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Abstract
Parent–child interactions play a critical role in children’s development, yet capturing their dynamic qualities remains a methodological challenge. This dissertation introduces and evaluates the Dynamic Synchrony Scale (DSS), a novel tool for assessing moment-to-moment dyadic synchrony, and applies it to puzzle-based parent–child interactions. In Chapter 2, DSS ratings showed significant inter- and intra-rater agreement and were positively associated with ratings using an established synchrony scale, the Positive Synchrony scale (Criss et al., 2003). The DSS also predicted parents’ post-task ratings of children’s performance, an association not observed for the Positive Synchrony scale, suggesting that the DSS may align more closely with parents’ perceptions of child task performance. In Chapter 3, DSS ratings were lower during more complex puzzles, increase with children’s independent puzzle-solving skill, and vary by task order, suggesting that both task demands and dyad characteristics may relate to observed synchrony patterns. Finally, Chapter 4 used segmented DSS ratings to examine whether different forms of parent verbal input were associated with distinct synchrony patterns. Synchrony tended to rise in the moments preceding praise and verbal scaffolding, although the initial rise in synchrony prior to praise was followed by a decline, suggesting transient effects. Process-focused praise and pictorially-focused scaffolding showed the clearest pre-utterance increases, while spatially-focused scaffolding provided some evidence of a post-utterance rise, indicating the possibility of more sustained coordination following this type of scaffolding. Together, this work supports the notion of synchrony as an emergent and informative feature of dyadic interaction. By establishing the DSS as a reliable, scalable rating approach and highlighting situational elements that may foster harmonious interaction, this dissertation provides a methodological tool and contributes to a theoretical foundation for future research on when and why synchrony may reflect a positive mutual state.