Parent-Child Interactions, Parenting Stress, and Developmental Outcomes at 4 Years

This study examined the relationship of father-child and mother-child interactions, perceptions of parenting stress, socioeconomic status, and prematurity to development of 44 healthy preterm and 49 full-term Canadian children at 4 years of age. Preterm or full-term birth, infant sex, and parental age accounted for 30-32% of the variance in cognitive and motor scores, respectively, on the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities. Parenting stress, father-child interactions at 12 months, and preterm and full-term birth accounted for 19% of the variance for expressive language on the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool (CELF-P). For receptive language on the CELF-P, mother-child interaction at 12 months, mother's spousal relationship, and preterm and full-term birth accounted for 13% of the variance. Addressing early parent-child interaction and perceptions of parenting stress may improve child language development.