Differences In Mothers Research Articles

Japan–France–US comparison of infant weaning from mother’s viewpoint

Background: Breastfeeding and weaning are strongly connected with infant–mother mutual autonomy, and hence are good touchstones to examine the characteristics of the mother–child relationship. Comparison of the weaning practice gives a framework to understand characteristics of the mother–infant relationship. Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare three industrialised countries concerning the relationship between feeding and weaning practices and its reasons, mother’s perception of child care, and of breast milk and formula. Methods: A questionnaire study on weaning practice was conducted for 310 Japanese, 756 French, and 222 American mothers with 4- to 20-month-old infants. Results: French mothers expected and had accomplished weaning at an earlier age of the infant, compared to Japanese and American mothers. Perceived insufficiency of breast milk was the leading reason for the termination of breastfeeding for Japanese mothers at the earlier stages, whereas back to work was the more important reason for French mothers. Japanese mothers were more negative in their image of themselves as mothers, whereas French mothers felt more burdened by child-care. Japanese mothers who terminated breastfeeding because of perceived breast milk insufficiency were also those who were less motivated to breastfeed. Conclusion: Weaning is a significant framework to interpret cultural differences in mother–infant relationship. The perceived insufficiency is interpreted as a solution of conflict between the social pressure to breastfeed and its burden.

African American and European American Mothers' Beliefs About Negative Emotions and Emotion Socialization Practices

Objective . The authors examined mothers’ beliefs about their children's negative emotions and their emotion socialization practices. Design . A total of 65 African American and 137 European American mothers of 5-year-old children reported their beliefs and typical responses to children's negative emotions, and mothers’ emotion teaching practices were observed. Results . African American mothers reported that the display of negative emotions was less acceptable than European American mothers, and African American mothers of boys perceived the most negative social consequences for the display of negative emotions. African American mothers reported fewer supportive responses to children's negative emotions than did European Americans and more nonsupportive responses to children's anger. African American mothers of boys also reported more nonsupportive responses to submissive negative emotions than did African American mothers of girls. However, no differences were found by ethnicity or child gender in observed teaching about emotions. Group differences in mothers’ responses to negative emotions were explained, in part, by mothers’ beliefs about emotions. Conclusions . Differences in beliefs and practices may reflect African American mothers’ efforts to protect their children from discrimination.

어머니의 양육행동과 유아의 놀이성 및 의사소통능력 : 다문화가정과 일반가정 비교

The aim of this study was to investigate whether there are differences in mother's parenting behaviors and children's playfulness and communication abilities according to the type of family and to determine the relationships among these variables. A total of 154 pairs consisting of 77 pairs of children and their mothers from multi-cultural families and 77 pairs of children and mothers from general families along with 76 teachers in charge of the children participated in this study. We found that there was a difference in the children's playfulness and communication ability according to the family type. Moreover, the relationship between the mothers' parenting behaviors and their children's playfulness and communication ability levels differed according to family type. Therefore, to understand children's playfulness and communication ability in general and multicultural families, it is necessary to consider each child's environment.

Differences in mothers’ and fathers’ psychological distress after pediatric SCT: a longitudinal study

The purpose of this study was to examine longitudinally psychological distress and its correlates in mothers and fathers of children who undergo SCT, up to 2 years post SCT. A total of 111 parents of patients diagnosed mainly with leukemia completed standardized measures of depression and anxiety symptoms as indicators of psychological distress, 85 at 1 year pre-SCT and 81 at 2 years post SCT. Parents' age and gender, child's age, diagnosis, radiation history, behavior and physical health were examined as potential related factors. Linear mixed models for repeated measures with appropriate covariance structure were used in the analysis. Depression and anxiety scores significantly decreased by 2 years for mothers and fathers. Mothers reported significantly more depression symptoms than did fathers, but reported comparable symptoms of anxiety. Pre-SCT depression and anxiety scores, mother's age (younger), child's behavior problems, radiation history and diagnosis of neuroblastoma predicted maternal distress 2 years post SCT; pre-SCT depression and anxiety scores, father's age (older) and child's diagnosis predicted father's distress. This study highlights differences and similarities in mothers' and fathers' psychological distress and identifies related risk factors. The results can guide interventions for mothers and fathers whose children undergo SCT based on their pre-SCT psychosocial risk.

