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Browsing by Author "Fidler, Deborah, advisor"

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    Attainment of parenting goals in an Early Head Start program
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2008) Jameson, Julie S., author; Lehmann, Jean, advisor; Fidler, Deborah, advisor
    Early childhood programs providing parenting education and support seek to enhance home environments through comprehensive services aimed at developing nurturing relationships between parents and children. The majority of programs aimed at improving child and parent outcomes utilize the home visit as the primary means of service delivery. Home visit practitioners plan activities implemented in the family home designed to enhance child development while at the same time modeling and coaching the parent in their interactions with the child. The process of impacting child and family outcomes begins with the transfer of skills from home visitor to parent who in turn utilizes the skills to improve interactions and outcomes for the child. Early Head Start (EHS) is one of the five largest programs serving young children in the United States that utilizes the home visit approach in the delivery of services to pregnant women, infants, toddlers, and their families. In the city and surrounding communities of Fort Collins, Colorado, the Poudre School District (PSD) serves as the grantee agency for the delivery of EHS services. PSDEHS programs utilize family mentors to conduct the home visit and parent education portion of the program. Family mentors are responsible for the planning, implementing, and assessing of all home visit activities. This study documented parental progress toward goals identified by the parent and PSDEHS family mentor during participation in the home visiting program to assess factors that may contribute to success in goal attainment. Fifty-three families participated in the study over 12 weeks. Family mentors utilized the method of Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS) at each home visit to measure parental progress on jointly identified goals. GAS scores range from a score of -2 (much less than expected outcome) to +2 (much more than expected outcome). Identified goals fell into one of six general categories: family, financial, parenting, education/job, health/wellness, and other. Participants most often set family related and parenting related goals indicating those areas as needing improvement. GAS results indicated that while the majority of families scored below the expected outcome, all families scored within the range of -1 (somewhat less than expected outcome) and +1 (somewhat more than expected outcome). GAS scores tended to increase toward the positive range with an increase in the number of home visits received. Analysis of GAS scores among the various demographic groups present in PSDEHS revealed that home-based families had slightly higher mean GAS scores (m=-.36) than center-based families (m=-.40). Spanish speaking families had higher mean GAS scores (m=.07) than English speaking families (m=-.49). Teen parented families has slightly higher mean GAS scores (-.26) than adult parented families (m=-.36). As expected, dual parent families had higher mean GAS scores (m=-.26) than single parent families (-.52). Mean GAS scores also improved as the educational levels of mother's and father's increased.
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    Developmental trajectories of adaptive behavior in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2017) Gerlach-McDonald, Brianne, author; Hepburn, Susan, advisor; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Daunhauer, Lisa, committee member; Riggs, Nathaniel, committee member; Sample, Pat, committee member
    The increasing prevalence of developmental disabilities indicates a need for research and interventions for these populations. One growing area of interest is adaptive behavior or the functional skills individuals perform in their everyday lives, such as communication and daily living skills. Individuals with developmental disabilities with greater adaptive behavior skills experience a better quality of life in childhood and achieve better functional outcomes in adulthood (e.g., living independently). However, more research is needed to understand how adaptive behavior develops in childhood to identify critical time points for targeted interventions. The current study examined developmental trajectories of adaptive behavior across childhood in two developmental disabilities: Autism Spectrum Disorder(ASD) and Down syndrome (DS). This study examined secondary data obtained from a longitudinal study conducted at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center between 1997 and 2007. The aim of this dissertation was to examine the extent to which individual differences in diagnostic status, maternal education, intellectual functioning, executive function, and autism symptoms predicted developmental trajectories of adaptive behavior. Examination of the predictors of developmental trajectories of adaptive behavior provided information regarding potential intervention targets to promote optimal adaptive behavior. This study used growth modeling techniques to compare two developmental disabilities. Participants included 77 children with ASD and 24 children with DS who were assessed in toddlerhood (ages 1-3 years), preschool (ages 4-6), and during the school years (ages 7-10). Parents completed a demographic questionnaire and interviews of adaptive behavior (Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales; Sparrow, Balla, & Cicchetti, 1984), and autism symptoms (Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised; Lord, Rutter, & LeCouteur, 1994). Child participants completed standardized developmental testing (Mullens Scales of Early Learning; Mullen, 1995), an executive function task measuring cognitive flexibility and working memory (Spatial Reversal; Kaufmann, Leckman, & Ort, 1989), and a semi-structured play-based assessment of autism symptoms (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule; Lord, Rutter, DiLavore, & Risi, 1999). Growth models were specified for developmental trajectories of communication, daily living skills, and socialization as measured by the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales. Diagnostic status, maternal education, intellectual functioning, executive function, and autism symptoms were added as predictors. Children with ASD and DS made gains in their adaptive behavior skills from toddlerhood to middle childhood but had significantly delayed scores compared to children in the standardization sample. The best fitting models of communication and socialization indicated significant linear and quadratic growth, and the best fitting model of daily living skills indicated significant linear growth. Diagnostic status was a significant predictor of initial starting states of communication and socialization in toddlerhood, but not daily living skills. Diagnostic status was a significant predictor of linear and quadratic slopes of communication. Maternal education was a significant predictor of initial starting states of socialization in toddlerhood in both groups. Mental age in toddlerhood was a significant predictor of initial starting states in toddlerhood for communication, daily living skills, and socialization in both groups. Mental age was a significant predictor of linear slopes of communication, daily living skills, and socialization, and quadratic slopes for communication and socialization in both groups. These findings provide implications for intervention; many existing manualized early intervention treatments do not explicitly target adaptive behavior. Implications for available programs are discussed, followed by recommendations for targeting adaptive behavior and expanding research efforts to promote these skills in children with ASD and DS.
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    Foundations of early planning in Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2017) Will, Elizabeth Anne, author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Daunhauer, Lisa, committee member; Coatsworth, James Doug, committee member; Henry, Kimberly, committee member
    Goal-directed behavior, or planning is critical for academic and daily outcomes, and an area of distinct challenge in Down syndrome. This study examined early foundations of object-related planning in toddlers (N=38) with Down syndrome. Motor abilities, visual attention, and motor cognition were tested as predictors of two planning outcomes in DS: object-related problem solving and functional object use. In addition, a potential developmental cascade from motor abilities to object-related problem solving was also tested. Results revealed that motor abilities are an important developmental foundation for both types of object-related planning outcomes. Results also revealed differences in the contribution of visual attention and motor cognition to object-related planning outcomes. Findings also provided support for a potential developmental cascade between motor abilities and planning outcomes. Collective results from this study contribute to the understanding of early development within Down syndrome, and therefore provide implications for the development of early, targeted intervention.
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    Foundations of executive function in Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2020) Schworer, Emily, author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Daunhauer, Lisa, committee member; Hepburn, Susan, committee member; Knight, Andrew, committee member
    Though early features of infant cognition are predictive of executive function (EF) in typically developing (TD) children, there is little information regarding the developmental origins of EF in Down syndrome (DS). The current study compared the performance of infants with DS and TD controls on four foundational EF dimensions: attention shifting, sustained attention, early planning, and processing speed, and examined the relationship between EF foundations at Time 1 and subsequent EF performance at Time 2 (6 months later). Participants were 58 infants with DS, M chronological age = 11.32 months, SD = 3.50; M developmental age = 7.93 months, SD = 2.79, and 48 TD infants, M chronological age = 7.76, SD = 3.22; M developmental age = 7.75 months, SD = 3.52. Results showed that infants with DS shifted their attention more slowly, looked for longer durations at objects, and demonstrated a longer latency to contact objects when compared to TD infants at Time 1. The association between early planning and chronological age differed by group at Time 1 as well. Attention shifting at Time 1 significantly predicted EF performance at Time 2 in the DS group. This study provides evidence that an early atypical presentation of EF precursors is detectable during infancy in DS and is predictive of subsequent EF performance. These findings will facilitate the identification of areas of early cognitive risk in DS and inform future interventions.
