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- Genre: Doctoral Dissertation
Description
In two separate publications, the average patterns of, and individual differences in, preschoolers' selective attention processes were investigated using a multilevel modeling framework. In Publication 1, using two independent samples (Ns= 42, 75), preschoolers' selective attention towards different types of emotions (both positive and negative) was examined using two eye-tracking tasks. The results showed that, on average, children selectively attended to valenced emotional information more than neutral emotional information. In addition, a majority of children were able to detect the different emotional stimulus among three neutral stimuli during the visual search task. Children were more likely to detect angry than sad emotional expressions among neutral faces; however, no difference was found between detection of angry and happy faces among neutral faces. In Publication 2, the associations of children's anger and sadness proneness to their attention biases towards anger and sad emotional information, respectively, and the relations of these biases to various aspects children's social functioning and adjustment were examined among preschool-aged children (N = 75). Children's predisposition to anger and sadness were shown to be related to attentional biases towards those specific emotions, particularly if children lacked the ability to regulate their attention. Similarly, components of attention regulation played an important role in moderating the associations of biases towards angry information to aggressive behaviors, social competence, and anxiety symptoms. Biases towards sadness were unrelated to maladjustment or social functioning. Findings were discussed in terms of the importance of attention biases and attention regulation as well as the implications of the findings for attention training programs.
ContributorsSeyed Nozadi, Sara (Author) / Spinrad, Tracy L. (Thesis advisor) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Committee member) / Johnson, Scott (Committee member) / Thompson, Marilyn (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
This study drew upon a bioecological framework to empirically investigate the relations between environmental chaos and preschoolers' language across time, including the potentially mediating roles of children's effortful control and parenting. Child sex also was examined as a moderator of these relations. For this study, the following data were collected at 30, 42, and 54 months of age. Household chaos and (at 30 months) socioeconomic status (SES) were reported by mothers. Children's effortful control (EC) was rated by mothers and nonparental caregivers, and was observed during a number of laboratory tasks. Maternal vocalizations were assessed during free play sessions with their children (at 30 and 42 months), and supportive and unsupportive parenting behaviors and affect were observed during free play and teaching tasks at each age. Mothers also reported on their own reactions to children's negative emotions. Finally, (at 54 months) children's expressive and receptive language was measured with a standard assessment. Structural equation modeling and path analyses indicated that SES at 30 months and greater levels of household chaos at 42 months predicted not only poorer language skills, but also deficits in children's EC and less supportive parenting in low-income mothers at 54 months, even when controlling for stability in these constructs. Children's effortful control at 42 months, but not parenting, positively predicted later language, suggesting that EC may play a mediating role in the relations between household chaos, as well as SES, and preschoolers' language abilities. Child sex did not moderate the pattern of relations. Post-hoc analyses also indicated that the negative relation between chaos and language was significant only for children who had low EC at 42 months. This study represents a much-needed addition to the currently limited longitudinal research examining environmental chaos and children's developmental outcomes. Importantly, findings from this study elucidate an important process underlying the links between chaos and children's language development, which can inform interventions and policies designed to support families and children living in chaotic home environments.
ContributorsGaertner, Bridget Maria (Author) / Spinrad, Tracy L. (Thesis advisor) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Committee member) / Hanish, Laura (Committee member) / Bradley, Robert (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
The purpose of this study was to examine whether maternal personality (i.e., Agreeableness and Conscientiousness) predicted maternal positive parenting (i.e., warmth/sensitivity and structure), and whether maternal parenting predicted children's regulation and sympathy and/or prosocial behavior. Additionally, the mediated effect of maternal warmth/sensitivity on the relation between maternal Agreeableness and children's regulation and the mediated effect of maternal structure on the relation between maternal Agreeableness and children's observed sympathy/prosocial behavior were investigated. Maternal personality was measured when children (N = 256 at Time 1) were 18 months old; maternal parenting was assessed when children were 18, 30, and 42 months old; children's regulation and sympathy/prosocial behavior (observed and reported) were assessed when children were 30, 42, and 54 months old. Mothers reported on their personality; maternal warmth/sensitivity was observed; maternal structure was observed and mothers also reported on their use of reasoning; mothers and caregivers rated children's regulation (i.e., effortful control [EC]) and regulation was also observed; mothers and fathers rated children's prosocial behavior; sympathy and prosocial behavior were also observed. In a path analysis, Conscientiousness did not significantly predict maternal warmth/sensitivity or structure at 30 months, whereas Agreeableness marginally predicted maternal warmth/sensitivity at 30 months and significantly predicted maternal structure at 30 months. Maternal warmth/sensitivity at 18 months significantly predicted 30-month EC, and 30-month maternal warmth/sensitivity significantly predicted 42-month EC. Maternal structure at 30 months significantly predicted 42-month observed sympathy/prosocial behavior. Maternal warmth/sensitivity at 42 months significantly predicted 54-month observed sympathy/prosocial behavior and marginally predicted 54-month reported prosocial behavior. Maternal structure and EC did not significantly predict reported prosocial behavior across any time point. EC did not significantly predict observed sympathy/prosocial behavior across any time point and maternal warmth/sensitivity at 18 and 30 months did not predict observed or reported sympathy/prosocial behavior at 30 or 42 months, respectively. Maternal Agreeableness directly predicted 30-month reported prosocial behavior and additional paths suggested possible bidirectional relations between maternal warmth/sensitivity and structure. Mediation analyses were pursued for two indirect relations; however, neither mediated effect was significant. Additional results are presented, and findings (as well as lack thereof) are discussed in terms of extant literature.
