Work

Young Children’s Self-Concepts: Associations with Child Temperament, Mothers’ and Fathers’ Parenting, and Triadic Family Interaction

Year: 2009

Type: article

Abstract: This study explored how children's self-concepts were related to child temperament, dyadic parenting behavior, and triadic family interaction. At age 3, child temperament, mothers' and fathers' parenting behavior, and triadic (mother, father, and child) family interaction were observed in the homes of fifty families. At age 4, children's self-concepts were assessed using the Children's Self-View Questionnaire (Eder, 1990). Analyses revealed that temperamental proneness-to-distress and triadic family interaction made independent contributions to children's self-reported Timidity and Agreeableness. In contrast, dyadic parenting behavior moderated the associations between child temperament and children's self-reported Timidity and Agreeableness, such that temperament was only associated with children's self-concepts when mothers and fathers engaged in particular parenting behaviors. Results suggest both direct and interactive influences of family dynamics and child characteristics on children's self-concept development.

Source: Merrill-palmer Quarterly

DOI: 10.1353/mpq.0.0019

Authors: Geoffrey L. Brown, Sarah C. Mangelsdorf, Cynthia Neff, Sarah J. Schoppe-Sullivan, Cynthia A. Frosch

Institutions: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Northwestern University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, The Ohio State University, The University of Texas at Dallas

Language: English

Topic: Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development

Subfield: Clinical Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Award: Human Development: Interdisciplinary Research Training