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Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment
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Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Health Behavior, Chronic Disease and Health Promotion".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2021) | Viewed by 24383

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. María Nieves Pérez Marfil

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Psychology, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Interests: neurodevelopment; neuropsychology; early stimulation; emotions; psychopathology
Dr. Manuel Fernández Alcántara

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Health Psychology, University of Alicante, Campus de San Vicente del Raspeig, San Vicente de el Raspeig, 03690 Alicante, Spain
Interests: complicated grief; palliative care; end-of-life; bereavement; active ageing; child neuropsychology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Francisco Cruz Quintana

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Didactics and School Organization, Faculty of Education Sciences, University of Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
Interests: neurodevelopment; neuropsychology; early stimulation; prematurity; toxic stress

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Neurodevelopment is the result of a multifactorial process and can be defined as the dynamic interrelationship that occurs between genetic, cerebral, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral processes throughout the life cycle. In this process the critical stages are intrauterine life and the first years of life, childhood and puberty, where the relationship between the child and the environment has long-term effects on brain maturation and overall health.

A whole range of factors have been identified as protectors for an adequate neurodevelopment in children. On the contrary, when these protective factors do not appear or appear partially, they can become a source of toxic stress for the child, affecting their health, their learning process, and the quality of emotional and social relationships in a transitional or permanent way.

The main risk factors for neurodevelopment relate to prenatal stage conditions; perinatal circumstances; clinical, nutritional, infectious, and toxic factors; parenting practices and patterns; and especially, socioeconomic conditions. Examples of these situations may be: a physical environment of exposure to toxics; a family environment with lack of care, unstructured family, child abuse, dangerous parental behavior, or alcoholism; and a social environment of malnutrition, marginalization, or exposure to violence.

If these risks factors are maintained, in time they can have the greatest consequences in the short, medium, and long term. The effects of adverse experiences and toxic stress on early childhood may persist in later stages and have effects on adult health. Early detection of these situations and the provision of prevention, monitoring, and intervention, for the child and the families are key elements to protect and optimize their progress and avoid the chronification of problems in the different areas of health.

For this Special Issue, we invite you to submit articles on high-quality original research or reviews that provide contributions to this field.

Dr. María Nieves Pérez Marfil
Dr. Manuel Fernández Alcántara
Dr. Francisco Cruz Quintana
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • neurodevelopment
  • neuropsychology
  • early stimulation
  • children
  • adolescents
  • socio-economic status
  • executive functions
  • toxic stress
  • malnutrition
  • protective factors

