Comparative and Individual Perspectives on Mother-Infant Interactions with People and Objects among South Koreans, Korean Americans, and European Americans.

Comparative and individual acculturation of mother and infant person-directed and object-directed behaviors and interactions were investigated among 183 South Korean, Korean American, and European American mothers and their 5½-month-old infants. We analyzed and compared mean levels in mothers' and infants' person- and object-directed behaviors and partner responsiveness and initiation of these behaviors in dyads in the three cultural groups. Among Korean American dyads, we also analyzed individual-level variation in the acculturation of these behaviors and interactions. This study reveals how contrasting South Korean and European American cultural values are embedded and manifested in early mother-infant interactions and how cultural values from South Korean origin and European American destination cultures are interwoven in Korean American mother-infant interactions.

The Acculturation of Parenting Cognitions: A Comparison of South Korean, Korean Immigrant, and European American Mothers.

A three-culture comparison - native South Korean, Korean immigrants to the United States, and native European American mothers - of two types of parenting cognitions - attributions and self-perceptions - was undertaken to explore cultural contributions to parenting cognitions and their adaptability among immigrant mothers. Attributions and self-perceptions of parenting were chosen because they influence parenting behavior and children's development and vary cross-culturally. One hundred seventy-nine mothers of 20-month-old children participated: 73 South Korean, 50 Korean immigrant, and 56 European American. Korean mothers differed from European American mothers on four of the five types of attributions studied and on all four self-perceptions of parenting, and these differences were largely consistent with the distinct cultural values of South Korea and the United States. Generally, Korean immigrant mothers' attributions for parenting more closely resembled those of mothers in the United States, whereas their self-perceptions of parenting more closely resembled those of mothers in South Korea. This study provides insight into similarities and differences in cultural models of parenting, and information about the acculturation of parenting cognitions among immigrants from South Korea.

CHILD AND MOTHER PLAY IN SOUTH KOREA: A LONGITUDINAL STUDY ACROSS THE SECOND YEAR OF LIFE.

Play is a predominant individual and social activity of early childhood and has been related to young children's early cognitive growth, social development, and preparation for formal schooling. We examined individual differences and developmental changes in South Korean child and mother exploratory and symbolic play longitudinally when children were 13 and 20 months of age. Children engaged in less exploratory and more symbolic play when playing collaboratively with their mothers than when playing alone. Children engaged in more symbolic play at 20 months than 13 months. Child solitary and collaborative symbolic play was modestly stable across time, but child exploratory play and maternal play were not. Child solitary and collaborative symbolic play were correlated across the two ages. Child and mother play were regularly associated at the two ages, and 13-month maternal play predicted 20-month child collaborative play. The cross-cultural validity of play is affirmed, and individual differences and age-related changes in child and mother play are partly mediated by matched partner play and partly motivated by processes independent of partner play.