Psychology
Maternal control style and the mastery motivation of one‐year‐olds
Abstract
Forty‐one mothers and their 12‐month‐old infants participated in a study of the effects of maternal control style on infant mastery motivation. Three scales were designed to assess maternal control style during a mother‐infant play session. Mastery motivation was assessed in an experimenter‐administered structured toy play procedure. Three components, persistence, competence, and affect, comprised the measure of mastery motivation. Mothers also completed questionnaires on child‐rearing attitudes, infant temperament, and control style. Results showed that maternal attitudes and behavior were correlated with infant mastery motivation. More specifically: autonomy‐oriented control behavior, sensitive care and knowledge of child‐rearing were positively related to infant mastery motivation. The results provide converging evidence regarding the multiple aspects of maternal behavior which affect infant motivation. Copyright © 1984 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health
