesis of the correlations between the most frequently studied latent constructs. In particular, we found a substantial correlation (r = .66) between working memory and inhibition, suggesting that while these functions are closely related in early development, they remain distinguishable components of EF. To move forward in understanding early executive function development, future research should benefit from taking into account some of the issues identified.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101612"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144895049","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Social essentialism plays a significant role in legitimizing power imbalances within hierarchical societies, such as the caste system. We investigated whether adolescents endorsed caste essentialist beliefs and whether these beliefs about the stability of caste correlate with their perceived social mobility and social location (caste, SES). We interviewed 590 students between the ages of 10 and 18 years (Mage = 14 years; SDage = 1 year 7 months) of grades 6–10 from 25 school classes in Nepal to assess their caste essentialist beliefs with a switched-at-birth task and measured their perceived social mobility in terms of perceived feasibility regarding marriage to a higher caste. In line with our assumptions, adolescents of the highest caste group showed stronger essentialist beliefs regarding both higher and lower caste when compared to adolescents from the other caste groups and believed that an individual’s caste would not change even when switched at birth. Adolescents of the highest caste and from higher-SES backgrounds expressed stronger essentialist beliefs than their peers. Caste essentialist beliefs and perceived feasibility regarding marriage to a higher caste were significantly correlated. However, adolescents’ social location did not play a significant role in their perceived feasibility of marriage to a higher caste. Overall, they expected low social mobility concerning marriage. We discuss the complex associations between caste essentialism, social mobility beliefs and social location during adolescence.
{"title":"Adolescents’ beliefs about caste-essentialism and their social location in Nepal","authors":"Manishi Srivastava , Jeanine Grütter , Pramod Bhatta","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101616","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101616","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Social essentialism plays a significant role in legitimizing power imbalances within hierarchical societies, such as the caste system. We investigated whether adolescents endorsed caste essentialist beliefs and whether these beliefs about the stability of caste correlate with their perceived social mobility and social location (caste, SES). We interviewed 590 students between the ages of 10 and 18 years (<em>M</em><sub><em>age</em></sub> = 14 years; <em>SD</em><sub><em>age</em></sub> = 1 year 7 months) of grades 6–10 from 25 school classes in Nepal to assess their caste essentialist beliefs with a switched-at-birth task and measured their perceived social mobility in terms of perceived feasibility regarding marriage to a higher caste. In line with our assumptions, adolescents of the highest caste group showed stronger essentialist beliefs regarding both higher and lower caste when compared to adolescents from the other caste groups and believed that an individual’s caste would not change even when switched at birth. Adolescents of the highest caste and from higher-SES backgrounds expressed stronger essentialist beliefs than their peers. Caste essentialist beliefs and perceived feasibility regarding marriage to a higher caste were significantly correlated. However, adolescents’ social location did not play a significant role in their perceived feasibility of marriage to a higher caste. Overall, they expected low social mobility concerning marriage. We discuss the complex associations between caste essentialism, social mobility beliefs and social location during adolescence.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101616"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144865680","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-07-01DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101617
Xin Chen , Yuhan Wang , Kaichun Liu , Shuyuan Zhang , Xiao Yu , Yang Yang , Xiujie Yang
Although previous research emphasizes the importance of domain-general cognitive abilities and domain-specific numerical knowledge in general mathematics domains (Geary, 2004), their roles in specific domain, especially word problem solving, remain underexplored. This study investigated the contributions of various cognitive components to early word-problem performance by adapting Geary’s (2004) cognitive competencies framework. Ninety-five Chinese kindergarten children (ages 3.39–6.55 years, mean age = 5.58, SD = 0.91) completed tasks assessing language processing, visuospatial processing, conceptual knowledge, procedural knowledge, and word problems. Results revealed that conceptual and procedural knowledge mediated the relationship between basic cognitive processing (language and visuospatial systems) and word problems. Specifically, phonological awareness in the language system showed an indirect association with word problems via procedural knowledge, and via a sequential pathway involving conceptual and procedural knowledge. No significant indirect effect of receptive vocabulary was found. Both aspects of the visuospatial system, visual perception and mental rotation, showed indirect associations with word problems via a sequential pathway involving conceptual and procedural knowledge. These results broaden Geary’s framework to encompass early word problem solving and provide initial guidance for future research concerning children who face mathematical learning difficulties. This includes the exploration of potential areas for screening and intervention.
