Elide Francesca De Caro , Elisa Delvecchio , Luciana Paola Pagano , Carlo Garofalo , Mireia Orgilés , Claudia Mazzeschi
{"title":"Child and adolescent mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic","authors":"Elide Francesca De Caro , Elisa Delvecchio , Luciana Paola Pagano , Carlo Garofalo , Mireia Orgilés , Claudia Mazzeschi","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101811","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101811","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The COVID-19 outbreak impacted child and adolescent mental health. This five-wave study examined the growth trends of internalizing, externalizing, and sleep symptoms in Italian children and adolescents. It also investigated how individual, pandemic-related, and environmental factors influenced trends throughout the pandemic and lockdown periods until its end in May 2023. Parents reported their children and adolescents (ages 3–18) symptoms, socio-demographics, COVID-19-exposure, and housing characteristics. Results revealed a quadratic growth for internalizing and sleep symptoms and a stable-high trend for externalizing symptoms, within five-week of lockdown, followed by a decrease over two-years. Age and sex moderated these trends, with early adolescent girls exhibiting higher symptom levels even post-pandemic. Hospitalization of family members/friends was associated with increased internalizing symptoms, while access to a balcony/garden influenced all symptoms. Findings suggest the general decline in symptoms reflects the easing of national restrictions, highlighting the role of environmental factors in shaping children's responses.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"99 ","pages":"Article 101811"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144212807","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
María Valcárcel Jiménez , Jörg-Henrik Heine , Tina Schiele , Anna Mues , Frank Niklas
{"title":"The role of parental attitudes, home literacy environment, and migration background in preschool children's emergent literacy skills","authors":"María Valcárcel Jiménez , Jörg-Henrik Heine , Tina Schiele , Anna Mues , Frank Niklas","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101830","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101830","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Developing proficient literacy skills is important for school success. This study examined the link between parental attitudes towards reading and preschool children's emergent literacy skills in German, focusing on children with and without migration background. It explored whether the Home Literacy Environment (HLE) mediated this relation while controlling for child age, sex, cognitive skills, and family socioeconomic status. The study involved 500 children (<em>M</em><sub>age</sub> = 60.97 months) assessed three times across a year. The results showed that parental attitudes towards reading influenced emergent literacy skills only through the HLE. Migration background had an indirect effect, with the HLE mediating its impact on literacy development. These findings highlight the critical role of the HLE in fostering literacy skills, provide a plausible explanation for individual differences in German emergent literacy skills for children with and without migration background, and suggest that interventions targeting parental attitudes and HLE may effectively support literacy development.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"99 ","pages":"Article 101830"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144522940","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Isabella Valbusa , Maria Anna Donati , Laura Nota , Sara Santilli , Caterina Primi , Maria Cristina Ginevra
{"title":"‘A journey towards rightsland’: An intervention to foster school inclusion","authors":"Isabella Valbusa , Maria Anna Donati , Laura Nota , Sara Santilli , Caterina Primi , Maria Cristina Ginevra","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101815","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101815","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The diversity of today's schools (i.e., children from different backgrounds) can lead to prejudices, stereotypes, and negative attitudes, which have been associated with discrimination and social exclusion. These phenomena constitute violations of children's rights. The intervention program ‘A journey towards Rightsland’ was developed to promote knowledge of rights associated with inclusion, social skills, and positive social relationships with all students. Ten classes (167 children, aged 8–10) were randomly assigned to an experimental group or a control group. All measures were administered two weeks before and after the intervention program. The mixed-effects models showed significant improvements for the experimental group, which held significantly more positive peer nominations, social skills, ability to collaborate with others, and intention to help classmates whose rights were violated. Wilcoxon tests revealed that children at risk of social exclusion in the experimental group received more positive behaviors from their classmates. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"99 ","pages":"Article 101815"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144239853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Clara Sancho-Domingo , José Luis Carballo , Ainhoa Coloma-Carmona , Antonia Pelegrín Muñoz , Carlos van-der Hofstadt
