Peer-reviewed article
Conditions of negation formation in children of early age with down syndrome
Sedova E, Stepanova V, Gardanova Z ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined how young children with Down syndrome (aged 24-36 months) express negation and the relationship between maternal psychological characteristics and the child's negation responses. Researchers compared 22 mother-child pairs using questionnaires measuring parental anxiety, aggression, and emotional awareness. The findings suggest that mothers with lower anxiety levels tend to have children who express negation through gestures or sounds, while mothers with higher anxiety are more likely to have children who respond with whole-body reactions.
Key points
- Children with Down syndrome express negation either through gesture/sound or through whole-body reactions
- Maternal aggressiveness correlates with the type of negation formation in children
- Mothers of children with Down syndrome generally show high to medium levels of anxiety
- Mothers whose children use gesture/sound negation show lower anxiety levels than mothers of children with whole-body reactions
- Lower maternal alexithymia and anxiety are associated with more developed negation responses (gesture/sound)
Limitations
The study has a small sample size (22 dyads) and does not include a comparison group of typically developing children, making it difficult to determine whether findings are specific to Down syndrome or reflect broader patterns. The cross-sectional design prevents understanding of causality or development over time.
Abstract
Introduction According to Vygotsky, children with special needs follow the same trajectory of development as normally developing children, although some of the skills can be observed in a later period. This statement can be implemeted to the children with Down syndrome. The number of such children in Russia is around 25 thousand. Objectives The aim is to study the conditions of negation formation in children with Down syndrome. Methods The sample consisted of 22 dyads of children with Down syndrome of 24-36 months old and their mothers. The research methods included: parents’ questionnaire; analysis of problematic situations; Tkacheva’s inventory Parent’s Psychological Type; Varga &Stolin Inventory of Parental Attitude; Toronto Alexithymia Scale, Bass-Darky Hostility Questionnaire, Leonhard-Schmieschek Test, Spielberger’s Test Anxiety Inventory. Results Firstly, we have studied how a child expresses his or her negative reaction: whether he or she uses a gesture or a sound for “no” or reacts with the whole body. According to those results we have divided the sample into two groups and then have compared them. The research shows the connection between mother’s aggressiveness and formation of the child’s negation reaction (gesture/sound or the whole body) as well as differences in the level of alexithymia and anxiety: all the characteristics are lower in the first group. Conclusions Mothers of the children with Down syndrome demonstrate a high and a medium level of anxiety. However, the mothers of the children who expresses negation with a gesture/sound show a lower anxiety level comparing with the mothers whose children react with the whole body.