Do toys get in the way? The duration of shared emotional experiences is longer when mothers engage their infants without toys.

During mother-infant interaction, shared emotional experiences, defined as reciprocal and synchronous emotional sharing between mother and infant, are an indicator of early relational health. Yet, it is unclear how mothers' efforts to engage with their infants relate to dyadic-level shared emotional experiences. Utilizing a sample of 80 randomly selected videos of the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, we examined how mothers' bids for interaction with their 6-month-old infants related to the duration of shared emotional experiences. An event sampling, sequential coding system was used to identify a maternal bid for interaction (i.e., with toy, without toy) and the subsequent presence or absence of a shared emotional experience, including duration of the shared emotional experience. Results indicated that shared emotional experiences were longer following mothers' efforts to engage their infants in play without toys. Findings suggest that methods matter; researchers and practitioners interested in studying and promoting shared emotional experiences between mothers and infants may wish to focus on dyadic interactions without toys.

Durante la interacción madre-infante, las experiencias emocionalmente compartidas, definidas como el recíproco y síncrono compartir emocional entre madre e infante, son un indicador de la temprana saludable relación. Aún así, no está claro cómo los esfuerzos de las madres para compartir con sus infantes se relacionan con las experiencias emocionales compartidas al nivel de la díada. Utilizando un grupo muestra de 80 videos del Estudio NICHD del Temprano Cuidado Infantil y Desarrollo de la Juventud, seleccionados al azar, examinamos cómo las posturas de las madres para interactuar con sus infantes de 6 meses de edad se relacionaban con la duración de las experiencias emocionales compartidas. Se usó un sistema de codificación secuencial de muestreo de eventos para identificar una postura materna para la interacción (v.g., con juguete, sin juguete) y la subsecuente presencia o ausencia de una experiencia emocional compartida, incluyendo la duración de la experiencia emocional compartida. Los resultados indicaron que las experiencias emocionales compartidas eran más largas cuando los esfuerzos de las madres para interactuar con sus infantes en el juego no incluían juguetes. Los resultados sugieren que los métodos importan; los investigadores y profesionales de la práctica interesados en estudiar y promover las experiencias emocionales compartidas entre madres e infantes pudieran querer enfocarse en las interacciones diádicas sin juguetes.

Antecedents to and outcomes associated with teacher-child relationship perceptions in early childhood: Further evidence for child-driven effects.

Preschool teachers' perceptions about relationships with students (teacher-child relationships [TCRs]) predict children's subsequent social competence (SC) and academic progress. Why this is so remains unclear. Do TCRs shape children's development, or do child attributes influence both TCRs and subsequent development? Relations between TCRs and other measures were examined for 185 preschoolers (107 girls, 89 longitudinal, and ~75% European American). Teachers rated TCRs and child social/affective behaviors. Teacher-child interactions (TCIs) and children's affect expressiveness were observed. Child SC and receptive vocabulary were assessed. TCRs were significantly correlated with each type of outcome. TCIs, SC, expressed affect, and teacher-rated behaviors also predicted TCRs longitudinally. Results suggest that TCR ratings predict subsequent adaptation because they summarize children's behavioral profiles rather than on TCR quality per se.

Advancing early relational health: a collaborative exploration of a research agenda.

Here, we introduce the Early Relational Health (ERH) Learning Community's bold, large-scale, collaborative, data-driven and practice-informed research agenda focused on furthering our mechanistic understanding of ERH and identifying feasible and effective practices for making ERH promotion a routine and integrated component of pediatric primary care. The ERH Learning Community, formed by a team of parent/caregiver leaders, pediatric care clinicians, researchers, and early childhood development specialists, is a workgroup of Nurture Connection-a hub geared toward promoting ERH, i.e., the positive and nurturing relationship between young children and their parent(s)/caregiver(s), in families and communities nationwide. In response to the current child mental health crisis and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) policy statement promoting ERH, the ERH Learning Community held an in-person meeting at the AAP national headquarters in December 2022 where members collaboratively designed an integrated research agenda to advance ERH. This agenda weaves together community partners, clinicians, and academics, melding the principles of participatory engagement and human-centered design, such as early engagement, co-design, iterative feedback, and cultural humility. Here, we present gaps in the ERH literature that prompted this initiative and the co-design activity that led to this novel and iterative community-focused research agenda, with parents/caregivers at the core, and in close collaboration with pediatric clinicians for real-world promotion of ERH in the pediatric primary care setting.

