Collaborative Research: Integrating Culturally-Responsive Measures and Comparisons to Strengthen Developmental Models of Reasoning and Executive Function

训练儿童在行动中推理和处理认知挑战是21世纪世纪社会的一个关键发展目标，但目前训练儿童思维的方法往往低估了家庭和生活经历促进成长的方式的多样性。 该项目特别考虑了许多第一代和第二代拉丁裔青年经常进行的复杂和高强度的认知活动（例如，需要多步骤解决方案和关注复杂约束的家务管理），旨在探索这些实践如何与更传统的执行功能（EF）模型相关，一组共享的认知资源，被认为通过管理和控制注意力的能力来支持教育和推理技能。 重要的是，该项目旨在完善发展领域的理论，即什么构成了提高EF技能的高杠杆实践，包括有意义的管理和参与具有现实世界后果的任务。 如果成功的话，这将意味着需要进行变革性的转变，从以通过重复使用认知繁重、抽象推理和注意力任务（通常是在计算机上）来发展技能为中心的培训模式，转向有意识地为儿童提供责任和相应的日常社会和文化实践参与。 这可能是一个可扩展的，可行的方法来加强儿童的认知EF资源，通过在日常推理中使用。 这个项目测试的关注，现存的推理和执行功能的发展模型不捕捉的范围内的社会化实践，可以训练和塑造表达的EF在日常使用。将对第一代和第二代拉丁裔儿童和非移民欧美儿童进行混合方法数据收集，包括1）使用传统和新开发的文化响应任务进行EF和推理技能测量，2）调查儿童的日常责任和自主活动，和3）由主要照顾者和孩子一起讨论的录像访谈和结构化场景。该项目由发展科学计划和扩展科学联合资助该奖项反映了NSF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。

Training children to reason and handle cognitive challenges in the midst of action is a key developmental goal in 21st century society, yet current approaches to training children’s thinking tend to undervalue diversity in the ways that families and life experiences foster growth. This project in particular considers the often complex and high effort cognitive activities that many first and second-generation Latinx youth take on (e.g. managing home chores that require multi-step solutions and attention to complicated constraints), and aims to explore how these practices may relate to more traditional models of Executive Functions (EFs), the set of shared cognitive resources believed to underpin educational and reasoning skills through the ability to manage and control attention. Importantly, the project aims to refine the developmental field’s theories of what constitute high leverage practices for growing EF skills to include meaningful management and participation in tasks with real-world consequences. If successful, this would suggest the need for a transformative shift away from training models centering on developing skills through repetitive use of cognitively taxing, abstract reasoning and attention tasks, generally on a computer, and toward intentionally providing children with responsibilities and consequential participation in everyday social and cultural practices. This might be a scalable, feasible approach to strengthen children’s cognitive EF resources through use in everyday reasoning. This project tests concerns that extant developmental models of Reasoning and Executive Functions do not capture the range of socialization practices that may train and shape expression of EFs in everyday usage. Mixed method data collection will be administered to first and second generation Latinx children and non-immigrant Euro-American children, including 1) EF and reasoning skill measurement using both traditional and newly developed, culturally responsive tasks, 2) surveys of children’s everyday responsibilities and autonomous activities, and 3) videotaped interviews and structured scenarios discussed together by a primary caregiver and child.This project is jointly funded by the Developmental Sciences Program and the Science of Broadening Participation Program.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.