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Mannweiler MD, Bierman KL, Liben LS. Linking parents' play strategies with their preschoolers' STEM skills: The mediating roles of child STEM talk and self-regulated learning. J Exp Child Psychol 2025; 249:106095. [PMID: 39426176 PMCID: PMC11984624 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2024.106095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2024] [Revised: 08/01/2024] [Accepted: 09/06/2024] [Indexed: 10/21/2024]
Abstract
Previous studies document associations between parents' use of guided-play strategies and children's STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) skills. We extend existing research by exploring mediating mechanisms that may account for these links. Parents played with their preschool children (N = 75; 49% girls and 51% boys; 94% White, 3% Black, 1% biracial, 1% Asian, and 1% Native American; Mage = 4.82 years) in undertaking a building challenge. Videotaped play was coded for parents' guiding STEM talk (density of math, spatial, and scientific inquiry language) and management strategy (high vs. low directiveness). Mediators included children's STEM talk during play and self-regulated learning (assessed by executive function tests and examiner's ratings of children's task orientation). Structural equation models confirmed hypothesized mediated paths from parent STEM talk to child math (but not spatial) skills via child STEM talk and from parent STEM talk and directiveness to child math and spatial skills via child self-regulated learning. We discuss implications for future research and intervention design.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Karen L Bierman
- The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
| | - Lynn S Liben
- The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
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2
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Fan H, Feng Y, Zhang Y. Parental involvement and student creativity: a three-level meta-analysis. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1407279. [PMID: 39323585 PMCID: PMC11422223 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1407279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 08/26/2024] [Indexed: 09/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction The Ecological Systems Model of Creativity Development (ESMCD) proposes that parental involvement positively impacts student creativity. However, prior empirical studies present mixed results, including positive, negative, and no correlations between these variables. Methods To synthesize these inconsistent primary studies, the current study conducted a systematic meta-analysis synthesizing 30 primary studies involving 37 independent samples with 70 effect sizes and a total N = 20,906 participants. Results The results demonstrated: (1) an overall significant small, positive correlation (r = 0.101) between parental involvement and student creativity; (2) significant small, positive correlations between specific involvement types (autonomy support r = 0.144; behavioral control r = 0.133; content support r = 0.131) and creativity, alongside a significant small, negative correlation between psychological control and creativity (r = -0.117); (3) no statistically significant moderating effects of student grade level, parental gender, region, or publication type. Discussion This systematic meta-analytic review consolidates empirical evidence indicating that parental involvement positively predicts students' creativity, while highlighting the detrimental impact of psychological control on creative outcomes. Further research elucidating the mechanisms underlying these relations is critical for informing parenting approaches and education policies seeking to foster creativity development among students.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yuxiang Feng
- College of Educational Science, Bohai University, Jinzhou, China
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3
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Eason SH, Scalise NR, Berkowitz T, Ramani GB, Levine SC. Widening the lens of family math engagement: A conceptual framework and systematic review. DEVELOPMENTAL REVIEW 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2022.101046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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4
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Jirout JJ, Eisen S, Robertson ZS, Evans TM. Mother-child synchrony is high across child executive function levels for both physical and digital spatial play. Trends Neurosci Educ 2022; 29:100183. [PMID: 36470613 DOI: 10.1016/j.tine.2022.100183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2021] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Play is a powerful influence on children's learning and parents can provide opportunities to learn specific content by scaffolding children's play. Parent-child synchrony (i.e., harmony, reciprocity and responsiveness in interactions) is a component of parent-child interactions that is not well characterized in studies of play. PROCEDURES We tested whether children's executive function relates to mother-child synchrony during physical and digital play in sixty mother-child dyads. MAIN FINDINGS Mother-child synchrony did not relate to children's executive function or differ by play type (physical, digital), though during digital play mother-child synchrony was higher for girls relative to boys. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that mother-child synchrony is not influenced by children's executive function and physical and digital play can be similarly beneficial in offering the opportunity for responsive, reciprocal, dynamic interactions. The sex difference suggests that further factors should be explored as influences of play synchrony.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie J Jirout
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street South, Charlottesville, VA 22903, United States.
