3-203 - Development of Self-Regulation in Infancy and Toddlerhood

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

The transition to parenthood is a tumultuous time for parents, and parent’s general health and wellbeing during this time can have implications for child development. This symposium allows for a unique cross-cultural investigation of the transition to parenthood, and the role parents play in the development of toddlers’ self-regulatory skills. As well, this symposium highlights the role of fathers’ mental health and wellbeing in the transition to parenthood, and the role of fathers in the development of children’s regulatory skills, an oft-ignored but critical influence in children’s development.

Data come from a multi-national, longitudinal prospective study of cohabitating first-time parents in the US, the UK, and the Netherlands. Participants were recruited prenatally from hospitals and clinics, and data collection took place in families’ homes when mothers were 36-week pregnant, and when infants were 4-, 14-, and 24-months old. Paper 1 investigates trajectories in parent mental health across the first two years of the child’s life, and relates parent mental health to child temperament. Paper 2 develops a measurement model for executive function at 14- and 24-months, and examines longitudinal stability and associations between executive function and child language and temperament. Paper 3 investigates the role of parental biobehavioral regulation in the development of child executive function, and discusses mechanisms by which regulatory skills are transferred. Finally, paper 4 extends the data collection procedures to a separate sample in China, and investigates the associations between parental sensitivity and child executive function. Implications for childrearing and policy across cultures will be discussed.

Sub Unit

• Attention, Learning, Memory

Chair

• Andrew Ribner, New York University

Individual Presentations

• Applying Latent Growth Modelling to Examine Trajectories for Maternal and Paternal Wellbeing Across the Transition to Parenthood - Presenting Author: Claire Hughes, University of Cambridge; Non-Presenting Author: Rory Thomas Devine, University of Birmingham; Non-Presenting Author: Clancy Blair, New York University; Non-Presenting Author: Judi Mesman, University of Leiden

• Individual Differences in Executive Function from 14 to 24 Months - Presenting Author: Rory Thomas Devine, University of Birmingham; Non-Presenting Author: Claire Hughes, University of Cambridge

• Intergenerational Transmission of Biobehavioral Regulatory Skills - Presenting Author: Andrew Ribner, New York University; Non-Presenting Author: Stephen H. Braren, New York University; Non-Presenting Author: Clancy Blair, New York University

• The Role of Parental Sensitivity and Infant Temperament in Infant Cognitive Development in China - Presenting Author: Wei Li, Leiden University; Non-Presenting Author: Rosanneke Emmen, Leiden University; Non-Presenting Author: Mi-lan Woudstra, Leiden University; Non-Presenting Author: Marjolein Branger, Leiden University; Non-Presenting Author: Lamei Wang, Shenzhen University; Non-Presenting Author: Lenneke Alink, Leiden University; Non-Presenting Author: Judi Mesman, University of Leiden