Małgorzata Stępień-Nycz

Waiting for a treat. Studying behaviors related to self-regulation in 18- and 24-month-olds

The ability to delay gratification - conceived as an early expression of self-regulation - develops in the second half of the second year of life. We used inductive methodology to identify different behaviors and set of behaviors performed by children while waiting for a treat. We asked which sets are more effective when it comes to successfully delaying gratification and how all observed sets change during toddler age. 130 children were tested twice - at 18 and at 24 months - using a Snack Delay Task. We observed 20 different behaviors and distinguished 4 sets of behaviors. The most important and effective set for delaying gratification in 18 and in 24 month olds was the set called Attention and Movements. We concluded that growth in the ability to delay gratification resulted from increased ability to overcome temptation by using an active strategy mainly based on attention.

Polish Vocabulary Development in 2-Year-Olds: Comparisons With English Using the Language Development Survey

Purpose The objective of this study was to compare vocabulary size and composition in 2-year-olds learning Polish or English as measured by the Language Development Survey (LDS; Rescorla, 1989). Method Participants were 199 Polish toddlers (M = 24.14 months, SD = 0.35) and 422 U.S. toddlers (M = 24.69 months, SD = 0.78). Results Test-retest reliability was .92, internal consistency was .99, and concurrent validity was .55. Girls had higher vocabulary scores than boys. Mean LDS score was significantly lower in Polish than in English, and fewer Polish children had LDS scores >200 words. Also, more words were reported for <25% of the children, and fewer words were reported for ≥75% of the children, in Polish than in English. The cross-linguistic correlation for word frequencies was .44. Noun dominance was comparable in the two languages, and 55 cross-linguistic word matches were found among the top 100 words. Although more Polish than U.S. children had <50 words (18.1% vs. 8.3%), children with <50 words and those with ≥50 words were generally acquiring the same words. Conclusions Vocabulary acquisition appeared to be slower in Polish than in English, probably because of the complexity of the language. However, the languages were very similar with respect to vocabulary composition findings.

The Polish adaptation of the Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire (ECBQ) : psychometric properties, age and gender differences and convergence between the questionnaire and the observational data

Abstract The main aim of the study was to determine the psychometric properties of the version of the Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire (ECBQ) adapted to Polish culture. Since temperament in toddlers was being observed in a laboratory, an external validity of the ECBQ was also provided. Kagan’s observational paradigm was used to test 215 18-month-old children. Their parents completed the ECBQ twice, when the children were 26 and 30 months old. The results showed good internal consistency and confirmed the longitudinal stability of the scale. The same three-factor solution was found in the structure of the scale as in the original American study. The convergence between the observational and parent report data supported the ECBQ’s external validity. Similarities in the structure of the scale observed between the Polish and American data are discussed from a cross-cultural perspective. The usefulness of the Polish ECBQ and the limitations of the obtained results are discussed.

Parent-report measure of Theory of Mind: Adaptation to Polish of the Children’s Social Understanding Scale

Abstract The main aim of the study was to investigate whether the Children’s Social Understanding Scale (CSUS), a parent report technique, is a valid and reliable measure of Theory of Mind (ToM) abilities in Polish-speaking children. Additionally, the role of language abilities in ToM development was explored. A group of 225 parents of approximately 3.5-year-old Polish children was tested using the Polish version of the CSUS. Their children were tested with a word comprehension test and five behavioural ToM tasks. Satisfactory psychometric properties of the Polish CSUS were observed and positive correlations between the CSUS and behavioural ToM tasks were found. A two-factor structure was found in the CSUS: Mental State Talk (MST) and Mental State Comprehension. The MST factor was significantly related to word comprehension. The utility of the Polish version of the CSUS for future cross-cultural research with this population is discussed.

Odkrywanie kompetencji komunikacyjnych niemowląt. Skala Wczesnej Komunikacji Społecznej jako przykład narzędzia pomiarowego

The aim of the present analysis is to describe the developmental trajectory of the infant and toddler communicative competencies. Turn-taking, gaze-following, joint attention and pointing gestures are the most important expressions of these competencies that could be measured by the Early Social Communication Scale (ESCS Mundy et al., 2003). We present the results of a research conducted with 358 one-year old children and obtained through the Polish version of this scale (ESCS). The validity and reliability of the Polish version of ESCS proved to be satisfactory. The obtained results were analyzed emphasizing the role of early communicative competencies in the further social, linguistic and cognitive development of a child and indicating the domain of psychological practice where ESCS could be implemented.

Zarządzanie emocjami? Funkcje zarządzające a rozwój emocjonalny

Obserwowany w ostatnich latach wzrost zainteresowania problematyką funkcji zarządzających zaowocowal pojawieniem sie wielu doniesien z badan analizujących związki tych funkcji z innymi obszarami rozwoju, takimi jak jezyk czy teoria umyslu. Stosunkowo malo natomiast znaleźc mozna doniesien z badan nad związkami funkcji zarządzających i rozwoju emocjonalnego, mimo iz rolą funkcji zarządzających jest kontrola nie tylko myśli i zachowania, ale rowniez emocji (Best i in., 2009). W artykule przedstawiono doniesienia z badan nad związkami funkcji zarządzających i dwoch aspektow funkcjonowania emocjonalnego: regulacji oraz rozumienia emocji. Regulacja emocji wydaje sie ściśle związana z funkcjami zarządzającymi, do tego stopnia, iz w pewnych kontekstach te dwa konstrukty stają sie nieodroznialne, zwlaszcza w odniesieniu do tzw. gorącego aspektu funkcji zarządzających (Zelazo i Cunningham, 2007). W odniesieniu do zimnego aspektu funkcji zarządzających, w przytoczonych badaniach najsilniejsze związki odnaleziono pomiedzy regulacją emocji oraz hamowaniem i elastycznością poznawczą. Z kolei dla rozumienia emocji znaczenie ma, oprocz hamowania i elastyczności poznawczej, rowniez pamiec robocza. W zakonczeniu przytoczono rowniez wyniki badan wskazujące, iz dzialanie funkcji zarządzających moze byc modyfikowane przez emocje. Analiza obopolnych zalezności funkcji zarządzających i funkcjonowania emocjonalnego pozwolila na uszczegolowienie modelu zalezności kontroli i rozumienia w obszarach afektywnym i poznawczym (Leerkes i in., 2008).