學步兒氣質與母親教養雙向影響歷程及其對早期自我調節原型之影響

Abstract

本研究旨在探討影響早期幼兒自我調節發展的因素。自我調節能力在進入生命第二年時開始快速萌發，且對幼兒未來的社會適應以及認知學習有重大影響，因此是幼兒發展的重要目標。過去的研究多探討母親的教養行為或親子關係的品質與幼兒自我調節間的關聯，本研究則基於發展系統理論之生物心理社會架構，同時探討幼兒氣質因素與母親教養因素對幼兒早期自我調節的影響。本研究並從雙向影響關係（transactional relationships）的觀點，探討幼兒氣質因素與母親教養因素間的雙向影響歷程。本研究的目的有二：其一為探討幼兒氣質（包含負向情緒性氣質與奮力控制氣質）與母親教養（包含正向的母親回應及負向的條件式管教）之間是否具有持續性的雙向影響關係。其二為探討幼兒氣質及母親教養對幼兒早期自我調節的影響。根據理論及過去相關文獻之結果，本研究提出假設一：幼兒氣質與母親教養間有互相影響的關係，且此雙向影響關係具有持續性。假設二：負向情緒性氣質會對母親教養行為有負面影響（即會減低正向回應與增加條件式管教），奮力控制氣質則會對母親教養行為有正面影響（即會增加正向回應與減低條件式管教）。相對的，母親回應會對幼兒氣質有正面影響（即減低負向情緒性氣質與增加奮力控制氣質），條件式管教則對幼兒氣質有負面影響（即增加負向情緒性氣質與減低奮力控制氣質）。假設三：幼兒負向情緒性氣質會對其早期自我調節發展有負面影響、奮力控制氣質則有助幼兒早期自我調節的發展；母親回應可提昇幼兒早期自我調節，母親條件式管教則不利幼兒的早期自我調節發展。根據上述目的，本研究分析臺灣幼兒發展調查資料庫之3月齡組幼兒資料，並針對5,267位幼兒母親在幼兒12月齡、18月齡及24月齡時所填答的問卷資料，進行隨機截距自我迴歸交叉延宕模型分析。變項的來源包含母親所填答的認知發展問卷、社會情緒發展問卷及家庭問卷。本研究獲得以下結果： 一、在12月齡到24月齡的三個時間點中，母親正負向教養行為和幼兒的奮力控制氣質間均具有持續的雙向影響關係。母親的回應與幼兒的奮力控制氣質具有互相增強的雙向影響關係，但母親的條件式管教和幼兒的奮力控制氣質則具有相互消減的雙向影響關係。幼兒的負向情緒性氣質則未與母親的教養行為產生持續性的雙向影響關係。研究假設一及二僅在奮力控制氣質與母親教養行為的部分獲得支持。 二、幼兒的奮力控制氣質和母親的回應與條件式管教會影響幼兒的早期自我調節發展。12月齡時的奮力控制氣質與母親回應均可正向預測24月齡時的自我調節，但12月齡時的母親條件式管教則負向預測24月齡時的自我調節。由於本研究未發現幼兒負向情緒性氣質與早期自我調節發展間之關聯，因此研究假設之三也僅在奮力控制氣質及母親教養行為的部分獲得支持。 本研究之結果支持母親的教養行為與孩子的氣質間具有相互影響與被影響的關係，意即母親不只扮演提供孩子社會化影響的角色，也會受到孩子的氣質或特質的影響而改變教養行為。本結果支持幼兒在自己社會化的歷程中扮演主動角色。 此外，本研究之結果顯示幼兒的奮力控制氣質對早期自我調節發展具有顯著的影響，但氣質也會受到母親教養行為的影響，顯示個體生物性特質也會受環境脈絡等社會經驗之形塑。母親可藉由提供溫暖回應等正向教養行為增進幼兒的奮力控制氣質，但幼兒的奮力控制氣質也會因母親的責罰管教等負向教養行為而消減。The present study aimed to investigate factors that influence children’s self-regulatory development. Self-regulation emerges and develops rapidly as infants enter their second year of life, and the capacity of self-regulation has broad implications on children’s social adjustment as well as academic achievement. Thus, the development of self-regulation is fundamental for young children. While much of previous research underlined links between maternal parenting behaviors or quality of parent-child interactions with children’s self-regulation, the current study examined both children’s temperaments and maternal parenting behaviors as influencing factors based on biopsychosocial theoretical perspective which deems children’s development as general systems. In addition, the current study proposed that there would be bidirectional and transactional relationships between children’s temperaments and maternal parenting practices. The current study has two goals: The first one is to investigate whether children’s negative emotionality as well as effortful control has continuous bidirectional and transactional relationships with maternal responsiveness and conditional discipline practices. The second goal is to explore the impact of children’s both temperaments and both maternal parenting behaviors on children’s early self-regulation.Based on theories and findings of past literature, the current study raised 3 hypotheses.Hypothesis 1. There would be bidirectional and transactional relationships between children’s temperaments and maternal parenting practices, and these relationships could be observed continuously.Hypothesis 2. Specifically, children’s temperamental negative emotionality would have negative impacts on maternal parenting and decrease maternal responsiveness while increase conditional discipline practices. In addition, children’s temperamental effortful control would have positive impact on maternal parenting and increase maternal responsiveness as well as decrease conditional