A LONGITUDINAL EXAMINATION OF TODDLERS' BEHAVIORAL CUES AS A FUNCTION OF SUBSTANCE‐ABUSING MOTHERS' DISENGAGEMENT. Issue 2 (3rd March 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Rasmussen, Hannah F.; Borelli, Jessica L.; Decoste, Cindy; Suchman, Nancy E.
• Is Part Of: Infant mental health journal. Volume 37:Issue 2(2016:Mar./Apr.)
• Page Start: 140
• Page End: 150
• Publication Date: 2016-03-03
• Subjects: mother–child interaction -- sensitivity -- disengagement -- behavioral cues -- substance abuse -- interacción madre‐niño -- sensibilidad -- desconexión -- señales de conducta -- abuso de sustancia -- Interaction mère‐enfant -- sensibilité -- désengagement -- signes du comportement -- toxicomanie -- Mutter‐Kind‐Interaktion -- Einfühlungsvermögen -- Rückzug -- behaviorale Signale -- Substanzmissbrauch -- 母子相互交流 -- 感受性 -- 離脱 -- 行動的合図 -- 物質乱用 -- 母子互動 -- 敏感度 -- 抽離 -- 行為線索 -- 濫用藥物; Infant psychiatry -- Periodicals; Infant psychology -- Periodicals; 618.9289
• DOI: 10.1002/imhj.21552
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0163-9641

Abstract

ABSTRACT: As a group, substance‐abusing parents are at risk for maladaptive parenting. The association between substance abuse and parenting may result, in part, from parents' emotional disengagement from the parent–child relationship, which makes perceiving and responding to children's cues more challenging. In this study, we examined whether substance‐abusing mothers' levels of disengagement from their relationship with their children (ages 2–44 months), operationalized in two different ways using parenting narratives (representational and linguistic disengagement), prospectively predicted children's engagement and disengagement cues during a structured mother–child interaction. Within a sample of 29 mothers, we tested the hypotheses that greater maternal disengagement at Time 1 would predict a decrease in children's engagement and an increase in children's disengagement at Time 2. Results indicated that representational disengagement predicted a decrease in children's engagement cues whereas linguistic disengagement predicted an increase in children's disengagement cues. Results provide partial support for a reciprocal, iterative process in which mothers and children mutually adjust their emotional and behavioral disengagement with one another.