Cristina Semeraro

Bio: Cristina Semeraro is an academic researcher from University of Bari. The author has contributed to research in topics: Psychology & Medicine. The author has an hindex of 5, co-authored 8 publications receiving 39 citations.

The role of cognitive and non-cognitive factors in mathematics achievement: The importance of the quality of the student-teacher relationship in middle school

Abstract: There is increasing evidence that several factors, including both cognitive and non-cognitive ones, play an important role in mathematics achievement. Relatively little is known about how socio-emotional features and the quality of the student-teacher relationship correlate with mathematics achievement among adolescents in transition to middle school. The aim of the present study is to examine the role of cognitive factors (general cognitive abilities), non-cognitive factors (math anxiety and self-esteem), and the quality of the student-teacher relationship on mathematics achievement. A large sample of Italian sixth graders was evaluated upon entering middle school. The results showed that general cognitive ability was the best predictor of mathematics achievement. As regards non-cognitive factors, the level of math anxiety was effective in predicting mathematics achievement, after controlling for other measures including self-esteem and the quality of the student-teacher relationship. In particular, we found that the quality of the student-teacher relationship had an indirect influence on mathematics achievement through the mediation of math anxiety. Our findings seem to indicate that the quality of the student-teacher relationship may be related to mathematics achievement, through its effects on math anxiety. This may have important implications for practitioners and educators, as we can suggest that interventions devoted to improving the quality of the student-teacher relationship may play a positive role in both preventing math anxiety and promoting mathematics learning.

Short-Term Orchestral Music Training Modulates Hyperactivity and Inhibitory Control in School-Age Children: A Longitudinal Behavioural Study.

Abstract: Survey studies have shown that participating in music groups produces several benefits, such as discipline, cooperation and responsibility. Accordingly, recent longitudinal studies showed that orchestral music training has a positive impact on inhibitory control in school-age children. However, most of these studies examined long periods of training not always feasible for all families and institutions and focused on children's measures ignoring the viewpoint of the teachers. Considering the crucial role of inhibitory control on hyperactivity, inattention and impulsivity, we wanted to explore if short orchestral music training would promote a reduction of these impulsive behaviors in children. This study involved 113 Italian children from 8 to 10 years of age. 55 of them attended 3 months of orchestral music training. The training included a 2-hour lesson per week at school and a final concert. The 58 children in the control group did not have any orchestral music training. All children were administered tests and questionnaires measuring inhibitory control and hyperactivity near the beginning and end of the 3-month training period. We also collected information regarding the levels of hyperactivity of the children as perceived by the teachers at both time points. Children in the music group showed a significant improvement in inhibitory control. Moreover, in the second measurement the control group showed an increase in self-reported hyperactivity that was not found in the group undergoing the music training program. This change was not noticed by the teachers, implying a discrepancy between self-reported and observed behavior at school. Our results suggest that even an intense and brief period of orchestral music training is sufficient to facilitate the development of inhibitory control by modulating the levels of self-reported hyperactivity. This research has implications for music pedagogy and education especially in children with high hyperactivity. Future investigations will test whether the findings can be extended to children diagnosed with ADHD.

Teaching of cursive writing in the first year of primary school: Effect on reading and writing skills.

Abstract: There is increasing evidence that mastering handwriting skills play an important role on academic achievement. This is a slow process that begins in kindergarten: at this age, writing is very similar to drawing (i.e. scribbles); from there, it takes several years before children are able to write competently. Many studies support the idea that motor training plays a crucial role to increase mental representations of the letters, but relatively little is known about the specific relation between handwriting skills and teaching practices. This study investigated the efficacy of cursive writing teaching. The sample comprised 141 students attending eight classes of the first grade of primary school, all with typical development, not exhibiting any cognitive or sensory disabilities, nor displaying motor disorders that could significantly hinder the execution of the writing task. We tested whether the development of academic writing skills could be effectively supported by training strategies focusing on cursive writing. All rules and characteristics of the letters were explained by demonstrating the correct writing movements, based on the idea that movement learning becomes more valuable when children begin to connect the letters in order to write individual words. Growth models on pre-, post- and follow-up measures showed that performance on prerequisites and writing and reading skills were better overall among the children in the intervention group as compared to control group.

The Apple of Daddy's Eye: Parental Overvaluation Links the Narcissistic Traits of Father and Child.

Abstract: This study contributes to the literature on the parental correlates of children's narcissism. It addresses whether parental overvaluation may drive the putative link between parents' narcissism and children's narcissism and self-esteem. The cross-sectional design involved a community sample of 519 school-age children (age ranging from 9 to 11 years old) and their parents from an Italian urban context. Child-reported measures included narcissistic traits and self-esteem, while parent-reported measures included narcissistic traits and overvaluation, as well as parenting styles. A series of structural equation models, run separately for mothers and fathers, showed that both parents' narcissism was directly and positively related to overvaluation and the children's narcissistic traits; overvaluation partially mediated the indirect link between the fathers' and children's narcissistic traits. None of the parenting-style dimensions were related to the children's outcomes, with the exception of the mothers' positive parenting being directly and positively related to children's self-esteem. These findings shed new light upon the parental correlates of child narcissism by suggesting that mothers and fathers convey their narcissism to their offspring through differential pathways. Our findings may be understood from universal as well as cultural specifics regarding the parenting roles of mothers and fathers. Clinical implications for the treatment of youth narcissism suggest the potential of targeting not only children but also their parents.

