Child – Mother Interactions Essay, Research Paper

Child- Mother Interactions

*** The time is 2:00 p.m.

The baby and the mom are sitting down on the bed, while the mom is feeding the baby a piece of a banana.

The baby begins to play with the banana, instead of eating it.

The mom then starts to sing with him, and he kind of sings along in his own way, she sits down, and he does too. This shows how he follows what she does.

When she sings and claps her hands, the baby smiles and giggles, he then runs to her and hugs her.

He then starts walking away, she calls him but he doesn’t listen.

He wants to be picked up and he is then he points to the pictures in the living room; the mom tells him who they are.

The baby wants to go back down to play with the CD’s, he easily gets bored and runs away.

He sees a pen and he gets it, the mom gives him a piece of paper to encourage him to write on it. The baby doodles on it.

The baby gets tired of this and begins to walk around the house exploring everything. (This shows his short attention span.)

He sees some of my notebooks and grabs them, the mom takes them away from him, and he cries.

She tries to sing to him to stop crying but he doesn’t.

The mom then picks him up, and begins to dance with him, this makes him laugh.

The baby goes outside with the mom and wants to be picked up, he loves to be outside, he then gets down and plays with his mom.

They come inside and begin to play peek a boo, the baby enjoys this and giggles. This shows the good interaction between mother and baby.

The baby begins to look tired and he is getting annoyed, the mom then picks him up and takes him to the bedroom.

He needs to get changed; as the mom is changing him the baby giggles and laughs. The mom plays with the baby.

She decides its time for his bottle, he lies down with mom and he holds her one hand as they lay down.

**** The interaction between the mother and child was nurturing and loving, full of emotional activities.

Child- Father Interactions

** The time is 5:30 p.m.

The baby sees the dad and gets exited, and runs to him, he picks him up and the baby is happy. This shows that there is a bond between them.

The dad puts the baby down on the bed and shows him the cars on the t.v. The baby watches this and points to the cars.

The baby then imitates the sound of a car, he then turns around to look at his dad and goes over by his face and starts hitting it lightly.

The dad then grabs the baby’s hand and pretends to bite it in a playful manner, the baby giggles.

The dad then picks the baby up and starts to throw him up on the air. The baby laughs and enjoys this.

The baby sits down next to his dad and watches television with him, it’s the baby cartoons.

He gets down from the bed and starts to run around the room and play with the t.v.

The dad tells him not to touch it, but the baby doesn’t listen.

The dad picks him up, and gives him a ball; they both begin to play with it, and seem to have a good time.

*** The interaction between father and child was loving, and full of physical activities.

Comparison and Contrast -

The difference between the mother to child, and father to child interaction was that the baby had more emotional activities with the mother and more physical activities with the father.

Both the mother and the father have their different ways to have fun with the child while remaining responsible. The father and mother had different ways of entertaining the baby, therefore the baby reacting in different ways to each parent. With the mother, the baby was very affectionate and liked to sing and do nurturing kind of activities. When he was with his dad, he wanted to play with the ball, and demanded more because his father gave in a bit more.

The similarities were that both parents have equal parenting styles. They are both authoritative parents, they discipline their child and tell the child why they do it and their reasons for it. They are also very warm and loving at the same time, therefore providing safety and nurture through their activities.

Although most babies prefer their moms, when they are left alone they are upset by their dad’s absence as well. Babies raised in two parent families may get an additional benefit: Mothers and fathers who support one another and who sense this mutual support and agreement in child- rearing are more responsive to their infants and feel more competent as parents. (Dickie, 1987).

From the minute a baby is given to his parents’ arms, they communicate through eye contact, touch, smiles and voice. In all cultures infants develop a bond with their primary caregivers, meaning their immediate parents or other guardians substituting the parents. Infants become familiar with the faces they see on a day to day basis. They become very content when they hear their parents voice, therefore developing a fear of strangers when left alone or with someone else, this is called stranger anxiety which can begin at 18 months of age. At the age of one, infants usually cling to their parents because of fear of separation. When reunited they show happiness by smiling and hugging them. This bond is called attachment, which is an emotional tie with another person.

An attachment usually happens with warm familiar responsive parents. It consists on providing a secure environment that reassures the infant that is safe in stressful times. There are important things to help create an attachment, one I have already mentioned; and that is familiarity. From the moment a child is born the infant bonds with the mother. This is a parent- infant attachment; the baby meets the parent’s face and knows he is safe by instinct. There is a lot of time in an infant’s life to establish a bond with the parent, beginning in the maternity ward; and going on throughout his life. A secure attachment may be displayed when an infant explores his surroundings in a happy state when in the mother’s presence; when she leaves he gets upset but when she comes back he wants to be with her. Other infants show insecure attachment in which they are less likely to explore their surroundings and if left alone, he will cry or seem indifferent upon the mother’s return.

Another key that influences an infant’s attachment is the mother’s behavior. Sensitive responsive moms, who notice what their babies are doing, are the ones who have infants that are securely attached. On the other hand, insensitive, unresponsive mothers who attend their babies when they feel like doing so, but ignore them at other times; have infants who become insecurely attached.

Mother-child and father- child relationships are different because parenting styles vary. Some parents spank and some reason. Others are strict and others are laid back, and others are indifferent to their children and some liberally hug them and kiss them. These all have different names. Authoritarian parents impose rules and expect obedience, authoritative parents are both demanding and responsive, and they set rules and enforce them; but explain the reason for them. Permissive parents are ones who give in to the child and make few demands and use little punishment. Rejecting-neglecting parents expect little and invest little. Studies reveal that authoritative parents who control and communicate, have a positive affect on their children making them grow up to be self- reliant, socially competent children. This parenting technique provides children with a great sense of control and teaches them how to be a disciplined child, who is loved yet has respect for the parent’s rules.