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    Infant exploration and childhood action planning in children with Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Van Deusen, Kaylyn, author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Daunhauer, Lisa, committee member; Prince, Mark, committee member
    Children with Down syndrome (DS) are predisposed to delays across domains of development and there is a dearth of information on longitudinal associations across early childhood that would help to characterize skill acquisition. Executive functions (EFs) are the thinking and problem-solving skills that direct behavior to achieve goals. Planning is a subconstruct of EF that is an area of relative challenge for children with DS in middle childhood and adolescence. This investigation examined the foundations of planning in DS between infant exploration behavior and emerging childhood planning. METHODS: Forty-six children with DS and their parents participated in two waves of data collection. Infants' first visit was held between 9 and 17 months (M = 12.76 months; SD = 2.16) for Wave 1 and the second research visit was when children were 3 to 7 years old (M = 5.03 years; SD = 0.80) for Wave 2. RESULTS: No significant predictive link was found between infant exploration and early childhood planning. No significant findings emerged between biomedical status and childhood planning. CONCLUSION: Results of this investigation did not identify a predictive link between infancy and early childhood planning. The current study was among the first longitudinal analyses examining development in early childhood for children with DS. Future work should further characterize the heterogeneity observed in children with DS to tailor intervention supports to emerging planning skills.
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    Parent perspectives of at-home cognitive intervention for preschoolers with Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2023) Walsh, Madison M., author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Hepburn, Susan, committee member; Yoder, Jamie, committee member
    Down syndrome (DS) is associated with challenges related to cognitive skills, including executive function (EF). Intervention provided during early childhood can support the development of EF, however there are few cognitive interventions designed for young developmental ages. Parent-mediated interventions (PMIs) are emerging as an effective and scalable intervention approach for clinical populations. PMIs require ongoing parent engagement, and therefore, it is critical for a PMI to meet the needs of its intended users. This study used a community-based participatory research (CBPR) framework to (1) understand the daily routines of families of young children with DS and (2) describe parent perceptions of participating in at-home intervention. Participants were 34 caregivers of children 3 – 6 years old with DS living in Italy or the US. Participants responded to questions related to daily tasks they help their children complete and their perceptions of at-home cognitive intervention. Interviews were transcribed and independently coded (inter-rater agreement = .80). Four themes related to daily routines were identified: what parents help with, how parents help, why parents help, and how children respond. Three themes related to parent perceptions of interventions were identified: advantages of parent-led interventions, disadvantages of parent-led interventions, and desires for interventions. Findings suggest that PMIs targeting preschool-aged children with DS should require a short time commitment, blend intervention activities into daily routines, and include other family members. Findings from this study have important implications for the development of novel interventions aimed at supporting families in this population.
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    Parent-child interactions and adaptive behavior in children with Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2018) Howshar, Mackenzie, author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Hepburn, Susan, committee member; Knight, Andrew, committee member
    Adaptive behavior is essential for the development of independence in individuals with developmental disabilities. Individuals with higher levels of adaptive behavior tend to require less support from caregivers than those with lower levels of adaptive behavior. The current study examined the association between parenting behavior and child adaptive behavior within the context of a parent-child interaction in dyads with and without a child diagnosis of Down syndrome (DS). Findings showed parents of children with DS engaged in significantly more directives than parents of TD children. Additionally, there was a significant negative association between parent directives at Time 1 and child adaptive behavior at Time 2 overall, whereas there was a significant positive association between parent teaching at Time 1 and child adaptive behavior at Time 2 in the DS group. Findings from this study may be useful for informing future parenting interventions.
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    Parent-mediated interventions for infants with Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2020) Swanson, Molly, author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Daunhauer, Lisa, committee member; Sample, Pat, committee member
    Parent-mediated interventions (PMIs) are becoming increasingly popular but the parents' role as the administrator of the intervention, specifically the parental fidelity to an intervention protocol (PF) has yet to be standardized. Early syndrome specific PMIs can influence many domains of development for infants with Down syndrome (DS); however, the impact of PMIs on object exploration for infants with DS has yet to be tested. The current study examined the impact of parental fidelity to a PMI protocol on object exploration skills in infants with DS. The sample for this study consisted of 37 infants (M=7.04, SD=2.44) infants from 4 to 18 months with a confirmed case of trisomy 21. Infants in the intervention group (n=19) received the Sticky Mittens intervention and infants in the alternative group (n=18) received the 'object dance' activity. Parents were asked to fill out a parent logs to track their PF. Multiple regressions revealed that increased parental fidelity resulted in more infant swats and reach attempts from pre to post-intervention for the intervention condition, but not the control condition. The findings from this study indicate the unique role that parental fidelity plays in explaining intervention effects or a lack of intervention effects in PMIs. The implications for parental fidelity in PMIs are discussed.
