A study on the lasting effects of a parenting training programme in rural China on child brain function and development

Approved 29/06/2026, Biological and Medical Ethics Committee, Minzu University of China (No. 27 South ZhongGuanCun Avenue, Haidian District, Beijing, 100081, China; +86 (0)1068933254; jason@muc.edu.cn), ref: ECMUC2026008CO

1. Child brain function measured using electroencephalography (EEG): 1.1. Resting-state EEG data, including EEG signals recorded under both eyes-open and eyes-closed resting conditions, are analysed by spectral power analysis and EEG microstate analysis. The spectral power analysis primarily focuses on power in different frequency bands, including delta, theta, alpha, beta, and gamma brainwaves, as well as metrics such as absolute power and relative power. EEG microstate indicators include microstate category, duration, occurrence frequency, coverage, and transition probability, which are used to assess the dynamic characteristics of children’s brain functional networks during rest. 1.2. The Mismatch Negativity (MMN) task metrics involve collecting event-related potentials using a passive auditory oddball paradigm with Mandarin syllables. The primary measures extracted are the average amplitude, peak amplitude, and peak latency of the MMN, which are used to assess children’s ability to automatically detect phonetic differences at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
2. Child cognitive development measured using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fourth Edition (WISC-IV): 2.1. The Verbal Comprehension Index, used to assess children’s verbal reasoning and language comprehension skills. 2.2. Perceptual Reasoning Index, used to assess children’s visuospatial perceptual reasoning abilities. 2.3. The Working Memory Index, used to assess children’s ability to actively process short-term information. 2.4. Information Processing Speed Index, used to assess children’s information processing speed. 2.5. Full-scale IQ, used to comprehensively assess a child’s overall cognitive development at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
3. Children’s socio-emotional skills and behavioral development measured using 3.1. The OECD Social and Emotional Skills Survey (SSES) is used to assess children’s social and emotional competencies, including task competence, emotional regulation, collaboration, openness, and interpersonal skills. 3.2. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) – Parent Version, used to assess children’s psychosocial adjustment, including emotional symptoms, behavioral problems, peer relationships, attention/hyperactivity, and prosocial behavior at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
4. Children’s reading development measured using a battery of reading assessments: 4.1. The Chinese Reading Achievement Test uses the Standardized Test of Chinese Language Achievement for Chinese Children and Adolescents to assess students’ accumulation of Chinese language knowledge and reading comprehension skills. 4.2. Chinese character recognition task, which assesses children’s accuracy and fluency in recognizing Chinese characters. 4.3. Timed English Word Recognition Task: Assesses the accuracy and fluency of children’s English word recognition. 4.4. English pseudoword decoding task, which assesses children’s mastery of English grapheme-phoneme correspondences. 4.5. Rapid Naming Task: Assesses children’s ability to rapidly and automatically associate and retrieve visual symbols—such as numbers and English letters—with auditory information. 4.6. Children’s attitudes toward reading are assessed using questionnaire items on whether they enjoy reading, like talking with others about what they have read, feel happy to receive books as gifts, find reading boring, want more time to read, learn from reading, enjoy reading materials that make them think, and enjoy books that help them imagine another world at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027

