MassAIMH Research Committee Mission
The mission of the MassAIMH research committee is to promote awareness of promising research in the field of infant and early childhood mental health, informing the Association at large of important research findings and providing links to state wide, national and international research efforts.
*New Resource*
With huge thanks to Editor in Chief Holly Brophy Herb, the team at Wiley, leaders at WAIMH/Perspectives, MI-AIMH and the Alliance are grateful to be able to share the following with all of you:
From Wiley
Special Notice on the COVID-19 Crisis
We are saddened and worried for individuals, families, and communities around the world whose lives are being impacted by COVID-19. WAIMH, the Infant Mental Health Journal, the Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health, and the Alliance for the Advancement of Infant Mental Health are committed to promoting the well-being of infants, toddlers, and young children around the world and the relationships that nurture them. These are difficult and rapidly changing times for families and practitioners and resources can help. We hope some of the resources below may be of help.
In response to COVID-19 pandemic, we are making articles relevant to supporting early development in times of crisis freely available here.
Resources & Links
Bio-Behavioral Family Studies at Cambridge Health Alliance
Brazelton Institute, Children’s Hospital Boston
The focus of the Brazelton Institute is to promote the healthy development of infants and families, through research and education programs. The Institute is based in the Department of Pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital in Boston, which is an affiliate of the Harvard Medical School. The site includes a link to Ab Initio International, the on-line publication of the Brazelton Institute. One of the primary goals of Ab Initio is to promote the discovery, dissemination and application of knowledge about developmental processes in the first years of life, with an especial emphasis on prevention and treatment.
Center on the Developing Child
The vision of the Center on the Developing Child is for all children to achieve their full potential and engage in responsible and productive citizenship. Healthy child development is viewed as the foundation of economic prosperity, strong communities, and a just society. The center’s mission is to advance that vision by leveraging science to enhance child well-being through innovations in policy and practice.
According to their website, the Center is committed to:
- building a multi-disciplinary science of health, learning, and behavior to elucidate causal mechanisms that explain the early roots of lifelong impairments;
- advancing our understanding of how to reduce preventable disparities in well-being through the design, implementation, and evaluation of innovative program and practice models;
- catalyzing the formulation and implementation of effective, science-based policies through strategic relationships and enhanced capacity for knowledge transfer; and
- preparing future and current leaders to make science-based policy decisions that advance the healthy development of children, families, and communities and bring high returns to all of society.
The Child and Family WebGuide is a directory that describes, evaluates, and provides links to hundreds of sites containing child development research. The WebGuide selects sites that are evaluated to have the highest quality child development research.
Child Development Unit at University of Massachusetts, Boston
An Internet-based child research institute comprised of professionals, researchers and educators focused on children’s issues. The website is in three languages (Japanese, English, and Chinese) and covers topics in medicine and brain science, education, developmental psychology and sociology.
This organization describes its mission as advancing “the nonprofit sector’s communications capacity by identifying, translating and modeling relevant scholarly research for framing the public discourse about social problems. FrameWorks designs, commissions, manages and publishes communications research to prepare nonprofit organizations to expand their constituency base, to build public will, and to further public understanding of specific social issues.”
International Society for Infant Studies
The International Society on Infant Studies is a not-for-profit professional organization devoted to the promotion and dissemination of research on the development of infants through its official journal and a biennial conference where researchers and practitioners gather and discuss the latest research and theory in infant development.
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
NAEYC is dedicated to improving the well-being of young children, with particular focus on the quality of educational and developmental services for all children from birth through age 8. Founded in 1926, NAEYC is the world’s largest organization working on behalf of young children.
NAEYC sponsors several publications, including the following:
- Young Children, a peer-reviewed, professional journal, and “Teaching Young Children,” a magazine for preschool educators. Members who subscribe to TYC also receive a book, Spotlight on Teaching Preschoolers, which offers practitioner-oriented articles and study guides.
- Voices of Practitioners: Teacher Research in Early Childhood Education, an online feature, presents the research of early childhood teachers. NAEYC sponsors the scholarly journal Early Childhood Research Quarterly, containing current research in early childhood.
The Center for Applied Research is dedicated to strengthening the links between early childhood research, practice, and policy. The Center offers research-related resources (e.g., Using EC Research, Accessing EC Research, Sources of Data, Graduate School and Other Research Opportunities). The Center for Applied Research conducts conferences each year to promote its goal of research-to-practice and –policy.
National Institute for Child Health and Human Development
The NICHD conducts and supports research on topics related to the health of children, adults, families, and populations.
Site presents recent scientific work on many topics, including infancy.
Society for Research in Child Development
The Society describes itself as “a multidisciplinary, not-for-profit, professional association with a membership of approximately 6,000 researchers, practitioners, and human development professionals from over 50 countries.”
SRCD’s mission is to promote multidisciplinary research in human development, foster the exchange of information among scientists and other professionals, and to encourage research-practice application.
Tufts Interdisciplinary Evaluation Research
ZERO TO THREE is a national nonprofit that informs, trains and supports professionals, policymakers and parents in their efforts to improve the lives of infants and toddlers.
The mission of Zero to Three is to promote the health and development of infants and toddlers by translating research and knowledge into a range of practical tools and resources. These issues include child care, infant mental health, early language and literacy development, early intervention and the impact of culture on early childhood development. Zero to Three provides an interdisciplinary forum with information about research and best practices in early childhood development.
Other websites with information about Child Development and Developmental Milestones:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Child Development
Child Development Institute Blog
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Developmental Milestones