Le soutien maternel à l’autonomie : stabilité et relation avec le développement des fonctions exécutives à l'âge préscolaire

Bien qu’il y ait de plus en plus d’études sur le soutien maternel à l’autonomie, de nombreuses questions restent à éclaircir dans le domaine. Notamment, on en sait très peu sur ses relations avec le développement cognitif de l’enfant, sa stabilité temporelle et les antécédents de celle-ci. La thèse est composée de trois articles empiriques. Le premier explore le rôle médiateur du langage dans la relation entre le soutien maternel à l'autonomie et les fonctions exécutives de l'enfant. Le deuxième examine la stabilité relative et absolue du soutien maternel à l'autonomie entre la petite enfance et l’âge préscolaire en fonction des représentations d'attachement de la mère, des évènements de vie stressants et du sexe de l'enfant. Le troisième article se penche sur le rôle du soutien maternel à l’autonomie mesuré à la petite enfance et à l’âge préscolaire dans la prédiction des fonctions exécutives de l’enfant, ainsi que sur l’impact de différents patrons de stabilité du soutien maternel à l’autonomie sur les fonctions exécutives. 70 dyades mère-enfant ont participé à 5 visites à domicile. Lorsque l’enfant était âgé de 7-8 mois, les représentations d’attachement de la mère ont été mesurées à l’aide de l’entrevue d’attachement à l’âge adulte (George, Kaplan, & Main, 1996). Le soutien maternel à l’autonomie a été mesuré à 15 mois et à 3 ans à l’aide du système de codification de Whipple, Bernier, et Mageau (2011). Les évènements de vie stressants ont été mesurés à 3 reprises entre l’âge de 15 mois et 3 ans à l’aide de l’inventaire des expériences de vie (Sarason, Johnson, & Siegel, 1978). À 2 ans, le langage de l’enfant a été évalué à l’aide des inventaires MacArthur du développement de la communication (Dionne, Tremblay, Boivin, Laplante, & Pérusse, 2003). Les fonctions exécutives de l’enfant ont quant à elles été mesurées à l’âge de 3 ans à l’aide d’une batterie de tâches (Carlson, 2005). Les résultats du premier article indiquent que le langage de l’enfant joue un rôle médiateur dans la relation entre le soutien maternel à l’autonomie et une composante des fonctions exécutives de l’enfant, l’inhibition volontaire. Les résultats du deuxième article démontrent que le soutien maternel à l’autonomie est stable de façon relative, mais non absolue. Les résultats démontrent aussi que les mères qui ont une fille, qui ont vécu peu d’évènements de vie stressants ou qui ont des représentations d’attachement sécurisées sont plus stables dans leur degré de soutien à l’autonomie. Le troisième article démontre d’abord que la moyenne de soutien maternel à l’autonomie entre 15 mois et 3 ans est un prédicteur plus efficace des fonctions exécutives de l’enfant que ne l’est le soutien à l’autonomie à 15 mois ou à 3 ans pris séparément. De plus, les enfants dont les mères conservent un degré élevé de soutien à l’autonomie entre 15 mois et 3 ans performent mieux aux tâches d’inhibition que les enfants dont les mères conservent un faible degré de soutien à l’autonomie. Les résultats présentés dans les articles sont discutés ainsi que leurs implications.Despite growing empirical support for the idea that maternal autonomy support plays an important role in child development, many questions remained to be investigated. Especially, little is known about its temporal stability, its antecedents, and its relations with child cognitive development. The first article aims to examine the potential mediating role of child language in the prospective relation between maternal autonomy support and child executive functioning (EF). The second article aims to examine (a) the relative and absolute stability of maternal autonomy support between infancy and preschool age and (b) the moderating role of child gender, maternal attachment state of mind, and stressful life events. The goal of the third article is to examine the role of early and ongoing maternal autonomy support, and of its stability over time, in predicting child EF. 70 mother-infant dyads took part in five assessments. At 7-8 months, the Adult Attachment Interview (George, Kaplan, & Main, 1996) was administered to assess mothers’ state of mind with respect to attachment. Maternal autonomy support was rated at 15 months and 3 years with Whipple, Bernier, and Mageau’s (2011) coding scheme, based on observations performed during a mother-child problem-solving task (15 months) and a clean-up task (3 years). Stressful life events were measured at 18 months, 2 and 3 years with the Life Experiences Survey (Sarason, Johnson, & Siegel, 1978) completed by mothers. At 2 years, mothers were asked to complete the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory (Dionne, Tremblay, Boivin, Laplante, & Pérusse, 2003) to measure child language ability. Finally, child EF was assessed with a battery of tasks chosen based on Carlson’s (2005) measurement guidelines. The results of the first paper suggested that child language played a mediating role in the relation between maternal autonomy support and child performance on EF tasks entailing a strong impulse control component. The results of the second article revealed that maternal autonomy support is stable in relative terms, but that its mean level decreases over time. Moreover, there was significant relative stability only for mothers of girls, mothers who showed greater coherence of mind with respect to attachment, and mothers who experienced fewer stressful life events. The results of the last article showed that the average level of autonomy support displayed by mothers between infancy and preschool years was a more consistent predictor of child Impulse Control and Conflict-EF (two aspects of EF) than either early or current autonomy support in isolation, and that children of mothers who displayed high autonomy support at both 15 months and 3 years performed the best on impulse control. The results presented in the articles are discussed, along with their implications

