Mothers’ cultural identification and children’s development: The role of mothers’ beliefs about infant behavior

• In Event: 3-214 - Family Contributions to the Developmental Outcomes of Latino, Low-Income Children in Early Care and Education Settings

Integrative Statement

Scholars have called for research that identifies predictors of young racial-ethnic minority children’s development in the context of experiences and values unique to their cultural background (García Coll et al., 1996). Theorists hypothesize that children’s development is partially a function of their mothers’ identification with US or ethnic culture because mothers’ values and subsequent beliefs about parenting and child behavior are associated with their identification (Chen, Yang, & Fu, 2012; Super & Harkness, 1986). Latina mothers who identify more with their country of origin than with US culture may find child behaviors, such as respect, obedience, and decency more desirable (Harwood et al., 1996). Researchers found that identification with these values was related to mothers’ interactions with their infants and socialization practices that prioritize child conduct over self-sufficiency (Harwood et al., 1999; Schulze et al., 2001). In this study, we hypothesized that mothers’ cultural identification would be related to infants’ development, but indirectly through mothers’ beliefs about the intentionality of infant behavior.
Two hundred and twenty-four mothers and their infants (50% male; Mchild age in months = 13.02, SD = 4.04) from Early Head Start who participated in a randomized control trial of a parenting intervention comprised the sample. Most mothers identified as Latina (86%). At baseline mothers reported on their cultural identification with their country of origin (83% Latino countries) and the US with the Abbreviated Multidimensional Acculturation Scale (Zea et al., 2003) and on their beliefs about the intentionality of infant behavior using the short version of the Infant Intentionality Questionnaire (Feldman & Reznick, 1996). At follow-up mothers reported on their infants’ risk for behavior problems using the Brief Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment (Briggs-Gowan et al., 2004). All analyses were conducted in MPlus using Full Information Maximum Likelihood to handle missing data. Regressions controlling for treatment group, Spanish language, marital status, mothers’ education, birth place, and economic hardship indicated significant and positive associations between mothers’ identification with US culture and their beliefs that infants act intentionally positive as well as mothers’ identification with their country of origin and their beliefs that infants act intentionally negative (see Table 1). Results further suggest that mothers’ beliefs that infants act intentionally negative was positively related to infants’ risk for problem behaviors. Finally, mediation analyses indicate an indirect relation between mothers’ identification with their country of origin and their infants’ risk for behavior problems through mothers’ beliefs that infants act intentionally negative (see Figure 1).
Our findings support the hypothesis that mothers’ cultural identification is indirectly related to their infants’ risk for behavior problems through mothers’ beliefs about the intentionality of their infants’ behavior. Specifically, mothers who identify with their country of origin are more likely to believe infants act intentionally negative and mothers who believe their infants act intentionally negative are also at higher risk for behavior problems. The implications of this study for future interventions and research will be discussed.

Authors

• Rebecca H. Berger, The Center for Early Education and Intervention, University of Maryland, College Park
  Presenting Author

• Brenda Jones-Harden, University of Maryland
  Non-Presenting Author

• Lisa Berlin, University of Maryland
  Non-Presenting Author