The Environment and Child Development: A Multivariate Approach
type: CreativeWork
description: The environment that a child grows up in has a profound effect on their child development. For example, key outcomes such as academic ability or behaviour, cognitive ability and the neurobiology of the brain have been found to be associated to a child’s environment. However, the factors that make up a child’s environment are highly complex and yet the majority of research treats SES as a single number. In addition, the environment is related to several aspects of a child’s development, yet there is very little research considering how these multiple levels of development relate to each other and interact. This thesis builds on the current literature by investigating how multiple aspects of a child’s environment combine to create an environmental profile that is associated with positive child development. We endeavour to address three questions: 1) Which environmental factors most strongly relate to a child’s academic ability, behaviour, cognitive ability and neural development? 2) Does the wider environment mediate the relationship between standard measures of SES and child development? 3) How might the environment impact academic and behaviour outcomes? In particular, is this relationship mediated by a child’s cognition or the structural and functional connectivity of their brain? 7-11 year-old children (N=97) and their caregivers took part in this study. Several environmental domains and child behaviour were assessed through caregiver and child questionnaires. Academic and cognitive ability were measured using behavioural assessments. Resting state functional connectivity was measured using a magnetoencephalography (MEG) scan and structural connectivity was measured in an optional MRI scan on a separate visit (N=87). Partial Least Squares (PLS) methods identified significant relationships between the environment and child development. Multiple environmental domains were found to be reliably related to each aspect of child development. Furthermore, the wider enviro…
abstract: The environment that a child grows up in has a profound effect on their child development. For example, key outcomes such as academic ability or behaviour, cognitive ability and the neurobiology of the brain have been found to be associated to a child’s environment. However, the factors that make up a child’s environment are highly complex and yet the majority of research treats SES as a single number. In addition, the environment is related to several aspects of a child’s development, yet there is very little research considering how these multiple levels of development relate to each other and interact. This thesis builds on the current literature by investigating how multiple aspects of a child’s environment combine to create an environmental profile that is associated with positive child development. We endeavour to address three questions: 1) Which environmental factors most strongly relate to a child’s academic ability, behaviour, cognitive ability and neural development? 2) Does the wider environment mediate the relationship between standard measures of SES and child development? 3) How might the environment impact academic and behaviour outcomes? In particular, is this relationship mediated by a child’s cognition or the structural and functional connectivity of their brain? 7-11 year-old children (N=97) and their caregivers took part in this study. Several environmental domains and child behaviour were assessed through caregiver and child questionnaires. Academic and cognitive ability were measured using behavioural assessments. Resting state functional connectivity was measured using a magnetoencephalography (MEG) scan and structural connectivity was measured in an optional MRI scan on a separate visit (N=87). Partial Least Squares (PLS) methods identified significant relationships between the environment and child development. Multiple environmental domains were found to be reliably related to each aspect of child development. Furthermore, the wider enviro…
author: Johnson, Amy
language: en
keywords: Child Development, Neuroscience, Cognition, Cognitive, Partial Least Squares, PLS, Multiple Imputation, Poverty, Socioeconomic Status, SES, MRI, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, MEG, Magnetoencephalography, Connectome, Functional Connectome, Structural Connectome, Academic, Behaviour, Woodcock-Johnson, BRIEF, SDQ, Working Memory, Fluid Intelligence, Verbal Intelligence, Phonological, Diffusion Tensor Imaging, Resting State
license: https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/bcb5bf9f-e71a-4150-a1e8-bcc548ac4de5/download
license: https://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved/
date published: 2019-05-18
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:24:06Z
provider: Cambridge University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Cambridge

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.17863/CAM.39216