Normative developmental trajectories of actigraphic sleep variables during the preschool period : a three-wave longitudinal study

Important changes in sleep are believed to occur in the preschool years, but studies that have documented these changes were generally cross‐sectional or based on subjective sleep measures. The current longitudinal study modeled the developmental trajectories followed by five sleep variables objectively assessed during the preschool period. Children (N = 128) wore an actigraph over 3 days at 2, 3, and 4 years of age and change in sleep variables was assessed with growth curves. The results showed a linear decrease of daytime, total, and nighttime sleep duration, and a linear increase of sleep efficiency and proportion of nighttime to total sleep. For all sleep variables, the rhythm of change was relatively uniform across children, but there was significant inter‐individual variation around the initial status for most variables. To our knowledge, this study is the first to model the developmental trajectories followed by several sleep variables during the preschool period

Attachment security and developmental patterns of growth in executive functioning during early elementary school

Despite the extensive research demonstrating the importance of child executive functioning (EF) for school adjustment, little longitudinal work has formally examined developmental change in EF during the early school years. Based on a sample of 106 mother–child dyads, the current longitudinal study investigated patterns of growth in child performance on three executive tasks between kindergarten (Mage = 6 years) and Grade 3 (Mage = 9 years), and the predictive role of earlier mother–child attachment security in these patterns. The results suggest that early elementary school is a period of significant developmental improvement in child EF, although child performance on different EF tasks follows distinct trajectories across time. The study also provides evidence for a sustained relation between children's early attachment security and their ongoing acquisition of executive skills

Persistence of Effects of VLBW/PT Birth Status and Maternal Emotional Availability (EA) on Child EA Trajectories

Few studies have examined the longitudinal impact of birth status on the infant–mother relationship and on children’s socio-emotional development. In the present study we investigated developmental patterns of such relationships [using the Emotional Availability (EA) Scales] in fullterm and VLBW/PT infants from infancy to emerging school age. Our objectives were to: (a) model the developmental trajectories of EA dimensions (maternal sensitivity, structuring, non-hostility; child responsiveness, involvement) in a VLBW/PT and fullterm sample, (b) identify potential effects of VLBW/PT status on these trajectories, and (c) determine whether the effects of VLBW/PT status on children’s socio-emotional development (child EA) remained after accounting for the effect of maternal EA. Child–mother dyads (n = 109) were observed in home-based interactions (face-to-face and free play) when children were 6, 12, 18, and 57-months-old in fullterm (37–41 weeks, >2500 g; n = 48) and healthy VLBW/PT (26–32 weeks gestation, birth weight 800–1500 g, corrected for gestational age; n = 61) children. Developmental trajectories of maternal and child EA were assessed using multilevel growth modeling in Mplus. Results indicated that, even after controlling for maternal EA, there was a persistent negative effect of VLBW/PT birth status on child EA trajectories. Both initially and over time, VLBW/PT infants lagged behind their fullterm counterparts on levels of responsiveness and involvement with mothers. There was also a persistent positive effect of maternal EA (sensitivity and structuring) on child EA trajectories. Higher average levels of maternal sensitivity and structuring across time were also associated with higher and persistent levels of child responsiveness and involvement of their mothers. Importantly, results held after modeling both effects together, and after controlling for maternal education and child gender. Our results have implications for VLBW/PT children’s development, the parent–child relationship, and integrating family level factors and relationship dimensions in early prevention and intervention programs

