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Abstract: Most developmental science occurs within a so-called WEIRD narrative: Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic. Although developmental psychology has long relied on cross-cultural research to enrich and inform theories of human development, the narrow focus on children from WEIRD countries creates a biased understanding of how children develop. It is critical to diversify developmental science and ensure it reflects and responds to local contexts and cultures. In this article, we discuss how community-based participatory research (CBPR) can be integrated into theoretical frameworks of human development and used to increase the representation of traditionally marginalized populations in developmental science. We argue that a CBPR-informed approach can ensure that child development priorities are culturally sensitive, which can support the development of programs aimed at enhancing children’s development which are embedded in local cultural norms and become part of the social fabric of the community under study.

Research Findings: The aim of the present study was to identify profiles of kindergarten teachers based on the observed quality of interactions with the children in their classrooms and to explore possible differences between the profiles in terms of teachers’ occupational well-being and teacher and classroom characteristics. Participants were 54 Finnish kindergarten teachers whose interactions with children were observed with the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS Pre-K). The teachers also completed a questionnaire about their occupational well-being. Four interaction profiles were identified: Highest Quality, Moderate Quality, Lower Quality with Limited Negativity, and Lower Quality with Moderate Negativity. Differences between the profiles were found in teachers’ teaching-related stress, general stress, and depressive symptoms. Furthermore, the profiles differed, albeit marginally significantly, in terms of teachers’ emotional exhaustion. Overall, teachers in the Moderate Quality profile reported the most favorable occupational well-being, whereas teachers in the Highest Quality and the two lower quality profiles reported challenges to their occupational well-being. The profiles did not differ in terms of teacher and classroom characteristics. Practice or Policy: Results suggest that teachers’ professional development opportunities should focus on both improving the quality of classroom interactions and enhancing teachers’ occupational well-being by reducing their stress. peerReviewed

The present study investigated associations between parenting stress and children’s academic engagement when schools were closed in spring/ early summer 2020. We investigated four dimensions of children’s academic engagement, i.e., behavioral, cognitive, emotional, and agentic. Participants of this online survey study were 78 families (75 mothers and 54 fathers), recruited in the United States from advertisements on Facebook in May 2020. Children were, on average, 11.05 years old (SD=3.73). Out of the total sample, 46 parents also consented for their child to participate in the study. Contrary to our expectations, we did not find evidence for direct associations between parenting stress and children’s academic engagement. However, our findings suggest that the associations between parenting stress and children’s academic engagement is moderated by children’s interest in at-home learning activities and the length of homeschooling. Recommendations for future research on the effects of the pandemic on children’s learning are discussed.

Parental involvement is a key ingredient in school policy and various parental involvement programs aim at raising children's school success. Adding to existing meta-analyses summarizing the findings on the effectiveness of parental involvement programs, we included academic and nonacademic outcomes, and analyzed the correspondence between changes in parents' involvement and changes in children's outcomes. We synthesized findings regarding the effectiveness of parental involvement interventions for children's academic and nonacademic outcomes from preschool to third grade. A total of 307 effect sizes were obtained from 39 studies included in the meta-analysis. Using a random-effect approach, the average effect suggested that parental involvement interventions had a positive and moderate effect on children's overall performance, as well as on academic and nonacademic outcomes when considered separately. School-based and home-based interventions were not significantly associated with the overall effect. Further characteristics of the intervention were analyzed as moderators. The effects of the intervention on parental involvement itself were significantly associated with the effect size differences on children's outcomes. Implications for policy and practice are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

