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Activities and Interactions of Mothers and Their Firstborn Infants in the First Six Months of Life: Covariation, Stability, Continuity, Correspondence, and Prediction
Author(s) -
Bornatein Marc H.,
TamisLeMonda Catherine S.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8624.1990.tb02854.x
Subject(s) - firstborn , psychology , developmental psychology , context (archaeology) , longitudinal study , child development , naturalistic observation , period (music) , demography , birth order , social psychology , medicine , population , paleontology , physics , sociology , acoustics , biology , pathology
Activities of primiparous mothers and infants were observed at 2 and at 5 months of age during naturalistic interactions at home. 5 prominent features of mother and infant exchanges in this short‐term longitudinal study are described and discussed in the context of 3 models of unique environment‐development relations, covariation, stability, continuity, correspondence, and prediction. Generally, mothers' activities did not positively covary at either age, nor did those of infants. Some maternal activities were stable in this time period; some developmentally increased, and some developmentally decreased. Infants' activities were unstable, but most increased over time. Specific mother and infant activities corresponded, and over time mothers and infants influenced one another in specific ways. In the critical period of the first half year, infants appear to be flexible and plastic in their behavioral repertoires and are influenced by their mothers; mothers are somewhat consistent, but they also adapt to the behaviors of their infants.