A prospective study of the impact of child maltreatment and friend support on psychological distress trajectory : from adolescence to emerging adulthood

Background Transition into adulthood is a critical developmental period that may be influenced by adverse life events as well as by protective factors. This study aimed at investigating the effect of different forms of child maltreatment experienced prior to age 14 (i.e., sexual abuse, physical abuse and exposure to intimate partner violence), and of friend support at age 14 on the psychological distress trajectory from age 14 to 24. Methods Participants were 605 adolescents from the general population involved in a 10-year longitudinal study. Psychological distress was evaluated at ages 14, 16, 18 and 24. Child maltreatment prior to 14 years was retrospectively assessed at 14 and 24 years while perception of support from friends was evaluated at age 14. Results Multilevel growth modeling indicated that psychological distress followed a significant decreasing curvilinear trajectory, with participants reporting fewer distressing psychological symptoms after 18 years. All three forms of child maltreatment, as well as their cumulative effect, predicted more psychological distress over 10 years above and beyond the protective effect of support from friends. Higher support from friends at age 14 was related to lower distress at baseline andover 10 years, beyond the effect of child maltreatment. Limitations Self-report nature of all measures, attrition, and measures of child maltreatment forms. Conclusions Psychological distress decreased during the transition from adolescence to emerging adulthood. Results also revealed the detrimental impact of child maltreatment and the promotive role of friend support, which underscore the importance of early intervention

Unraveling the effects of maternal breastfeeding duration and exclusive breast milk on children’s cognitive abilities in early childhood

BackgroundThis study investigated the putative associations between mothers’ use of exclusive breast milk and the duration of breastfeeding with child cognitive development.MethodsThis study is based on 2,210 Canadian families with children assessed longitudinally from age 4 to 7 years on their memory-span and math skills. These cognitive abilities were measured with standardized tasks. Breastfeeding practices were collected via maternal reports. We applied propensity scores to control the social selection bias for breastfeeding.ResultsResults adjusted for propensity scores and sample weight revealed no significant differences between non-breastfed children with those being non-exclusively breastfed for 5 months or less, and with children being exclusively breastfed for 9.2 months on average, on their early math skills and memory-span. We found that children who were non-exclusively breastfed for 6.8 months on average had a slightly higher levels of memory-span at age 4 than children who were never breastfed, and this small but significant difference lasted up to age 7.ConclusionOur findings suggest no significant differences between children being exclusively breastfed and those fed with formula on their early math skills and memory-span. The encouragement of breastfeeding to promote child cognitive school readiness may, in some case (non-exclusive breastfeeding for more than 5 months), show a small but long-lasting advantage in early memory-span

Social wariness, preference for solitude, and peer difficulties in middle childhood : a longitudinal family-informed study

The present study examined, within a longitudinal family-informed design and across middle childhood, the predictive associations between preference for solitude and social wariness, two forms of social withdrawal, and peer difficulties. Specifically, preference for solitude, rather than social wariness, was expected to predict peer victimization and rejection, two aspects of peer difficulties. A total of 1041 children from the Quebec Newborn Twin Study were assessed by teachers and peers at ages 6, 7, and 10 years. Multi-level analyses conducted across three levels, between-family, within-family, and within-person, revealed that preference for solitude, rather than social wariness, increased the risk for peer difficulties in terms of both peer victimization and peer rejection. Specifically, preference for solitude was systematically associated with peer rejection starting at age 6 years and became progressively associated with peer victimization over time. This pattern was found both between and within families. In addition, the predictive association with peer rejection was found within genetically identical, monozygotic twin pairs, suggesting that this predictive association existed after taking into account genetic vulnerabilities. Social wariness was systematically unrelated to peer difficulties. These findings suggest that preference for solitude, rather than social wariness, is a risk factor for peer difficulties. They underscore the relevance of distinguishing these dimensions of social withdrawal and illustrate the usefulness of a family-informed design to document the processes underlying childhood social adjustment

Empathie, biais de mentalisation, comportements pro-sociaux et troubles de comportement chez les enfants d’âge scolaire

