Interaction between young children and mothers have been considered as an important factor in early developmental period. Mothers' sensitive and receptive attitudes toward young children's needs have been emphasized because they can facilitate the you...
Interaction between young children and mothers have been considered as an important factor in early developmental period. Mothers' sensitive and receptive attitudes toward young children's needs have been emphasized because they can facilitate the young children's learning and development.
In case of young children with developmental delays, their lack of social and communicative skills prevent them from expressing their communicative intentions. They also have difficulty in perceiving social and communicative needs and intentions of others. Considering these characteristics of young children with developmental delays, establishment of solid interaction between young children and mothers or primary caregivers carries a significant meaning because it is such a prototype of human relationships.
Young children learn how to build and expand social relationship through interaction with their mothers. Mothers' responsive behaviors positively affects young children's social development and interpersonal relationship. Mothers whose young children' are developmentally delayed have difficulties in having interaction with their children due to lack of communication, which is attributed to the fact that mothers and young children mutually fail to identify communicative intention of each others.
In order to build up effective communication, mothers should precisely perceive young children's intentions and respond to them accordingly. In other words, interactions between mothers and young children with disabilities are apt to positively change based on how mother communicate with their young children.
If mothers can communicate with their children without any difficulties, qualitative interactions between them can be established. Qualitative interactions are possible when mothers and young children's behaviors are reciprocal. In other words, it can be formed when there is a correspondence in behaviors between each other. Qualitative interaction should be modified and developed as mothers and young children are accustomed to each other. It can facilitate young children's development because it helps them increase their social participation and sophisticate their own behaviors. It is suggested that the role of mothers is important in interaction with young children with developmental delays. Thus, it is necessary to provide those mothers with training programs which can help them establish qualitative interaction with their children.
This study was designed to teach mothers whose young children are developmentally delayed how to apply responsive communicative strategies to their interaction with their children and to evaluate the effectiveness of the program.
Three mothers and thier 4-year-old children with developmental delays participated on the intervention. The effectiveness was evaluated based on the duration of time and level of participation. During pre-sessions, mothers learned basic knowledge of young children's development, behavioral characteristics, and the importance of interaction. In the main sessions, mothers learned strategies regarding how to sensitively develop both verbal and non-verbal behaviors of their children, how to improve the responsiveness and reciprocity of interactions. Feedback was provided in order to help the participants apply the three strategies to real situations. The main goal of this study was to build inter-subjectivity between mothers and young children through the feedbacks.
Based on the training program, interactions between the mothers and their young children with developmental delays changed as follows:
First, the duration of interaction between mothers and young children increased and remained the same level after the program was terminated.
Second, the level of interaction between mothers and young children was improved through the program and remained the same after the program was terminated.
The program was conducted in natural play settings, which brought more positive impacts on how to apply those strategies to real situations. The feedback procedure was very effective in which mothers and the investigator discussed following strategies after mothers evaluated themselves through reflective thinking.
The comprehensive program of this study revealed a significance in that both were made through the training program. It was revealed that the training program was effective to change interactions between mother and their young children with developmental delays not only quantitatively but qualitatively.
This study suggested that mothers' training without young children's involvement showed positive results. Such training should be provided in order to facilitate interactions between mothers and young children with developmental delays and explained to other members of family alike or various types of care givers.