This study examined the relationship between characteristics of mothers' talk about future events and young children's ability to contribute to naturalistic conversations about future events. Results indicated that three maternal style factors were related to 2.5- and 4-year-olds' contributions: elaborative/advanced language, general and past…

This article explores analogy as a communicative tool used by parents to relate children's past experiences to unfamiliar concepts. Two studies explored how similarity comparisons and relational analogies were used in parent-child conversations about science topics. In Study 1, 98 family groups including 4- to 9-year-olds explored two science…

Based on attachment theory and recent findings with adults on relations between narrative coherence and well-being, we hypothesized that mothers who are more securely attached and who cope more effectively would be more engaged and more emotionally expressive in mother-child co-constructed narratives about stressful events. Twenty-seven mostly…

Despite their diverse themes, the various articles in this special issue all focus on the possibility that the child's view of the world is infused with premises and assumptions taken on board from other people. Demonstrating that process of transmission from parent to child is not easy. One powerful strategy would be to show that parental…

The majority of parents in the United States today must balance work and caregiving responsibilities. Workplace policies and community supports markedly influence the ability of parents to care for their children's health and education while obtaining, retaining, and advancing in their jobs. The goal of this article is to analyze the dilemmas…

Significant relations among language impairments, academic difficulties, and behavioral problems have been well established in previous research, primarily with impaired children or non-minority samples. However, how and why these three developmental domains tend to co-vary has received only limited attention. Preliminary research suggests that…

In response to indicators that a decline in interest in mathematics occurs among girls--particularly those from low-income and minority groups--during middle school, the GO-GIRL (Gaining Options: Girls Investigate Real Life) program was designed to help potentially talented at-risk girls. The program aimed to build mathematical confidence, skills,…

Data from 122 Head Start children were analyzed to examine the impact of computer use on school readiness and psychomotor skills. Children in the experimental group were given the opportunity to work on a computer for 15-20 minutes per day with their choice of developmentally appropriate educational software, while the control group received a…

The deleterious effects of early substance use have been well documented. Past research has produced mixed results regarding the extent to which the profile of risk differs for urban African American and suburban Caucasian youth. Sixth graders from urban (n = 420; 92% African American) and suburban (n = 391; 89% Caucasian) schools in metropolitan…

Community violence exposure (CVE), a critical urban problem, is associated with negative academic outcomes. Children who report feeling safe, however, may perform better than those who do not. The purpose of this study was to examine the relations among CVE, feelings of safety, and cognitive outcomes among 6- and 7-year-olds born to women…

This study examined personal, psychosocial, sociocultural, and environmental predictors in tobacco use for 1,671 Arab American adolescents. Cigarette smoking in the past 30 days was 6.9%. This increased from 1% at age 14 to 14% at age 18. Twenty-nine percent of the youths reported having ever smoked cigarettes. Experimentation with narghile was…

A personal account of a program of research on homelessness and poverty spanning the past 20 years is provided, with a focus on the many methodological, practical, and ethical difficulties encountered. Interesting discoveries and enjoyable aspects of the research process are also presented. Several role conflicts that arose for the researcher in…

This study compared the long-term predictive validity of person-centered personality types and variable-centered personality dimensions assessed between ages 4-6 years in a population sample of 154 children. Results indicated that the predictive power of both approaches was remarkably robust between age 17 and 22, and even increased in the case of…

Basic research can inform social policy in a number of ways. First, it can draw the attention of policy makers to problems. Second, it can deflect policy makers away from focusing on issues that are not really problems. Third, it can help policy makers understand whether or not factors are causally related to problems and the processes underlying…

In order to understand why some children are vulnerable to difficulties in their language development and their acquisition of reading skill, the Jyvaskyla Longitudinal Study of Dyslexia followed 200 Finnish children from birth to school age. Half of these children had a family history of reading problems and were considered at risk for dyslexia;…