Browsing by Author "Biekman, Brian"
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Item Associations Between Objective and Subjective Socioeconomic Status, Perception of Family Resources, and Child Psychopathology Symptoms in Preschool Years(2020-09-29) Hosseini, Natalie; Douge, Marie; Shen, Shutian; Biekman, Brian; Lipschutz, Rebecca; Li, XingeThe purpose of this study was to analyze the associations between the domains of objective and subjective socioeconomic status, perception of family resources, and psychopathology symptoms in preschool-aged children. The sample consisted of 44 low income multi-ethnic families from the Houston area. These families were recruited from preschools, community centers, and service organizations. Parents self-reported demographic information, subjective socioeconomic status through the ladder scale, and child psychopathology symptoms through the Behavioral Assessment System for Children, Second Edition. Family resources were determined through their own scale, and child behavior was measured through the Conners Early Childhood-Parent measure. Correlation analysis revealed that income-to-needs ratio, Hollingshead index, parental education level, overall subjective perception, and perception of overall family resources were not significantly associated with any of the child psychopathology symptom variables. Linear regression model revealed that family growth and support subscale scores were significantly associated with defiance/aggressive behaviors in preschool years. Results showed that higher levels of perception of resourcefulness in family growth and support, and family necessities and health, were associated with lower levels of child defiance/aggressiveness. Findings support the need for longitudinal designs with larger power, as well as the need to observe other behaviors such as cognitive adjustment.Item Infant Developmental Outcomes Post Hurricane Harvey: Prenatal Maternal Stress on Childhood Development at 6 Months Old(2020-09-29) Oketunmbi, Emmanuel, Jr.; Jackson, Maiah; Ojo, Oluwashina; Lipschutz, Rebecca; Biekman, BrianPrevious research has examined the effect of prenatal stress on child developmental outcomes including motor development and problem solving skills. This study aims to understand how prenatal stress during Hurricane Harvey influences child development from the prenatal stage up until 6 months of age. The study examined the associations between prenatal objective stress (i.e., how much loss, change, or negative events the mother experienced, mother’s subjective stress or posttraumatic stress symptoms, cognitive appraisal of the event, and infant developmental outcomes at 6 months old using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire. The analyses also controlled for timing of the flood exposure, mother socioeconomic status, and other demographic covariates. Our results found that exposure to prenatal stress was not associated with an impact on child developmental outcomes at 6 months old. Results found associations between maternal socioeconomic status and infant problem solving skills and sex differences in motor skills and personal relationship scale. Additionally, negative cognitive appraisal of the event was associated with worse infant problem solving skills. In all, our research adds to the importance of assessing prenatal stress in mothers during pregnancy to understand development risks children may later experience in early childhood. This project was completed with contributions from Guillaume Elgbeili, David Laplante, and Suzanne King from McGill University.Item Socioeconomic Status, Cerebellar Structure, and Executive Functions in Children and Adolescents with Spina Bifida Myelomeningocele(2019-08) Biekman, Brian; Bick, Johanna R.; Fletcher, Jack M.; Kulesz, Paulina A.Spina bifida myelomeningocele (SBM) is a congenital neurological defect associated with abnormal cerebellar structure and poorer executive functions (EFs) in children. This study investigated the impact of cerebellar volume on EFs in children with SBM and the potential moderating effect of socioeconomic status (SES). 25 typically developing (TD) children and 74 children with SBM underwent a structural MRI, which was used to measure the volumes of three cerebellar regions: the anterior lobe, posterior lobe, and corpus medullare. A parent-report questionnaire was administered which measured two major EF constructs: metacognition and behavioral regulation. We hypothesized that a larger posterior lobe and corpus medullare would predict greater EFs in both constructs, and that this prediction would be larger in children with SBM. We also hypothesized that, for children with SBM, this prediction would be larger in children with lower SES. Multivariate multiple regression analyses found that the combination of the EF constructs was predicted by group (trace=.122, p=.003) and age (trace=.114, p=.005), such that parents of younger children and children with SBM reported worse EFs. Specifically, group predicted metacognition (β=1.33, 95% CI: [40, 2.25], p=.005) and behavioral regulation at the trend level (β=.92, 95% CI: [-.07, 1.89], p=.07), and age predicted behavioral regulation (β=-.31, 95% CI: [-.51, -.10], p=.004). For children with SBM, age predicted the combination of the constructs (trace=.107, p=.03), and specifically predicted behavioral regulation (β=-.29, 95% CI: [-.55, -.03], p=.03). However, no cerebellum volume measurement significantly predicted either EF construct. The group x volume and group x SES interactions were also non-significant. Therefore, the question of the impact of cerebellar volume on EFs in SBM remains inconclusive.