Research on mind-mindedness is flourishing but remains limited both in geographical scope and by the scarcity of longitudinal designs. Framed within a larger study of the transition to siblinghood in China, we addressed these gaps by following 138 Chinese mothers (82% university educated) from late pregnancy for a second child (Time 1; M weeks = 32) to two months postpartum (Time 2; M interval = 3.40 months). At both time points mothers completed (a) the Five-Minute Speech Sample paradigm, with transcripts coded for the proportion of mental attributes and positive valence mental attributes (i.e., positive mind-mindedness), and (b) questionnaire measures of maternal mental health, child-mother relationship quality, and internalizing and externalizing problems in their firstborn child (M T1 age = 4.48 years, SD = 1.66; 38.4% boys). Mean mind-mindedness (not positive mind-mindedness) increased significantly across this period of family change. Cross-lagged analyses showed that, controlling for baseline child internalizing symptoms, expectant mothers' positive mind-mindedness predicted fewer internalizing problems post-birth. Conversely, initial child internalizing symptoms were inversely associated with positive mind-mindedness post-birth. This bidirectional relationship highlights the dynamic nature of mind-mindedness and suggests that positive MM supports Chinese firstborns' adjustment during the sibling transition.

Little is known about how parental spatial language input relates to children's spatial cognition or mathematics performance or how children's own spatial language develops. The current study examined spatial language at 24 months (N = 187 families; 105 boys) and 48 months (N = 115 families; 66 boys), and spatial cognition and number performance at 48 months. Child spatial language was predominantly from the categories of "deictics," "location and direction," "continuous amount" and "spatial dimensions" at both timepoints. The diversity of parents' spatial language (spatial language quality) at 24 months was longitudinally associated with child numeracy at 48 months. Findings are discussed in relation to existing literature.

Despite the evolving role of fathers, studies rarely examine the development of mother- and father-toddler interactions in tandem. In addition, evidence of how these preschool family interactions support children’s school readiness is also heavily focused on mothers. We respond to this via two studies. In a sample of 185 two-parent families, Study One examined similarities, differences and longitudinal links between displays of warmth and reciprocity in home-based play observations of mother-toddler and father-toddler dyadic interactions at two timepoints (14- and 24-months). At 14-months, mothers displayed higher average levels of warmth than fathers, but there were no mean differences by parent gender in dyadic reciprocity. Within-family associations strengthened over time, and by 24 months, average levels of warmth and dyadic reciprocity were similar for mothers and fathers. Mother-toddler reciprocity and maternal warmth at 14-months each predicted father-toddler reciprocity at 24-months, controlling for fathers’ behaviour at 14 months. Expanding the developmental scope of these findings, Study Two involved an age 48-months follow-up of 77 children, for whom teachers rated school-readiness, including subscales of language and cognition, daily living skills, behavioural regulation, and family support. Tentative findings with this reduced sample indicate potential contrasts in associations between mother- and father-toddler interactions and domains of school readiness. Father-toddler reciprocity at 24-months was associated with children’s language and cognition skills and teacher-rated family support, while mothers’ warmth at 24-months was associated children’s daily living skills. Findings highlight tandem developmental processes in mother and father-toddler dyadic interactions and the potential importance of fathers in supporting school readiness.

This longitudinal study examines different domains of parenting as independent predictors of gains in children's executive function (EF). Day-long naturalistic audio recordings of family talk were gathered at Time 1 for 70 children from England (40 girls, M age = 5.41 years, SD = 0.33; 85.7% of caregivers had degree-level education), alongside remote observations of parent-child dyads (87.1% mothers) engaging in a 5-min structured play task, which was coded for parent responsiveness, positive control, and talk complexity. At Time 1 and one year later at Time 2 (M age = 6.42 years, SD = 0.31), children completed three EF tasks (Fish Flanker, Backwards Animal Span, Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders) and a measure of receptive vocabulary. Contrary to expectations, parent talk quantity (adult word count) at home was inversely associated with later EF, suggesting that greater talk by parents may limit opportunities for children to practice self-regulation. Parent responsiveness and positive control in structured play showed independent positive associations with children's EF concurrently but not over time. These findings highlight the importance of including a broad range of parental measures to investigate social influences on EF.

