This prospective study contributes to the understanding of the development of
self-conceptions in cultural context. We examined the influence of maternal
contingent responsiveness towards their 3-month-old infants on toddlers’
self-recognition at the age of 18 to 20 months. We contrasted two samples that can
be expected to differ with respect to contingent responsiveness as a parenting
style: German middle-class families and Cameroonian Nso farmers. As hypothesized,
German mothers reacted more contingently than Nso mothers. Furthermore, German
toddlers recognized themselves more often than Nso toddlers. Finally, we found that
the level of contingent responsiveness was one of the mechanisms that accounted for
mirror self-recognition. The results are discussed with respect to different
cultural emphases on parenting strategies.
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