This study examined the effects of the preschool child’s sex and age on three maternal attitudes regarded as pathogenic in the literature: Irritability, rejection, and intrusion. The sample had 53 mothers and their preschool children from 51 through 70 months of age, of both middle and low socioeconomic statuses (SES). The mothers filled out a Portuguese version of the Parent Attitude Research Instrument-PARI. Zero-order correlations and multiple regressions indicated that the older the child, the lower the levels of irritability and rejection reported by the mother; however, the same did not happen to maternal intrusion. Regardless of the child’s age, the mothers of boys reported higher intrusion than the mothers of girls. These results held even after introducing SES in the regression equation. Bivariate analyses also showed a marginal trend for the mothers of boys to report higher rejection than the mothers of girls. These results are discussed in light of the current literature on the preschool child’s socialization, stressing both cognitive and interactional elements.
Irritability; rejection; intrusion; socialization
