Mothers' knowledge of young child development in a developing country

BACKGROUND: Although interventions on child development target supporting mothers' relationships with their children, little is known about maternal knowledge of child development in developing countries. The purpose of this study was to determine maternal knowledge about child development in Turkey. METHODS: The Caregiver Knowledge of Child Development Inventory (CKCDI) developed for this study consisted of questions on when children begin to demonstrate developmental skills and when caregivers should provide opportunities for developmental stimulation. RESULTS: In total, 1200 mothers of children aged 相似文献   

Child diarrhea: oral rehydration therapy and rural mother.

The prevalence of diarrhea among children, feeding practices during diarrhea, and knowledge about oral rehydration therapy (ORT) among 2616 mothers and 44 Anganwadi workers (AWWs) of Panchmahals and 2293 mothers and 37 AWWs of Chandrapur districts of Gujarat State and Maharashtra State, respectively, were investigated. The effect of maternal literacy status and nutrition knowledge on mothers' and AWWs' ability to correctly prepare an oral rehydration solution (ORS) was also examined. The prevalence of diarrhea was highest in children less than 2 yr old, and thereafter it showed a consistent decline up to 6 yr. Most of the mothers favored a reduction in the child's food intake during diarrhea, whereas the AWWs favored increasing it. Awareness of mothers about ORT was low, but half of those who were aware could prepare ORS correctly. Maternal literacy status and nutrition knowledge positively affected the mother's understanding of ORT and her ability to prepare ORS. The mother's presence and availability at home positively influenced the utilization of ORS when her child was sick with diarrhea. Thus, poor literacy status, poor nutrition knowledge, and working-mother status appear to limit mothers' ability to utilize ORS to prevent or correct diarrhea-induced dehydration.     

Mothers as active partners in the prevention of childhood diseases: maternal factors related to immunization status of preschool children in Italy

BACKGROUND: We examined how maternal socio-demographic factors, together with mother's education, knowledge, and perception of immunizations, can affect the uptake of optional vaccinations of preschool children in Italy. METHODS: Interviews of Italian mothers were performed using a structured questionnaire administered by trained interviewers with no specific medical competence. RESULTS: A convenience sample of 1,035 mothers were interviewed. Fifty-nine percent of the respondents reported to have had their child immunized with the MMR vaccine and 54% reported to have had their child immunized against pertussis. In logistic regression analysis, three variables were significantly associated with both the immunization outcomes: mother's positive attitude toward immunization (OR = 1.69; IC 1.13-2.52 for pertussis; OR = 1.86, IC 1. 17-2.96 for MMR); mothers' residency in the North of the country (OR = 1.74; IC 1.32-2.30 for pertussis; OR = 1.63, IC 1.18-2.24 for MMR); and mother's receipt of satisfactory information on immunization (OR = 1.67; IC 1.15-2.21 for pertussis; OR = 2.25, IC 1. 47-3.43 for MMR). An immunization performed in recent years (after 1994), probably following the widespread use of acellular vaccine, was the most significant predictor for pertussis immunization (OR = 3.21; IC 2.43-4.24). CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that mothers' attitudes, educational level, and socio-demographic characteristics, as well as socio-economic factors and local health policies, can influence children's immunization uptake. Health promotion, based on a partnership between parents and health professionals, should become a priority in Italian vaccination policies.     

Young adolescent mothers-how they and their children fare

This paper presents selected findings for a three-year, U.S. study of adolescent mothers who were under 16 at the time of their first live births and were keeping their infants rather than relinquishing them for adoption. The young mothers' child care arrangements, knowledge of child development, assessments of child care competency, and sources and needs for child development information during the first two years of their babies' lives are discussed. In addition, an assessment of the children's physical, cognitive and social development is included. The help provided by the mothers' families in child care, information about parenting, and emotional support, as well as housing and financial assistance, is comprehensive and not easily duplicated. While the infants experienced an inordinately high number of health problems during the first two years, they appear to be developing well in all areas, and may, in fact, be somewhat advanced in their self-help and social abilities.     

Food behaviors of young children: Cognitive and attitudinal factors

Young children's diets are determined to a large degree by their mothers' nutritional knowledge and food attitudes. The primary purpose of this investigation was to determine the effects of mothers' nutritional knowledge and food attitudes on their children's nutritional knowledge and food behavior.

The subjects were 159 children. They ranged in ages from 7 to 9 years old. Their mothers also participated in the study.

Bivariate relationships between pairs of variables were tested using the Pearson product-moment correlation. The major findings were:

(1) Children's nutritional knowledge was related to their mothers' nutritional knowledge and attitudes of sociability.

