Predicting Children’s Behavior Problems from Temperamental Attributes and Maternal Responsiveness During Preschool Period

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to examine the longitudinal relations of children's temperamental attributes (i.e., emotionality, activity, and sociability) and maternal responsiveness to overall and specific externalizing/internalizing behavior problems during the preschool period. Methods Data (N=1,438) from the 4th and 6th wave of Panel Study on Korean Children (PSKC) were used in a series of hierarchical regression analyses. The analyses were conducted to determine the additive and interactive effects of maternal responsiveness and temperamental attributes of children at the age of 3 years on the broadband and narrowband scales of their behavior problems at the age of 5 years. Results Overall, results confirmed the additive and interactive effects of maternal responsiveness and temperamental attributes on the levels of different domains of behavior problems. Examination of the interactive effects showed that maternal responsiveness was more strongly related to some behavior problems for temperamentally vulnerable children as compared to children with less temperamental vulnerabilities. Conclusion The findings suggested that the beneficial effects of positive parenting on the development of behavior problems might be more pronounced for temperamentally vulnerable than for less vulnerable children. Keywords: temperament, externalizing behavior problems, internalizing behavior problems, maternal responsiveness, preschool children