This study examined associations among maternal book-sharing styles and goals for book-sharing activities and children’s verbal contributions in three communities. Participants were 106 mother-toddler dyads from New York City (NYC, USA), Munster (Germany), and Chennai (India). Mothers were videotaped sharing a book with their two-year-olds and interviewed about their book-sharing goals. Cluster analyses identified two book-sharing styles: 53% adopted a follower style (focused on maintaining the flow of the conversation, while requesting and providing some information), and 47% of mothers adopted a storyteller-follower style (focused on providing information about the text and maintaining the flow of the conversation). NYC mothers were more likely to adopt a follower style compared to Munster and Chennai mothers. While NYC mothers embraced the goal of enjoyment and bonding more, Chennai mothers embraced the goal of learning from books more, and Munster mothers embraced the goal of soothing the child more. Maternal book-sharing styles and goals were associated. Embracing the goal of enjoyment and bonding was related to adopting a follower style, above community and demographic variables. Maternal book-sharing styles were not related to children’s verbal contributions. Findings highlight variation within and across communities in how mothers approach booksharing with their toddlers.

The existing literature on early childhood education (ECE) quality is predominantly from the US or other developed countries. In low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs), systematic research on ECE ...

Educational classroom talk is beneficial for children’s learning and communicative development (Alexander 2018); however, current research has focused predominantly on classroom talk starting at th...

Empirical knowledge on what specific aspects of mental health are associated with spirituality is limited, and explanations for the mechanisms underlying this association is scarce. Furthermore, there is limited research on this association among individuals from non-Christian religious backgrounds and non-Western countries. The current study examined relations between spirituality and aspects of mental health in 1,544 adolescents from diverse religious backgrounds in two Eastern countries, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Additionally, we examined mediating and moderating factors. Adolescents (58% female) ages 11–15 years completed a questionnaire on aspects of their mental health, spirituality, and self-control abilities. Results showed that spirituality had a significant positive association with life satisfaction and a significant negative association with internalizing problems, but a non-significant relation with externalizing problems, controlling for age, gender, and socioeconomic status. Self-control completely mediated the association between spirituality and life satisfaction, and this mediational relation was only present for adolescents from the UAE. Results support prior research suggesting positive associations between spirituality and adaptive mental health outcomes and extend these findings to adolescents from diverse religious backgrounds in non-Western countries. These findings have important clinical and policy implications for supporting the role of spirituality in an adolescent’s life.

This paper studies the health and well-being of children during the COVID-19 lockdowns in a developing country context. Using surveys for low-income households in rural areas of Pakistan, we find that lockdowns are associated with worsened health and well-being of children. Exploring potential economic and noneconomic mechanisms behind this negative association, we find that children participating in the labor market due to extreme poverty suffer the worst impact from lockdowns. These results call for policies that target resources towards households where children's participation in the labor market is more likely since leaving vulnerable children behind will have a lasting economic impact for developing economies.

This study of 52 predominantly lower income Jordanian and Syrian families with young children (31 girls; M age = 53.37 months, SD = 3.53) in Jordan began in 2019, before the pandemic. Families were followed to explore stress physiology, family functioning, and mental health over the first 9 months of the pandemic. Mothers reported less adaptive coping and more negative changes to family life in June 2020 when their children had poorer behavioral self‐regulation and more behavior problems, and when families had lower income, in 2019. More negative changes to family life predicted greater hair cortisol concentrations in children in June 2020, and more negative changes and less adaptive coping predicted worse child and mother psychosocial adjustment in December 2020.

Previous research indicates that features of speech during mother–toddler interactions are dependent on the situational context. In this study, we explored language samples of 69 mother–toddler dyads collected during standardized toy play and book-reading situations across two countries, Germany and the United States (US). The results showed that features of speech differed across situational contexts. However, situational differences were mostly found among the sample from the US but not from Germany. Few significant associations between mothers’ and toddlers’ language variables were found. Findings are discussed with regard to variations in language across situations and countries.

Despite the importance of executive functions (EFs) and fluid intelligence for many everyday tasks, the evidence regarding associations between the two constructs remains limited and mixed. The present study is exploratory in testing a bidirectional model between various core components of EFs and fluid intelligence over the preschool period. A sample of 150 preschool children from Kosovo (51% girls) was tested on measures of EFs and fluid intelligence across three measurement waves. Autoregressive cross-lagged path models were used to test reciprocal effects. Preliminary results showed that prior EFs and fluid intelligence predicted later competence in the same domain. Initial evidence was found for a bidirectional relation between inhibitory control and fluid intelligence across time, but not for the other components under investigation (i.e., working memory and attention shifting). Findings indicated that relationships may differ depending on the component of EFs investigated, thus, suggesting a complex pattern of relations between EFs and fluid intelligence.