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    Parenting behavior and executive function in children with Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2017) Schworer, Emily, author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Daunhauer, Lisa, committee member; Sample, Pat, committee member
    Parenting behaviors have an important influence on child development, and recent work has demonstrated the specific effects of parenting on the development of executive function (EF) abilities. Although these associations have been examined in typically developing children, the relationship between parent-child interaction and EF abilities has yet to be examined in dyads where the child has a diagnosis of Down syndrome (DS). The current study examined the differences in parenting behaviors between DS dyads and dyads with TD children matched on non-verbal mental age. DS dyads (n= 44) and TD dyads (n=29) participated in the Parent-Child Challenge Task to assess behaviors of both the parent and child during a challenging problem-solving task. Parent directive and teaching behaviors were coded, along with child compliance and noncompliance. Child participants completed the pony/gator task, a laboratory measure of inhibition and working memory. Parents also completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschool (BRIEF-P), a proxy-report measure of EF. Results showed a difference in parenting behavior between DS dyads and TD dyads. Frequencies of parenting behaviors in DS were also related to both the pony/gator laboratory measure and the Inhibitory Self-Control index raw scores on the BRIEF-P. The findings indicate a unique pattern of association between parent behaviors and EF in DS. The implications for parent training and intervention are discussed.
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    Parenting strategies and child behavior in children with Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2014) Lopez, Amber, author; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Daunhauer, Lisa, committee member; Lunkenheimer, Erika, committee member; Sample, Pat, committee member
    This study examined parent-child interactions in Down syndrome in the context of a collaborative puzzle task. Variables of interest included the parent dimensions of teaching and directives, and the child behaviors of compliance, persistence, and social engagement during a five-minute interaction. Based on previous research in the field of parenting and developmental disabilities, it was hypothesized that parents of children with Down syndrome would exhibit significantly more directive behavior than parents of typically developing children, and that the use of directives would be associated with higher levels of compliance and task persistence in children with Down syndrome. It was also hypothesized that children with Down syndrome would engage in higher levels of off-task behavior, such as social engagement with a parent, based on evidence of the over-use of social behaviors during challenging tasks in this population. Children with Down syndrome (N = 20) and mental-age matched typically developing children (N = 13), and their parents, were recorded during a five-minute problem-solving task. Parent and child behaviors were captured utilizing a modified version of Lunkenheimer's (2009) Dyadic Interaction Coding System. Results indicated that parents of children with Down syndrome demonstrated both significantly higher levels of directive behaviors and teaching behaviors in comparison to parents with typically developing children. Contrary to previous research, children with Down syndrome in this study were found to be significantly more compliant than their typically developing peers, and no significant differences emerged between the groups in terms of off-task, socially-related behavior. Additionally, this study examined the reciprocal nature of parent-child interactions using state lag sequential analyses. Results from these analyses demonstrated a higher probability of directive parenting behavior following child social engagement in the Down syndrome group as compared to the typically-developing group. Conversely, the lag sequential analyses demonstrated a higher probability of teaching parent behavior following social engagement in the typically-developing group as compared to the Down syndrome group. The likelihood for both teaching and directive parenting behavior following child noncompliance was also higher in the Down syndrome group as compared to the typically-developing group. The findings from this study demonstrate consistency with previous work that parents of children with Down syndrome are more directive than parents of typically developing children, and highlights the differing patterns of parenting behavior in both typically and atypically developing populations. The use of analyses to examine dyadic contingencies also provides new information regarding the strategies that parents employ with their children to promote on-task behavior, specifically in children with an intellectual disability. Lastly, this study contributes to the body of research on the behavioral phenotype of children with Down syndrome.
