Developmental psychology

AbstractOral Language and the Approximate Number System – A Preliminary Study Janice Shewen The approximate number system (ANS) involves the processing of rudimentary quantity and is thought to be an innate developmental building block for mathematics and its sister construct, the symbolic system. The conventional belief is that the ANS is language independent; however, this notion is questioned and explored in the current study, which represents a preliminary investigation into the concurrent and longitudinal relations between different aspects of oral language and the ANS in 4-year-old children and one year later when they were 5. A sample of 26 children (13 boys;13 girls) with average intelligence completed standardized measures of oral language and verbal memory, and a computerized quantity discrimination task that required children to accurately discern between two visually presented quantities. Correlational analysis showed concurrent and longitudinal relations between different aspects of language and quantity discrimination. This suggests that different aspects of language predict quantity discrimination over a one-year period and challenge the current and accepted theory that the ANS is a language independent system. The findings also have implications for early childhood education – avenues to strengthen a child's ANS via targeted oral language instruction, curricula, and subsequent provision of experiences. The findings also support early oral language screening to monitor or provide opportunities for improving quantity approximation skills. This early intervention could impact later symbolic processing and mathematic success. Keywords: Non-symbolic system, approximate number system, quantity discrimination, symbolic system, oral language, morphology, syntax, semantics, relational concepts.

Author Keywords: Approximate Number System, Non-symbolic system, oral language, quantity discrimination, symbolic system

The crucial role of parents in shaping child development has been widely recognized, with extensive research focusing on various aspects such as parenting styles, attachment relationships, and specific parenting practices. Mind-mindedness, defined as a parent's ability to recognize and understand their child's mental states, is emerging as an important factor in child development. The present study sought to investigate cross-cultural differences in maternal mind-mindedness, parenting practices, and their relationship to child compliance in China and Canada. The participants included 136 Chinese mother-child dyads and 83 Canadian mother-child dyads, with children ranging from ages 4 to 7. Maternal mind-mindedness, parenting practices, and child compliance were coded through observational method. Results suggest that while Canadian mothers were more mind-minded, Chinese mothers were more power assertive. Moreover, maternal parenting practices mediated the relationship between mind-mindedness and child compliance in China. This study cultivated a culturally sensitive understanding of the parent-child relationship.

Author Keywords: Child Compliance, Culture, Maternal Involvement, Mind-Mindedness, Parenting, Power Assertion

Social anxiety involves negative thoughts and self-focused attention during social interactions. This self-evaluation can involve reflections regarding the body or body image, which may have an impact on social experiences. Body image is experienced in a negative (body dissatisfaction) and positive (body appreciation) way. The present study investigated the relation between symptoms of social anxiety and various aspects of body image in older adolescents and young adults. Quantitative results demonstrated considerable overlap between social anxiety and body image, with the qualitative results further supporting the rationale that symptoms consistent with social anxiety occur within those with body image concerns. Seven themes emerged and they were physical attributes, societal influence, appearance-driven coping strategies, impact on social life and relationships, discomfort with appearance, social avoidance, and appearance monitoring.

Despite the extensive application of Baumrind's parenting style typology, some argue that it may not adequately capture the implicit warmth Chinese parents embrace. This study attempted to examine whether mind-mindedness could be a key indicator for helping children understand the benevolent intentions behind their mothers' authoritarian parenting practices. Specifically, this study investigated the variations in parenting styles, mind-mindedness, and children's behavior problems in Canada and China, the relationship among these variables, and the moderating effect of mind-mindedness on the relationship between authoritarian parenting and children's behavior problems. Participants were 83 Canadian and 136 Chinese mother-child dyads. Data on parenting styles, mind-mindedness, and problem behaviors were collected from maternal reports and lab observations. As expected, while Chinese mothers exhibited more authoritarian tendencies than Canadian mothers, their mind-mindedness buffer against the negative effect of maternal high-power strategies on children's behavior problems after controlling for maternal age and education. These results provide new perspectives on understanding Chinese parenting.

Author Keywords: culture, externalizing behaviors, internalizing behaviors, mind-mindedness, parenting styles, preschoolers

This study investigates associations between self-other differentiation (the ability to distinguish and coordinate the self and other perspective during social problem-solving) and specific ego functions (reality testing, judgement, sense of reality, object relations, and synthetic-integrative function) from a cognitive perspective in two groups of adolescents aged 12 to 18 years. One group was referred for mental health problems (clinic-referred, n = 129) and the other was a typically developing comparison group (control, n = 184). Clinic-referred adolescents scored significantly lower in both self-other differentiation and ego functions compared to nonclinic-referred adolescents, suggesting a potential relation with adolescent mental health. While self-other differentiation was generally associated with ego function, no moderating effect of clinic referral was observed. Findings suggest a link between self-other differentiation and different aspects of judgement (the ability to anticipate consequences, understand reactions, and learn from past mistakes).

