Bridging Racial, Economic, and Intersectional Equity Gaps in Developmental and Educational Psychology: The Key Roles of Caregivers and Early Childhood Interventions and Approaches

  • 189

    Total views and downloads

Participate in this topic

Submit your idea

You will be redirected to our submission process.

Submit your manuscript summarySubmit your manuscript

About this Research Topic

Submission deadlines

  1. Manuscript Summary Submission Deadline 7 May 2025 | Manuscript Submission Deadline 25 August 2025

  2. This Research Topic is still accepting articles.

    1. Check author guidelines

Background

Disparities in developmental and educational outcomes encompassing race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, language, and disability persist in the United States and globally. Relations of power and oppression are reproduced in developmental science, as those from advantaged groups tend to be overrepresented in developmental psychology research; in ideologies of health and wellness versus pathology; and in theories, interventions, and policies that promote for healthy development. Inequities in access to resources, experiences of racism and discrimination, and socio-cultural orientation - often determined by race, class, and language - profoundly impact children’s development, health, and learning. Systemic barriers and economic factors amplify these disparities, significantly affecting caregiver well-being and influencing children’s learning opportunities, academic achievement, and physical, socio-emotional, and mental health. A comprehensive understanding of anti-racist and decolonial theories and methods should improve representation of the Global Majority in developmental science and address these persistent disparities in developmental and educational outcomes.

This Research Topic aims to highlight and address the racial, socioeconomic status, language, disability, and other/intersectional equity gaps in developmental psychology, particularly underscoring the role of caregiver and child health and well-being, spanning the prenatal period through adolescence. In particular, this Research Topic seeks to comprehensively examine research theories, methods, and evidence that are intentionally strengths- and assets-based by scrutinizing the limitations of dominant interventions, approaches, strategies, and programs that overlook and/or pathologize the family environment, socio-cultural contexts, and systemic barriers that racially, economically, and intersectionally diverse children and families negotiate.

The following subthemes outline the scope of the collection:
- Innovative, contextual strategies and policies that enhance racial equity in developmental and educational outcomes.
- Contributions focusing on the multi-systemic nature of racism, oppression, and marginalization, including racial and gender bias and class-based economic inequality related to caregiver health and well-being.
- Evaluations of early childhood education, adult-child relationships, parent-teacher partnerships, and interventions fostering equity in developmental and educational outcomes and addressing racial and gender bias.
- Assessments of the heterogeneous impacts of caregiver-, family-, and child-centered interventions based on race, class, and gender.
- Innovations that view linguistic heterogeneity from a strengths-based lens and account for intersections with race, ethnicity, class, and culture to promote linguistic justice in developmental and educational outcomes.
- Understandings of learning disabilities within the context of race and equity.
- Descriptions of critical and transformative conceptual, theoretical, and methodological frameworks in developmental and educational psychology research and praxis.

This Research Topic will significantly contribute to the development of anti-racist, decolonial, and equitable systems, policies, and programs that advance optimal developmental outcomes and educational excellence for children, from the prenatal period through adolescence, by attending to structures and processes of inequities and by amplifying the cultural wealth of intersectionally diverse families, such as their aspirations, social capital, and perseverance. Submissions may present critical and transformative conceptual and/or theoretical frameworks, analyze new data, or reanalyze older data, and/or focus on an assets-based intervention or innovating findings, with a mandatory focus on mothers/caregivers in given contexts.

Types of manuscripts that are encouraged include: Original research, Systematic review, Brief research report, Registered Report, Study Protocol, Mini Review, Policy and Practice Reviews, Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

  • Brief Research Report
  • Case Report
  • Clinical Trial
  • Conceptual Analysis
  • Data Report
  • Editorial
  • General Commentary
  • Hypothesis and Theory
  • Methods

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

  • Brief Research Report
  • Case Report
  • Clinical Trial
  • Conceptual Analysis
  • Data Report
  • Editorial
  • General Commentary
  • Hypothesis and Theory
  • Methods
  • Mini Review
  • Opinion
  • Original Research
  • Perspective
  • Policy and Practice Reviews
  • Registered Report
  • Review
  • Systematic Review
  • Technology and Code

Keywords: equity, Anti-racism, Maternal Health, Early Childhood, Early Learning

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

Topic editors

Frequently asked questions

  • Frontiers' Research Topics are collaborative hubs built around an emerging theme.Defined, managed, and led by renowned researchers, they bring communities together around a shared area of interest to stimulate collaboration and innovation.

