Citation

Phelan KJ, Morrongiello BA, Khoury JC, Xu Y, Liddy S, Lanphear B. J. Pediatr. Psychol. 2014; 39(3): 349-357.

Affiliation

Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati, Department of Psychology, University of Guelph, Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, and Child and Family Research Institute, British Columbia Children's Hospital.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Oxford University Press)

DOI

10.1093/jpepsy/jst090

PMID

24357732

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The present study examined the effect of child gender and maternal depressive symptoms on routine supervisory practices of mothers longitudinally.

METHOD: Self-report supervision practices were obtained at various time points from 3 months through 3 years of age.

RESULTS: From 3 to 36 months, the quantity of time mothers reported supervising decreased from 7.1 to 6.3 hours, and the proportion of time spent in an intense style decreased from 63 to 46%, whereas that spent in a peripheral style increased from 14 to 32%. Mothers reported more time supervising girls and a greater proportion of this was in an intense style. Mothers with elevated depressive symptoms reported more time supervising but a lower proportion in an intense style.

CONCLUSION: Over the first 36 months of life, routine patterns of supervision change and these vary as a function of maternal depression symptoms and child gender. Implications for child injury risk are discussed.

Language: en