Teacher–child interactions provide an important context for children’s development and learning. The study explored how teacher- and classroom-level factors were associated with quality of teacher–...

The present study explored the perspectives of mothers from three communities regarding their role in play activities with their toddlers. The mothers of two-year-old children from Muenster, Germany (n = 34), Chennai, India (n = 36), and New York City, USA (n = 36), participated in the study. Qualitative content analysis was utilized to analyze the mothers' responses to semi-structured interview questions. Four roles were identified as characterizing the mothers' narratives, namely mothers as facilitators, teachers, play partners, or observers. The goal of facilitator was to support children's autonomy; teachers often described educational learning goals; and play partners and observers highlighted the play itself. In the data, two-thirds of the mothers from New York City were identified as facilitators, while half of the Chennai sample were identified as teachers. The Muenster sample recorded the largest variation with regard to the four roles. The findings suggest variations in how the mothers in our samples viewed their role in play situations, both within and across communities. peerReviewed

The present study analyzes similarities and differences in cultural beliefs about mother-child play and their manifestation in maternal and children’s play practices in three different educated urban middle-class cultures. Based on the general assumption that mother-child play is an important context for child learning and development in educated urban middle-class communities that should result in cross-cultural similarities in mother-child play, the current study also hypothesized culture-specific accentuations, namely a stronger emphasis on preacademic vs. non-academic play activities and on adult-centered vs. child-centered modes of interaction in Chennai, India, (n = 28) than in Munster, Germany, (n = 35) and New York City (NYC), USA, (n = 36). Maternal goals and strategies were assessed in semi-structured interviews and mothers from Chennai emphasized play goals and preacademic goals to similar degrees, whereas mothers from Munster and NYC accentuated play goals. In line with their emphasis on preacademic goals and strategies, Chennai mothers showed significantly more preacademic activities during play with their 2-year-olds, especially explicit teaching. Furthermore, Chennai mothers’ stronger emphasis on play directives and children’s higher levels of responsive play complemented the pattern of more adult-centered beliefs and practices. In contrast, mothers from Munster and NYC were more likely to emphasize child-centeredness, with significantly more goals revolving around child immersion in play activities and autonomy-supporting play practices, including autonomous exploration, toddlers’ leadership and control, and maternal responsiveness. Unexpectedly, toddlers from NYC engaged the most in preacademic activities, especially responding to maternal quizzing.

This study investigated bidirectional links between the quality of teacher–child relationships and children's interest and pre‐academic skills in literacy and math. Furthermore, differences in the patterns of bidirectionality between boys and girls were explored. Participants were 461 Finnish kindergarteners (6‐year‐olds) and their teachers (n = 48). Teachers reported their closeness and conflict with each child twice throughout the kindergarten year. Children rated their interest in literacy and math, and were tested on their pre‐academic skills. Cross‐lagged path models indicated that teacher‐perceived conflict predicted lower interest and pre‐academic skills in both literacy and math. Results were similar for boys and girls. Implications for reducing conflictual patterns of relationships, together with promoting other factors, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to investigate the associations between teachers’ observed emotional support and social competence among Finnish pre-schoolers (6-year-olds). The quality of emotional support was observed using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System Pre-K in 47 preschool classrooms twice across the preschool year. Teachers rated children’s social competence in autumn and again in spring, using the Multisource Assessment of Social Competence Scale (MASCS), which produced sum scores for cooperating skills, empathy, impulsivity, and disruptiveness. Consistent with the transactional model, we specified reciprocal (auto-regressive and cross-lagged) relationships within a Multilevel Structural Equation Models (MSEM) framework. The results showed that higher quality of emotional support in preschool autumn was related to more prosocial behaviours typical of the classroom during spring of the preschool year. Children’s antisocial behaviours typical of the preschool classroom were not associated with quality of emotional support or vice versa. The results emphasize the importance of responsive and sensitive classroom interactions in promoting prosocial behaviours. peerReviewed

