Marital Conflict and Children’s Adjustment: Evaluation of the Parenting Process Model

This investigation tested whether parenting mediates longitudinal associations between marital conflict and children’s adjustment. Data were drawn from a three‐wave study of 283 families with children aged 8 – 16 years at Wave 1. Relations among marital conflict, parenting (behavioral control, psychological autonomy, and warmth), and children’s adjustment (externalizing and internalizing) were examined. Structural equation models indicated multiple dimensions of parenting mediated relations between marital conflict and children’s adjustment. When including controls for earlier adjustment, behavioral control continued to mediate relations between marital conflict and change in children’s internalizing symptoms over time. These results advance parenting process models for relations between marital conflict and child adjustment and provide impetus for study of other pathways, including direct and child effects.     

Psychosocial Adjustment of African American Children in Single‐Mother Families: A Test of Three Risk Models

Three models of risk were examined for 277 African American children from single‐mother‐headed homes: cumulative, additive, and indirect models. Risk factors were mother‐reported community risks, inadequate income, maternal depressive symptoms, and inadequate parenting. Child‐reported internalizing and externalizing difficulties served as dependent measures of adjustment. Whereas the cumulative risk model identified a subset of children within this group as at‐risk for adjustment difficulties, only more proximal family variables (maternal depressive symptoms and inadequate parenting) accounted for unique variance in child outcomes (additive risk model). However, the more distal risk factors—community risk and inadequate income—were linked to both internalizing and externalizing difficulties through the proximal family variables (indirect effects model).     

The Association of Maternal Depressive Symptoms with Child Externalizing Problems: The Role of Maternal Support Following Child Sexual Abuse

This study examines the role of abuse-specific maternal support in the association between parent depressive symptoms and child externalizing problems in a sample of children with a history of sexual abuse. In total, 106 mother–child dyads were studied. The association between maternal depressive symptoms and child delinquency behaviors was found to partially operate through abuse-specific maternal support, which was assessed via parent report. Implications of the findings for parenting programs are discussed, and future research directions are considered.     

Child‐Care Instability and Behavior Problems: Does Parenting Stress Mediate the Relationship?

Child‐care instability is associated with more behavior problems in young children, but the mechanisms of this relationship are not well understood. Theoretically, this relationship is likely to emerge, at least in part, because care instability leads to increased parenting stress. Moreover, low socioeconomic status and single‐mother families may be more vulnerable to the effects of instability. This study tested these hypotheses using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study (N = 1,675) and structural equation modeling. Three types of child‐care instability were examined: long‐term instability, multiplicity, and needing to use back‐up arrangements. Overall, findings showed little evidence that parenting stress mediated the associations between care instability and child behavior problems among the full sample. Among single‐mother and low‐income families, however, needing to use back‐up arrangements had small positive associations with parenting stress, which partially mediated the relationship between that type of care instability and child externalizing behavior problems.     

Developmental Processes in African American Families: An Application of McLoyd’s Theoretical Model

In accordance with McLoyd’s model of African American children’s development, we examined the linkages among family income, maternal psychological distress, marital conflict, parenting, and children’s outcomes in early and middle childhood, using a sample of 591 African American children from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. Income during early childhood had a direct effect on behavior problems and reading recognition in middle childhood. Income also had an indirect effect on the child outcomes via maternal psychological distress and parenting. In a comparison of African American and White families, marital conflict predicted children behavior problems only in White families. Findings suggest that family psychological and material resources influence parenting as well as behavioral and cognitive outcomes for African American children.     

Mothering and Peer Associations Mediate Cumulative Risk Effects for Latino Youth

The present study examined whether positive parenting and deviant peer associations mediated the relations between a cumulative risk composite comprising financial strain, neighborhood problems, and maternal psychological distress and subsequent youth adjustment problems. Drawn from the Welfare, Children, and Families: A Three City Study, the sample consisted of 449 economically disadvantaged Latino families. Structural equation modeling showed that after controlling for baseline levels of youth adjustment problems, cumulative risk, assessed when adolescents were 10 to 14 years old, was directly and indirectly predictive of youths’ deviant peer associations 16 months later, through mother’s positive parenting. Deviant peer associations, in turn, were proximally associated with youth externalizing and internalizing problems. Findings underscore the role of mothers and peers in Latino youth adjustment problems.     

Mothers' Time,the Parenting Package,and Links to Healthy Child Development

Studies show that mothers' time in particular activities with children is positively associated with child well‐being, but results are mixed regarding associations between child outcomes and the sheer amount of time that mothers spend with children. Using data from three waves of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics Child Development Supplement (N = 2,622), the authors assess whether gains from mothers' total time with children vary by the quality of mothers' other investments in children or the “parenting package.” Mother–child shared time was associated with children's broad reading scores and adolescents' externalizing behavior, but mothers' other parenting investments did not moderate these associations. Results were robust to alternative measures of mothers' time and to the incorporation of earlier assessments of child academic and behavior problems. Parenting investments may be indicative of the quality of children's home environments, but do not magnify gains from mother–child shared time.     

