Maternal substance use and unpredictable maternal sensory signals may affect child development, but no studies have examined them together. We explored the unpredictability, frequency and duration of maternal sensory signals in 52 Caucasian mother–child dyads, 27 with and 25 without maternal substance use. We also examined the association between unpredictable maternal signals and children's cognitive development. Maternal sensory signals were evaluated with video‐recorded dyadic free‐play interactions at child age of 24 months. Children's cognitive development was evaluated with Bayley‐III at 24 months and with WPPSI‐III at 48 months. We found similar unpredictability, frequency and duration of sensory signals between substance‐using and non‐using mothers. Higher unpredictability of maternal sensory signals was robustly linked with poorer child cognitive development at 24 months. The link persisted, although weakened to 48 months. Unpredictability of maternal sensory signals may be a vital parenting aspect shaping children's development, but more research is needed in high‐risk groups.Highlights We examined unpredictability, frequency and duration of maternal sensory signals among substance‐using and non‐using mothers, and the associations between unpredictability and children's cognitive development. We assessed sensory signals with dyadic free‐play interaction and children's cognitive development with standardized tests. Groups showed similar sensory signal unpredictability, frequency and duration. Unpredictable sensory signals were linked with poorer child cognitive development at 24 and 48 months. Unpredictability of maternal sensory signals is a potentially vital aspect of parental care in shaping children's development. More research is needed especially including high‐risk mothers.

中文翻译：

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母亲物质使用、感觉信号的不可预测性和儿童认知发展：一项探索性研究


母亲的物质使用和不可预测的母亲感官信号可能会影响儿童的发育，但没有研究将它们放在一起进行检验。我们探讨了 52 名白人母子二人组中母亲感官信号的不可预测性、频率和持续时间，其中 27 名母亲使用过药物，25 名没有使用过药物。我们还研究了不可预测的母亲信号与儿童认知发展之间的关联。在 24 个月大的孩子身上，通过视频记录的二元自由游戏互动来评估母亲的感觉信号。儿童的认知发展在 24 个月时使用 Bayley-III 进行评估，在 48 个月时使用 WPPSI-III 进行评估。我们发现使用药物和不使用药物的母亲之间感觉信号的不可预测性、频率和持续时间相似。母亲感觉信号的不可预测性较高与 24 个月时儿童认知发展较差密切相关。尽管这种联系被削弱至 48 个月，但这种联系依然存在。母亲感官信号的不可预测性可能是影响儿童发展的一个重要的养育方面，但在高危人群中需要进行更多研究。我们研究了物质使用和不使用物质的母亲中母亲感官信号的不可预测性、频率和持续时间，以及两者之间的关联不可预测性与儿童认知发展之间的关系。我们通过二元自由游戏互动评估感官信号，并通过标准化测试评估儿童的认知发展。各组表现出相似的感觉信号不可预测性、频率和持续时间。不可预测的感官信号与 24 个月和 48 个月时儿童认知发展较差有关。母亲感官信号的不可预测性是父母照顾塑造儿童发展的一个潜在重要方面。 需要更多的研究，特别是包括高危母亲。