Daniel S. Messinger

Professor of Psychology, Pediatrics, Electrical & Computer Engineering, Music Engineering


Curriculum vitae



Department of Psychology

University of Miami



PSY620 (2022)


Spring 2022


Advanced Developmental Psychology (PSY 620-O), Spring 2024
Tuesday, Thursday 9:30AM - 10:45AM, FLP 302 and remotely
Department of Psychology, University of Miami
Daniel Messinger, Ph.D., [email protected]
FLP 308, (305) 284-8443
Office Hours: Tuesday 10:45 - 11:45, and by appointment
Course Objectives. To provide you with a) a critical understanding of current developmental theories, methods, and research; b) an ability to present, critique, and defend developmental research; and c) the capacity to address questions in developmental science by integrating research results.
Course Description: The course is designed to involve you in developmental science. Multiple topics in developmental psychology will be covered through lecture, discussion, and student presentations. They are organized into four sections: 1) developmental theories, methodologies and conceptualizations of the biological and cultural processes that influence development; 2) specific domains of development (perceptual, cognitive, language, social/emotional); 3) socialization processes including parent, peer, school, and community influences on development; 4) emerging adulthood, parenting, and aging. Emphasis will be placed on understanding development—the emergence of the new—over the lifespan. 
Format. I will introduce key concepts, issues, and lines of research. You are expected to take an active role in discussing and developing topics. Everyone is expected to complete all assigned readings and actively contribute to discussion. 
Required Readings: Readings are chosen to provide exposure to the theory, methods, and findings of current developmental research. One article will be assigned for each class. Of the articles listed, the presenting student will choose between them (there may be relevant articles listed on previous or subsequent days). You are not responsible for additional readings on the syllabus but exam questions may ask you to integrate material from these additional readings. Readings are linked to this syllabus.
Facilitating Discussion:
Presentations. Students will be responsible for presenting an article and facilitating class discussion X times during the semester. Your presentation should cover the article’s unique contribution, integrative themes across the readings (particularly for that day), the pros and cons of different research methods for addressing the topic, and ideas regarding potential future directions/applications of the findings. You should be familiar with the entire PowerPoint presentation for that day and be prepared to field questions and lead discussion integrating the article you are presenting with other content. The presentation and discussion cannot exceed 20 minutes.
Evaluation. Presentations will be evaluated based on a) the clarity of your presentation and slides, b) your understanding of the article (e.g., adequacy of responses to questions), c) the depth of your communicated understanding of the issues raised by the article (e.g., what is the unique message of the article), and d) the quality of the ensuing discussion (e.g., relationship to ongoing class themes), which includes a leadership role in that day’s discussion. Hallmarks of quality involve identifying strengths of the article, weaknesses, and specific, article-pertinent ideas for addressing those weaknesses. Weaker presentations often focus on common methodologic weaknesses without identifying solutions. Stronger presentations often focus on key strengths and results.
Slides. Your presentations should use Power-Point slides. I prefer figure-based presentations where the title of each slide is communicative (e.g., not “Results”) and slide titles do not repeat. I prefer large text (> 24 font). In some instances, online slides exist with which to present your article. As needed, please edit the slides and/or create new slides. If you create new slides, please put your last name in the footer section of the slide (it’s your work). The new slides—only send the slides you will be presenting—will be due by email 12 hours before class. If you feel comfortable doing so, I suggest you email the slides not only to me but to all members of the class.
Feedback. I am available to discuss articles before your presentation. We can discuss elements of the article that are difficult to understand, and your questions about what is most important to present, and how it should be presented. In other words, if there is something about the article you are planning to present that you don't understand, come discuss it with me beforehand.
Participation. Participation refers to your level of engagement in class. Participation includes attendance, having clearly done the required reading, asking pertinent questions, offering informed responses to questions, and constructive debate. Use of electronic devices for anything except class work is prohibited. Attendance is mandatory. An optional form of participation is electronic (written) communication of your reactions to the day’s reading before class. This would be an email praising, critiquing, or riffing on the article.
Midterm Exam. Distributed Mar 3 and due Mar 10 (20 points).
Final Exam. Distributed May 5 and due May 12, 11:00 pm (30 points). 
Final project. For the final project, choose a question which can be addressed from a developmental perspective emphasizing change over time. It can be grounded in your research or can be an exploration of developmental themes unrelated to your work. The paper must constitute new work. Any relation with ongoing work (for another class or one’s own research) must be stated in all final project assignments. I’m available to discuss all aspects of the final project, and suggest final project ideas. If no final project can be found, I can furnish a midterm and final in its stead.
Collaborative proposals and presentations are allowed. They must include a significant component of individual work for each collaborator and must result in a proportionately higher quality final project (e.g., 2 people could collaborate on a RO1 proposal). In that case, each team member will independently submit their assignments. 
The project should take one of the following forms.
1) An empirical study in the form of a journal submission (10-25 double spaced pages). This is an ideal format for completing an ongoing research project.
2) A NIH F31/R03, NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, or comparable proposal to which I agree. This is an ideal format for exploring ideas by proposing developmental research. The final paper should include all substantive areas of the proposal (5 – 6 single-spaced pages).
3) A publication-quality literature review in summary-article format or chapter format (i.e., organized by theme, not by article (10-25 double spaced pages).
Final project assignments. For each date below, be prepared to discuss your assignment in class. If some feature of the assignment is missing in one of these assignments, and I do not draw your attention to its absence, this does not constitute license to omit that portion of the assignment.
Date Final Project Assignments (50 points total)

