Abstract:   Developmental cascades have become a new theoretical perspective and a study design strategy for developmental research in recent years. Development is conceptualized as a process of persistent cascade effects among various developmental factors over time. Specifically, developmental cascades postulate that the development level of a certain factor at a particular time point will affect subsequent development of its own, and will spill over to influence development of other domains as well. As a result, the entire follow-up processes of individual development are influenced. Researchers developed statistic models according to the theoretical rationales of the developmental cascades. These statistical models provide methodological guidelines for investigating longitudinal associations among multiple factors in developmental systems. This literature review introduced the development cascades in terms of the related concepts, theoretical basis and rationale, and the methodological issues, and was concluded with insights for the future research.

Key words:  developmental cascades, cascade effects, cross-lagged panel modeling, longitudinal study