Starting formal schooling is a major milestone that brings multiple challenges for children’s wellbeing and is also characterized by rapid growth in executive function (EF; Cadima et al., 2015; Thompson & Steinbeis, 2020). To examine dynamic links between school wellbeing and EF, we adopted a longitudinal multi-informant cross-cultural design. Overall, 361 children (England: n = 206, Time 1 Mage = 5.39 years, SD= 0.31, 80% White British; Hong Kong: n = 155, Time 1 Mage = 5.02 years, SD= 0.33, 99% Han Chinese) and their caregivers (89% mothers in England and 88% mothers in Hong Kong) were seen twice, with one-year interval between time points. At each time point, children completed three EF tasks. Children and parents rated child school wellbeing. For both sites, EF increased over time, but parent-rated school wellbeing declined; in England, child-rated school wellbeing also declined over time. Latent change score models showed that, in both sites and for both informants, the association between EF and school wellbeing was non-significant at school entry, but positive at Time 2. This shift likely reflects increasing regulatory demands as schooling becomes more formal in nature. Baseline EF did not predict change in school wellbeing in either site, and baseline school wellbeing did not predict change in EF, with one exception: in Hong Kong, parent- rated school wellbeing at Time 1 predicted gains in EF. These multi-informant, cross-cultural findings underscore the need to support both child EF and school wellbeing as distinct, co- developing domains during this critical period.

Parental distress impacts children's emotional adjustment, highlighting the need to identify protective factors. Promising candidates include positive control (i.e., autonomy support, indexed by parental encouragement, praise, and open-ended questions) and representational mind-mindedness (the propensity for parents to view children as independent agents). To counterbalance the focus on European and North American samples, we included 849 parent-child dyads from England, Hong Kong and Mainland China (Mchild age = 5.17 years, SD = 0.51). Parents rated their own distress and child internalizing problems; their interactions with their children were assessed for positive control, and their speech samples were coded for representational mind-mindedness. In a single-paper meta-analysis, parental distress was associated with elevated child internalizing problems and low positive control consistently across sites, but only associated with low mind-mindedness in England. Within-site analyses showed that intergenerational associations in distress-internalizing problems were attenuated by positive control in Mainland China and by mind-mindedness in England; multi-group modeling demonstrated that this latter effect was site-specific. These findings highlight the importance of widening the cultural scope of this research field.

Objective. The pandemic presented unprecedented challenges to family dynamics and parent-child interactions during critical transitional periods. Design. This qualitative study explores the perspectives of 60 British mothers on their children's transition to Reception year, the first year of primary school, during the COVID-19 lockdown, using the Five-Minute Speech Sample (FMSS) method. The analysis uses hybrid inductive-deductive thematic analysis, drawing on criticism and warmth as interpretative lenses rather than formal coding categories. Results. The criticism and warmth dimensions co-occurred in the same descriptions, reflecting the emotional complexity of parenting during the pandemic. Mothers' narratives illustrate how the intense proximity and social isolation of the lockdown deepened both empathy and frustration, highlighting the intertwined nature of warmth and criticism in mothers' emotional expressions. Using a phenomenological approach, the analysis identified four main themes: (1) the transition to Reception during COVID-19, (2) mothers' perceptions of their children's agency, (3) mothers' descriptions of their children's develop0ment, and (4) framing as a coping mechanism. Conclusions. Findings are discussed from three perspectives: (1) contextual, considering the unique pandemic environment; (2) theoretical, exploring the findings through the concept of narrative coherence; and (3) methodological, emphasizing the influence of the analytical approach on understanding mothers' perceptions. This holistic approach offers valuable insights for enhancing mother-child relationships and supporting children through critical transitions, particularly in crisis contexts.

