“Zoom Developmentalists”: Home-Based Videoconferencing Developmental Research during COVID-19

I, Su; Ceci, Stephen J.

doi:10.31234/osf.io/nvdy6

Cited by 15 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Over the past few years, developmental scientists have published on the best practices for online data collection methods (Frank et al, 2016;Garrisi et al, 2020;Lourenco and Tasimi, 2020;Manning et al, 2020;Nussenbaum et al, 2020;Rhodes et al, 2020;Sheskin et al, 2020;Morini and Blair, 2021;Su and Ceci, 2021). These studies agree that while online data collection methods are still in their infancy, online measurements have become a promising platform for developmental psychology research.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Comparing Face-to-Face and Online Data Collection Methods in Preterm and Full-Term Children: An Exploratory Study

et al. 2021

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The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the landscape for children’s daily lives and the landscape for developmental psychology research. Pandemic-related restrictions have also significantly disrupted the traditional face-to-face methods with which developmental scientists produce research. Over the past year, developmental scientists have published on the best practices for online data collection methods; however, existing studies do not provide empirical evidence comparing online methods to face-to-face methods. In this study, we tested feasibility of online methods by examining performance on a battery of standardized and experimental cognitive assessments in a combined sample of 4- to 5-year-old preterm and full-term children, some of whom completed the battery face-to-face, and some of whom completed the battery online. First, we asked how children’s performance differs between face-to-face and online format on tasks related to verbal comprehension, fluid reasoning, visual spatial, working memory, attention and executive functioning, social perception, and numerical skills. Out of eight tasks, we did not find reliable differences on five of them. Second, we explored the role of parent involvement in children’s performance in the online format. We did not find a significant effect of parent involvement on children’s performance. Exploratory analyses showed that the role of format did not vary for children at risk, specifically children born preterm. Our findings contribute to the growing body of literature examining differences and similarities across various data collection methods, as well as literature surrounding online data collection for continuing developmental psychology research.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

Comparing Face-to-Face and Online Data Collection Methods in Preterm and Full-Term Children: An Exploratory Study

et al. 2021

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“…Initiatives to move developmental science online started to increase rapidly during the last year ( Leshin et al, 2020 ; Sheskin et al, 2020 ), building on existing moderated ( Sheskin and Keil, 2018 ) and unmoderated remote research attempts and experiment platforms ( Scott and Schulz, 2017 ; Scott et al, 2017 ; Semmelmann et al, 2017 ; Tran et al, 2017 ) in the field. New tools and platforms for moderated and unmoderated online studies targeting developmental populations have also recently emerged ( Rhodes et al, 2020 ; Lo et al, 2021 ; Oliver and Pike, 2021 ; Su and Ceci, 2021 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparing Online Webcam- and Laboratory-Based Eye-Tracking for the Assessment of Infants’ Audio-Visual Synchrony Perception

et al. 2022

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Online data collection with infants raises special opportunities and challenges for developmental research. One of the most prevalent methods in infancy research is eye-tracking, which has been widely applied in laboratory settings to assess cognitive development. Technological advances now allow conducting eye-tracking online with various populations, including infants. However, the accuracy and reliability of online infant eye-tracking remain to be comprehensively evaluated. No research to date has directly compared webcam-based and in-lab eye-tracking data from infants, similarly to data from adults. The present study provides a direct comparison of in-lab and webcam-based eye-tracking data from infants who completed an identical looking time paradigm in two different settings (in the laboratory or online at home). We assessed 4-6-month-old infants (n = 38) in an eye-tracking task that measured the detection of audio-visual asynchrony. Webcam-based and in-lab eye-tracking data were compared on eye-tracking and video data quality, infants’ viewing behavior, and experimental effects. Results revealed no differences between the in-lab and online setting in the frequency of technical issues and participant attrition rates. Video data quality was comparable between settings in terms of completeness and brightness, despite lower frame rate and resolution online. Eye-tracking data quality was higher in the laboratory than online, except in case of relative sample loss. Gaze data quantity recorded by eye-tracking was significantly lower than by video in both settings. In valid trials, eye-tracking and video data captured infants’ viewing behavior uniformly, irrespective of setting. Despite the common challenges of infant eye-tracking across experimental settings, our results point toward the necessity to further improve the precision of online eye-tracking with infants. Taken together, online eye-tracking is a promising tool to assess infants’ gaze behavior but requires careful data quality control. The demographic composition of both samples differed from the generic population on caregiver education: our samples comprised caregivers with higher-than-average education levels, challenging the notion that online studies will per se reach more diverse populations.

