Neurocognitive perspectives in language outcomes of Early Head Start: Language and cognitive stimulation and maternal depression

Abstract

A neurocognitive, developmental framework was used to examine the effectiveness of Early Head Start (EHS) programs. Evidence has shown that caregiver variables impact early brain development. This study aimed to better understand this relation. Results showed that the EHS program made no significant impact, and at 3 years old, children were significantly behind population norms in language development, partially replicating previous findings with children from poverty backgrounds. EHS and parental depression were significant predictors of language and cognitive stimulation; however, depression and stimulation, but not involvement in EHS, were significant predictors of vocabulary. Implications for EHS programs are discussed, such as addressing caregiver variables (e.g., depression) and increasing focus on services to expectant families. Future directions also are discussed, such as understanding how young children's stress, within the context of caregiver variables, is related to neurocognitive outcomes.

Why Talk with Children Matters: Clinical Implications of Infant- and Child-Directed Speech Research

“…91 Parental depression, also elevated in low-SES families, additionally contributes to profiles of input, 84 and has been independently associated with lower language outcomes in children. [92][93][94] Poorer households may also be characterized by disorganization in the nature of everyday activities that influence the quality of parentchild verbal interaction, 95 and lower-income parents are more likely to have their children in lower-quality child care and preschool settings. 57,96,97 On a more positive note, intervention programs and counseling parents on the types of verbal interactions that help children learn language have good documented outcomes.…”

Predicting School Readiness for Low-Income Children with Disability Risks Identified Early

“…Children's development and school readiness are related to their home and early care and education environments. Researchers have found that maternal education (Bracken & Fischel, 2008) and depression (Chapin & Altenhofen, 2010), home environments (Chazan-Cohen et al, 2009;Krishnakumar & Black, 2002), home language (Lee & Burkam, 2002), family income (Lee, 2005;Lee & Burkam, 2002), minority status (Panter & Bracken, 2009), and early care and education experiences (Love et al, 2003;National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Early Child Care Research Network, 2002) predict children's development and school readiness. In the current study, these variables are considered as possible covariates when examining children's school readiness.…”

Mom-net: Evaluation of an internet-facilitated cognitive behavioral intervention for low-income depressed mothers.

“…Though the disability associated with depression is well documented (McQuaid, Stein, Laffaye, & McCahill, 1999; Moussavi et al, 2007), some of the greatest costs of depressive conditions are those borne by the children of depressed mothers. Children of women with depressive syndromes are at increased risk for both internalizing and externalizing difficulties (Goodman, Lamping, & Ploubidis, 2010) as well as for impairments in cognitive and language development (Chapin & Altenhofen, 2010; Cycyk, Bitetti, & Hammer, 2015). The intergenerational transmission of psychopathology appears to be attributable, in part, to environmental influences associated with depressive symptomatology (Hummel & Kiel, 2015; Natsuaki et al, 2014; Radke-Yarrow & Klimes-Dougan, 2002).…”