Individual Differences in Environmental Sensitivity Across Different Perspectives and Contexts: From its Assessment to its Role in Youths’ Adjustment / EADP Collaboration Grant Symposium
Chair(s): Sofie Weyn (University of Bern, Switzerland)
In the current symposium we aim to explore environmental sensitivity across different perspectives, countries and contexts. Environmental sensitivity is a temperament trait that has recently gained increasing attention due to its importance for socio-emotional adjustment and mental health. Environmental sensitivity explains individual differences in registering, processing, and responding to external stimuli (Pluess, 2015). When the quality of the environment is low (i.e., harsh parenting or stressful life conditions), a heightened environmental sensitivity is a risk factor for externalizing problems in early childhood (Lionetti et al., 2019; Slagt et al., 2018) and for internalizing symptoms from middle childhood to adolescence (Lionetti et al. 2021). Conversely, when exposed to supportive experiences (i.e., positive parenting or intervention programs), highly sensitive youth seem to benefit more in terms of socio-emotional competences (Lionetti et al., 2019; Nocentini et al., 2018). In the current project, that is partly funded by the European Association of Developmental Psychology (EADP) collaboration grant (2024) and is partly a result of the Early Research Union (ERU)-EADP Writing week 2023, we contributed to a psychometric robust assessment of environmental sensitivity across four European countries (i.e., Belgium, The Netherlands, Italy, and Portugal), developmental stages (i.e., early childhood, middle childhood, and adolescence), and perspectives (i.e., self, mother, and father reports). We aimed to better understand the implications of its interaction with several developmental and life contexts (e.g., family context and post-migration) in predicting youth’s socio-emotional adjustment and mental health (internalizing symptoms, behavioral problems, social skills, and post-traumatic stress symptoms).
Presentations of the Symposium
Examining the Psychometric Properties of the Highly Sensitive Child Scale Within and Across Four European Countries.
Sofie Weyn1, Alessandra Sperati2, Chiara Ceccon3, Ana Catarina Canário4
1University of Bern, Switzerland, 2University of Chieti-Pescara, Italy, 3University of Padova, Italy, 4University of Porto, Portugal
Individual differences in environmental sensitivity can be measured with the Highly Sensitive Child (HSC) scale (Pluess et al., 2018), which captures both a general sensitivity factor and the three subfactors: Aesthetic Sensitivity, Low Sensory Threshold, and Ease of Excitation. Scores on the HSC scale has been found to moderate the effect of the environment on youth developmental outcomes. The scale has been translated in different languages and is used across many countries. Yet, evidence on the reliability of HSC measures across translations and countries is still scarce (Weyn et al., 2019, 2021). The present study aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the different translations of the HSC scale across four different European countries (i.e., Belgium, The Netherlands, Italy, and Portugal) using a large sample of secondary data (N = 6248). We explored the reliability, factorial structure, and tested for measurement invariance across these countries using data from multiple informants and across developmental stages. Measurement invariance was tested using multi-group confirmatory factor analyses. Results showed acceptable internal consistency values for the general sensitivity scale within each country and evidence for full measurement invariance of the HSC scale across (a) Belgium and The Netherlands (self-report), (b) Belgium and Portugal (self-report), and (c) Italy and Portugal (parent report). Partial measurement invariance was found across (a) The Netherlands and Portugal (self and parent reports) and (b) Italy and The Netherlands (self-report). No measurement invariance was found across Italy and Belgium, Portugal (self-reports) and The Netherlands (parent report). Non-invariant items as well as possible explanations for non-invariance (e.g., cultural differences) will be discussed during the symposium. As individual differences in ES are associated with several developmental outcomes, the availability of psychometrically robust measures has important implications for research, clinical practice, and, in a broader perspective, for society, to promote child wellbeing, considering individual needs.
Combining Mothers’ and Fathers’ Perceptions to Understand Children’s Environmental Sensitivity and Implications for Emotional Adjustment
Alessandra Sperati1, Yujin Lee2, Ecem Cicek3, Antonio Dellagiulia4, Stefanos Mastrotheodoros5, Michael Pluess6, Francesca Lionetti7
1University of Chieti-Pescara, Italy, 2University of York, United Kingdom, 3Ankara University, Turkey, 4Salesian University of Rome,Italy, 51) University of Crete, Greece 2) Utrecht University, the Netherlands, 3) European Association of Developmental Pscyhology, 6University of Surrey, United Kingdom, 7University of Pavia, Italy
Individual differences in environmental sensitivity (ES) moderate the effects of the family environment on children’s adjustment, with highly sensitive children being more prone to behavioural problems when exposed to adverse contexts, but also more likely to benefit from enriched experiences than less-sensitive children. However, empirical evidence on ES in early childhood is limited and relies mostly on mother reports.
This preregistered study investigated (1) the association between mothers’ and fathers’ perceptions of their child’s ES, including the exploration of measurement invariance between informants, and (2) its role in moderating the association between parenting (i.e., acceptance) and child behavioral problems, as reported by both parents. Participants were N = 271 mother-father dyads with a preschooler.
