Age and Gender Differences in Children's Self- and Task Perceptions during Elementary School

We examined the development of children's self- and task perceptions during the elementary school years. 865 first-, second-, and fourth-grade children (ages 7–10) completed questionnaires assessing their perceptions of competence in, and valuing of, activities in several activity domains (math, reading, sports, and instrumental music). Factor analyses showed that even the first graders had differentiated self-beliefs for the various activities. These analyses also indicated that children's competence beliefs and subjective task values formed distinct factors. Analyses assessing age and gender differences in children's beliefs showed that for all the activities except sports, younger children's (particularly the first graders) perceptions of competence and subjective task values were more positive than the beliefs of the older children. Boys had more positive competence beliefs and values than did girls for sport activities, and more positive competence beliefs for mathematics. Girls had more positive competence beliefs and values than did boys for reading and music activities.     

Relations Among Maternal Literacy Beliefs, Home Literacy Practices, and the Emergent Literacy Skills of Preschoolers With Specific Language Impairment

Self-reported maternal literacy beliefs and home literacy practices were compared for families of children with typicially developing language skills (TL, n = 52) and specific language impairment (SLI, n = 56). Additionally, the present work examined whether maternal beliefs and practices predicted children's print-related knowledge. Mothers filled out 2 questionnaires asking about their literacy beliefs and practices while children's print-related knowledge was assessed directly. Results indicated that mothers of children with SLI held somewhat less positive beliefs about literacy and reported engaging in fewer literacy practices compared to mothers of children with TL. For the entire sample, maternal literacy practices and beliefs predicted children's print-related knowledge, although much of this association was accounted for by maternal education. Subgroup analyses focused specifically on children with SLI showed there to be no relation between maternal literacy beliefs and practices and children's print-related knowledge. The present findings suggest that the home literacy experiences of children with SLI, and the way that these experiences impact print-related knowledge, may differ in important ways from typical peers.     

Trajectories of peer victimization and perceptions of the self and schoolmates: precursors to internalizing and externalizing problems

Evidence indicates that peer victimization is predictive of later maladjustment, but the mechanisms by which harassment impairs development have yet to be identified. The objectives of this study were (a) to discern normative trends in peer victimization experiences and self- and peer perceptions during preadolescence and (b) to investigate associations between individual differences in these trajectories and changes in psychosocial adjustment. A sample of 381 children (196 girls; 185 boys) was followed longitudinally between the ages of 9 and 11 years. Latent growth curve analyses revealed that, although children's self-appraisals became increasingly positive during preadolescence, their appraisals of peers became more negative. Moreover, analyses supported the contention that self- and peer beliefs act as mechanisms through which victimization is related to psychological dysfunction.     

Mixed-Age Interactions in Family Child Care

Preschool-age children's experiences within the mixed-age setting of family child care homes and the influences of these experiences on development were examined. Development variables included social and cognitive play, and receptive and expressive language. Consistent with Vygotsky's developmental theory, children's interactions with mixed-age peers were more powerful predictors of development than the mere availability of mixed-age peers. Interactions with older peers were associated with more complex cognitive play behaviors. Interactions with younger and same-age peers were associated with less complex social and cognitive play and lower receptive language scores. Characteristics of the child care setting appeared to moderate children's behavior in the mixed-age environment. Children in higher quality family child care homes with responsive caregivers were less likely to interact with younger children. No evidence was found of different developmental outcomes across developmental domains for older versus younger children.     

Classroom activities provide important support to children's computer experiences

Summary Concrete activities provide important support to children's computer experiences. While all quality environments for young children are full of materials and resources, research suggests that children gain most from computer experiences if they are reinforced with specific concrete activities. Teachers utilize one of two methods to ensure that children's learning is enriched by these “hands-on” experiences: Teachers select and/or design specific supplemental activities, or teachers integrate children's computer experiences into the overall curriculum.     

Where Theories of Mind Meet Magic: The Development of Children's Beliefs about Wishing

In two studies, we probed children's beliefs about wishing. In Study 1, we gathered initial data on 50 3- to 6-year-old children's concepts of wishing and beliefs about its efficacy, with both a semistructured interview and a variety of tasks. Results revealed considerable knowledge about wishing in young children, along with an age-related decrease in beliefs about its efficacy. Parents were not found to encourage differently the beliefs of children at different ages, nor were they found to begin actively discouraging such beliefs at any particular age. A moderate relation was found between environmental supports for wishing and children's beliefs in its efficacy. In Study 2, we continued to probe these issues and also address the nature of the broader conceptual context in which children situate their beliefs about wishing. Participants were 92 3- to 6-year-old children. Results of this study suggest that children may reconcile beliefs in the efficacy of wishing with knowledge about everyday mental-physical relations by situating these beliefs more within their emerging beliefs about magic than within their theories of mind.     