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“…Yet, in meeting those challenges, and building on psychological researchers' successful use of online testing platforms with adults, adolescents, and school-age children (e.g., Buhrmester et al, 2011 ; Germine et al, 2012 ; Griffiths et al, 2019 ), developmental scientists have explored and fine-tuned creative and potentially transformative solutions to conducting research with infants and young children. Although online methods were in use by developmental researchers prior to COVID-19 (e.g., Scott and Schulz, 2017 ; Tran et al, 2017 ), the need for such methods during the pandemic has spurred further development and proliferation (see Garrisi et al, 2020 ; Su and Ceci, 2021 ). The majority of online or virtual validation studies, to date, have focused on cognitive developmental assessments, whereas validated virtual assessments of infant socioemotional and language development have been sparse.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although this growing literature suggests the promise of online platforms for assessing cognitive development in the context of highly structured tasks, the validity on such methods for assessing dimensions of infant social and emotional functioning, such as parent-infant interaction, infant response to stress, and infant expressive and receptive communication skills, remains unknown. Whereas certain advantages (e.g., greater flexibility, more diverse participant pool) and disadvantages (e.g., poor internet connectivity, decreased experimental control, increased potential for distractions, see Su and Ceci, 2021 ) regarding virtual visits will be common across studies of cognitive and socioemotional development, some issues are unique. On the one hand, virtual visits may be particularly conducive to capturing infant and maternal social and emotional behaviors that are more ecologically valid because assessments take place in the familiar home environment without experimenters physically present.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Zoom, Zoom, Baby! Assessing Mother-Infant Interaction During the Still Face Paradigm and Infant Language Development via a Virtual Visit Procedure

McElwain

et al. 2022

Front. Psychol.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated innovations in data collection protocols, including use of virtual or remote visits. Although developmental scientists used virtual visits prior to COVID-19, validation of virtual assessments of infant socioemotional and language development are lacking. We aimed to fill this gap by validating a virtual visit protocol that assesses mother and infant behavior during the Still Face Paradigm (SFP) and infant receptive and expressive communication using the Bayley-III Screening Test. Validation was accomplished through comparisons of data (i.e., proportions of missing data for a given task; observed infant and maternal behaviors) collected during in-person laboratory visits and virtual visits conducted via Zoom. Of the 119 mother-infant dyads who participated, 73 participated in lab visits only, 13 participated in virtual visits only, and 33 dyads participated in a combination of lab and virtual visits across four time points (3, 6, 9, and 12 months). Maternal perspectives of, and preferences for, virtual visits were also assessed. Proportions of missing data were higher during virtual visits, particularly for assessments of infant receptive communication. Nonetheless, comparisons of virtual and laboratory visits within a given time point (3, 6, or 9 months) indicated that mothers and infants showed similar proportions of facial expressions, vocalizations and directions of gaze during the SFP and infants showed similar and expected patterns of behavioral change across SFP episodes. Infants also demonstrated comparable expressive and receptive communicative abilities across virtual and laboratory assessments. Maternal reports of ease and preference for virtual visits varied by infant age, with mothers of 12-month-old infants reporting, on average, less ease of virtual visits and a preference for in-person visits. Results are discussed in terms of feasibility and validity of virtual visits for assessing infant socioemotional and language development, and broader advantages and disadvantages of virtual visits are also considered.

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“Zoom Developmentalists”: Home-Based Videoconferencing Developmental Research during COVID-19

Cited by 15 publications

References 11 publications

Comparing Face-to-Face and Online Data Collection Methods in Preterm and Full-Term Children: An Exploratory Study

Comparing Face-to-Face and Online Data Collection Methods in Preterm and Full-Term Children: An Exploratory Study

Comparing Online Webcam- and Laboratory-Based Eye-Tracking for the Assessment of Infants’ Audio-Visual Synchrony Perception

Zoom, Zoom, Baby! Assessing Mother-Infant Interaction During the Still Face Paradigm and Infant Language Development via a Virtual Visit Procedure

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