PARENTAL BELIEF SYSTEMS, CONFLICT RESOLUTION STRATEGIES, AND CULTURAL ORIENTATION IN THE MOTHER-CHILD INTERACTIVE CONTEXT: a comparative study of two Costa Rican samples Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of Human Sciences, Department of Cultural and Developmental Psychology, University of Osnabrück in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor in Sciences (Rer.Nat.) by Mariano Rosabal-Coto San José, Costa Rica Supervisor: Prof. Dr. HEIDI KELLER Co-supervisor: Prof. Dr. SIEGFRIED GREIF NOVEMBER, 2004 ii Dedicated to My children Mariel and Mariano , who have remained by my side, growing, supporting, and building a dream. iii PREFACE Psychological research on socialization goals and parent-child interaction began in Costa Rica almost 40 years ago, when the country’s mainstream investigation of these subjects was oriented toward epidemiological studies. Several academic and government institutions, some more systematic than others, have developed incursions into this matter, but up until now a systematic research line including a systematic theoretical and methodological approach has not been established. This document discusses and analyzes the theoretical implications as of developmental psychology, relating to variables that are essential for the study of socialization, such as parental ethno-theories and the context of the mother-child interaction, from the specificity of a cultural context. A relevant subject for psychology is approached, focusing on subjects of cultural, trans-cultural, and developmental psychology. Thus, our research interest intends to fulfill the need for a first proposal of exploration and systematization of a culturally sensitive approach, which at the same time will facilitate further specific studies either with Costa Rican or with Latin American samples. Thus, we reassess the subject of cultures of separateness and cultures of relatedness ever-present in psychology discussions, not in order to classify a culture but to know it in its specificity and variability. Osnabrück, May 2004 Mariano Rosabal-Coto iv Acknowledgements I give special thanks to my mentor, Dr. Heidi Keller, for offering me, throughout different contexts and along a period full of experiences and learning, her support and constant guidance. To the mothers, girls and boys who generously accepted to participate in this study, To my parents, Ana and Fernando, my siblings Ana V., Fernando and Guillermo, for their solidarity and support in good times and bad times, To Ligia, who shared an important time of her life with me, To professor Dr. H.W. Sievert, for his support and company since the very first days in Osnabrück, To Mr. Giovanny León S. and Mr. Rigoberto Cárdenas, who were key players during the sample recruiting process and the first part of this research, To my colleagues in the Department for Development and Culture of the Unviersity of Osnabrück (Daniela, Athanasios, Suzanne, Relindis, Jürgen, Florian, Akiko, Brad and Jan), for their solidarity and relevant contributions all along the process, To my PhD colleague, Relindis Yovzi, with whom I not only shared an academic project, but also the intense experience of crossing cultures and the warmth of “cultures of relatedness”. To Marita Bjojan, who was always willing to listen, help, and facilitate the whole process, To the HIWIS team: Fátima Wessels, Barbara Sühlemann, Carolina Cárdenas and Christa Broering-Wichman, without whom a substantial part of the work would not have been possible, To the students of the EMPRA II courses, who collaborated with the reliability tests, To Miguel Kazén, for being my interlocutor in all dimensions, To Uwe Nerger for the constant support and availability, To Domingo Campos for his support, both academic and personal, especially for his company during the last part of this research, To Barbara Linninger, Guillermo Rosabal and Natalia Rodríguez, for their valuable work in translation and proofreading, To all the people who, in one way or another, were present and helped in materializing this project. v TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION………………………………………………………………………..ii PREFACE……………………………………………………………………………iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………………………………..iv TABLE OF CONTENTS……………………………………………………………...v LIST OF TABLES…………………………………………………………………...viii LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………ix LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS ………………………………………………………..….x LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS…………………………………………………………xi CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………….1 1.1. Problem Definition……………………………………………………………...1 1.2. Purpose of the Study……………………………………………………….