Shari Miller-Johnson

Early Childhood Education: Young Adult Outcomes From the Abecedarian Project

The high-risk infants who initially enrolled in the Abecedarian Project, a longitudinal prospective study of the benefits of early childhood educational intervention within a child care setting, were followed up as young adults (age 21 years). One hundred-eleven infants were in the original sample; 104 took part in the follow up. Treatment was provided in 2 phases: during preschool and in the primary grades. Participants received either both phases, 1, but not both, or neither. Assignment to groups was random. Those in the preschool treatment group earned significantly higher scores on intellectual and academic measures as young adults, attained significantly more years of total education, were more likely to attend a 4-year college, and showed a reduction in teenaged pregnancy compared with preschool controls. Preschool treatment was associated with educationally meaningful effect sizes on reading and math skills that persisted into adulthood. School-age treatment served to maintain preschool benefits for reading, but by itself, the effects were generally weaker than those of the preschool program. Statistically significant differences in the attainment of full economic independence were not found at this stage, but would not be expected among young adults still attending school. The incidence of self-reported violence and lawbreaking was not significantly reduced, although trends in the data favored the treated group. The reported incidence of marijuana use was significantly less among treated individuals. The positive findings with respect to academic skills and increased years of post-secondary education support policies favoring early childhood programs for poor children.

The development of cognitive and academic abilities: Growth curves from an early childhood educational experiment.

In the Abecedarian Project, a prospective randomized trial, the effects of early educational intervention on patterns of cognitive and academic development among poor, minority children were examined. Participants in the follow-up were 104 of the original 111 participants in the study (98% African American). Early treatment was full-time, high-quality, educational child care from infancy to age 5. Cognitive test scores collected between the ages of 3 and 21 years and academic test scores from 8 to 21 years were analyzed. Treated children, on average, attained higher scores on both cognitive and academic tests, with moderate to large treatment effect sizes observed through age 21. Preschool cognitive gains accounted for a substantial portion of treatment differences in the development of reading and math skills. Intensive early childhood education can have long-lasting effects on cognitive and academic development.

Early physical abuse and later violent delinquency: a prospective longitudinal study.

In this prospective longitudinal study of 574 children followed from age 5 to age 21, the authors examine the links between early physical abuse and violent delinquency and other socially relevant outcomes during late adolescence or early adulthood and the extent to which the childs race and gender moderate these links. Analyses of covariance indicated that individuals who had been physically abused in the first 5 years of life were at greater risk for being arrested as juveniles for violent, nonviolent, and status offenses. Moreover, physically abused youth were less likely to have graduated from high school and more likely to have been fired in the past year, to have been a teen parent, and to have been pregnant or impregnated someone in the past year while not married. These effects were more pronounced for African American than for European American youth and somewhat more pronounced for females than for males.

Peer Rejection and Aggression and Early Starter Models of Conduct Disorder

Peer rejection and aggression in the early school years were examined for their relevance to early starting conduct problems. The sample of 657 boys and girls from 4 geographical locations was followed from 1st through 4th grades. Peer rejection in 1st grade added incrementally to the prediction of early starting conduct problems in 3rd and 4th grades, over and above the effects of aggression. Peer rejection and aggression in 1st grade were also associated with the impulsive and emotionally reactive behaviors found in older samples. Being rejected by peers subsequent to 1st grade marginally added to the prediction of early starting conduct problems in 3rd and 4th grades, controlling for 1st~grade ADHD symptoms and aggression. Furthermore, peer rejection partially mediated the predictive relation between early ADHD symptoms and subsequent conduct problems. These results support the hypothesis that the experience of peer rejection in the early school years adds to the risk for early starting conduct problems.

Comorbidity of Conduct and Depressive Problems at Sixth Grade: Substance Use Outcomes Across Adolescence

The comorbidity of conduct and depressive problems and substance use outcomes were examined in a community-based sample of 340 African American males and females. Alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use were examined at Grades 6, 8, and 10 based on the following group membership at sixth grade: (a) comorbid conduct and depressive problems; (b) conduct problems only; (c) depressive problems only; (d) neither conduct nor depressive problems. Overall, the two conduct problem groups displayed the highest levels of substance use, although at some time points, comorbid youth displayed significant higher substance use levels. Subjects with depressive problems only displayed levels of substance use that were equivalent to subjects in the nonproblem group. Results highlight the importance of controlling for comorbid symptoms, possible interactive effects between conduct and depressive problems, and implications for treatment and prevention of substance use.

Motherhood during the teen years: A developmental perspective on risk factors for childbearing

The role of peer relations in childhood and behavioral and family characteristics in early adolescence as risk factors for adolescent childbearing was investigated. Sociometric surveys across third, fourth, and fifth grade and parent and child measures of behavioral and family functioning at sixth and eighth grade were collected in a lower income, urban sample of 308 African American females. Results replicated earlier findings on the role of childhood aggression as a predictor of teen motherhood. In addition, girls who displayed stable patterns of childhood aggression were at significantly higher risk not only to have children as teenagers but to have more children and to have children at younger ages. Results also indicated that females who were depressed in midadolescence were at greater risk to become parents between age 15 and 19 years. These findings demonstrate the need to take a differentiated approach to understanding teen childbearing and varying developmental pathways in the prediction of teen motherhood.

