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The effect of child negative affect on maternal discipline behavior
1Department of Psychology, SUNY at Stony Brook 11794, USA.
Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology
|October 1, 1995
Summary
Mothers exposed to child negative affect (NA) showed increased overreactivity to misbehavior. This maternal response correlated with increased child misbehavior, suggesting a link between negative affect and discipline challenges.
Area of Science:
- Child Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Parenting Studies
Background:
- Maternal discipline strategies are crucial for child development.
- Understanding the impact of child emotional expression on parenting is essential.
- Previous research suggests links between negative affect and parenting behaviors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how children's negative affect influences maternal discipline.
- To examine maternal overreactivity and laxness in response to child misbehavior.
- To explore the mediating role of maternal negative affect.
Main Methods:
- 39 mother-child dyads (children aged 19-41 months) participated.
- Mothers were randomly assigned to view videos with high child negative affect (NA) or no negative affect (NNA).
- Maternal interactions with their children were observed during tasks designed to elicit misbehavior.
Main Results:
- Mothers in the NA condition exhibited significantly higher overreactivity to child misbehavior.
- No significant differences in maternal laxness were found between groups.
- Children in the NA group displayed more misbehavior in later interaction tasks.
Conclusions:
- Exposure to child negative affect can increase maternal overreactivity.
- Maternal negative affect may play a role in the observed effects, though support was mixed.
- Findings highlight the dynamic interplay between child affect and maternal discipline.