Peer Treatment across the Transition to Kindergarten: A test of Biological Sensitivity to Context Theory

理解成功过渡到幼儿园是一项关键任务，对儿童的福祉有明确的影响。早期的不良经历似乎会影响孩子的入学准备。然而，研究在很大程度上忽略了一个关键的环境背景——同伴群体——在向幼儿园过渡期间的入学准备发展。该项目是首批研究积极和消极同伴待遇如何与入学准备的多个指标（即学术技能、社交技能、计划和控制行为）以及后来的学校功能相关的项目之一。此外，这个项目是第一个研究对环境有更多生物反应的儿童是否更强烈地受到消极和积极的同伴经历的影响的项目之一。许多孩子在进入幼儿园时没有获得成功所需的适当技能；该项目将研究在这一重要转变期间，同伴群体如何影响入学准备，以及哪些儿童受到这一关键环境背景的影响最大。本研究是一项多方法、短期的纵向研究，使用心理生理和行为测量的样本在4-5岁的学龄前儿童和过渡到幼儿园。将在三个时间点对160名儿童的不同样本进行评估。本研究的主要目的是研究学前班的同伴待遇如何影响入学准备，进而影响幼儿园的学校运作。此外，该项目还将调查同伴经历是否对生理反应性青少年最有影响。这项工作有可能在不同的学龄前儿童样本中突出促进适应性入学准备和积极的学术和社会情感结果的因素。该项目将为不同民族和种族的研究生和本科生研究助理提供发展科学方面的关键培训；这些形成性的经历有可能塑造下一代科学家。此外，拟议的项目有可能对整个社会的很大一部分儿童、家庭和学校产生影响。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Understanding successful transitions to kindergarten is a critical task that has clear implications for children’s well-being. Early adverse experiences appear to interfere with children’s school readiness. However, research has largely ignored a critical environmental context – the peer group – in the development of school readiness during the transition to kindergarten. This project is among the first to examine how both positive and negative peer treatment relate to multiple indicators of school readiness (i.e., academic skills, social skills, planning and controlling behavior), and in turn, later school functioning. In addition, this project is among the first to examine whether children that are more biologically reactive to their environment are more strongly affected by both negative and positive peer experiences. Many children begin kindergarten without the appropriate skills needed to succeed; this project will examine how the peer group may be shaping school readiness during this important transition, and which children are most strongly affected by this critical environmental context. This study is a multi-method, short-term longitudinal study using psychophysiological and behavioral measures in a sample of 4-5-year-old children attending preschool and making the transition to kindergarten. A diverse sample of 160 children will be assessed at three time points. The key objectives are to examine how peer treatment during preschool impacts school readiness, and in turn, kindergarten school functioning. In addition, the project will investigate whether peer experiences are most impactful among physiologically reactive youth. This work has the potential to highlight factors that promote adaptive school readiness and positive academic and social-emotional outcomes in diverse samples of preschoolers. This project will provide critical training in developmental science for ethnically and racially diverse graduate and undergraduate research assistants; these formative experiences have the potential to shape the next generation of scientists. Moreover, the proposed project has the potential to impact a significant portion of children, families, and schools within society at large.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.