{"title":"Correction to: If you can't beat them, join them: Preverbal infants expect novel agents to choose the majority group.","authors":"","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag169","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/chidev/aacag169","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148879354","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Marie Coppola, Kristin Walker, Emily Carrigan, Anna Shusterman
{"title":"Early exposure to language supports number concept development: Insights from deaf children acquiring signed and spoken language.","authors":"Marie Coppola, Kristin Walker, Emily Carrigan, Anna Shusterman","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag159","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/chidev/aacag159","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Children's numeracy skills at school entry predict future educational attainment. Deaf and hard-of-hearing students are reported to underperform compared with typically hearing peers in mathematics. This study examined the impact of language experience on cardinal principle (CP) knowledge and accuracy in generating large sets in 58 hearing and 120 deaf and hard-of-hearing children ages 3.1-7.6 years who were learning spoken English and/or American Sign Language (ASL). The 178 children represented diverse racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds; 77 were assigned male at birth. Logistic regression models showed that chronological age and age of access to language significantly predicted CP knowledge; however, age of language access was no longer significant after including highest count as a predictor. Logistic regressions further revealed that age and the timing of children's access to language (early/later)-but not language modality or socioeconomic status-significantly predicted accuracy in generating large sets. After including the age at which children began receiving greater access to language, both highest count and language access, along with age, significantly predicted performance. These findings show that both ASL and spoken English support number knowledge development and CP acquisition and that early exposure to accessible language is critical to promoting equity in mathematics outcomes.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148863731","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
He Xiao, Wanyu Ye, Jian Mao, Chak Shing Chiu, Shengnan Li, Xiujin Lin, Yizhen Ren, Yangang Nie
{"title":"Comparing attachment patterns from late childhood to adolescence: A cross-cohort study using latent profile similarity analysis.","authors":"He Xiao, Wanyu Ye, Jian Mao, Chak Shing Chiu, Shengnan Li, Xiujin Lin, Yizhen Ren, Yangang Nie","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag144","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/chidev/aacag144","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Within the framework of prototype and revisionist models of attachment, the present study initiated an exploratory effort to examine the commonalities and differences in patterns of perceived attachment experiences-incorporating child-father, child-mother, and peer attachments-and their associations with self-esteem, self-control, and prosocial behavior across three school-aged cohorts (elementary, middle, and high school). Data were collected from 1,646 Chinese youth (Mage = 11.90; 48% girls) in November 2021 and May 2023. Latent profile analyses were conducted within each cohort, followed by the latent profile similarity analysis that enables a systematic examination of multiple levels of (dis)similarity in attachment profile across the cohorts. Results indicated that (1) the elementary and middle school cohorts demonstrated configural, structural, and dispersion similarity, yet distributional similarity was not supported; (2) the high school cohort exhibited configural differences relative to the two younger groups; and (3) explanatory similarity was established between the elementary and middle school cohorts. The findings suggest both convergence and divergence in perceived attachment patterns from late childhood to mid-late adolescence. The study, although cross-sectional, contributes novel pattern-level evidence relevant to advancing the understanding of the dynamic nature of attachment and further substantiating the significance of secure attachment for youths' psychosocial functioning.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148863741","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Katrin Skoruppa, Salomé Schwob, Letizia Volpin, Géraldine Jean-Charles
{"title":"Mono- and multilingual toddlers' sensitivity to correct and incorrect pronunciations of familiar words and its link to later language skills.","authors":"Katrin Skoruppa, Salomé Schwob, Letizia Volpin, Géraldine Jean-Charles","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag162","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/chidev/aacag162","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The current study explores whether monolingual (n = 32, 17 girls, 15 boys) and multilingual (n = 23, 12 boys, 11 girls) toddlers in French-speaking Switzerland are able to recognize correct pronunciations and detect subtle mispronunciations of familiar words, and whether these early skills are connected to later language abilities. In a looking-while-listening eye-tracking paradigm at 20 months of age, both monolingual and multilingual participants showed significantly higher looking time increases (medium effect size) for pictures of familiar objects (e.g., a foot) when the object was labeled correctly (e.g., pied [pje] \"foot\") than when it was mispronounced (here, vied [vje]). Notably, processing of correct labels and mispronunciations was moderately correlated with nonword repetition skills, but not vocabulary size, at 36 months, highlighting the predictive value of word recognition tasks for phonological processing.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148863698","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Beyond the shutdown: Tracking language growth in Early Head Start children before, during, and after COVID-19.","authors":"Monica Lee, Kathleen Lynch, Susanna Loeb","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacaf036","DOIUrl":"10.1093/chidev/aacaf036","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Understanding early language outcomes for low-income children in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic is an important concern for researchers, policymakers, and educators. We examined language environments and language development among infants and toddlers in Early Head Start from pre-COVID, through the pandemic peak and beyond to 2025. Study children were aged 2-43 months (N = 2,763; 47% girls; 42% Hispanic of any race; 46% Black or African American, non-Hispanic; 6% White, non-Hispanic; 4% multiracial or biracial, non-Hispanic; 3% other race or unspecified, non-Hispanic). On average, measures of children's classroom language environments improved postpandemic, but children experienced declines in parent-reported language skills and growth lags in child vocalizations in the pandemic's wake. We examine potential moderators and discuss implications for future research and practice.