Violence among family members of children and adolescents evaluated for sexual abuse

OBJECTIVES: The two aims of this study were to: (1). describe the prevalence and characteristics of domestic adult and child physical violence in the homes of children and adolescents evaluated in a specialized sexual abuse clinic and (2). describe parent or caretaker responses to domestic adult and child violence and child sexual abuse, including tendencies to report or seek medical care. METHOD: A consecutive sample of 164 subjects (ages 7-19) were interviewed in a sexual abuse clinic regarding in-home violent or abusive experiences among family members that had occurred at any time during their childhood. RESULTS: Fifty-two percent of these children and teenagers reported spousal violence in their home. Fifty-eight percent of child sexual offenders who were in-home males also physically abused their adult female partner. Half of in-home males who were physically violent to children also sexually abused them. In 86% of homes with partner violence, the children were also physically assaulted. There was no difference in sexual abuse disclosure rates or patterns for children living with or without adult violence. CONCLUSIONS: Sexually abused children should be questioned about physical abuse and the presence of violence among adults in their home. Safety plans for sexually abused children should incorporate screening for family violence and safety plans for parents and siblings of child victims, when appropriate.     

The Effects of Systemic Family Violence on Children's Mental Health

This study examines the link between different forms of family aggression and children's symptoms of psychopathology. The goal of the study was to understand what forms children's problems might take in violent homes and whether close ties within the family (to the mother or a sibling) buffered children. Interviews with 365 mothers and 1 of their children between the ages of 6 and 12 about abuse in the home, support and closeness within the nuclear family, and mother's and children's mental health formed the basis of this study. Families were recruited from battered women's shelters and the community. We found that different forms of abuse in the home were highly interrelated and that children of battered women were at risk for child abuse. Domestic violence predicted children's general psychopathology, but we uncovered little evidence for the presence of specific sorts of disorders as a result of family dysfunction. Although mothers experiencing conjugal violence were more likely to have mental health problems, their mental health did not mediate the children's response to family conflict. Finally, there was less sibling and parental warmth in families marked by aggression, although when it was present, family social support failed to buffer children. Although the general pattern of results was consistent across respondents (mother and child), there was low agreement on symptoms of child psychopathology.     

Gender effects in children's beliefs about school performance: a cross-cultural study

Do young boys and girls understand what leads to academic success (e.g., talent, effort, good teaching, luck) in the same way? Do young girls and boys have equivalent perceptions of their academic competence? Are these beliefs engendered in the same way across sociocultural contexts? In a cross-cultural study of over 3,000 children in grades 2 to 6, ages 7.2 to 13.6, we discovered that boys and girls around the world have very similar ideas about what generally leads to academic success. Moreover, in the few contexts where boys' and girls' academic performances were equal, their beliefs were also equal. However, when girls outperformed boys, their beliefs in their own talent were no greater than boys' beliefs, even though they did have stronger beliefs than boys in other facets of their achievement potential (e.g., putting forth effort, being lucky, getting their teacher's help). Our findings support the generally close correspondence between children's achievement and their competence-related beliefs, with the exception that young girls appear to specifically discount their talent. The effects held regardless of the children's achievement, intelligence, or age (approximately 8 to 13 years). Girls were more biased in some contexts than in others, however, suggesting that competence-related biases are rooted in culture-specific aspects of school settings.     

Children's Understanding of Parental Differential Treatment

This study examined whether established associations between perceptions of parental differential treatment and sibling relationship quality are moderated by children's perceptions and attributions about parental behavior. Sixty-one children, aged 11–13 years, and their siblings were interviewed separately about parental differential treatment. Children did not perceive PDT in two-thirds of the instances they reported about, and 75% of the children who acknowledged that differential treatment was occurring in their homes did not find this to be " unfair." Children justified differential parental behaviors by identifying ways that they and their sibling differ from one another, that is, in terms of differences in their age, personal attributes, needs, relationship with parents, or strategic behaviors. Children who perceived their parents' differential behavior to be justified generally experienced more positive appraisals about their sibling relationship. Results reinforce the importance of examining how children construct their experiences in their families.     

