Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic status
IntroductionCuriosity is an important social-emotional process underlying early learning. Our previous work found a positive association between higher curiosity and higher academic achievement at kindergarten, with a greater magnitude of benefit for children with socioeconomic disadvantage. Because...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.986221/full |
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| author | Prachi E. Shah Prachi E. Shah Kathy Hirsh-Pasek Maria Spinelli Jenny Ozor Heidi M. Weeks Harlan McCaffery Niko Kaciroti Niko Kaciroti |
| author_facet | Prachi E. Shah Prachi E. Shah Kathy Hirsh-Pasek Maria Spinelli Jenny Ozor Heidi M. Weeks Harlan McCaffery Niko Kaciroti Niko Kaciroti |
| author_sort | Prachi E. Shah |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionCuriosity is an important social-emotional process underlying early learning. Our previous work found a positive association between higher curiosity and higher academic achievement at kindergarten, with a greater magnitude of benefit for children with socioeconomic disadvantage. Because characteristics of the early caregiving and physical environment impact the processes that underlie early learning, we sought to examine early environmental experiences associated with early childhood curiosity, in hopes of identifying modifiable contexts that may promote its expression.MethodsUsing data from a nationally representative sample of 4,750 children from the United States, this study examined the association of multi-level ecological contexts (i.e., neighborhood safety, parenting quality, home environment, and center-based preschool enrollment) on early childhood curiosity at kindergarten, and tested for moderation by socioeconomic status.ResultsIn adjusted, stratified models, children from lower-resourced environments (characterized by the lowest-SES tertile) manifested higher curiosity if they experienced more positive parenting, higher quality home environments, and if they lived in “very safe” neighborhoods.DiscussionWe discuss the ecological contexts (i.e., parenting, home, and neighborhood environments) that are promotive of early childhood curiosity, with an emphasis on the role of the neighborhood safety and the “neighborhood built environment” as important modifiable contexts to foster early childhood curiosity in lower-resourced families. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T06:58:21Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8e0690682ab34afc961a8c2a71df8e6a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T06:58:21Z |
| publishDate | 2023-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-8e0690682ab34afc961a8c2a71df8e6a2023-02-28T05:31:55ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782023-02-011410.3389/fpsyg.2023.986221986221Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic statusPrachi E. Shah0Prachi E. Shah1Kathy Hirsh-Pasek2Maria Spinelli3Jenny Ozor4Heidi M. Weeks5Harlan McCaffery6Niko Kaciroti7Niko Kaciroti8Division of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesDepartment of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United StatesDepartment of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Science, University Gabriele d’Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, ItalyDepartment of Public Policy and Government Affairs, CareFirst Blue Cross Blue Shield, Washington, DC, United StatesDepartment of Nutritional Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesDivision of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesDivision of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesDepartment of Biostatistics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United StatesIntroductionCuriosity is an important social-emotional process underlying early learning. Our previous work found a positive association between higher curiosity and higher academic achievement at kindergarten, with a greater magnitude of benefit for children with socioeconomic disadvantage. Because characteristics of the early caregiving and physical environment impact the processes that underlie early learning, we sought to examine early environmental experiences associated with early childhood curiosity, in hopes of identifying modifiable contexts that may promote its expression.MethodsUsing data from a nationally representative sample of 4,750 children from the United States, this study examined the association of multi-level ecological contexts (i.e., neighborhood safety, parenting quality, home environment, and center-based preschool enrollment) on early childhood curiosity at kindergarten, and tested for moderation by socioeconomic status.ResultsIn adjusted, stratified models, children from lower-resourced environments (characterized by the lowest-SES tertile) manifested higher curiosity if they experienced more positive parenting, higher quality home environments, and if they lived in “very safe” neighborhoods.DiscussionWe discuss the ecological contexts (i.e., parenting, home, and neighborhood environments) that are promotive of early childhood curiosity, with an emphasis on the role of the neighborhood safety and the “neighborhood built environment” as important modifiable contexts to foster early childhood curiosity in lower-resourced families.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.986221/fullcuriosityecological contextsneighborhood safetysocioeconomic statusparenting qualityhome environment |
| spellingShingle | Prachi E. Shah Prachi E. Shah Kathy Hirsh-Pasek Maria Spinelli Jenny Ozor Heidi M. Weeks Harlan McCaffery Niko Kaciroti Niko Kaciroti Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic status Frontiers in Psychology curiosity ecological contexts neighborhood safety socioeconomic status parenting quality home environment |
| title | Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic status |
| title_full | Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic status |
| title_fullStr | Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic status |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic status |
| title_short | Ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity: Neighborhood safety, home and parenting quality, and socioeconomic status |
| title_sort | ecological contexts associated with early childhood curiosity neighborhood safety home and parenting quality and socioeconomic status |
| topic | curiosity ecological contexts neighborhood safety socioeconomic status parenting quality home environment |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.986221/full |
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