Publications

2026

Yu, Y., Barner, D., Mejia, M., Jung, S., Maheshwari, U., Gunderson, E. A., Fyfe, E., Duru, L. A., Abreu-Mendoza, R. A., Boni, I., Cordes, S., Dhaliwal, T., Feigenson, L., Lu, A., Hyde, D. C., Izard, V., Kibbe, M., Mbarki, R., Libertus, M., … Weaver, J. (2026). ManyNumbers 3: A Multi-Lab Study of Demographic Correlates of Early Number Knowledge.. Developmental Science, 29(3), e70184. https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.70184 (Original work published 2026)
Publisher's Version
Publisher's Version

Large scale studies have documented socioeconomic (SES) and racial/ethnic disparities in children's standardized math achievement at kindergarten entry. These early math skills predict future mathematics achievement and career success. However, limited research has been conducted using large sample sizes to understand how SES and race/ethnicity are related to children's numerical skills at even younger ages. The current study aims to investigate sociodemographic variability in three fundamental areas of early numeracy: nonverbal numerosity discrimination, rote counting, and cardinal number word knowledge. In addition, we will examine if the relations between numerical skills might be explained by their shared correlations to sociodemographic factors and if differences in numerical skills between sociodemographic groups can be explained by variability in working memory. Finally, we also investigate whether childcare attendance moderates early sociodemographic differences in numerical abilities. To achieve these goals, data from children aged 2; 6-6; 0 will be gathered from ∼ 45 US sites, drawn from a larger multi-lab international project (ManyNumbers project). The findings of this research will enhance our understanding of early emerging variability in numerical skills and provide insights into developing responsive and inclusive educational practices that support diverse learning needs in the early years. SUMMARY: Early mathematical skills are crucial for long-term academic and career achievement. SES and race/ethnicity-related disparities in math achievement emerge as early as preschool. Most studies use standardized math assessments that combine different numerical skills to assess achievement gaps, leaving uncertain which specific skills vary with demographic variables. We explore disparities in developmentally significant numerical skills and their relation to demographic variables. We also report relations between WM, childcare attendance and numerical skills. Data from approximately N = 1080 children aged 2;6-6;0 will be collected from ∼ 45 US labs, including demographic information and numeracy measures.

2025

Pearce, R., & Miller, S. E. (2025). Embodied cognition perspectives within early executive function development.. Frontiers in Cognition, 4, 1361748. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcogn.2025.1361748 (Original work published 2025)
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Publisher's Version

The development of executive function (EF) has become a central focus in early cognitive development research. While movement is frequently used to measure EF in young children and may significantly contribute to its development, many leading EF theories do not fully explore the role of movement. This review investigates the critical role of movement in the development of EF during early childhood through the framework of embodied cognition, particularly drawing on the central themes outlined by Lawrence Shapiro. By applying Shapiro's themes, this narrative review examines whether and how these embodied cognition concepts are integrated into leading theories of EF development. The analysis identifies key gaps where current theories could benefit from a deeper incorporation of embodied cognition. This work aims to support future research that emphasizes the importance of movement in fostering EF during early childhood.

Gago-Galvagno, L. G., Elgier, A. M., & Tabullo, A. J. (2025). Use of screens, books and adultsinteractions on toddler s language and motor skills: A cross-cultural study among 19 Latin American countries from different SES. PLoS One, 20(2), e0314569. (Original work published 2026)
Children s screen use is ubiquitous, with toddlers in particular demonstrating increases after the pandemic and negative associations with cognitive abilities. Thus, the objective of this cross-cultural study was to broaden and deepen existing results by describing Latin American toddlers screen use and its association with parental reports of language skills, developmental milestones, and sociodemographic variables. A

2024

Frith, E., & Miller, S. E. (2024). Creativity in motion: examining the impact of meaningful movement on creative cognition.. Frontiers in Cognition, 3, 1386375. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcogn.2024.1386375 (Original work published 2024)
Publisher's Version
Publisher's Version

This study examined the link between creative cognition and meaningful physical movement among university students (N = 151) from a cognitive offloading perspective. A linear mixed model, repeated measures design examined whether divergent thinking on three Alternative Uses Tasks (AUTs; within-subjects factor) was influenced by movement in three independent experimental groups: (1) gesture as meaningful movement (n = 51), (2) meaningless movement (n = 50), and (3) restricted movement (n = 50). Linear mixed model results indicated that changes in AUT fluency, flexibility, and originality across trials did not significantly interact with group. However, baseline gesture frequency was positively associated with all four creativity outcome measures and moderated group-level changes in originality across trials. Infrequent baseline gesturers demonstrated lower originality scores in the gesture as meaningful movement group compared to those in the restricted movement group. More frequent baseline gesturers experienced higher originality in both the gesture as meaningful movement and meaningless movement groups compared to those in the restricted movement group. This study demonstrates that the cognitive processes involved in novel idea generation may be differentially impacted by movement and may be more sensitive to individual differences in movement predisposition than experimental movement manipulation.