| | - Sierra Eisen
- Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, United States
| | - Zoe S Robertson
- Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, United States
| | - Tanya M Evans
- School of Education and Human Development, University of Virginia, 405 Emmet Street South, Charlottesville, VA 22903, United States
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Pochinki N, Reis D, Casasola M, Oakes LM, LoBue V. Natural Variability in Parent-Child Puzzle Play at Home. Front Psychol 2021; 12:733895. [PMID: 34603155 PMCID: PMC8483633 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.733895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Here, we observed 3- to 4-year-old children (N=31) and their parents playing with puzzles at home during a zoom session to provide insight into the variability of the kinds of puzzles children have in their home, and the variability in how children and their parents play with spatial toys. We observed a large amount of variability in both children and parents’ behaviors, and in the puzzles they selected. Further, we found relations between parents’ and children’s behaviors. For example, parents provided more scaffolding behaviors for younger children and parents’ persistence-focused language was related to more child attempts after failure. Altogether, the present work shows how using methods of observing children at a distance, we can gain insight into the environment in which they are developing. The results are discussed in terms of how variability in spatial toys and spatial play during naturalistic interactions can help us contextualize the conclusions we draw from lab-based studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Pochinki
- Department of Psychology, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, United States
| | - Dakota Reis
- Department of Psychology, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, United States
| | | | - Lisa M Oakes
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Vanessa LoBue
- Department of Psychology, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, United States
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6
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Johnson CR, Flores I, Troseth GL. Do Young Children of the "Selfie Generation" Understand Digital Photos as Representations? HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES 2021; 3:512-524. [PMID: 34765908 PMCID: PMC8577423 DOI: 10.1002/hbe2.287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
In research from the 1990s, very young children failed to use pictures as representations of real events. Today, many children in the "selfie generation" are constantly photographed by their families using smartphones. While family photos are created, children are exposed to live video on the phone screen that, with a screen touch, becomes an instant photo. Children also revisit these family photos in the phone's photo library. This study explored whether toddlers growing up around smartphone photography are more successful in applying information from a photo to a real event, compared to children in the earlier research. Sixty 2-year-old children (23.0 to 26.2 months; M = 24.5 months) were asked to use pictures of a toy's hiding place (printed photographs or digital photos on an iPhone) to search for the hidden toy in 5 conditions. Toddlers were not successful with printed or digital images, whether the digital photos were accessed from the phone photo library or the researcher took the photos during the study. However, after children collaborated with the researcher to create digital photos to help an adult confederate, they were significantly more likely to use photos themselves to solve the search task. Children who experienced this scaffolding with printed photos were somewhat more successful than those without training. As with traditional symbolic media, young children's learning from emerging technologies needs the support of an adult who co-views the medium and helps clarify the symbolic relation between screen and world.
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Young Children’s Reading Responses and Story Comprehension in the Buddy Reading of Wordless Picture Books: Comparing Cooperation and Competition in Reading. ADONGHAKOEJI 2020. [DOI: 10.5723/kjcs.2020.41.5.31] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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Cai L, Luo J, Zhang H, Ying J. The Development of Spatial Representation Through Teaching Block-Building in Kindergartners. Front Psychol 2020; 11:565723. [PMID: 33132968 PMCID: PMC7562790 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.565723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Accepted: 09/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This study investigated the effects of the teaching block-building intervention on overall spatial representation and its three sub-forms, namely linguistic, graphic and model representations, in kindergartners. Eighty-four children (39 girls and 45 boys), aged 5–6 years old, were randomly selected and equally divided into two groups, i.e., experimental group and control group. The experimental group received the intervention of teaching block-building for 14 weeks (45 min each time, once a week), while children in the control group freely played with blocks for the equivalent time. Children’s spatial representation performances were measured in both pre- and post-tests by the Experimental Tasks of Spatial Representation for Children. The results showed that: (1) teaching block-building could promote not only the overall spatial representation but also all three sub-forms of spatial representations; (2) there was no gender differences regarding the effect of teaching block-building on neither the overall nor three sub-forms of spatial representations; (3) after the intervention, the diversity of children’s choices regarding the use of sub-forms spatial representations was also promoted in the experimental group. In summary, these results contributed to a comprehensive and systematic understanding of the effects of teaching block-building on spatial representation among children in kindergartens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liman Cai
- School of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiutong Luo