Results showed a strong correlation (r = .75) between fathers’ and mothers’ reports of child ES and satisfactory parameters were obtained from the multi-group confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). These findings suggest that the scale effectively captures individual differences in child ES across informants, providing first empirical evidence for its use with fathers, suggesting that a single-parent perspective might be reliable and sufficient, depending on research needs and available resources. Pertaining to the moderating role of combined child’s ES, findings suggest that child’s ES significantly interacted with maternal acceptance on internalizing symptoms reported by both parents. Highly sensitive children were more prone to self-deprecation and appeared concerned and sad over time, as perceived by both parents, particularly in the context of low maternal (but not paternal) warmth behaviours and loving gestures. When combining fathers and mothers’ acceptance, a similar trend was observed. Findings suggest that while the inclusion of father-related parenting variables did not provide significant information beyond the mothers' report, integrating both mothers’ and fathers’ perspectives on children’s individual characteristics and developmental outcomes may offer a more comprehensive understanding than relying on informant-specific variables alone.
Effects of Standard Triple P delivered in real-world settings: Are there benefits to program outcomes related to children's sensitivity?
Rita Pinto (Presenting), Ana Catarina Canário, Orlanda Cruz
University of Porto, Portugal
Parenting programs are structured interventions known to improve parenting practices and, with that, reduce children's behavioral difficulties. While these programs are known to have an effect on children through their parents' behaviors and relationship quality, we also know that children are not equally influenced by changes in parenting. Indeed, as stated by the environmental sensitivity framework, individuals differ in their sensitivity to environmental quality.
In the current study, we evaluate the effects of the parenting program Standard Triple P (STP) on parents' practices and mental health and children's behaviors and social skills, determining whether the effects of the intervention are moderated by children's environmental sensitivity.
Following a quasi-experimental design, the study included 94 parents of children aged 6 to 12 engaged with Child Protective Services. Participants received either the STP (n=43) or care as usual (n=51) in community-based services. Parents completed measures on their parenting practices, mental health, and children's behavior and social skills at baseline and after the intervention (3 months after baseline). Parents also completed the proxy version of the Highly Sensitive Child scale at baseline.
Mixed analyses of variance and moderation analyses were performed. Results revealed that parents who received STP reported less ineffective parenting practices and improved mental health; and their children showed less behavior and emotional problems and more pro-social behavior. Parents who identified their children as highly sensitive reported greater benefits from the intervention in terms of child behavior, with their children presenting fewer behavior problems after STP, than those with moderate or low levels of sensitivity. The findings seem to suggest that the benefits of STP seem to be larger for highly sensitive children. Children's sensitivity is a relevant characteristic to address in the evaluation of parenting programs and should be a focus of attention in future research.
The Association of Postmigration Stressors and Intolerance of Uncertainty to Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Asylum Seekers: The Moderating Role of Environmental Sensitivity
Chiara Ceccon1, Ughetta Moscardino1, Libera Ylenia Mastromatteo1, Sara Scrimin1, Francesca Lionetti2, Michael Pluess3
1University of Padova, Italy, 2University of Pavia, Italy, 3University of Surrey, United Kingdom
Research indicates that asylum seekers are at higher risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with the postmigration environment and other individual characteristics explaining such vulnerability. However, little is known about how these aspects are linked to the DSM 5 PTSD symptom clusters and whether individuals’ sensitivity to environmental influences moderates these associations. This study aimed to investigate the association of postmigration stressors and intolerance of uncertainty to severity of PTSD symptom clusters, postulating moderation by sensitivity.
Participants were 157 male asylum seekers (Mage = 26 yrs, SD = 6) mostly originating from West Africa and hosted in second-line facilities in Northeastern Italy. Asylum seekers were interviewed by trained researchers in their preferred languages using standardized questionnaires.
The most frequent postmigration stressors were being unable to find work, separation from family, fears of being sent home, and delays in processing the asylum application. Forty-one percent of participants scored above the cutoff score for clinical PTSD. At the bivariate level, more postmigration stressors and intolerance of uncertainty were associated with higher levels of negative cognitions/affect and hyperarousal; in addition, postmigration stressors were related to increased intrusion. In multivariate regressions, low sensitive individuals with high levels of postmigration stressors reported less avoidance symptoms than those with average or high levels of sensitivity. Moreover, average and highly sensitive asylum seekers with high levels of uncertainty intolerance reported more negative cognitions/affect than low sensitive ones.
The findings suggest that postmigration stressors and intolerance of uncertainty play differential roles in the development of PTSD symptom clusters, and that sensitivity can either buffer or exacerbate these associations particularly in relation to avoidance and negative cognitions/affect symptoms. Overall, the study lends support to a diathesis-stress model and underscores the need for interventions supporting asylum seekers’ ability to cope with uncertainty and national policies reducing structural challenges.
