Don’t Touch the Gadget Because it’s Hot! Mothers ’ and Children’s Behavior in the Presence of a Contrived Hazard at Home: Implications for Supervising Children

Objective This study compared boys ’ with girls ’ hazard-directed behaviors at home when the mother was present and absent from the room. Methods Videos were coded for how children reacted to a contrived burn hazard (‘Gadget’), maternal verbalizations to children about the hazard, and children’s compliance with directives to avoid the hazard. Children’s behavioral attributes (risk-taking tendency, inhibitory control) and maternal permissive parenting style were also measured. Results Boys engaged in more hazard-directed behaviors when the mother was present than absent, whereas girls ’ risk behaviors did not vary with caregiver presence and was comparable with how boys behaved when the parent was absent. Mothers emphasized re-active communications, and boys received significantly more of these than girls. Permissiveness was associ-ated with fewer statements explaining about safety. Children high in inhibitory control showed fewer hazard-directed behaviors and greater compliance with parent communications, whereas those high in risk-taking propensity showed more hazard-directed behaviors and less compliance. Conclusions The hazard-di-rected behaviors of boys and girls vary with caregiver context, with boys reacting to parent presence with in-creased risk taking. Depending on child attributes, different supervision patterns are needed to keep young children safe in the presence of home hazards. Key words children; hazards; home safety; injury prevention; parents; supervision