Relationship between family religious behaviors and child well-being among third-grade children

While there is growing empirical evidence that religion can have a positive impact on the health and well-being of adults and adolescents, less is known about its influence on the welfare of children. The current paper examined the relative importance of family religiosity and religious behaviors on multiple measures of children's well-being (general health, academic achievement, social skills, and behavior problems) and sought to identify whether religious variables contribute above and beyond non-religious measures of family caregiving. Parent use of religious coping and family religious behaviors, the latter defined as attendance at religious or spiritual programs, predicted several aspects of child well-being above and beyond parenting styles. Parental religious coping significantly predicted child social skills and externalizing behaviors above and beyond parenting styles. Family religious service attendance significantly predicted child health and social skills, and inversely predicted internalizing behaviors, above and beyond both parenting styles and parent use of religious coping.     

Language skills in developmentally disabled children

Language measures of receptive and expressive vocabulary, story telling, and immediate verbal memory, as well as two perceptual tests, were administered to a group of developmentally disabled children, and three groups of normal children, one matched for chronological age, one for mean length of utterance, and one for performance on one of the perceptual tests. When diagnostic subgroups of “autism,” “childhood schizophrenia,” and “other severe disturbance” were formed using standard diagnostic tools, no language differences were found between diagnostic subgroups. When compared with the normal control groups, many of the language skills of the entire group of disabled children, and of the autistic children alone, were rather evenly delayed, showing only a relative sparing of the naming function, and a relative deficit on immediate verbal memory. Furthermore, a high correlation was found in a small subsample between the difficulty levels of morphemes in the disabled children and those reported for young normal children. Experienced special-education and early-childhood teachers could not discriminate the stories of the disabled children from those of young normal children. Analysis of the disabled children's error strategies, however, revealed features of their language not found in normal children's language: (1) extreme perseveration in test answers and stories, (2) attention to minor features of test stimuli, and (3) failure to adopt alternate, flexible communicative strategies. We conclude that the language acquisition of the developmentally disabled children is delayed but not deviant in its semantic and syntactic competence, and that current diagnostic practice does not differentiate linguistically distinct subgroups. We further argue that where developmentally disabled children do exhibit aberrant features of language, such deviance parallels similar features in other cognitive skills, and is not unique to language.     

Problem solving,recall, and isomorphic transfer among third-grade and sixth-grade children

Analogical reasoning processes were studied in third- and sixth-grade children. One group at each grade level received two analogs of the “farmer's dilemma”, a scheduling problem that requires seven moves for solution, during acquisition. Other groups received one analog or only a transfer task. On each trial the child heard a list of statements representing the exact series of moves necessary to solve the problem, was immediately asked to recall the list, materials representing the problem were then produced, and the child was asked to show how to solve it. A trial was terminated and a new one begun when an error was made on the physical task. Following criterial performance all children were transferred to an isomorphic analog and simply instructed to solve it. Third-graders in the two-analog condition required more trials in acquisition than the other groups, which did not differ from each other. Transfer was better following two analogs, but was unaffected by grade level. Grade level affected recall accuracy, but recall accuracy was not a good predictor of transfer performance. Trial-by-trial analyses suggested that propositions representing the solution are acquired piecemeal, but consolidation of the generalizable problem representation is abrupt.     

Establishing generalized verb-noun instruction-following skills in retarded children

A transfer of stimulus control procedure was used to establish generalized verb-noun instruction-following skills in two severely retarded boys. Each of 12 verbs was trained, in a multiple baseline order, to criterion with each of 12 nouns in the form of verb-noun verbal instructions. Throughout training, reinforced probes were conducted on both trained and untrained verb-noun combinations. As training progressed, both subjects began to respond correctly to untrained verb-noun instructions. Eventually, a verb needed to be trained in combination with only one noun before generalization occurred to the as-yet-untrained 11 verb-noun instructions involving that verb.     

Teaching social skills to isolated children

The effects of a social skill training program on socially isolated children are reported. The training program was derived from the results of a previous study of the specific social skills that discriminated popular from unpopular children. Training effects in the present investigation were assessed on sociometric position, and on the quality, frequency, and distribution of social interaction to peers. Time-series analyses were performed on the frequency and distribution of peer interaction. Two isolated children received social skill training with an adult coach, and two isolated children spent an equivalent amount of time with an adult. Results indicated that socially isolated children in the treatment group changed significantly in sociometric position on a follow-up assessment 9 weeks after the end of the intervention, did not change in the total frequency of peer social interaction, but did redistribute their interaction to peers. The two isolated children who did not receive the treatment program did not change significantly on the total frequency of peer interaction, and tended to withdraw from peers rather than redistribute their interaction. The insensitivity of total peer interaction frequency as a measure of outcome was discussed.     

