How They're WiredStart the quiz

Sources

This is every published work the quiz and the profile draw on. The questions themselves are written in our own words, for this product. They follow the structure of the research below. They are not copies of the published questionnaires, and they have not yet been checked against them. We are testing them with parents now.

Each profile section also shows the sources behind its own claims, under "Where this comes from." Nothing here is a diagnosis, and none of these works was written to be one. Read our statement.

Research behind the profile

  1. Aron, E. N., & Aron, A. (1997). Sensory-processing sensitivity and its relation to introversion and emotionality. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 73(2), 345–368.A study of adults. It is the origin of the sensitivity idea that later child research built on.
  2. Belsky, J., & Pluess, M. (2009). Beyond diathesis stress: Differential susceptibility to environmental influences. Psychological Bulletin, 135(6), 885–908.
  3. Benson, P. L., & Scales, P. C. (2009). The definition and preliminary measurement of thriving in adolescence. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 4(1), 85–104.Studied in teenagers. We use it for the idea of a child's "spark", not as a measure for young children.
  4. De Los Reyes, A., & Kazdin, A. E. (2005). Informant discrepancies in the assessment of childhood psychopathology. Psychological Bulletin, 131(4), 483–509.We cite it only for the finding that a parent's view of a child and the child's own view often differ. The title uses clinical terms because the study was done in clinical settings.
  5. Diamond, A., & Lee, K. (2011). Interventions shown to aid executive function development in children 4 to 12 years old. Science, 333(6045), 959–964.
  6. Dunn, W. (1997). The impact of sensory processing abilities on the daily lives of young children and their families: A conceptual model. Infants & Young Children, 9(4), 23–35.
  7. Eisenberg, N., Smith, C. L., & Spinrad, T. L. (2011). Effortful control: Relations with emotion regulation, adjustment, and socialization in childhood. In K. D. Vohs & R. F. Baumeister (Eds.), Handbook of Self-Regulation (2nd ed.). Guilford Press.
  8. Hidi, S., & Renninger, K. A. (2006). The four-phase model of interest development. Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 111–127.
  9. Kagan, J., & Snidman, N. (2004). The Long Shadow of Temperament. Harvard University Press.A book summarizing decades of the author's follow-up studies of children, starting in infancy.
  10. Kochanska, G., Murray, K. T., & Harlan, E. T. (2000). Effortful control in early childhood: Continuity and change, antecedents, and implications for social development. Developmental Psychology, 36(2), 220–232.Followed toddlers from 9 to 33 months. It does not follow children into school age.
  11. Pluess, M., Assary, E., Lionetti, F., Lester, K. J., Krapohl, E., Aron, E. N., & Aron, A. (2018). Environmental sensitivity in children: Development of the Highly Sensitive Child Scale and identification of sensitivity groups. Developmental Psychology, 54(1), 51–70.Developed with older children and teenagers (about age 8 and up). We use it for the idea that sensitivity differs from child to child, not as a scale for younger children.
  12. Roberts, B. W., & DelVecchio, W. F. (2000). The rank-order consistency of personality traits from childhood to old age: A quantitative review of longitudinal studies. Psychological Bulletin, 126(1), 3–25.
  13. Rothbart, M. K. (2011). Becoming Who We Are: Temperament and Personality in Development. Guilford Press.A book by the researcher behind the questionnaires, summarizing the research.
  14. Rothbart, M. K., Ahadi, S. A., Hershey, K. L., & Fisher, P. (2001). Investigations of temperament at three to seven years: The Children's Behavior Questionnaire. Child Development, 72(5), 1394–1408.A parent-report questionnaire for ages 3 to 7. Our questions for ages 3 to 7 follow its scales, in our own wording.
  15. Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78.
  16. Simonds, J., & Rothbart, M. K. (2004). The Temperament in Middle Childhood Questionnaire (TMCQ): A computerized self-report measure of temperament for ages 7–10. Occasional Temperament Conference, Athens, GA.A self-report questionnaire for ages 7 to 10. Our questions for ages 8 to 10 follow its scales, in our own wording.
  17. Soto, C. J. (2016). The Little Six personality dimensions from early childhood to early adulthood: Mean-level age and gender differences in parents' reports. Journal of Personality, 84(4), 409–422.Uses parents' reports across childhood and adolescence.
  18. Thomas, A., & Chess, S. (1977). Temperament and Development. Brunner/Mazel.A book reporting the New York Longitudinal Study, which began in the 1950s.

