Improving parenting, child attachment, and externalizing behaviors: Meta-analysis of the first 25 randomized controlled trials on the effects of Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline (VIPP-SD). VIPP-SD combines support of parental sensitive responsiveness with coaching parents in sensitive limit setting. Here, we present meta-analyses of 25 RCTs conducted with more than 2,000 parents and caregivers. Parents or children had various risks. We examined its effectiveness in promoting parental cognitions and behavior regarding sensitive parenting and limit setting, in promoting secure child–parent attachment, and reducing externalizing child behavior. Web of Science, MEDLINE, PubMed, and recent reviews were searched for relevant trials (until May 10, 2021). Multilevel meta-analysis with META, METAFOR, and DMETAR in R took account of the 3-level structure of the datasets (studies, participants, measures). The meta-analyses showed substantial combined effect sizes for parenting behavior (r = .18) and attitudes (r = .16), and for child attachment security (r = .23), but not for child externalizing behavior (r = .07). In the subset of studies examining effects on both parenting and attachment, the association between effect sizes for parenting and for attachment amounted to r = .48. We consider the way in which VIPP-SD uses video-feedback an active intervention component. Whether VIPP-SD indeed stimulates secure attachment through enhanced positive parenting remains an outstanding question for further experimental study and individual participant data meta-analysis.

An accelerated longitudinal research design was used to examine heterogeneity in the developmental co-occurrence of peer relational victimization and aggression and of peer overt victimization and aggression from age 4.5 to 10.5 years. Data were gathered from four cohorts of children in kindergarten to Grade 3 (N = 503) on six occasions across 2 years. Psychopathology, peer, and social–cognitive factors were examined as predictors of the joint trajectories. Sequential process latent growth mixture models identified four distinct subgroups for the relational trajectories (co-occurring increasing aggression, co-occurring increasing victimization, high chronic victimization, typical low risk) and four distinct subgroups for the overt trajectories (co-occurring decelerating aggression, high chronic victimization, moderate chronic victimization, typical low risk). Membership in the co-occurring trajectories was associated with psychopathology and membership in the chronic victimization trajectories was related to internalizing and social–cognitive problems but also peer likeability.

While phenotypically indistinguishable with respect to callousness, individuals with primary and secondary callous–unemotional (CU) traits may show different developmental outcomes. This research predominantly comprised cross-sectional studies of male participants with a focus on maladaptive correlates. Thus, the present study examined whether youth with primary and secondary CU traits identified in Grade 7 reported distinct maladaptive outcomes (internalizing, externalizing, and substance use problems; criminal offenses; and sexual and partner experiences) and adaptive outcomes (health and wellbeing, education, and employment) in adulthood at age 25. We also examined sex differences. Participants included the high-risk control and normative samples from the Fast Track project (N = 754, male = 58%, Black = 46%). Youth with secondary CU traits reported higher levels of adult internalizing and externalizing psychopathology, a greater number of sexual partners and risky sexual behavior, and a greater number of violent offenses, compared with individuals with primary CU traits and those with low CU and anxiety symptoms. Conversely, youth with primary CU traits and low symptoms had higher wellbeing and happiness scores than those with secondary CU traits. Finally, there was differentiation on outcomes between female primary and secondary CU variants and male primary and secondary CU variants.

Moral disengagement is a social cognition people use to engage in wrongdoings even when they know it is wrong. However, little is known about the antecedents that predict moral disengagement. The current study focuses on the development of self-control and cooperation during middle childhood as two antecedents of moral disengagement among 1,103 children (50% female; 77% White, 12% Black, 6% Hispanic, and 5% other). Children's self-control at age 8 and growth in self-control from age 8 to 11 were positively linked to adolescents seeing themselves as having self-control at age 15, which then predicted less moral disengagement at age 18. Children's cooperation at age 8 also was positively linked to adolescents’ self-views of cooperation at age 15, which in turn, was associated with less moral disengagement at age 18. These findings demonstrate the potential of self-control and cooperation as intrapersonal and interpersonal strengths during middle childhood for mitigating moral disengagement 10 years later.

We examined the associations of middle childhood infectious morbidity and inflammatory biomarkers with adolescent internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. We recruited 1018 Colombian schoolchildren aged 5–12 years into a cohort. We quantified white blood cell (WBC) counts and C-reactive protein at enrollment and prospectively recorded incidence of gastrointestinal, respiratory, and fever-associated morbidity during the first follow-up year. After a median 6 years, we assessed adolescent internalizing and externalizing behavior problems using child behavior checklist (CBCL) and youth self-report (YSR) questionnaires. Behavior problem scores were compared over biomarker and morbidity categories using mean differences and 95% confidence intervals (CI) from multivariable linear regression. Compared with children without symptoms, CBCL internalizing problem scores were an adjusted 2.5 (95% CI: 0.1, 4.9; p = .04) and 3.1 (95% CI: 1.1, 5.2; p = .003) units higher among children with moderate diarrhea with vomiting and high cough with fever rates, respectively. High cough with fever and high fever rates were associated with increased CBCL somatic complaints and anxious/depressed scores, respectively. WBC >10,000/mm3 was associated with both internalizing problem and YSR withdrawn/depressed scores. There were no associations with externalizing behavior problems. Whether or not decreasing the burden of common infections results in improved neurobehavioral outcomes warrants further investigation.

