| Abstract: | Several methods of analyzing sequential dependencies are applied to a body of time-sequential data derived from home observation of 77 18-mo-olds interacting with their mothers. The standard form of sequential probability analysis confounds perseverative effects with partner effects. A multiple regression procedure corrects this problem but confounds partner effects on behavioral onsets with partner effects on offsets. Independent analyses of onsets and offsets show that mothers and children influence one another's behavior; behaviors tend to be reciprocated in kind, negatives being responded to by negatives, positives by positives; maternal negative behavior influences children to stop being negative if they are engaged in negative behavior but also serves to start negative behavior in the child if it is not already underway (this pattern is not seen in the influence of the children on the mothers); and mothers and children are more influenced by their own prior behavior than by the behavior of their partners over short time periods. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
