This study examined parental playfulness as a mediator of the association between mothers' emotional difficulties (anxiety, depression) and their children's psychosocial adjustment (externalizing, internalizing, and prosocial behaviours). We also examined the associations between parental playfulness and mothers' supportive / unsupportive…

Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by difficulties in communication and social-emotional interaction. It is associated with an increase of parental stress and poor family functioning, both of which are harmful for a child's functioning and adaptive behavior. An important source of support to parents are…

Background: Complications during pregnancy, postpartum and current maternal depression are risk factors that may affect child behavior in early and middle childhood. Objectives: This longitudinal study examined the associations between complications during pregnancy, postpartum and current depression, and child internalizing and externalizing…

This exploratory study examined associations between the therapist-client bond and outcomes in individual and group art therapy in the Israeli school system. Children (n = 77; aged 7-13) and art therapists (n = 50) reported on the therapist-client bond at three time points. At the onset and conclusion of art therapy, children also reported on…

This study examined whether two facets of preschool children's home environment, parenting style and parental emotional intelligence, may be risk factors for challenging behaviors among kindergarten children in Arab society in Israel. The author sampled 524 parents of children ages 4 to 5 years who completed questionnaires about their parenting…

We conducted a meta-analytic review of 53 studies published between 2000 and 2020 to quantify associations of parents' emotion regulation with parenting behavior and children's emotion regulation and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Twelve meta-analyses, which included between 4 to 22 effect sizes (N from 345 to 3609), were conducted to…

The increased scope and percentage of children being homeschooled raise questions about the impact of this framework on the child's world. One of the issues that has not been adequately studied with regard to homeschooling is whether the emotional and personal problems of parents have greater impact on children who are homeschooled. The present…

The lockdown that was imposed by governments as part of the attempt to contain the COVID-19 pandemic included extreme measures, such as home confinement and the shutting down of special education systems. Our aim was to learn about the core experiences of parents of children with autism during this significant life disturbance. Thirty-one parents…

Play and playfulness have a key role in children's development. Not enough is known about the playfulness of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and its relationship to children's behavioural problems, as well as the role of caregiver behaviours during play in this relationship. The present study examines the moderating role of teachers'…

An accurate and agreed upon evaluation of preschoolers' behavior is crucial for young children's positive development. This study explores possible cultural differences in cross-informants' evaluations. The premise is that informants who are from different cultures tend to give different evaluations of preschoolers' adjustment and/or that the…

Deficits in self-regulatory skills underlie or contribute to a range of adverse developmental problems and disorders, including ADHD (Barkley, 1997), eating disorders (Attie & Brooks-Gunn, 1995) and risk -taking behaviour (Cantor & Sanderson 1998; Eisenberg et al., 2005). Self-regulation has been recognised as an important factor in aiding…

Background: The social-ecological environment of undocumented children of migrant workers includes varying levels of risk factors. Growing up in these conditions compromises children's development on all levels. Many of these children are in need of psychotherapy, however, due to limited resources, only a few of them receive mental health aid.…

Challenging behaviors are deemed extremely common within the autism spectrum disorders (ASD) population. Numerous factors and their effects upon the presence and severity of challenging behaviors within this population have been investigated. However, there has been limited research to investigate the effects of cultural differences on challenging…

This study explored children's secure attachment with both parents versus one parent, as well as the unique role of children's patterns of close relationships with father and mother, for a deeper understanding of maladjustment problems among children with learning disabilities (LD). Specifically, this study identified subgroups of children with…

Objectives: Prenatal exposure to heroin may have long-term consequences for development during early and middle childhood. The present research studied the cognitive, social, and emotional functioning of adolescents exposed to drugs prenatally, and investigated the extent to which the early adoption of children exposed prenatally to drugs would…