Toddlers' Concentration: Does Maternal Depression Make a Difference?

Twenty-five mother-toddler dyads with depressed mothers were compared with 25 dyads with well mothers on measures of attention during 20 min of spontaneous play in a home-like setting. Children of depressed women focused attention on more objects for shorter durations. Group differences could be accounted for by mothers' involvement in their children's play. Depressed women initiated and terminated more instances of attention to objects than well mothers. Correlations between maternal behaviors and children's attention were statistically significant. Results support the hypothesis that poorer attention of children of depressed women is at least in part mediated by inculcation.