Megan A . Baker | Minnesota State University, Mankato (original) (raw)

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Papers by Megan A . Baker

Disability and Health Journal, 2014

Background: Participation in home, school, and community activities is an important indicator of ... more Background: Participation in home, school, and community activities is an important indicator of child health and well-being. Evaluating environmental influences on children's participation can inform efforts to develop sustainable built environments, but few validated measures exist. Objective: To examine the concurrent validity and utility of the Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth (PEM-CY) for Health Impact Assessment in non-urban sustainable development projects affecting children with disabilities. Methods: Eighty-nine parents of children and youth with disabilities who identified as residing in a small town or rural community were sampled. Sixty-six caregivers completed the PEM-CY online, and 23 caregivers completed the PEM-CY and CHIEF-CP paper forms. Spearman correlational analyses were conducted to establish the concurrent validity of the PEM-CY environment sections against the CHIEF-CP. Group comparisons by child's age, number of functional limitations, and annual household income were used to examine differences in summary and item-level responses on the PEM-CY community section. Results: Moderate to strong associations were found between CHIEF-CP Total Product and Magnitude Scores and all PEM-CY Environment Summary Scores. CHIEF-CP Physical/Structural and Policies Subscale Scores were most consistently associated with PEM-CY Environment Summary Scores. Group differences by household income were found for participation frequency and number of supports, including perceived availability and adequacy of money and information about programs and services, even when controlling child's age and number of functional limitations. Conclusion: Study results lend support to the use of the PEM-CY in HIA to reliably assess for environmental impact on children's participation. Implications for using the PEM-CY to inform decision-making in non-urban sustainable development projects affecting families of children and youth with disabilities are discussed. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Infant Mental Health Journal, 2013

This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' ... more This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' care, caregiver type (i.e., foster parent, adoptive parent, kinship relation, and biological parent), child gender, and caregiver-child emotional availability (EA) as predictive of child attachment security when children were 3 years old in a sample of 104 caregivers and children. Children entered court-ordered care by 6 months of age. On average, children at the age of 3 years spent 30 months with their caregivers, and nearly half of them were adopted by that time. Child attachment was assessed using the Attachment Q-Set (E.E. Waters & K. Deane, 1985), and caregiver-child EA was assessed using the Emotional Availability Scales, fourth edition (Z. Biringen, 2008). Sixty-six percent of children at age 3 years showed secure attachments with caregivers, and EA subscale scores also were relatively high on average. The study predictor variables of EA caregiver sensitivity, child responsiveness, and child involvement predicted attachment security, with girls more likely to be securely attached to their substitute caregivers at age 3 years than were boys. Study limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

This study evaluated the new online Emotional Availability (EA) Intervention for use with adoptiv... more This study evaluated the new online Emotional Availability (EA) Intervention for use with adoptive families in enhancing parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, child attachment behaviors, parent-child emotional attachment, and reducing parent-reported child behavioral problems and parenting-related stress. Participants in this study were adoptive parents and their adopted children ages 1.5-5 years old (N = 15 dyads). Participants were placed in an immediate intervention group (IG) or a delayed intervention group (DG) that would receive the 6-week EA Intervention after the IG. Results revealed significant differences in the IG in child behavioral problems, parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, and parent-child emotional attachment, improvements not seen in the DG. Analysis of effects of the DG after receiving the EA Intervention revealed significant differences over time also in child behavioral problems, parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, and parent-child emotional attachment. Implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the love, support, and guidance of departmental faculty, committee, friends, and family. First, I want to express my gratitude to my husband, Josh Baker, and parents, Bruce and Cyndi Stein, whose support of my academic efforts was unconditional. Second, I want to thank my graduate cohort. Their encouragement and willingness to always lend a listening ear gave me the motivation to complete this thesis. Next, I want to thank my advisor, Dr. Zeynep Biringen, for her unwavering guidance and expertise in the balance between academia and personal life. Last, I want to express my utmost gratitude to my birth son, Tori, and his adoptive family, Barb, Will, and Jacob. My role as a birth mother is my greatest achievement to date, and the positive open adoption experiences provided through my son's family's love and implausible wisdom, understanding, and openness of mind have led me to conduct this thesis. viii LIST

Abstract: This study was conducted to formally evaluate the effectiveness of the Human Animal Bon... more Abstract: This study was conducted to formally evaluate the effectiveness of the Human Animal Bond in Colorado (HABIC, 2010), an animal-assisted therapy (AAT) intervention based in 23 elementary schools in the Front Range; these terms are used interchangeably ...

