Mark J. Van Ryzin

Moderate versus severe early life stress: Associations with stress reactivity and regulation in 10—12-year-old children

Early life stress (ELS) is expected to increase reactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis; however, several recent studies have shown diminished cortisol reactivity among adults and children with ELS exposure. The goal of this study was to examine cortisol activity in 10-12-year-old internationally adopted children to determine if moderate and severe ELS have different impacts on the HPA axis. Salivary cortisol and two measures of autonomic activity were collected in response to the Trier Social Stress Test for Children (TSST-C). Three groups reflecting moderate, severe, and little ELS were studied: early adopted children who came predominantly from foster care overseas (early adopted/foster care (EA/FC), n=44), later adopted children cared for predominantly in orphanages overseas (late adopted/post-institutionalized (LA/PI), n=42) and non-adopted (NA) children reared continuously by their middle- to upper-income parents in the United States (n=38). Diminished cortisol activity was noted for the EA/FC group (moderate ELS), while the LA/PI group (severe ELS) did not differ from the NA group. Overall, few children showed cortisol elevations to the TSST-C in any group. The presence/absence of severe growth delay at adoption proved to be a critical predictive factor in cortisol activity. Regardless of growth delay, however, LA/PI children exhibited higher sympathetic tone than did NA children. These results suggest that moderate ELS is associated with diminished cortisol activity; however, marked individual differences in cortisol activity among the LA/PI children suggest that child factors modify the impact of severe ELS. Lack of effects of severe ELS even for growth delayed children may reflect the restorative effects of adoption or the generally low responsiveness of this age group to the TSST-C.

Autonomy, belongingness, and engagement in school as contributors to adolescent psychological well-being.

Self-determination theory emphasizes the importance of school-based autonomy and belongingness to academic achievement and psychological adjustment, and the theory posits a model in which engagement in school mediates the influence of autonomy and belongingness on these outcomes. To date, this model has only been evaluated on academic outcomes. Utilizing short-term longitudinal data (5-month timeframe) from a set of secondary schools in the rural Midwest (Nxa0=xa0283, M agexa0=xa015.3, 51.9% male, 86.2% White), we extend the model to include a measure of positive adjustment (i.e., hope). We also find a direct link between peer-related belongingness (i.e., peer support) and positive adjustment that is not mediated by engagement in school. A reciprocal relationship between academic autonomy, teacher-related belongingness (i.e., teacher support) and engagement in learning is supported, but this reciprocal relationship does not extend to peer-related belongingness. The implications of these findings for secondary schools are discussed.

Social dominance in preschool classrooms

The authors examined preschoolers aggressive and cooperative behaviors and their associations with social dominance. First and as predicted, directly observed aggressive interactions decreased across the school year, and same-sex aggression occurred more frequently than cross-sex aggression. Next, the authors examined the relation between aggression and reconciliation, cooperation, and social display variables. Teacher ratings of childrens aggression related to observed aggression but not to observed wins of aggressive bouts. Instead, wins were related to cooperation and display variables. Finally, they examined the relative power of wins and cooperation in predicting 2 measures of social dominance. After age was controlled, wins alone predicted teacher-rated social dominance. Results are discussed in terms of different forms of competition and how school ethos affects these forms.

Protective Factors at School: Reciprocal Effects among Adolescents' Perceptions of the School Environment, Engagement in Learning, and Hope.

Although some research suggests that schools can be a source of protective factors for students, the processes by which school environments impact students behavior, performance and adjustment over time are not clear. Guided by both self-determination theory and hope theory, this article evaluated reciprocal effects among adolescent perceptions of the school environment, engagement in learning, hope, and academic achievement. Using a sample of 423 students (M age 15.72xa0years; 46.7% female; 77.6% white; 30.9% eligible for FRPL) from five small secondary schools in the upper Midwest, students perceptions of the school environment were linked to engagement in learning, which, in turn, was linked to change in academic achievement and hope over the span of 1xa0year. Evidence was found for reciprocal links between earlier levels of engagement and hope and later perceptions of the environment. These results suggest that the school environment represents a potential leverage point for educational reform, and interventions that target students perceptions of autonomy, teacher/peer support, and goal orientation may be able to promote engagement, hope, and academic achievement. In addition, such changes may create a positive feedback loop in which change in academic performance and adjustment accelerate over time.