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 344 KiB  
Article
Differences in Neuropsychological Performance between Refugee and Non-Refugee Children in Palestine
by Ahmed F. Fasfous, María Nieves Pérez-Marfil, Francisco Cruz-Quintana, Miguel Pérez-García, Hala R. Al-Yamani and Manuel Fernández-Alcántara
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(11), 5750; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18115750 - 27 May 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2840
Abstract
Neuropsychological studies on refugee children are scarce, but there are even less in the case of Palestinian children. This work aims to study the neuropsychological performance of Palestinian refugee children in Palestine compared to other Palestinian children living outside refugee camps. A comprehensive [...] Read more.
Neuropsychological studies on refugee children are scarce, but there are even less in the case of Palestinian children. This work aims to study the neuropsychological performance of Palestinian refugee children in Palestine compared to other Palestinian children living outside refugee camps. A comprehensive Neuropsychological battery was administrated to 584 Palestinian school children (464 refugees and 120 non-refugees) aged 6, 7, and 8 years old. Results showed that non-refugee children outperformed refugee children in sustained attention, verbal comprehension, verbal memory, and visual memory. This study is the first to have performed a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment, based on a standardized and validated battery with the Palestinian refugee children. It supports professionals in their evaluation of neurodevelopment and neuropsychological alterations in refugee and non-refugee children in Palestine. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment)
9 pages, 610 KiB  
Article
Higher Utilization of Social Services Is Associated with Higher Language Scores in Children from Deeply Impoverished Urban Families
by Morgan A. Finkel, Sonya V. Troller-Renfree and Kimberly G. Noble
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(22), 8607; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17228607 - 19 Nov 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2122
Abstract
Language development has been consistently linked with socioeconomic status (SES), with children from lower SES backgrounds at higher risk for language delays. The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between familial social service use and language development during the first [...] Read more.
Language development has been consistently linked with socioeconomic status (SES), with children from lower SES backgrounds at higher risk for language delays. The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between familial social service use and language development during the first year of life. Thirty-one low-income mothers and their infants were recruited from the New York metropolitan area. Mothers provided information about demographics and utilization of social services (Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), food stamps, Medicaid, and public housing). Infant language skills were assessed using the Preschool Language Scale. Multiple linear regressions were used to investigate the relationship between social service use and language skills. We found that the number of social services utilized was not an overall significant linear predictor of language skills. However, social service use interacted with poverty level to predict language skills. Specifically, for families living in deep poverty, higher service use significantly predicted higher infant language scores (β = 3.4, p = 0.005). These results suggest that social services may be an appropriate target to help narrow socioeconomic disparities in language development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment)
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12 pages, 345 KiB  
Article
Coping Strategies, Quality of Life, and Neurological Outcome in Patients Treated with Mechanical Thrombectomy after an Acute Ischemic Stroke
by Silvia Reverté-Villarroya, Antoni Dávalos, Sílvia Font-Mayolas, Marta Berenguer-Poblet, Esther Sauras-Colón, Carlos López-Pablo, Estela Sanjuan-Menéndez, Lucía Muñoz-Narbona and Rosa Suñer-Soler
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(17), 6014; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17176014 - 19 Aug 2020
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3653
Abstract
New reperfusion therapies have improved the clinical recovery rates of acute ischemic stroke patients (AISP), but it is not known whether other factors, such as the ability to cope, might also have an effect. The aim of this study was to evaluate the [...] Read more.
New reperfusion therapies have improved the clinical recovery rates of acute ischemic stroke patients (AISP), but it is not known whether other factors, such as the ability to cope, might also have an effect. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of endovascular treatment (EVT) on coping strategies, quality of life, and neurological and functional outcomes in AISP at 3 months and 1 year post-stroke. A multicenter, prospective, longitudinal, and comparative study of a sub-study of the participants in the Endovascular Revascularization with Solitaire Device versus Best Medical Therapy in Anterior Circulation Stroke within 8 Hours (REVASCAT) clinical trial was conducted after recruiting from two stroke centers in Catalonia, Spain. The cohort consisted of 82 ischemic stroke patients (n = 42 undergoing EVT and n = 40 undergoing standard best medical treatment (BMT) as a control group), enrolled between 2013–2015. We assessed the coping strategies using the Brief Coping Questionnaire (Brief-COPE-28), the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) with the EQ-5D questionnaire, and the neurological and functional status using the National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), Barthel Index (BI), modified Rankin Scale (mRS), and Stroke Impact Scale-16 (SIS-16). Bivariate analyses and multivariate linear regression models were used. EVT patients were the ones that showed better neurological and functional outcomes, and more patients presented reporting no pain/discomfort at 3 months; paradoxically, problem-focused coping strategies were found to be significantly higher in patients treated with BMT at 1 year. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment)
18 pages, 1610 KiB  
