PARENTS DEVELOPMENTAL EXPECTATIONS AND CHILD CHARACTERISTICS - LONGITUDINAL-STUDY OF CHILDREN WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DELAYS AND THEIR FAMILIES

The relation between child characteristics and parents' developmental expectations for their children with developmental delays at ages 3, 7 , and 11 was examined. Parents' developmental expectations were modera tely stable over time, tending to decline as children matured. As hypo thesized, parents' developmental expectations were associated with chi ld characteristics at age 3 and became increasingly correlated with ch ild characteristics over time. Results of regression analyses generall y support the hypothesis that early child characteristics, but not ear ly parent expectations, are the best predictors of parents' developmen tal expectations and child outcomes at child age 11. The one exception was the prediction of children's daily living competence by a combina tion of early parent expectations and children's Gesell DQ scores.