Behavioral Intervention in Mother–Child Dyads with Physical Child Abuse: Matching Theory in Clinical Setting

Abstract

Although mother–child interactions under circumstances of child abuse can be understood by the models of matching theory, the parameters of the hyperbolic, strict, and generalized equations are sensitive to the changes derived from behavioral interventions that focus on the restructuring of interactive patterns. The objective of this research is to determine the impact, under the formulations of the matching theory, of a parent–child interaction therapy intervention in cases with a history of child abuse. The ages of the children ranged from 4 to 9 years, and the ages of the mothers ranged from 24 to 39 years. All dyads attended the Psychological Services Center of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and presented with a history of abuse. Under a single case ABC research design, dyadic interactions were observed at baseline (phase A) and compared with follow-up observations (phase C). To evaluate the adjustment of social attention to child behavior, three propositions derived from the matching theory were used, namely, hyperbolic, strict, and generalized equations. The results indicate that the majority of the interactions tend toward the undermatching of child behavior with respect to maternal attention and that the parameters of the generalized equation better describe the impact of an intervention focused on the restructuring of social exchanges on dyads with abuse. The findings are discussed within the context of social interactions in which the maternal and child behaviors are adjusted according to the reinforcing proportions of each to account for maternal synchronization and child abuse.