Author Keywords: adolescence, ego function, interpersonal negotiation strategies, mental health problems, self-other differentiation, social problem solving

Risk-taking (e.g., dangerous driving, substance use) rises during adolescence and can result in both adaptive consequences (e.g., social acceptance) and maladaptive consequences (e.g., alcohol poisoning, premature death). Adolescents also experience an increase in self-conscious emotions, including shame. Shame-prone adolescents may engage in risk-taking to cope with negative self-perceptions. Previous research is contradictory, however, finding shame and risk-taking to be positively correlated, negatively correlated, or not related at all. One reason for this may be that shame was assessed as an overall construct. Some conceptualizations of shame dictate that people can experience several types of shame, including body (e.g., shame about physical appearance), character (e.g., shame of personal habits), and behavioural (e.g., shame about doing something wrong). Our study fills this gap by examining how different types of shame are related to different types of risk-taking behaviours and subsequent outcomes. Practical implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Author Keywords: Adolescence, Behaviour shame, Body shame, Character shame, Emerging adulthood, Risk-taking

AbstractOral Language and the Approximate Number System – A Preliminary Study Janice Shewen The approximate number system (ANS) involves the processing of rudimentary quantity and is thought to be an innate developmental building block for mathematics and its sister construct, the symbolic system. The conventional belief is that the ANS is language independent; however, this notion is questioned and explored in the current study, which represents a preliminary investigation into the concurrent and longitudinal relations between different aspects of oral language and the ANS in 4-year-old children and one year later when they were 5. A sample of 26 children (13 boys;13 girls) with average intelligence completed standardized measures of oral language and verbal memory, and a computerized quantity discrimination task that required children to accurately discern between two visually presented quantities. Correlational analysis showed concurrent and longitudinal relations between different aspects of language and quantity discrimination. This suggests that different aspects of language predict quantity discrimination over a one-year period and challenge the current and accepted theory that the ANS is a language independent system. The findings also have implications for early childhood education – avenues to strengthen a child's ANS via targeted oral language instruction, curricula, and subsequent provision of experiences. The findings also support early oral language screening to monitor or provide opportunities for improving quantity approximation skills. This early intervention could impact later symbolic processing and mathematic success. Keywords: Non-symbolic system, approximate number system, quantity discrimination, symbolic system, oral language, morphology, syntax, semantics, relational concepts.

Author Keywords: Approximate Number System, Non-symbolic system, oral language, quantity discrimination, symbolic system

Despite the extensive application of Baumrind's parenting style typology, some argue that it may not adequately capture the implicit warmth Chinese parents embrace. This study attempted to examine whether mind-mindedness could be a key indicator for helping children understand the benevolent intentions behind their mothers' authoritarian parenting practices. Specifically, this study investigated the variations in parenting styles, mind-mindedness, and children's behavior problems in Canada and China, the relationship among these variables, and the moderating effect of mind-mindedness on the relationship between authoritarian parenting and children's behavior problems. Participants were 83 Canadian and 136 Chinese mother-child dyads. Data on parenting styles, mind-mindedness, and problem behaviors were collected from maternal reports and lab observations. As expected, while Chinese mothers exhibited more authoritarian tendencies than Canadian mothers, their mind-mindedness buffer against the negative effect of maternal high-power strategies on children's behavior problems after controlling for maternal age and education. These results provide new perspectives on understanding Chinese parenting.

Author Keywords: culture, externalizing behaviors, internalizing behaviors, mind-mindedness, parenting styles, preschoolers

Researchers have found associations between attachment, childhood adversity, and posttraumatic stress symptoms; however, the underlying mechanisms between these variables remains unknown. The present study explored the moderating effects of childhood adversity on the relationship between adult attachment and posttraumatic stress symptoms in two samples. In total, 533 undergraduate students and 357 individuals recruited from online communities completed measures of childhood adversity, adult attachment, and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to test the moderating effect on childhood adversity. One-way ANOVA post hoc analyses were run to assess mean differences of attachment and posttraumatic stress across five childhood adversity groups. The results suggested that attachment and childhood adversity do predict posttraumatic stress symptoms; however, there was no significant moderating effect of adversity found. The post hoc analyses revealed significant mean differences for secure attachment, avoidant attachment, and posttraumatic stress symptoms. The findings suggest that attachment and childhood adversity are significantly associated with posttraumatic stress symptoms.

Author Keywords: adult attachment, childhood adversity, posttraumatic stress symptoms, trauma

Adolescence is a time when young people focus their attention on setting and pursuing long-term goals. Contemporary approaches of identity development focus on three pivotal processes underlying the identity formation process and the maintenance of one's identity (e.g., core values, etc.). These processes are commitment (commitments to a goal), in-depth exploration (exploration of choices and options), and reconsideration of commitment (feelings of uncertainty about current commitments). The primary purpose of the current study was to examine the relations between identity processes, study habits, and academic performance in 45 female undergraduate students (M age = 21.00). Utilizing a self-report measure, findings suggested a significant positive relation between educational and relational commitment, as well as reconsideration of commitments in the educational domain and reconsideration of commitments in the relational domain. In terms of identity processes and grades, a regression analysis revealed that educational reconsideration of commitments predicted academic performance. Further, for those employing poor study habit skills, educational reconsideration of commitment predicted academic performance. The present study offers insight on the importance of assessing adolescent's uncertainty of educational and relational commitments, while also highlighting the protective factor of maintaining good study habit strategies.

Author Keywords: academic performance, adolescence, educational, identity, relational, study habits