Due 12:00 pm (noon) except final paper.
1/27 Potential topic, title, and format (e.g., empirical paper), along with a draft of the project (or any related project) in its current status. (5)
2/17 One paragraph, single-spaced summary of the project. (5)
3/3 One-page, single-spaced abstract of project, and a timetable of all necessary steps to complete the project which should be updated with your progress and resubmitted for all subsequent final project topics. (5)
3/24 Two-page abstract of project containing all its components (5). For a F31, submit the summary, abstract, and specific aims page.
4/14 Three-page abstract of project containing all its components. (5). For a F31, include the analysis plan.
Day before presentation PowerPoint and oral presentation of project (10). Submit your PowerPoint on the BlackBoard Assignment portal by the evening before your presentation. Extra credit for also emailing a version to the Discussion Board to enhance feedback from your classmates. (Look for “Attach File” at the bottom left of your posting to attach your presentation.
5/11 Final paper due (11:00 pm). (15)
Honor Code. Exams and final papers are governed by the honor code. They will be submitted through BlackBoard SafeAssign. They are governed by the Honor code. Please review the graduate honor code here 
Office Hours. Office hours (listed above) or a meeting scheduled after class by email are an ideal setting for me to assist you with your final paper, exam(s), discussion facilitation, or class participation.

Evaluation

Points
Participation 15
Facilitating Discussion 35
Final project 50
Total 100
Grading Scale
A+ 97-100 C+ 77-79
A 94-96 C 74-76
A- 90-94 C- 70-73
B+ 87-89 D 63-69
B 84-86 F 62 - 0
B- 80-83
Schedule of Classes, Readings, and Assignments
Jan 16.
Introduction to Class and Developmental Psychology (ppt1)
Additional reading:
Jan 18.
Developmental Design, Measurement, & Analysis (lec5.design.ppt)
Additional reading:
Davis-Kean, P. E., & Ellis, A. (2019). An overview of issues in infant and developmental research for the creation of robust and replicable science. Infant Behavior and Development, 57, 101339. doi: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2019.101339
Frank, M. C. (2019). Towards a more robust and replicable science of infant development. Infant Behavior and Development, 57, 101349. doi: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2019.101349
Jan 23.
The genetic basis of behavior and development (ppt8)
Conradt, E., Beauchaine, T., Abar, B., Lagasse, L., Shankaran, S., Bada, H., … Lester, B. (2016). Early caregiving stress exposure moderates the relation between respiratory sinus arrhythmia reactivity at 1 month and biobehavioral outcomes at age 3. Psychophysiology, 53(1), 83–96. https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.12569 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/psyp.12569
Jan 25
The biological basis of behavior and development, neural development (
ppt7)
Additional reading:
Brody, G. H., Gray, J. C., Yu, T., Barton, A. W., Beach, S. R., Galván, A., MacKillop, J., Windle, M., Chen, E., Miller, G. E., & Sweet, L. H. (2017). Protective Prevention Effects on the Association of Poverty With Brain Development. JAMA Pediatr, 171(1), 46-52. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2016.2988
Jan 30.
Culture in Development (
ppt3).
Additional reading:
Bornstein, M. H., Putnick, D. L., Rigo, P., Esposito, G., Swain, J. E., Suwalsky, J. T. D., Su, X., Du, X., Zhang, K., Cote, L. R., De Pisapia, N., & Venuti, P. (2017). Neurobiology of culturally common maternal responses to infant cry. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 114(45), E9465-E9473. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1712022114
Feb 1.
Culture in Development (
ppt4). 
