Biomedical subjects

D L Vandell

Publications and source records attributed to D L Vandell.

17 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2000

Effects of parental separation and divorce on very young children.

Data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care were analyzed to explore effects of marital separation on children in the first 3 years of life. The sample included 73 never-married mothers and 97 separated mothers; a comparison group of 170 was conditionally randomly selected from the 2-parent families. Children in 2-parent families performed better than children in 1-parent families on assessments of cognitive and social abilities, problem behavior, attachment security, and behavior with mother. However, controlling for mothers' education and family income reduced these differences, and associations with separated-intact marital status were nonsignificant (the effect size was .01). Thus, children's psychological development was not affected by parental separation per se; it was related to mothers' income, education, ethnicity, child-rearing beliefs, depressive symptoms, and behavior.

Adult↗

PubMed2000

Parents, peer groups, and other socializing influences.

Three propositions that are central to J. R. Harris's group socialization theory (1995, 1998) are considered in this review. These propositions are as follows: (a) Parental behaviors have no long-term effects on children's psychological characteristics, (b) peer groups are the primary environmental influence on psychological functioning, and (c) dyadic relationships are situation-specific and do not generalize. The evidence that J. R. Harris has outlined in support of each of these propositions is reviewed, as is additional empirical research not considered by J. R. Harris. Serious limitations to each proposition are identified. The available evidence is more consistent with a model of multiple socialization agents. An expanded research agenda that permits a more definitive test of J. R. Harris's propositions and social relationship theory is proposed.

Child↗

PubMed1999

After-school activities and the development of low-income urban children: a longitudinal study.

After-school activities of 194 African American and White children from low-income households were studied from 3rd to 5th grade to determine relations with (a) child, family, and contextual variables and (b) children's adjustment over time. Girls were more likely to engage in academic activities and socializing, whereas boys were more likely to play coached sports. Children who attended after-school programs spent more time on academic and extracurricular activities, whereas children in informal care settings spent more time watching TV and hanging out. Evidence of transactional relations between after-school activities and child adjustment was found. Time spent in activities between 3rd and 5th grades was related to children's adjustment in 5th grade. In addition, child adjustment measured in 3rd grade was associated with time in different activities in 5th grade.

Black or African American↗

PubMed1999

Derivation and prediction of temperamental types among preschoolers.

The number and nature of temperamental types in 488 children aged 3 years 6 months was examined on the basis of a broad set of temperamental characteristics, including positive and negative emotionality and the attentional and behavioral control domains. Configural frequency analysis methods showed clear support for two temperament types: controlled-nonexpressive and noncontrolled-expressive. These types showed meaningful differences against external criteria related to a wide range of problem behaviors from the emotional, social, and attentional domains. The reports of problem behaviors were obtained contemporaneously from fathers and caregivers. These findings replicated a year later when children were aged 4 years 6 months. Furthermore, the findings showed that infant and toddler-age temperamental characteristics differentiated these preschool-aged types. The authors discuss the implications of the results for a categorical view of temperament-personality.

Attention↗

PubMed1999

After-school child care programs.

When the public, elected officials, and child advocates focus on the risks and opportunities inherent in after-school hours, discussions quickly hone in on the benefits that after-school programs might offer. This article points out, however, that parents and children consider a wide variety of options for the after-school hours. Children may be with a parent or relative, they may go to lessons or play sports, they may spend time alone or with friends. For many children, this pattern of activities is reflective of their families' resources and neighborhood surroundings as well as their own needs and interests. Drawing on recent studies, this article documents children's experiences in different settings, discusses the variable quality of after-school programs, and indicates how program participation and exposure to self-care can affect children's adjustment in elementary school.

Child↗

PubMed1998

Perceptions of danger: a psychological mediator of neighborhood demographic characteristics.

Associations between neighborhood characteristics and adjustment of 168 urban fifth-grade children were explored. High neighborhood risk was associated with parent and teacher reports of child misconduct, and with parent and child reports of child psychological distress, while child and parent perceptions of neighborhood dangers appeared to mediate these associations. Specific neighborhood aspects were also related to child adjustment: higher violent crime rates with higher child misconduct rates, and lower neighborhood incomes with greater child psychological distress. Implications for research and intervention are discussed.

Chi-Square Distribution↗

PubMed1996

Quality of care at school-aged child-care programs: regulatable features, observed experiences, child perspectives, and parent perspectives.

This study investigates children's experiences at 30 school-aged child-care (SACC) programs. Regulatable features such as total enrollment, child-staff ratio, and staff education were assessed via director report. Observers recorded positive/neutral and negative staff-child interactions, and rated programs in terms of flexibility and age appropriateness. Negative staff-child interactions were more frequent when child-staff ratios were larger and when staff had less formal education. The presence of a greater number of different types of program activities was associated with staff having more frequent positive interactions with children and with observers rating programs as flexible and age appropriate. These regulatable and observed features were examined in relation to children's (N = 180) and parents' (N = 152) perceptions of program psychosocial climate. Children's reports of overall climate, emotional support from staff, and autonomy/privacy provisions were predicted by program features. Children reported poorer program climate when programs had larger enrollments and when observers recorded more frequent negative staff-child interactions. Children had more positive program perceptions when programs offered a greater variety of activities. Children's reports of program climate in addition to observed child-staff ratios were associated with parental perceptions of the programs. Parents had more positive perceptions when child-adult ratios were smaller and when their children reported more positive climates. This study suggests a convergence between observer, child, and parent about factors contributing to quality of after-school programs.