African American Children's Adjustment: The Roles of Maternal and Teacher Depressive Symptoms

This study examined the unique and interactive roles of mother and teacher depressive symptoms in child adjustment in 277 African American single mother‐headed families, as well as whether the associations differed depending on the age and gender of the child. Findings revealed a significant association between maternal depressive symptoms and child depressive symptoms in girls, but not boys. Moreover, the combination of higher levels of both mother and teacher depressive symptoms was associated with the highest level of child depressive symptoms and, for younger children, externalizing symptoms. The importance of considering the multiple social contexts in which children interact is discussed.     

Parenting Style,Child Emotion Regulation and Behavioral Problems: The Moderating Role of Cultural Values in Australia and Indonesia

Abstract

Research has shown that the congruence of parenting styles with cultural values, rather than parenting styles alone, impacts child adjustment. This study examined if parents’ cultural values moderate the relationships between parenting styles and child outcomes across both an individualist culture (Australia) and a collectivist culture (Indonesia). Three hundred and eighty-seven parents of 2–10-year-old children from both countries reported their parenting styles, the importance of the collectivistic values (security, conformity, and tradition), and their child's emotion regulation and behavioral problems. In both countries, authoritative parenting was associated with higher child emotion regulation and lower levels of behavioral problems, and authoritarian parenting was associated with lower child emotion regulation and higher levels of behavioral problems. Although cultural values did not moderate the relationship between authoritarian parenting and child adjustment, in both countries greater importance placed on tradition attenuated the positive effect of authoritative parenting on child outcomes.     

Parenting Stress,Parental Reactions,and Externalizing Behavior From Ages 4 to 10

The association between parenting stress and child externalizing behavior, and the mediating role of parenting, has yielded inconsistent findings; however, the literature has typically been cross‐sectional or unidirectional. In the current study, the authors examined the longitudinal transactions among parenting stress, perceived negative parental reactions, and child externalizing at 4, 5, 7, and 10 years old. Models examining parent effects (parenting stress to child behavior), child effects (externalizing to parental reactions and stress), indirect effects of parental reactions, and the transactional associations among all variables were compared. The transactional model best fit the data, and longitudinal reciprocal effects emerged between parenting stress and externalizing behavior. The mediating role of parental reactions was not supported; however, indirect effects suggest that parenting stress both is affected by and affects parent and child behavior. The complex associations among parent and child variables indicate the importance of interventions to improve the parent–child relationship and reducing parenting stress.     

Child-Parent Relationship Therapy with Extra-Familial Abused Children

Sexual abuse by a perpetrator outside of the family is the most prevalent form of child sexual abuse. It is associated with serious consequences for both the child and his family. Surprisingly, however, the issue of extra-familial sexual abuse has received very little research and clinical attention. The purpose of the current study was to explore the effectiveness of Child-Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT), which uses nondirective play therapy tools, among parents of extra-familial abused children and their parents. In order to do so, data was collected from 51 parents who participated in CPRT, at three points in time: pretreatment stage, at the beginning of the first meeting; and in the post treatment stage. The data included the parents’ reports via three questionnaires: Parenting Stress Inventory (PSI), Compassion Fatigue Self-Test (CFST), Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Overall, the results indicated a decrease in internalizing and externalizing symptoms among the children, as well as in parenting stress and in parental secondary trauma symptoms. This study contributes to the literature on interventions with victims of extra-familial child abuse and their parents. Specifically, the results highlight the benefits and importance of involving both parents and children in therapeutic interventions for victims of extra-familial child sexual abuse, with particular emphasis on the benefits of Child-Parent Relationship Therapy.     

The association of maternal depressive symptoms with child externalizing problems: the role of maternal support following child sexual abuse

This study examines the role of abuse-specific maternal support in the association between parent depressive symptoms and child externalizing problems in a sample of children with a history of sexual abuse. In total, 106 mother-child dyads were studied. The association between maternal depressive symptoms and child delinquency behaviors was found to partially operate through abuse-specific maternal support, which was assessed via parent report. Implications of the findings for parenting programs are discussed, and future research directions are considered.     

Anxiety Among an Australian Sample of Young Girls Adopted From China

This study aims to contribute to the body of knowledge about post-adoption functioning of international adoptees by examining patterns of anxiety among young children adopted from China by Australian families. The study had two objectives: to examine anxiety in children adopted from China comparing this sample to available normative data and to examine the associations among child anxiety and child (e.g., age at adoption) and parent (e.g., age, education level) factors. Parents of 59 children adopted from China completed online a number of measures of child anxiety, temperament, and parent psychological well-being. Results indicated a high prevalence of anxiety symptoms among the adopted children when compared with available data from normative samples, particularly related to separation contexts. A number of factors, including inhibited temperament and younger age of parents, were associated with child anxiety. Clinical and research implications are discussed.     