    Unlike section journals, which serve established specialty communities, Research Topics are pioneer hubs, responding to the evolving scientific landscape and catering to new communities.

  • The goal of Frontiers' publishing program is to empower research communities to actively steer the course of scientific publishing. Our program was implemented as a three-part unit with fixed field journals, flexible specialty sections, and dynamically emerging Research Topics, connecting communities of different sizes and maturity.

    Research Topics originate from the scientific community. Many of our Research Topics are suggested by existing editorial board members who have identified critical challenges or areas of interest in their field.

  • As an editor, Research Topics will help you build your journal, as well as your community, around emerging, cutting-edge research. As research trailblazers, Research Topics attract high-quality submissions from leading experts all over the world.

    A thriving Research Topic can potentially evolve into a new specialty section if there is sustained interest and a growing community around it.

  • Each Research Topic must be approved by the specialty chief editor, and it falls under the editorial oversight of our editorial boards, supported by our in-house research integrity team. The same standards and rigorous peer review processes apply to articles published as part of a Research Topic as for any other article we publish.

    In 2023, 80% of the Research Topics we published were edited or co-edited by our editorial board members, who are already familiar with their journal's scope, ethos, and publishing model. All other topics are guest edited by leaders in their field, each vetted and formally approved by the specialty chief editor.

  • Publishing your article within a Research Topic with other related articles increases its discoverability and visibility, which can lead to more views, downloads, and citations. Research Topics grow dynamically as more published articles are added, causing frequent revisiting, and further visibility.

    As Research Topics are multidisciplinary, they are cross-listed in several fields and section journals – increasing your reach even more and giving you the chance to expand your network and collaborate with researchers in different fields, all focusing on expanding knowledge around the same important topic.

    Our larger Research Topics are also converted into ebooks and receive social media promotion from our digital marketing team.

     

  • Frontiers offers multiple article types, but it will depend on the field and section journals in which the Research Topic will be featured. The available article types for a Research Topic will appear in the drop-down menu during the submission process.

    Check available article types here 

  • Yes, we would love to hear your ideas for a topic. Most of our Research Topics are community-led and suggested by researchers in the field. Our in-house editorial team will contact you to talk about your idea and whether you’d like to edit the topic. If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. 

    Suggest your topic here 

  • A team of guest editors (called topic editors) lead their Research Topic. This editorial team oversees the entire process, from the initial topic proposal to calls for participation, the peer review, and final publications.

    The team may also include topic coordinators, who help the topic editors send calls for participation, liaise with topic editors on abstracts, and support contributing authors. In some cases, they can also be assigned as reviewers.

  • As a topic editor (TE), you will take the lead on all editorial decisions for the Research Topic, starting with defining its scope. This allows you to curate research around a topic that interests you, bring together different perspectives from leading researchers across different fields and shape the future of your field. 

     

    You will choose your team of co-editors, curate a list of potential authors, send calls for participation and oversee the peer review process, accepting or recommending rejection for each manuscript submitted.

  • As a topic editor, you're supported at every stage by our in-house team. You will be assigned a single point of contact to help you on both editorial and technical matters. Your topic is managed through our user-friendly online platform, and the peer review process is supported by our industry-first AI review assistant (AIRA).

  • If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. This provides you with valuable editorial experience, improving your ability to critically evaluate research articles and enhancing your understanding of the quality standards and requirements for scientific publishing, as well as the opportunity to discover new research in your field, and expand your professional network.

  • Yes, certificates can be issued on request. We are happy to provide a certificate for your contribution to editing a successful Research Topic.

  • Research Topics thrive on collaboration and their multi-disciplinary approach around emerging, cutting-edge themes, attract leading researchers from all over the world.

  • As a topic editor, you can set the timeline for your Research Topic, and we will work with you at your pace. Typically, Research Topics are online and open for submissions within a few weeks and remain open for participation for 6 – 12 months. Individual articles within a Research Topic are published as soon as they are ready.

    Find out more about our Research Topics

  • Our fee support program ensures that all articles that pass peer review, including those published in Research Topics, can benefit from open access – regardless of the author's field or funding situation.

    Authors and institutions with insufficient funding can apply for a discount on their publishing fees. A fee support application form is available on our website.

  • In line with our mission to promote healthy lives on a healthy planet, we do not provide printed materials. All our articles and ebooks are available under a CC-BY license, so you can share and print copies.

     

Manuscripts can be submitted to this Research Topic via the main journal or any other participating journal.

Submit your idea

You will be redirected to our submission process.

Submit your manuscript summarySubmit your manuscript

Impact

  • 189Topic views
View impact