(2) Mothers' nutritional knowledge was related to their attitudes of sociability and frugality. Nutritional knowledge was negatively correlated with mother's attitudes toward health and social status.

(3) Children's food behavior was related to their nutritional knowledge and their mothers' nutritional knowledge.     

大理市小学教师对儿童铅中毒的认识、态度和需求

目的了解小学教师对儿童铅中毒的认识、态度和需求,为预防儿童铅中毒干预教育提供依据。方法抽取大理市城区16所小学的430名教师为研究对象,自行设计儿童铅中毒认知水平问卷,测评小学教师对儿童铅中毒的认识、态度和需求情况。结果小学教师对我国儿童铅中毒的流行势态、污染源的认识相对不足,对儿童铅中毒污染来源及危害防治知识的认知存在文化程度差异,小学组与中专及以上各组之间得分差异有统计学意义(P<0.05)。95.0%的小学教师认为有必要在幼儿园、学校开展儿童铅中毒的健康教育,并愿意接受儿童铅中毒知识的专门培训。结论对小学教师进行定期、系统的儿童铅中毒知识培训,有助于预防儿童铅中毒健康促进工作的开展。     

The effect of residence area and mother's education on motor development of preschool-aged children in Greece

Development occurs according to the rhythm that is established by the genetic potential and the influence of environmental factors. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of the child's residence area and maternal education on child's motor development. Eight hundred children (384 boys and 416 girls, aged 37-72 months), randomly selected from daycare centres and kindergartens of rural and urban areas of Northern Greece, were tested on the two motor subscales (A, locomotor; and D, eye-hand coordination) of the Griffiths Test No II. With respect to their residence, 610 children lived in urban and 190 lived in rural areas. In terms of education, 530 mothers were formally educated and 270 were highly educated. The results of this study suggest that motor development of preschool-aged children is associated with both factors examined. Children who lived in urban areas had better performance on fine motor abilities than children who lived in rural areas. In contrast, rural children had a higher developmental quotient than urban children on the locomotor scale. With regard to mother's education, children of highly educated mothers had a higher mean developmental quotient on both scales. The findings reinforce the need for a safe and opportunity-rich environment, which ensures that children reach their full developmental potential.     

The impact of mothers' perception of child care services and utilization

To examine the impact of mothers' perception of the roles of pre-primary institutions and what motivates them to choose a particular child care service, 138 working mothers and 20 proprietors of nursery schools and day care centers were interviewed. The facilities available to children in the centers studied was also assessed.

The results suggested that these mothers' expected these institutions to play custodial functions as well as to provide early childhood education. This knowledge could guide proprietors and other interested organizations in the provision of appropriate child care programmes to meet the needs of mothers and their children.

The demand for nursery/day care services in Nigeria has become very high due to the increasing number of women in the workforce.     

Becoming a mother of a child with cancer: building motherhood

The present study, which was conducted using the Interpretive Interactionism method, had the objective of understanding the experience of becoming a mother of a child with cancer. Seven mothers, whose children were undergoing cancer treatment, took part in semi-structured interviews. The results showed that mothers' role are built in a process that implies the interaction between two themes: LIVING THE TIME OF THE ILLNESS, in which mothers concentrates in themselves, continuously permeated by the uncertainties inherent in the disease, and the need to remove the threats of the child's death; and LIVING A TIME OF STRUGGLE FOR THE CHILDREN'S LIFE, which represents the dimension of mothers' behavior in developing their new role. The articulated theme and the epiphanies allowed identifying the connection between parenthood and temporality, in which the time comes into the dimensions of the development of the mother's role.     

Pattern of maternal knowledge and its implications for diarrhoea control in Southern Malawi: multilevel thresholds of change analysis

A survey was conducted in Southern Malawi to examine the pattern of mothers' knowledge on diarrhoea. Diarrhoea morbidity in the district is estimated at 24.4%, statistically higher than the national average at 17%. Using hierarchically built data from a survey, a multilevel threshold of change analysis was used to determine predictors of knowledge about diarrhoeal aetiology, clinical features, and prevention. The results show a strong hierarchical structured pattern in overall maternal knowledge revealing differences between communities. Responsible mothers with primary or secondary school education were more likely to give more correct answers on diarrhoea knowledge than those without any formal education. Responsible mothers from communities without a health surveillance assistant were less likely to give more correct answers. The results show that differences in diarrhoeal knowledge do exist between communities and demonstrate that basic formal education is important in responsible mother's understanding of diseases. The results also reveal the positive impact health surveillance assistants have in rural communities.     