- Advanced Innovation Center for Future Education, Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.,Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong
| | - Hui Zhang
- Teacher's College, Shihezi University, Shihezi, China
| | - Jinling Ying
- School of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
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9
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Mothers’ distancing language relates to young children’s math and literacy skills. J Exp Child Psychol 2020; 196:104863. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2020.104863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2019] [Revised: 03/26/2020] [Accepted: 03/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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11
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Spatial description learning in preschoolers: The role of perspective and individual factors. COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogdev.2019.100841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
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12
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Perez J, McCrink K. Measuring Spontaneous Focus on Space in Preschool Children. Front Psychol 2019; 10:2624. [PMID: 31849753 PMCID: PMC6892949 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2018] [Accepted: 11/07/2019] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous work on children's Spontaneous Focus on Numerosity (SFON) has shown the value of measuring children's spontaneous attention within naturalistic interactions. SFON is the spontaneous tendency to focus attention on, and explicitly enumerate the exact number of, items in a set. This measure predicts later math skills above and beyond general IQ and other cognitive factors such as attention. The utility of SFON suggests that a parallel construct for space is a worthy pursuit; spatial cognition underlies many of our mathematical skills, especially as children are first learning these skills. We developed a measure of children's Spontaneous Focus on Space - the spontaneous tendency to attend to absolute and relative spatial components of the environment - and studied its relation to reasoning about the important spatial-numerical concept of proportions. Fifty-five 3- to 6-year-olds were tested at a local children's museums in New York City. Children participated in tasks designed to measure their spontaneous focus on space and number, and their ability to reason about spatial proportions. Results indicate that as children grow older, their Spontaneous Focus on Space becomes more complete and is positively related to proportional reasoning performance. These findings suggest that spatial awareness is rapidly increasing in the preschool years, alongside numerical awareness and spatial-numerical proportional reasoning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jasmin Perez
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Koleen McCrink
- Department of Psychology, Barnard College, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
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Lorenz MG, Plumert JM. Mother-child communication about relative proximity to a landmark: What role does prototypicality play? J Exp Child Psychol 2018; 178:41-59. [PMID: 30326342 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2018.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2018] [Revised: 09/03/2018] [Accepted: 09/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
This investigation examined how prototypicality affects mother-child communication about relative proximity. In the first two experiments, mothers of 2.5-, 3.0-, and 3.5-year-old children verbally disambiguated a target hiding container from an identical non-target hiding container when the two containers were placed at a smaller (more prototypical) or larger (less prototypical) distance from a landmark. Children then searched for the hidden object. When the absolute distance was smaller, mothers used more consistent frames of reference in their directions and even 2.5-year-olds largely followed those directions successfully. When the absolute distance was larger, mothers used multiple reference frames in their directions (a "kitchen sink" strategy) and children had more difficulty in following directions (especially 2.5-year-olds). A third experiment in which we controlled mothers' directions confirmed that the increased absolute distance, and not the mothers' direction-giving strategies, led to 2.5-year-olds' impaired search performance. These results indicate that young children's understanding of relative proximity develops from more prototypical cases (smaller distances) to less prototypical cases (larger distances) and that mothers' attempts to compensate for young children's difficulty with less prototypical cases did not improve their search performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan G Lorenz
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
| | - Jodie M Plumert
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
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Maita MDR, Jauck D, Donnelly S, Peralta O. Socioeconomic Differences in Parental Communication About Location. JOURNAL OF COGNITION AND CULTURE 2018. [DOI: 10.1163/15685373-12340037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
AbstractThis study explored whether parental directions about location differ by socioeconomic status (SES) and whether children’s performance is associated with parental spatial directions. We designed a task in which parents hid a toy in one of five identical boxes in a small-scale space, and then verbally guided their children’s search. Middle-SES(MSES) parents employed more language in general than low-SES(LSES) parents. However, groups used the same amount of spatial terms, suggesting that providing effective spatial directions is probably a matter of quality than quantity. Parents differed in the use of frames of reference; withLSESparents scarcely using them, which resulted in ambiguous reference.MSESparents showed a higher rate of person frames of reference and proximity terms, and their children performed better in the task. Our results suggest that spatial communication including person frames of reference combined with proximity information might be an effective strategy to communicate location.
