Transactional relations between maternal anxiety and toddler anxiety risk through toddler-solicited comforting behavior

Abstract

Introduction: Transactional developmental and anxiety theories suggest that mothers and toddlers may influence each other's anxiety development across early childhood. Further, toddlers' successful solicitations of comfort during uncertain, yet manageable, situations, may be a behavioral mechanism by which mothers and toddlers impact each other over time. To test these ideas, the current study employed a longitudinal design to investigate bidirectional relations between maternal anxiety and toddler anxiety risk (observed inhibited temperament and mother-perceived anxiety, analyzed separately), through the mediating role of toddler-solicited maternal comforting behavior, across toddlerhood.

Methods: Mothers (n = 174; 93.6% European American) and their toddlers (42.4% female; 83.7% European American) participated in laboratory assessments at child ages 1, 2, and 3 years. Mothers self-reported anxiety symptoms. Toddler anxiety risk was observed in the laboratory as inhibited temperament and reported by mothers. Solicited comforting interactions were observed across standardized laboratory tasks.

Results: Direct and indirect bidirectional effects were tested simultaneously in two longitudinal path models. Toddler anxiety risk, but not maternal anxiety, predicted solicited comforting behavior, and solicited comforting behavior predicted maternal anxiety. No convincing evidence for parent-directed effects on toddler anxiety risk emerged.

Conclusion: Results support continued emphasis on child-elicited effects in child and parent anxiety development in early childhood.

Keywords: anxiety/anxiety disorders; child/adolescent; maternal-child.

Figure 1. Conceptual Model of Mediated Transactional Effects

Note. Above and beyond stability and transactional associations occurring outside of our proposed behavioral mechanism, we hypothesized (as denoted by bolded paths) that maternal anxiety and toddler anxiety risk would both predict toddler-solicited maternal comforting behavior, that comforting would predict both maternal anxiety and toddler anxiety risk, and that comforting would indirectly link age 1 toddler anxiety risk to maternal anxiety at toddler age 3, and maternal anxiety at toddler age 1 to toddler age 3 anxiety risk. Correlated errors acknowledge shared variance occurring through non-behavioral mechanisms (e.g., genetics).

Figure 2. Path Model for Observed Inhibited Temperament

Note. Statistically significant paths are solid (hypothesized paths are bolded), and marginally significant paths are dashed. Non-significant paths are not displayed except for gray hypothesized paths. Maternal age was modeled, but is not displayed, as a covariate predicting maternal anxiety at toddler age 3.†P < .10,*p < .05, **p< .01, ***p < .001

Figure 3. Path Model for Mother-Perceived Toddler Anxiety

Note. Statistically significant paths are solid (hypothesized paths are bolded), and marginally significant paths are dashed. Non-significant paths are not displayed except for the gray hypothesized path. Maternal age was modeled, but is not displayed, as covariate predicting maternal anxiety at toddler age 3.†P < .10, *p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001