Prospective cohort study reveals maternal locus of control moderates toddler injury rates, highlighting parental psychological factors in child safety.
OBJECTIVE: To examine how maternal and child characteristics interact to moderate injury rate and injury severity for young children. METHODS: In this study, 149 mothers reported their toddlers' injuries over a 6-month period during biweekly interviews. Mothers completed questionnaires assessing parenting behaviors, psychological characteristics, and their children's injury-relevant behaviors. RESULTS: Maternal locus of control was found to moderate the association between children's risky behavior and child injury rate. Specifically, an external locus of control was associated with increased child injury rate for high-risk but not for low-risk children. CONCLUSION: These findings illuminate the potential importance of parental locus of control in moderating high-risk injury-relevant behavior.
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Damashek et al. (2005) studied this question.
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