discipline practices. In the same way, maternal responsiveness would have positive influences on children’s temperaments and foster effortful control while decrease negative emotionality. Furthermore, maternal conditional discipline practices would have negative influences and increase children’s negative emotionality and decrease effortful control.Hypothesis 3. Children’s negative emotionality would have negative impacts on development of self-regulation, while effortful control would foster its development. In respect of maternal parenting behaviors, maternal responsiveness would have positive impact while conditional discipline practices would exert negative influences on children’s self-regulation.With above hypotheses, the current study analyzed data of M3 cohort collected by Kids in Taiwan: National Longitudinal Study of Child Development& Care project (KIT). Information were provided by 5,267 mothers who responded to questionnaires when their children were aged 12-month, 18-month, and 24-month. Random-Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Modeling (RI-CLPM) via Mplus 8.4 was used to test the research hypotheses. Research variables were constructed from responses to cognitive development questionnaire, social-emotional development questionnaire, and family environment questionnaire. Following results were observed. 1. Among 3 timepointsfrom 12M to 24M, continuous bidirectional relationships between maternal parenting behaviors and children’s effortful control were found. To be specific, maternal responsiveness and children’s effortful control had positive reciprocal relationships and would foster each other over time, while maternal conditional discipline practices and children’s effortful control would reduce each other continuously. Yet links between children’s negative emotionality and maternal parenting practices were not found. As such, the first and the second hypothesis were both partially supported.2. Children’s effortful control, maternal responsiveness and conditional discipline practices, all measured at 12M, significantly impacted children’s self-regulation which was measured at 24M. Specifically, both children’s effortful control and maternal responsiveness showed positive effects on self-regulation, while maternal conditional discipline practices had negative effects on development of self-reguation.Findings of current study indicate that maternal parenting behaviors and children’s temperaments have transactional relationships, i.e. they are both influencing and influenced by each other. This finding supports the claim that mothers are not only playing roles in children’s socialization by providing specific parenting practices, what they provide or how they provide are also influenced by children’s dispositional temperament, suggesting children’s active role in their own socialization processes.In addition, the current study reveals that children’s effortful control temperament has enormous impact on self-regulatory development, yet it can be influenced by maternal parenting behaviors. The results suggest that children’s biological-rooted traits can be shaped by social contexts. Moreover, this study indicates that mothers can foster children’s effortful control by providing positive practices such as responsiveness and emotional supporting. However, children’s effortful control would be harmed should mother use negative discipline practices.