PurposeThis study aims to explore what causes stress to day care center directors and what their coping strategies are. In addition, the study examined the extent to which directors experience work-related stress and burnout, and the factors associated with their work-related stress, engagement and recovery from work.Design/methodology/approachA mixed method approach was used.FindingsThe results showed that the main sources of directors' stress were connected to leading oneself, leading others, managing change and lack of social support. Moreover, the main coping strategies with stress were leading oneself, social support and leading others. In addition, both pre- and in-service leadership training played a significant role in the experience of stress. The nature of factors causing stress and coping strategies with stress may imply that directors need further support in self-management and developing their internal competences.Research limitations/implicationsThe present study has limitations that need to be considered when making generalizations. First, a small sample size limits the generalization of the findings. Second, the study relied solely on one source of information, i.e. directors' self-reports. Third, data were collected only at one time point at the end of the year when stress levels might have accumulated. Finally, the study has been done in the Finnish educational context where day care center directors' job description varies depending on municipality.Practical implicationsThe findings provide important information about the causes of directors' work-related stress as well as their coping strategies and about factors that might be related to those.Social implicationsBecause directors' stress impact on children’s development and well-being through teachers' well-being, it is crucial to pay attention on directors' well-being and provide more support for them.Originality/valueThe current study is among the few ones focusing on the stress of directors at early childhood education (ECE) settings.

Research Findings The aim of this study was to examine associations between two aspects of teachers’ occupational well-being, i.e., teaching-related stress and work engagement, and the quality of teacher–child interactions in Finnish kindergarten classrooms. Participants were 47 kindergarten teachers with their classrooms of 6-year-old children. Teacher–child interactions (i.e., emotional support, classroom organization, and instructional support) were observed twice during the kindergarten year (fall and spring), using the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS). In addition, teachers completed questionnaires on stress and work engagement. The results indicated that teaching-related stress negatively predicted the quality of emotional support and classroom organization while teacher’s work engagement was positively associated with the quality of instructional support. Practice or Policy: The findings can be used to inform teacher education and professional development in order to promote in- and pre-service teachers’ occupational well-being and support them in their work with children in the classroom. peerReviewed

There has been limited research on the development of in-service teachers' self-efficacy beliefs across multiple school years. The current longitudinal study investigated (a) how teachers' self-efficacy beliefs change over time and (b) how teacher and classroom characteristics relate to these changes in a sample of 341 US American preschool teachers involved in a professional development intervention. Latent growth curve models indicated that teachers' self-efficacy beliefs increased, particularly for those receiving a coaching intervention. Teacher ratings of children's behavior problems had a negative effect on self-efficacy beliefs. Together, findings highlight the need for support of changing self-efficacy beliefs among in-service teachers.

Executive functions and language skills play a critical role for children’s school readiness. The present study examined reciprocal relations between these two sets of skills among three-to-four-year-old children attending German preschools ( N = 227). Multiple tasks assessed executive functions and language skills twice over the one-year study period. Data was analyzed in a cross-lagged model with latent constructs. Findings provided support for bidirectionality between executive functions and language skills with language being a stronger predictor of executive function development than vice versa. Contrary to the hypothesis, no gender differences in executive functions and language skills were detected. Moreover, there were no statistically significant differences in the cross-lagged paths between executive functions and language skills between boys and girls. Together, our findings point to the importance of supporting children’s language development for enhancing executive function development for both boys and girls.

