Relations of maternal style and child self-concept to autobiographical memories in chinese, chinese immigrant, and European american 3-year-olds.
The relations of maternal reminiscing style and child self-concept to children's shared and independent autobiographical memories were examined in a sample of 189 three-year-olds and their mothers from Chinese families in China, first-generation Chinese immigrant families in the United States, and European American families. Mothers shared memories with their children and completed questionnaires; children recounted autobiographical events and described themselves with a researcher. Independent of culture, gender, child age, and language skills, maternal elaborations and evaluations were associated with children's shared memory reports, and maternal evaluations and child agentic self-focus were associated with children's independent memory reports. Maternal style and child self-concept further mediated cultural influences on children's memory. The findings provide insight into the social-cultural construction of autobiographical memory.
Wang
Qi
Q
Department of Human Development, Cornell University, Martha Van Rensselaer Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA. qw23@cornell.edu
D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People; D001325:Autobiographies as Topic; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D008568:Memory; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D012649:Self Concept; D044465:White People