Is staff consistency important to parents’ satisfaction in a longitudinal study of children at risk for type 1 diabetes: the TEDDY study

Background Participants’ study satisfaction is important for both compliance with study protocols and retention, but research on parent study satisfaction is rare. This study sought to identify factors associated with parent study satisfaction in The Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young (TEDDY) study, a longitudinal, multinational (US, Finland, Germany, Sweden) study of children at risk for type 1 diabetes. The role of staff consistency to parent study satisfaction was a particular focus. Methods Parent study satisfaction was measured by questionnaire at child-age 15 months (5579 mothers, 4942 fathers) and child-age four years (4010 mothers, 3411 fathers). Multiple linear regression analyses were used to identify sociodemographic factors, parental characteristics, and study variables associated with parent study satisfaction at both time points. Results Parent study satisfaction was highest in Sweden and the US, compared to Finland. Parents who had an accurate perception of their child’s type 1 diabetes risk and those who believed they can do something to prevent type 1 diabetes were more satisfied. More educated parents and those with higher depression scores had lower study satisfaction scores. After adjusting for these factors, greater study staff change frequency was associated with lower study satisfaction in European parents (mothers at child-age 15 months: − 0.30,95% Cl − 0.36, − 0.24, p < 0.001; mothers at child-age four years: -0.41, 95% Cl − 0.53, − 0.29, p < 0.001; fathers at child-age 15 months: -0.28, 95% Cl − 0.34, − 0.21, p < 0.001; fathers at child-age four years: -0.35, 95% Cl − 0.48, − 0.21, p < 0.001). Staff consistency was not associated with parent study satisfaction in the US. However, the number of staff changes was markedly higher in the US compared to Europe. Conclusions Sociodemographic factors, parental characteristics, and study-related variables were all related to parent study satisfaction. Those that are potentially modifiable are of particular interest as possible targets of future efforts to improve parent study satisfaction. Three such factors were identified: parent accuracy about the child’s type 1 diabetes risk, parent beliefs that something can be done to reduce the child’s risk, and study staff consistency. However, staff consistency was important only for European parents. Trial registration NCT00279318.

The Level of Early Childhood Teachers’ Knowledge Regarding the Practices of Early Intervention for Children at Risk of Learning Disabilities

This study aimed to reveal the level of knowledge of early childhood teachers regarding the early intervention strategies for children at risk of learning disabilities. A questionnaire was designed comprising (22) items distributed in (3) dimensions, namely the practices related to pre-academic skills, basic operations and psychological concepts. This was applied to a random sample of (340) female early childhood teachers. The results indicated a high level of knowledge of early intervention practices in all three dimensions among teachers, and also statistically significant variations in the level of knowledge of early intervention practices attributed to the educational stage which is in favor of the pre-primary stage. The results also showed no statistically significant differences attributable to academic qualification, academic specialization and years of experience. Based on the outcome, the researchers recommended developing training programs to enable early childhood teachers to implement their expertise and utilize it as early intervention methods. Received: 13 October 2021 / Accepted: 15 November 2021 / Published: 3 January 2022

Issues Facing the Birth Parents and Their Implications for Open Adoption

The 210 children in the full cohort came from 142 families. Their birth parents’ circumstances provide a context for evaluating adoption outcomes. The chapter explores data collected from the children’s case files and records presented to the court at the time the order was made. Parents demonstrated a high incidence of factors known to be associated with recurrent child abuse: 31% of mothers had experienced abuse in their own childhoods; 45% were known to statutory child welfare services before their child’s birth, and 29% had already experienced the permanent removal of a child. Almost all parents struggled with complex factors including mental health problems, substance misuse, unstable relationships and domestic abuse that placed their children at risk of harm; for some parents, cognitive impairment was an exacerbating factor. About 10% of birth parents had died, and 23% of mothers and 60% of fathers had already lost contact with children before the adoption placement.

Development, Validity and Reliability of the Preschool Learning Skills Scale: A Tool for Early Identification of Preschooler at Risk of Learning Disorder in Mainland China (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Early identification of children at risk of learning disorder (LD) may mitigate the negative effects of delayed intervention by guiding children to receive preventive services at an earlier age. However, there is no assessment tool for early identification of children at risk of LD in Mainland China. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to create a Chinese version of the Preschool Learning Skills Scale and to investigate its validity and reliability. METHODS Firstly, a pilot scale was designed based on literature review and expert review. Secondly, a pre-survey of the pilot scale was conducted. In phase 3, a formal survey was carried out to test the reliability and validity of the scale by involving 2678 preschool children from 7 kindergartens into it. Data was collected using a checklist for demographic characteristics, the preschool learning skills scale(PLSS), the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschool Version (BRIEF-P), and Conners’ Rating Scales. RESULTS The final scale included 38 items under 7 factors. The reliability tests confirmed that the Cronbach’s alpha, split-half reliability, and test-retest reliability coefficient of the PLSS was 0.946, 0.905 and 0.941. As to construct validity, the Spearman correlations of factor-total score ranged from 0.691 to 0.859. The results of criterion-related validity showed a direct and significant association between the PLSS with the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschool Version (r = 0.643, P< 0.001) and Conners’ Rating Scales (r = 0.652, P< 0.001). The model had a good fit [CFI = 0.910, TLI = 0.901, RMSEA = 0.047, and SRMR = 0.038]. CONCLUSIONS Findings demonstrate that the PLSS has a good internal validity, good test–retest reliability, and acceptable construct validity, which indicates that the scale can be used for early identification of preschool children at risk of LD.