The development of self-regulation is influenced by various child-level and family-level characteristics. Previous research focusing on the preschool period has reported a female advantage in self-regulation and negative effects of various adverse features of the family environment on self-regulation. The present study aimed to investigate growth in self-regulation (i.e., executive functioning and behavioral self-regulation) over 1 school year during early elementary school and to explore the influences of child sex, the level of home chaos, and family educational resources on self-regulation. Participants were 263 German children (51% boys; mean age 8.59 years, SD = 0.56 years). Data were collected during the fall and spring of the school year. A computer-based standardized test battery was used to assess executive functioning. Caregiver ratings assessed children's behavioral self-regulation and information on the family's home environment (chaotic home environment and educational resources). Results suggest growth in elementary school children's executive functioning over the course of the school year. However, there were no significant changes in children's behavioral self-regulation between the beginning and the end of Grade 3. Sex differences in executive functioning and behavioral self-regulation were found, suggesting an advantage for boys. Educational resources in the family but not chaotic family environment were significantly related to self-regulation at both time-points. Children from families with more educational resources scored higher on self-regulation measures compared to their counterparts from less advantaged families. We did not find evidence for child-level or family-level characteristics predicting self-regulation growth over time. Findings suggest that the male disadvantage in self-regulation documented in previous studies might be specific to characteristics of the sample and the context in which the data were collected. Adequate self-regulation skills should be fostered in both girls and boys. Results also add to the importance of supporting self-regulation development in children from disadvantaged family backgrounds early in life.

This paper examines parents' literacy preferences for their young children as a reflection of the greater culture within a Muslim, Arab context. We describe literacy as a social practice and form of cultural transmission. Parent preferences among nationals in the United Arab Emirates ( n = 118) are described across the following dimensions: children's book genre and content, and purpose of shared reading. Semi-structured interviews were analyzed based on the constant comparison data reduction method. Parents valued books that were a reflection of their culture and values. Nonfiction texts were favored due to their realistic content, which allowed parents to more easily assess a book's suitability for their child. They preferred life, earth and space science texts that teach facts and morality. Favorite folk stories included The Arabian Nights and Tales of Juha because of their entertainment value and lessons taught. The purpose of shared reading is mainly to teach isolated reading skills and develop factual knowledge, deemphasizing meaning making. Parents allowed boys to self-select reading materials more than girls. Study implications call for literacies that unite and empower rather than spark opposition from the local culture.

The frequency of using cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression strategies to regulate emotions has been associated with social-emotional adjustment. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the Parent-Rating Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (P-ERQ), a parent-rating version of the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) in children aged five to six years. Children from Germany (N = 112) and the U.S. (N = 59) participated. Confirmatory factor analyses of P-ERQ data from Germany indicated a two-factor structure that closely reflected the factor structure of the adult ERQ with adequate scale reliabilities. Correlations with a measure of coping strategies supported the convergent validity of the P-ERQ. Cross-country measurement invariance analyses between samples from Germany and the U.S. suggested partial scalar invariance for the cognitive reappraisal subscale and metric invariance for the expressive suppression subscale. Findings provide preliminary evidence that the P-ERQ can be recomme...

The present study explored patterns of dialogic teaching in kindergarten classrooms across two countries with different educational systems and cultural backgrounds: Finland and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In each country, transcripts of thirteen learning sessions were analyzed by identifying episodes of educational dialogue and categorizing them with regard to previously identified patterns of dialogic teaching. Results showed that teachers, rather than students, initiated dialogue. Further, teacher-initiated teaching dialogue of high quality was the dominant dialogue pattern. Comparisons across countries revealed less educational dialogue and more teacher-initiated questions in classrooms in the UAE, while more open space for sharing thoughts was found in kindergarten classrooms in Finland. The findings suggest variations in the structure of educational dialogue and instructional practices in kindergarten classrooms across contexts.