Parenting and Child Development: A Relational Health Perspective.

A child's development is embedded within a complex system of relationships. Among the many relationships that influence children's growth and development, perhaps the most influential is the one that exists between parent and child. Recognition of the critical importance of early parent-child relationship quality for children's socioemotional, cognitive, neurobiological, and health outcomes has contributed to a shift in efforts to identify relational determinants of child outcomes. Recent efforts to extend models of relational health to the field of child development highlight the role that parent, child, and contextual factors play in supporting the development and maintenance of healthy parent-child relationships. This review presents a parent-child relational health perspective on development, with an emphasis on socioemotional outcomes in early childhood, along with brief attention to obesity and eating behavior as a relationally informed health outcome. Also emphasized here is the parent-health care provider relationship as a context for supporting healthy outcomes within families as well as screening and intervention efforts to support optimal relational health within families, with the goal of improving mental and physical health within our communities.

Predicting the development of pro-bullying bystander behavior: A short-term longitudinal analysis.

Pro-bullying bystander behavior is a key socio-contextual factor underlying the perpetuation of bullying, yet investigators know relatively little as to what contributes to its development. The current study uses a short-term longitudinal design to identify child characteristics and relationship qualities that predict pro-bullying bystander behavior over the course of one school year. Participants were 484 children (239 girls; Mage = 10.25 years). Children completed self-report measures of pro-bullying bystander behavior, empathy, moral disengagement, and perceived norms for defending, and peer-report measures of peer victimization and popularity. Main effects of fall empathy and moral disengagement emerged in the prediction of spring pro-bullying bystander behavior, although the latter just for boys. At low levels of perceived norms for defending, high levels of popularity and, for girls, high levels of peer victimization predicted heightened pro-bullying bystander behavior. Thus, anti-bullying efforts may benefit from targeting these social-cognitive and relational processes predictive of pro-bullying bystander behavior and fostering group norms that mitigate these risks.

Stress and coping among early childhood intervention professionals receiving reflective supervision: A qualitative analysis.

Reflective supervision/consultation (RS/C) is an important component of infant mental health training and practice. Given high levels of job stress reported by a variety of early childhood professionals, the present study offers a qualitative examination of early childhood intervention professionals' perceptions of stress and coping before and after receiving regular RS/C. Thirty-one professionals received 9 months of RS/C and completed semistructured interview questionnaires at the pre-/postassessments. Questionnaires focused on job-related experiences, including what participants found stressful and how they coped with job-related stress. Inductive analysis techniques were used to identify themes that arose from the data. Relationships between themes were discovered through axial coding. Three key themes of individual, relational, and organizational stress were identified across the pre-/postassessments. Similar themes were evident in reports of coping. Following 9 months of RS/C, analysis revealed greater detail and reflection among the majority of participants. These results contribute to the literature through identification of multiple levels of stress and coping as well as areas of continuity and change among participants receiving RS/C. Future research should consider how professionals' reports of stress and coping relate to reported self-efficacy and observed competence with young children and families.

La supervisión/consulta con reflexión (RS/C) es un componente importante del entrenamiento y práctica de salud mental infantil (v.g., Tomlin, Weatherston y Pavkov, 2014). Dados los altos niveles de estrés laboral reportado por un grupo variado de profesionales de la temprana niñez, el presente estudio ofrece un examen cualitativo de las percepciones que los profesionales de la temprana niñez tenían sobre el estrés y los mecanismos de hacerle frente al mismo, antes y después de recibir RS/C regular. Treinta y un profesionales recibieron nueve meses de RS/C y completaron cuestionarios de entrevistas semiestructurados anterior y posteriormente a las evaluaciones. Los cuestionarios se enfocaron en experiencias relacionadas con el trabajo, incluyendo lo que los participantes encontraban estresante y cómo ellos se las arreglaban con el estrés laboral. Se usaron técnicas de análisis inductivo para identificar temas que surgieron de la información. Se descubrieron las relaciones entre los temas por medio de una codificación axial. Se identificaron tres temas claves de estrés individual, de relación, y organizacional a lo largo de las evaluaciones anteriores y posteriores. Temas similares fueron evidentes en los reportes de cómo se las arreglaban. Después de nueve meses de RS/C, los análisis revelaron mayor detalle y reflexión en la mayoría de los participantes. Estos resultados contribuyen a los estudios impresos a través de la identificación de niveles múltiples de estrés y maneras de arreglárselas con el mismo, así como áreas de continuidad y cambio en los participantes que recibieron RS/C. La futura investigación debe considerar cómo los reportes de los profesionales acerca del estrés y cómo arreglárselas con el mismo se relacionan con la reportada auto-efectividad y la observada competencia con niños pequeños y familias.

