Inequality in socio-emotional skills: A cross-cohort comparison

Executive function, self-regulation skills, behaviors, and socioeconomic status in early childhood

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Prior research has established steep socioeconomic status (SES) disparities in children's cognitive skills at kindergarten entry. Yet, few studies have had comprehensive, multi-informant data to examine SES-related differences in foundational social and emotional skills and executive function. The objective of the current study is to systematically examine SES-related differences in young children's executive function (EF), self-regulation skills, and behaviors.

METHODS

The current study analyzed data on 2,309 young children from the Early Learning Study at Harvard (ELS@H). Multi-method (direct-assessment and reports) and multi-informant (parents and early education and care educators) information on children's executive function, self-regulation skills, and internalizing, externalizing, and adaptive behaviors were used. A parametric framework employing Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) estimation was used to quantify the size of the SES-related differences in this set of children's foundational social-emotional skills.

RESULTS

On average, there were differences of 0.24-0.45 SD for EF, 0.22-0.32 SD for self-regulation skills, and 0.27-0.54 SD for behaviors favoring children from the highest SES quartile of the distribution of SES relative to children from the lowest quartile. The SES-related differences were consistent across direct assessment, parent reports, and educator reports. Some differences were larger for older children relative to their younger counterparts.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings indicate a need for comprehensive intervention efforts well before kindergarten entry aimed at closing early disparities in children's foundational social and emotional skills and executive function.

Trends in inequality of opportunity in health over the life cycle: The role of early-life conditions

This paper explores the evolution of inequality of opportunity in the prevalence of chronic diseases along the life cycle and across different birth cohorts for individuals aged 50 or older and residing in 13 European countries. We adopt an ex-ante parametric approach and rely on the dissimilarity index as our reference inequality metric. In addition to a commonly used set of circumstances, we pay particular attention to the role of adverse early-life conditions, such as the experience of harm and the quality of the relationship with parents. In order to quantify the relative importance of each circumstance, we apply the Shapley inequality decomposition method. Our results suggest that inequality of opportunity in health is not stable over the life cycle - it is generally lower at younger ages and then monotonically increases. Moreover, it varies between different birth cohorts and is generally higher for younger individuals than for older age groups. Finally, the contribution of adverse early life conditions ranges between 25% and 45%, which is comparable to the share of socio-economic circumstances but significantly higher than the relative contribution of other demographic characteristics, especially at younger ages.

Home learning environment and out-of-home activities: their relations to prosocial behaviour and peer relationships in primary school children

There is consensus that child socio-emotional development is influenced by various contexts, such as the family one. Research on influencing factors on child socio-emotional skills mainly investigated the effects of home learning environment, whereas the effects of out-of-home activities were often analysed mainly in samples of adolescents. The present study aimed to shed light on effects of preschool home learning environment and out-of-home activities on two facets of socio-emotional skills at the beginning of primary school: Prosocial behaviour and peer relationships. The information on the child prosocial behaviour and peer relationships at preschool age was included with the aim to control for most of the differences across children. Using data from a large sample of children (N = 1,818; M age = 7.08 years, SD = 0.15; 49.9% girls), results of regression analyses show significant effects of out-of-home activities on prosocial behaviour after controlling a range of child- and family-related influencing factors on prosocial behaviour as well as prosocial behaviour at preschool age. The effects of home learning environment were significant after controlling a range of child- and family-related influencing factors on both facets of socio-emotional skills but became nonsignificant after taking into account respective behaviour at preschool age. The results of the present study suggest that fostering participation in out-of-home activities might contribute to an increase of prosocial behaviour in primary school children.

Mindful Parenting Intervention MinUTo App for Parents of Preschool Children: Study Protocol of a Randomised Controlled Trial

Background: Mindful parenting and the use of technology for parenting intervention have expanded separately from one another with promising results, but their relationship is underexplored. The current study protocol proposes a new universal intervention via app, MINd Us TOghether (MinUTo), based on mindful parenting for parents of typically developing children of 4–5 years of age. Methods: The effect of the intervention is evaluated using a randomised controlled trial. Around 2000 parents are enrolled and randomised to the intervention and control groups. Data are collected in three different waves from parents at baseline and endline; APP usage data allow for the analysis of intervention adherence. The MinUTo app proposes contents and activities for five dimensions of mindful parenting. Each dimension is presented within a two-week distance, explaining its importance, providing information, and offering activities for parents and children. Expected results: We hypothesise a positive effect of the intervention on primary outcomes (mindful parenting, parenting stress, parent behaviours and parental time investment), increasing parents’ skills and promoting a positive parent–child relationship. We also test possible effects on secondary outcomes (parenting attitudes and beliefs) at an explorative level. Conclusions: The study will add new considerations about the psychological and economic impact of technologies in implementing parenting interventions in non-clinical populations.

Marginalized COVID-19 patients and their significant others in Kashmir (India): manifesting the hidden structural vulnerabilities

Using a qualitative approach, this study aimed to undertake an in-depth exploration of the experiences of COVID-19 patients and their significant others among the economically weaker sections in Kashmir. The study was conducted on 18 participants of different households solely from rural Kashmir while using the purposive sampling technique to recruit the participants and the principle of data saturation to determine the sample size. Data were collected using semi-structured in-depth interviews and analyzed through Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis framework. From the data analysis, six overarching themes of diagnosis, healthcare, treatment, survival thereof, social support and stigma were arrived at, which delineated the direct or indirect experiences of participants with COVID-19. The findings of the study revealed that the economically weaker sections of rural Kashmir are deprived of requisite healthcare facilities, which further intensifies their vulnerabilities to COVID-19 and associated health issues. They lie at the core of acute health disadvantage amid the COVID-19 crisis, and are hence drifted toward extreme marginality and socioeconomic adversity.

Child development and distance learning in the age of COVID-19

School closures, forcibly brought about by the COVID-19 crisis in many countries, have impacted children's lives and their learning processes. The heterogeneous implementation of distance learning solutions is likely to bring a substantial increase in education inequality, with long term consequences. The present study uses data from a survey collected during Spring 2020 lockdown in France and Italy to analyze parents' evaluations of their children's home schooling process and emotional well-being at time of school closure, and the role played by different distance learning methods in shaping these perceptions. While Italian parents have a generally worse judgment of the effects of the lockdown on their children, the use of interactive distance learning methods appears to significantly attenuate their negative perception. This is particularly true for older pupils. French parents rather perceive that interactive methods are effective in mitigating learning losses and psychological distress only for their secondary school children. In both countries, further heterogeneity analysis reveal that parents perceive younger children and boys to suffer more during this period.

Bidirectional associations between biased language exposure and school-based relationships across gender

Students often hear their peers use biased language regarding race, religion, sexual orientation, or disability status in the school setting. Prior research has indicated that biased language is related to school climate, and specifically to school-based relationships between peers and between students and their teachers. This study investigated the longitudinal associations among student-student relationships, teacher-student relationships, and being the target of or hearing biased language in middle school students. Students (N = 501; 46.5% White, 21.8% Hispanic, 13% African American, and 15% Multi-Racial; 48.7% female) reported on how much they were targeted or heard biased language related to race/religion, sexual orientation, and disability status. Students also reported on their relationships with their peers and teachers. Using a cross-lagged panel model with the overall sample, a negative unidirectional association from being the target of or hearing biased language and student-student relationships and teacher-student relationships was identified. Separate models for boys and girls identified unique patterns. For boys, biased-language exposure predicted more negative student-student relationships and teacher-student relationships, whereas for girls, biased-language exposure was not associated with school-based relationships. Implications include addressing language use and building positive student-student and teacher-student relationships.