Zusammenfassung. Interaktionen von Kindern mit Erwachsenen, mit Peers und mit der räumlich-materialen Umwelt spielen für Lernen und Entwicklung eine zentrale Rolle. Trotz der wachsenden Bedeutung der Entwicklungsdokumentation steht für den deutschen Kindergartenkontext bisher kein reliables Verfahren zur Beobachtung des Verhaltens von Kindern in Interaktionen zur Verfügung. Ziel der vorliegenden Studie war daher die Adaptation des in den USA entwickelten Individualized Classroom Assessment Scoring Systems (inCLASS). An der Studie nahmen 110 Kinder teil (57 Mädchen). Die in US-amerikanischen Stichproben gefundene faktorielle Struktur des inCLASS wurde weitgehend bestätigt. Interne Konsistenzen und Beobachterübereinstimmung waren zufriedenstellend. Die Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass das inCLASS im deutschen Kindergartenkontext ein geeignetes Instrument zur Dokumentation des Verhaltens von Kindern in Interaktionen ist.

Background Educational processes and outcomes are influenced by a multitude of factors, including individual and contextual characteristics. Recently, studies have demonstrated that student and context characteristics may produce unique and cumulative effects on educational outcomes. Aims The study aimed to investigate (1) the relative contribution of student, classroom, and school characteristics to reading fluency and orthographic spelling, (2) the relative contribution of specific predictors to reading fluency and orthographic spelling within the sets of student, classroom, and school characteristics, and (3) whether the contribution of student, classroom, and school characteristics differs for reading fluency and orthographic spelling. Sample Participants were 789 German third-grade students from 56 classrooms in 34 schools. Method Students completed an intelligence test and a questionnaire assessing self-control. Reading fluency and orthographic spelling performance were assessed using standardized achievement tests. Multilevel structural equation modelling was used to control for the hierarchical structure of educational data. Results and conclusion Variances in students' reading and spelling skills were in large part explained by student characteristics (>90%). Classroom and school characteristics yielded little variance. Student-level intelligence and self-control were significantly related to reading fluency. For orthographic spelling, student-level intelligence and self-control, class-average intelligence, and, at the school level, the socio-economic status of the school's neighbourhood were significant predictors. Future research needs to investigate relevant classroom and school factors that may directly and indirectly relate to academic outcomes.

The present study investigated five to six year old children's ability to regulate negative and positive emotions in relation to psychosocial problem behavior (N=53). It was explored, whether mothers' supportive and nonsupportive strategies of emotion socialization influence children's problem behavior by shaping their emotion regulation ability. Mothers reported on children's emotion regulation and internalizing and externalizing problem behavior via questionnaire, and were interviewed about their preferences for socialization strategies in response to children's expression of negative affect. Results showed that children with more adaptive expression of adequate positive emotions had less internalizing behavior problems. When children showed more control of inadequate negative emotions, children were less internalizing as well as externalizing in their behavior. Furthermore, results indicated indirect relations of mothers' socialization strategies with children's problem behavior. Control of inadequate negative emotions mediated the link between non-supportive strategies on externalizing problem behavior. Results suggest that emotion regulatory processes should be part of interventions to reduce the development of problematic behavior in young children. Parents should be trained in dealing with children's emotions in a constructive way.

Research Findings: The importance of self-regulation for children’s successful academic performance has led to greatly increased interest in this topic in recent years. However, less is known about the interrelations among self-regulatory processes across different contexts. The present study investigated the structure of self-regulation in young children across multiple contexts using a confirmatory factor analysis approach. Moreover, the study examined relations between self-regulation observed in different contexts and emergent vocabulary and math skills. Participants were 150 preschool-aged children from Kosovo, a lower middle-income region in southeastern Europe. The study involved a battery of performance-based measures and informant ratings selected to provide information about self-regulatory processes in various contexts. Tests of the relative fit of alternative models supported a multifactor model of self-regulation across different contexts. Furthermore, results indicated moderate interrelation...

Research Findings: Behavioral self-regulation is crucial for school success. Although behavioral self-regulation typically grows rapidly during the preschool period, children in this age group vary widely in their behavioral self-regulation capacities. The present study investigated 3 potential determinants of growth rates in behavioral self-regulation in children from an affluent region in Germany: family educational resources, child gender, and child negative affectivity. Using a longitudinal design, we observed children (N = 60) during the last 2 years before school entry. Children from families with relatively fewer educational resources started off with a lower level of behavioral self-regulation and did not catch up with their more advantaged peers. Boys showed poorer initial behavioral self-regulation than girls, but their gains in behavioral self-regulation were greater over time compared to girls’. Negative affectivity influenced neither the initial level of nor growth in behavioral self-regulati...

