In the current study (a) maternal insightfulness into the experience of the child and (b) resolution with respect to the child's diagnosis and their associations with children's security of attachment were examined in a sample of 45 preschoolers (mean age = 49 months) with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). It was hypothesized that mothers who were…

Despite much research into individual differences in social understanding among preschoolers, little is known about corresponding individual differences within younger children. Likewise, although studies of preschoolers highlight the importance of mental-state references, other aspects of talk have received less attention. The current study…

Individual and family characteristics that predict resilience among children exposed to domestic violence (DV) were examined. Mother-child dyads (n = 190) were assessed when the children were 2, 3, and 4 years of age. DV-exposed children were 3.7 times more likely than nonexposed children to develop internalizing or externalizing problems.…

The current study examined whether parental and contextual risk factors contribute to mothers' and fathers' differential treatment (MDT/FDT) when accounting for sibling dyad characteristics. Also explored was whether family type (single mothers vs. 2 parents) moderated the links between the parental and contextual correlates and MDT. One hundred…

The meaning of mothers' perceptions of their infants' temperamental "difficultness" was explored in three ways. Subjective ratings were elicited from mothers who listened to the cries of four- to six-month-old infants who were not their own. Acoustic properties of the cries of the infants were measured and effects of a variety of…

Findings support the general hypothesis that the nature of parent/infant interaction and infant development assessed at 12 months is anticipated by a complex pattern of variables, beginning with the parents' characteristics before the birth of their first child and extending via parent/infant and infant behavior throughout the first year of life.…

Investigated continuities in mother-infant interaction observed at home, maternally perceived infant difficulties, and infant developmental competency. Also assessed were background characteristics and possible variables moderating maternal report of satisfaction with adjustment. A total of 128 dyads were assessed when infants were 6 and 13 months…

Attempts to achieve a relatively comprehensive empirical description of the mother-infant relationship at the age of six months, with special focus on possible correlates of infant developmental competence. One hundred and sixty-eight mother-infant pairs contributed data on a wide variety of measures. (Author/RH)

Examined continuity and discontinuity in maternal sensitivity of 135 disadvantaged mothers and their first-born children from 6 and 24 months to 42 months. Results indicate that sources of stress originating from the child or environment result in decreased sensitivity over time, whereas sources of support increase sensitivity.(RJC)

Results indicate that (1) social support is the best predictor of secure attachment and is most important for mothers with irritable babies, (2) maternal unresponsiveness is associated with resistance during reunion episodes and appears to be a mechanism through which anxious attachment develops, and (3) social support may mitigate the effects of…

Assessed the impact of parents' marriages on the parenting of firstborn three-month-olds. Concluded that mothers are warmer and more sensitive with infants than fathers are. Fathers hold more positive attitudes toward their infants and their roles as parents when they are in close, confiding marriages. (RH)

Based on data collected prenatally and during infants' first 2 years of life, this study attempted to discriminate among three major attachment classifications and to account for qualitative changes in attachment relationships. Data included maternal and infant characteristics, mother-infant interactions, life-stress events, and family living…

Examines the functioning of toddlers with physical anomalies (but without central nervous system damage) in comparison to premature toddlers (with similar deviant early experience but no deviant physical appearance) and to normal toddlers. Premature and disabled toddlers performed more poorly than normal toddlers in measures of social initiative,…

Stable characteristics of female rhesus monkeys with offspring, in terms of Confident and Excitable scores, were significantly positively correlated with the respective scores of their female offspring but not their male offspring. Female parents' Excitable scores were significantly negatively correlated with males' Confident scores. How this…

Patterns of mothering and fathering in 72 families were observed longitudinally and from the perspective of the family system when infants were 1, 3, and 9 months old. Findings suggested similarities and differences in mothering and fathering. (Author/RH)