Mom's interaction with baby may be key

CHICAGO, June 24 (UPI) -- Predictable infants as well as babies more intellectually stimulated by their moms by age 1 are at lower risk of later conduct problems, U.S. researchers say.

Benjamin Lahey and his University of Chicago research team measured infant temperament including activity levels, how fearful, predictable and fussy the babies were, as well as whether they had a generally happy disposition. The researchers looked at how much mothers stimulated their baby intellectually, how responsive they were to the child's demands and the use of spanking or physical restraint.

The study, published in the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, found that maternal ratings of their infants' temperaments and parenting styles during the child's first year are good predictors of maternal ratings of child conduct problems through age 13.

The researchers also said that early spanking predicted challenging behavior in Non-Hispanic European American families, but not in Hispanic families.

The study of about 1,800 children defined conduct problems in later childhood to include: cheating, lying, trouble with teachers, disobedience, bullying and showing no remorse after misbehaving.