Unrestricted.2016-11-142011-02-192016-11-142003-05http://hdl.handle.net/2346/21178This study investigated the role of cultural, maternal, and child characteristics on the quality of the mother-infant relationship in 54 Mexican-American mothers and their 6-month infants. Each mother was interviewed in their homes assessing social support, maternal characteristics (education, personality, depression, knowledge of infant development, perception of intentionality) and child characteristics (gender, temperament). Findings suggest that Hispanic mothers' responsivity was affected by maternal perception of intentionality of positive and negative behaviors in their infants. More educated mothers had more knowledge of infant development and were more responsive toward their infants than mothers with fewer years of education. Girls were rated as more difficult than boys. It seems that when one is assessing the quality of the mother-child relationship, multiple domains of behavior must be explored in order to provide a more accurate picture of this relationship and that maternal positive behaviors in the Mexican American population do not follow the expected patterns in non Hispanic White mothers.application/pdfengAttachment behavior in childrenMothers -- Mental healthSocial interactionCultureMother and infantInfants -- Mental healthPersonalityThesis