Predicting Patterns of Interaction Between Parents and Children Based on Parent Reports of Stress and Potential for Child Maltreatment

Child maltreatment is a serious health concern facing children in the United States today. In Federal Fiscal Year 2006, an estimated 3.3 million cases of maltreatment were reported nationwide involving 6 million children. Preventing child maltreatment is of paramount importance due to the long term consequences and negative outcomes for children who have been abused. Traditional methods of assessing risk for maltreatment use self-report from the parent in the form of a standardized measure or questions in an interview format. The purpose of the current study was to examine the association between parent behaviors as observed during an observational play session with mothers and their children; and behaviors associated with potential for maltreatment as reported by parents on select scales of the CAPI, AAPI-2, and PSI/SF. Results indicated that there are differences in interaction patterns between mothers and their 24 month old children based on risk factors for abuse. Implications for future research show that the observational measure of parent child interaction can be a useful way for home advocates and/or interventionists to monitor the progress of parent child interactions frequently and therefore address specific negative behaviors that might be indicative of escalating into maltreatment