……2 1.3. Rationale………………………………………………………………………...2 1.4. Assumptions…………………………………………………………………….3 CHAPTER II: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK…………………………………..4 2.1. Development and Culture: the Contributions of Cultural and Cross-Cultural Research…………………………………………………………………………….5 2.2. Interdependent and Independent Social Orientation……………………………….9 2.2.1. Interdependence between Latin American Cultural Contexts………………….12 2.2.2. Particularities in Childrearing…………………………………………………..14 2.3. Developmental Pathways…………………………………………………………16 2.3.1. Component Model of Parenting………………………………………………..18 2.3.2. Description of the Different Styles of Parenting and Interactive Mechanisms Adapted for this Research………………………………………………………19 2.3.2.1. Body Contact……………………………………………………………….…19 2.3.2.2. Warmth………………………………………………………………………..20 2.3.2.3. Maternal Stimulation……………………………………………………….…20 2.4. Parenting and Socialization Goals………………………………………………..20 2.4.1. Early Childhood, Discipline and Conflict……………………………………...21 2.4.2. Parenting Goals and Conflict…………………………………………………...24 2.5. Historical Background of Costa Rica……………………………………………..25 2.5.1. Pre-Columbian Period………………………………………………………….26 2.5.2. Demographic Situation of Early Indigenous Population……………………….27 2.5.3. Organization and Social Life of Ancient Indigenous Population………………29 2.5.4. Mestizaje and Costa Rican Identity…………………………………………….30 2.5.5. Shaping of a Culture of Relatedness……………………………………………32 2.6. Cultural Background of Contemporary Costa Rica……………………………….35 2.6.1. Values and Culture……………………………………………………………..36 vi 2.6.2. Social Change…………………………………………………………………..38 2.6.3. Guanacaste at Present…………………………………………………………..40 2.6.4. San José and the Greater Metropolitan Area…………………………………...42 2.6.5. Summary………………………………………………………………………..42 2.7. Research on Socialization Goals and Parent-Child Interaction in Costa Rica……43 2.7.1. Local Studies…………………………………………………………………...44 2.7.2. Cross-Cultural and External Studies…………………………………………...51 2.7.3. Summary……………………………………………………………………….53 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY………………………………………………...58 3.1. Geographical Location and Description……………………………………….58 3.1.1. Demographic Descriptors………………………………………………………59 3.1.1.1. Population and Demography………………………………………………59 3.1.1.2. Health……………………………………………………………………...61 3.1.1.3. Education…………………………………………………………………..61 3.1.1.4. Poverty……………………………………………………………………..61 3.1.1.5. Family Patterns…………………………………………………………….61 3.1.1.6. Types of Mating……………………………………………………………63 3.1.1.7. Development Level………………………………………………………...63 3.2. Sample Frame of the Study…………………………………………………….64 3.3. Contacts and Sampling…………………………………………………………64 3.4. Participants……………………………………………………………………..64 3.4.1. Socio-Demographic Description of the Samples………………………………65 3.4.2. Contextual Variables of the Mothers…………………………………………..65 3.4.3. Infant Characteristics of the Sub-Samples……………………………………..67 3.5. Time Frame…………………………………………………………………….68 3.6. Data Collection…………………………………………………………………68 3.6.1. Instruments of the Study………………………………………………………..68 3.6.1.1. Conflict Situations Vignettes……………………………………………….68 3.6.1.2. Interview……………………………………………………………………68 3.6.1.3. Scales……………………………………………………………………….69 3.6.1.4. Socialization Goals Inventory (SGI)……………………………………….69 3.6.1.5. Videotaping………………………………………………………………...71 3.7 Coding System of Mother-Child Interaction……………………………………..71 3.7.1 Coding of Behavioral Categories………………………………………………71 3.7.2 Coding of the Conflict Scenarios: Content Categories………………………..76 3.7.3 Coding Procedure ………………………………………………………….…..77 3.8 Inter-Observer Agreement and Reliability………………………………………...77 3.9 Statistical Analysis…………………………………………………………………79 vii CHAPTER IV: PRESENTATION OF THE RESULTS…………………………81 4.1. Descriptive Results with Regard to Time and Setting of Interactions……………81 4.1.1. Descriptive Results regarding Interaction Time………………………………..81 4.1.2. Descriptive Results Regarding Interaction Settings……………………………82 4.2. Relationship Between Results and Assumptions…………………………………83 4.2.1. Assumption 1: Cultural Orientation of the Samples…………………………..83 4.2.1.1. Cultural Orientation According to the Collectivism Scale……………………83 4.2.1.2. Cultural Orientation According to the Family Allocentrism Scale………...…84 4.2.2. Assumption 2: Variability of Interactive Components………………………...86 4.2.2.1.Differences in Interaction Between the Two Geographical Zones…………..…86 4.2.3. Assumption 3: Conflict Resolution Styles and Parental Beliefs………………89 4.2.3.1. Differences Regarding Orientation and Type of Solution…………………….89 4.2.3.2. Differences Regarding the Content Quality of Stories and the Use of Norms..91 4.2.3.3. Differences Regarding Conflict Resolution and Parental Beliefs…………….92 4.2.3.4. Maternal Values Towards Conflict Resolution……………………………….93 4.2.3.5. Desirable and Undesirable Resolution Styles for Children…………………...93 4.2.3.6. Differences Regarding Parental Beliefs………………………………………95 CHAPTER V: DISCUSSION………………………………………………………..96 5.1. Purpose of the Study………………………………………………………………96