Poster #96 - Examining the Association between Maternal Emotion Socialization and Parent-Child Synchrony

• In Event: Poster Session 09

Abstract

Objective: Both physiological synchrony, the dyadic concordance of physiological states, and positive behavioral synchrony (PBS), the open flow of communication between dyads, contribute to the development of self-regulation and adjustment in children (Davis et al., 2018; Suveg et al., 2016). Maternal emotion socialization, the process by which parents influence children’s emotional expression and regulation, is also associated with children’s socio-emotional functioning (Eisenberg et al., 2020). Scant research has examined relations between maternal emotion socialization responses to children’s positive and negative emotions and these synchrony processes (Lunkenheimer et al., 2020). Thus, the current study will investigate the association between maternal emotion socialization responses and synchrony (both PBS and physiological synchrony) in a sample of 80 parent-child dyads. We will use respiratory sinus arrythmia (RSA) synchrony, an indicator of parasympathetic activity, to assess shared physiological flexibility within dyads in the context of stress.

Hypotheses:

Hypothesis 1: Physiological synchrony and PBS will be positive for mothers who report validating responses to children’s positive emotions. Physiological synchrony and PBS will be negative for mothers who report invalidating responses to children’s positive emotions.

Hypothesis 2: Physiological synchrony and PBS will be positive for mothers who report supportive responses to children’s negative emotions. Physiological synchrony and PBS will be negative for mothers who report unsupportive responses to children’s negative emotions.

Design Plan

Method: Participants include 80 mothers and their five- to seven-year-old children. Dyads engaged in a 5-minute stress task in which children were asked to complete a developmentally advanced LEGO figure. Parents were permitted to give verbal instructions but were instructed not to physically assist with the task. RSA was assessed throughout the LEGO task and video recordings were later coded for PBS. Parents reported on their responses to children’s negative and positive emotions using the Emotions as a Child Scale (supportive and unsupportive; Klimes-Dougan et al., 2001) and the Parents’ Reactions to Children’s Positive Emotions Scale (validating and invalidating; Ladouceur, Reid & Jacques, 2002), respectively.

Analysis Plan: To obtain an estimate of physiological synchrony, we will calculate a cross-correlation profile and extract the lag-0 coefficient. Then, four multiple linear regressions will be conducted to examine the association between validating/invalidating emotion socialization responses (IV) and synchrony (both PBS and RSA) and supportive/unsupportive emotion socialization responses and synchrony (both PBS and RSA). Analyses will be run using R Studio.

Data Feasibility: We are on track to complete data collection by November 2022. Physiological data processing and behavioral observation coding are underway for the data already collected. We expect data analyses will be complete by late January 2023.

Implications: Findings may shed light on specific maternal emotion socialization responses that enhance or undermine physiological synchrony and PBS. Furthermore, this study may allow researchers to determine under which emotional contexts (e.g., responses to positive and/or negative emotions) are maternal emotion socialization responses associated with physiological synchrony and PBS. Overall, this study can contribute to our knowledge of emotion socialization strategies in caregiver-child relationships, which serve as the foundation for social connections across the lifespan (Blair et al., 2014).

Authors

• Kayley Morrow, University of Georgia
  Presenting Author

• Christopher Bell, University of Georgia

• Sara Ashley Collins

• Drew Abney, University of Georgia

• Cynthia Mary Suveg, University of Georgia