四川农村幼儿园教师幼儿性教育知识知晓情况及影响因素

  目的  了解四川农村地区幼儿园教师幼儿性教育知识知晓情况及其影响因素,为采取措施提高农村教师幼儿性教育能力提供科学依据。  方法  采用多阶段分层整群抽样方法,在四川省农村地区选取16所幼儿园的160名教师,进行幼儿性教育相关问卷调查。  结果  教师幼儿性教育知识知晓率为73.8%。单项知识正确率较低的依次为“男生的包皮如果可以翻开,需要将包皮翻起来清洗(58.8%)”“家庭的功能中包含休息与娱乐功能(65.6%)”“女生清洗生殖器官需从前往后清洗(68.8%)”。多因素非条件Logistic回归分析结果显示,教龄>4年(OR=4.16,95%CI=1.74~9.98)、发现幼儿有性相关行为(OR=2.97,95%CI=1.19~7.40)、性知识来源途径数目>3条(OR=3.39,95%CI=1.42~8.13)的教师有更高的幼儿性教育知识知晓率(P值均 < 0.05)。  结论  四川农村幼儿园教师的幼儿性教育知识掌握率有待提高。应构建多种性教育途径促使教师尤其是初就业教师获得更多相关知识,关注幼儿性相关行为,提高幼儿性教育能力。     

What do mothers feed their children and why?

Health education interventions aimed at changing children's diets often target their mothers. However, little is known about what factors influence mothers' food choice for themselves and how this is related to their choice of food for their children. The present study aimed to examine the types of foods mothers eat themselves and their motivations for doing so in comparison with their choices for their primary school age children. In addition, the study aimed to assess whether the mother's dieting behaviour affected these differences. A questionnaire was completed by 218 (response rate 52%) mothers of children aged between 5 and 11 asking them about their behaviour and motivations for themselves and on behalf of their children. The results showed that mothers tend to feed their children in a less healthy way than they feed themselves. Specifically, they feed their children more sweet products, and more unhealthy breads and dairy products. However, whereas they are motivated more by practicality (e.g. availability, cost) and calories when choosing food for themselves, they state that health (e.g. nutritional value, long-term health) is more important when choosing for their children. In terms of the role of the mothers' dieting behaviour, dieters appeared to be more self-prioritizing than non-dieters in their differentiation between themselves and their children. The results are discussed in terms of the role of knowledge and cognitions in explaining the gaps between motivations and behaviour and the mothers' decisions for themselves and for their children. In addition, the implications for interventions are considered. In particular, it is suggested that changing a mother's own motivations and behaviour may not necessarily result in an improvement in their child's diet. Further, encouraging mothers to diet may be detrimental to their children's long-term health.     

Understanding the dimensions of socioeconomic status that influence toddlers' health: unique impact of lack of money for basic needs in Quebec's birth cohort

STUDY OBJECTIVES: To examine the unique impact of financial difficulties as measured by a lack of money for basic needs on the occurrence of health problems between the ages of 17 and 29 months, controlling for mother's level of education and neonatal health problems. DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: Analyses were performed on the 29 month data of the Quebec longitudinal study of child development. This longitudinal study followed up a birth cohort annually. Interviews were conducted in the home with the mother in 98.8% of cases. This information was supplemented with data from birth records. At 29 months, the response rate was 94.2% of the initial sample (n = 1946). The main outcome measures were mothers' report of acute health problems, asthma episodes, and hospitalisation as well as growth delay and a composite index of health problems (acute problems, asthma attack, growth delay). MAIN RESULTS: Children raised in a family experiencing a serious lack of money for basic needs during the preceding year were more likely to be reported by their mothers as presenting acute health problems, a growth delay, two or more health problems, and to have been hospitalised for the first time within the past few months as compared with babies living in a family not experiencing a lack of money for basic needs regardless of the mother's level of education and of neonatal health problems. CONCLUSION: Financial difficulties as measured by a lack of money for basic needs have a significant and unique impact on toddlers' health.     

The relevance of parental involvement programmes in developing countries

The rationale for parent involvement programmes with handicapped children is presented and analysed from a third world perspective. The mothers' reaction to the role is discussed. Potentially damaging consequences of adopting a teaching role are considered. The results of a questionnaire administered to 137 Guyanese mothers are presented. The questionnaire focused on the mothers' understanding of the concept of child development, their belief in being able to help the child acquire certain developmental tasks and an analysis of the opportunities they had for teaching. The questionnaire revealed that the philosophy underlying parental involvement is relevant in a Guyanese context; however, certain practical constraints need to be appreciated.     

The relevance of parental involvement programmes in developing countries

Summary The rationale for parent involvement programmes with handicapped children is presented and analysed from a third world perspective. The mothers' reaction to the role is discussed. Potentially damaging consequences of adopting a teaching role are considered. The results of a questionnaire administered to 137 Guyanese mothers are presented. The questionnaire focused on the mothers' understanding of the concept of child development, their belief in being able to help the child acquire certain developmental tasks and an analysis of the opportunities they had for teaching. The questionnaire revealed that the philosophy underlying parental involvement is relevant in a Guyanese context; however, certain practical constraints need to be appreciated.     