{"title":"Adolescents' drug use patterns and associations with psychological factors for alcohol prevention","authors":"Clara Sancho-Domingo , José Luis Carballo , Ainhoa Coloma-Carmona , Antonia Pelegrín Muñoz , Carlos van-der Hofstadt","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101813","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101813","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Despite its negative effects, alcohol remains the most used substance among adolescents and is often consumed with other drugs. Since polydrug use can undermine prevention efforts, this study aimed to analyze drug use patterns and their association with alcohol-related psychological risk factors in adolescents. A cross-sectional study was conducted, involving 2010 high school students aged 15–18 (55.5 % female). Participants were assessed for drug use, motivation to reduce drinking, self-efficacy, perceived risk, and drinking attitudes. A Multiple-Group Latent Class Analysis was used to identify drug use patterns across sexes, and ANCOVA for group comparisons. Five patterns were identified: ‘Low-Likelihood Use’ (26.7 %), ‘Sporadic Alcohol Use’ (37.7 %), ‘Binge Drinking and Sporadic Tobacco Use’ (17.5 %), ‘High-Risk Drinking, Tobacco and Sporadic Cannabis Use’ (14.8 %), and ‘High-Risk Polydrug Use’ (3.3 %). The patterns were invariant across sexes. Yet, female adolescents were more likely to engage in ‘Binge Drinking and Sporadic Tobacco Use’, while male in ‘Low-Likelihood Use’. Participants in the three polydrug patterns showed lower self-efficacy and motivation, and greater ambivalence in drinking attitudes than those with low-likelihood or sporadic use. No differences were observed for perceived risk. Tailored interventions addressing these psychological factors are recommended to enhance prevention programs, considering characteristics of both low-alcohol and polydrug patterns.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"99 ","pages":"Article 101813"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144212806","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Raychel Barkin , Gillian E. Grose , Neela Krishnasamy , Nicole R. Scalise , Geetha B. Ramani
{"title":"Helping hands: Encouraging parent-child gestures during informal mathematics activities","authors":"Raychel Barkin , Gillian E. Grose , Neela Krishnasamy , Nicole R. Scalise , Geetha B. Ramani","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101827","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101827","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Families' math-related talk can promote children's early math learning. However, less is known about how families use nonverbal communication, specifically hand gestures, during math activities and whether families provided information about math-related gestures might differ in their gesture use compared to families not provided information on gestures. Parents (96 % mothers; majority high household income and education) and their 3- to 5-year-old children (<em>N</em> = 51; 65 % Female; 63 % White) were randomly assigned to either watch a brief video on how using math gestures or how talking during play can support learning. Afterward, dyads read a number book and played a board game. Among dyads in the gesture condition, children used more gestures and parents used a higher proportion of higher-level math gestures (e.g., cardinality, arithmetic) than those in the talk condition. Results suggest that children's gesture usage and the mathematical content in parents' gestures during math activities may be malleable.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"99 ","pages":"Article 101827"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144490399","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Evalill Bølstad , Maud Edvoll , Ole Andre Solbakken , Sophie S. Havighurst
{"title":"The effectiveness of a parent emotion socialization intervention in Norway","authors":"Evalill Bølstad , Maud Edvoll , Ole Andre Solbakken , Sophie S. Havighurst","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101795","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101795","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Parent emotion socialization (ES) interventions have been found effective in improving children's emotional and behavioral functioning but have not been widely tested in non-English speaking countries. The current study was an effectiveness trial of the Australian ES program, Tuning in to Kids, with Norwegian parents of kindergarten children.</div></div><div><h3>Method</h3><div>261 parents were randomized into intervention or 12-month waitlist control. Parent questionnaires measured ES, parent functioning, child temperament, behavior and anxiety.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Findings showed the program was effective in reducing child behavior problems and parent emotion dismissiveness, and increasing emotion coaching parenting. Exploratory moderation analyses found parents who self-reported having lower affect integration made greater changes. Children with higher temperamental shyness had lower anxiety at follow-up.</div></div><div><h3>Discussion</h3><div>Findings suggest the program was effective in improving ES and reducing child behavior problems when delivered by professionals in Norway. Anxiety, while unchanged for the total sample, improved for children with higher shyness.