The rise in cortisol in family day care: associations with aspects of care quality, child behavior, and child sex.

This study examined the increase in salivary cortisol from midmorning to midafternoon in 151 children (3.0-4.5 years) in full-time home-based day care. Compared to cortisol levels at home, increases were noted in the majority of children (63%) at day care, with 40% classified as a stress response. Observations at day care revealed that intrusive, overcontrolling care was associated with the cortisol rise. For girls, the cortisol rise was associated with anxious, vigilant behavior, while for boys the rise was associated with angry, aggressive behavior. Child behavior did not mediate or moderate relations between care quality and the cortisol rise, except for evidence that boys scoring low on angry, aggressive behavior were more sensitive to variations in warm, supportive care than boys scoring high on this behavior.

Inhibited temperament and parent emotional availability differentially predict young children's cortisol responses to novel social and nonsocial events

Preschool-aged children (n = 274) were examined in the laboratory to assess behavioral and cortisol responses to nonsocial and social threat. Parents also responded to scales on the Childrens Behavior Questionnaire reflecting exuberant approach to novel/risky activities (reversed scored) and shyness. Multi-method measures of Nonsocial and Social Inhibition were computed. Parents and children were observed engaging in a series of interactive tasks and the Emotional Availability scales were scored for parental sensitivity, nonintrusiveness, nonhostility, and structuring. These scores were factored to yield one measure of Parenting Quality. Analyses revealed that Nonsocial and Social Inhibition could be distinguished and that associations with cortisol response were stressor specific. Moderation analyses revealed that parenting quality buffered cortisol elevations for extremely socially, but not nonsocially inhibited children. These findings are consistent with evidence that sensitive, supportive parenting is an important buffer of the HPA axis response to threat in infants and toddlers, and extends this finding to the preschool period.

Identifying atypical cortisol patterns in young children: The benefits of group-based trajectory modeling

The introduction of growth curve modeling into the field of neuroendocrinology has enabled researchers to examine mean patterns of change in unbalanced and/or incomplete repeated measures data. However, growth curve modeling assumes population homogeneity, or that all individuals follow roughly the same pattern of change, with differences expressed as deviation around the mean curve. Group-based trajectory modeling, in contrast, is designed for heterogeneous populations and as a result is able to identify atypical patterns of change over time that may exist within a population. To illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of each technique, we apply both to a sample of diurnal cortisol data measured at home in young children (N=106, 46 male, M age=3.81 years, S.D.=0.24). We find three distinct trajectories of cortisol and demonstrate that the members of these trajectories are measurably different in terms of cortisol levels across context and time and in terms of the relationship between behavioral problems and parenting. At the same time, our growth curve analysis finds differential response patterns for high vs. low internalizing children with high vs. low parenting quality. We discuss these results in terms of their implications for the proper application of each method.

A Short-Term Longitudinal Study of Preschoolers' (Homo sapiens) Sex Segregation: The Role of Physical Activity, Sex, and Time

The interactive influence of preschool childrens level of physical activity, sex, and time on the degree of sex segregation was assessed. A sample of nursery school children was observed across much of a school year, and levels of physical activity and sex segregation were sampled during their free play periods. Following sexual selection theory, we predicted a Sex X Time X Physical Activity interaction on segregation such that high-activity girls early in the school year would interact with boys but, with time, the high-activity girls would be segregated among themselves. Boys (both high- and low-activity) should remain segregated across the year. The hypothesis was supported, and results are discussed in terms of the interactive role of biology and socialization on sex segregation.