{"title":"How basic cognitive processing affects children's math problem-solving performance?","authors":"Xin Chen , Yuhan Wang , Kaichun Liu , Shuyuan Zhang , Xiao Yu , Yang Yang , Xiujie Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101617","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101617","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Although previous research emphasizes the importance of domain-general cognitive abilities and domain-specific numerical knowledge in general mathematics domains (Geary, 2004), their roles in specific domain, especially word problem solving, remain underexplored. This study investigated the contributions of various cognitive components to early word-problem performance by adapting Geary’s (2004) cognitive competencies framework. Ninety-five Chinese kindergarten children (ages 3.39–6.55 years, mean age = 5.58, SD = 0.91) completed tasks assessing language processing, visuospatial processing, conceptual knowledge, procedural knowledge, and word problems. Results revealed that conceptual and procedural knowledge mediated the relationship between basic cognitive processing (language and visuospatial systems) and word problems. Specifically, phonological awareness in the language system showed an indirect association with word problems via procedural knowledge, and via a sequential pathway involving conceptual and procedural knowledge. No significant indirect effect of receptive vocabulary was found. Both aspects of the visuospatial system, visual perception and mental rotation, showed indirect associations with word problems via a sequential pathway involving conceptual and procedural knowledge. These results broaden Geary’s framework to encompass early word problem solving and provide initial guidance for future research concerning children who face mathematical learning difficulties. This includes the exploration of potential areas for screening and intervention.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101617"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144852126","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The present study is a first attempt to jointly investigate a broad range of cognitive and metacognitive monitoring capacities in bilingual and monolingual children, focusing on bilingualism as a potential moderator of age-related developmental trajectories. Two understudied samples were assessed: a maintenance bilingualism group of early Albanian-Greek bilingual children (second-generation migrants) and Greek-speaking (native) monolingual peers (145 children aged 8;4–12;10). Cognitive domains assessed included attention, inhibition, shifting, updating, working memory capacity, and planning, and metacognitive monitoring measures (prospective and retrospective estimates of performance and task ease) were also obtained. Frequentist and Bayesian moderated regression analyses were conducted, controlling for non-verbal intelligence and parental SES. Beyond the expected age-related improvements in cognitive and metacognitive abilities, the analyses showed only three moderating patterns: more accurate monitoring of task demands (as indicated by global speed in the attention task) with age, but only among monolinguals; age-related improvements in non-verbal planning and the accuracy of related prospective ease judgments, both observed only among bilinguals. Bilingual children also showed lower accuracy than monolinguals in proactive ease estimations in the attention task. Overall, the findings challenge claims of general bilingual advantages in executive function and their developmental nature, extending null results to metacognitive monitoring. The evidence supports a close interplay between developing cognitive and metacognitive functions—both central to the top-down regulation of thought and action toward goal-directed behaviour. The discussion underscores the need to explore how individual and contextual factors interact to shape cognitive and metacognitive development in childhood.