Causadias, J. M., Vitriol, J. A., & Atkin, A. L. (2018). The cultural (mis) attribution bias in developmental psychology in the United States. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 59, 65-74. doi: 10.1016/j.appdev.2018.01.003
Additional reading:
Lansford, JE, Godwin, J, Al-Hassan, SM, Bacchini, D, Bornstein, MH, Chang, L, Chen, BB, Deater-Deckard, K, Giunta, LD, Dodge, KA, Malone, PS, Oburu, P, Pastorelli, C, Skinner, AT, Sorbring, E, Steinberg, L, Tapanya, S, Peña Alampay, L, Uribe Tirado, LM, and Zelli, A. "Longitudinal Associations Between Parenting and Youth Adjustment in Twelve Cultural Groups: Cultural Normativeness of Parenting as a Moderator (Accepted)." Developmental PsychologyFull Text
Feb 6.
Perceptual Development (ppt9)
Abney, D., Suanda, S., Smith, L. B. & Yu, C. (in press) What are the building blocks of parent-infant coordinated attention in free-flowing interaction? Infancy.
Additional reading:
Clerkin, E.M., Hart, E., Rehg, J.M., Yu, C., & Smith, L.B. (2017). Real-world visual statistics and infants' first-learned object names. Philosophical Transactions on The Royal Society B: Biological Science, 372(1711).
Feb 8. Perceptual/Attention Development (ppt10). NO CLASS.
Additional reading:
Feb 13. Cognitive Development (ppt11)
Yu, C., Suanda, S. H. & Smith, L. B. (2018) Infant sustained attention but not joint attention to objects at 9 months predicts vocabulary at 12 and 15 months. Developmental Science. PMID: 30255968
Yu, C. & Smith, L.B. (2017) Hand-eye coordination predicts joint attention. Child Development.
Additional reading:
Boyer, T. W., Harding, S. M., & Bertenthal, B. I. (2020). The temporal dynamics of infants' joint attention: Effects of others' gaze cues and manual actions. Cognition, 197, 104151. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2019.104151
Feb 15.
Cognitive Development (ppt12)
Additional reading:
Feb 20.
Language Development (ppt13)
Mitsven, S. G., Perry, L. K., Tao, Y., Elbaum, B. E., Johnson, N. F., & Messinger, D. S. (2021).  Objectively measured teacher and preschooler vocalizations: Phonemic diversity is associated with language abilities.  Developmental Science, n/a(n/a), https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.13177
Additional reading:
Warlaumont, A. S., Richards., J. A., Gilkerson, J., & Oller, D. K. (2014). A social feedback loop for speech development and its reduction in autism. Psychological Science, 25(7), 1314–1324. doi: 10.1177/0956797614531023 [supplemental materials, Akhtar et al., commentary on Warlaumont, Warlaumont et al. response to Akhtar]
Perry, L.K., Perlman, M., Winter, B., Massaro, D.W., & Lupyan, G. (2018). Iconicity in children and adults’ speech. Developmental Science, 21(3), e12572. doi: 10.1111/desc.12572. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/desc.12572
Feb 22. Optional Midterm Exam Distributed.
Language Development (ppt14)
Additional reading:
Feb 27.
Temperament and Emotion (ppt15)
Mattson, W. I., Cohn, J. F., Mahoor, M. H., Gangi, D. N., & Messinger, D. S. (2013). Darwin’s Duchenne: Eye constriction during infant joy and distress. PLOS ONE, 8(11). doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0080161
Additional reading:
Feb 29. Optional Midterm 1 Due
Temperament and Emotion (ppt16)
Watts, T. W., Duncan, G. J., & Quan, H. (2018, January). Revisiting the marshmallow test: A conceptual replication investigating links between early delay of gratification and later Outcomes. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0956797618761661. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6050075/pdf/10.1177_0956797618761661.pdf
Additional reading:
Somerville, L.H., Jones, R.M., Ruberry, E.J., Dyke, J.P., Glover, G., & Casey, B.J.(2013). The medial prefrontal cortex and the emergence of self-conscious emotion in adolescence. Psychological Science, 24, 1554-1562. PDF