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Affiliation(s)
- María del Rosario Maita
- Instituto Rosario de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Educación — IRICE, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas — CONICET
| | - Daniela Jauck
- Instituto Rosario de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Educación — IRICE, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas — CONICET
| | - Seamus Donnelly
- City University of New York — CUNY, Graduate CenterSeamus Donnelly is presently at the Research School of Psychology, Australian National University
| | - Olga Peralta
- Instituto Rosario de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Educación — IRICE, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas — CONICET
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Verdine BN, Zimmermann L, Foster L, Marzouk MA, Golinkoff RM, Hirsh-Pasek K, Newcombe N. Effects of Geometric Toy Design on Parent-Child Interactions and Spatial Language. EARLY CHILDHOOD RESEARCH QUARTERLY 2018; 46:126-141. [PMID: 30555211 PMCID: PMC6289199 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2018.03.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Geometric forms have formal definitions. While knowing shape names is considered important for school-readiness, many children do not understand the defining features of shapes until well into elementary school (Satlow & Newcombe, 1998). One reason is likely that they do not encounter enough variety in the shapes they see (citation removed). The present study observed 60 parents and their 3-year-old children during play with geometric toys, exploring how spatial language varied with the nature of the shape-toy set (canonical shapes versus a mix of canonical and unusual or less-canonical variants) and whether geometric shapes were presented as tangible, traditional toys or shown on a touchscreen tablet app. Although children in the app condition heard more shape names than the other conditions due to the language produced by the app itself, children used more overall words and more spatial language with tangible toys that included varied shapes. In addition, parents used more shape names with sons than with daughters and tended to adjust their use of spatial language more in response to varied shape sets with boys, although these findings need replication to evaluate generality. These data suggest that including non-canonical shapes in tangible shape toys may provide a low-cost, high-impact way of refining adult-child interactions that might facilitate children's early geometric knowledge.
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Polinsky N, Perez J, Grehl M, McCrink K. Encouraging Spatial Talk: Using Children's Museums to Bolster Spatial Reasoning. MIND, BRAIN AND EDUCATION : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL MIND, BRAIN, AND EDUCATION SOCIETY 2017; 11:144-152. [PMID: 29422944 PMCID: PMC5798627 DOI: 10.1111/mbe.12145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Longitudinal spatial language intervention studies have shown that greater exposure to spatial language improves children's performance on spatial tasks. Can short naturalistic, spatial language interactions also evoke improved spatial performance? In this study, parents were asked to interact with their child at a block wall exhibit in a children's museum. Some parents were instructed to emphasize formal shape terms, others to emphasize spatial goals, and some were not provided scripts. Children were presented with a series of spatial reasoning tasks before and after this parental interaction, and the amount and type of spatial language during the training session was coded for parents and children. We found that (a) parents significantly increased their spatial language use when prompted, (b) children and parents used different types of spatial language in each of the scripted conditions, and
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Affiliation(s)
- Naomi Polinsky
- Department of Psychology, Barnard College, Columbia University
| | - Jasmin Perez
- Department of Psychology, Barnard College, Columbia University
| | - Mora Grehl
- Department of Psychology, Barnard College, Columbia University
| | - Koleen McCrink
- Department of Psychology, Barnard College, Columbia University
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Borriello GA, Liben LS. Encouraging Maternal Guidance of Preschoolers’ Spatial Thinking During Block Play. Child Dev 2017; 89:1209-1222. [PMID: 28295204 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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Rodway P, Kirkham J, Schepman A, Lambert J, Locke A. The Development of Shared Liking of Representational but not Abstract Art in Primary School Children and Their Justifications for Liking. Front Hum Neurosci 2016; 10:21. [PMID: 26903834 PMCID: PMC4743399 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2015] [Accepted: 01/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding how aesthetic preferences are shared among individuals, and its developmental time course, is a fundamental question in aesthetics. It has been shown that semantic associations, in response to representational artworks, overlap more strongly among individuals than those generated by abstract artworks and that the emotional valence of the associations also overlaps more for representational artworks. This valence response may be a key driver in aesthetic appreciation. The current study tested predictions derived from the semantic association account in a developmental context. Twenty 4-, 6-, 8- and 10-year-old children (n = 80) were shown 20 artworks (10 representational, 10 abstract) and were asked to rate each artwork and to explain their decision. Cross-observer agreement in aesthetic preferences increased with age from 4–8 years for both abstract and representational art. However, after age 6 the level of shared appreciation for representational and abstract artworks diverged, with significantly higher levels of agreement for representational than abstract