Predictability of observed mother-child interaction from preschool to middle childhood in a high-risk sample.

This study examined predictability of observed parent-child interaction from preschool to middle childhood in 283 mother-child dyads. Participants were welfare recipients enrolled in the Observational Study of the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program. Structured observational sessions were conducted both at preschool age and middle childhood, and were coded for maternal social behavior, child social behavior, and dyadic interaction. Analyses explored direct relations between the assessments; relations between the assessments with possible third-variable influences, such as maternal literacy, covaried out; and moderated relations. Results indicated that observed mother-child interaction in middle childhood could be significantly predicted from observed interaction 4 years earlier. Risk status moderated the relations such that those families with greater risk factors tended to show more stability, although this stability was, at times, through maintaining suboptimal functioning.