Aspects Of Parent-child Interactions Research Articles

Integrating qualitative and quantitative methods to develop a comprehensive coding manual: Measuring attention to mathematics in play contexts

This coding manual was created to quantify and characterize the ways in which parents and their preschool children attend to mathematical features during play. We operationalized attention to mathematical features as instances during which parents or children made verbal references to quantitative (i.e., number, quantity, part-whole relations) or spatial (e.g., size, shape, spatial location, positional orientation) features. Through analysis of videotapes and transcripts of parent-child play sessions, we coded these verbal communications as questions, responses, mentions, or repetitions; and coded corresponding nonverbal support as either explicit, implicit, or irrelevant to the mathematical features coded. Analyses of independent coding by two coders indicated that we reliably coded instances of attending to mathematical features and the ways in which dyads talked about these features. Codes for nonverbal behaviors were less reliable and may require further development to improve reliability. The reliability analyses on verbal communication also illustrated the Kappa paradox—in our case, the high proportion of feature mentions led to a low value of Cohen's Kappa even when the percent agreement and Gwet's Agreement Coefficient 1 were high. The coding scheme served as a framework for our recent report on the frequency of parents' and children's attention to mathematical features and the association between parents' and children's attention to these features (Chan et al., 2020). This coding manual leverages the benefits of a mixed-methods approach by coding qualitative observations for quantitative analysis, and may provide other researchers with a framework for coding attention to mathematical features in a play context and developing manuals for analyzing other aspects of parent-child interaction. • This mixed-methods coding scheme quantitizes qualitative parent-child interaction. • Utterance-coding reliably quantified dyads’ frequency of attention to math features. • Utterances were reliably coded as questions, responses, mentions, or repetitions. • Actions were also coded but require further development to improve reliability. • Comparison of three inter-rater reliability measures add findings to Kappa paradox.

Aspects of Parent-Child Interaction from Infancy to Late Adolescence Are Associated with Severity of Childhood Maltreatment through Age 18.

Childhood maltreatment (CM) is a pervasive public health problem worldwide, with negative health consequences across the lifespan. Despite these adverse outcomes, identifying children who are being maltreated remains a challenge. Thus, there is a need to identify reliably observable features of parent–child interaction that indicate risk for CM and that can instigate strategically targeted family supports. The aim of this longitudinal study was to assess multiple aspects of observed mother–child interaction from infancy to late adolescence as risk indicators of the overall severity of CM by age 18. Mother–child dyads were assessed in infancy (N = 56), at age 7 years (N = 56), and at age 19 years (N = 56/110). Severity of CM through age 18 was indexed by combined prospective and retrospective assessments. Interactions associated with severity of CM by age 18 included maternal hostility in infancy, maternal withdrawal in infancy and middle childhood, child disorganized attachment behavior in middle childhood and late adolescence, as well as hostile and role-confused interactions in late adolescence. This study identifies new indices of maternal and child behavior as important risk indicators for the severity of CM. These indices could be used to improve early identification and tailor preventive interventions for families at risk for CM.

Parental Nurturance in the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample

In recent years attachment theory has matured into a wide-ranging conceptual framework with sufficient power to explain important features of individual and social variability across societies. In the research reported here, the empirical work directed by attachment theory is used to expand existing codes to measure more fully those aspects of parent-child interaction that facilitate or retard the child’s development. This article presents the coding system and scores on parental nurturance for each of the societies of the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample (SCCS). Articles (in press) will present all the evidence on parental nurturance available in the standard bibliography as well as new research examining ways that parental nurturance may be incorporated into models integrating environmental, psychological, and social processes.

The Effects of Perceived Daily Social and Academic Failure Experiences on School-Age Children's Subsequent Interactions with Parents

The hypothesis that perceived failure experiences at school would increase the likelihood of aversive parent-child interactions after school was supported in a study of 167 fourth, fifth, and sixth graders. Children completed measures of mood, school events, and parent-child interaction 3 times each day for 2 consecutive days. Reports of social and academic failure experiences at school (e.g., peer problems and difficulty with schoolwork) were associated with increases in child self-reports of demanding and aversive behavior toward parents that evening. There was no evidence of the reverse effect; aversive child behavior did not predict an increase in reports of negative events the next day. When children rated more academic failure events at school, they also described their parents as more disapproving and punishing after school. However, this effect was only partially mediated by increases in the child's aversive behavior. It is argued that the findings cannot be explained solely by a response bias caused by the child's general mood or frame of mind that day. First, school-to-home mood spillover effects were controlled in the analyses. Second, reports of problems at school were not associated with other aspects of parent-child interaction (e.g., the parent's positive behavioral and emotional involvement with the child). In addition to its substantive findings, the study illustrates use of an unbiased method for assessing child responses to daily stressors.

Social learning and systems family therapy for childhood Oppositional Disorder: Comparative treatment outcome

Oppositional, noncompliant behavior is a frequent referral problem of children seen in child treatment facilities and is the defining characteristic of Oppositional Disorder. The present study evaluated the comparative efficacy of two treatment modalities. Nineteen families were randomly assigned to receive either social learning-based parent training (SLPT) or systems family therapy (SFT). Dependent variables included a reliable, valid coding system that measures noncompliant child behavior and other aspects of parent-child interactions, as well as several parent self-report inventories. Results showed that SLPT was more effective than SFT in reducing the primary symptoms of Oppositional Disorder. No differences were noted on measures of parent adjustment. Results are discussed in terms of the relatively greater efficacy of SLPT for treatment of the primary symptoms of Oppositional Disorder. The efficacy of SFT on other aspects of child and family function in Oppositional Disorder, and for other childhood disorders is not ruled out.

Family Interaction in Free Play and Children's Social Competence

The picture of family interaction provided by a narrative record enables us to make a general statement about the overall warmth of family relationships and about how specific aspects of parent-child interaction affect individual components of the children's general competence. If a family takes the opportunity we provide to play together, if each member seeks out interaction with the others, and if all seem to enjoy this interaction, then we judge the family to be operating well and to have established a mutually satisfying set of relationships. If a family does not play together or does not enjoy being together, then we have an indication that the family does not function well as a system and that the parents and children in the family do not look to one another for help, information, support, or encouragement, or share with one another their thoughts and their excitement. Our single, 30-min observation may not permit us to describe accurately the actual relationships that exist in other settings, but it does allow us to differentiate well-functioning from poorly functioning families. For example, at home one family might be disengaged, each of the family members avoiding contact with the others; another family might fight almost constantly. While both families might choose simply to avoid interacting with one another in the observation room and appear similar, neither family will appear warm, and both will be easily distinguishable from families with frequent, warm, supportive interaction. In addition to reflecting the general level of family function, the frequency and warmth of parent-child interaction in a family is important because this aspect of family interaction directly affects cognitive and social development. Such interaction is stimulating, and the children benefit from their parents' knowledge and experience. While all of the parents in the sample are not equally creative or equally bright, they all can contribute