Maternal Responses to Children's Success and Failure and Children's Achievement -Related Processes
Saxon, Jill Laurie
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Permalink
https://hdl.handle.net/2142/82003
Description
Title
Maternal Responses to Children's Success and Failure and Children's Achievement -Related Processes
Author(s)
Saxon, Jill Laurie
Issue Date
2001
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Pomerantz, Eva M.
Department of Study
Psychology
Discipline
Psychology
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
Sociology, Individual and Family Studies
Language
eng
Abstract
The variety of ways in which mothers respond to their children's successes and failures was investigated. The present research expanded upon previous work in the area in four ways. First, the research examined the types of reactions to success that mothers actually use in achievement-related situations. Second, the research examined the association between mothers' reactions to success and a number of achievement-related processes, including children's beliefs about ability, orientation toward performance, responses to failure and maternal negative evaluation, and internalizing symptoms. Third, the research investigated the ways that mothers react to children's failure in achievement-related contexts and the association between such reactions and achievement-related processes. Finally, the potential moderating effects of children's age and the affective context in which maternal reactions to success and failure took place were examined. Children ages seven to ten (N = 110) and their mothers participated in the research. Results indicated that mothers use a wide variety of responses to their children's positive and negative behavior in achievement-related situations. In general, when mothers demonstrated a great deal of interest in their children's performance, their responses appeared to serve a controlling function, indicating to children the importance of successful performance. When mothers granted children autonomy and credit for their successes, however, indications of associations with maladaptive achievement-related processes were less apparent. In addition, there was some evidence for the moderating roles of development and affective context. These results have implications for theories attempting to differentiate the various messages inherent in maternal feedback.
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