artworks at age 8 and 10. The most common justifications for representational artworks involved subject matter, while for abstract artworks formal artistic properties and color were the most commonly used justifications. Representational artwork also showed a significantly higher proportion of associations and emotional responses than abstract artworks. In line with predictions from developmental cognitive neuroscience, references to the artist as an agent increased between ages 4 and 6 and again between ages 6 and 8, following the development of Theory of Mind. The findings support the view that increased experience with representational content during the life span reduces inter-individual variation in aesthetic appreciation and increases shared preferences. In addition, brain and cognitive development appear to impact on art appreciation at milestone ages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Rodway
- Department of Psychology, University of Chester Chester, UK
| | - Julie Kirkham
- Department of Psychology, University of Chester Chester, UK
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Maita MDR, Mareovich F, Peralta O. Intentional teaching facilitates young children's comprehension and use of a symbolic object. The Journal of Genetic Psychology 2014; 175:401-15. [PMID: 25271817 DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2014.941320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Children are exposed to symbolic objects that they have to learn to use very early in life. The authors' aim was to examine whether it is possible to intentionally teach young children the symbolic function of an object. They employed a search task in which children had to use a map to find a toy. Experiment 1 revealed that with no instruction 3-year-, 10-month-old children were quite successful; 3-year-, 6-month-olds showed a divided performance; and 3-year-, 0-month-olds failed. With this baseline, Experiment 2 compared the performance of 3-year-, 0-month-olds in three different conditions: no-instruction, complete instruction (before the task begins), and teaching (complete instruction plus corrective feedback); only children in the teaching condition succeeded. However, children 6 months younger, 2-year-, 6-month-olds, failed despite teaching that was provided (Study 3). This research shows that at some points in development instruction is not enough; intentional teaching in communicative contexts is the mechanism that boosts symbolic understanding in early childhood.
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Liben LS. Perceiving and Representing Horizontals: From Laboratories to Natural Environments and Back Again. ECOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2014. [DOI: 10.1080/10407413.2014.875341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Herold K, Akhtar N. Two-year-olds' understanding of self-symbols. BRITISH JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2014; 32:262-75. [PMID: 24588085 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2013] [Revised: 01/21/2014] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
This study investigated 48 2.5-year-olds' ability to map from their own body to a two-dimensional self-representation and also examined relations between parents' talk about body representations and their children's understanding of self-symbols. Children participated in two dual-representation tasks in which they were asked to match body parts between a symbol and its referent. In one task, they used a self-symbol and in the other they used a symbol for a doll. Participants were also read a book about body parts by a parent. As a group, children found the self-symbol task more difficult than the doll-task; however, those whose parents explicitly pointed out the relation between their children's bodies and the symbols in the book performed better on the self-symbol task. The findings demonstrate that 2-year-old children have difficulty comprehending a self-symbol, even when it is two-dimensional and approximately the same size as them, and suggest that parents' talk about self-symbols may facilitate their understanding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine Herold
- Center for Early Education and Development, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA
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Hedges JH, Adolph KE, Amso D, Bavelier D, Fiez JA, Krubitzer L, McAuley JD, Newcombe NS, Fitzpatrick SM, Ghajar J. Play, attention, and learning: how do play and timing shape the development of attention and influence classroom learning? Ann N Y Acad Sci 2013; 1292:1-20. [PMID: 23763338 PMCID: PMC3842829 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.12154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The behavioral and neurobiological connections between play and the development of critical cognitive functions, such as attention, remain largely unknown. We do not yet know how these connections relate to the formation of specific abilities, such as spatial ability, and to learning in formal environments, such as in the classroom. Insights into these issues would be beneficial not only for understanding play, attention, and learning individually, but also for the development of more efficacious systems for learning and for the treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders. Different operational definitions of play can incorporate or exclude varying types of behavior, emphasize varying developmental time points, and motivate different research questions. Relevant questions to be explored in this area include, How do particular kinds of play relate to the development of particular kinds of abilities later in life? How does play vary across societies and species in the context of evolution? Does play facilitate a shift from reactive to predictive timing, and is its connection to timing unique or particularly significant? This report will outline important research steps that need to be taken in order to address these and other questions about play, human activity, and cognitive functions.