As early rapid genomic sequencing (rGS) is adopted in paediatric medicine, there is an urgency to understand and address family support needs. This mixed methods study (Peregrin*) examined the experiences of 96 parents, 1–5 years after receiving trio rGS results for their child with a severe early-onset condition. Quantitative outcome measures assessed parental well-being, life satisfaction, and family impact, comparing results to non-clinical population data, between mothers and fathers, and according to child’s diagnostic outcome. Qualitative semi-structured interviews explored parents’ satisfaction with support, engagement with support networks, and unmet needs. Quantitatively, mothers exhibited elevated anxiety and depression relative to population norms, and there was a lack of strong correlation in well-being metrics within couples. Parents of children with a genomic diagnosis reported poorer well-being, explained by greater medical complexity. Qualitatively, insufficient support was more frequently reported by those whose child had received a genomic diagnosis (36%) compared to those without (6%). Families drew on a range of formal and informal support sources, including condition-specific groups, though these were accessed by a minority of fathers. These findings highlight persistent and evolving support needs in families affected by complex childhood health conditions, which persist after rGS. Parents’ support needs are highly individual, vary over time and across children’s illness trajectory. There remain important gaps between parental needs and support, impacting on family well-being.

Executive functions have a prolonged development, which offers a valuable opportunity to examine age-related changes across diverse sociocultural contexts. Yet, most evidence comes from Minority World populations, and exceptional cross-cultural research is heavily focused on the preschool period. To address these geographical and developmental gaps, this pre-registered report involves (i) an international sample (N = 2,898; 47% male; Mage = 11.37 years, SD = 1.83) from 13 distinct sites across Majority and Minority World settings, and (ii) a harmonized online battery of executive function tasks, enabling speed–accuracy trade-offs to be considered. Age-related gains were consistently small to moderate in size and gender differences were minimal. We interpret these findings as supporting a model of cultural universality with specificity.

BACKGROUND:Limited evidence exists for the role of parent-child coparticipation in physical activity (joint light, moderate, or vigorous physical activities involving at least 1 child and a parent) in parents' and children's overall physical activity. This study examined the association of parent-child coparticipation in physical activity with parental and children's daily physical activity and explored correlates of coparticipation. METHODS:Data were from 149 participants (41 families: 67 parents [30-55 y, 57% female] and 82 children [4-16 y, 40% girls]) in the Families Reporting Every Step to Health pilot study. Families Reporting Every Step to Health was a 3-armed, parallel-group, randomized controlled pilot trial. Participants' physical activity and location were measured simultaneously with accelerometers and Global Positioning System monitors. Data from 3 data collection points (baseline and 2 follow-ups) were analyzed cross-sectionally using multivariable linear mixed models with random intercepts at the family and participant levels. RESULTS:At baseline, children and parents accumulated an average of 70 and 36 minutes per day, respectively, of parent-child coparticipation in physical activity, which contributed 33% and 17% of their daily total physical activity, respectively. For both parents and children, coparticipation was positively associated with daily total physical activity (β = 0.37; 95% CI, 0.19-0.55 min/d) and daily moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (β = 0.10; 95% CI, 0.03-0.16 min/d). Coparticipation in physical activity was on average 28.80 (11.23-46.37) minutes per day lower among parents than among children. CONCLUSION:Parent-child coparticipation in physical activity might be a promising component of family-based interventions to promote physical activity among children and parents.

