Effortful Control and Academic Achievement: Results From a Social-Emotional Intervention Targeting Urban, Low-Income Students

• In Event: Crown Plaza Roundtable Session 5
  In Roundtable Session: Social and Emotional Competence of At-Risk Children and Youth

Abstract

The present study investigated the role of early effortful control on later academic outcomes. Participants included 144 children from 22 urban, public elementary schools who were randomly assigned to INSIGHTS or a supplemental reading program. Growth modeling was utilized to measure growth over time in the Woodcock-Johnson III Applied Problems and Letter–Word Identification subtests. Results revealed that early effortful control predicted growth in reading scores and moderated the relation between the INSIGHTS intervention and reading ability over time. Similar results were not seen for math. Future directions and implications for research on effortful control and SEL programs are discussed.

Authors

• Elizabeth Parham Horn, New York University

• Jiawei Li, New York University

• Rachel Stephanie Lacks, New York University

• Sandee G. McClowry, New York University