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Abstract
In this paper we examine the relations between parent spatial language input, children's own production of spatial language, and children's later spatial abilities. Using a longitudinal study design, we coded the use of spatial language (i.e. words describing the spatial features and properties of objects; e.g. big, tall, circle, curvy, edge) from child age 14 to 46 months in a diverse sample of 52 parent-child dyads interacting in their home settings. These same children were given three non-verbal spatial tasks, items from a Spatial Transformation task (Levine et al., 1999), the Block Design subtest from the WPPSI-III (Wechsler, 2002), and items on the Spatial Analogies subtest from Primary Test of Cognitive Skills (Huttenlocher & Levine, 1990) at 54 months of age. We find that parents vary widely in the amount of spatial language they use with their children during everyday interactions. This variability in spatial language input, in turn, predicts the amount of spatial language children produce, controlling for overall parent language input. Furthermore, children who produce more spatial language are more likely to perform better on spatial problem solving tasks at a later age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shannon M Pruden
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA.
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Levine SC, Ratliff KR, Huttenlocher J, Cannon J. Early puzzle play: a predictor of preschoolers' spatial transformation skill. Dev Psychol 2011; 48:530-42. [PMID: 22040312 DOI: 10.1037/a0025913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 138] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Individual differences in spatial skill emerge prior to kindergarten entry. However, little is known about the early experiences that may contribute to these differences. The current study examined the relation between children's early puzzle play and their spatial skill. Children and parents (n = 53) were observed at home for 90 min every 4 months (6 times) between 2 and 4 years of age (26 to 46 months). When children were 4 years 6 months old, they completed a spatial task involving mental transformations of 2-dimensional shapes. Children who were observed playing with puzzles performed better on this task than those who did not, controlling for parent education, income, and overall parent word types. Moreover, among those children who played with puzzles, frequency of puzzle play predicted performance on the spatial transformation task. Although the frequency of puzzle play did not differ for boys and girls, the quality of puzzle play (a composite of puzzle difficulty, parent engagement, and parent spatial language) was higher for boys than for girls. In addition, variation in puzzle play quality predicted performance on the spatial transformation task for girls but not for boys. Implications of these findings as well as future directions for research on the role of puzzle play in the development of spatial skill are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susan C Levine
- Department of Psychology, University of Chicago, 5848 South University Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
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Wolbers T, Hegarty M. What determines our navigational abilities? Trends Cogn Sci 2010; 14:138-46. [PMID: 20138795 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2010.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 389] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2009] [Revised: 01/04/2010] [Accepted: 01/04/2010] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Abstract
Children and even some adults struggle to understand and use maps. In the symbolic realm, users must appreciate that the marks on a surface stand for environments and must understand how to interpret individual symbols. In the spatial realm, users must understand how representational space is used to depict environmental space. To do so, they must understand the consequences of cartographic decisions about the map's viewing distance, viewing angle, viewing azimuth, and geometric projection. Research identifies age-linked progressions in symbolic and spatial map understanding that are linked to normative representational and spatial development, and reveals striking individual differences. Current work focuses on identifying experiences associated with better map understanding. New technologies for acquiring, manipulating, analyzing, and displaying geo-referenced data challenge users and researchers alike.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lynn S. Liben
- Department of Social and Legal Psychology, University of Bonn