Research behind the "More moments" page

Page 2 of the printable card lists moments that may come up, with a few ideas for each. Under each moment it says how much the ideas rest on research. "Related research supports" means we found studies of the same or a closely related practice, sometimes in a different age group or in children with developmental differences. "Common practice" means the idea is widely used but we did not find research that tests it directly. These grades are our own read of the research, set conservatively, and have not yet been checked by an outside reviewer. Where a study is not about typical children aged 3 to 10, the note says so.

  1. AFIRM Visual Supports Brief Packet, 2024 update, UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute; based on the 2020 NCAEP systematic review (Steinbrenner et al.). linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support. Practitioner guidance or a summary, not a new study.
  2. Baum KT, Desai A, Field J, Miller LE, Rausch J, Beebe DW. Sleep restriction worsens mood and emotion regulation in adolescents. J Child Psychol Psychiatry, 2014. link
  3. Bayer, J.K., Rapee, R.M., Hiscock, H., Ukoumunne, O.C., Mihalopoulos, C., Clifford, S., & Wake, M. (2011). The Cool Little Kids randomised controlled trial: population-level early prevention for anxiety disorders. BMC Public Health. link
  4. Benzing, V., Chang, Y.-K., & Schmidt, M. (2018). Acute physical activity enhances executive functions in children with ADHD. Scientific Reports. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  5. Brewer, A. T., Strickland-Cohen, M. K., Dotson, W. H., & Williams, D. C. (2014). Advance notice for transition-related problem behavior: Practice guidelines. Behavior Analysis in Practice. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  6. Burkhardt, Röösli & Müller (2024). The Tuning in to Kids parenting program delivered online improves emotion socialization and child behavior in a first randomized controlled trial. Scientific Reports. link
  7. Cooper, H., Robinson, J. C., & Patall, E. A. (2006). Does homework improve academic achievement? A synthesis of research, 1987-2003. Review of Educational Research, 76(1), 1-62. link
  8. Costa A, Oliveira A (2023) Parental Feeding Practices and Children's Eating Behaviours: An Overview of Their Complex Relationship. Healthcare (Basel). link
  9. Dettmer, Simpson, Myles & Ganz (2000). The use of visual supports to facilitate transitions of students with autism. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  10. Donaldson, C., Moore, G., & Hawkins, J. (2023). A systematic review of school transition interventions to improve mental health and wellbeing outcomes in children and young people. School Mental Health, 15(1), 19-35. link
  11. Ellyn Satter Institute, How long should kids stay at the table? (web article, practitioner guidance; date not shown). linkPractitioner guidance or a summary, not a new study.
  12. Emen Parlatan M, Sigirtmac AD. Preschool children's behaviours in competitive games. Early Child Development and Care, 2022;192(14):2200-2212. link
  13. Everett, G. E., Olmi, D. J., Edwards, R. P., & Tingstrom, D. H. (2005). The contributions of eye contact and contingent praise to effective instruction delivery in compliance training. Education and Treatment of Children, 28(1). linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  14. Evidence-based interventions targeted at behavioral inhibition, shyness, and anxious withdrawal during the preschool years: A rapid review. Current Psychology, 2023. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  15. Fiorilli, G., et al. (2021). Impact of active breaks in the classroom on mathematical performance and attention in elementary school children. Healthcare. link
  16. Frankel, F. & Mintz, J. (2011). Maternal reports of play dates of clinic referred and community children. Journal of Child and Family Studies. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  17. Gebre et al. Child routines moderate a brief behavioral intervention to enhance sleep in school-aged children. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 2024. link
  18. Gruber R, Cassoff J, Frenette S, Wiebe S, Carrier J. Impact of sleep extension and restriction on children's emotional lability and impulsivity. Pediatrics, 2012;130(5):e1155-e1161. link
  19. Gunderson EA, Gripshover SJ, Romero C, Dweck CS, Goldin-Meadow S, Levine SC. Parent praise to 1- to 3-year-olds predicts children's motivational frameworks 5 years later. Child Development, 2013;84(5):1526-1541. link
  20. Hale L, Guan S. Screen time and sleep among school-aged children and adolescents: a systematic literature review. Sleep Medicine Reviews, 2015;21:50-58. link
  21. Hiniker, Suh, Cao & Kientz (2016). Screen Time Tantrums: How Families Manage Screen Media Experiences for Toddlers and Preschoolers. CHI 2016 (ACM). link
  22. Johnson SL, Ryan SM, Kroehl M, Moding KJ, Boles RE, Bellows LL (2019) Colorado LEAP study. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. link
  23. Jovanovic, J. (2011). Saying goodbye: an investigation into parent-infant separation behaviours on arrival in childcare. Child Care in Practice, 17(3), 247-269. link
  24. Kagan, J., Reznick, J.S., & Snidman, N. (1987). The physiology and psychology of behavioral inhibition in children. Child Development. link
  25. Karagiannaki K, Ritz C, Jensen M, et al. (2021) Optimising Repeated Exposure: Determining Optimal Exposure Frequency for Introducing a Novel Vegetable among Children. Foods 10(5):913. link
