Parents' attitudes about children: Associations with parental life histories and child-rearing quality

This study examined relations among parents' perceptions of their childhood , attitudes about life, expectations for child behavior, attitudes about th eir child's behavior, and the child-rearing environment parents provide. Ei ghty mothers of 1-to 5-year-olds were interviewed about perceptions of rece iving harsh parenting as children, current attitudes about life, developmen tal expectations, and views of intentionality and severity of their child's misbehavior. The home environment was measured using the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (R. H. Bradley & B. Caldwell, 1979) scal e. Mothers who reported harsh parenting as children, negative attitudes abo ut life, and unrealistic developmental expectations had negative attitudes about their own child. These attitudes were related to provision of lower q uality home environments. Results support a constructivist approach to unde rstanding parental social cognitions and behavior.