The Prosocial Cyberball Game: Compensating for social exclusion and its associations with empathic concern and bullying in adolescents

In this study we examined prosocial compensating behavior towards socially excluded ingroup and outgroup members by using a ‘Prosocial Cyberball Game’ in 9–17 year old Dutch adolescents (N = 133). Results showed that adolescents compensated for the social exclusion of an unknown peer in a virtual ball tossing game, by tossing the ball more often to that player in compensation conditions compared to the fair play condition. The proportion of tosses towards the excluded player did not significantly differ as a function of the group status of that player. Although compensating behavior towards ingroup versus outgroup members did not differ, the underlying motivation for this behavior may vary. More empathic concern was associated with more prosocial tosses towards an ingroup member, while more self-reported bullying behavior was associated with less compensating behavior in the outgroup condition. These findings may have practical implications for programs intending to change bystander behavior in bullying situations

Stressful Family Environments and Children's Behavioral Control: A Multimethod Test and Replication Study With Twins.

Young children's behavioral control predicts a broad range of developmental outcomes in child- and adulthood. It is therefore important to study how individual differences in behavioral control arise. Previous studies suggest that there are both genetic and environmental influences, which were estimated in the current study using a sample of mono- and dizygotic same-sex twins. Furthermore, we examined the associations between indicators of a stressful family environment like household chaos, parenting daily hassles, and parental depressive symptoms and children's behavioral control in 2 samples. Children of the same twin pair were randomly divided over 2 samples; a test (N = 201, 48.3% boys, M age 46.53 months) and replication sample (N = 201, 49.8% boys, M age 46.06 months). Both parents reported on their children's effortful control via the Child Behavior Questionnaire and children's cheating behavior was observed during a throwing game. We found that AE models fitted the data for effortful control (A = 31%, E = 69%) and cheating (A = 16%, E = 84%) best. Path analyses revealed that children of parents experiencing more parenting daily hassles and depressive symptoms had lower levels of effortful control in the test sample. Furthermore, we found that children growing up in more chaotic households (parent report) had an increased risk of being in the cheating group versus the possible intention to cheat group in the test sample. These results were partially replicated. We suggest that the role of stressful family environments in the development of behavioral control should be considered when setting up prevention and intervention programs targeting children's behavioral control. (PsycINFO Database RecordDevelopment Psychopathology in context: famil

Young children's cortisol levels at out-of-home child care: a meta-analysis

Education and Child StudiesEducation and Child Studie

Effects of the Video-feedback intervention to promote positive parenting and sensitive discipline on mothers' neural responses to child faces: A randomized controlled ERP study including pre- and post-intervention measures

Parenting interventions have proven to be effective in enhancing positive parenting behavior and child outcomes. However, the neurocognitive mechanisms explaining the efficacy remain largely unknown. We tested effects of the Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline (VIPP-SD) on mothers' neural processing of child faces. Our primary focus was on the N170 and the secondary focus on the LPP. We expected the intervention to enhance the amplitudes of both ERP components in response to emotional compared to neutral faces. A total of 66 mothers visited the lab for two identical sessions separated by 4.28 months (SD = 0.86) during which a random 33% of the mothers received the VIPP-SD. During both pre- and post-intervention sessions, mothers' electroencephalographic (EEG) activity in response to photographs of children's neutral, happy and angry facial expressions were acquired. In contrast to our expectations, we found smaller (less negative) N170 amplitudes at post-test in the intervention group. There was no intervention effect on the LPP, although overall LPP amplitudes were more positive for neutral and angry compared to happy faces. Our study shows that the N170 is affected by the VIPP-SD, suggesting that the intervention promotes efficient, less effortful face processing. Trial registration: Dutch Trial Register: NTR5312; Date registered: 3 January 2017.Education and Child Studie

Child care in times of COVID-19: predictors of distress in Dutch children and parents when re-entering center-based child care after a 2-month lockdown

