Previous research has shown that home environment plays an important role in children’s early language skills. Yet, few researchers have examined the unique role of family-level factors (socioeconomic status [SES], household chaos) on children’s learning or focused on the longitudinal processes that might explain their relations to children’s early language skills. The goal of this study was to investigate the longitudinal relations from family SES, household chaos, and children’s effortful control (EC) to children’s language skills during early childhood, controlling for stability of the constructs. At Time (T1 i.e., 30 months), mothers reported family SES and children’s vocabulary, and their own linguistic input was assessed during a free-play session with their child. At T1, T2 (i.e., 42 months), and T3 (i.e., 54 months), household chaos was reported by mothers, and children’s EC was rated by mothers and nonparental caregivers and observed during a gift-delay task. At T3, children’s expressive and receptive language skills were measured with a standard assessment. Path analyses indicated that higher SES predicted higher levels of EC at T2 and language skills at T3, and greater levels of household chaos at T2 predicted poorer EC and language skills a year later, even when controlling for stability of the constructs. Results indicated that T2 EC partially mediated the relations between SES and T3 language skills. Findings from this study can be used to identify key factors for early learning and perhaps inform programs designed to support families and young children.

Relations among White (non‐Latinx) children's empathy‐related responding, prosocial behaviors, and racial attitudes toward White and Black peers were examined. In 2017, 190 (54% boys) White 5‐ to 9‐year‐old children (M = 7.09 years, SD = 0.94) watched a series of videos that depicted social rejection of either a White or Black child. Empathy‐related responses, prosocial behaviors, and racial attitudes were measured using multiple methods. Results showed that younger children showed less facial concern toward Black than White peers and greater increases with age in concern and prosocial behaviors (sharing a desirable prize) for Black, compared to White, targets. Children's facial anger increased with age for White but not Black targets. The findings can extend our understanding children's anti‐racism development.

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The main goal of this study was to more closely understand the direction of relations between maternal behavior and young children's defiance and committed compliance. We examined 256 mother–child dyads to explore developmental transactional relations between maternal assertive control, children's committed compliance, and children's defiance at 18 (T1), 30 (T2), and 42 (T3) months of age. After controlling for maternal gentle control, SES, and child sex, results showed parent effects for children's committed compliance, such that T1 maternal assertive control negatively predicted T3 committed compliance. Furthermore, toddlers’ behavior predicted T3 parenting; that is, toddlers’ T1 defiance positively predicted T3 maternal assertive control. Results of the present study indicate relatively long‐term prediction (to 42 months) from both parent and child behaviors at 18 months of age, and the findings have implications for understanding the bidirectional and complex processes that account for young children's adaptive and maladaptive behaviors.

White children's effortful control (EC), parents' implicit racial attitudes, and their interaction were examined as predictors of children's prosocial behavior toward White versus Black recipients. Data were collected from 171 White children (55% male, Mage = 7.13 years, SD = 0.92) and their parent in 2017. Prosocial behavior toward White peers was predicted by children's higher EC. When predicting prosocial behavior toward Black peers and prosocial disparity (the difference between White and Black recipients), parents' implicit racial attitudes moderated the relation between children's EC and children's prosocial behavior. Specifically, children's EC was positively associated with prosocial behavior toward Black peers (and negatively related to inequity in prosocial behavior) only when parents exhibited less implicit racial bias.