Effect of task on mother-child interaction results

The influence of task on behavior in mother-child interaction was studied. Five tasks varying in degree of structure and difficulty were used in mothers' interactions with their children at 24 and 36 months of age. Child competence was assessed through several tests. Families that had participated in an extensive parent-education program were compared with randomly assigned controls. Interactions were videotaped and rated on scales. Results indicated that there were no task differences in ability to discriminate groups and tasks seldom were found to be differentially related to child competence. Task stability over time yielded some differences.This paper was presented at the American Educational Research Association meeting in Boston, April 1980. The preparation of this article and the research reported in it were supported by the Hogg Foundation, the Spencer Foundation, and Office of Child Development Grant 90-C-379.