ABSTRACT
Several theoretical approaches have discussed the role of children's expectations of their parent's responsiveness in explaining motivation to collaborate in acquiring skills. This study attempted to measure these expectations in 102 toddlers (M age = 26.4 months) through observations of attention-seeking (A-S) behaviors during caregiver's restricted availability. Child collaboration was coded during skill-learning tasks (imitation and block building), and parent responsiveness was observed during dyadic activities. Different A-S styles emerged, supporting the existence of both positive and negative expectations of responsiveness. A-S quality statistically mediated the link between parent responsiveness and child collaborative outcomes, even after controlling for temperament and mood. This is the first study to show that toddlers' expectations are a plausible mechanism linking parent responsiveness to child collaboration.
Subject(s)
Attention , Child Behavior , Cooperative Behavior , Mother-Child Relations , Motivation , Object Attachment , Socialization , Affect , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Imitative Behavior , Male , Maternal Behavior , Nonverbal Communication , TemperamentABSTRACT
Maternal depression is prevalent, and puts children at risk. Little evidence addresses whether treatment for maternal depression is sufficient to improve child outcomes. An experiment was conducted testing whether psychotherapeutic treatment for mothers, suffering from major depression in the postpartum period, would result in improved parenting and child outcomes. Participants included depressed women randomly assigned to interpersonal psychotherapy (n = 60) or to a waitlist (n = 60), and a nondepressed comparison group (n = 56). At 6 months, depressed mothers were less responsive to their infants, experienced more parenting stress, and viewed their infants more negatively than did nondepressed mothers. Treatment affected only parenting stress, which improved significantly but was still higher than that for nondepressed mothers. Eighteen months later, treated depressed mothers still rated their children lower in attachment security, higher in behavior problems, and more negative in temperament than nondepressed mothers. Initial response to treatment did not predict reduced risk for poor child outcomes. Early maternal negative perceptions of the child predicted negative temperament and behavior problems 18 months after treatment. Treatment for depression in the postpartum period should target the mother-infant relationship in addition to the mothers' depressive symptoms.
Subject(s)
Child of Impaired Parents/psychology , Depression, Postpartum/therapy , Depressive Disorder, Major/therapy , Mother-Child Relations , Psychotherapy , Child Behavior Disorders/diagnosis , Child Behavior Disorders/psychology , Child, Preschool , Depression, Postpartum/psychology , Depressive Disorder, Major/psychology , Emotions , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Infant , Male , Maternal Behavior/psychology , Object Attachment , Parenting/psychology , Personality Assessment , Risk Factors , TemperamentABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Research examining intergenerational transmission of psychopathology is often limited by reliance on the same individuals for information on multiple constructs of interest. To counteract this limitation, data from a prospective, longitudinal study of at-risk youth were analyzed to test the hypothesis that parenting and family environmental factors mediate the association between maternal depressive symptoms and offspring psychopathology in late adolescence. METHOD: Data were taken from 184 families of the Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Measures included the CES-D and Beck depression inventories, home environment ratings and a family conflict scale, and CBCL behavior problem checklist and K-SADS psychiatric symptom scores. Regression analyses were conducted to test for mediation of maternal depression effects by family environmental factors. RESULTS: Analyses using a single informant and time point showed evidence for substantial mediation; however, in analyses spanning independent informants and multiple time points mediating effects were markedly reduced. Sex differences were found, in that parenting and family environmental factors related to psychopathology for males, whereas maternal depression was more directly related to psychopathology for females. CONCLUSIONS: Results emphasize the importance of independent data for testing mediational claims, and support claims that the processes involved in the intergenerational transmission of psychopathology are different for male and female youth.
Subject(s)
Depression/psychology , Mental Disorders/psychology , Mothers/psychology , Parent-Child Relations , Adolescent , Child , Child, Preschool , Family/psychology , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Male , Mental Disorders/diagnosis , Prospective Studies , Psychological Tests , Psychology, Child , Social EnvironmentABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Associations between early mother-child mutually responsive orientation (MRO) and children's conscience have been previously established, but the mechanisms accounting for those links are not understood. We examined three such mediational mechanisms: (a) the child's enhanced enjoyment of interactions with the mother, (b) increased committed, self-regulated compliance with the mother, and/or (c) a decreased need for maternal use of power assertion. Children's conscience was seen as a complex system encompassing moral emotion (guilt), conduct, and cognition. METHODS: In a longitudinal design, MRO was observed in mothers' and children's multiple naturalistic interactions at 9, 14, and 22 months. The mediators were observed at 33 months. Children's conscience was observed at 45 months (moral emotion) and at 56 months (moral conduct and cognition). RESULTS: The mediating paths were different for the three components of conscience. MRO had a direct, unmediated effect on moral emotion. MRO influenced moral conduct through two mediational paths: by promoting the child's enjoyment of interactions with the mother and by enhancing committed compliance. MRO influenced moral cognition by promoting the child's enjoyment of mother-child interactions. Maternal power assertion did not mediate the relation between MRO and conscience once the influence of the other mediators was considered. CONCLUSIONS: The impact of the early mother-child relationship on future conscience appears to be a complex process that progresses along distinct paths.
Subject(s)
Child Development , Consciousness , Emotions , Models, Psychological , Mother-Child Relations , Child , Child Behavior , Child, Preschool , Cognition , Female , Humans , Infant , MaleABSTRACT
Imitation has long been considered a mechanism for the development of conscience. Despite the central role of imitation in theories of moral internalization, the prediction from imitation to moral behavior has not been tested using an individual differences approach. In a longitudinal design, we examined whether individual differences in toddlers' responsive imitation predict preschool-age conscience. Mothers modeled actions for their children to imitate, and both matching behavior and motivation were observed at 14 and 22 months of age. We also measured preschool conscience by observing children's internalized conduct and guilt at ages 33 and 45 months. Imitation measures consistently predicted conscience variables. These relations were strengthened by aggregation across measures and times of assessment. Motivation and matching behavior each contributed independent variance in predicting preschool-age conscience. Results are consistent with the claim that responsive imitation reflects a general receptive stance to parents' guidance, and with both neopsychoanalytic and social cognitive views of imitation's importance in early moral development.
