The developmental science literature is riven with respect to (a) parental similar versus different treatment of siblings and (b) sibling similarities and differences. Most methodologies in the field are flawed or confounded. To address these issues, this study employed a within-family longitudinal design to examine developmental processes of…

The purpose of the study was to examine associations between mothers' socialization practices in childhood and adolescence and offsprings' (N = 32, 16 female) sympathy/concern in early adulthood. Mothers reported on their socialization practices and beliefs a total of 6 times using a Q-sort during their offsprings' childhood…

Given that maternal support promotes healthy social and emotional development in early childhood, it is important to understand the predictors of such support, especially during emotional challenges. In this study, mothers' dispositional distress reactivity (i.e., the tendency toward experiencing distress in response to children's negative…

The quality of the sibling relationship has an important role in the development of psychosocial skills throughout childhood. While the literature suggests that the significance of sibling relationships is heightened when one sibling has a disability, empirical findings about the quality of these relationships are few and inconsistent. The present…

This study examined the longitudinal relations of mother-child affect exchanges at 18?months with children's mastery motivation at 39?months. Observation and questionnaire data were collected from mother-child dyads when children were 18?months; 43 mothers again rated their children's mastery motivation at 39?months. Results suggested…

Methodological challenges associated with measurement reactivity and fatigue were addressed using diary data collected from mothers (n = 47), fathers (n = 39), and children (n = 47; 8-13 years) across 56 consecutive days. Demonstrating the feasibility of extended diary studies with families, on-time compliance rates were upward of 90% for all…

The present study examined Swedish mothers' and fathers' warmth towards their children in relation to their children's agency. It also examined the longitudinal relation between agency and children's externalising, internalising, and school achievement. Swedish children's mothers and fathers (N = 93) were interviewed at three time points (when…

This article describes a study on mutuality in mother-child interaction during reading and playing sessions. Within mother-child interaction, mutuality is seen as important in language acquisition. The study was executed within a group of Netherlands Antillean mother-child dyads who participated in an intervention programme. Mutuality was…

Not all mothers who struggle with drug addiction have difficulties parenting, but many of them do. Moreover, evidence-based parenting programs that have proven efficacious with other parent populations often fail with mothers who are fighting chronic substance addiction, perhaps because of the neurobiological changes in neural reward circuitry…

Two studies examine the role of compassionate and self-image parenting goals in the experience of mothers of children with autism. In Study 1, a comparison sample was included. Study 1 included measures of parenting goals, life satisfaction, family life satisfaction, parenting satisfaction, and meaning in life. Study 2 incorporated a measure of…

Problem Statement: In our modern society, a burst of interest to the regularities of "children and parents" relations and development of personality in the context of a family has acquired. Research Questions: The family plays the main role in the formation of moral principles of a child. Purpose of the Study: The problem of relations of…

Mounting research supports that co-rumination, the tendency to seek peer support by engaging in extensive negatively focused discussion, is a risk factor for adolescent psychopathology. It is unclear, though, how this interpersonal tendency develops. Parental responses to adolescents' negative affect likely shape how youth utilize peer…

The links among mothers' compassionate love for their child, autonomic nervous system activity, and parenting behavior during less and more challenging mother-child interactions were examined. Mothers expressed and reported less negative affect when they exhibited autonomic patterns of increased parasympathetic dominance (high parasympathetic…

Employing a multi-method approach, we investigated observed and parent-rated child behavioral inhibition (BI) and maternal reports of their own negative affectivity (NA) as predictors of young children's internalizing problems. Participants were 201 children who were siblings between 2.5 and 5.5 years of age (mean = 3.86, standard deviation =…

Introduction: This article examines regulatory behaviors and physiological stress reactivity among 6-15 month-old infants with moderate to heavy prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE), a group at very high risk for fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and self-regulation impairments, compared to low risk infants with no/low exposure. Participants: Eighteen…