TY - JOUR
T1 - Maternal control and sensitivity, child gender, and maternal education in relation to children's behavioral outcomes in African American families
AU - Tamis-LeMonda, Catherine S.
AU - Briggs, Rahil D.
AU - McClowry, Sandra G.
AU - Snow, David L.
PY - 2009/5/1
Y1 - 2009/5/1
N2 - This study examined relationships between mother-child interactions and children's behaviors in 119 urban African American mothers and their 6-7 year old children. Interactions during a cooking task and a follow-up child clean-up task were videotaped. Principal components analyses of behaviors during the cooking task yielded two factors in mothers (Sensitivity and Control), and three in children (Task Involvement, Responsiveness, and Communicative). Children's negativity during a clean up task was coded and mothers were interviewed about their children's problem behaviors. Parenting sensitivity was associated with positive child behaviors and parenting control was associated with negative child behaviors. Maternal education was associated with greater maternal sensitivity and less control. Child gender predicted their task involvement, responsiveness, communicativeness, negativity during clean-up, and behavior problems; maternal control and sensitivity mediated some of these relations. Findings underscore heterogeneity of African American parenting and factors that promote positive parenting and children's behavioral adjustment in early childhood.
AB - This study examined relationships between mother-child interactions and children's behaviors in 119 urban African American mothers and their 6-7 year old children. Interactions during a cooking task and a follow-up child clean-up task were videotaped. Principal components analyses of behaviors during the cooking task yielded two factors in mothers (Sensitivity and Control), and three in children (Task Involvement, Responsiveness, and Communicative). Children's negativity during a clean up task was coded and mothers were interviewed about their children's problem behaviors. Parenting sensitivity was associated with positive child behaviors and parenting control was associated with negative child behaviors. Maternal education was associated with greater maternal sensitivity and less control. Child gender predicted their task involvement, responsiveness, communicativeness, negativity during clean-up, and behavior problems; maternal control and sensitivity mediated some of these relations. Findings underscore heterogeneity of African American parenting and factors that promote positive parenting and children's behavioral adjustment in early childhood.
KW - African American mothers
KW - Gender differences
KW - Maternal education
KW - Mother-child observations
KW - Parenting control
KW - Parenting sensitivity
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U2 - 10.1016/j.appdev.2008.12.018
DO - 10.1016/j.appdev.2008.12.018
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:64249157344
VL - 30
SP - 321
EP - 331
JO - Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology
JF - Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology
SN - 0193-3973
IS - 3
ER -