Gago-Galvagno, L. G., & Castillo, M. \ia and D. P. (2024). Dyadic Interactions, Communication and Regulation Skills: Associations with Screen Use in Toddlers from Buenos Aires. Psychol Russ, 17(4), 39-59. (Original work published 2026)
BACKGROUND: Screen time has increased, with more frequent use at younger ages during the developmental process. International pediatric associations recommend that its use be minimal before three years of age. However, several studies have shown that in this age range, its use is for at least one hour per day, and in general without the accompaniment of an adult and with no consideration of age-appropriate content. Furthermore, negative associations between screen use in hours and minutes were reported with different cognitive abilities (e.g., language, executive functions, attention, memory) during this period. Many of the studies carried out on associations between these variables used questionnaires or parental reports. This is why it becomes important to study how screen time is associated with early interactions between primary caregiver and toddlers and with early cognitive skills, using measures that observe behavior directly, and in a non-WEIRD sample [a WEIRD population is White, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic - ed.] from low-to-medium SES backgrounds in Latin America. This could generate interventions to promote early cognitive development, and evaluate what type of responsible use can be provided for screen consumption in the early years. OBJECTIVE: To describe the use of screens in toddlers of low-to-medium SES, compare caregiver-toddler interactions when engaged in play with digital or physical stimuli (with screens or toys), and examine screen use associations with regulation, early communication skills, and sociodemographic variables. DESIGN: A mixed quantitative research sample was of 33 dyads of low-to-medium-SES primary caregivers

2023

Gago-Galvagno, L. G., Perez, M. L., & Justo, M. \ia. (2023). Contributions of Screen Use on Early Language and Development Milestones in Argentinean Toddlers from Different Socioeconomic Contexts. Trends Psychol, 1-18. (Original work published 2026)
The objective of the following research was to describe the use of digital media (i.e., TV, background TV, cell phone, PC, and Tablet), presence of the adults during this activity, and its association with language, motor, and language developmental milestones and SES in the first years of life. Participants were
Miller, S. E., Galvagno, L. G., & . (2023). Universality and context-specificity in early executive function development. Infant Behav Dev, 71, 101841. (Original work published 2026)
A renewed interest in early executive function (i.e., EF or the conscious control of thought and behavior) development has led several research groups to suggest that EF may be emerging and is less coordinated (e.g., showing few relations between tasks) in the first few years (Devine et al., 2019; Gago Galvagno et al., 2021; Johansson et al., 2016; Miller & Marcovitch, 2015; Ribner et al., 2022). This potentially universal development in EF does not exclude the possibility that EF may also differ across context (e.g., Gago Galvagno et al., 2021; Lohndorf et al., 2019; Tran et al., 2015) reflecting unique strengths and development built within one s sociocultural environment. The present paper explores potential universal and context-specific early EF developments by focusing on three aims: (1) reviewing work on EF within the first two years of life that may speak to potential universality in the measurement, structure, growth, stability, and conceptualization of early EF (2) reviewing research that may speak to how the sociocultural context may play a role in context-specific development within early EF and (3) examining potential developmental EF frameworks for understanding universal and context-specific developments of early EF within context.

2022

Gago-Galvagno, L. G., Miller, S. E., & Grandis, D. (2022). The still-face paradigm in Latin American mother-child dyads at 2 and 3 years: Effects of socioeconomic status and temperament. J Exp Child Psychol, 217, 105357. (Original work published 2026)
The still-face paradigm (SFP) is a common method in infancy used to assess emotion regulation and interactions when an adult (typically the caregiver) abruptly stops a positive interaction with a child and switches to a more neutral affect. The effect of this paradigm has been studied in different countries and age ranges, but research in Latin America and with toddlers (e.g., 2-3 years old) of different socioeconomic backgrounds is scarce. The current study analyzed caregiver-child interactions in this novel sample, to analyze the possibility of generalization of the typical response of this paradigm (i.e., less positive affect, reduced gaze, and more negative affect in children when parent affect changes). The sample consisted of 114 caregiver-child dyads from low to middle socioeconomic status (SES) (children s

2021

Galvagno, L. G. G., Miller, S. E., & Grandis, D. (2021). Emerging coherence and relations to communication among executive function tasks in toddlers: Evidence from a Latin American sample. Infancy, 26(6), 962-979. (Original work published 2026)
Recent work within early executive function (EF) seems to suggest that toddlers show distinct patterns of development, involving poorly correlated performance across EF tasks and significant improvements over relatively short periods of time. The present study sought to extend these findings by investigating evidence for these patterns in toddlers and the existence of more traditional patterns of EF (e.g., correlations between tasks, links to language) when using the same tasks in a novel Latin American sample. Eighty toddlers (18-24 months) and sixty young preschoolers (30-36) months completed a battery of EF tasks, early social communication, and receptive and expressive language measures. Results indicated that toddlers showed similar distinct patterns of development (i.e., few relations between tasks and links to responding to joint attention), but by early preschool a more cohesive EF and links to language were present. Further, work demonstrated significant age (older children outperformed younger children), gender (girls outperformed boys), and socioeconomic differences (satisfied basic needs outperformed unsatisfied basic needs, but only on the snack delay). This work provides evidence for patterns of emerging EF development within this novel cultural sample (and evidence for group differences) that may be supported by communicative and representational development.