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Abstract

Recent research suggesting that parental behaviour may promote or discourage the development of inhibited behaviour stimulated interest in the effect of inhibited behaviour on parenting. Of 125 US 3-year-olds and 100 Korean 3-year-olds whose inhibited behaviour was evaluated repeatedly at age 3, the videotapes of the 50%most inhibited in each sample were rated with regard to parental responses that: (1) encouraged the child to approach the stimuli in question; (2) accepted and/or encouraged the child’s withdrawal; and (3) discouraged the child’s withdrawn behaviour. Analyses revealed that child effects on parenting were more pronounced than parenting effects on child behaviour; that mothers were more affected by child inhibition than fathers; that, surprisingly, parents who responded to child inhibition by accepting/encouraging child withdrawal also reacted by discouraging child withdrawal and encouraging approach; and that the greater the child’s inhibition, the more parents encouraged approach behaviour, encouraged/accepted withdrawal, and discouraged withdrawal. These results are discussed in terms of other evidence highlighting parental influences on child inhibition.

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Exploring reciprocal parent and child effects in the case of child inhibition in US and Korean samples

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