The aim of the present study was to examine the relation between children's well-being and mental health in the early years of primary school and the developmental association between well-being and mental health and children's early social and academic skills. Two hundred fifty-two children (131 girls, Mage = 5.40 years, 80% White) and their caregivers (89.8% mothers) from the United Kingdom participated in a 1-year longitudinal study. Children completed measures of well-being, cognitive, and academic skills. Caregivers provided ratings of children's well-being and mental health. Teachers and caregivers rated children's social competence. Measurement models showed that well-being and mental health were distinct constructs at both time points. There were moderate levels of rank-order stability in well-being but declines in average levels of well-being with a corresponding increase in mental health difficulties. Well-being and mental health exhibited differential associations with social competence and academic performance. Initial levels of mental health predicted later academic and social competence, while gains in well-being were associated with academic skills and social competence. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).

Cross-site comparisons indicate that East Asian children typically excel on tests of executive function (EF), but interpreting this contrast is made difficult by both the heavy reliance on testing in school settings and by the scarcity of studies that assess across-site measurement invariance. Addressing these gaps, our study included remote home-based assessments of EF for 1002 children (Mage = 5.19 years, SD = 0.51; 49% male) from England, Hong Kong, and mainland China, as well as parental ratings of externalizing and internalizing adjustment problems (data collected between June 2021 and December 2022). The models established partial scalar invariance but did not show clear site differences. Supporting the universal importance of EF for behavioral self-regulation, EF task performance and parent-rated externalizing problems showed similar inverse associations across sites.

Parental mind-mindedness (MM)-defined as the propensity to view children as mental agents with their own thoughts, feelings, and intentions-is thought to shape parental behavior and affect, which are also impacted by family adversity. However, little is known about whether associations between MM, parenting, and family adversity generalize across cultural contexts. This study aimed to both address this question, and to also consider whether parental MM attenuates associations between family adversity and parenting behavior/affect. Across three sites (England, Hong Kong, mainland China), 832 parent-child dyads (Mchild age = 5.18 years; SD = 0.52) were observed remotely in a shared drawing task, with video-footage coded for parental behavior and affect. Parental MM was assessed from transcripts of parents' descriptions of their child. Our index of family adversity comprised indicators of socioeconomic status, parental mental health, negative life events, and COVID-19 related stress. Using a single-study meta-analysis design, we found across-site generalizability of associations between parenting aspects and (a) MM (summary estimate = 0.13) and (b) family adversity (summary estimate = -0.16). By contrast, the predicted effect of MM in attenuating associations between family adversity and parenting was only partially supported. That is, the association between family adversity and parental negative affect was attenuated in the context of high MM in mainland China (but not in England or Hong Kong). For parenting behavior and affect, findings indicate both cultural similarities and contrasts and are discussed within the framework of "universality without uniformity" models. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Background: There is a complex pattern of sex differences in spatial abilities, yet there is limited knowledge of sex differences in children's exposure to, and children's use of, spatial language. The aim of this study was to directly compare mother-child and father-child interactions to investigate differences by child and parent sex in spatial language. Methods: The first 3-min of mother-child and father-child DUPLO (R) play sessions were coded for spatial language when the child was 24 months (N = 187 families; 105:82 boys:girls) and two years later at 48 months (N = 115 families; 66:49 boys:girls). Results: There were no sex differences in children's or parents' spatial language use at 24 months or 48 months. Regardless of socioeconomic status or parent talkativeness, parents showed more variety of spatial language (quality) with their daughters than their sons, but a similar quantity of spatial language with their daughters and sons. Associational analyses revealed a concurrent association between parent and child spatial language use at 48 months, but parent spatial language at 24 months did not predict child spatial language 2 years later. No direct sex effects were observed for cross-sectional or longitudinal associational analyses. Conclusions: Higher spatial language quality with daughters could reflect a higher (perceived) need to provide conceptual support to daughters than sons. Beyond this, we found limited evidence of sex effects. Our findings represent an important contribution, demonstrating comparable levels of exposure to spatial language to sons and daughters, and comparable elicitation of spatial language from young boys and girls.