Article
Fostering Broad Oral Language Skills in Preschoolers from Low SES Background
by Raffaele Dicataldo, Elena Florit and Maja Roch
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(12), 4495; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17124495 - 23 Jun 2020
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5402
Abstract
Socioeconomic disparities increase the probability that children will enter school behind their more advantaged peers. Early intervention on language skills may enhance language and literacy outcomes, reduce the gap and, eventually, promote school readiness of low-SES (Socioeconomic Status) children. This study aimed to [...] Read more.
Socioeconomic disparities increase the probability that children will enter school behind their more advantaged peers. Early intervention on language skills may enhance language and literacy outcomes, reduce the gap and, eventually, promote school readiness of low-SES (Socioeconomic Status) children. This study aimed to analyze the feasibility and effectiveness of a brief narrative-based intervention (treatment vs. control group) aimed to foster broad oral language skills in preschoolers (N = 69; Mean age = 5.5, SD = 4 months) coming from low-SES families. Moreover, it was analyzed whether children’s initial vocabulary mediates the intervention’s responsiveness. Results have shown that children in treatment group obtained greater gains than children in control group in almost all intervention-based measures. There is also some evidence for the generalizability of the intervention to other skills not directly trained during the intervention. Moreover, it was found that children’s initial vocabulary mediates the intervention’s responsiveness showing that children with high vocabulary made greater gains in higher-level components of language comprehension, whereas children with low vocabulary made higher gains in vocabulary. Taken together, our findings suggest that a relatively brief, but quite intensive narrative-based intervention, may produce improvements on broad oral language skills in preschoolers from low-SES backgrounds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment)
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12 pages, 340 KiB  
Article
Emotional, Behavioural and Executive Functioning Problems in Children in Residential Care
by Juan Manuel Moreno-Manso, María Elena García-Baamonde, Eloísa Guerrero-Barona, María José Godoy-Merino, Natalia Bueso-Izquierdo and Mónica Guerrero-Molina
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(10), 3596; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17103596 - 20 May 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3064
Abstract
This research analyses the emotional and behavioural problems, as well as the problems in the executive functions, of children in residential care under protective measures, between 8 and 12 years of age. We analyse the relationship between the problems with their executive functions [...] Read more.
This research analyses the emotional and behavioural problems, as well as the problems in the executive functions, of children in residential care under protective measures, between 8 and 12 years of age. We analyse the relationship between the problems with their executive functions and their emotional and behavioural problems, as well as the predictive value of the executive functions for the said emotional and behavioural problems. The instruments used were as follows: five digits test (FDT), behavioural assessment of the dysexecutive syndrome in children (BADS-C) and the system of evaluation for children and adolescents (SENA). The results indicate that the children have difficulties in their executive functions, with such problems as in attention control and regulation, impulsiveness, mental rigidity, behavioural organisation and planning and resolving problems. They also have internalising and externalising problems, as well as difficulties in controlling their emotional reactions and understanding the emotions of others. It becomes evident that the difficulties in their executive functions are related to and predict their emotional and behavioural problems. The research demonstrates the need to intervene in the problems detected through the design of therapeutic programmes and interventions in the residential context. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment)
19 pages, 1434 KiB  
Article
Impact of an Individualized Cognitive Training Intervention in Preschoolers from Poor Homes
by Federico Giovannetti, Marcos Luis Pietto, María Soledad Segretín and Sebastián Javier Lipina
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17(8), 2912; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17082912 - 23 Apr 2020
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 6579
Abstract
Over the last few decades, different interventions were shown to be effective in changing cognitive performance in preschoolers from poor homes undertaking tasks with executive demands. However, this evidence also showed that not all children included in the intervention groups equally increased their [...] Read more.
Over the last few decades, different interventions were shown to be effective in changing cognitive performance in preschoolers from poor homes undertaking tasks with executive demands. However, this evidence also showed that not all children included in the intervention groups equally increased their performance levels, which could be related to individual and contextual variability. The present study aimed to explore the impact of a computerized cognitive training intervention with lab-based tasks in preschoolers from Unsatisfied Basic Needs (UBN) homes under the consideration of their baseline performance. In the context of a randomized controlled trial design, different interventions were administered to children according to their baseline performance in a variety of cognitive tasks (i.e., executive attention, inhibitory control, working memory, and planning demands). The results showed different patterns of impact on performance depending on the experimental group, supporting the importance of considering individual and contextual differences in the design of interventions aimed at optimizing executive functions in poverty-impacted sample populations in early stages of development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Risk and Protector Factors, Socioeconomic Status and Neurodevelopment)
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