Papers by Meghan P McCormick
Children in late elementary and middle school tend to form friendships with same-race peers. Yet,... more Children in late elementary and middle school tend to form friendships with same-race peers. Yet, given the potential benefits of cross-race friendships, it is important to understand the individual and contextual factors that increase the likelihood of cross-race friendship over time. Guided by contact hypothesis and systems theory, we examine the student and classroom predictors of change in same-race friendships over 1 school year using a sample of 553 African American and European American students in 53 classrooms. Results suggest that same-race friendships increase over time, with greater increases among European American and older children. Youth externalizing behavior predicted a greater increase in same-race friendships; classroom support predicted less of an increase in same-race friendships from fall to spring. Lastly, African American students in classrooms with greater differential teacher treatment were more likely to engage in cross-race friendships over time. Findings are discussed in light of psychological and educational theories and prior research.
Research suggests that early mother-child attachment styles are predictive of cognitive skill dev... more Research suggests that early mother-child attachment styles are predictive of cognitive skill development in middle childhood. Yet, little work has considered the differential associations of varying attachment styles on reading and math skills in middle childhood, and the mechanisms explaining those relationships across time. Using data from the first three phases of the National Institutes of Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, this study examined associations between early mother-child attachment styles and math and reading skill development in middle childhood (i.e., ages 54 months to fifth grade). In addition, using a multilevel mediation approach, we considered children's task engagement and engagement/exploration in the classroom as mechanisms explaining gains in cognitive skills. Findings revealed that insecure/other attachment predicted lower average levels of reading and math skills in fifth grade, while ambivalent attachment was associated with lower average levels of math skills in fifth grade. Children's task engagement partially mediated associations between insecure/other attachment and reading skills, as well as associations between ambivalent attachment and math skills. Task engagement also partially mediated associations between insecure/other attachment and math skills in middle childhood. Implications for attachment theory and educational practice are discussed.
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) programs aim to improve students’ social-emotional competencies i... more Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) programs aim to improve students’ social-emotional competencies in order to enhance their achievement. Although SEL programs typically implement classroom curricula, some programs also include a component for parents. Yet, little is known about the types of parents likely to participate in services, and whether parent participation moderates program effects on student outcomes in low-income urban schools. This paper aims to fill these gaps in the literature using data from the randomized trial of the SEL program INSIGHTS into Children’s Temperament (N = 435 parent/child dyads), which was conducted in 22 low-income urban elementary schools during children’s kindergarten and first grade year. Descriptive findings revealed that children at lower risk for poor achievement had parents who were more likely to participate in program services. In addition, findings from inverse probability of treatment weighting models demonstrated larger effects of INSIGHTS on academic, attentional, and behavioral outcomes for children whose parents participated at lower rates. Implications for prevention science and SEL program implementation and scale-up are discussed.
This study investigated the efficacy of the INSIGHTS into Children’s Temperament intervention in ... more This study investigated the efficacy of the INSIGHTS into Children’s Temperament intervention in supporting the academic development of shy kindergarten and first-grade children. INSIGHTS is a temperament-based intervention
with teacher, parent, and classroom programs. The participants included 345children from 22 low-income, urban elementary schools who were randomly assigned to INSIGHTS or a supplemental after-school reading program. Growth curve
modeling showed that shy children in INSIGHTS evidenced more rapid growth in critical thinking and math than their shy peers in the attention-control condition during kindergarten and the transition to first grade. The effects of INSIGHTS were partly indirect through improved behavioral engagement.
INSIGHTS enhances the academic development of early elementary school children with shy temperaments.
IN PRESS AT AERA OPEN:
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) programs have demonstrated positive effec... more IN PRESS AT AERA OPEN:
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) programs have demonstrated positive effects on children’s social-emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes, as well as classroom climate. Some programs also theorize that program impacts on children’s outcomes will be partially explained by improvements in classroom social processes, namely classroom emotional support and organization. Yet, there is little empirical evidence for this hypothesis. Using data from the evaluation of the SEL program INSIGHTS, this paper tests whether assignment to INSIGHTS improved low-income kindergarten and first grade students’ math and reading achievement by first enhancing classroom emotional support and organization. Multilevel regression analyses, instrumental variables estimation, and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) were used to conduct quantitative analyses. Across methods, the impact of INSIGHTS on math and achievement in first grade was partially explained by gains in both classroom emotional support and organization. The IPTW method revealed that the program impact on reading achievement in first grade was partially explained through an improvement in classroom organization. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
This paper examines whether three dimensions of school climate – leadership, accountability, and ... more This paper examines whether three dimensions of school climate – leadership, accountability, and safety/respect – moderated the impacts of the INSIGHTS program on students’ social-emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes. Twenty-two urban schools and N = 435 low-income racial/ethnic minority students were enrolled in the study and received intervention services across the course of two years, in both kindergarten and first grade. Intervention effects on math and reading achievement were larger for students enrolled in schools with lower overall levels of leadership, accountability, and safety/respect at baseline. Program impacts on disruptive behaviors were greater in schools with lower levels of accountability at baseline; impacts on sustained attention were greater in schools with lower levels of safety/respect at baseline. Implications for SEL program implementation, replication, and scale-up are discussed.