Attitude↗

PubMed1994

Low-income children's after-school care: are there beneficial effects of after-school programs?

4 types of after-school care (formal after-school programs, mother care, informal adult supervision, and self-care) were examined for 216 low-income children (M age = 9.1 years). After-school care was associated with maternal education, race, and family income but not with child gender, family marital status, neighborhood safety, or parenting style. When maternal education, race, and family income were controlled, attending a formal after-school program was associated with better academic achievement an social adjustment in comparison to other types of after-school care. Children's activities and experiences also varied in different after-school settings. Children in formal programs spent more time in academic activities and enrichment lessons and less time watching TV and playing outside unsupervised than other children. They also spent more time doing activities with peers and adults and less time with siblings than did other children. The time that children spent in these activities was correlated with their academic and conduct grades, peer relations, and emotional adjustment.

Child↗

PubMed1992

Effects of early and recent maternal employment on children from low-income families.

The effects of early maternal employment (employment during the child's first 3 years) and recent maternal employment (employment during the previous 3 years) on 189 second-grade children from low-income families were examined. Maternal employment was related to a number of selection factors. In comparison to mothers who were not employed, employed mothers scored higher on a mental aptitude test and were more highly educated. Both early and recent maternal employment were also associated with measures of the current family functioning: there was less poverty and higher HOME environment scores when mothers were employed. Hierarchical multiple regressions showed that children's math achievement was positively predicted by early maternal employment and children's reading achievement was positively predicted by recent maternal employment, even after controlling for selection effects and current family environment. These results are discussed in terms of possible mechanisms by which maternal employment may affect children's development.

Achievement↗

PubMed1990

Child care and the family: complex contributors to child development.

In a state with minimal child care standards, we found pervasive differences in third graders associated with earlier child care histories. More extensive child are predicted children receiving more negative ratings from parents and teachers, poorer academic and conduct grades, lower standardized test scores, and more negative sociometric nominations. In addition, for some variables (IQ, work habits negative peer nominations, and compliance ratings) there was evidence of interactive effects in which both extensive infant care and exclusive maternal care were associated with more problematical functioning, depending on parental marital status, social class, and child gender. We found no evidence of negative effects associated with part-time care. This study has several important limitations that should be acknowledged. The first is the danger of generalizing these results to states and communities with higher-quality child care standards than those imposed in Texas. They may, unfortunately, be generalizable to the twenty states with child care regulations similar to those in Texas. This study has another important limitation. It did not examine the underlying processes that might contribute to the effects of child care history. For example, we do not know if the differences in children who were in part-time versus extensive child care are owing to (1) differences in the children's experiences while they are in the child care settings, or (2) differences in the quality of interactions that occur when the two groups of children are at home, or (3) some combination of children's experiences in child care and the family.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1988

The relation between third graders' after-school care and social, academic, and emotional functioning.

Outcome differences associated with types of after-school care were explored among 150 white, predominantly middle-class third graders from a suburban school system. Children returned home to their mothers, attended day-care centers, stayed with sitters, or returned home alone or with siblings. No differences were found between latchkey and mother-care children in terms of their classroom sociometric nominations, academic grades, standardized test scores, conduct grades, self-reports of self-competence, or parent and teacher ratings of the children. Significant differences were found for children who attended day-care centers after school. These children received more negative peer nominations, made lower academic grades, and had lower standardized test scores than either mother-care or latchkey children. The children who stayed with sitters after school received more negative peer nominations than the latchkey and mother-care children but, in other areas, resembled these groups. These outcome differences were apparent in both divorced and intact families. Factors contributing to these differences are examined.

Achievement↗

PubMed1987

Infants' interactions with mother, sibling, and peer: contrasts and relations between interaction systems.

The role of the mother in structuring interactions with the infant during free play was examined at 6 and 9 months. Maternal scaffolding of turn-taking exchanges was then contrasted to the forms of turn-taking apparent in sibling-infant and peer-infant observations. Infants spent more time in turn-taking exchanges with their mothers than with their siblings or peers. These exchanges most often took the form of mothers creating sequences by responding to infants' social and nonsocial acts and by eliciting social and nonsocial responses from the infants. Infants' exchanges with older siblings were briefer and more typically involved the older children eliciting nonsocial responses from the infants but not responding contingently to the infants' interests and actions. Infant peers spent less time in turn-taking exchanges, and their interactions showed less evidence of scaffolding. At the same time, the proportion of strictly social interactions was greatest with peers. Relations were apparent between infants' turn-taking experiences with their mothers and the infants' subsequent interactions with their siblings and with their peers. Relations were also found between infants' interaction experiences with their older siblings and subsequent peer interaction. Those infants with more extensive turn-taking experience with more skilled social partners were subsequently observed to engage in more extensive turn-taking interactions with a peer. These results are discussed in terms of studies on mother-infant attachment and peer competence, maternal scaffolding, and Vygotsky's zone of proximal development.