La supervision/consultation réfléchie (abrégée ici en français SCR) est une composante importante de la formation et de la pratique en santé mentale du nourrisson (par exemple Tomlin, Weatherston, & Pavkov, 2014).  Au vu des niveaux élevés de stress au travail rapportés par un éventail de professionnels de l'intervention en petite enfance, cette étude offre un examen qualitatif des perceptions de stress et de la manière d'y faire face avant et après avoir reçu une SCR traditionnelle. Trente et un professionnels ont reçu neuf mois de SCR et rempli des questionnaires d'un entretien semi-structuré avant et après les évaluations. Les questionnaires se focalisaient sur les expériences liées au travail, y compris ce que les participant(e)s trouvaient stressant et comment ils ou elles faisaient face au stress lié au travail. Des techniques d'analyse par induction ont été utilisées afin d'identifier des thèmes ressortant des données. Les relations entre les thèmes ont été découverte au moyen d'un codage axial. Trois thèmes clés de stress indiviuel, relationnel et lié à l'organisation ont été identifiés au travers des pré-évaluations et des post-évaluations. Des thèmes similaires sont ressortis des rapports sur la manière de faire face au stress. Après neuf mois de SCR l'analyse a révélé une meilleure attention aux détails et une meilleure réflexion chez la majorité des participant(e)s. Ces résultats contribuent aux recherches à travers l'identification de niveaux multiples de stress et de façons d'y faire face, ainsi qu'un domaine de continuité et de changement chez les participant(e)s recevant la SCR. Les recherches à venir devraient considérer la manière dont les rapports de stress et de façon d'y faire face des professionnels sont liés à l'auto-efficacité rapportée et à une compétence observée avec les jeunes enfants et les familles.

Validation study showed that ratings on the Welch Emotional Connection Screen at infant age six months are associated with child behavioural problems at age three years.

AIM: The emotional connection between mothers and infants born preterm has been associated with positive behaviour. The aim of this study was to examine the longitudinal association between emotional connection at six months of age and behavioural problems at three years. METHODS: This study was carried out by the University of North Texas, USA and comprised 49 mothers and infants from a longitudinal investigation of family interaction and infant development conducted in 1994-1997. Face-to-face interaction and toy-based play were videotaped and coded at six months of age using the Welch Emotional Connection Screen (WECS), a brief screening tool for relational health. When the children were three years of age, the mothers reported on child behavioural problems. RESULTS: The children from dyads that were rated as emotionally connected at six months of age had fewer externalising and internalising behavioural problems at the age of three. No links were found between emotional connection during toy-based play at six months and later child behavioural problems. CONCLUSION: We showed that when the WECS was used at six months of age it was a promising and valid relational screening tool for infants at risk of adverse behavioural outcomes at the age of three.

The practical utility of the Welch Emotional Connection Screen for rating parent-infant relational health.

Emotional Connection (EC) measured by the Welch Emotional Connection Screen (WECS) was related to the Parent-Infant Interaction Rating System (PIIRS), a 5-point adaptation of the rating system developed for the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (e.g., NICHD Early Child Care Research Network, 1999, Developmental Psychology, 35, 1399). Parent-infant dyads (n = 49 mothers; 43 fathers) were videotaped during face-to-face interaction at infant age 6 months; interactions were coded with both the WECS and PIIRS. At age 3, mothers completed the Child Behavior Checklist. WECS ratings of EC were associated with PIIRS rating items for both mother-infant and father-infant dyads. Mother-infant EC related positively to maternal sensitivity and positive regard for child, child positive mood and sustained attention, and dyadic mutuality, and negatively with maternal intrusiveness. Father-infant EC related positively to fathers' positive regard for child, child positive mood and sustained attention, and dyadic mutuality. Mother-infant EC predicted child behavior problems at age 3 better than mother-infant PIIRS ratings of dyadic mutuality. With fathers, neither EC nor dyadic mutuality ratings predicted mother-reported child behavior problems. Findings highlight the practical utility of the WECS for identifying potentially at-risk dyads and supporting early relational health.