Differences in mothers’ and fathers’ health-related quality of life after pediatric SCT: a longitudinal study

The purpose of this study was to examine longitudinally health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and related factors in mothers and fathers of children who undergo SCT, before, and 1 and 2 years after SCT. A total of 84 parents (49 mothers/35 fathers) of patients diagnosed mainly with leukemia completed a HRQOL measure before SCT, 46 at 1 year (26 mothers/20 fathers) and 50 parents (31 mothers/19 fathers) at 2 years post SCT. Physical and psychosocial HRQOL summary scores are reported. Parents' age and gender, child's diagnosis, radiation history, age, behavior and physical health were examined. Linear mixed models for repeated measures with a covariate structure were used for analysis. Physical HRQOL did not differ between mothers and fathers or over time. Maternal and paternal psychosocial HRQOL scores improved by 2 years post SCT. Child's behavior problems and poor health, and maternal age (younger) predicted poor maternal psychosocial HRQOL 2 years post SCT. Child's behavior problems, diagnosis and treatment severity predicted poor paternal psychosocial HRQOL. These findings identify similar (child's poor behavior) and differential risk factors (parental young age, disease and treatment severity, and child's poor health status) for poor HRQOL for mothers and fathers. These findings can guide comprehensive family-care interventions before, during and after pediatric SCT.

Autism spectrum disorder: Parenting stress, family functioning and health-related quality of life.

The prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is 1 in 110 persons in the U.S. Both parents of children with ASD are under stress that may impact their health-related quality of life (HRQL) (physical and mental health). The purpose of the current study was to explore the relationship of parenting stress, support from family functioning and the HRQL (physical and mental health) of both parents. Female (n = 64) and male (n = 64) parents of children with ASD completed Web-based surveys examining parenting stress, family functioning, and physical and mental health. Results of a Wilcoxon signed-ranks test showed that female parent discrepant (D) scores between "what is" and "should be" family functioning were significantly larger than male parents, p = .002. Results of stepwise linear regression for the male-female partners showed that (1) higher female caregiving stress was related to lower female physical health (p < .001), (2) a higher discrepancy score in family functioning predicted lower mental health (p < .001), accounting for 31% of the variance for females and (3) male parent personal and family life stress (p < .001) and family functioning discrepant (D) score (p < .001) predicted poor mental health, with the discrepancy score accounting for 35% of the variance. These findings suggest that there may be differences in mothers' and fathers' perceptions and expectations about family functioning and this difference needs to be explored and applied when working with families of children with ASD.

Mind-mindedness, parenting stress, and emotional availability in mothers of preschoolers

Abstract Negative perceptions about the child and child behavior are implicit in parenting stress, a construct associated with suboptimal parenting and child outcomes. We examined the extent to which individual differences in mothers’ mental representations of their children (mind-mindedness) were related to parenting stress and observed parenting behavior. Participants were 86 Australian mothers and their 4-year-olds who were enrolled in a prospective study. Mind-mindedness was coded from mothers’ descriptions of their child, mothers completed a self-report measure of parenting stress, and maternal behavior during free-play was videotaped and coded using the Emotional Availability (EA) Scales, Version 3. Mothers who used more mental state words when describing their child reported lower parenting stress and showed less hostility when interacting with their children. Mothers who used more positive mental state descriptors were rated as more sensitive during interaction. The relation between mind-mindedness and negative maternal behavior was indirect, and mediated through parenting stress. Clinical implications of the findings for families and childcare settings are discussed.

Mother–infant interactions in women with borderline personality disorder, major depressive disorder, their co-occurrence, and healthy controls

Primary objective: Studies have documented mother–infant interactions in the context of maternal Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) to be unpredictable and disordered. However, no studies have directly compared mother–infant interaction between women with BPD and other psychiatric disorders. Methods: The current study examined mother–infant interactions in the context of women with BPD, major depressive disorder (MDD), their co-occurrence and healthy controls. Mother–infant interactions were coded for mother and infant behaviour across a variety of behavioural dimensions. Main outcomes and results: Group differences emerged on the domains of maternal smiling, maternal touching, maternal game playing, maternal imitation, infant smiling, infant vocalisation and infant gaze aversion. Conclusion: Differences in mother–infant interactions can be reliably observed across varying forms of psychopathology. Such observed differences may be used to improve clinical treatment of mothers with psychopathology.