This study investigated the efficacy of INSIGHTS into Children’s Temperament (INSIGHTS) in suppor... more This study investigated the efficacy of INSIGHTS into Children’s Temperament (INSIGHTS) in supporting the
behaviors and engagement of low-income kindergarten and first-grade children with high-maintenance
temperaments. INSIGHTS is a temperament-based social–emotional learning intervention that includes
teacher, parent, and classroom programs. Participants in the study included N = 435 children (Mean
age = 5.38 SD = 0.61) from 22 under-resourced, urban elementary schools who were randomly assigned
to INSIGHTS or a supplemental after-school reading program. Sixty-nine children were identified as
having a high-maintenance temperament, characterized by low levels of task persistence and high
levels of motor activity and negative reactivity. Individual growth modeling showed that children
with high-maintenance temperaments in INSIGHTS evidenced faster reductions in disruptive behaviors
and off-task behaviors across kindergarten and first grade than their peers in the supplemental
reading program. Such children in INSIGHTS also had lower overall levels of both disruptive behaviors
and off-task behaviors and higher levels of behavioral engagement than children in the comparison
group at the end of first grade. Intervention effects for children with high-maintenance temperaments
were partially mediated through improvements in their relationships with their teachers. Implications
for social–emotional learning intervention for high-risk children and early educational policy are
discussed.
The current study investigated associations between early mother-child attachment, as well as mot... more The current study investigated associations between early mother-child attachment, as well as mother-child and teacher-child relationships, and internalizing and externalizing behaviors in middle childhood. Data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development were used. Findings from a series of individual growth curve analyses revealed that attachment security was negatively related to internalizing and externalizing behaviors, while insecure/other and avoidant attachment were positively related to internalizing behaviors. In addition, longitudinal associations were found between mother-child and teacher-child relationships and internalizing and externalizing behaviors across middle childhood. Implications for attachment theory are discussed.
Peers become increasingly influential in children's development during late childhood and early a... more Peers become increasingly influential in children's development during late childhood and early adolescence. A large body of research has documented children's proclivity for forming friendships with peers who share similar attributes to themselves, a phenomenon termed homophily. Researchers have used multiple procedures to operationalize homophily. However, a measure of homophily that accounts for the diversity of children in classrooms has yet to be validated in elementary and middle school settings. Using social network data collected from a racially diverse sample of 553 elementary and middle school students (53 classrooms; 7 schools), this study aims to validate a measure of friendship homophily that accounts for differential opportunity structures in classroom contexts. Using race and gender as grouping attributes, we find evidence for the reliability, as well as the convergent and predictive validity, of the friendship homophily measure. Implications for researchers and educators are discussed.
A wide body of research has documented the relationship between social norms and individual behav... more A wide body of research has documented the relationship between social norms and individual behaviors. There is growing evidence that academic behaviors in early adolescence-when most children begin middle schoolmay be subject to normative influence as well. However, the structure and composition of peer relationships within middle schools have yet to be fully incorporated into current conceptualizations of academic norms. A social network approach that considers the structure of students' friendship networks can be a useful framework for informing understanding of middle school academic norms. This article integrates research and theory on social norms and social networks to introduce a model to improve understanding of academic norms in middle schools. Implications for future research are discussed.
The primary aim of this group randomized trial was to test the efficacy of INSIGHTS Into Children... more The primary aim of this group randomized trial was to test the efficacy of INSIGHTS Into Children's Temperament (INSIGHTS) in increasing the academic achievement and sustained attention and reducing the disruptive behavior problems of low-income kindergarten and 1st grade children. Twenty-two urban elementary schools serving low-income families were randomly assigned to INSIGHTS or a supplemental reading program that served as an attention-control condition. Data on 435 students in 122 classrooms were collected at 5 time points across kindergarten and 1st grade. Students received intervention in the 2nd half of kindergarten and the 1st half of 1st grade. Their teachers and parents participated in the program at the same time. Two-level hierarchical linear models were used to examine both within-and between-child changes in achievement across kindergarten and 1st grades. Results revealed that children enrolled in INSIGHTS experienced growth in math and reading achievement and sustained attention that was significantly faster than that of children enrolled in the supplemental reading program. In addition, although children participating in INSIGHTS evidenced decreases in behavior problems over time, children enrolled in the supplemental reading program demonstrated increases. Effects on math and reading were partially mediated through a reduction in behavior problems, and effects on reading were partially mediated through an improvement in sustained attention. Results indicate that INSIGHTS enhances the academic development of early elementary school children and supports the need for policies that provide social-emotional intervention for children at risk for academic problems.