{"title":"Developmental trajectories of cognitive and metacognitive capacities in second-generation bilingual migrant and native monolingual children","authors":"Zoe Bablekou , Elisavet Chrysochoou , Smaragda Kazi , Elvira Masoura , Nikolaos Tsigilis","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101614","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101614","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The present study is a first attempt to jointly investigate a broad range of cognitive and metacognitive monitoring capacities in bilingual and monolingual children, focusing on bilingualism as a potential moderator of age-related developmental trajectories. Two understudied samples were assessed: a maintenance bilingualism group of early Albanian-Greek bilingual children (second-generation migrants) and Greek-speaking (native) monolingual peers (145 children aged 8;4–12;10). Cognitive domains assessed included attention, inhibition, shifting, updating, working memory capacity, and planning, and metacognitive monitoring measures (prospective and retrospective estimates of performance and task ease) were also obtained. Frequentist and Bayesian moderated regression analyses were conducted, controlling for non-verbal intelligence and parental SES. Beyond the expected age-related improvements in cognitive and metacognitive abilities, the analyses showed only three moderating patterns: more accurate monitoring of task demands (as indicated by global speed in the attention task) with age, but only among monolinguals; age-related improvements in non-verbal planning and the accuracy of related prospective ease judgments, both observed only among bilinguals. Bilingual children also showed lower accuracy than monolinguals in proactive ease estimations in the attention task. Overall, the findings challenge claims of general bilingual advantages in executive function and their developmental nature, extending null results to metacognitive monitoring. The evidence supports a close interplay between developing cognitive and metacognitive functions—both central to the top-down regulation of thought and action toward goal-directed behaviour. The discussion underscores the need to explore how individual and contextual factors interact to shape cognitive and metacognitive development in childhood.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101614"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144861085","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-07-01DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101618
Ulf Träff, Mikael Skagenholt, Kenny Skagerlund
The present study examined whether a numerical order processing deficiency is a key factor underlying mathematics learning disabilities (MLD) in children, or whether children with MLD have a general ordinal processing deficiency. Twenty-one children with MLD were tested and compared to 32 children without MLD on three ordinal tasks (numbers, letters, lines), and two number magnitude tasks. The results demonstrate that children with MLD have a general ordinal processing deficiency as they displayed difficulties with ordered and non-ordered sequences of all three types of information. Moreover, the severity of these difficulties was equivalent for all three types of information. On the number and letter ordinal tasks they displayed reversed and standard distance effects effect akin to the controls, but larger standard distance effects on the line order task. Moreover, the children with MLD displayed difficulties with symbolic number magnitude comparison but displayed a typical standard distance effect. The combined findings of the study suggest that children with MLD have an impaired ability to access magnitude information from numerical symbols, in addition to their general ordinal processing deficiency.
Educational relevance statement
This study shows that children with mathematics learning disabilities (MLD) have severe general problems with ordinal processing (i.e., “which position or rank an item has in a set or sequence of items”), for example, judging whether three numerals are in correct order (1–2–3) or not (2–3–1). These findings suggest that screening procedures to detect children with MLD or those in risk of developing mathematical difficulties should not only include measures of number magnitude processing (i.e., “how many”), and arithmetic, but also symbolic and non-symbolic number ordinal processing as well as non-numerical ordinal processing (e.g., letters). Similarly, school support aiming at preventing mathematical difficulties in young children should target both number magnitude and number ordinal processing.
{"title":"Ordinal processing in children with mathematics learning disabilities","authors":"Ulf Träff, Mikael Skagenholt, Kenny Skagerlund","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101618","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101618","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The present study examined whether a numerical order processing deficiency is a key factor underlying mathematics learning disabilities (MLD) in children, or whether children with MLD have a general ordinal processing deficiency. Twenty-one children with MLD were tested and compared to 32 children without MLD on three ordinal tasks (numbers, letters, lines), and two number magnitude tasks. The results demonstrate that children with MLD have a general ordinal processing deficiency as they displayed difficulties with ordered and non-ordered sequences of all three types of information. Moreover, the severity of these difficulties was equivalent for all three types of information. On the number and letter ordinal tasks they displayed reversed and standard distance effects effect akin to the controls, but larger standard distance effects on the line order task. Moreover, the children with MLD displayed difficulties with symbolic number magnitude comparison but displayed a typical standard distance effect. The combined findings of the study suggest that children with MLD have an impaired ability to access magnitude information from numerical symbols, in addition to their general ordinal processing deficiency.</div></div><div><h3>Educational relevance statement</h3><div>This study shows that children with mathematics learning disabilities (MLD) have severe general problems with ordinal processing (i.e., “which position or rank an item has in a set or sequence of items”), for example, judging whether three numerals are in correct order (1–2–3) or not (2–3–1). These findings suggest that screening procedures to detect children with MLD or those in risk of developing mathematical difficulties should not only include measures of number magnitude processing (i.e., “how many”), and arithmetic, but also symbolic and non-symbolic number ordinal processing as well as non-numerical ordinal processing (e.g., letters). Similarly, school support aiming at preventing mathematical difficulties in young children should target both number magnitude and number ordinal processing.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101618"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144895068","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
We examined the relationship between parents’ and children’s literacy and numeracy and whether the relationship was mediated by children’s cognitive skills. One hundred and thirty Hong Kong Chinese children (mean age = 6 years and 3 months, 51.5 % female) were assessed on nonverbal IQ, phonological awareness (PA), and rapid automatized naming (RAN), and one year later on word reading and arithmetic calculation. Their parents were also tested on word dictation and arithmetic calculation. Results showed that parents’ dictation was weakly but consistently associated with children’s word reading. In contrast, parents’ arithmetic calculation was not consistently associated with children’s arithmetic calculation. RAN predicted both literacy and numeracy, whereas neither RAN nor PA mediated the relationship between parents’ and children’s academic skills. These findings suggest that while children’s literacy and numeracy may partly share similar cognitive underpinnings, their intergenerational association may be generally weak and primarily domain-specific.