Parental verbal sensitivity is known to promote child language skills, but few studies have considered: (a) links between global (i.e., verbal, behavioral, and affective) measures of parental sensitivity and infant-initiated conversations, an important precursor to language development; (b) whether maternal and paternal sensitivity show similar links with infant-initiated conversation; or (c) the transactional role of infant conversation for later parental sensitivity. Addressing these gaps, this study of 186 British first-time parents (93 families) examines the developmental dynamics between parental sensitivity and infant communication across the first year of life. We explore; (i) the role of maternal and paternal sensitivity (assessed during structured home observations at 4 months post-partum) for parent-infant conversational interactions at 7 months (indexed by day-long naturalistic recordings), and (ii) whether these mother-infant and father-infant conversations at 7 months shape maternal and paternal sensitivity at 14 months (also assessed via structured home observations). For both male and female infants, maternal (but not paternal) sensitivity at 4 months predicted infant vocalisations and conversational initiation at 7-months. By contrast, neither index of infant talk predicted maternal or paternal sensitivity at 14 months. Together these findings refine understanding of theoretical models of social development and suggest new possibilities for future research.

Time pressures make brevity important for parent self-report measures, yet evidence highlights the multi-faceted nature of parenting and contextual influences. To straddle these competing goals, we developed a brief (23-item) yet broad Index of Parental Activities, Context, and Experiences (I-PACE) aimed at parents of toddlers and pre-schoolers. In two studies we assessed the validity and reliability of the I-PACE. Study 1 involved 870 caregivers (95% female, 75% with degrees, 90% White British) and examined I-PACE ratings alongside; (a) ratings of children’s social-emotional skills and behavior problems; and (b) child age and parental depressive symptoms, to assess its sensitivity to contrasts in child development and parental experience. Study 2 included 191 families with 14-month-olds, for whom 188 mothers and 178 fathers completed the I-PACE and an index of life satisfaction. Supporting the replicability of findings from the I-PACE, both studies showed the same differentiated 5-factor structure (i.e., parental experiences, parenting activities, home environment quality, neighborhood environment quality and childcare environment quality). Supporting the I-PACE’s validity, Study 1 showed that all 5 factors were independently related to both children’s social-emotional skills and behavior problems, with predicted associations with child age and parental depressive symptoms. Supporting the I-PACE’s inter-rater reliability, within-couple associations were significant for parenting activities, home environment, neighborhood quality and childcare quality. Together, these findings indicate that the I-PACE offers a broad yet brief index of early parenting with good psychometric properties and we discuss promising avenues for future research.

Background Parents of individuals with rare neurodevelopmental conditions and intellectual disabilities (ID) are vulnerable to mental health difficulties, which vary between parents and within parents over time. The underlying cause of a child’s condition can influence parents’ mental health, via uncertain pathways and within unknown time-windows. Results We analysed baseline data from the IMAGINE-ID cohort, comprising 2655 parents of children and young people with ID of known genetic origin. First, we conducted a factor analysis of the SDQ Impact scale to isolate specific pathways from genetic aetiology to parents’ mental health. This suggested a two-factor structure for the SDQ Impact scale, with a “home & distress” dimension and a “participation” dimension. Second, we tested via structural equation modelling (SEM) whether genetic diagnosis affects Impact and mental health directly, or indirectly via children’s characteristics. This analysis identified an indirect pathway linking genetic aetiology to parents’ mental health, serially through child characteristics (physical disabilities, emotional and behavioural difficulties) and Impact: home & distress. Third, we conducted moderation analysis to explore the influence of time elapsed since genetic diagnosis. This showed that the serial mediation model was moderated by time since diagnosis, with strongest mediating effects among recently diagnosed cases. Conclusions There are multiple steps on the pathway from ID-associated genetic diagnoses to parents’ mental health. Pathway links are strongest within 5 years of receiving a genetic diagnosis, highlighting opportunities for better post-diagnostic support. Recognition and enhanced support for children’s physical and behavioural needs might reduce impact on family life, ameliorating parents’ vulnerabilities to mental health difficulties.