MULTILEVEL ANALYSIS WITH A STATISTICAL APPROACH OF THE IMPACT OF EARLY COGNITIVE STIMULATION ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIO-EMOTIONAL SKILLS

Abstract

The present study investigates the effect of early cognitive stimulation on the development of socio-emotional skills in early childhood, using a multilevel design that considers intra-individual and inter-context variability (family, school). A longitudinal sample of 300 children aged 2 to 5 years (with annual measurements) is used, distributed in 20 cognitive stimulation centers. The degree of early cognitive stimulation is measured (through a weighted index that includes frequency, variety and quality of activities) and socio-emotional skills are assessed using standardized scales of emotional regulation, social competencies and behavioral control. The mixed multilevel model (random slopes and random intercepts) allows estimating the effects of the stimulation program (individual level) and the contextual impact of the educational center (group level). The results suggest that early cognitive stimulation has a significant positive effect on the growth of socio-emotional skills (β ≈ 0.25, p < 0.01) and that this effect varies between centers (intercenter variances ≈ 12% of the total). In addition, moderators such as the educational level of the parents and the quality of the emotional environment of the home are identified. The conclusions highlight the importance of designing cognitive interventions in multisystem contexts and of employing multilevel analysis to capture contextual heterogeneity.