Risks and resources for college students' mental health: ACEs, attachment, and mindfulness.

Objective: To examine associations between risks and resources in predicting college students' depressive symptoms at the beginning of one semester and change over the semester. Participants: Participants were undergraduate students taking human development courses at one of 11 universities in the U.S. (N = 854). Methods: Survey data were collected at the beginning and end of the semester. Results: Experiencing more direct abusive or neglectful adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and attachment preoccupation were associated with higher depressive symptoms at the beginning of the semester. Conversely, greater mindful awareness and attachment security were associated with lower initial depressive symptoms. Experiences of ACEs were associated with increases in depressive symptoms, as were higher levels of attachment dismissiveness. Greater mindful acceptance was associated with decreases in depressive symptoms. In most analyses, resources did not moderate the associations between ACEs and depressive symptoms. Conclusions: Results may inform instructors and counselors in supporting students' well-being.

"Press On, Continue On": Rural Parents' Experiences of Transitions Within Early Intervention.

Although all families experience a variety of transitions over time, families of children with exceptionalities tend to encounter more transitions during their children's earliest years. Transitions can be stressful and often include changes as part of early intervention or special education services. It is important to understand these transitions because the support families receive can influence child and family well-being. Therefore, we interviewed parents (N = 28) across a rural state about their experiences of transition over time. Using thematic analysis, three common themes emerged: (a) change is constant, (b) positive relationships support changing needs and priorities, and (c) parents need more support, information, or access to services or providers. Parents reported relationships and collaboration with providers to be important, yet insufficient, in supporting transitions. Rurality added some challenges to parents' experiences with transition. Recommendations include empowering families, providing more access and/or removing barriers to services, and building family efficacy through family-focused services.

Parents' Part C Experiences in Rural Areas: Alignment With Recommended Practices.

The Division for Early Childhood (DEC) clearly outlined recommended practices for the provision of Part C services. However, there may be challenges in rural areas associated with services aligning with these recommended practices. Therefore, this study focuses on how families experience Part C services and the extent to which services align with specific areas the DEC recommended practices in the large, rural state of Montana. We interviewed parents (N = 30) about their children's Part C services. Deductive qualitative content analysis was used. Parents' reports suggest that while some aspects of their Part C services align with specific recommended practices, others do not. There were some meaningful differences regarding alignment with these recommended practices depending on type of provider being described. The environments in which services take place are discussed, as these may influence aspects of collaboration and building family capacity.

The Early Intervention Referral Process for Rural Infants and Toddlers with Delays or Disabilities: A Family Perspective.

INTRODUCTION: Early intervention (EI) services provide essential support to families of children with delays or disabilities. Children can enter EI via a variety of routes, though all begin with a referral, and for children who require additional services, subsequent referrals are generally warranted. The referral process may be complicated by rurality, but little is known about families' experiences with EI referrals in rural areas. This study focuses on better understanding rural families' perspectives of the EI referral process. METHODS: Families with children in Part C services throughout Montana (N = 30) were interviewed regarding their referral experiences. A layered analysis was used to analyze initial and subsequent referrals, and investigate families' experiences regarding the referral process. RESULTS: Families' reports regarding which professionals provided referrals and who they provided referrals to were diverse. As part of qualitative content analysis three themes emerged: 1) the referral process is both challenging and complex; 2) professionals facilitate connections; and, 3) some professionals may have misconceptions or misunderstandings. Some families discussed how aspects of rurality may have exacerbated the complexities and challenges of the EI referral process. DISCUSSION: Based on families' experiences, professional development related to when, how, and who to refer to EI services, and subsequent support of families during the referral process, may be of utmost importance. Furthermore, families discussed rurality in relationship to turnover rates, limited access to services or specialized knowledge, and travel distance required to receive services, demonstrating the importance of training and retaining rural EI professionals.

How early intervention practitioners describe family-centred practice: A collective broadening of the definition.

