The Child and Caregiver Mutual Regulation Scoring System (CCMR) Weinberg, Beeghly, & Tronick, 2003

CHILD AFFECT (all duration codes)

Negative Facial expressions of anger, sadness, fear / subdued/withdrawn countenance / puzzled/concerned affect / negatively toned vocalizations such as crying, whining, complaining, frustration, irritation, annoyance, or impatience

Interest Facial expressions of interest / neutral affect /normal conversational tone of voice

Positive Facial expressions of joy (smiling) / positively toned vocalizations (laughing, exuberant squealing, enthusiasm) Nonscorable affect: Scored when the child cannot be seen or heard on the video

CHILD ACTIONS (these codes are coded on a frequency basis unless otherwise specified)

Requests Verbal Request: Child requests an action or attention verbally (e.g., child asks mother to play with a toy or to watch him/her do something “Hey Mommy, watch!” or “Play with me?”) Physical Request: Child requests an action or attention physically (e.g., child pulls mom’s hand, moves/manipulates her face during the still-face, looks at mom for help) Request Information: Child requests information about a toy, how to do something, or why something is happening (e.g., “What’s this thing?” or “Mommy, what’s the matter? What’s wrong?”) Request to Leave: Child requests to leave the laboratory room or to go home (e.g., “Mommy, I need to go potty,” “I want to go home”) Show Toy: Child points to a toy, shows or gives the mother a toy, or puts a toy in the mother’s face/line of vision Plead: Child pleads with mom to do or stop something (e.g., “Please, Mommy, play with me.”) Repetition: Child repeats verbal utterances. The utterance must occur at least twice (e.g., “Mommy, look at me. Mommy, look at me”). In this example, the first utterance is coded as a verbal request, and the second as a Repetition. Escalation: Child exhibits escalating behavior. That is, the child sounds increasingly upset, loud, or insistent.

Explanation The child provides an explanation or rationalization for why the mother is behaving in a particular manner. For example: “Mommy, are you tired?” or “Are you awake”?

Active disruptive/aggressive actions Yell: The child yells at the mother or in general. Hit mom: The child throws a toy at the mother or hits the mother. Throw toy: The child throws a toy against the wall, hits toys against each other, or stomps on a toy. Prohibits mom: The child does not want to share, does not want the mother to participate or play with him, or do something. The child forbids the mother to do something verbally (e.g., “You can’t play with the alligator. I had it first”; “No”) or non-verbally (e.g., the child shakes his head NO; pulls a toy away from mom). Run Around: The child runs around the laboratory and is not focused on the task at hand. Tantrum: The child exhibits tantrum behavior (e.g., throws herself on floor). This code is often double coded with other active/disruptive/aggressive codes.

Proximity/contact seeking or avoiding behavior Seeks proximity: The child moves closer to the mother. Touch mom (duration code): The child touches the caregiver or caresses the caregiver in an affectionate manner. Hug/cling (duration code): The child clings to the mother, sits on the mother’s lap, or hugs the mother. Kiss: The child kisses the caregiver. Code any kiss to the caregiver’s body. Turn back to mom (duration code): The child has or turns his back to the caregiver. Moves away: The child moves away from the caregiver or gets off the caregiver’s lap. Leave room: The child goes to the door or tries to open the door.

Self-comforting (duration code) The child sucks on a thumb or finger(s) or the child rubs her face or twirls her hair.

Self-evaluations Positive evaluation: The child believes that he can do something or expresses pride in an achievement (e.g., the child claps hands at his own achievement, statements such as “I can do it,” “I did it,” “It’s ok”). Negative evaluation: The child expresses self-doubt, or self-criticism, or believes she cannot do something (“I cannot do it,” “I cannot deal with this”).

Note. Only the child part of the CCMR is presented here. The entire system is available upon request.

Maternal procedure violations during the toddler still-face paradigm Smile: The mother smiles or laughs during the still-face. Nod: The mother nods or shakes her head during the still-face. Use Toy: The mother accepts or hands a toy to the child during the still-face. Touch: The mother touches the child during the still-face. Talk: The mother talks to the child during the still-face.

As in previous infancy studies, the mothers were coded during the still-face to evaluate whether they violated the instructions of the still-face. Examples of violations included talking to or touching the child, any affect other than neutral, and accepting or giving toys.