1. Children’s mental health, school adjustment, and developmental expectations measured using children’s questionnaires and structured interviews: 1.1. The risk of mental disorders in children is assessed using the child version of the Brief International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI-KID). 1.2. Children’s mental health status was assessed using mental health questionnaires to evaluate symptoms of psychological distress, such as depression, anxiety, and stress. 1.3. School adjustment in children, assessed through a children’s questionnaire that measures their attitudes toward school, how much they like school, their emotions related to school, and their willingness to attend school. 1.4. Children’s academic performance is assessed based on information such as their class rank, grade-level rank, Chinese scores, math scores, and the maximum possible score on the most recent major exam. 1.5. Children’s Educational and Career Expectations: A questionnaire for children is used to assess their desired level of education, future career aspirations, preferred location for future work and life, and confidence in the future. 1.6.Children’s self-efficacy: A questionnaire for children is used to assess their perceived ability to solve problems, achieve goals despite opposition, handle unexpected situations, remain calm when facing difficulties, and cope with problems using their own abilities. 1.7.Children’s interests: A child questionnaire is used to assess children’s interests and hobbies at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
2. Children’s time allocation, learning activities, and digital media use measured using a children’s questionnaire: 2.1. Study time, including time spent during school hours and on weekends completing homework assigned by teachers and work from after-school tutoring programs. 2.2. Extracurricular learning and development activities, including after-school tutoring, talent development, interest-based activities, and time for extracurricular reading. 2.3. Screen and digital media use, including time spent watching TV, using a cell phone or tablet, browsing the internet, and playing video games at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
3. Children’s physical development and health measured using on-site measurements and parent questionnaires: 3.1. Children’s height should be measured using standardized, uniform height-measuring instruments. 3.2. Children’s weight should be measured using a standard, calibrated scale. 3.3. Utilization of children’s health services and health expenditures: A parent questionnaire was used to assess children’s illness, frequency of medical visits, hospitalizations, medical expenses, health insurance coverage, physical examinations, vision screenings, dental checkups, and purchases of nutritional supplements at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
4. Basic family background, school information, and the child’s daily routine measured using a parent questionnaire: 4.1. Basic family information, including the child’s current place of residence, family composition, whether the child lives with his or her parents, whether the parents are working away from home, changes in family composition, and changes in the parents’ marital status. 4.2. Information about the child’s school, including current grade, school address, number of elementary schools attended, school type, location of the school, whether the child is a boarding student, mode of transportation to and from school, commute time, and distance from home to school at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
5. The home environment, parent-child interactions, and parenting styles measured using parent questionnaires and relevant scales: 5.1. Family rearing environment: The Family Rearing Environment Scale (FCI) was used to assess the diversity of toy sources, the variety of toy types, and the diversity of parent-child activities. 5.2. The home educational environment is assessed through a parent questionnaire that evaluates the following aspects: listening to children read aloud, reading with children, telling stories to children, parent-child discussions, activities at libraries or bookstores, the family’s book collection, book-buying behavior, checking homework, providing homework guidance, and communication between home and school. 5.3. Quality of Family Interaction and Parent-Child Relationships: Parent questionnaires were used to assess parent-child communication, shared activities, emotional support, praise, comfort, neglect, threats, corporal punishment, and strict discipline. 5.4. Parenting Styles: The Parenting Style Questionnaire (PSDQ) was used to assess behaviors associated with authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive parenting styles. 5.5. Child Neglect and Care Environment: This section assesses the child’s care in areas such as physical care, emotional care, education, safety, health, nutrition, and environmental safety, based on a child neglect assessment scale completed by the parents at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
6. The psychosocial resources, developmental expectations, and family involvement of caregivers measured using a parent questionnaire: 6.1. Mental Health of Caregivers: Assess caregivers’ levels of depression, anxiety, and stress using the Brief Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). 6.2. Caregiver Control Points and Parental Efficacy: The Caregiver Psychological and Social Resources Questionnaire is used to assess parental efficacy, parental responsibility, the child’s sense of control over the parents’ lives, and the parents’ sense of control over the child’s life. 6.3. Caregivers’ Views and Expectations Regarding Their Children’s Development: A parent questionnaire is used to assess caregivers’ perceptions of the factors influencing their children’s success, their expectations regarding their children’s educational attainment, career aspirations, preferred future places of work and residence, and their confidence in their children’s future. 6.4. Expenditures on Family Education: Based on a parent questionnaire, this section assesses family expenditures from January to June 2026 on tuition and miscellaneous fees; school meals, lodging, and school bus services; textbooks, reference books, and school supplies; after-school services; supplementary textbooks; extracurricular reading materials; learning devices; off-campus tutoring; arts and skills classes; and other education-related expenses. 6.5. Household health expenditures, assessed through a parent questionnaire covering children’s medical expenses, private health insurance, physical examinations, vision screenings, dental checkups, and the purchase of nutritional supplements at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
7. Children’s social preferences and fairness preferences measured using incentivized preference games: 7.1. Children’s social preferences are assessed using incentivized token-allocation tasks involving anonymous peers from the same village and from other villages. 7.2. Fairness preferences are assessed using tasks on allocation decisions under luck-based and performance-based differences. 7.3. Equality-efficiency trade-off tasks are measured using tasks on allocation decisions with extra bonus at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027
8. Children’s sibling relationships measured using child questionnaires: Children’s sibling relationships are assessed using questionnaire items to find whether children have siblings and, for the closest-age sibling, sibling relationship quality, including warmth, support, cooperation, communication, conflict, rivalry, parental differential treatment, mutual teaching, admiration, secrecy sharing, and time spent together at follow-up evaluations during the summers of 2026 and 2027