Author:

Keywords:

Social Sciences, Science & Technology, Life Sciences & Biomedicine, Education, Special, Genetics & Heredity, Clinical Neurology, Psychiatry, Rehabilitation, Education & Educational Research, Neurosciences & Neurology, 11 Medical and Health Sciences, 13 Education, 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, 3202 Clinical sciences, 5202 Biological psychology

Abstract:

Aims: Family and parenting factors are one of the most striking gaps in the current scientific literature on the development of young children with severe cognitive and motor disabilities. Based on Guralnick’s ‘developmental systems approach’, we aim to characterize parental behaviour and its relation to child interactive behaviour and parents’ social resources. Method: 25 parents of children with a severe cognitive and motor developmental delay (aged 6 months to 4 years) were video-taped during a 15-minute unstructured play situation and asked to fill out the Parental Behaviour Scale for toddlers. Video fragments were scored using the Child and Maternal Behaviour Rating Scales. Information on perceived social support of parents was gathered through a self-developed questionnaire. Results: The scores on five dimensions of self-reported parenting behaviour (warmth, autonomy support, supervision/safety, discipline, rules/structure) and four dimensions of observed interaction style of the parent (responsivity, affect, achievement orientation, directiveness), will be discussed. Moreover, the relationship of parental behaviour with parents’ social resources (diversity, perceived sufficiency) and children’s interactive behaviour (attention, initiation) will be examined. Conclusions: Conclusions will be formulated based on the results.