Low-income Latino mothers’ booksharing styles and children's emergent literacy development

Booksharing is often considered one of the most important activities parents can do to promote young children's early literacy skills. However, there is relatively little research on the style and nature of booksharing in Latino homes. This study examined the relation between maternal booksharing styles and low-income Latino children's subsequent language and literacy development. Eighty Latino Head Start four-year-old children and their mothers were audiotaped while they shared a wordless children's picture book together in their home. Six months later, children's emergent literacy ability was assessed. Results of a cluster analysis identified three types of maternal booksharing styles which had differential predictive power over children's literacy longitudinally. Results are discussed in terms of improving culturally appropriate research, practice and policy for early childhood and family literacy programming designed to meet the needs of young Latino children and their parents.     

Contexts of achievement: a study of American, Chinese, and Japanese children

The major purpose of this study was to attempt to understand some of the reasons for the high academic achievement of Chinese and Japanese children compared to American children. The study was conducted with first and fifth graders attending elementary schools in the Minneapolis metropolitan area, Taipei (Taiwan), and Sendai (Japan). 1,440 children (240 first graders and 240 fifth graders in each city) were selected as target subjects in the study. The children were selected from 20 classrooms at each grade in each city and constituted a representative sample of children from these classrooms. In a follow-up study, first graders were studied again when they were in the fifth grade. The children were tested with achievement tests in reading and mathematics constructed specifically for this study, the children and their mothers were interviewed, the children's teachers filled out a questionnaire, and interviews were held with the principals of the schools attended by the children. In the follow-up study, achievement tests were administered, and the children and their mothers were interviewed. Background information about the children's everyday lives revealed much greater attention to academic activities among Chinese and Japanese than among American children. Members of the three cultures differed significantly in terms of parents' interest in their child's academic achievement, involvement of the family in the child's education, standards and expectations of parents concerning their child's academic achievement, and parents' and children's beliefs about the relative influence of effort and ability on academic achievement. Whereas children's academic achievement did not appear to be a central concern of American mothers, Chinese and Japanese mothers viewed this as their child's most important pursuit. Once the child entered elementary school, Chinese and Japanese families mobilized themselves to assist the child and to provide an environment conducive to achievement. American mothers appeared to be less interested in their child's academic achievement than in the child's general cognitive development; they attempted to provide experiences that fostered cognitive growth rather than academic excellence. Chinese and Japanese mothers held higher standards for their children's achievement than American mothers and gave more realistic evaluations of their child's academic, cognitive, and personality characteristics. American mothers overestimated their child's abilities and expressed greater satisfaction with their child's accomplishments than the Chinese and Japanese mothers. In describing bases of children's academic achievement, Chinese and Japanese mothers stressed the importance of hard work to a greater degree than American mothers, and American mothers gave greater emphasis to innate ability than did Chinese and Japanese mothers.     

Interactions between Family Environment and Friendship and Associations with Self-Perceived Well-Being during Early Adolescence

Using a sample of 138 early adolescents and their parents, we examined the hypothesis that family and friendship measures would moderate each other's associations with measures of children's perceptions of their adjustment and well-being. Family environment was assessed by asking parents to complete the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale II. A sociometric nomination procedure and the Friendship Quality Scale were completed by the subjects as assessments of reciprocity and quality in their best friendship relations. The Perceived Competence Scale for Children was used to assess children's adjustment. Stronger associations were observed between the family measures and the adjustment measures in children without a close friendship than in children with such a relationship. Also, friendship was more strongly linked to outcome measures for children from low adaptive and low cohesive families than for children in more adaptive and cohesive families. These findings indicate that experiences in the family and friendship domains interact in their associations with children's impressions of their adjustment during early adolescence.     

Activity Settings and Daily Routines in Preschool Classrooms: Diverse Experiences in Early Learning Settings for Low-Income Children

This paper examines activity settings and daily classroom routines experienced by 3- and 4-year-old low-income children in public center-based preschool programs, private center-based programs, and family child care homes. Two daily routine profiles were identified using a time-sampling coding procedure: a High Free-Choice pattern in which children spent a majority of their day engaged in child-directed free-choice activity settings combined with relatively low amounts of teacher-directed activity, and a Structured-Balanced pattern in which children spent relatively equal proportions of their day engaged in child-directed free-choice activity settings and teacher-directed small- and whole-group activities. Daily routine profiles were associated with program type and curriculum use but not with measures of process quality. Children in Structured-Balanced classrooms had more opportunities to engage in language and literacy and math activities, whereas children in High Free-Choice classrooms had more opportunities for gross motor and fantasy play. Being in a Structured-Balanced classroom was associated with children's language scores but profiles were not associated with measures of children's math reasoning or socio-emotional behavior. Consideration of teachers' structuring of daily routines represents a valuable way to understand nuances in the provision of learning experiences for young children in the context of current views about developmentally appropriate practice and school readiness.     

