Bidirectional influences in mother–toddler dyads: an examination of the relative influence of mothers' and children's behaviours

✍ Scribed by Tamara Del Vecchio; Kimberly A. Rhoades

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 113 KB
• Volume: 19
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1522-7227
• DOI: 10.1002/icd.674

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

This study examined bidirectional relationship between mothers' lax and overreactive discipline and children's misbehaviour and negative effect. We examined the moment‐to‐moment stability of mothers' and children's behaviours (actor effects) and mothers' and children's influence on their partners' subsequent behaviours (partner effects). Participants were 71 mothers and their 24‐ to 48‐month‐old children observed during a 30‐min interaction. Both children and mothers exhibited stability in their own behaviours and influenced the subsequent behaviours of their partners. Additionally, a comparison of partner effects indicated that overreactive discipline more strongly predicted child's negative effect than child's negative effect predicted overreactive discipline. In contrast, although a child's negative effect predicted lax discipline, lax discipline did not predict subsequent child's negative effect. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.