Cultural Variations in Mothers’ Acceptance of and Intent to Use Behavioral Child Management Techniques

We examined cultural differences in mothers’ acceptance of and intent to use behavioral parenting techniques for managing disruptive child behavior, and the possible roles of parenting styles and implicit theories in explaining these cultural differences. A community sample of 117 Euro-Canadian and Chinese-immigrant mothers of boys aged 4- to 8-years participated. Chinese-immigrant mothers had more favorable attitudes towards punishment techniques (i.e., overcorrection and spanking) than Euro-Canadian mothers, and mothers’ authoritarian parenting style accounted for this cultural difference. No cultural differences were found in mothers’ attitudes towards reward (i.e., praise and token economy) or withdrawal of positive reinforcement (i.e., response cost and time-out). This study helps to inform efforts to increase the cultural sensitivity of mental health services for the underserved population of Chinese-immigrant families.

A cross‐cultural examination of Aboriginal and European Canadian mothers' beliefs regarding proactive and reactive aggression

AbstractThe purpose of the present study was to examine the maternal beliefs and practices regarding preschool children's proactive and reactive aggression, within a cross‐cultural framework. Participants included 30 Aboriginal and 45 European Canadian mothers of preschoolers who provided their emotional reactions, causal attributions, socialization strategies, and parenting goals in response to children's aggressive behaviours. Results supported previous research that both groups of mothers generally responded negatively to both types of aggression, although there were differences in the extent of negative emotional responses expressed by mothers in the two cultures depending on the type of aggression. Mothers believed that reactive aggression was due to more external causes than proactive aggression and generally used more power assertive strategies in response to proactive versus reactive aggression. Aboriginal mothers were less anxious and used less power assertive strategies than European Canadian mothers. These findings speak to the importance of examining both similarities and differences in mother's beliefs and practices across cultures. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Parenting Attributions and Attitudes in Diverse Cultural Contexts: Introduction to the Special Issue

SYNOPSIS This Introduction describes the conceptual rationale, the general methods of the Parenting Across Cultures Project, and the analytic plan adopted in the articles in this special issue. Each article that follows this Introduction describes the parenting context and mothers' and fathers' attributions for successes and failures in caregiving and progressive versus authoritarian childrearing attitudes in each of nine countries: China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States. Results in each article address questions of similarities and differences in mothers' and fathers' attributions and attitudes and how highly mothers' attributions and attitudes are correlated with fathers' attributions and attitudes within a national group. The special issue concludes with an article that draws connections among the findings across the nine countries and outlines implications of similarities and differences between mothers' and fathers' parenting attributions and attitudes.

Parenting Attributions and Attitudes in Cross-Cultural Perspective

SYNOPSIS Objective. This article used the Parenting Across Cultures Project to evaluate similarities and differences in mean levels and relative agreement between mothers' and fathers' attributions and attitudes in parenting in 9 countries. Design. Mothers and fathers reported their perceptions of causes of successes and failures in caregiving and their progressive versus authoritarian childrearing attitudes. Gender and cultural similarities and differences in parents' attributions and attitudes in 9 countries were analyzed: China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States. Results. Although mothers and fathers did not differ in any attribution, mothers reported more progressive parenting attitudes and modernity of childrearing attitudes than did fathers, and fathers reported more authoritarian attitudes than did mothers. Country differences also emerged in all attributions and attitudes that were examined. Mothers' and fathers' attributions and their attitudes were moderately correlated, but parenting attitudes were more highly correlated in parents than were attributions. Conclusions. We draw connections among the findings across the 9 countries and outline implications for understanding similarities and differences in mothers' and fathers' parenting attributions and attitudes.

Infant's psychophysiological profile and temperament at 3 and 12 months

This study is intended to analyze (1) differences in infant temperament at 3 and 12 months according to infants’ psychophysiological profiles: “withdrawn” “extroverted”, and “underaroused” and (2) changes in infant temperament from 3 to 12 months, namely according to the infant psychophysiological profile and the quality of mother–infant interaction. Ninety-four 8-week-old infants were assessed using the Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS, Brazelton & Nugent, 1995) and the Alarm Distress Baby Scale (ADBB, Guedeney & Fermanian, 2001). Saliva samples were collected at 8–12 weeks old, both before and after a routine inoculation for cortisol reactivity measurement. Mother–infant interaction was evaluated at 12–16 weeks, using the Global Rating Scales (GRS, Murray, Fiori-Cowley, Hooper, & Cooper, 1996). Mothers’ reports on infant temperament at 3 and 12 months were collected using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire (IBQ, Rothbart, 1981). Significant differences in mothers’ perception of infant temperament were found at both 3 and 12 months in infants with distinct psychophysiological profiles. Stability was observed in most of the temperament's dimensions from 3 to 12 months old; still, there were changes in mothers’ perception of infant temperament in terms of level of distress, cuddliness, sadness and approach. Infant psychophysiological profile and mother–infant interaction both influence with the pattern of those changes. The results corroborate that infant's characteristics early in life as well as contextual factors influence with mothers’ perception of infant temperament and with changes across the 1st year of life.