Mar 5.
Socialization Experiences I. Parent-child relationships (ppt17) 
Leong, V., Byrne, E., Clackson, K., Georgieva, S., Lam, S., & Wass, S. (2017). Speaker gaze increases information coupling between infant and adult brains. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 114(50), 13290-13295. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1702493114
Simpson, E. A., Sclafani, V., Paukner, A., Kaburu, S. S. K., Suomi, S. J., & Ferrari, P. F. (2019). Handling newborn monkeys alters later exploratory, cognitive, and social behaviors. Dev Cogn Neurosci, 35, 12-19. doi:10.1016/j.dcn.2017.07.010
Mar 7.
Socialization Experiences I (Cont.). Parent-child relationships (ppt17) 
Mitsven, S. G., Perry, L. K., Tao, Y., Elbaum, B. E., Johnson, N. F., & Messinger, D. S. (2021).  Objectively measured teacher and preschooler vocalizations: Phonemic diversity is associated with language abilities.  Developmental Science, n/a(n/a), https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.13177
Additional reading:
Sheinkopf SJ, Tenenbaum EJ, Messinger DS, Miller-Loncar CL, Tronick EZ, LaGasse LL, Shankaran S, Bada H, Bauer CR, Whitaker TM, Hammond JA, & Lester BM. (2016). Maternal and infant affect at 4 months predicts performance and verbal IQ at 4 and 7 years in a diverse population. Developmental Science. doi: 10.1111/desc.12479. PMID: 27774733
Feldman, R., Rosenthal, Z., & Eidelman, A. I. (2014). Maternal-Preterm Skin-to-Skin Contact Enhances Child Physiologic Organization and Cognitive Control Across the First 10 Years of Life. Biological Psychiatry, 75(1), 56-64. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2013.08.012
Sheridan, M. A., N. A. Fox, et al. (2012). "Variation in neural development as a result of exposure to institutionalization early in childhood." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Mar 12 & 14. Spring Break
Mar 19.
Socialization Experiences I. Parent-child relationships. (ppt18
Additional reading:
Mar 21.
Socialization Experiences I. Parent-child relationships (ppt19)
Additional reading:
Mar 26.
Socialization Experiences II - School and Community (ppt23)
Additional reading:
Chen, J., Justice, L. M., Rhoad-Drogalis, A., Lin, T.-J., & Sawyer, B. (2020). Social Networks of Children With Developmental Language Disorder in Inclusive Preschool Programs. Child Development, 91(2), 471-487. https://srcd.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/cdev.13183
Gonzalez Villasanti, H., Justice, L. M., Chaparro-Moreno, L. J., Lin, T. J., & Purtell, K. (2020). Automatized analysis of children's exposure to child-directed speech in preschool settings: Validation and application. PloS one, 15(11), e0242511. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0242511 https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0242511
Mar 28.
Socialization Experiences III. School and Community (
ppt24
Card, D., & Giuliano, L. (2016). Universal screening increases the representation of low-income and minority students in gifted education. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(48), 13678-13683. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1605043113 https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/113/48/13678.full.pdf
Additional reading:
Apr 2.
Adversity, challenge, resilience: Socialization Experiences III. Community (
ppt25)
Additional reading:
Apr 4.  
Socialization Experiences I.
Peer relationships (
ppt21)
Additional reading:
Apr 9.
Socialization Experiences II. Peer relationships (
ppt22)
Additional reading:
Apr 11.
Beyond Childhood: Transition to parenthood (ppt26)