Confidence in Attachment Relationships and Marital Status as Protective Factors for Self-Perceived Parental Role and In-Person Visitation with Children Among Incarcerated Fathers.

Abstract: The study aimed at investigating the role of confidence in attachment relationships and marital status as protective factors for incarcerated fathers’ self-perceived parental role and in-person contacts with their children. Participants included 150 inmate fathers and 145 nonincarcerated control fathers who provided background sociodemographic information and completed two self-reports, the Attachment Style Questionnaire and the Self-Perception of Parental Role. A two-phased cluster analytic plan allowed us to highlight two profiles of self-perceived parental roles, with incarceration and low confidence in attachment relationships increasing the risk of the less optimal of the two profiles. Higher confidence in attachment relationships and having a stable romantic relationship increased the likelihood of incarcerated fathers engaging in frequent contacts with their children, while the profile of self-perceived parental role had no effect. Implications for practice are discussed, and suggestions for further research are provided.

Modern Psychopathology: A Biosocial Approach to Maladaptive Learning and Functioning

Abstract: Psychiatrists must occasionally feel some discomfort over the theoretical and therapeutic encroachments of psychologists in recent years. The distress may be increased by this comprehensive but brief presentation of psychopathology as an integrated whole. The author is head of the psychology department at Lehigh University. This book is an excellent guide for the beginner in the field as well as for the intelligent lay reader. It may well have an even greater value in dispelling bias, for when psychotherapists search herein for their own procedures they will find them, but in addition will be exposed to unambiguous information on many other points of view. From the beginning, Dr. Millon makes it clear that he intends to slight no school of thought, nor does he. If he cherishes a secret commitment to any certain model (other than perhaps so-called "field theory") I, for one, could not find it. His criticisms are

Intelligence: A Unifying Construct for the Social Sciences

Abstract: Intelligence: A Unifying Construct for the Social SciencesRichard Lynn & Tatu Vanhanen.London: Ulster Institute for Social Research, 2012The theme of this new book by Richard Lynn and Tatu Vanhanen is that intelligence should be regarded as a unifying explanatory construct for the social sciences, akin to the constructs of energy and mass that unify the physical sciences. They argue that differences in intelligence contribute to the explanation of many social phenomena for which there are differences between individuals, and that national differences in intelligence contribute to the explanation of similar phenomena for which there are differences between nations.The main body of the book gives IQs for all nations in the world and shows that there are large differences ranging from approximately 105 in the nations of Northeast Asia (China, Japan, etc) to 100 for European nations, around 84 for the nations of North Africa, South Asia and most of Latin America, and approximately 70 for the nations of sub- Saharan Africa. They show that national IQs make an important contribution to economic development and the explanation of the problem raised by David Landes in his 1998 book The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some Are So Rich and Some So Poor ?Lynn and Vanhanen show also that national IQs make significant contributions to national differences in educational attainment, health, life expectancy, liberalism and happiness; and, negatively, to fertility, crime and religious belief. Thus, they argue that the explanatory power of intelligence is extended from individuals in psychology to the social sciences of economics, epidemiology, demography and sociology that deal with groups. They argue that this is predictable because nations are aggregates of individuals, and therefore the relationships that have been established in psychology for individuals should be extendable to the explanation of relationships at the level of populations and entire nations.Lynn and Vanhanen conclude with a discussion of the evolution of national differences in intelligence. They document the evidence that these are significantly associated with climate and latitude such that national IQs are higher in northern populations that have evolved in colder latitudes. They propose that the explanation for this is that survival in colder environments was more cognitively demanding and exerted selection pressure for enhanced intelligence in these populations as a genetic adaptation.The first work by Lynn and Vanhanen giving calculations of IQs for all nations in the world and arguing that these make an important contribution to the explanation of economic development was their book IQ and the Wealth of Nations, published in 2002 (see also Lynn, 2001). This was greeted with some skepticism. Some of the reactions to it have been well summarized by Juri Allik, professor of psychology at the University of Tartu, who wrote: "By analogy with many previous controversial discoveries, it is predictable that the first most typical reaction would be denial. Many critics are not able to tolerate the idea that the mean level of intelligence could systematically vary across countries and world regions. Neither are they ready to accept that from the distribution of mental resources it is possible to predict the wealth of nations. The next predictable phase is acceptance of the facts but denying their interpretation. …

The Influence of Handwriting Skills during Spelling in Primary and Lower Secondary Grades

Abstract: We sought to identify, the impact of handwriting skills on the efficiency and temporal course of word spelling across Grades 2–9. Eighty-four students, drawn from primary and lower secondary schools, were asked to perform a dictation task to assess their word spelling. They also had to write out the letters of the alphabet, as well as their firstnames and surnames, from memory to assess their handwriting skills. Handwriting kinematics were recorded using a digitizing tablet and a computer running Eye and Pen software. Results revealed that graphomotor skills (as assessed by the name writing task) influenced the success and temporal course of spelling, but only in primary grades, whereas the influence of orthographic knowledge (as assessed by the alphabet task) could still be observed in the lower secondary grades, even if it ceased to influence the temporal course and only affected errors. We discuss what these findings tell us about changes in transcription processes over the course of child development.