ABSTRACT

This study used a natural experiment design to examine the impact of ethnic studies courses on students' ethnic-racial identity (ERI) development, multicultural attitudes, and civic engagement during the 2021–2022 school year in Minneapolis, MN (N = 535; 33.5% White, 29.5% Black, 21.1% Latine, 10.7% multi-racial; 44.7% female, 7.1% non-binary). Compared to students who were quasi-randomly assigned to a control class, 9th graders taking an ethnic studies class (treatment group) engaged in significantly more midpoint ERI exploration (β = 0.12), resulting in stronger endpoint ERI resolution (β = 0.48–0.57). Increased exploration mediated more favorable attitudes toward multiculturalism (indirect effect = 0.05) and more frequent civic engagement activities (indirect effect = 0.02). Results have implications for policy efforts to expand ethnic studies.

ABSTRACT

Theoretical work has suggested close associations between morphological awareness (MA) and reading skills in Chinese; however, the nature and direction of these time-ordered links are little known. This study examined the interplays of MA and reading skills using a continuous-time modeling approach to three waves of two-year longitudinal data from first- (N = 149; 69 girls) and third-grade (N = 142; 74 girls) Chinese children. Results showed that (a) increases in MA predicted subsequent increases in reading skills (i.e., word-reading accuracy, word-reading fluency, and sentence-reading comprehension) and vice versa, (b) age only moderated the predictive effect of MA on sentence-reading comprehension, and (c) the magnitude of these effects was time-sensitive. The theoretical and educational implications of these findings are discussed.

ABSTRACT

Research examining relations between language skills and social competence has yielded mixed findings. Three meta-analyses investigated links between language skills (overall, receptive, and expressive) and social competence in 2- to 12-year-old children. Data from 130 studies representing 62,120 children (M age at language assessment = 4.70 years; 52% male), predominantly from North America and Europe, and identifying as White (33%), Black (17%), Hispanic (14%), Asian (2%), Mixed (4%), Indigenous (1%), and Other/Unspecified (29%) were analyzed. Analyses indicated significant medium-sized associations between social competence and: overall language (r = 0.27), receptive language (r = 0.23), and expressive language (r = 0.20). Exploratory analyses indicated significant moderating effects of study design, publication status, social type, and geographic region. Results and implications are discussed.

Abstract

Empirical findings on the associations of positive and dysfunctional parent–child relationship (PPCR/DPCR) characteristics with child shame, adaptive guilt, and maladaptive guilt were synthesized in six meta-analyses. The 65 included samples yielded 633 effect sizes (N _total = 19,144; M _age = 15.24 years; 59.0% female; 67.7% U.S. samples, n = 12,036 with 65% White, 12.3% Hispanic and Latinx, 10.8% Black, 6.3% mixed race, 5.6% Asian American, 0.3% Native American participants). Small positive correlations were found between DPCR and shame (r = .17), DPCR and maladaptive guilt (r = .15), and PPCR and adaptive guilt (r = .14). A small negative correlation was found between PPCR and shame (r = −.12). Sample and study moderators and sources of bias are investigated and discussed.

ABSTRACT

Young children's helping can benefit both recipient and helper. This study examined how children and caregivers incorporate helper and recipient interests in evaluations of household helping. Data were collected throughout 2022. US children 4–6 years (N = 87; 47 girls, 40 boys; 71% European American, 23% Asian American, 14% Latinx, 3% Black, 2% Native American) and their caregivers were evaluated whether and why a child in hypothetical scenarios should help their parent. Children's judgments and reasoning incorporated both child helper and parent recipient interests, whereas caregivers' evaluations weighed child interests more heavily, ORs > 0.239. Caregiver judgments about obligation predicted children's judgments. Findings suggest that perceptions of whose interests are served shape judgments and decisions around young children's everyday prosocial behaviors.

ABSTRACT

Using data from the Human Connectome Project in Development (N = 1304; ages 5–21 years; 50% male; 59% White, 17% Hispanic, 13% Black, 9% Asian), multiple measures (self-report, salivary hormones) and research designs (longitudinal, cross-sectional) were used to characterize age-related changes and sex differences in pubertal development. Both sexes exhibit a sigmoid trajectory of pubertal development; females show earlier pubertal timing and increased tempo ~9–13 years, while males show greater tempo ~14–18 years. All hormones increased with age, with sex differences in testosterone and DHEA levels and in testosterone rates of change. Higher testosterone and DHEA corresponded with earlier pubertal timing in both sexes. These findings characterize typical pubertal and hormonal development and inform best practices for handling puberty data.

ABSTRACT

This response to a Commentary by Delgado-Ron, Jeyabalan, Watt, and Salway (2024) on Cimpian, Timmer, and Kim's (2023) paper discusses and clarifies some key issues in applying the new data-validity sensitivity analysis proposed by Cimpian et al. (2023). The differences in the applications of the method by Delgado-Ron et al. (2024) and Cimpian et al. (2023) present an opportunity to recognize the possibilities of this method, while also noting some challenges and limitations. This response-commentary focuses on five key areas: (1) surmising a set of likely motivations of the survey respondents, (2) selecting the screener items, (3) considering the outcomes examined, (4) reflecting on null results in a sensitivity analysis, and (5) recognizing the advantages and disadvantages of the ease of this new method.

Child Development, Volume 96, Issue 1, Page 1-6, January/February 2025.