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Ganea PA, Allen ML, Butler L, Carey S, DeLoache JS. Toddlers' referential understanding of pictures. J Exp Child Psychol 2009; 104:283-95. [PMID: 19560783 PMCID: PMC2865246 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2009.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2008] [Revised: 05/21/2009] [Accepted: 05/21/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Pictures are referential in that they can represent objects in the real world. Here we explore the emergence of understanding of the referential potential of pictures during the second year of life. In Study 1, 15-, 18-, and 24-month-olds learned a word for a picture of a novel object (e.g., "blicket") in the context of a picture book interaction. Later they were presented with the picture of a blicket along with the real object it depicted and asked to indicate the blicket. Many of the 24-, 18-, and even 15-month-olds indicated the real object as an instance of a blicket, consistent with an understanding of the referential relation between pictures and objects. In Study 2, children were tested with an exemplar object that differed in color from the depicted object to determine whether they would extend the label they had learned for the depicted object to a slightly different category member. The 15-, 18-, and 24-month-old participants failed to make a consistent referential response. The results are discussed in terms of whether pictorial understanding at this age is associative or symbolic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patricia A Ganea
- Department of Psychology, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
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28
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Les caractéristiques de la collaboration mère-enfant à 48 mois dans deux tâches de numération. ANNEE PSYCHOLOGIQUE 2009. [DOI: 10.4074/s0003503308001024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Ganea PA, Pickard MB, DeLoache JS. Transfer between Picture Books and the Real World by Very Young Children. JOURNAL OF COGNITION AND DEVELOPMENT 2008. [DOI: 10.1080/15248370701836592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Troseth GL, Casey AM, Lawver KA, Walker JMT, Cole DA. Naturalistic Experience and the Early Use of Symbolic Artifacts. JOURNAL OF COGNITION AND DEVELOPMENT 2007. [DOI: 10.1080/15248370701446772] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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31
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Szechter LE, Liben LS. Children's aesthetic understanding of photographic art and the quality of art-related parent-child interactions. Child Dev 2007; 78:879-94. [PMID: 17517010 DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.01038.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
This research was designed to examine the quality of children's aesthetic understanding of photographs, observe social interactions between parents and children in this aesthetic domain, and study whether qualitatively different dyadic interactions were associated with children's own aesthetic understanding. Parents and children (7-13 years; 40 dyads) individually completed measures of aesthetic understanding and jointly selected photographs for a souvenir scrapbook. Parents' artistic experience varied widely and was associated with their own performance on aesthetic understanding measures. Children's performance on the individual aesthetic tasks was related to age, but not to parents' art experience nor to the qualities of parent-child discussions of aesthetic concepts. Among both parents and children, artistic experience was associated with aesthetic preferences for photographs.
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Callaghan TC, Rochat P, MacGillivray T, MacLellan C. Modeling referential actions in 6- to 18-month-old infants: a precursor to symbolic understanding. Child Dev 2005; 75:1733-44. [PMID: 15566376 DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00813.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Social precursors to symbolic understanding of pictures were examined with 100 infants ages 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 months. Adults demonstrated 1 of 2 stances toward pictures and objects (contemplative or manipulative), and then gave items to infants for exploration. For pictures, older infants (12, 15, and 18 months) emulated the adult's actions following both types of demonstration trials. For objects, infants did not emulate actions following either stance at any age. The findings suggest that infants enlist their imitative learning skills in the context of learning the conventions of action on pictorial symbols. The data are interpreted as pointing to the importance of social learning in developing an understanding of the referential function of pictorial symbols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tara C Callaghan
- Department of Psychology, St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, N.S. B2G 2W5, Canada.
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Gelman SA, Chesnick RJ, Waxman SR. Mother-Child Conversations About Pictures and Objects: Referring to Categories and Individuals. Child Dev 2005. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2005.00876.x-i1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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