La présente étude propose d’examiner les liens entre la capacité d’empathie, les comportements pro-sociaux, les biais de mentalisation et les troubles de comportement (TC) chez les garçons âgés de 7 à 12 ans. Pour ce faire, 51 garçons présentant divers niveaux de TC et leurs parents ont participé à la recherche. Les enfants ont rempli des questionnaires autoadministrés concernant l’empathie et les biais de mentalisation. Pour leur part, les parents ont rempli des questionnaires relatifs à l’empathie, aux comportements pro-sociaux et aux TC manifestés par leurs enfants. Les résultats démontrent que les biais de mentalisation négatifs et les comportements pro-sociaux prédisent 24,5 % de la variance des TC. La capacité d’empathie quant à elle serait une variable médiatrice entre les comportements pro-sociaux et la présence des TC. Les résultats de la recherche permettront d’ajuster les programmes de prévention des TC et les interventions offertes aux enfants d’âge scolaire présentant ces troubles.This study examines the relationship between empathy, pro-social behaviour, mentalization bias, and behavioural disorders (BD) in 7 to 12-year-old boys. Fifty-one boys, presenting different levels of BD, and their parents, participated in the research. Children completed self-administered measures on empathy and mentalization bias. The parents completed questionnaires on empathy, pro-social behaviour, and BD regarding their children. The results show that negative mentalization bias and pro-social behaviour predict 24.5 % of the BD’s variance. Empathy would be considered a mediating variable between pro-social behaviour and BD. The results would be used to improve prevention programs and interventions offered to school-age children with BD

Les enfants avec retard sont plus exposés à la maltraitance et relèvent davantage des services de la protection de la jeunesse

Les enfants ayant un retard sont plus à risques d’être victimes de maltraitance et d’être impliqués dans les mandats de la protection de la jeunesse en comparaison avec les autres enfants. Dans ce contexte, la présente étude vise à distinguer les enfants qui présentent un retard de ceux n’en présentant pas sur le plan des caractéristiques individuelles, familiales et liées aux services. Ces deux groupes sont comparés à deux étapes décisionnelles du processus d’évaluation et d’orientation d’un signalement à la protection de la jeunesse, soit lorsque le signalement est retenu, et lorsque la sécurité et le développement de l’enfant sont compromis. L’étude a été réalisée auprès d’un échantillon représentatif de 4 474 enfants dont le signalement a été retenu à la protection de la jeunesse, et d’un échantillon représentatif de 2 278 enfants dont la sécurité et le développement ont été jugés compromis. Les analyses de régressions logistiques révèlent que plusieurs caractéristiques individuelles, familiales et liées aux services distinguent les deux groupes d’enfants (avec un retard et sans retard) dans les deux échantillons, notamment la présence de négligence, le jeune âge de l’enfant, des parents vivant de l’aide sociale ou qui ne coopèrent pas avec les intervenants de la protection de la jeunesse. Chez les enfants en retard, les intervenants considèrent plus souvent que les faits fondés impliquent que le développement et la sécurité sont compromis. La prise en charge est plus souvent judiciarisée ou volontaire et les intervenants identifient davantage de besoins de services. La discussion porte sur les facteurs pouvant expliquer ces différences

Social wariness, preference for solitude, and peer difficulties in middle childhood: A longitudinal family-informed study

The present study examined, within a longitudinal family-informed design and across middle childhood, the predictive associations between preference for solitude and social wariness, two forms of social withdrawal, and peer difficulties. Specifically, preference for solitude, rather than social wariness, was expected to predict peer victimization and rejection, two aspects of peer difficulties. A total of 1041 children from the Quebec Newborn Twin Study were assessed by teachers and peers at ages 6, 7, and 10 years. Multi-level analyses conducted across three levels, between-family, within-family, and within-person, revealed that preference for solitude, rather than social wariness, increased the risk for peer difficulties in terms of both peer victimization and peer rejection. Specifically, preference for solitude was systematically associated with peer rejection starting at age 6 years and became progressively associated with peer victimization over time. This pattern was found both between and within families. In addition, the predictive association with peer rejection was found within genetically identical, monozygotic twin pairs, suggesting that this predictive association existed after taking into account genetic vulnerabilities. Social wariness was systematically unrelated to peer difficulties. These findings suggest that preference for solitude, rather than social wariness, is a risk factor for peer difficulties. They underscore the relevance of distinguishing these dimensions of social withdrawal and illustrate the usefulness of a family-informed design to document the processes underlying childhood social adjustment