Associations between Maternal Behaviors at 1 Year and Child Language at 2 Years in a Cohort of Women Experiencing Adversity.

Variations in parenting have been suggested as contributing to a higher prevalence of language difficulties in children experiencing economic, environmental, and social adversity. Within these cohorts, the contribution of responsive and intrusive parenting to child language has been investigated; s pecific responsive and intrusive behaviors encapsulated within these parenting styles have yet to be fully examined. Additionally, the role of the mother-child dynamic in moderating mother-child associations has also not been explored. This study aimed to augment current research by identifying specific responsive and intrusive maternal behaviors associated with child language in a cohort experiencing adversity, as well as exploring the role of the fluency and connectedness of mother-child conversation in moderating associations ( n = 249). Specific behaviors and the fluency and connectedness of the mother-child interaction were coded from free-play videos at child age 12 months. Child language measures were derived from transcripts of free play at 24 months. Linear regression models were used to examine maternal-child associations. The moderating role of fluency and connectedness was then explored. Maternal imitations were positively associated with the child's total words; successful redirectives were negatively associated with the child's mean length of turn. Both associations were moderated by the fluency and connectedness of the interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]