Research Findings: Racial=ethnic minority low-income children with temperaments high in negative ... more Research Findings: Racial=ethnic minority low-income children with temperaments high in negative reactivity are at heightened risk for developing disruptive behavior problems. Teacher-child relationships characterized by high levels of closeness and low levels of conflict may protect against the development of disruptive behaviors in school. The present study examined whether teacher-child closeness and conflict moderated the association between temperamental negative reactivity and growth in disruptive behaviors in low-income Black and Hispanic kindergarten and 1st-grade children. Findings revealed that negative reactivity predicted higher overall levels of in-school disruptive behavior problems at the beginning of kindergarten as well as growth in behavior problems over kindergarten and 1st grade. However, the effect of negative reactivity on disruptive behaviors was attenuated when children had relationships with teachers characterized by high levels of closeness and low levels of conflict. Practice or Policy: Implications for further research and practice are discussed.
A robust body of research finds positive cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between te... more A robust body of research finds positive cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between teacher-child relationships and children's academic achievement in elementary school. Estimating the causal effect of teacher-child relationships on children's academic achievement, however, is challenged by selection bias at the individual and school level. To address these issues, we used two multilevel propensity score matching approaches to estimate the effect of high-quality teacher-child relationships in kindergarten on math and reading achievement during children's transition to first grade. Multi-informant data were collected on 324 low-income, Black and Hispanic students, and 112 kindergarten and first-grade teachers. Results revealed significant effects of high-quality teacher-child relationships in kindergarten on math achievement in first grade. No significant effects of teacher-child relationships were detected for reading achievement. Implications for intervention development and public policy are discussed.
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, a... more JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].
MDRC, New …, 2010
This report presents early implementation and operational lessons from the Supporting Healthy Mar... more This report presents early implementation and operational lessons from the Supporting Healthy Marriage (SHM) evaluation. Funded by the Administration for Children and Families, SHM uses a rigorous research design to test the effectiveness of a new approach to improving outcomes for lowincome children: strengthening the marriages and relationships of their parents as a foundation for family well-being. It also uses implementation research to document and assess how the organizations that were selected to be in the study are implementing the SHM model. The SHM model is for low-income married couples and includes three components: relationship and marriage education workshops that teach strategies for managing conflict and effective communication, supplemental activities that build on workshop themes and skills through educational and social events, and family support services that pair couples with specialized staff who facilitate participation and connect couples with needed services. In the first year of program implementation, SHM providers focused on three main tasks: developing effective marketing and recruitment strategies, keeping couples engaged in the program, and building management structures and systems. Lessons in these three areas from implementation analyses are the focus of this report. Highlights include:
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Papers by Meghan P McCormick
with teacher, parent, and classroom programs. The participants included 345children from 22 low-income, urban elementary schools who were randomly assigned to INSIGHTS or a supplemental after-school reading program. Growth curve
modeling showed that shy children in INSIGHTS evidenced more rapid growth in critical thinking and math than their shy peers in the attention-control condition during kindergarten and the transition to first grade. The effects of INSIGHTS were partly indirect through improved behavioral engagement.
INSIGHTS enhances the academic development of early elementary school children with shy temperaments.
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) programs have demonstrated positive effects on children’s social-emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes, as well as classroom climate. Some programs also theorize that program impacts on children’s outcomes will be partially explained by improvements in classroom social processes, namely classroom emotional support and organization. Yet, there is little empirical evidence for this hypothesis. Using data from the evaluation of the SEL program INSIGHTS, this paper tests whether assignment to INSIGHTS improved low-income kindergarten and first grade students’ math and reading achievement by first enhancing classroom emotional support and organization. Multilevel regression analyses, instrumental variables estimation, and inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) were used to conduct quantitative analyses. Across methods, the impact of INSIGHTS on math and achievement in first grade was partially explained by gains in both classroom emotional support and organization. The IPTW method revealed that the program impact on reading achievement in first grade was partially explained through an improvement in classroom organization. Implications for research and practice are discussed.
behaviors and engagement of low-income kindergarten and first-grade children with high-maintenance
temperaments. INSIGHTS is a temperament-based social–emotional learning intervention that includes
teacher, parent, and classroom programs. Participants in the study included N = 435 children (Mean
age = 5.38 SD = 0.61) from 22 under-resourced, urban elementary schools who were randomly assigned
to INSIGHTS or a supplemental after-school reading program. Sixty-nine children were identified as
having a high-maintenance temperament, characterized by low levels of task persistence and high
levels of motor activity and negative reactivity. Individual growth modeling showed that children
with high-maintenance temperaments in INSIGHTS evidenced faster reductions in disruptive behaviors
and off-task behaviors across kindergarten and first grade than their peers in the supplemental
reading program. Such children in INSIGHTS also had lower overall levels of both disruptive behaviors
and off-task behaviors and higher levels of behavioral engagement than children in the comparison
group at the end of first grade. Intervention effects for children with high-maintenance temperaments
were partially mediated through improvements in their relationships with their teachers. Implications
for social–emotional learning intervention for high-risk children and early educational policy are
discussed.