When, for Whom, and why? Disentangling the Relations Between Positive Parenting and School Readiness

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Abstract

School readiness (SR) refers to the social, cognitive, emotional, and linguistic skills that are critical to a child's ability to navigate school demands. Positive parenting (i.e., sensitivity, stimulation, non-harsh discipline) is related to SR; however, mechanistic and contextual considerations remain unclear. This international collaboration amongst four early career psychologists uses high quality study designs to uncover complex relations between positive parenting and SR.
The first two talks use meta-analyses. Based on 61 independent samples (N = 9687 participants), the first talk shows domain-specific findings amongst positive parenting RCTs; interventions led to improvements in child cognition/language, with non-significant effects for executive functioning/pre-academics. Based on 111 studies (N = 9,155 children), the second talk examines mechanisms; that is, the indirect effect of positive parenting on cognitive/language outcomes operates, in part, through attachment security.
The final two talks use RCT designs to examine the effectiveness of the Family Check Up (FCU) – a targeted prevention. Based on 206 families, children whose parents received FCU had higher effortful control than children in control families; no significant differences emerged in executive functions. The final talk presents findings from an evaluation of an integrated treatment – the Video Interaction Project (pediatric visits) and, for higher-risk families, the FCU (home visits). In 314 Black and Latino families, there were intervention effects on parents’ cognitive stimulation, which in turn led to enhanced child social competence.
The proposed symposium delineates the mechanisms and moderators at play in the relations between positive parenting and school readiness, with applications to intervention optimization.

Sub Unit

• Parenting & Parent-Child Relationships

Chair

• Heather P Prime, York University

Individual Presentations

• Positive Parenting and Early Childhood Cognition: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials - Presenting Author: Heather P Prime, York University; Krysta Andrews, McMaster University; Alexandra Markwell, York University; Andrea Gonzalez, McMaster University; Magdalena Z Janus, McMaster University; Andrea C Tricco, Unity Health Toronto; Terry Bennett, McMaster University; Leslie Atkinson, Ryerson University

• Maternal Sensitivity, Child-Mother Attachment, and Children’s Cognitive/Language Outcomes: A Meta-Analytical Structural Equation Model - Presenting Author: Audrey-Ann Deneault, University of Calgary (U of C); Robbie Duschinsky, University of Cambridge; Pasco Fearon, University College London (UCL); Marinus H. van IJzendoorn, University College London (UCL); Julianna Watt, University of Calgary; Anh Ly, University of Calgary; Sheri Madigan, University of Calgary (U of C)

• Examining the Effects of the Family Check Up Intervention on Children’s Effortful Control and Executive Functions - Presenting Author: Krysta Andrews, McMaster University; Marc Jambon, Wilfrid Laurier University; Julie Gross, McMaster University; Heather P Prime, York University; Andrea Gonzalez, McMaster University; Terry Bennett, McMaster University

• Supporting Early Social-Emotional Competencies Through Reading and Play: Findings from the Smart Beginnings RCT - Presenting Author: Erin Roby, NYU Grossman School of Medicine; Elizabeth B. Miller, New York University School of Medicine; Caitlin Ford Canfield, NYU Grossman School of Medicine; Daniel S. Shaw, University of Pittsburgh; Pamela Morris-Perez, New York University; Alan L Mendelsohn, NYU Grossman School of Medicine