Ecological correlates of children's subjective school outcomes

The study used path analytic techniques to examine relations between children's subjective school outcomes and measures of their family and school learning environments. Included in the sample were 250 twelve-year-old Australian children, 120 girls and 130 boys, and their parents. A home interview schedule was used to assess parents' aspirational, instrumental, and expressive orientations in relation to education while children's perceptions of the regulative, instructional, innovative, and interpersonal contexts of their schools were obtained. The findings indicated that when a refined measure is used, children's perceptions of their school environment have moderate to strong links with school-related outcomes even when family influences are assessed by detailed social—psychological process variables. For future research, however, the study suggests that parallel measures of children's perceptions of their family and school environments should be developed for a more complete understanding of the ecological correlates of children's characteristics.     

Individual Differences in Young Children's Pretend Play with Mother and Sibling: Links to Relationships and Understanding of Other People's Feelings and Beliefs

50 33-month-old children were observed at home with their siblings and mothers. Observational measures of pretend play, observer ratings of the child's, mother's, and sibling's behavior, and measures of family discourse about feelings were collected. At 40 months each child was assessed on Bartsch and Wellman's false beliefs task and Denham's affective perspective taking task. Results revealed individual differences in the amount and sophistication of young children's social pretend play and suggested that these individual differences are related to experiences in the relationships that young children have with their mothers and siblings. Results also indicated that early social pretend play was significantly related to the child's developing understanding of other people's feelings and beliefs. The data are interpreted as providing support for the notion that early experience in social pretense is associated with children's mastery of the relation between mental life and real life. The importance of considering the relationship context of social pretense is also discussed.     

Peer status and behaviors of maltreated children and their classmates in the early years of school

OBJECTIVE: The aims of the present study were to investigate (1) whether young children with a known history of maltreatment by caregivers have more problematic peer relationships and classroom behaviors than other children, and (2) if children's behaviors with peers mediated associations between maltreatment and children's problem peer relations. METHOD: Participants included 400 young children (ages 4-8, M age=6.6), and 24 teachers in 22 schools. Six percent of children had a known history of maltreatment. Multiple methods (ratings and nominations) and reporters (children and teachers) were utilized to obtain information on peer relationships. Teachers reported children's physical/verbal aggression, and withdrawn and prosocial behaviors. RESULTS: Young children were able to nominate and rate whom they liked versus disliked in their classes, and their reports were modestly correlated with teacher reports. Regardless of the reporter, maltreated children were significantly more disliked, physically/verbally aggressive, withdrawn, and less prosocial, compared with their classmates. Among all children, physical/verbal aggression, withdrawal, and prosocial behavior were associated independently with some aspect of peer status. Maltreatment had indirect associations with peer likeability and peer rejection via maltreated children's relatively higher levels of physical/verbal aggression and, in some cases, withdrawal and relatively lower prosocial behavior. Maltreatment had an indirect association with teacher-reported peer acceptance via children's withdrawal. CONCLUSIONS: Findings indirectly associate early family experiences with problems in peer relationships, especially lower peer likeability and more rejection, via children's behaviors with peers. The finding that linkages exist even in the very earliest years of school highlights the need for very early home- or school-based efforts focused on improving behavior and relationships of maltreated children and others children with similar profiles.     

The struggle for language: perspectives and practices of urban parents with children who are deaf or hard of hearing

Research is scarce on young children with hearing impairments growing up in urban environments. A qualitative study was used to explore and describe the perspectives and practices of these children's parents. An ethnographic approach enabled documentation of parents' routines, daily activities, thoughts (perceptions), and behaviors (practices). In-depth interviews and observations were the primary data sources. Data collection occurred within a 6-month period. Research questions focused on efforts parents make independently and with others (e.g., educational staff, family members) to facilitate and support their child's efforts to communicate and acquire language. Nine parents, two grandparents, and six staff members disclosed their perspectives and practices. While similarities and differences arose, universal perspectives and practices emerged among the parents that are discussed as prevailing themes. Results suggest that the parents' struggle, systemic barriers, and the urban environment are the greatest challenges facing families. Addressing these challenges will contribute to establishment of truly equitable and effective interventions for urban children, whether deaf or hard of hearing, their parents, and other family members.