We identified family risk profiles at 6 months using socioeconomic status (SES) and maternal mental health indicators with data from the Family Life Project (N = 1,292). We related profiles to executive function (EF) at 36 months (intercept) and growth in EF between 36 and 60 months. Latent profile analysis revealed five distinct profiles, characterized by different combinations of SES and maternal mental health symptoms. Maternal sensitivity predicted faster growth in EF among children in the profile characterized by deep poverty and the absence of maternal mental health symptoms. Maternal sensitivity also predicted higher EF intercept but slower EF growth among children in the profile characterized by deep poverty and maternal mental health symptoms, and children in the near poor (low SES), mentally healthy profile. Maternal sensitivity also predicted higher EF intercept but had no effect on growth in EF in the near poor, mentally distressed profile. In contrast, maternal sensitivity did not predict the intercept or growth of EF in the privileged SES/mentally healthy profile. Our findings using a person-centered approach provide a more nuanced understanding of the role of maternal sensitivity in the growth of EF, such that maternal sensitivity may differentially affect the growth of EF in various contexts.

Mid-adolescence is a critical time for the development of stress-related disorders and it is associated with significant social vulnerability. However, little is known about normative neural processes accompanying psychosocial stress at this time. Previous research found that emotion regulation strategies critically influence the relationship between stress and the development of psychiatric symptoms during adolescence. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we examined neural responses to acute stress and analyzed whether the tendency to use adaptive or maladaptive emotion regulation strategies is related to neural and autonomic stress responses. Results show large linear activation increases from low to medium to high stress levels mainly in medial prefrontal, insulae and temporal areas. Caudate and subgenual anterior cingulate cortex, neural areas related to reward and affective valuations, showed linearly decreasing activation. In line with our hypothesis, the current adolescent neural stress profile resembled social rejection and was characterized by pronounced activation in insula, angular and temporal cortices. Moreover, results point to an intriguing role of the anterior temporal gyrus. Stress-related activity in the anterior temporal gyrus was positively related to maladaptive regulation strategies and stress-induced autonomic activity. Maladaptive coping might increase the social threat and reappraisal load of a stressor, relating to higher stress sensitivity of anterior temporal cortices.

Little is known about how mental health symptoms develop during the transition to university. Most anxiety and depression research fails to consider how symptom development differs over time across different individuals, and how symptom co-occurrence influences the severity of mental health problems. Students (N = 658) completed online surveys on mental health prior to starting university and every 2 months until April. To better understand mental health problems during this transitional period, latent class growth curve analyses were run to determine how anxiety and depressive symptoms co-develop over time, as well, if self-critical perfectionism was a transdiagnostic risk factor for more severe symptom trajectories in this transition. About 40% of students experienced depression and anxiety symptoms prior to entering/during the transition to university. There is substantial variation between students in terms of how they experience depression and anxiety symptoms, and research needs to take this heterogeneity into account to properly identify which students might benefit most from resources. Self-critical perfectionism was a transdiagnostic risk factor, such that students higher in this trait experienced more severe anxiety and depressive symptom trajectories during this transition. This research further implicates the importance of understanding and studying individual differences in symptom development.

The present study is the first to examine the relations between participation in a public early childhood intervention (the Child-Parent Center (CPC) program) and psychological well-being (or, positive functioning) into early mid-life. Data are drawn from the Chicago Longitudinal Study (CLS), which has followed a cohort of 1,539 individuals who grew up in urban poverty for over four decades. Approximately two-thirds of the original study cohort participated in the CPC program in early childhood; the rest comprise a demographically matched comparison group. Participants’ psychological functioning at age 35–37 was assessed using the Ryff Scales of Psychological Wellbeing. Results support a positive relationship between CPC preschool participation and long-term psychological wellbeing. Moderated mediation (e.g., whether CPC effects on wellbeing differ across subgroups) and potential mechanisms across multiple social-ecological levels (according to the 5-Hypothesis Model of early intervention) are also empirically investigated. Future directions for child development research, early childhood intervention, and public policy are discussed.

Although there is strong evidence supporting the association between childhood adversity and symptomatology during adolescence, the extent to which adolescents present with distinct patterns of co-occurring post-traumatic stress (PTS) and externalizing symptoms remains unclear. Additionally, prior research suggests that experiencing nonviolent, negative life events may be more salient risk factors for developing some forms of psychopathology than exposure to violence. The current study used latent profile analysis to identify subgroups of early adolescents with distinct patterns of PTS, physical aggression, delinquency, and substance use, and examined subgroup differences in exposure to three forms of violent and nonviolent childhood adversity. Participants were a predominantly low-income, African American sample of 2,722 urban middle school students (M age = 12.9, 51% female). We identified four symptom profiles: low symptoms (83%), some externalizing (8%), high PTS (6%), and co-occurring PTS and externalizing symptoms (3%). A higher frequency of witnessing violence was associated with increased odds of membership in subgroups with externalizing symptoms, whereas a higher frequency of nonviolent, negative life events was associated with increased odds of membership in subgroups with PTS symptoms. Interventions aimed to address childhood adversity may be most effective when modules addressing both PTS and externalizing symptoms are incorporated.