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":"1671-1688"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147282577","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Overhearing adults' side comments influences young children's question-asking.","authors":"Li Zhao, Sihuan Zhu, Junjie Peng","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag061","DOIUrl":"10.1093/chidev/aacag061","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This research investigated whether overheard adult evaluations about another child's question-asking behavior affect young children's own inquiry. In three studies with 440 5-6-year-olds (Mage = 6.06 years, 217 girls; middle-class Chinese), Study 1 showed that children who overheard brief positive comments about another child's questioning behavior asked twice as many questions as neutral controls. Study 2 demonstrated that overheard negative feedback about question-asking behavior halved inquiry rates. Study 3 replicated and generalized these effects to a new task. Across studies, effects were specific to comments targeting questioning behavior rather than the questioner or question quality. Thus, brief, overheard comments can significantly influence children's willingness to seek information under uncertainty, highlighting the role of subtle social cues in shaping children's curiosity and behavior.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":"1797-1809"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147688340","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiaofang Weng, Huiting Fang, Ye An, Jianjie Xu, Mengyu Miranda Gao, Zhuo Rachel Han
{"title":"Reciprocal relations between parent-adolescent closeness and adolescent depressive symptoms across the pre-to-post COVID-19 pandemic.","authors":"Xiaofang Weng, Huiting Fang, Ye An, Jianjie Xu, Mengyu Miranda Gao, Zhuo Rachel Han","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag114","DOIUrl":"10.1093/chidev/aacag114","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study examined gender-specific, process-oriented associations between parent-adolescent closeness and adolescent depressive symptoms using three-wave data from the China Family Panel Study (2018: pre-pandemic; 2020: pandemic outbreak; 2022: post-pandemic). Participants included 841 girls (Mage = 14.99 years in 2018, SD = 2.04, 87.2% Han ethnicity) and 939 boys (Mage = 14.89 years, SD = 1.99, 87.1% Han ethnicity). Bivariate latent change score models revealed that lower closeness consistently predicted subsequent greater increases in depression, regardless of the gender of parent or adolescent. However, prior higher adolescent depression predicted greater decreases in closeness only in the father-son relationship. Some of these effects were moderated by developmental age. These findings highlight the enduring protective effect of closeness and suggest a unique vulnerability in father-son relationships when boys experience depression across the pandemic period.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":"1564-1577"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148389911","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Eleanor Johns, Samuel H Forbes, Lourdes M Delgado Reyes, Charlotte Buck, John P Spencer
{"title":"Tracking the trajectory of executive function from 2.5 to 6.5 years of age and the impact of COVID-19.","authors":"Eleanor Johns, Samuel H Forbes, Lourdes M Delgado Reyes, Charlotte Buck, John P Spencer","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag002","DOIUrl":"10.1093/chidev/aacag002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Given the significance of executive function (EF) for longer-term outcomes, it is important to understand the trajectory of EF in childhood and how COVID-19 influenced this trajectory. 139 (71 girls) children were examined longitudinally from 2.5 to 6.5 years using the Minnesota Executive Function Scale. Individual differences in EF abilities were stable longitudinally, and children with a more highly educated mother had higher EF scores. Children tested 1-3 years after the first lockdown showed greater variation in individual differences over time. Additional analyses examined linear growth curves for children assessed 3-4 times from 2.5 to 6.5 years. Children who were in preschool during the first lockdown had steeper growth curve trajectories than children in the first year of primary school.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":"1654-1670"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147282601","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Lyndsey N Graham, Stephen Tueller, Riley Naughton, Anne Wheeler, Bridgette Kelleher
{"title":"Challenging behaviors across COVID-19 in young children with rare neurogenetic conditions: A seven-year, cross-syndrome analysis.","authors":"Lyndsey N Graham, Stephen Tueller, Riley Naughton, Anne Wheeler, Bridgette Kelleher","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacaf055","DOIUrl":"10.1093/chidev/aacaf055","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Challenging behaviors are common in rare neurogenetic conditions and significantly impact family life. Families were especially vulnerable during COVID-19, yet little is known about behavior trajectories considering pre-pandemic risks. The Purdue Early Phenotype Study has followed children with and without neurogenetic conditions since 2017, including during the pandemic. Analyses examined patterns and predictors of challenging behaviors among 228 children (Williams = 52; Angelman = 64; Prader-Willi = 29; fragile X = 23; controls = 60), ages 1 month-10 years (57% male, predominantly White), focusing on how prepandemic features predicted later trajectories. Across classes, challenging behaviors increased. Latent class analysis showed that higher-risk family profiles predicted steeper increases in internalizing behaviors. Findings suggest COVID-19 layered complex additional effects onto dynamic early behavioral trajectories in families of children with rare neurogenetic conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":"1489-1501"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13237749/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147303017","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jessica F Sperber Knott, Melissa Miller, Ariel Bellatin, Amanda M Dettmer, Frances A Champagne, Kimberly G Noble
{"title":"The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on young children's biological ageing.","authors":"Jessica F Sperber Knott, Melissa Miller, Ariel Bellatin, Amanda M Dettmer, Frances A Champagne, Kimberly G Noble","doi":"10.1093/chidev/aacag034","DOIUrl":"10.1093/chidev/aacag034","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study investigated how exogenous variation in exposure to the COVID-19 pandemic impacted biological ageing across early childhood. A sample of socioeconomically diverse pregnant women were recruited from New York City in 2019 to participate in a longitudinal study of child development (N = 93). Saliva samples were collected from infants to assess epigenetic age at 1-month postpartum. By the start of the pandemic, infants ranged in age from 0 to 9.5 months old, thus experiencing different durations of pandemic exposure in the first year of life. At 30 months, children returned to the laboratory to provide a second saliva sample (N = 52; 59% Female, 50% Hispanic). There was no evidence of large effects of pandemic exposure on trajectories of biological ageing from 1 month to 30 months.</p>","PeriodicalId":10109,"journal":{"name":"Child development","volume":" ","pages":"1704-1714"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147509963","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}