BACKGROUND: Given the importance of families in supporting the health and developmental outcomes of young children, current recommended practices for early intervention services advocate for a family-centred practice (FCP) approach that recognizes the importance of children's family systems. Though there is consensus in the field on the importance of this approach, there often remains a disconnection between these values and the everyday practice of early intervention practitioners. This study focuses on understanding the ways in which practitioners define FCP as this can provide valuable insight into why these belief-practice disconnections may exist. METHODS: Early intervention practitioners (n = 203; e.g., special education or child development teachers, therapists, audiologists, etc) were surveyed at a statewide early intervention conference. Qualitative content analyses procedures were used to analyse participants' open-ended responses. RESULTS: Three themes emerged in the analysis, including the following: (a) FCP is a distinct approach to providing early intervention services; (b) there are specific practices for best implementing FCP; and (b) there are provider qualities that are essential in order to use FCP. CONCLUSIONS: Practitioners' definitions of FCP were primarily in line with recommended practices; however, they extend beyond the current definition of FCP in the early intervention literature, suggesting that the way this approach is conceptualized may be collectively broadening within the field. Opportunities, difficulties, and practical implications of this broadening definition are discussed.

Parenting Supports for Early Vocabulary Development: Specific Effects of Sensitivity and Stimulation through Infancy.

Growing recognition of disparities in early childhood language environments prompt examination of parent-child interactions which support vocabulary. Research links parental sensitivity and cognitive stimulation to child language, but has not explicitly contrasted their effects, nor examined how effects may change over time. We examined maternal sensitivity and stimulation throughout infancy using two observational methods - ratings of parents' interaction qualities, and coding of discrete parenting behaviors - to assess the relative importance of these qualities to child vocabulary over time, and determine whether mothers make related changes in response to children's development. Participants were 146 infants and mothers, assessed when infants were 14, 24, and 36 months. At 14 months, sensitivity had a stronger effect on vocabulary than did stimulation, but the effect of stimulation grew throughout toddlerhood. Mothers' cognitive stimulation grew over time, whereas sensitivity remained stable. While discrete parenting behaviors changed with child age, there was no evidence of trade-offs between sensitive and stimulating behaviors, and no evidence that sensitivity moderated the effect of stimulation on child vocabulary. Findings demonstrate specificity of timing in the link between parenting qualities and child vocabulary which could inform early parent interventions, and supports a reconceptualization of the nature and measurement of parental sensitivity.

Give me a hand: Differential effects of gesture type in guiding young children's problem-solving.

Adults' gestures support children's learning in problem-solving tasks, but gestures may be differentially useful to children of different ages, and different features of gestures may make them more or less useful to children. The current study investigated parents' use of gestures to support their young children (1.5 - 6 years) in a block puzzle task (N = 126 parent-child dyads), and identified patterns in parents' gesture use indicating different gestural strategies. Further, we examined the effect of child age on both the frequency and types of gestures parents used, and on their usefulness to support children's learning. Children attempted to solve the puzzle independently before and after receiving help from their parent; half of the parents were instructed to sit on their hands while they helped. Parents who could use their hands appear to use gestures in three strategies: orienting the child to the task, providing abstract information, and providing embodied information; further, they adapted their gesturing to their child's age and skill level. Younger children elicited more frequent and more proximal gestures from parents. Despite the greater use of gestures with younger children, it was the oldest group (4.5-6.0 years) who were most affected by parents' gestures. The oldest group was positively affected by the total frequency of parents' gestures, and in particular, parents' use of embodying gestures (indexes that touched their referents, representational demonstrations with object in hand, and physically guiding child's hands). Though parents rarely used the embodying strategy with older children, it was this strategy which most enhanced the problem-solving of children 4.5 - 6 years.

Parents' communication decision for children with hearing loss: sources of information and influence.

Choosing a method of communication for a child with hearing loss is a complex process that must occur early to prevent developmental consequences. Research shows that parents' decisions are influenced by professionals; parental attitudes and knowledge also may be influential. The present study investigated additional influences on parents' choices; data were collected via an online survey (N = 36). Results indicated no effects of parents' knowledge of development on their communication choices, but did indicate an effect of parents' values and priorities for their children. Further, parents who chose speech only received information from education or speech/audiology professionals more often. However, there were no group differences in sources parents cited as influential; all parents relied on their own judgment. Results suggest that parents internalize the opinions of professionals. Thus, accurate information from professionals is necessary for parents to make informed decisions about their children's communication.