  26. Kim, Ravichandran, Moeyaert, Ditzler, Ryan & Fienup (2026). Interventions for transition-related challenging behavior in individuals with disabilities: targeted research synthesis and meta-analysis. Behavior Modification 50(3). linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  27. Knight V, Sartini E, Spriggs AD. Evaluating visual activity schedules as evidence-based practice for individuals with autism spectrum disorders. J Autism Dev Disord, 2015 (online 2014). linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  28. Kushnir J, Sadeh A. Assessment of brief interventions for nighttime fears in preschool children. European Journal of Pediatrics, 2012. link
  29. Liang (2025). CHECK Visual Schedules to Support Individuals on the Autism Spectrum. Intervention in School and Clinic 60(4). linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  30. Mahar, M. T., Murphy, S. K., Rowe, D. A., Golden, J., Shields, A. T., & Raedeke, T. D. (2006). Effects of a classroom-based program on physical activity and on-task behavior. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 38, 2086-2094. link
  31. McDonald, E., & Ardoin, S. P. (2007). Interspersing easy math problems among challenging problems: Detection of interspersal effects in whole-class applications. Journal of Behavioral Education. link
  32. Menting ATA, Orobio de Castro B, Matthys W. Effectiveness of the Incredible Years parent training to modify disruptive and prosocial child behavior: a meta-analytic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 2013. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  33. Mindell JA, Li AM, Sadeh A, Kwon R, Goh DYT. Bedtime routines for young children: a dose-dependent association with sleep outcomes. Sleep, 2015;38(5). link
  34. Mindell JA, Telofski LS, Wiegand B, Kurtz ES. A nightly bedtime routine: impact on sleep in young children and maternal mood. Sleep, 2009. link
  35. Mindell JA, Williamson AA. Benefits of a bedtime routine in young children: sleep, development, and beyond. Sleep Medicine Reviews (online Nov 2017; vol 40). link
  36. Muniz EI, Silver EJ, Stein REK. Family routines and social-emotional school readiness among preschool-age children. J Dev Behav Pediatr, 2014. link
  37. Nagata et al. (2024). Associations between media parenting practices and early adolescent screen use. Pediatric Research. link
  38. Paruthi S et al. Recommended amount of sleep for pediatric populations (AASM consensus). Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 2016. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support. Practitioner guidance or a summary, not a new study.
  39. Patall, E. A., Cooper, H., & Robinson, J. C. (2008). Parent involvement in homework: A research synthesis. Review of Educational Research, 78(4). link
  40. Ross, K. (2023). Assessing the contributions of proximity to effective instruction delivery. Master's thesis, University of Southern Mississippi. linkPractitioner guidance or a summary, not a new study.
  41. Rubin, K.H., Burgess, K.B., & Hastings, P.D. (2002). Stability and social-behavioral consequences of toddlers' inhibited temperament and parenting behaviors. Child Development, 73(2), 483-495. link
  42. Sayar, K., Gulboy, E., Yucesoy-Ozkan, S., & Baran, M. S. (2024). High-probability request sequence to increase compliance of children with autism spectrum disorder: A meta-analysis. Behavioral Disorders, 50(1). linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  43. Shogren, Faggella-Luby, Bae & Wehmeyer (2004). The effect of choice-making as an intervention for problem behavior: a meta-analysis. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions 6(4), 228-237. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  44. Spill MK, Callahan EH, Shapiro MJ, et al. (USDA Nutrition Evidence Systematic Review), Repeated Exposure to Foods and Early Food Acceptance: A Systematic Review, 2019. 21 articles (14 RCTs). link
  45. Steinbrenner JR et al. Evidence-based practices for children, youth, and young adults with autism. UNC Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, National Clearinghouse on Autism Evidence and Practice, 2020. linkStudied in a related group (for example, children with developmental differences), so we use it as related support.
  46. Stephenson, K. M., & Hanley, G. P. (2010). Preschoolers' compliance with simple instructions: A descriptive and experimental evaluation. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. link
  47. Tomaso CC, Johnson AB, Nelson TD. The effect of sleep deprivation and restriction on mood, emotion, and emotion regulation: three meta-analyses in one. Sleep, 2021;44(6):zsaa289. link
  48. Tuning in to Kids program summary, California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare (CEBC). Lists RCTs by Havighurst et al. (2009-2015), Duncombe et al. (2016), Edrissi et al. (2019), Chan et al. (2021); CEBC scientific rating 2. linkPractitioner guidance or a summary, not a new study.
  49. Watson, A., Timperio, A., Brown, H., Best, K., & Hesketh, K. D. (2017). Effect of classroom-based physical activity interventions on academic and physical activity outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity. link
  50. Zhu D, Lozada FT, Smith CL, Bell MA, Dunsmore JC. Maternal emotion coaching and child emotion regulation: within-interaction sequences in early childhood. Affective Science, 2025. link

