Temperament growth has been examined in infancy, but the spectrum of reactive and regulatory dimensions was not previously considered. We evaluated linear and nonlinear growth trajectories for overarching factors and fine-grained indicators of infant temperament obtained via parent report (N = 143) at 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 months of age.…

Despite the robust link between dispositional optimism and well-being across the lifespan, the developmental origins of dispositional optimism are unknown. Understanding the pathways that lead to greater optimism during the transition from adolescence into young adulthood may be important given that this stage of the life course involves the…

This research examined alternative mechanisms in the etiology of attachment disorganization. The authors hypothesized that negative intrusive parenting would significantly predict children's attachment disorganization at age 12 months within a diverse community sample. Of more substantial interest, the authors tested moderational mechanisms in the…

The article studies the dominant role of the child-mother relationships in the development and formation of personality of the infants and young children with Down syndrome. The article contains the information about the distortion of the child-mother relationships which leads to the different disorders of the mental development of a child. The…

Self-inflicted injury (SII) in adolescence marks heightened risk for suicide attempts, completed suicide, and adult psychopathology. Although several studies have revealed elevated rates of depression among adolescents who self injure, no one has compared adolescent self injury with adolescent depression on biological, self-, and informant-report…

We investigated the degree to which parent positive personality characteristics in terms of conscientiousness, agreeableness, and emotional stability predict similar adolescent personality traits over time, as well as the role played by positive parenting in this process. Mothers and fathers of 451 White adolescents (52% female, mean age = 13.59…

Provides overview of attachment theory as parented by John Bowlby in "Attachment and Loss". Uses two major concepts from this work to interpret refinements and elaborations of attachment theory attibuted to Mary Ainsworth. Considers how recent insights into development of socioemotional understanding and development of event…

Utilizing structured laboratory situation and intervention approach, role playing children were trained to behave differently in each of these situations in an effort to determine possible effects upon the mothers. Differences in mothers' reinforcing behavior and teaching style were noted in response to the children's changing behaviors. (Authors)

Implications of parental self-esteem for the subsequent personality qualities and self-esteem of the developing child were explored in this investigation. The sample consisted of 65 mothers and 44 fathers who completed a self Q-sort and an ideal-self Q-sort when their children were 12 years of age. At the ages of 3, 4, 5, 7, 11, and 14 years, 54…

Adulthood for females is a complex maturational process, rooted in the mother-daughter relationship. To investigate the dynamics of the mother-daughter relationship and its influence on maturing, 20 women, ranging in age from 30 to 75, were interviewed for 6 to 8 hours over a 1-month period. The subjects were chosen for their self-reflective…

Provides a foundation for future experimental research on the origins in mother-infant interaction of sex differences in the development of a separate sense of self. Suggests that sex differences in the experience of a separate sense of self begin to emerge in early infancy and that mothers engage in different types of contact with sons and…

Examined similarities and differences in like-sex and unlike-sex parent-adolescent modeling. Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventories were administered to 59 emotionally disturbed adolescents and their mothers. Results showed that the mother-daughter profiles were very similar but the mother-son profiles were dissimilar. The mother-daughter…

Criticizes accepted premises regarding family influence on the child: (1) particular external conditions are inevitably associated with fixed consequences for all children; (2) some psychological structures created by early experience are stable over time; and (3) the mother-infant bond is the primary determinant of the child's future…

Evaluated gender differences in infant and maternal emotional expressivity and regulation with 6-month-old infants and their mothers, using Tronick's face-to-face still-face model. Found that maternal affect, matching, rate of change between matching and mismatching states, and synchrony in the play preceding the still face differentially mediated…

Theoretical and research literature on the role of fathers in childhood development is reviewed. It is suggested that fathers may play an important but qualitatively different role in socialization than mothers and various research designs are suggested to test this hypothesis. (GO)