As a consequence of the outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) child care facilities all over the world were temporarily closed to minimize the spread of the virus. In Netherlands, the first closure lasted for almost 2 months. The return to the child care center after this significant interruption was expected to be challenging, because earlier studies demonstrated that transitions into child care can be stressful for both children and their parents. The current paper retrospectively examined the distress of Dutch children (aged 0-4) and their parents during the first 2 weeks after the reopening of child care centers, and what factors accounted for individual differences in distress. In total, 694 parents filled out an online questionnaire about stress during closure and distress after the reopening of child care centers. Furthermore, questions regarding several demographic variables and child care characteristics were included, as well as questionnaires measuring child temperament, parental separation anxiety, and parental perception of the child care quality. Results showed that younger children and children with parents scoring higher on separation anxiety experienced more distress after the reopening, as reported by parents. Furthermore, children were more distressed upon return when they attended the child care center for less hours per week after the reopening, experienced less stress during closure, and grew up in a one-parent family. With regard to parental distress after the reopening, we found that parents scoring higher on separation anxiety and fear of COVID-19 experienced more distress. Moreover, parents experiencing less stress during closure and mothers were more distressed when the child returned to the child care center. Finally, concurrent child and parental distress after reopening were positively related. The results of the current study may help professional caregivers to identify which children and parents benefit from extra support when children return to the child care center after an interruption. Especially the role that parental separation anxiety played in predicting both child and parental distress deserves attention. More research is required in order to study the underlying mechanisms of these associations and to design appropriate interventions.Education and Child Studie

Efficacy of the video-feedback intervention to promote positive parenting and sensitive discipline in twin families (VIPP-Twins): Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Development Psychopathology in context: famil

The way to success: Identifying factors related to individual differences in behavioral control and prosocial behavior

To thrive as an individual and within society, children need to master the ability to control their behavior and adapt it to social rules and standards. They also need to acquire the social competence to interact and communicate with others. Studies showing the relevance of behavioral control and social competence for children’s future development give rise to the search for factors that are associated with these competencies. These factors can be characteristics of the child, factors within the child’s social environment, and factors within the physical and socioeconomic environment. In the current thesis we aimed to identify some of these factors associated with the development of behavioral control in early childhood, and with prosocial behavior in early to mid-adolescence. We assessed four types of behavioral control: parent-reported effortful control, observed cheating behavior, delay of gratification, and response inhibition. For prosocial behavior, one type was assessed: observed compensating behavior towards an excluded peer. The results show that there is quite some variation in children’s level of behavioral control as well as in adolescents’ level of prosocial behavior and that these levels can be related to child characteristics, factors in their social environment, physical, and socioeconomic environment in a meaningful way.The studies described in the current thesis were supported through the Gravitation program of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science and the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO grant number 024.001.003).Development Psychopathology in context: famil

The way to success: Identifying factors related to individual differences in behavioral control and prosocial behavior

To thrive as an individual and within society, children need to master the ability to control their behavior and adapt it to social rules and standards. They also need to acquire the social competence to interact and communicate with others. Studies showing the relevance of behavioral control and social competence for children’s future development give rise to the search for factors that are associated with these competencies. These factors can be characteristics of the child, factors within the child’s social environment, and factors within the physical and socioeconomic environment. In the current thesis we aimed to identify some of these factors associated with the development of behavioral control in early childhood, and with prosocial behavior in early to mid-adolescence. We assessed four types of behavioral control: parent-reported effortful control, observed cheating behavior, delay of gratification, and response inhibition. For prosocial behavior, one type was assessed: observed compensating behavior towards an excluded peer. The results show that there is quite some variation in children’s level of behavioral control as well as in adolescents’ level of prosocial behavior and that these levels can be related to child characteristics, factors in their social environment, physical, and socioeconomic environment in a meaningful way.</p

The Prosocial Cyberball Game: Compensating for social exclusion and its associations with empathic concern and bullying in adolescents

In this study we examined prosocial compensating behavior towards socially excluded ingroup and outgroup members by using a ‘Prosocial Cyberball Game’ in 9–17 year old Dutch adolescents (N = 133). Results showed that adolescents compensated for the social exclusion of an unknown peer in a virtual ball tossing game, by tossing the ball more often to that player in compensation conditions compared to the fair play condition. The proportion of tosses towards the excluded player did not significantly differ as a function of the group status of that player. Although compensating behavior towards ingroup versus outgroup members did not differ, the underlying motivation for this behavior may vary. More empathic concern was associated with more prosocial tosses towards an ingroup member, while more self-reported bullying behavior was associated with less compensating behavior in the outgroup condition. These findings may have practical implications for programs intending to change bystander behavior in bullying situations

How heritable are parental sensitivity and limit-setting? A longitudinal child-based twin study on observed parenting: Behavioral Genetics of Observed Parenting

Education and Child Studie