Two EEG-responses to periodical auditory 40-Hz stimulation – auditory steady-state response (ASSR) and sustained wave (SW) – are important neurophysiological correlates of temporal and spectral aspects of auditory perception, respectively. However, little is known about the sex difference of their development in children of 3–6 years, the period of extensive language acquisition. We registered a 32-channel electroencephalogram (EEG) while 500-ms 40-Hz click trains (n = 150) were presented to 57 typically developing children (27 females). We also assessed total language skill, expressive and receptive speech abilities, the perception of speech in noise and pseudowords repetition. 40-Hz ASSR was not very clearly expressed in our sample but showed developmental increase for both boys and girls. Topography of SW showed significant right-hemisphere predominance in boys, while girls had more symmetric response. On a subsample of boys (n = 14) we also found that the laterality index of SW correlated with speech in noise repetition score: the greater rightwarded the laterality was, the worse boys repeated words in noise. Our results are also consistent with the findings of greater lateralization of some components of EEG-activity in men.

Rise time (RT) is considered to be one of the most significant acoustical characteristics of auditory speech stimuli. A substantial amount of data has been accumulated on the neurophysiological mechanisms of RT processing under different conditions and in different groups of people, but these data have not been systematised. This review focuses on studies that have investigated electroencephalographic (EEG) markers of RT sensitivity. The present literature search was conducted according to the PRISMA statement in PubMed, Web of Science and APA PsychInfo databases. The resultant review comprised 37 studies that considered diverse aspects of RT processing. The review describes the main stimulation parameters affecting electrophysiological markers of RT processing reflected in different components of event-related potentials, brainstem responses and cortical rhythmic activity. The main finding of this review is that the rise time prolongation leads to a decrease in the amplitude of the main ERP components and an increase in their latencies. However, the sensitivity of the EEG markers varied with the earliest components tracking the subtle difference (few tens of microseconds), while the later components coding the larger one (up to 500 ms). Nevertheless, the observed effects may vary and depend on some aspects of the experimental paradigm, age of participants and speech-related problems. Future research may benefit by addressing understudied clinical groups and ERP components such as P1 and N2, dominated in children.

Early institutional care (IC; orphanage) is a severe form of early psychosocial deprivation with documented long-term effects on social and caregiving functioning. Despite longstanding interest in oxytocin (OT) as a key neuroendocrine modulator of affiliative behavior and stress, OT dynamics and synchrony during mother-child interaction among mothers with IC history remain poorly understood. To our knowledge, this is the first study to characterize maternal and child OT responses and dyadic OT covariation in this population. We measured salivary OT in mothers with IC history and mothers raised in biological family care (BFC), and in their children, at baseline and after a structured mother-child interaction. OT response was defined as post-interaction OT after accounting for baseline OT. The sample included 53 mothers (36 BFC; 17 IC) and 44 children (32 BFC; 12 IC). Baseline and post-interaction OT levels did not differ between maternal groups in either dyadic member. However, statistically significant pre-post decline was revealed in BFC mothers but not IC mothers. Maternal OT response differed by maternal IC history: baseline OT predicted OT response among IC mothers but not among BFC mothers, and between-group differences in OT response were detectable primarily at average-to-higher (z ≥ -0.19) baseline OT, with a flatter pattern of baseline-to-post decrease in IC mothers than in BFC mothers at higher baseline OT. After accounting for baseline OT, children of IC mothers had lower post-interaction OT than children of BFC mothers; maternal age and depressive symptoms also contributed to child OT response variability. Dyad-level analyses indexed OT synchrony as correlation-based covariation between maternal and child OT measures and provided suggestive evidence of synchrony in BFC dyads at baseline and for OT response, whereas comparable correlations were not detected in IC dyads; between-group contrasts in these correlation-based indices were not consistently significant. Together, these findings extend IC research into an intergenerational parenting context and identify baseline-dependent maternal OT response and child OT response as candidate targets for replication in larger, multimodal studies integrating behavioral measures and stress physiology.

The authors describe the application of various approaches to the assessment of child language development reviewing the methods most widely used in research and clinical practice. The review outlines the benefits and some limitations of longitudinal method of assessment using language recordings, language corpus analysis and transcripts of speech samples. Technical aspects of the linguistic environment recordings using LENA technology, which allows to achieve ecologic validity in the assessment of children’s language environment, are considered. Analysis of the corpus data through the transcription of the dialogues between children and adults are discussed, as well as the study of linguistic parameters of child speech in comparison to a normative group of peers. The authors offer a review of the most widely known parent reports, questionnaires, and maximum performance testing of children’s language development. Among the assessment tools available for Russian-speaking populations McArthur-Bates CDI and PLS-5 are reviewed. The authors note an importance of integration of Russian research into the international scientific knowledgebase through the adaptation of methods for assessment of language development in children.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition marked by heterogeneity in presentation. In recent decades, ASD prevalence has risen globally, yet data from non-Western and middle-income countries, including Russia, remain scarce. Official statistics report a prevalence of 0.41 per 1000 (0.041%), far below global estimates of 32.2 per 1000 (3.2%), indicating underdiagnosis. This study provides the first population-based estimate of ASD prevalence among Russian elementary school children and examines barriers to diagnosis and treatment. The study followed a two-phase epidemiological approach. ASD identification used standardized instruments (SCQ, ADOS-2, ADI-R). The target population included all students in grades 1–3 (n = 34 847), stratified into mainstream, special education, and resource classes. ASD prevalence was estimated using Bayesian regression correcting for screening misclassification. The estimated ASD prevalence was 22.2 per 1000 children (95% CIs: 18.6–36.0), substantially exceeding what is reported based on the RF administrative data. The diagnostic phase had a 25.6% participation rate. ASD was more frequently identified in students from special education and resource classes than in general education settings. A Bayesian sensitivity analysis confirmed the robustness of prevalence estimates across plausible values for sensitivity and specificity. These findings suggest that ASD prevalence in Russia is considerably underestimated via administrative data. Systemic barriers—including limited access to diagnostic services and stigma surrounding psychiatric labels—may hinder ASD identification. Addressing these challenges is essential for improving early detection and service provision in Russia and similar contexts.

Rise time (RT) is a critical acoustic feature of speech, implicated in typical and atypical language development. While a substantial amount of data has been accumulated on the neurophysiological evidence of RT processing across different conditions and groups of people, these data have not been systematized. This systematic review, conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines across PubMed, Web of Science and APA PsychInfo databases, focuses on studies that have investigated electroencephalographic (EEG) markers of RT sensitivity in humans. A total of 37 studies were identified that manipulated RT and examined different components of event-related potentials (ERPs), brainstem responses, and cortical rhythmic activity. The core finding is consistent across studies: RT prolongation reduces the amplitudes of brain responses and increases their latencies. However, the sensitivity of the EEG markers varied along the auditory hierarchy with the earliest components tracking subtle differences (a few tens of microseconds), while the later components coding the larger changes (up to 500 ms). Effects are further modulated by the experimental parameters, participant age, and speech-related problems, while limited pediatric research, considerable methodological heterogeneity and predominantly small sample sizes limit the clear conclusions on these modulations. Future research should prioritize understudied clinical populations and developmental ERP components such as P1 and N2, which are dominant in children.