DOI: 10.7910/dvn/8mplwh
title: Low-Income Minority Children and Their Mothers, 1972-1980

description: Data were collected as part of the Parent-Child Development Center (PCDC) project, a pilot program that was originally implemented in New Orleans, Birmingham, and Austin, to assist low-income mothers with the economic and social challenges commonly endured by low-income parents. Program components included classes on nutrition, budgeting, and community political issues; medical care; social services; information on using community resources; and an emphasis on building self-esteem, basic skills, and general knowledge. These data were collected between 1972 and 1980 in order to evaluate the effects of the training and assistance offered to mothers in the program.
&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; The data available were collected at the PCDC in New Orleans, and the subjects include low-income African American children between birth and three years old and their mothers or primary caregivers. Mothers between 17 and 35 years old were eligible for the program, and researchers used birth records to identify and recruit participants. Mother-child pairs entered the program when the children were 2 months old and remained until the children reached 3 years of age. Each year, from 1972 to 1977, a new mother-child cohort began the 3-year program. Data are available for 483 mother-child pairs who participated in the study.
&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; Experimental measures developed by the researchers include a variety of standardized mother-child interaction measures, as well as measures of personality traits, mental health, and cognitive development of young children. Assessments, observations, tests, and interviews were conducted regularly throughout the three-year program. The effectiveness of the PCDC interventions were evaluated by comparing families in the program with a control group. Researchers recorded observations of
parent-child interactions, collected school and medical records, and administered an extensive list of scales and measures. The data include the Bayley Scales of Infant Development (6, 12, 18, and 26 months), the Pacific Test Series (24 months), the Stanford-Binet (36 and 48 months), and the Concept Familiarity Index (36 months). Observations of mother-child interactions were observed at 2, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, and 36 months. Two primary types of observations were used: the unstructured or "waiting room" observation," and the teaching observation.
&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; In addition to the standardized measures, maternal demographic information was collected, and a graduation interview was administered at 36 months. Scales and tests included measures of self-esteem, cognition, motor scales, behavioral inventories, and general mental health. Examples of measures include the following: Ainsworth's Four Scales for Rating Maternal Behavior; MCI Code; MCI Punch; MCI Observation; McCarthy: Record Form; McCarthy: Drawing Book; Grammar Test; Pacific Form and Color; Infant Personality Rating; Ammons Picture Vocab; Uzgiris Hunt Scoring; Self-Esteem Scale; Parent Behavior Inventory; Educational Attitude Survey; WAIS; Psychological Mindedness; and School Achievement Tests.
&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt; The Murray Resaerch Archive holds original record paper data from participants at the New Orleans PCDC site. Data for each family unit may include up to 64 separate measures . Follow-up studies may be conducted by researchers approved by the Murray Archive.