Relationship Between Childhood Peer Rejection and Aggression and Adolescent Delinquency Severity and Type Among African American Youth

This prospective, longitudinal study examined peer rejection and aggression in childhood as predictors of the severity and type of delinquency during adolescence. Sociometric surveys were completed at third grade for a predominantly low-socioeconomic status, urban sample of African American boys and girls, and youth reports of delinquency were gathered at Grades 6, 8, and 10. Patterns of association between childhood peer rejection and aggression and delinquency severity varied by gender. For boys, the additive effect of childhood peer rejection and aggression was a strong predictor of more serious delinquency, whereas for girls only aggression predicted more serious delinquency. For boys, the combination of peer rejection and aggression was associated with felony assaults, and aggression was associated with a wide diversity of offenses during adolescence, whereas for girls only peer rejection predicted involvement in minor assault. Results are discussed in terms of the early starter pathway of antisocial behavior as it relates to peer rejection and aggression for boys, differing predictive patterns for girls, and implications for intervention with children with emotional and behavioral disorders.

Potential pathways from stigmatization and internalizing symptoms to delinquency in sexually abused youth

Although childhood sexual abuse (CSA) has been linked to risk for delinquency, research is limited on the potential pathways from CSA to subsequent delinquent outcomes. A total of 160 youth with confirmed CSA histories were interviewed at the time of abuse discovery, when they were 8 to 15 years of age, and again 1 and 6 years later. The findings supported the proposed relations from stigmatization following the abuse (abuse-specific shame and self-blame attributions) and internalizing symptoms to subsequent delinquency through anger and affiliation with deviant peers. This longitudinal research suggests that clinical interventions for victims of CSA must be sensitive to these affective and cognitive processes and how they affect delinquent activity.

The multisite violence prevention project: impact of a universal school-based violence prevention program on social-cognitive outcomes.

This study evaluated the impact of a universal school-based violence prevention program on social-cognitive factors associated with aggression and nonviolent behavior in early adolescence. The effects of the universal intervention were evaluated within the context of a design in which two cohorts of students at 37 schools from four sites (N = 5,581) were randomized to four conditions: (a) a universal intervention that involved implementing a student curriculum and teacher training with sixth grade students and teachers; (b) a selective intervention in which a family intervention was implemented with a subset of sixth grade students exhibiting high levels of aggression and social influence; (c) a combined intervention condition; and (d) a no-intervention control condition. Short-term and long-term (i.e., 2-year post-intervention) universal intervention effects on social-cognitive factors targeted by the intervention varied as a function of students’ pre-intervention level of risk. High-risk students benefited from the intervention in terms of decreases in beliefs and attitudes supporting aggression, and increases in self-efficacy, beliefs and attitudes supporting nonviolent behavior. Effects on low-risk students were in the opposite direction. The differential pattern of intervention effects for low- and high-risk students may account for the absence of main effects in many previous evaluations of universal interventions for middle school youth. These findings have important research and policy implications for efforts to develop effective violence prevention programs.This study evaluated the impact of a universal school-based violence prevention program on social-cognitive factors associated with aggression and nonviolent behavior in early adolescence. The effects of the universal intervention were evaluated within the context of a design in which two cohorts of students at 37 schools from four sites (N = 5,581) were randomized to four conditions: (a) a universal intervention that involved implementing a student curriculum and teacher training with sixth grade students and teachers; (b) a selective intervention in which a family intervention was implemented with a subset of sixth grade students exhibiting high levels of aggression and social influence; (c) a combined intervention condition; and (d) a no-intervention control condition. Short-term and long-term (i.e., 2-year post-intervention) universal intervention effects on social-cognitive factors targeted by the intervention varied as a function of students’ pre-intervention level of risk. High-risk students benefited from the intervention in terms of decreases in beliefs and attitudes supporting aggression, and increases in self-efficacy, beliefs and attitudes supporting nonviolent behavior. Effects on low-risk students were in the opposite direction. The differential pattern of intervention effects for low- and high-risk students may account for the absence of main effects in many previous evaluations of universal interventions for middle school youth. These findings have important research and policy implications for efforts to develop effective violence prevention programs.

Peer Social Structure and Risk-Taking Behaviors Among African American Early Adolescents

This study investigated associations between peer status, peer group social influences, and risk-taking behaviors in an urban sample of 647 African American seventh-grade students. The highest rates of problem behaviors were seen in the controversial peer status group, or those youth who were both highly liked and highly disliked by other youth. Findings also revealed contrasting patterns of peer group leadership. The more conventional, positive leadership style predicted lower rates, and the less mainstream, unconventional style predicted higher rates of involvement in problem behaviors. Conventional leaders were most likely to be popular status youth, while unconventional leaders were mostly to be both controversial and popular status youth. Controversial status youth were also more likely to be involved in deviant peer groups. Results highlight the importance of controversial status students as key influence agents during early adolescence. We discuss the implications of these results for preventive interventions to reduce adolescent problem behaviors.