Child Cognitive Development and Maternal Parenting: Implementation of an Intervention with Mothers and Children from Unsatisfied Basic Needs (UBN) Homes

The aim of this study is the design, implementation and impact evaluation of a culturally pertinent intervention, aimed at promoting cognitive development of preschoolers through the promotion of parenting practices with direct caregivers. The intervention, with an experimental design, consisted of the implementation of activities with 46 dyads (mothers and their children) from UBN homes, for a maximum of 13 weekly frequency sessions. The impact of the intervention did not show significant differences for saliva cortisol levels in mothers and children, nor in relation to parenting practices. However, it was observed significant differences in children cognitive performances in reference to controlling sources of interference (inhibitory control, remember and manipulated one and two rules); remember and manipulate visuospatial information; and performance in a control attentional task.