Many adolescents start using tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis. Genetic vulnerability, parent characteristics in young adolescence, and interaction (GxE) and correlation (rGE) between these factors could contribute to the development of substance use. Using prospective data from the TRacking Adolescent Individuals’ Lives Survey (TRAILS; N = 1,645), we model latent parent characteristics in young adolescence to predict young adult substance use. Polygenic scores (PGS) are created based on genome-wide association studies (GWAS) for smoking, alcohol use, and cannabis use. Using structural equation modeling we model the direct, GxE, and rGE effects of parent factors and PGS on young adult smoking, alcohol use, and cannabis initiation. The PGS, parental involvement, parental substance use, and parent–child relationship quality predicted smoking. There was GxE such that the PGS amplified the effect of parental substance use on smoking. There was rGE between all parent factors and the smoking PGS. Alcohol use was not predicted by genetic or parent factors, nor by interplay. Cannabis initiation was predicted by the PGS and parental substance use, but there was no GxE or rGE. Genetic risk and parent factors are important predictors of substance use and show GxE and rGE in smoking. These findings can act as a starting point for identifying people at risk.

Greater childhood adversity predicts a higher likelihood of later self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITB). There is little research focused on whether the timing of childhood adversity predicts SITB. The current research examined whether the timing of childhood adversity predicted parent- and youth-reported SITB at age 12 and 16 years in the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) cohort (n = 970). We found that greater adversity at age 11–12 years consistently predicted SITB at age 12 years, while greater adversity at age 13–14 years consistently predicted SITB at age 16 years. These findings suggest there may be sensitive periods during which adversity may be more likely to lead to adolescent SITB, which can inform prevention and treatment.

Callous–unemotional (CU) behaviors (i.e., low concern and active disregard for others) uniquely predict severe conduct problems and substance use when present by late childhood. Less is known about the predictive utility of CU behaviors displayed in early childhood, when morality is developing and interventions may be more effective. Children aged 4–7 years (N = 246; 47.6% girls) completed an observational task wherein they were encouraged to tear an experimenter's valued photograph, and blind raters coded children's displayed CU behaviors. During the next 14 years, children's conduct problems (i.e., oppositional defiant and conduct symptoms) and age of onset of substance use were assessed. Compared to children displaying fewer CU behaviors, children displaying greater CU behaviors were 7.61 times more likely to meet criteria for a conduct disorder (n = 52) into early adulthood (95% CI, 2.96–19.59; p = <.0001), and their conduct problems were significantly more severe. Greater CU behaviors were associated with earlier onset of substance use (B = −.69, SE = .32, t = −2.14, p = .036). An ecologically valid observed indicator of early CU behavior was associated with substantially heightened risk for conduct problems and earlier onset substance use into adulthood. Early CU behavior is a powerful risk marker identifiable using a simple behavioral task which could be used to target children for early intervention.

Children who experience parental death are at increased risk for suicide. The Family Bereavement Program (FBP) is an upstream preventive intervention for parentally bereaved families that was found to reduce suicide risk in parentally bereaved youth up to 6 and 15 years later. We tested whether FBP-induced improvements in effective parenting led to changes in multiple proximal factors that prior theory and research implicated in the cascading pathway to suicide risk, namely, aversive self-views, caregiver connectedness, peer connectedness, complicated grief, depressive symptoms, and emotion suppression. The sample was 244 bereaved youth and their surviving caregiver from 156 families. Families were randomized into the FBP (12 group-based sessions for parents, youth, and two joint sessions) or a literature control condition. Multimethod and multiinformant data were collected at baseline, posttest, 6-year and 15-year follow-up assessments. Results showed that program-induced improvements in effective parenting at posttest were associated with reduced aversive self-views and increased caregiver connectedness at the 6-year follow-up, and each mediator was in turn associated with reduced suicide risk at the 6- and 15-year follow-up. The mediated pathways via aversive self-views remained significant while controlling for caregiver connectedness. Self-related concepts may be important targets in upstream suicide prevention for at-risk youth.

Childhood adversities have a well-established dose–response relationship with later mental health. However, less attention has been given to intergenerational influences. Further, it is unknown how intergenerational influences intersect with children’s developmental stages and gender. The current study examined whether a developmental inflection point exists when the intergenerational influences of childhood adversities gain salience and explored differences by children’s gender. Data were from the Young Women and Child Development Study (n = 361). Time-varying effect models (TVEMs) and moderation TVEMs by child’s gender were evaluated. Our findings reveal that ages 5–8, the period of transition into primary schools, may represent a developmental inflection point when the intergenerational influences of maternal childhood adversity start emerging substantially. The results from gender interaction TVEMs reveal that maternal childhood adversity was a statistically significant predictor of internalizing problems until age 11, regardless of child’s gender, and remained statistically significant for girls’ internalizing problems until age 16.7. For externalizing problems, maternal childhood adversity was a statistically significant predictor until age 13, regardless of gender.