In an experiment in which 89 mother-child pairs were employed as Ss, the relationship between maternal communication and ethnicity of the mother was examined. Direct observation of maternal communication was used during 3 discussion tasks in which mother and child were required to reach a consensus. The results of a verbal analysis of maternal communication indicated that Italian immigrant mothers tended to rely on direct imperatives and requests for orientation in addressing their sons and daughters. Canadian mothers relied on more indirect forms of control, and second-generation Italian mothers were most likely to employ justifications, particularly concrete and normative appeals.
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