Shared Child Development Knowledge between Grandmother and Mother

The sharing of child development knowledge between grandmothers and mothers in the white and black populations is examined to determine the impact of cultural, generational, and familial effects. Fifty-six white grandmother-mother dyads and 31 black dyads estimated the age at which an average child is capable of various developmental tasks. The age estimates for infant development given by black grandmothers and mothers were higher (i.e., older ages) than those of the white families. Mothers tended to expect developmental milestones for cultural development (learning nursery rhymes, manners, etc.) at a younger age than did the grandmothers.