Race and older mothers' differentiation: A sequential quantitative and qualitative analysis.

The goal of this paper is to demonstrate a process by which qualitative and quantitative approaches are combined to reveal patterns in the data that are unlikely to be detected and confirmed by either method alone. Specifically, we take a sequential approach to combining qualitative and quantitative data to explore race differences in how mothers differentiate among their adult children. We began with a standard multivariate analysis examining race differences in mothers' differentiation among their adult children regarding emotional closeness and confiding. Finding no race differences in this analysis, we conducted an in-depth comparison of the Black and White mothers' narratives to determine whether there were underlying patterns that we had been unable to detect in our first analysis. Using this method, we found that Black mothers were substantially more likely than White mothers to emphasize interpersonal relationships within the family when describing differences among their children. In our final step, we developed a measure of familism based on the qualitative data and conducted a multivariate analysis to confirm the patterns revealed by the in-depth comparison of the mothers' narratives. We conclude that using such a sequential mixed methods approach to data analysis has the potential to shed new light on complex family relations.

Mothers report more child-rearing disagreements following early brain injury than do fathers.

To investigate differences between mother's and father's perceptions of marital relationship quality, child rearing disagreements, and family functioning over the initial 18 months following traumatic brain injury (TBI) in early childhood relative to an orthopedic-injury comparison group. Participants included 147 parent-dyads of children with TBI (n = 53) and orthopedic injuries (OI; n = 94) who were between the ages of 3 and 7 years at injury. Family functioning, marital quality, and child-rearing disagreements were assessed shortly after injury and at 6, 12, and 18-month follow-ups, with ratings at the initial assessment completed to reflect preinjury functioning. Mixed model analyses were used to examine mother and father's reports of family functioning, marital quality, and child-rearing disagreements over time as a function of injury severity and parent gender. We found a significant Group x Gender interaction for ratings of love and parenting disagreements. As hypothesized, mothers of children with severe TBI rated the relationship as significantly less loving than did their partners, and mothers of children with both moderate and severe TBI endorsed more parenting disagreements than did their partners. However, fathers reported higher levels of family dysfunction than their partners, regardless of injury type or severity. Implications for treatment based on differences in mothers' and fathers' perceptions of family and marital functioning, and future directions for research, are discussed.

Dissecting daily distress in mothers of children with ADHD: An electronic diary study.

It is well known that parents of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience elevated levels of caregiver stress, but little is known about the ebb and flow of parental distress as it happens, or the degree of synchrony between short-term oscillations in child behaviors and maternal distress. Electronic diaries (eDiaries) were used to dissect daily distress in natural settings. Across 7 days during nonschool hours, half-hourly eDiaries were completed independently by mothers and their 8- to 12-year-old children (51 receiving medication for ADHD and 58 comparison peers). Diary items tapped behaviors, moods, and contexts, with children reporting their own behaviors and mothers reporting on themselves and their children. Maternal distress and child ADHD-type behaviors exhibited moderate to strong associations "in the moment," whether child behaviors were reported by mothers or children. This mother-child synchrony emerged for the comparison as well as the ADHD group, although the associations were stronger when the dyad included a child with ADHD. Because fixed-effects analyses were conducted, these patterns are not attributable to levels of psychopathology or other stable individual differences in mothers or children. Further moderation analyses revealed that the links between child behaviors and maternal distress were strengthened by maternal risk and attenuated by child behavioral self-esteem; these effects were modest but detectable. These findings can help guide not only interventions targeted on improving quality of life in families of children with ADHD, but also programs designed to help all parents identify and manage their own parenting stressors.