Child Development↗

PubMed1986

Ethnic, gender, and age preferences among deaf and hearing preschool peers.

The present study concerns ethnic, age, and gender playmate preferences of deaf and hearing preschoolers who were observed during outdoor free play at their respective schools over a 7-month period. Hispanic, black, and white children were included. It was hypothesized that peer preferences would be less apparent among deaf children than among hearing children if these preferences were based on (a) language differences between ethnic groups (e.g., Spanish-English differences), age groups (e.g., verbal fluency differences), or gender groups; or (b) cultural values communicated by speech. Both deaf and hearing children preferred to play with children of the same ethnicity, gender, and age as themselves. In addition, play among children of the same ethnicity, gender, and age was qualitatively different from play among children of different ethnicity, gender, and age. The only effect of deafness was to decrease the amount of gender segregation that occurred. The results suggest that the development of ethnic, gender, and age playmate preferences is not dependent on intergroup language differences or spoken cultural messages. Several nonlinguistic factors that might contribute to early peer preferences are discussed.

Age Factors↗

PubMed1983

Day care quality and children's free play activities.

Social and nonsocial behavior of white, middle-class preschoolers in high, moderate, and low quality day care centers were contrasted. Children in high quality centers were more likely to interact positively with adults, while children in lower quality programs were more likely to engage in solitary play and aimless wandering.

Child Behavior↗

PubMed1982

Integrating hearing and deaf preschoolers: an attempt to enhance hearing children's interactions with deaf peers.

In this study, an attempt was made to modify hearing preschoolers' frequent and persistent refusal to interact with profoundly deaf peers. Half of the hearing children involved in a low-key mainstreaming program participated in a special 3-week training program that included discussions about the meaning of deafness, an opportunity to practice communication techniques effective with deaf children, and free-play interactions with deaf children. Prior to the intervention, no differences were found in the treatment and control children's interaction frequencies and duration or in the types of acts used to initiate interactions. Significant differences were found, however, following the heightened involvement. Hearing treatment children began interacting significantly less with the deaf children than did hearing control children. Hearing treatment children also became less responsive to the deaf children's attempts to interact than were hearing control children. While it was hypothesized that increased exposure would result in hearing treatment children using more gestures, touches, and messages incorporating multiple modalities, they came to use significantly fewer of these acts than did the hearing control children. The deaf children remained relatively unaffected by the intervention. These results are discussed in terms of their relevance for other mainstreaming programs and for research on the growth of social competence in general.

Child Behavior↗

PubMed1981

Social interaction in hearing and deaf preschoolers: successes and failures in initiations.

Dyadic free play of 32 children (16 deaf, 16 hearing) who attended the same preschool was videotaped on 2 occasions, once with a hearing partner and once with a deaf partner. Each 15-min play session was analyzed in terms of the hearing and deaf children's initiation strategies, their responsiveness to one another's initiations, and the characteristics of successful and unsuccessful initiations. Results indicated that mean interaction duration and proportion of time spent in interaction were greater in "like" (hearing child and hearing partner or deaf child and deaf partner) as opposed to "mixed" dyads. Contrary to previous hypotheses about inadequate communication skills, deaf children were found to be persistent initiators who frequently combined social acts. Underlying similarities were also apparent in the types of initiating acts used by hearing and deaf children. At the same time, however, the deaf preschoolers encountered interaction difficulties. Their initiation attempts were more likely than those of their hearing counterparts to be actively refused. They were also more likely to be recipients of inappropriate initiations, such as gestures or vocalizations to their backs. These results were discussed in terms of previous hypotheses about inferior social skills of the deaf and for their relevance to programs interested in integrating hearing and nonhearing children.

Child, Preschool↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Experiences in after-school programs and children's adjustment in first-grade classrooms.

The experiences of 150 children in after-school programs were examined in relation to performance in first grade. Three aspects of program experiences (emotional climate, quality of peer interactions, and program curriculum) were associated with the children's concurrent adjustment at school, controlling for family selection factors. Staff positivity in the after-school programs was associated with boys displaying fewer internalizing and externalizing problems, whereas staff negativity was related to boys obtaining poorer grades in reading and math. Program flexibility was associated with boys having better social skills. More frequent negative interactions with peers in the programs were related to more internalizing and externalizing problems, and poorer social skills at school. Boys who attended programs offering a larger number of different activities had more internalizing and externalizing problems, and poorer grades in reading and math. After-school experiences also were related to girls' behaviors, but associations were less apparent for girls than boys.

Adaptation, Psychological↗