Physical maltreatment is a public health issue affecting millions of children in their lifetime, with a high risk of recurrency. Although there are several parenting programs (PPs) available, existing reviews on their effectiveness in preventing physical abuse recurrences have many limitations. The current systematic review aims at (1) providing a summary of evidence on the effectiveness of behavioral/cognitive–behavioral PPs in preventing physical re-abuse; (2) extending previous reviews by including reduction of child maltreatment recurrence as the main outcome but also focusing on the effect of PPs on maltreatment risk, parent and child psychopathology, and parent–child relationship; and (3) including only RCT with at least one follow-up. A PRISMA-compliant systematic review was performed in the EBSCOhost and PUBMED databases. In total, 93 articles were identified, of which 8 were included in the review. Among them, three reported a significant reduction in recidivism rates and maltreatment risk, and five improvements in parent–child relationships. Although limitations arise from methodological heterogeneity across studies, there is some evidence that some brief and manualized cognitive behavioral PPs can reduce the recurrence of child physical maltreatment and improve parent–child relationships. More studies are needed to give further support to PP effectiveness in protecting children from recurrent maltreatment.

Although heritability estimates suggest a role for genetic components, environmental risk factors have been described as relevant in the etiology of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Several studies have investigated the role of toxicological pollution, i.e., air pollution, heavy metals, POPs, and phthalates. Clear evidence for association of ADHD and environmental factors has not been provided yet. To answer this, we have assessed all available systematic reviews and meta-analyses that focused on the association between pollutant exposure and either ADHD diagnosis or symptoms. More than 1800 studies were screened of which 14 found eligible. We found evidence of a significant role for some pollutants, in particular heavy metals and phthalates, in the increased risk of developing ADHD symptoms. However, at the current stage, data from existing literature also do not allow to weight the role of the different environmental pollutants. We also offer a critical examination of the reviews/meta-analyses and provide indications for future studies in this field. PROSPERO registration: CRD42022341496

It is still unclear whether and to what extent the motor difficulties are specific to autism. This study aimed to determine whether a multimodal assessment of motor skills could accurately discriminate autistic children from attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and typically developing (TD) peers. Seventy‐five children, aged 7–13, equally divided into three groups, were assessed with the developmental coordination disorder questionnaire (DCDQ), the movement assessment battery for children 2 (MABC2), the sensorimotor subtests of NEPSY‐II, and the kinematic analysis of a reach‐to‐drop task. Principal component analysis (PCA) on DCDQ subscales revealed one factor—Caregiver Report—, whereas MABC2/NEPSY‐II scores identified three factors—namely, Object Interception and Balance, Motor Imitation, and Fine‐Motor Skills—. Lastly, PCA on kinematic variables identified four factors: PC1, loaded by the parameters of velocity and acceleration throughout the task, PC2 and PC3 involved the temporal parameters of the two submovements, and PC4 accounted for the wrist inclination at ball drop. When comparing autistic and TD children, Caregiver Report and Motor Imitation factors predicted membership with 87.2% of accuracy. In the model comparing ADHD and TD groups, Caregiver Report and Fine‐Motor Skills predicted membership with an accuracy of 73.5%. In the last model, the Object Interception and Balance factor differentiated autistic children from ADHD with an accuracy of 73.5%. In line with our previous findings, kinematics did not differentiate school‐aged autistic children from ADHD and TD peers. The present findings show that specific motor profiles in autism and ADHD can be isolated with a multimodal investigation of motor skills.

Ethnic minority and Indigenous youth represent particularly vulnerable populations for involvement in cyberbullying. The existing literature is marked by conceptual confusion and methodological heterogeneity, highlighting the need for a scoping review to map current research in this area. This systematic scoping review provides an overview of empirical research conducted worldwide on cyberbullying involving ethnic minorities and Indigenous children and adolescents, with the goal of informing future research and offering relevant implications for interventions. The review was conducted in accordance with JBI guidelines, and results were reported following the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews). The following databases were searched: Academic Search Premier, ERIC, PsychINFO (OVID), PubMed, Scopus, SocINDEX, Web of Science, Medline, and ProQuest. The review included peer-reviewed studies published in English, involving children and adolescents (participants’ mean age below 18 years) identified as ethnic minorities or Indigenous, and reporting data on cyberbullying related to ethnicity or indigeneity. Following a two-stage screening process, 166 articles were selected for inclusion. Findings suggest that research on this topic is expanding. However, literature remains characterized by limited geographical coverage, underrepresentation of ethnic and Indigenous groups, scarce contextual and theoretical positionality, and a predominance of quantitative approaches. A lack of intervention studies and of research addressing identity-based cyberbullying and perpetration is evident. By disentangling and focusing on the role of ethnicity and indigeneity in cyberbullying, this scoping review represents a crucial step toward guiding future research focusing on the development of contextually responsive prevention and intervention strategies.

Although heritability estimates suggest a role for genetic components, environmental risk factors have been described as relevant in the etiology of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Over the last years several studies have investigated the role of toxicological pollution, i.e. the potential in ADHD role of chemical environmental risk factors as air pollution, heavy metals, POPs, and phthalates. Clear evidence for association of ADHD and environmental factors has not been provided yet. To answer this, we have assessed all available systematic reviews and meta-analyses that focused on the association between pollutants exposure and either ADHD diagnosis or symptoms. More than 1800 studies were screened of which 14 found eligible. We found evidence of a significant role for some pollutants, in particular heavy metals and phthalates, in the increased risk of developing ADHD symptoms. However, at the current stage, data from existing literature also do not allow to weight the role of the different environmental pollutants. We also offer a critical examination of the reviews/meta-analyses, with particular respect to their methodological quality, and provide indications for future studies in this field.