Development and Psychopathology, 2012

According to data from the 1997 NICHD Study of Child Care, center-based child care can have delet... more According to data from the 1997 NICHD Study of Child Care, center-based child care can have deleterious effects on children's social–emotional development. We hypothesized that training child care professionals to develop positive relationships with children in their care would improve the quality of center-based child care. Thirty-three professional caregiver–child pairs participated in the intervention group and 24 professional caregiver–child pairs were assigned to a care as usual comparison group. The intervention consisted of an informational and a practice component with an emotional availability (EA) coach. The infants and toddlers (ages 11 to 23 months) in the classrooms were enrolled in the project only if they spent at least 20 hr per week in center-based care. The measures included were (a) the EA Scales, (b) the Attachment Q-Sort, and (c) the Classroom Interaction Scale. The intervention group professional caregiver–child relationships showed improvements on the EA S...

Infant Mental Health Journal, 2015

This study evaluated the new online Emotional Attachment and Emotional Availability (EA2) Interve... more This study evaluated the new online Emotional Attachment and Emotional Availability (EA2) Intervention for use with adoptive families in enhancing parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, child attachment behaviors, parent-child emotional attachment, and reducing parent-reported child behavioral problems and parenting-related stress. Participants in this study were adoptive parents and their adopted children ages 1.5 to 5 years old (N = 15 dyads). Participants were placed in an immediate intervention group (IG) or a delayed intervention group (DG) that would receive the 6-week EA2 Tele-Intervention after the IG. Results revealed significant differences in the IG in child behavioral problems, parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, and parent-child emotional attachment, improvements not seen in the DG. Analysis of effects of the DG after receiving the EA2 Tele-Intervention revealed significant differences over time also in most of these qualities.

This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' ... more This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' care, caregiver type (i.e., foster parent, adoptive parent, kinship relation, and biological parent), child gender, and caregiver-child emotional availability (EA) as predictive of child attachment security when children were 3 years old in a sample of 104 caregivers and children. Children entered court-ordered care by 6 months of age. On average, children at the age of 3 years spent 30 months with their caregivers, and nearly half of them were adopted by that time. Child attachment was assessed using the Attachment Q-Set (E.E. Waters & K. Deane, 1985), and caregiver-child EA was assessed using the Emotional Availability Scales, fourth edition (Z. Biringen, 2008). Sixty-six percent of children at age 3 years showed secure attachments with caregivers, and EA subscale scores also were relatively high on average. The study predictor variables of EA caregiver sensitivity, child responsiveness, and child involvement predicted attachment security, with girls more likely to be securely attached to their substitute caregivers at age 3 years than were boys. Study limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

Disability and Health Journal, 2014

Background: Participation in home, school, and community activities is an important indicator of ... more Background: Participation in home, school, and community activities is an important indicator of child health and well-being. Evaluating environmental influences on children's participation can inform efforts to develop sustainable built environments, but few validated measures exist. Objective: To examine the concurrent validity and utility of the Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth (PEM-CY) for Health Impact Assessment in non-urban sustainable development projects affecting children with disabilities. Methods: Eighty-nine parents of children and youth with disabilities who identified as residing in a small town or rural community were sampled. Sixty-six caregivers completed the PEM-CY online, and 23 caregivers completed the PEM-CY and CHIEF-CP paper forms. Spearman correlational analyses were conducted to establish the concurrent validity of the PEM-CY environment sections against the CHIEF-CP. Group comparisons by child's age, number of functional limitations, and annual household income were used to examine differences in summary and item-level responses on the PEM-CY community section. Results: Moderate to strong associations were found between CHIEF-CP Total Product and Magnitude Scores and all PEM-CY Environment Summary Scores. CHIEF-CP Physical/Structural and Policies Subscale Scores were most consistently associated with PEM-CY Environment Summary Scores. Group differences by household income were found for participation frequency and number of supports, including perceived availability and adequacy of money and information about programs and services, even when controlling child's age and number of functional limitations. Conclusion: Study results lend support to the use of the PEM-CY in HIA to reliably assess for environmental impact on children's participation. Implications for using the PEM-CY to inform decision-making in non-urban sustainable development projects affecting families of children and youth with disabilities are discussed. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Infant Mental Health Journal, 2013

This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' ... more This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' care, caregiver type (i.e., foster parent, adoptive parent, kinship relation, and biological parent), child gender, and caregiver-child emotional availability (EA) as predictive of child attachment security when children were 3 years old in a sample of 104 caregivers and children. Children entered court-ordered care by 6 months of age. On average, children at the age of 3 years spent 30 months with their caregivers, and nearly half of them were adopted by that time. Child attachment was assessed using the Attachment Q-Set (E.E. Waters & K. Deane, 1985), and caregiver-child EA was assessed using the Emotional Availability Scales, fourth edition (Z. Biringen, 2008). Sixty-six percent of children at age 3 years showed secure attachments with caregivers, and EA subscale scores also were relatively high on average. The study predictor variables of EA caregiver sensitivity, child responsiveness, and child involvement predicted attachment security, with girls more likely to be securely attached to their substitute caregivers at age 3 years than were boys. Study limitations and directions for future research are discussed.