Can mothers identify malnutrition in their children?

To assess mothers' perceptions about malnutrition and theirability to identify malnutrition in their own children, 339children aged 3–35 months and their mothers were studiedin two urban hospitals in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and in a communityclinic. The weight, height, and mid-upper arm circumferenceof the children were measured, and their mothers were interviewed.Child nutritional status according to their mother's statementand anthropometrically assessed nutritional status were compared.Sixty per cent of the mothers correctly identified better nutritionalstatus (weight/age >75% of NCHS median) and 67% mothers correctlyidentified malnutrition (weight/age < 75% of NCHS median)in their children. Sixty-one per cent of mothers with less than5 years of formal education correctly identified better nutrition(weight/age >75%) whereas 38% mothers with more than 5 yearsof education correctly identified better nutrition. Correctidentification of malnutrition was made by 70% of mothers withless than 5 years of formal education, and 74% of educated mothersdid the same. As regards causes of malnutrition, 33% of mothers stated thatlack of food at home resulted in undernutri-tion in their children(mean weight-for-age of these children was 65% of the NCHS median).Mothers' suggestions for improving child health were: betterfood in 31% cases; treatment of illnesses in 22% cases; andboth in 42% cases. The results suggest that most of the mothersare able to identify malnutrition in their children, and 95%of them are aware of ways to improve it, and that the provisionof adequate food and health care may improve child nutritionalstatus.     

The influence of psychosocial factors on the duration of breastfeeding

AIM: A study was undertaken to examine to what extent psychosocial factors are related to the length of breastfeeding. METHODS: A cohort of Danish mothers giving birth to a single child was followed up for four months. Information on mother and baby including psychosocial variables was obtained from a self-report questionnaire. Breastfeeding status was subsequently monitored by a health visitor. RESULTS: A total of 471 (88%) mothers participated, 98.7 % initiated breastfeeding and after four months 277 (59%) were still exclusive breastfeeding; 99 mothers, 51% of those who stopped, stopped within the first five weeks. In Cox regression analyses the duration of breastfeeding showed a positive association with mother's schooling (p=0.002), her intention to breastfeed (p=0.001), previous experience with breastfeeding (p<0.001), self-efficacy with respect to breastfeeding (p<0.001), her confidence in breastfeeding (p=0.012) and knowledge about breastfeeding (p=0.001). The effect of the mother's knowledge depended on the parity of the child. Among primiparous mothers high knowledge was associated with long duration of breastfeeding, but this association was not found among the multiparous. CONCLUSIONS: To help the mothers who would like to breastfeed their baby, we must improve our ability to identify mothers at risk of early cessation. Mother's schooling, her intention, self-efficacy and earlier breastfeeding experience can be used as early predictors. An intervention should aim at improving the self-efficacy and resources of these mothers, with a focus on practical knowledge. The first five weeks, when the largest proportion of the cessations occurred, require special attention.     

Less than optimal parenting strategies predict maternal low-level depression beyond that of child transgressions

The relationship between less than optimal parenting styles, child transgressions and maternal depression were examined. It was predicted that variations in parenting styles would predict maternal depression over and above child transgressions. The present study involved approximately 68 children, their mothers and their preschool teachers. Participants included 36 male and 32 female children with a mean age of 50.76 months (standard deviation = 8.32), their mothers and their teachers. Mothers completed questionnaires on parenting styles and maternal depression, while teachers completed a questionnaire on children's social behaviours. A series of hierarchical multiple regression analyses showed that less than optimal parenting (authoritarian parenting style and emotion dismissing emotional style) predicted maternal depression over and above child transgressions (aggressive, asocial, excluding, anxious and hyperactive behaviours). Additional analyses revealed that mothers who engage in less than optimal parenting strategies are likely to experience augmented levels of depression. Overall mothers' parenting styles appear to be more salient in determining their negative moods than their children's transgressions. Results are discussed in terms of parenting self-efficacy, learned hopelessness and directions for future research.     

SEXUAL ATTITUDES OF MOTHERS OF RETARDED CHILDREN

Forty-four mothers were interviewed to assess their attitudes toward the sexual behavior, sex education, birth control, marriage, and dating of their TMR adolescents. Religion influenced mothers' attitudes toward masturbation and marriage. Although many mothers expected that their children would develop the ability to date, most of them felt that their children would never be able to marry. Mothers wanted sex education taught in the schools, and they desired the formation of parent groups to aid them in understanding the sexuality of their children.