Social perspective-taking skills in maltreated children and adolescents

The primary goal of this study was to assess the ability of maltreated school-age children and adolescents to understand the thoughts, feelings, and points of view of others. Level of egocentrism and social perspective-taking coordination were assessed in a group of 49 maltreated and 49 demographically matched nonmaltreated children. Twenty-six elementary and 23 high school students in each group were individually interviewed and their responses to hypothetical interpersonal situations coded for egocentricity and level of perspective-taking ability. The findings revealed that maltreated children and adolescents were more egocentric and delayed in their social perspective-taking development than their nonmaltreated peers and that they reported lower levels of global self-worth. However, differences within the group of maltreated children and adolescents emerged with regard to negotiating novel relationships, as those with fewer internalizing or externalizing symptoms exhibited better skills in this area than their peers who displayed more symptoms.     

Constraints on classificatory skills in young children.

On three occasions over a one-year period 23 children aged 3-4 were asked to match target objects with other objects which were similar to the target in shape or in colour but not in both. A sequence of matches to each target was asked for. The structure of these sequences is examined for evidence of classifacatory abilities. Many subjects appear to be attempting (not always successfully) to follow a strategy of 'holding fast' to their original choice of matching criterion (colour or shape) on subsequent trials. The striking differences between performance after a first-trial colour-match and after a first-trial shape-match are described. It is argued that development during this period involves an increasing ability to ignore the more salient attribute (shape) when matching by colour. The general developmental significance is discussed.     

The development of compensatory stepping skills in children

The development of the ability to use the step for balance recovery was studied among twenty-five 9- to 19-month-old children. The children were grouped according to walking experience (4 levels) and exposed to backward support surface translations, 8 cm in amplitude, under 3 velocity conditions: 15, 20, and 25 cm/s. New walkers (up to 2 weeks' walking experience) used the step infrequently and ineffectively in response to threats to balance. Intermediate walkers (1-3 months' walking experience) showed an increasing use of the step and significant improvement in step execution compared with new walkers. Advanced walkers (>3; months' walking experience) experienced no falls throughout the protocol, capturing balance with feet-in-place or step responses under all perturbation conditions. A significant developmental transition in the emergence of the compensatory step occurred between the new walker and the intermediate walker experience levels, that is, within the first 3 months of walking experience. Three to 6 months' experience was required for the development of an effective stepping response. A concomitant change in mediolateral stability paralleled the emergence of compensatory stepping.     

Sensorimotor skills and language comprehension in autistic children

The objectives of this study were to examine the level of sensorimotor concepts of young autistic children and to relate these concepts to language comprehension. A sample of 16 autistic children with a mean mental age of 24.8 months was administered a standardized scale of sensorimotor intelligence and of receptive language. The autistic children demonstrated surprisingly sophisticated sensorimotor skills, particularly object permanence. While their initial performance was inferior to that of normal controls matched on mental age, particularly in their use of objects in combination, the difference between groups diminished on the second test administration. On the receptive language measure, the autistic children were less able to identify words correctly. The sensorimotor behavior of autistic children who demonstrated language comprehension did not differ from those who showed no language comprehension, except that the former group tended to use an object as an instrument somewhat more frequently. The fact that the autistic children were so impaired in language even with fairly good sensorimotor skills suggests that these skills, particularly object permanence, play a minor role in their language acquisition.Support for this research was provided by Biobehavioral Research Support Grant 516, Grant 12–41 from the March of Dimes, NIMH Postdoctoral Fellowship No. 1 F32 MH07550-01 (Ungerer), and NIMH Grant MH 33815-01. Subjects were recruited from the UCLA Research Center for the Study of Childhood Psychosis, funded by NIMH Grant MH 30897. We would like to thank members of the CRC, particularly Dr. Peter Tanguay, Dr. Barbara Fish, and Dr. B. J. Freeman, for their support of our research efforts.     

Word recognition and comprehension skills in hyperlexic children

Five hyperlexic boys (4-5 to 10-1 years), who had been diagnosed with infantile autism or pervasive developmental delay in early childhood, were evaluated. Measures of intelligence, single-word recognition and comprehension, and picture naming were administered to determine the precocity or deficiency of reading recognition and comprehension, the underlying mechanisms of oral reading, and possible parallels with the acquired dyslexia subtypes. The results indicated that hyperlexia may be operationalized as unexpected reading precocity as compared to IQ; however, reading comprehension was not unexpectedly deficient. The phonological route to reading appeared to be preferred to the lexical route, and the overall pattern of performance most closely paralleled that of the surface dyslexic subtype.     