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    Predictors of functional performance in school-aged children with Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015) Gerlach-McDonald, Brianne, author; Daunhauer, Lisa A., advisor; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Khetani, Mary, committee member
    This project examined whether executive functioning, language ability, and/or intelligence quotient predicts functional performance in children with Down syndrome, the most common neurogenetic syndrome associated with intellectual disability. Functional performance is the performance of tasks universal to all children-- such as self-care, mobility, and social interaction. Identifying patterns of functional performance in Down syndrome is critical as it is a foundation for optimal outcomes for the child, their family, and community. Executive functioning is an umbrella term used to describe thinking skills that are involved in goal-directed behavior. Children with Down syndrome are predisposed to specific areas of relative strengths and challenges in executive functioning, but it is unclear whether this phenotypic profile affects functional performance. Children with Down syndrome and students with mixed developmental disabilities were matched for mental and chronological age using the Leiter International Performance Scale-Revised. Functional performance and executive function were measured by parent-report, using the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function- Preschool Version, respectively. Language and mental ability were measured using two standardized assessments, the Oral and Expressive Language Scales of the Oral and Written Language Scales and the Leiter International Performance Scale-Revised. Results indicated that children with Down syndrome and children with mixed developmental disabilities had similar functional profiles with strength in mobility and relative challenges in social function and self-care. Executive function was the only significant predictor of functional performance for relative children with Down syndrome, while intelligence quotient was the only significant predictor of functional performance for children with mixed developmental disabilities. Findings suggest differential targets for interventions to improve functional performance outcomes in children with Down syndrome and mixed developmental disabilities.
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    The understanding of intentionality in children with Williams syndrome and Down syndrome
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2012) Hahn, Laura J., author; Most, David, advisor; Fidler, Deborah, advisor; Balgopal, Meena, committee member; Lunkenheimer, Erika, committee member
    This dissertation examined the development of the understanding of intentionality in two different neurogenetic disorders, Williams syndrome (WS) and Down syndrome (DS). The study of intentionality focuses on how children come to understand the intentions of others. Meltzoff's (1995) behavioral reenactment paradigm is a nonverbal procedure wherein a child is presented with a series of objects. Prior to each presentation, the examiner either performs a successful action (e.g. the target action) or an unsuccessful action (e.g. the failed intentional action). A child's understanding of intentionality is assessed by their ability to interpret the experimenter's intention during failed attempt trials, and their subsequent completion of the task. This examination of intentionality was divided into two studies. Study 1 was designed to test Tager-Flusberg and Sullivan's (2000) hypothesis that there is a dissociation between social-perceptual abilities and social-cognitive abilities in individuals with Williams syndrome. In order to explore this dissociation, the behavioral reenactment procedure was administered with and without experimenter affective cues. Participants were 25 children with a confirmed diagnosis of WS. There were two groups of WS, one that received affective cues (N=13) and one that did not (N=12). Also, children with WS in the no affect group were compared to 12 mental-age matched children with developmental disabilities. The findings of this study indicates that the understanding of intentionality improves with developmental status in children with WS. Also, this study indicates that there may be a dissociation between social-perceptual and social-cognitive skills in this population during early social-emotional development. Specifically, it seems that the presence of emotional cues during intersubjective tasks leads to an emotional response instead of a response based on social cognition. Study 2 was motivated by past research suggesting that children with DS demonstrate deficits in some aspects of social cognition, even though many children with DS have strengths in other aspects of social-emotional functioning. Therefore, it is likely that the understanding of intentionality in children with Down syndrome may be influenced by other foundational cognitive abilities (i.e. joint attention and affect sharing in early childhood and executive functioning in middle childhood). Participants were 40 children with a confirmed diagnosis of Down syndrome, 16 young children with DS and 24 older children with DS. In addition, the 16 young children with DS were compared to 16 mental-age matched children with other developmental disabilities. The results of this study suggests that the understanding of intentionality improves with developmental status for young children with DS. This study also suggest that difficulties in joint attention and EF lead children with DS to miss the target relevant information during the behavioral reenactment procedure leading them to perform more "other actions". This dissertation is the first study to examine the development of intentionality in WS and DS. From these studies, it may be possible to begin to characterize how the understanding of intentionality develops in children with WS and DS. Characterizing social cognition in WS and DS will help to identify areas for targeted intervention to prevent the possible cascading effects of difficulties in social cognition on other aspects of development.