Mothers' personality and its interaction with child temperament as predictors of parenting behavior.

Abstract

In this longitudinal, multimethod investigation, the authors examined mothers' personality and its interaction with infants' negative emotionality as predictors of parenting behavior. When infants were 8-10 months old (N = 112), mothers completed personality self-reports, and the authors observed infants' negative emotionality in both standard procedures and naturalistic daily contexts. When infants were 13-15 months old (N = 108), the authors observed two aspects of parenting, power assertion and maternal responsiveness, in mother-child interactive contexts. Maternal personality alone and also in interaction with child emotionality predicted future parenting behaviors. The longitudinal links established between personality and parenting behaviors indicate the predictive utility of personality. Findings also highlight the bidirectionality of the early parent-child relationship.

Cites (74)

1. Multiple regression: testing and interpreting interactions
   1992 · Choice Reviews Online
2. Untitled work
   1978 · Medical Entomology and Zoology
3. Measuring individual differences in empathy: Evidence for a multidimensional approach.
   Davis, Mark H. · 1983 · Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
4. Socialization In The Context Of The Family: Parent-Child Interaction
   Eleanor Emmons Maccoby, John A. Martin · 1983
5. The Determinants of Parenting: A Process Model
   Jay Belsky · 1984 · Child Development
6. How People Make Their Own Environments: A Theory of Genotype Environment Effects
   Scarr, Sandra, McCartney, Kathleen · 1983 · Child Development
7. Sensitivity and attachment: A meta-analysis on parental antecedents of infant attachment
   De Wolff, Marianne S, van Ijzendoorn, Marinus H · 1997 · Child Development
8. Risk for psychopathology in the children of depressed mothers: A developmental model for understanding mechanisms of transmission.
   Goodman, Sherryl H., Gotlib, Ian H. · 1999 · Psychological Review
9. Children of depressed parents: An integrative review.
   Geraldine Downey, James C. Coyne · 1990 · Psychological Bulletin
10. Observing Interaction: An Introduction to Sequential Analysis
    Willson, Victor L., Bakeman, Roger, Gottman, John M. · 1988 · Journal of Educational Statistics

Show all 74 references

Cited by (11)

1. Personality differences in childhood and adolescence: Measurement development, and consequences
   Shiner, Rebecca, Caspi, Avshalom · 2003 · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry
2. Nature and nurturing: parenting in the context of child temperament
   Kiff, Cara J., Lengua, Liliana J., Zalewski, Maureen · 2011 · Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review
3. Guilt in Young Children: Development, Determinants, and Relations with a Broader System of Standards
   Kochanska, Grazyna, Gross, Jami N, Lin, Mei-Hua, Nichols, Kate E · 2002 · Child Development
4. Child Characteristics, Parenting Stress, and Parental Involvement: Fathers Versus Mothers
   McBride, Brent A., Schoppe, Sarah J., Rane, Thomas R. · 2002 · Journal of Marriage and Family
5. Genetic and Environmental Processes in Young Children's Resilience and Vulnerability to Socioeconomic Deprivation
   Kim-Cohen, Julia, Moffitt, Terrie E, Caspi, Avshalom, Taylor, Alan · 2004 · Child Development

See all 360