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Transactional relations between early child temperament, structured parenting, and child outcomes: A three-wave longitudinal study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 July 2019

Pan Liu*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada Brain and Mind Institute, University of Western Ontario, LondonON, Canada
Katie R. Kryski
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
Heather J. Smith
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
Marc F. Joanisse
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada Brain and Mind Institute, University of Western Ontario, LondonON, Canada
Elizabeth P. Hayden
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada Brain and Mind Institute, University of Western Ontario, LondonON, Canada
*
Author for Correspondence: Pan Liu, Western Interdisciplinary Research Building, Room 2172, London, OntarioN6A 3K7, Canada; E-mail: pliu261@gmail.com.

Abstract

While child self-regulation is shaped by the environment (e.g., the parents’ caregiving behaviors), children also play an active role in influencing the care they receive, indicating that children's individual differences should be integrated in models relating early care to children's development. We assessed 409 children's observed temperamental behavioral inhibition (BI), effortful control (EC), and the primary caregiver's parenting at child ages 3 and 5. Parents reported on child behavior problems at child ages 3, 5, and 8. Mediation analyses were conducted to examine relations between child temperament and parenting in predicting child problems. BI at age 3 was positively associated with structured parenting at age 5, which was negatively related to child internalizing and attention-academic problems at age 8. In contrast, parenting at child age 3 did not predict child BI or EC at age 5, nor did age 3 EC predict parenting at age 5. Findings indicate that child behavior may shape the development of caregiving and, in turn, long-term child adjustment, suggesting that studies of caregiving and child outcomes should consider the role of child temperament toward developing more informative models of child–environment interplay.

Type
Regular Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019

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