Parent-Child Interactions, Parenting Stress, and Developmental Outcomes at 4 Years

TLDR

Early parent‑child interaction and parenting stress are linked to child language development. The study investigated how father‑child and mother‑child interactions, parenting stress, socioeconomic status, and prematurity influence 4‑year‑old development in preterm and full‑term Canadian children. At age 4, birth status, infant sex, and parental age explained 30‑32 % of cognitive and motor scores, while parenting stress and father‑child interactions predicted 19 % of expressive language variance, and mother‑child interaction and spousal relationship predicted 13 % of receptive language variance.

Abstract

This study examined the relationship of father-child and mother-child interactions, perceptions of parenting stress, socioeconomic status, and prematurity to development of 44 healthy preterm and 49 full-term Canadian children at 4 years of age. Preterm or full-term birth, infant sex, and parental age accounted for 30-32% of the variance in cognitive and motor scores, respectively, on the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities. Parenting stress, father-child interactions at 12 months, and preterm and full-term birth accounted for 19% of the variance for expressive language on the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool (CELF-P). For receptive language on the CELF-P, mother-child interaction at 12 months, mother's spousal relationship, and preterm and full-term birth accounted for 13% of the variance. Addressing early parent-child interaction and perceptions of parenting stress may improve child language development.