ContributorsEdwards, Alison (Author) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Thesis advisor) / Spinrad, Tracy L. (Thesis advisor) / Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn (Committee member) / Bradley, Robert A. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2015
Description
Social-emotional competence (SEC), or effectiveness of social interaction, plays a central role in children’s health and well-being. The three goals of the current study were to describe the development of SEC during a preschool year; identify an appropriate factor structure for observed teacher-child interactions; and predict SEC growth from children’s characteristics (emotional competence, language risk, gender, and race/ethnicity), teacher-child relationship quality, and classroom characteristics (relational climate, observed teacher-child interaction quality, and curriculum). Children’s social competence, anger/aggression, effortful control, and emotion knowledge (N =822) was assessed at three time points during a preschool year via teachers’ reports and behavioral assessments. In the fall, teachers reported the quality of their relationships with children and teacher-child interactions were observed in classrooms. Aim 1 results indicated that children exhibited linear increases in effortful control and social competence and stability in anger/aggression, although social competence was the only construct where linear change varied among children. Due to a lack of longitudinal measurement invariance, growth in latent emotion knowledge could not be evaluated. Several gender and racial/ethnic differences were identified in SEC intercepts, but not the social competence slope. Language risk and impulsivity were consistent predictors of SEC intercepts. Aim 2 results indicated that teacher-child interaction quality was primarily unidimensional. Finally, results from aim 3 indicated that children’s emotional competence at the beginning of the year and classroom relational climate were predictive of growth in social competence. End-of-year social competence levels were associated with supportive teacher-child relationship quality (particularly among girls), high emotional competence, low language risk, and supportive classroom relational climate; girls had higher social competence than boys. Although not directly associated with social competence, observed teacher-child interaction quality was conditionally predictive of the social competence in the context of supportive teacher-child relationships. Further, when observed teacher-child interaction quality was average or high, children with low emotional competence exhibited greater growth in social competence than children with high emotional competence. The results inform our understanding of SEC development, the nature of teacher-child interactions in preschool classrooms serving high-risk populations, and potential school-based mechanisms for promoting social competence.
ContributorsJohns, Sarah Katherine (Author) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Thesis advisor) / Spinrad, Tracy L. (Committee member) / Bradley, Robert H. (Committee member) / Grimm, Kevin J. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2020
Description
Parental psychological control refers to parental behaviors that intrude into children’s and adolescents’ psychological world and prevent youths’ development of independence and autonomy. Although researchers have argued the detrimental role of parental psychological control in various youths’ developmental outcomes, the association between parental psychological control and adolescents’ physical aggression has been studied infrequently. In this study, I performed a secondary data analysis using data from the Parenting Across Cultures study to investigate potential bidirectional associations of maternal psychological control and paternal psychological control with adolescents’ physical aggression across early- to mid-adolescence in Italy, Thailand, Sweden, the United States, and Colombia. Using a traditional cross-lagged panel model and a random-intercept cross-lagged panel model, the results indicated that across countries, adolescents’ physical aggression at Time 1 (approximately 12 years old) positively predicted fathers’, but not mothers’, psychological control at Time 2 (approximately 14 years old). Further, individual and familial factors such as child age, puberty level, and family socioeconomic status (SES) had significant associations with maternal psychological control, paternal psychological control, and adolescents’ physical aggression across countries and time points. No “maternal effect” or “paternal effect” was found of parental psychological control on adolescents’ physical aggression. This study provided novel information suggestive of adolescents’ role in eliciting parental behaviors, especially the responses of fathers. Suggestions for future research were provided to facilitate a better understanding of parental psychological control and child development in cross-country context.
ContributorsXu, Jingyi (Author) / Eggum-Wilkens, Natalie D. (Thesis advisor) / Bradley, Robert H. (Committee member) / Jager, Justin (Committee member) / Spinrad, Tracy L. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021