{"title":"Direct and indirect associations between parents’ and children’s literacy and numeracy skills: A longitudinal study in Hong Kong Chinese families","authors":"Anna Jia-Jun Zhang , Urs Maurer , Catherine McBride , Tomohiro Inoue","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101605","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101605","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>We examined the relationship between parents’ and children’s literacy and numeracy and whether the relationship was mediated by children’s cognitive skills. One hundred and thirty Hong Kong Chinese children (mean age = 6 years and 3 months, 51.5 % female) were assessed on nonverbal IQ, phonological awareness (PA), and rapid automatized naming (RAN), and one year later on word reading and arithmetic calculation. Their parents were also tested on word dictation and arithmetic calculation. Results showed that parents’ dictation was weakly but consistently associated with children’s word reading. In contrast, parents’ arithmetic calculation was not consistently associated with children’s arithmetic calculation. RAN predicted both literacy and numeracy, whereas neither RAN nor PA mediated the relationship between parents’ and children’s academic skills. These findings suggest that while children’s literacy and numeracy may partly share similar cognitive underpinnings, their intergenerational association may be generally weak and primarily domain-specific.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101605"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144312689","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-06-19DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101604
Liu Dong
Various musical instruments offer unique opportunities to discover new aesthetic expression approaches and interpretation concepts. The aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of a 14-week intervention for learning to play the bayan using digital technologies. The participants in the study were second and third-year students of [BLINDED] University who had no prior experience playing the bayan. They were randomly assigned to either the Experimental group (n = 89) or the Control group (n = 90). Students in both groups underwent basic training in bayan performance. In addition, the Experimental group utilized digital programs such as SMT Expert and Bayan Trainer. Upon completion of the intervention, the musical performance of Wubin Liu’s composition "Invocation of Da Zhao" was evaluated. Participants also reported their engagement with music through self-reports. The results confirmed the impact of the technology-based intervention on musical performance and engagement with music. Age, gender, and particularly previous experience in musical activities were found to influence the outcomes. The findings of the study may serve as a foundation for the integration of digital technologies into music education, particularly in the development of instrumental skills, expressive performance, and technical accuracy. This will contribute to the improvement of teaching methods and the enhancement of the emotional depth of musical performance.
{"title":"Sound, emotion, and innovation: Rethinking bayan education through digital tools","authors":"Liu Dong","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101604","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101604","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Various musical instruments offer unique opportunities to discover new aesthetic expression approaches and interpretation concepts. The aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of a 14-week intervention for learning to play the bayan using digital technologies. The participants in the study were second and third-year students of [BLINDED] University who had no prior experience playing the bayan. They were randomly assigned to either the Experimental group (n = 89) or the Control group (n = 90). Students in both groups underwent basic training in bayan performance. In addition, the Experimental group utilized digital programs such as SMT Expert and Bayan Trainer. Upon completion of the intervention, the musical performance of Wubin Liu’s composition \"Invocation of Da Zhao\" was evaluated. Participants also reported their engagement with music through self-reports. The results confirmed the impact of the technology-based intervention on musical performance and engagement with music. Age, gender, and particularly previous experience in musical activities were found to influence the outcomes. The findings of the study may serve as a foundation for the integration of digital technologies into music education, particularly in the development of instrumental skills, expressive performance, and technical accuracy. This will contribute to the improvement of teaching methods and the enhancement of the emotional depth of musical performance.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101604"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144312690","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-06-18DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101603
Rafael Román-Caballero , Laura Trujillo , Paulina del Carmen Martín-Sánchez , Laurel J. Trainor , Florentino Huertas , Elisa Martín-Arévalo , Juan Lupiáñez
Access to musical training depends on various factors, such as socioeconomic status and musical background of families, and the child's interest in learning music (related to their openness to experience). In the present study, we show an additional source of selection bias that has gone unnoticed: the relative age of children within the same cohort, when a selection process is implemented. The consequences of this grouping are known as the relative age effect, ranging from academic outcomes to self-esteem. In youth sports, there has been observed an overrepresentation of athletes born in the two first quarters compared to those born later. This study shows a similar unbalance across Spanish music conservatory courses in two samples: a Primary Sample of participants assessed by our research group (N = 322; 33 % of children born in the first quarter vs. 21 % in the fourth quarter, V = .12) and a Secondary Sample comprised by the complete census of six conservatories in Spain (N = 2182; 27 % vs. 24 %, V = .04). This bias was larger when computed on those participants selecting the most popular instrument. In our sample, the relative age of the children and adolescents was independent of other sources of selection bias, such as socioeconomic status. Moreover, the relative age effect was stable across conservatory courses, pointing to an enrolment bias and the impact of a lack of adjustment in the conservatory entrance exam.
