Apivotal role in fostering positive outcomes for children’s mental health is played by early years practitioners, according to the lead author of a recent Cambridge University study into the importance of early parent-child relationships.
The research, ‘The role of parent-child interactions in the association between mental health and prosocial behaviour: Evidence from early childhood to late adolescence’ (see Further information), found that people who experienced warm and loving relationships with their parents when they were three years old not only tended to have fewer mental health problems during early childhood and adolescence but also displayed heightened ‘prosocial’ tendencies – socially desirable behaviours intended to benefit others, such as kindness, empathy, helpfulness, generosity and a willingness to volunteer.
‘Our analysis showed that after a certain age, we tend to be mentally well, or mentally unwell, and have a reasonably fixed level of resilience,’ says Ioannis Katsantonis, the lead author and a doctoral researcher specialising in psychology and education.
‘Prosociality varies more and for longer, depending on our environment. A big influence appears to be our early relationship with our parents. As children, we internalise those aspects of our relationships with parents that are characterised by emotion, care and warmth. This affects our future disposition to be kind and helpful towards others.’
Although the correlation between parent-child relationships and later prosociality needs to be verified through further research, the study points to a sizeable association. On average, it found that for every standard unit above ‘normal’ levels that a child’s closeness with their parents was higher at three years old, their prosociality increased by 0.24 of a standard unit by adolescence.
Conversely, children whose early parental relationships were emotionally strained or abusive were less likely to develop prosocial habits over time. The researchers suggest this strengthens the case for developing targeted policies and support for young families, as establishing close parent-child relationships may not always be straightforward, such as if parents have financial and work pressures.
The study was inspired by the changing nature of the relationship between mental health and prosociality and the role of parent-child interactions in this. ‘There is little evidence on whether the quality of the parent-child relationships in early childhood is predictive of the stable traits of mental health and prosociality from early childhood to late adolescence after removing any situational or contextual influences, for example, income, or intergenerational transmission of mental health,’ explains Katsantonis. ‘Particularly, there was less evidence on how parent-child interactions predicted whether children will build a “personality” trait of being kind, helpful and compassionate.’
The findings underline the importance of cultivating strong early relationships between parents and children, already widely seen as critical to supporting children’s healthy development in other areas.
‘Building warm and close relationships with your child at age three is very crucial for later-life prosocial habits and resilience,’ Katsantonis explains. ‘This might include something as simple as finding the time to bond with your child early on. It is also important to share physical comfort, to make the child realise the benefits of valuing the parents’ relationship with them, to praise the child, and be approachable. In contrast, maladaptive parent-child interactions characterised by conflict, for example, anger, struggling, bad moods, and maltreatment, such as smacking, are harmful for the children’s mental health and prosocial “traits”.’
THE EARLY YEARS EDUCATOR
The research has numerous implications for early years staff:
Emphasis on relationship building: Practitioners should prioritise building warm, close and comforting relationships with the children and their parents. This lays the foundation for children’s resilience against mental health difficulties and promotes prosocial behaviour.
Early intervention and prevention: Recognising and addressing signs of aggressive behaviour and conduct problems early on is crucial. Early intervention can support children’s future prosociality and mitigate the risk of developing mental health symptoms later.
Promoting prosocial habits: Practitioners can facilitate activities and interactions that promote kindness, empathy and consideration among children. By fostering a ‘trait’ of prosociality over time, this can contribute to the development of stable mental health and positive social habits.
Supporting parents: Staff can provide guidance and support for nurturing positive parent-child relationships.
Awareness of harmful interactions: Practitioners should be vigilant about identifying and addressing maladaptive parent-child interactions characterised by conflict and maltreatment.
‘So much of this comes back to parents,’ says Katsantonis. ‘How much [parents] can spend time with their children and respond to their needs and emotions early in life matters enormously.
‘Some may need help learning how to do that, but we should not underestimate the importance of simply giving them time. Closeness only develops with time, and for parents who are living or working in stressful and constrained circumstances, there often isn’t enough.’
ATTACHMENT
The research also firmly supports the importance of young children forming strong attachments with their carers.
‘These findings highlight the critical role of early attachment in shaping children’s long-term well-being and social development. Encouraging strong attachments with caregivers… lays a solid foundation for children’s emotional security, healthy relationships and overall positive outcomes later in life,’ Katsantonis adds. Early years practitioners therefore have a significant impact on children’s development and well-being.
study methodology
The study used data from 10,700 participants in the Millennium Cohort Study, which monitored the development of a large group of people born in the UK between 2000 and 2002. It includes survey-based information about their prosociality, ‘internalising’ mental health symptoms (such as depression and anxiety) and ‘externalising’ symptoms (such as aggression).
Further survey data provided information about how far the participants’ relationships with their parents when they were three years old were characterised by ‘maltreatment’ (physical and verbal abuse); emotional conflict; and ‘closeness’ (warmth, security and care). Other potentially confounding factors, like ethnic background and socio-economic status, were also taken into account.
The Cambridge team then used a form of statistical analysis called latent state-trait-occasion modelling to understand how far the participants’ mental health symptoms and prosocial inclinations seemed to be expressing fixed personality ‘traits’ at each stage of their development. This enabled them, for example, to determine how much a child who behaved anxiously was responding to a particular experience or set of circumstances, and to what extent they were just naturally anxious.
FURTHER INFORMATION
The research by Ioannis Katsantonis and Ros McLellan was published in the International Journal of Behavioral Development: https://bit.ly/4aZtZjz
