SUCCESS AT CATCHING AND KEEPING TODDLERS ATTENTION - AN EXAMINATION OF JOINT ATTENTION AMONG LOW-INCOME MOTHERS AND THEIR 2-YEAR-OLDS

Recent research suggests that competent caregiving by low-income paren ts may serve to buffer young children from some of the deleterious con sequences of economic hardship. As one means of exploring competent ca regiving in the context of poverty, this study examined the structurin g of joint attention among 47 low-income mothers and their 24-month-ol d toddlers. Findings revealed that, on the whole, dyads spent approxim ately half of a 10-minute play period in bouts of collaborative joint attention. While mothers made social overtures, or bids, more frequent ly than children, children played a significant role in initiating bou ts of joint attention, Highly engaged dyads generated significantly hi gher numbers of reciprocal maternal bids and fewer reciprocal child bi ds overall than did disengaged dyads. Sequential analyses suggested th at reciprocal bids initiated by children were likely to lead to period s of collaborative joint attention among engaged dyads, but not among disengaged dyads. (C)1996 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.