This study evaluated the new online Emotional Availability (EA) Intervention for use with adoptiv... more This study evaluated the new online Emotional Availability (EA) Intervention for use with adoptive families in enhancing parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, child attachment behaviors, parent-child emotional attachment, and reducing parent-reported child behavioral problems and parenting-related stress. Participants in this study were adoptive parents and their adopted children ages 1.5-5 years old (N = 15 dyads). Participants were placed in an immediate intervention group (IG) or a delayed intervention group (DG) that would receive the 6-week EA Intervention after the IG. Results revealed significant differences in the IG in child behavioral problems, parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, and parent-child emotional attachment, improvements not seen in the DG. Analysis of effects of the DG after receiving the EA Intervention revealed significant differences over time also in child behavioral problems, parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, and parent-child emotional attachment. Implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the love, support, and guidance of departmental faculty, committee, friends, and family. First, I want to express my gratitude to my husband, Josh Baker, and parents, Bruce and Cyndi Stein, whose support of my academic efforts was unconditional. Second, I want to thank my graduate cohort. Their encouragement and willingness to always lend a listening ear gave me the motivation to complete this thesis. Next, I want to thank my advisor, Dr. Zeynep Biringen, for her unwavering guidance and expertise in the balance between academia and personal life. Last, I want to express my utmost gratitude to my birth son, Tori, and his adoptive family, Barb, Will, and Jacob. My role as a birth mother is my greatest achievement to date, and the positive open adoption experiences provided through my son's family's love and implausible wisdom, understanding, and openness of mind have led me to conduct this thesis. viii LIST

Abstract: This study was conducted to formally evaluate the effectiveness of the Human Animal Bon... more Abstract: This study was conducted to formally evaluate the effectiveness of the Human Animal Bond in Colorado (HABIC, 2010), an animal-assisted therapy (AAT) intervention based in 23 elementary schools in the Front Range; these terms are used interchangeably ...

Development and Psychopathology, 2012

According to data from the 1997 NICHD Study of Child Care, center-based child care can have delet... more According to data from the 1997 NICHD Study of Child Care, center-based child care can have deleterious effects on children's social–emotional development. We hypothesized that training child care professionals to develop positive relationships with children in their care would improve the quality of center-based child care. Thirty-three professional caregiver–child pairs participated in the intervention group and 24 professional caregiver–child pairs were assigned to a care as usual comparison group. The intervention consisted of an informational and a practice component with an emotional availability (EA) coach. The infants and toddlers (ages 11 to 23 months) in the classrooms were enrolled in the project only if they spent at least 20 hr per week in center-based care. The measures included were (a) the EA Scales, (b) the Attachment Q-Sort, and (c) the Classroom Interaction Scale. The intervention group professional caregiver–child relationships showed improvements on the EA S...

Infant Mental Health Journal, 2015

This study evaluated the new online Emotional Attachment and Emotional Availability (EA2) Interve... more This study evaluated the new online Emotional Attachment and Emotional Availability (EA2) Intervention for use with adoptive families in enhancing parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, child attachment behaviors, parent-child emotional attachment, and reducing parent-reported child behavioral problems and parenting-related stress. Participants in this study were adoptive parents and their adopted children ages 1.5 to 5 years old (N = 15 dyads). Participants were placed in an immediate intervention group (IG) or a delayed intervention group (DG) that would receive the 6-week EA2 Tele-Intervention after the IG. Results revealed significant differences in the IG in child behavioral problems, parent-child EA, parental perceptions of EA, and parent-child emotional attachment, improvements not seen in the DG. Analysis of effects of the DG after receiving the EA2 Tele-Intervention revealed significant differences over time also in most of these qualities.

This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' ... more This study assessed relations among number of out-of-home placement changes, time in caregivers' care, caregiver type (i.e., foster parent, adoptive parent, kinship relation, and biological parent), child gender, and caregiver-child emotional availability (EA) as predictive of child attachment security when children were 3 years old in a sample of 104 caregivers and children. Children entered court-ordered care by 6 months of age. On average, children at the age of 3 years spent 30 months with their caregivers, and nearly half of them were adopted by that time. Child attachment was assessed using the Attachment Q-Set (E.E. Waters & K. Deane, 1985), and caregiver-child EA was assessed using the Emotional Availability Scales, fourth edition (Z. Biringen, 2008). Sixty-six percent of children at age 3 years showed secure attachments with caregivers, and EA subscale scores also were relatively high on average. The study predictor variables of EA caregiver sensitivity, child responsiveness, and child involvement predicted attachment security, with girls more likely to be securely attached to their substitute caregivers at age 3 years than were boys. Study limitations and directions for future research are discussed.