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Play for success: A novel intervention to boost visual attention in low-socioeconomic-status infants
1Department of Psychology, Whitman College, Walla Walla, WA 99362, USA.
Insights
Structured direction in the Play for Success intervention significantly improved visual attention in infants. This early intervention shows promise for closing achievement gaps in children from low socioeconomic status backgrounds.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Early Childhood Education
Background:
- Infants from low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds exhibit visual attention deficits by 6 months of age.
- These early deficits can contribute to the achievement gap observed in later schooling.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a novel intervention, Play for Success, designed to enhance early visual attention in infants.
- To determine if structured parental direction is crucial for intervention success.
Main Methods:
- 42 infants (6-10 months) participated in a 2-week intervention through Early Head Start.
- Infants were randomly assigned to Social (unstructured), Teach Two (simple structured), or Teach Many (complex structured) groups, practicing 10 minutes daily.
- Focused attention and inattention were assessed pre-intervention, immediately post-intervention, and 4 weeks later.
Main Results:
- Both Teach Two and Teach Many groups showed significant increases in focused attention.
- The Social group did not show comparable improvements in visual attention.
Conclusions:
- The Play for Success intervention is effective in boosting infant visual attention.
- Structured parental direction is a key component for the success of this early intervention program.
Abstract:
Developmental differences in visual attention between infants of low and high socioeconomic status (SES) have been observed as early as 6 months of age. These deficits in low-SES infants may compound into the well-known achievement gap when children enter grade school. The current study implemented a novel intervention designed to boost early visual attention. The intervention, called Play for Success, was administered through the Early Head Start home visiting program and required all infants to practice focused attention with a caregiver for 10 min a day every day for 2 weeks. A total of 42 6- to 10-month-old infants were randomly assigned to one of three intervention groups: Social (unstructured direction), Teach Two (simple structured direction), or Teach Many (more complex structured direction). Infants' focused attention and inattention were tested three times: before the intervention, immediately following the intervention, and again 4 weeks later. The results demonstrated increased focused attention for both Teach Two and Teach Many. These results suggest that Play for Success is a promising new intervention, but only in the conditions that included parental structured direction.