Hoekzema, E., E. Barba-Müller, C. Pozzobon, M. Picado, F. Lucco, D. García-García, J. C. Soliva, A. Tobeña, M. Desco, E. A. Crone, A. Ballesteros, S. Carmona and O. Vilarroya (2016). "Pregnancy leads to long-lasting changes in human brain structure." Nature Neuroscience 20: 287. (https://www.nature.com/articles/nn.4458.pdf)
Additional reading.
Conte, E., Grazzani, I., & Pepe, A. (2018). Social cognition, language, and prosocial behaviors: A multitrait mixed-methods study in early childhood. Early Education and Development, 29(6), 814–830. https://doi.org/10.1080/10409289.2018.1475820 Additional_Link
Apr 16: Parent-child relationships (ppt20).
Additional reading.
Apr 18
Beyond Childhood: Adulthood (ppt27)
Hittner, E. F., Stephens, J. E., Turiano, N. A., Gerstorf, D., Lachman, M. E., & Haase, C. M. (2020). Positive Affect Is Associated With Less Memory Decline: Evidence From a 9-Year Longitudinal Study. Psychological Science, 31(11), 1386-1395.
Additional reading:
Anthony P. Zanesco, Brandon G. King, Katherine A. MacLean, Clifford D. Saron. Cognitive Aging and Long-Term Maintenance of Attentional Improvements Following Meditation Training. Journal of Cognitive Enhancement, 2018; DOI: 10.1007/s41465-018-0068-1
Ritchie, S. J., Tucker-Drob, E. M., Cox, S. R., Corley, J., Dykiert, D., Redmond, P., Pattie, A., Taylor, A., Sibbett, R., Starr, J. M., & Deary, I. J. (2016). Predictors of ageing-related decline across multiple cognitive functions. Intelligence, 59, 115-126. Link (Open Access).
Martin, K. B., Haltigan, J. D., Ekas, N., Prince, E. B., & Messinger, D. S.   Attachment security differs by later autism spectrum disorder: A prospective study. Developmental Science, n/a(n/a), e12953. doi:10.1111/desc.12953
Apr 23 & 25. Final project blitz presentation. Please present from your own screen. 10 minutes per presentation with 5 minutes of questions/comments. I will have the next presenter begin precisely 15 minutes after the previous presenter.
May 12. Final Paper Due
Coronavirus (COVID-19): Everyone—including faculty, staff, and students—is required to wear face coverings on campus. Students are required to do this at all times in the classroom and when physical distancing cannot be guaranteed. Faculty have the right to restrict a student from participating in class if the student does not follow University COVID-19 policies.
Campus Closure: In the event that the UM’s campus closes unexpectedly for an extended period of time due to a hurricane, pandemic, or other emergency situation that prevents this course from meeting in person, students should be prepared to continue their learning through other means as determined by the instructor. In the most likely scenario, instruction would be delivered remotely through BlackBoard and other platforms. Students are expected, to the extent feasible, to check their UM email and course BlackBoard regularly for communications from their instructors. If instructed by the faculty, students are expected, to the extent feasible, to continue their participation in their courses from their off-campus location.
Class Recordings Policy: Students are expressly prohibited from recording any part of this course. Meetings of this course might be recorded by the University. Any recordings will be available to students registered for this class as they are intended to supplement the classroom experience. Students are expected to follow appropriate University policies and maintain the security of passwords used to access recorded lectures. Recordings may not be reproduced, shared with those not in the class, or uploaded to other online environments. If the instructor of a University of Miami office plans any other uses for the recordings, beyond this class, students identifiable in the recordings will be notified to request consent prior to such use. See the separate FERPA consent.
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