Smart Beginnings

In its initial phases, the SMART Beginnings project aimed to enhance school readiness in low-income families by promoting positive parenting practices and reducing psychosocial stressors starting shortly after a child's birth. It integrated two evidence-based interventions: the universal prevention strategy PlayReadVIP, which involves videotaping parent-child interactions and coaching parents, and the targeted home-visiting program,Family Check-up (FCU), for families facing additional psychosocial stressors. Conducted in pediatric primary care settings in New York City and Pittsburgh, the project tested the combined model through a randomized control trial, using surveys and observational data to assess its effectiveness. The study sought to determine if this integrated approach can significantly improve early school readiness outcomes, including social-emotional skills and self-regulation.


In its next phase, we will build on Smart Beginnings B’s promising impacts on early relational health and subsequent child social and academic skills through school entry. We plan to  explore additional potential effects effects on peer relations as well as the prevention of internalizing problem behavior and suicide risk during the transition to adolescence.

Team

  • Pamela Aileen Morris-Perez, Ph.D.

    FOUNDER, ARCADIA Center for Suicide Prevention

    PROFESSOR, Department of Applied Psychology, NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development

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  • Ashleigh Aviles, Ph.D.

    POSTDOCTORAL ASSOCIATE

    New York University

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Past Affiliates

  • Alan Mendelsohn, M.D.

    CO-PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

    NYU Grossman School of Medicine

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  • Daniel Shaw, Ph.D.

    CO-PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

    University of Pittsburgh

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  • Elizabeth B. Miller, PhD

    ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, Department of Population Health

    NYU Grossman School of Medicine

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Featured Publications

Shaw, D. S., Mendelsohn, A. L., Morris-Perez, P. A., & Weaver Krug, C. (2024). Integrating equifinality and multifinality into the prevention programs in early childhood: The conceptual case for use of tiered models. Development and Psychopathology, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1017/S095457942400021X 

Canfield, C. F., Miller, E. B., Taraban, L. E., Rosas, J. M., Morris-Perez, P. A., Mendelsohn, A. L., & Shaw, D. (2023). Impacts of a tiered intervention on child internalizing and externalizing behavior in the context of maternal depression. Development & Psychopathology, 1-11. PMID: 38093598

Canfield, C. F., Miller, E. B., Zhang, Y., Shaw, D., Morris, P., Galan, C., & Mendelsohn, A. L. (2023). Tiered universal and targeted early childhood interventions: Enhancing attendance across families with varying needs. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 63(2), 362-369. PMCID: PMC9937541

Miller, E. B., Roby, E., Zhang, Y., Coskun, L., Rosas, J. M., Scott, M. A., Gutierrez, J., Shaw, D. S., Mendelsohn, A. L., & Morris-Perez, P. A. (2022). Promoting cognitive stimulation in parents across infancy and toddlerhood: A randomized cslinical trial. The Journal of Pediatrics. PMID: 36481243 PMCID Journal - In Process.

Miller, E. B., Whipps M. D. M., Bogen, D. L., Morris, P. A., Mendelsohn, A. L., Shaw, D. S., & Gross, R.S. (2022). Collateral benefits from a school readiness intervention on breastfeeding: A cross-domain impact evaluation. Maternal and Child Nutrition. PMCID: PMC9749611

Miller, E. B., Roby, E., Zhang, Y., Coskun, L., Rosas, J. M., Scott, M. A., Gutierrez, J., Shaw, D. S., Mendelsohn, A. L., & Morris-Perez, P. A. (2022). Promoting cognitive stimulation in parents across infancy and toddlerhood: A randomized clinical trial. The Journal of Pediatrics. PMID: 36481243 PMCID: PMC10121799