IMPACT OF REFLECTIVE SUPERVISION ON EARLY CHILDHOOD INTERVENTIONISTS' PERCEPTIONS OF SELF-EFFICACY, JOB SATISFACTION, AND JOB STRESS.

Despite widespread recognition of the importance of reflective practice in the field of infant mental health, little quantitative research exists regarding the impact of reflective supervision on professionals' self-efficacy, job satisfaction, and work-related stress. Thirty-three early childhood interventionists received approximately 9 months of reflective supervision and completed pre- and post-assessments of their job-related stress and self-efficacy using a modified version of the Reflective Supervision Self-Efficacy Scales for Supervisees (S. Shea, S. Goldberg, & D.J. Weatherston, 2012). At the post-assessment, participants also rated their overall experience of reflective supervision. Reported self-efficacy increased significantly from pre- to post-assessment, and participants reported a positive overall impact of reflective supervision with respect to a variety of indices, such as job satisfaction, professional development, and the ability to cope with job-related stress. These results provide necessary quantitative data demonstrating a positive impact of reflective supervision on early childhood professionals and suggest the value of reflective supervision for supporting workforce development.

Young Children's Self-Concepts: Associations with Child Temperament, Mothers' and Fathers' Parenting, and Triadic Family Interaction.

This study explored how children's self-concepts were related to child temperament, dyadic parenting behavior, and triadic family interaction. At age 3, child temperament, mothers' and fathers' parenting behavior, and triadic (mother, father, and child) family interaction were observed in the homes of fifty families. At age 4, children's self-concepts were assessed using the Children's Self-View Questionnaire (Eder, 1990). Analyses revealed that temperamental proneness-to-distress and triadic family interaction made independent contributions to children's self-reported Timidity and Agreeableness. In contrast, dyadic parenting behavior moderated the associations between child temperament and children's self-reported Timidity and Agreeableness, such that temperament was only associated with children's self-concepts when mothers and fathers engaged in particular parenting behaviors. Results suggest both direct and interactive influences of family dynamics and child characteristics on children's self-concept development.

Associations between coparenting and marital behavior from infancy to the preschool years.

This study examined the associations between coparenting and marital behavior from infancy to the preschool years. Coparenting and marital behavior were assessed in 46 families during observations of family play and marital discussions at 6 months and 3 years. Both coparenting and marital behavior showed moderate stability from 6 months to 3 years. In addition, coparenting and marital behavior were more consistently associated at 3 years than at 6 months. When the predictive capabilities of early coparenting and marital behavior for later coparenting and marital behavior were considered, early coparenting predicted later marital behavior but not vice versa. This study highlights the importance of early coparenting behavior, especially undermining coparenting behavior, for understanding both subsequent coparenting behavior and subsequent marital behavior.

Infants' Behavioral Strategies for Emotion Regulation With Fathers and Mothers: Associations With Emotional Expressions and Attachment Quality.

This study examined 12- and 13-month-old infants' behavioral strategies for emotion regulation, emotional expressions, regulatory styles, and attachment quality with fathers and mothers. Eighty-five infants participated in the Strange Situation procedure to assess attachment quality with mothers and fathers. Infants' behavioral strategies for emotion regulation were examined with each parent during a competing demands task. Emotion regulation styles were meaningfully related to infant-father attachment quality. Although expressions of distress and positive affect were not consistent across mothers and fathers, there was consistency in infant strategy use, emotion regulation style, and attachment quality with mothers and fathers. Furthermore, infants who were securely attached to both parents showed greater consistency in parent-oriented strategies than infants who were insecurely attached to one or both parents. Limitations of this study include the constrained laboratory setting, potential carryover effects, and a homogeneous, middle-class sample.