Marital Conflict and Children's Emotional Security in the Context of Parental Depression

Evidence has emerged for emotional security as an explanatory variable linking marital conflict to children's adjustment. Further evidence suggests parental psychopathology is a key factor in child development. To advance understanding of the pathways by which these family risk factors impact children's development, the mediational role of emotional security for children with parents who have potentially clinical levels of depression compared to children whose parents have lower levels of symptomatology was examined (i.e., moderated mediation). Participants included 297 families assessed annually for 3 years. Paternal depression moderated pathways, such that marital conflict was associated with greater child emotional insecurity 2 years later in the context of paternal depression. Testing alternative pathways, emotional insecurity mediated relations between maternal depression and externalizing problems.     

Interparental Hostility and Early Adolescent Problem Behavior: The Mediating Role of Specific Aspects of Parenting

This study examines how parenting helps explain the contemporaneous association between interparental hostility and adolescent problem behavior. A theoretical model of spillover was tested specifying five aspects of mothers' and fathers' parenting that might be associated with parents' hostile interactions with one another: harshness, inconsistency, psychological intrusiveness, and lower levels of acceptance and monitoring knowledge. The sample consisted of 416 early adolescents and their married parents. The association between interparental hostility and adolescent externalizing problems was mediated uniquely by fathers' and mothers' harshness, lower levels of fathers' monitoring knowledge, and mothers' psychological intrusiveness. The association between interparental hostility and adolescent internalizing was mediated uniquely by mothers' harshness, psychological intrusiveness, and lower levels of acceptance. These patterns were similar for sons and daughters.     

Significant Family Dynamics Related to Postdivorce Adjustment in Parents and Children

ABSTRACT

This study concentrates on the postdivorce adjustment of parents and children in families with shared parenting time arrangements. Thirty divorcing parents with children aged 12 to 59 months old were interviewed using a semistructured telephone interview regarding their early experiences in the divorce process. Findings showed that work–family balance issues were related to postdivorce parental adjustment for mothers. Interparental hostility was related to child alienation and paternal overnight stays. Length of time since physical separation was related to number of overnight stays. These results shed light on the early experiences of families with young children going through the divorce process.     

Mothering,Fathering, and Externalizing Behavior in Toddler Boys

This study examined the effects of reported maternal and paternal support, psychological control, and spanking on externalizing behavior of toddler boys. Questionnaires were administered to both parents of 104 two‐parent families with a 3‐year‐old son. Both maternal and paternal psychological control was related to boys' externalizing behavior. Interaction effects were found, in that the association between maternal spanking and boys' externalizing behavior was stronger when levels of maternal support were high. High levels of paternal support strengthened the association between maternal support and boys' externalizing behaviors. Results suggest that the associations between specific parenting dimensions and children's externalizing behavior need to be considered within the context of other parenting dimensions that are displayed within the family.     

Child Characteristics,Parenting Stress,and Parental Involvement: Fathers Versus Mothers

This study examined variations in the relationships among child characteristics, parenting stress, and parental involvement. Participants were 100 two‐parent families with preschool‐aged children. Self‐report and interview data were collected to measure parental involvement, as well as perceptions of child temperament and parental stress. Analyses revealed significant, yet somewhat different, associations between child temperament and parental stress for mothers and fathers. More significant associations were found between perceptions of child temperament and involvement for fathers than for mothers. The associations between child temperament and parental stress and involvement differed on the basis of child and parent gender. Results are discussed in terms of future research on father involvement, as well as programs designed to encourage fathers to assume more active parental roles.     

Parents and Peers in Relation to Early Adolescent Problem Behavior

Concurrent and prospective associations between parent‐youth dyadic hostility and adolescent externalizing and internalizing problem behavior were examined in a sample of 416 families. Parenting control, parents’ well‐being, and youths’ affiliation with deviant peers were included as integral covariates. Information from multiple sources was analyzed using structural equation modeling. Concurrently, youth externalizing problems were associated with dyadic hostility, deviant peers, inadequate parenting control, and fathers’ well‐being (inversely). Internalizing problems were associated with inadequate parenting control and lower levels of fathers’ well‐being. Prospectively, some of these relations continued over 2 years, with a few new associations emerging. A process model is proposed in which parent‐youth dyadic hostility during early adolescence influences parenting, peer relations, and parents’ well‐being over time.     

Family Communication as a Mediator of Child Adjustment to Divorce

Abstract

Reduced family conflict, consistency in roles and parenting, and limited negative life changes seem to be particularly important variables in promoting children's adjustment to divorce.

The impact of family functioning on child adjustment was investigated in a sample of 22 recently separated or divorced families with a total of 32 children. A series of multiple regression analyses using factors on the Family Assessment Device to predict Child Behavior Checklist scores indicated that family functioning is a significant predictor of children's Externalizing behavior problems. The Communication factor accounted for a significant portion of unique variance in the externalizing scores that was unaccounted for by the other factors. When separated parents can communicate with each other to co-parent their children, as well as communicate affective limit-setting messages to their children, the children exhibit less behavioral problems.