This study examined cognitive consequences of preschoolers' suppression of emotional responses. We investigated two research questions that specify potentially unfavorable cognitive consequences of suppression use: depletion of self-control resources and decreased memory of verbal information. Children (N = 119) were assigned to suppression and control conditions and received standardized emotion regulation instructions before watching an emotionally arousing film clip. Findings suggest that children who have used suppression experience depletion of self-control resources but do not suffer from impairments in verbal memory. This study confirms the importance of creating a preschool environment where children are supported in appropriate emotional displays.

The study examined the applicability and generalizability of the Classroom Assessment Scoring System Pre-K (CLASS Pre-K; Pianta, La Paro, & Hamre, 2008) and the associated conceptual Teaching through Interaction framework to understand classroom processes in the German early education system. Three broad domains describe effective teacher–child interactions: Emotional Support, Classroom Organization, and Instructional Support. In the present study, we observed teacher–child interactions in 63 classrooms drawn from 26 different preschools using the CLASS Pre-K. Consistent with research from the United States, CLASS Pre-K scores demonstrated that the quality of teacher–child interactions varied widely. Data indicated that the levels of Emotional Support and Classroom Organization were moderate. In contrast, the level of Instructional Support was rather low and even decreased over the course of the morning. Furthermore, Emotional Support was found to decrease over the day in classrooms with a higher child–teacher ratio. Results have important implications for policy and practice with regard to the quality of care and education in German preschools.

The present studies aimed at investigating whether children’s risk for self-regulatory failure implicates poor academic outcomes even before the start of formal instruction. Therefore, we analyzed the association between children’s self-regulation abilities (i.e., operationalized with different paradigms) and academic achievement (i.e., early math skills). In Study 1, we found that parent-rated self-regulation predicted early math skills in preschool children. Additionally, the time that children managed to successfully delay a response predicted early math skills. In Study 2, we found that self-regulated behavior in preschool children as measured in a newly developed computerized delay task predicted early math skills. The results are discussed with respect to the importance of children’s self-regulation abilities for successful academic achievement.

Research Findings: Behavior regulation, including paying attention, remembering instructions, and controlling action, contributes to children's successful adaptation to and functioning in preschool and school settings. This study examined the development of behavior regulation in early childhood and its potential contribution to individual differences in children's early knowledge (mathematics and vocabulary). Sixty German preschool children were administered a direct observational measure of behavior regulation, the Head-to-Toes Task, and a standardized test to assess early mathematics and vocabulary. Results revealed significant gains in behavior regulation between of 3 and 4 years of age. Moreover, early gender differences were found, with girls outperforming boys at age 4. Behavior regulation was significantly related to performance on the academic tasks, but the pathways to math and vocabulary knowledge differed. Practice or Policy: Discussion focuses on the role of behavior regulation in early acade...

The present study investigated a direct assessment of behavioral self-regulation (the Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders; HTKS) and its contribution to early academic achievement among young children in Germany and Iceland. The authors examined the psychometric properties and construct validity of the HTKS, investigated gender differences in young children's behavioral self-regulation, and explored relations between the HTKS and a teacher report of behavioral self-regulation (the Child Behavior Rating Scale; CBRS) and emerging academic skills. Findings supported the construct validity of the HTKS when used with young German and Icelandic children. Multilevel analyses revealed gender differences, particularly on the CBRS teacher-rated measure. Finally, higher levels of behavioral self-regulation were related to higher academic skills after important background variables were controlled, although some cross-cultural differences in the predictive utility of the HTKS and CBRS were observed. Overall, these results extend prior psychometric work on the HTKS to samples of young European children and support the importance of understanding of the role behavioral self-regulation in young children's development.