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"98 ","pages":"Article 101795"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143833273","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A longitudinal study of parental attachment and career self-efficacy in college students","authors":"Weiyi Xie , Zi Chen , Chan Wang , Xiaoyuan Han","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101794","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101794","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Guided by social cognitive career theory, attachment theory, and the relational theory of working, this two-wave longitudinal study examined the reciprocal relationships between Chinese college students' career search self-efficacy (CSSE) and three dimensions of attachment relationships (i.e., trust, communication, and alienation) with parents. The study utilized a sample of 867 college students engaging in career exploration at two time points, seven months apart. The results demonstrated that, at both time points, CSSE was positively associated with trust and communication while being negatively associated with alienation. In addition, the cross-lagged longitudinal results showed that CSSE at Time 1 predicted a decrease in alienation with mothers and fathers at Time 2. The study made a significant contribution to the current literature by employing a two-wave longitudinal design and emphasizing the predictive role of CSSE in attachment relationships with their parents. The findings underscore the potential for intervention aimed at boosting college students' CSSE to enhance family dynamics.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"98 ","pages":"Article 101794"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143826380","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Shannon Savell , Mihret Niguse , Jazmin Brown-Iannuzzi , Kathryn Lemery-Chalfant , Daniel S. Shaw
{"title":"Adolescent mental health in the context of discrimination: Examining Multiracial racial socialization","authors":"Shannon Savell , Mihret Niguse , Jazmin Brown-Iannuzzi , Kathryn Lemery-Chalfant , Daniel S. Shaw","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101770","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101770","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>There is limited research on racial socialization and its potential protective effect on youth mental health within Multiracial families. With a sample of Multiracial families (<em>N</em> = 209; 46 % female youth), we investigated associations between adolescent experiences of racial discrimination (parent and youth reports at ages 14 and 16) and racial socialization (observational task at age 14) on depressive symptoms (youth report at age 16). Multiracial youth with more experiences of discrimination had more depressive symptoms. Multiracial youth who received more racial socialization in the form of a combination of preparation for bias for youth with or without past experiences of discrimination, cultural pride, and egalitarian messages had fewer depressive symptoms. However, observed racial socialization did not moderate the association between discrimination and depressive symptoms. The findings call for ongoing efforts to support youth and their families in the context of discrimination.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"98 ","pages":"Article 101770"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143548471","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"An organized camp and mental health: Moderating role of environmental sensitivity","authors":"Kosuke Yano , Shintaro Endo , Kazuo Oishi","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101783","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101783","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study aimed to investigate the interactive effects of environmental sensitivity and experiential content on mental health. A total of 393 students (fifth to seventh grade) participated in an organized camp program for two days and responded to a three-wave longitudinal survey (pre-and post-program, and one-month follow-up). Latent growth model-based analyses indicated that Experiences of Challenge/Mastery and Self-Disclosure significantly predicted better mental health, as assessed in the follow-up survey. However, for individuals with lower levels of sensitivity, the significant association was not found between Experience of Self-Disclosure and mental health. The current findings may provide insights into the planning and practice of organized camp programs. Specifically, it is important to consider participants' sensitivity levels and experience content.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"98 ","pages":"Article 101783"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143548472","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The relationship between socioeconomic status and future orientation: A comprehensive three-level meta-analysis","authors":"Ruijun Song , Nana Sun","doi":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101798","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.appdev.2025.101798","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Extensive research has explored the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and future orientation. However, the strength of this relationship across studies has been inconsistent. This study employs a three-level meta-analysis to synthesize existing research and assess the relationship between SES and future orientation. Moderator analyses were conducted to investigate the sources of research heterogeneity. A systematic literature search identified 38 eligible studies, providing 119 effect sizes and involving 661,697 participants. The results revealed a small positive correlation between SES and future orientation (<em>r</em> = 0.14). Moderator analyses indicated that culture significantly moderated the relationship. Specifically, a stronger correlation was found in high-welfare and low-welfare countries compared to medium-welfare countries. Furthermore, the measurement of SES showed a significant moderating effect, with a stronger correlation in subjective SES than objective SES. Sex demonstrated a significant moderating effect, with the association stronger in studies with a higher proportion of girls in the sample.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48168,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology","volume":"98 ","pages":"Article 101798"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143885993","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}