{"title":"Relative age effect in formal musical training","authors":"Rafael Román-Caballero , Laura Trujillo , Paulina del Carmen Martín-Sánchez , Laurel J. Trainor , Florentino Huertas , Elisa Martín-Arévalo , Juan Lupiáñez","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101603","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101603","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Access to musical training depends on various factors, such as socioeconomic status and musical background of families, and the child's interest in learning music (related to their openness to experience). In the present study, we show an additional source of selection bias that has gone unnoticed: the relative age of children within the same cohort, when a selection process is implemented. The consequences of this grouping are known as the relative age effect, ranging from academic outcomes to self-esteem. In youth sports, there has been observed an overrepresentation of athletes born in the two first quarters compared to those born later. This study shows a similar unbalance across Spanish music conservatory courses in two samples: a Primary Sample of participants assessed by our research group (<em>N</em> = 322; 33 % of children born in the first quarter vs. 21 % in the fourth quarter, <em>V</em> = .12) and a Secondary Sample comprised by the complete census of six conservatories in Spain (<em>N</em> = 2182; 27 % vs. 24 %, <em>V</em> = .04). This bias was larger when computed on those participants selecting the most popular instrument. In our sample, the relative age of the children and adolescents was independent of other sources of selection bias, such as socioeconomic status. Moreover, the relative age effect was stable across conservatory courses, pointing to an enrolment bias and the impact of a lack of adjustment in the conservatory entrance exam.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101603"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144307365","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-06-18DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101602
C. Lange-Küttner
This longitudinal study investigates the Relative Age Effect (RAE) on academic achievements in inclusive secondary schooling in mainstream pupils (n = 2696) and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) (n = 299). The RAE is based on the assumption that increased age also predicts maturity and performance, with relatively older children and adolescents being at an advantage. However, different to previous research using months per year for relative age, the current study uses differences in years per school class. Four chronological age (CA) groups could be identified in one school year, ranging from age 10–15. Younger pupils in class were at an advantage and showed better performance than older pupils (reverse RAE): Multiple ordinal logistic regression (MOLR) showed that the likelihood of belonging to the younger or older adolescents in class (RAE) could be predicted by school grades. Excellent mathematics marks predicted belonging to younger pupils, while low language grades predicted belonging to older pupils in class. In pupils with SEND, grades predicted age group in either direction independently of the school subject. Parental years in education (CASMIN) and migration background were both associated with CA groups but not with each other: Younger pupils were more likely to have parents with longer education and less likely to have a migration background, while for older pupils the opposite was true. Path models revealed that while the RAE and migrant background were negatively associated with school performance, parent education was more important for competencies than for school grades.
