Mothers' discipline and control practices and their children's responses to maternal control attempts are studied in well and clinically depressed mothers. Impaired parental skills in managing children's behavior have often been implied in the etiology of maladaptive patterns of child development. Depressive symptomatology, on the other hand, has been linked to inappropriate control practices, but specific difficulties of depressed mothers and possible implications for their children's development have not been identified. Assessments of mother and child behavior are based on observations of their interaction in a naturalistic setting (see Annual Report MH 02144). Detailed measures of maternal control were taken, including goals, timing and specific techniques, and the overall interactive quality of control episodes. Child response was also measured in terms of compliance to maternal demands and in terms of level of social competence of noncompliance strategies. Analyses revealed that severity of maternal affective illness results in specific inappropriate and maladaptive patterns of maternal control interventions. Children of normal mothers, but not of depressed mothers become more cooperative over time. In particular, daughters of depressed mothers appeared at risk for noncompliance problems. Maternal illness was also found to impair toddlers ability to negotiate competently with their mothers.
