Child Development

Knowledge of child development is the foundation for work with children, and therefore is a requirement for all those seeking to protect children. It influences every aspect of a child from physical growth and mental abilities, to how they express emotions, think and behave.

Healthy development takes children through stages, whereby they obtain an increasing number of physical, mental, and emotional skills in order to become independent adults. These stages provide benchmarks for determining if a child is developing normally. Without knowledge of the normal developmental stages of a child, a worker cannot identify developmental delays, assess the impact of abuse, or make recommendations regarding the child’s physical, mental or emotional health. Understanding what a child is capable of allows adults to communicate on their level and provide age-appropriate responses and interventions.

Knowledge of early childhood development and attachment behaviour is particularly important for protection workers. The physical health and care a child experiences as an infant will affect their development into adulthood. A child needs to have experienced a positive attachment by the age of 3 in order to develop cognitively, physically, socially, and psychologically. Healthy attachments come from the close bond a child experiences when provided with the responsive and stable care of at least one adult. In a residential home, children are less likely to receive the amount of individual attention from a permanent caretaker that they require. Children under 12, in particular, benefit more from a kinship, foster or adoption placement where they can experience closer relationships.

Observation of a child’s attachment to caretakers will influence the type of care, permanency plan, and level of support services offered. It can also aid in the identification of abuse.

This section contains information on the importance of child development knowledge, guidance on the ages and stages of children, and attachment theory.

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Why parenting matters for children in the 21st century: An evidence-based framework for understanding parenting and its impact on child development

Hannah Ulferts - OECD, 10 Jun 2020

This paper provides a structured overview of the existing parenting literature with the aim of developing an evidence-based and culture-sensitive framework of parenting and its influence on child development.

InBrief: Connecting the Brain to the Rest of the Body

Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, 01 Jun 2020

This brief describes some of the "compelling evidence that the foundations of lifelong health" are built in the early years of life, "with increasing evidence of the importance of the prenatal period and first few years after birth."

Psychological adjustment, attachment difficulties, and perceptions of family relationships in adopted and institution-reared children: The case of Chile

Pamela Jiménez-Etcheverría & Jesús Palacios - Children and Youth Services Review, 28 May 2020

The first aim of this study was to examine differences in the socio-emotional functioning of adopted and institution-reared children in Chile. The second aim of this study was to examine the influence of adoption related variables on the psychological adjustment of adopted children.

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‘What is left…?’: The implications of losing Maintained Nursery Schools for vulnerable children and families in England

Carla Solvason, Rebecca Webb, Samantha Sutton‐Tsang - Children & Society, 24 May 2020

This TACTYC funded research highlights the role that Maintained Nursery Schools (MNS) play in supporting families within areas of extreme social deprivation in the UK.

Effects of the Global COVID-19 Pandemic on Early Childhood Development: Short- and Long-Term Risks and Mitigating Program and Policy Actions

Hirokazu Yoshikawa, Alice J. Wuermli, Pia Rebello Britto, Benard Dreyer, James F. Leckman, Stephen J. Lye, Liliana Angelica Ponguta, Linda M. Richter, Alan Stein - The Journal of Pediatrics, 18 May 2020

The authors of this article review the evidence base on short- and long-term risks for children during early childhood development (ECD, defining this from prenatal to 8 years of age) and present evidence-based mitigating program and policy actions that may reduce these risks.

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The Education, Inclusion, and Development of Orphans and Vulnerable Children: Crucial Aspects for Governance in Africa

Jace Pillay - Education and Development, 06 May 2020

The author argues that early childhood education interventions for OVC should be a priority of government since quality education and care programs in the early years can enhance the possibility of breaking the cycle of inequity in the lives of OVC and positively contribute to the economy of the country.

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The impact of childhood deprivation on adult neuropsychological functioning is associated with ADHD symptom persistence

Dennis Golm, Sagari Sarkar, Nuria Mackes, Graeme Fairchild, Mitul Mehta, Michael Rutter, Edmund Sonuga-Barke - Psychological Medicine, 16 Apr 2020

Using 20-year follow-up data from a unique natural experiment – the large scale adoption of children exposed to extreme deprivation in Romanian institutions in the 1980s – the authors of this paper examined, for the first time, whether such deficits are still present in adulthood and whether they are associated with deprivation-related symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

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Journal of the British Academy Supplementary Issue 2: Early Childhood Development in the Global South

Journal of the British Academy, 25 Mar 2020

This supplementary issue relates to a sequence of activities the British Academy has supported since 2015 in relation to the bringing together of a range of disciplinary perspectives on early childhood development.

Experiences of incorporating support for early childhood development into the Baby Friendly Community Initiative in rural Kenya

Teresa Mwoma, et al - Journal of the British Academy, 25 Mar 2020

This paper provides insights into the feasibility and lessons learned from rural Kenya in providing Care for Child Development (CCD) training and supporting its implementation alongside the Baby Friendly Community Initiative (BFCI).

Submission to the Inquiry into Support for Children of Imprisoned Parents in New South Wales

Karleen Gribble - Western Sydney University, 06 Mar 2020

In this Submission to the Inquiry into Support for Children of Imprisoned Parents, Karleen Gribble, Adjunct Associate Professor in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Western Sydney University, comments on "the situation of infants and young children whose mothers are incarcerated and the support or undermining of their health and wellbeing in the justice system."