Measuring executive function skills in young children in Kenya

Interest in measuring executive function skills in young children in low- and middle-income country contexts has been stymied by the lack of assessments that are both easy to deploy and scalable. This study reports on an initial effort to develop a tablet-based battery of executive function tasks, which were designed and extensively studied in the United States, for use in Kenya. Participants were 193 children, aged 3–6 years old, who attended early childhood development and education centers. The rates of individual task completion were high (65–100%), and 85% of children completed three or more tasks. Assessors indicated that 90% of all task administrations were of acceptable quality. An executive function composite score was approximately normally distributed, despite higher-than-expected floor and ceiling effects on inhibitory control tasks. Children’s simple reaction time (β = –0.20, p = .004), attention-related behaviors during testing (β = 0.24, p = .0005), and age (β = –0.24, p = .0009) were all uniquely related to performance on the executive function composite. Results are discussed as they inform efforts to develop valid and reliable measures of executive function skills among young children in developing country contexts.     

Evaluation of behavioral skills training for teaching abduction-prevention skills to young children

This study examined the effectiveness of individual behavioral skills training in conjunction with in situ training in teaching 13 preschool children abduction prevention skills. Children's performance was measured during baseline, training, and at 2-week, 1-month, and 3-month follow-ups using in situ assessments in which abduction prevention skills were measured in naturalistic settings. Results revealed that all the children learned the skills and all the children available at the 2-week and 1-month follow-ups maintained the skills at criterion level. All but 3 children's criterion-level performances were maintained at the 3-month follow-up as well.     

Classroom performance and adaptive skills in children with epilepsy

The relationships of age at onset, seizure syndrome, seizure type, and seizure frequency, respectively, to the classroom performance and adaptive skills of 131 children with epilepsy were studied. The Teacher Report Form of the Child Behavior Checklist was completed by the children's teachers. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were conducted on ratings of academic subject areas and overall adaptive skills. Significant results were obtained for English/Language, Reading, Mathematics, overall School Performance, Learning, Happy, and Total Adaptive skills. Epilepsy syndrome and frequency of seizures were significantly related to some of these analyses, with amounts of variance accounted for ranging from 11% to 23%. Children with secondary generalized epilepsy performed significantly worse than children with other epilepsy syndromes. The results suggest that a seizure disorder associated with a diffuse or multifocal brain insult can produce problems in achievement and school adaptation as manifested on a day-to-day basis. Suggestions for future research are presented.     

Semantic priming in French children with varying comprehension skills

Semantic priming was analysed in two groups of French children contrasted on comprehension skills with a visual lexical-decision task using a long SOA (800 ms). Two relation types between related primes and targets were examined: pure semantic relation (categorical vs. functional), and lexical association strength (strong vs. weak). Targets were preceded by related, unrelated, and neutral primes. Skilled comprehenders showed semantic priming only for category-related words, whatever their association strength, and without any evidence of an associative boost. Less-skilled comprehenders also showed semantic priming for category-related words, irrespective of their association strength, but with an indication of an associative boost. They also displayed semantic priming for function-related awords that are strongly associated, but not for those that are weakly associated. These results are discussed within the theoretical frame proposed by Plaut and Booth (2000 Plaut, D. C. and Booth, J. R. 2000. Individual and developmental differences in semantic priming: Empirical and computational support for a single-mechanism account of lexical processing. Psychological Review, 4: 786–823.  [Google Scholar]).     

Conversation skills training for socially isolated children

A social skills training program consisting of instructions, modeling, behavior rehearsal, performance feedback, and programmed generalization set was used to teach conversational behavior to four socially isolated children. Effects of training were assessed in a multiple-baseline analysis across behavior. Subjects were selected on the basis of peer sociometric ratings, a behavioral role-playing task, naturalistic observation, and teacher ratings. All subjects demonstrated noticeable improvement in the target behavior as well as in overall conversational ability. However, these gains were maintained unequally in the children at follow-up probe administrations (4-and 8-weeks). Generalization assessment revealed some transfer of treatment effects to the school setting for all children. Results are discussed in terms of the complexity of social isolation in children and factors which influenced generalizability of the treatment program.     

Problem solving,recall, isomorphic transfer,and nonisomorphic transfer among third-grade and fourth-grade children

Analogical reasoning processes were studied in third- and fourth-grade children. During acquisition, each child received analogs of one of the following seven-move scheduling problems: “farmer's dilemma,” “three missionaries/two cannibals,” or “tower of Hanoi.” On each presentation of a problem, the child heard a list of statements representing the exact series of moves necessary to solve the problem and was immediately asked to recall the list. Physical materials representing the problem were then produced and the child was asked to solve it. A trial was terminated and a new one begun when an error was made on the physical task. Following acquisition, the children were transferred to either an isomorphic analog or an analog from one of the other training conditions. During acquisition, the propositions representing the solution to each problem were acquired piecemeal and incrementally, but consolidation of the generalizable problem representation was abrupt. Isomorphic transfer was good in all conditions, but nonisomorphic transfer was unexpectedly asymmetrical. This finding was discussed in terms of each problem space, number of solution paths, and similarity relations.