Sex Differences in Parenting Behaviors in Single‐Mother and Single‐Father Households

Research on family structure has led some to claim that sex‐based parenting differences exist. But if such differences exist in single‐parent families, the absence of a second parent rather than specific sex‐typed parenting might explain them. We examine differences in mothering and fathering behavior in single‐parent households, where number of parents is held constant, and we describe individualist and structuralist perspectives for potential sex‐based parenting behaviors. We compare 3,202 single mothers and 307 single fathers in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (Kindergarten Cohort). Results suggest that, although there are small differences in the parenting behaviors of single mothers and single fathers, differences are sensitive to demographic disparities and do not translate to academic deficits for children in either family type.

Reducing child malnutrition in Nigeria: Combined effects of income growth and provision of information about mothers’ access to health care services

Using a sample of 1359 Nigerian households from the 2003 Demographic and Health Surveys, this article investigates the contribution of improved maternal information about access to community health services toward the reduction of child stunting and undernourishment. The analysis shows that family wealth and region-specific knowledge about community health care access positively affects child nutrition status measured by height-for-age and weight-for-age. However, these nutrition gains can be reinforced or tempered by differences in mother's education and/or her access to community health services. These findings suggest that interventions which enhance public knowledge about availability and access to health care could strengthen more general development-oriented child nutrition-enhancing interventions, such as poverty reduction or growth in health services infrastructure.

Regional differences in levels of chlorinated and brominated pollutants in mother's milk from primiparous women in Sweden

Early life exposure to halogenated persistent organic pollutants, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), the DDT metabolite p,p′-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane ( p,p′-DDE), polybrominated diphenylethers (PBDEs), and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), may affect human health. We determined if there are regional differences in mother's milk levels of these compounds in Sweden. In year 2000–2004, milk was sampled from 204 randomly recruited primiparas from four regions of Sweden. Levels of the compounds were measured by gas chromatography with dual electron-capture detectors. Women were recruited at delivery in three hospitals located in urban areas in southern and central Sweden (Lund, Gothenburg and Uppsala), and in one hospital located in a more rural area in northern Sweden (Lycksele). Information about dietary habits and medical/life-style factors were collected by questionnaires. Among PCB congeners, CB 153, CB 138 and CB 180 showed the highest median concentrations (18–48 ng/g mother's milk lipid), whereas more than 50% of the women had CB 52, CB 101, CB 114, and CB 157 levels below the LOQ (0.3–1.5 ng/g lipid). Median p,p′-DDE levels were in the range of 46–78 ng/g lipid. BDE 47 showed the highest median concentrations (1–2 ng/g lipid) among the brominated compounds, whereas more than 50% of the women had levels of BDE 28, BDE 66, BDE 138, BDE 154, and HBCD below the LOQ (0.05–0.10 ng/g lipid). Regional differences in median organohalogen compound concentrations were small, less than 2-fold. Lycksele women generally had the lowest levels of Σmono-and Σdi- ortho PCBs, mainly due to a lower average age. In contrast, these women had higher tetra- to penta-brominated PBDE levels, but no diet or life-style factor could explain this finding. Wide ranges of PBDEs and HBCD levels (up to 200-fold) were found, especially in the Lycksele area. The highest levels of PBDE were in the range of average levels found in mother's milk from North America, suggesting that food may not be the only source of exposure to PBDEs among some individuals.

MOTHER'S EMPLOYMENT: CULTURAL IMPRINT OR INSTITUTIONAL GOVERNANCE?

ABSTRACT In the public and scientific discussion on the political scope of action for improving employment opportunities for mothers, cultural aspects of female labour market participation often remain ignored. This study argues that employment decisions of mothers vary not only with the institutional settings but also with the dominant representative culture of a region. In order to study the effects of culture and institutions on maternal employment, Belgium, East, and West Germany are selected for empirical analysis. In a first step the article demonstrates that these regions differ considerably in terms of family political measures but also in terms of the cultural orientations with regard to female employment. While both Belgium and East Germany (but not West Germany) have well-developed public childcare systems for the under-3s, East Germans have a more favourable opinion towards female employment than Belgians. In a second step the study shows by means of panel analyses that these cultural differences strongly determine female employment behavior. Results indicate that both East and West German mothers have significantly higher employment probabilities in the long-run than Belgian mothers. The well-developed childcare infrastructure and the short parental leave lead only temporarily – right after childbirth – to higher employment rates among Belgian mothers. With increasing age of the child the significance of cultural dispositions result in higher overall employment probabilities among German mothers. These empirical findings support the theoretical approach of Pfau-Effinger in treating both institutional structures and culture as (equally) crucial factors in explaining cross-national differences in mothers' employment.