Books for parents

These are practical guides. We use them for ideas to try. They are not research findings.

  1. Greene, R. W. (2014). The Explosive Child (5th ed.). Harper. — "kids do well if they can."A book of practical guidance for parents. We cite it for an idea to try, not as a research finding.
  2. Siegel, D. J., & Bryson, T. P. (2011). The Whole-Brain Child. Delacorte.A book of practical guidance for parents. We cite it for an idea to try, not as a research finding.
  3. Faber, A., & Mazlish, E. (1987). Siblings Without Rivalry. W. W. Norton.Source of the idea that brothers and sisters can get stuck in roles. A practical guide, not research.

Methods our questions borrow from

  1. Flanagan, J. C. (1954). The critical incident technique. Psychological Bulletin, 51(4), 327–358.The idea behind asking about one real, specific moment instead of a general rating.
  2. Magaña, A. B., Goldstein, M. J., Karno, M., Miklowitz, D. J., Jenkins, J., & Falloon, I. R. H. (1986). A brief method for assessing expressed emotion in relatives of psychiatric patients. Psychiatry Research, 17(3), 203–212.The idea behind asking a parent to speak freely for a few minutes. The title uses clinical terms; we do not use the method for anything clinical.
  3. King, G., Murray, C. J. L., Salomon, J. A., & Tandon, A. (2004). Enhancing the validity and cross-cultural comparability of measurement in survey research. American Political Science Review, 98(1), 191–207.The idea behind describing a short example and asking where your child sits compared with it.

Found a mistake in a citation? Tell us at info@howtheyrewired.com.