Responsive parenting: interventions and outcomes
Bulletin of the World Health Organization 2006
Overview
Responsiveness, a mother’s/caregiver’s prompt, contingent and appropriate interaction with the child, is a vital parenting tool with wide-ranging benefits for the child, from better cognitive and psychosocial development to protection from disease and mortality. By conducting a systematic review of literature from both developed and developing countries, two facets of responsive parenting are examined— its role in child health and development and the effectiveness of interventions to enhance it. Results reveal that interventions are effective in enhancing maternal responsiveness, resulting in better child health and development, especially for the neediest populations.