NONVERBAL MATERNAL WARMTH AND CHILDRENS LOCUS OF CONTROL OF REINFORCEMENT

Previous research on antecedents of generalized control expectancies h as indicated that parents of children with internal control expectanci es express more warmth than parents of children with external control expectancies. However, few studies have utilized observational methodo logies and no study has identified a specific mechanism by which paren tal warmth may contribute to differences in children's control expecta ncies. In addition, no study has examined whether individual differenc es in children's behavior are associated with differences in parental warmth. We tested the hypothesis that mothers of internally and extern ally controlled children would differ in their expression of nonverbal behavioral indicators of warmth. To test the hypothesis, the interact ions of 50 second-grade children and their mothers were videotaped. Co mpared to mothers of externally controlled children, mothers of intern ally controlled children displayed more smiles, exhibited more positiv e touches (hugs, pats, rubs), and gazed for longer periods of time tow ard their child. Analyses of the children's behavior revealed that int ernally controlled children displayed more smiles and engaged in less off-task behavior than externally controlled children. Results of the current study further clarify the nature of the association between pa rental warmth and children's generalized control expectancies and sugg est nonverbal behavior as a possible mechanism.