Volling BL, Bae Y, Rosenberg L, Beyers-Carlson EEA, Tolman RM, Swain JE. Firstborn Children's Reactions to Mother-Doll Interaction Do Not Predict Their Jealousy of a Newborn Sibling: A Longitudinal Pilot Study.
J Perinat Educ 2022;
31:206-215. [PMID:
36277228 PMCID:
PMC9584099 DOI:
10.1891/jpe-2021-0017]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Mothers are concerned about their firstborn children's acceptance of a baby sibling. Observing children's reactions to mothers interacting with an infant doll simulator has been offered as one means of seeing how children will react to the baby sibling. A longitudinal pilot study with 30 pregnant mothers and their firstborn children was conducted comparing children's behaviors to mother-doll interaction in the laboratory before birth with behaviors during home observations of mother-sibling interaction 1 month after birth. Children responded to mother-doll and mother-sibling interaction differently, with no significant associations across children's behaviors in mother-doll and mother-sibling interactions. The use of an infant doll simulator before birth did not reliably predict children's behavioral adjustment after the birth of a baby sibling.
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