The Effect of the Home-Centered Mother-Infant Interaction Program on Infant Development Through Mutual Interaction And Mothers’ Intuitive Behaviors

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine the effect of The Home-centered Mother-Infant Interaction Program on infant development through the intuitive behaviors of mothers, along with mutual interaction between mother and infant. The study was conducted in the province of Malatya with 44 infants (22 in the control group and 22 in the experimental group) who were nine to twelve months old, and their mothers. The study data were collected using a general information form, susceptibility testing, mutuality testing, and the Denver Developmental Screening Test II. This is an empirical study which used the pretest-posttest permanence test control group model. The study data were analyzed using the Statistical Program for Social Sciences (SPSS) 22 package program. For data analysis, the study used descriptive statistics methods (mean, standard deviation, frequency, and rate). The study used the independent groups t test to compare the two groups’ quantitative data with normal distributions, and the Mann-Whitney U test to compare their variables that did not have normal distributions. The study also used the dependent groups t test to make the in-group comparisons of the variables with normal distributions, and Wilcoxon signed rank test to make the in-group comparisons of the variables that did not have normal distribution. The study results indicated that there was a significant difference (p<0.05) between the mothers’ pretest and posttest mean intuition scores in the experimental and control groups, to the advantage of the experimental group. There was also a significant difference (p<0.05) between the mothers’ mean pretest and posttest mutuality scores in the experimental and control groups, to the advantage of the experimental group. Finally, there was a significant difference (p<0.05) between the infants’ pretest and posttest personal-social, fine motor, and gross motor mean scores in the experimental and control groups. However, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in language abilities between infants in the experimental and control groups.