{"title":"The relative age effect in secondary schools","authors":"C. Lange-Küttner","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101602","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101602","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This longitudinal study investigates the Relative Age Effect (RAE) on academic achievements in inclusive secondary schooling in mainstream pupils (<em>n</em> = 2696) and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) (<em>n</em> = 299). The RAE is based on the assumption that increased age also predicts maturity and performance, with relatively older children and adolescents being at an advantage. However, different to previous research using months per year for relative age, the current study uses differences in years per school class. Four chronological age (CA) groups could be identified in one school year, ranging from age 10–15. Younger pupils in class were at an advantage and showed better performance than older pupils (reverse RAE): Multiple ordinal logistic regression (MOLR) showed that the likelihood of belonging to the younger or older adolescents in class (RAE) could be predicted by school grades. Excellent mathematics marks predicted belonging to younger pupils, while low language grades predicted belonging to older pupils in class. In pupils with SEND, grades predicted age group in either direction independently of the school subject. Parental years in education (CASMIN) and migration background were both associated with CA groups but not with each other: Younger pupils were more likely to have parents with longer education and less likely to have a migration background, while for older pupils the opposite was true. Path models revealed that while the RAE and migrant background were negatively associated with school performance, parent education was more important for competencies than for school grades.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101602"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144312688","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-06-13DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101586
Mackenzie S. Swirbul , Alex M. Silver , Melissa E. Libertus , Catherine S. Tamis-LeMonda
Everyday activities—building block towers, setting the table, getting dressed—offer numerous opportunities for toddlers to learn about spatial concepts. As parents jointly engage in such activities with their toddlers and use spatial language, they support toddlers’ spatial cognition. We video-recorded U.S. English- and Spanish-speaking fathers, mothers, and toddlers (28 girls, 27 boys; ages 24–36 months) during a ‘favorite activity’ at home. We characterized fathers’ and mothers’ use of spatial language (i.e., spatial relations, spatial features, magnitudes/comparisons, and spatial verbs), classified parent-toddler pairs’ activity choice as spatial vs. nonspatial, and tested whether activity choice related to parents’ use of spatial language. Spatial words were frequent, and individual parents varied substantially. Overall amount of spatial talk did not differ by parents’ dominant language, parent gender, or child gender. However, specific types of spatial talk varied by dominant language, and fathers and mothers provided their toddlers with unique spatial words. Parent-toddler pairs selected a wide variety of favorite activities, with approximately half classified as spatial. Although activity choice (i.e., spatial vs. nonspatial) did not relate to parent or child gender separately, exploratory analyses revealed a trend-level effect showing that twice as many father-boy as mother-girl pairs engaged in spatial activities. Most centrally, fathers who engaged in spatial activities with their toddlers produced more spatial talk than did fathers who engaged in nonspatial activities; mothers’ choice of activity (spatial or not) did not relate to their spatial language use.
{"title":"Father, mother, and toddler spatial talk in a favorite activity: Associations with gender, dominant language, and activity choice","authors":"Mackenzie S. Swirbul , Alex M. Silver , Melissa E. Libertus , Catherine S. Tamis-LeMonda","doi":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101586","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cogdev.2025.101586","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Everyday activities—building block towers, setting the table, getting dressed—offer numerous opportunities for toddlers to learn about spatial concepts. As parents jointly engage in such activities with their toddlers and use spatial language, they support toddlers’ spatial cognition. We video-recorded U.S. English- and Spanish-speaking fathers, mothers, and toddlers (28 girls, 27 boys; ages 24–36 months) during a ‘favorite activity’ at home. We characterized fathers’ and mothers’ use of spatial language (i.e., spatial relations, spatial features, magnitudes/comparisons, and spatial verbs), classified parent-toddler pairs’ activity choice as spatial vs. nonspatial, and tested whether activity choice related to parents’ use of spatial language. Spatial words were frequent, and individual parents varied substantially. Overall amount of spatial talk did not differ by parents’ dominant language, parent gender, or child gender. However, specific types of spatial talk varied by dominant language, and fathers and mothers provided their toddlers with unique spatial words. Parent-toddler pairs selected a wide variety of favorite activities, with approximately half classified as spatial. Although activity choice (i.e., spatial vs. nonspatial) did not relate to parent or child gender separately, exploratory analyses revealed a trend-level effect showing that twice as many father-boy as mother-girl pairs engaged in spatial activities. Most centrally, fathers who engaged in spatial activities with their toddlers produced more spatial talk than did fathers who engaged in nonspatial activities; mothers’ choice of activity (spatial or not) did not relate to their spatial language use.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":51422,"journal":{"name":"Cognitive Development","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101586"},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2025-06-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144271418","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}