Maternal work conditions and child development

How do maternal work conditions, such as psychological stress and physical hazards, affect children's development? Combining data from the Child Development Supplement of the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and the Occupational Information Network allows us to shed some light on this question. We employ various techniques including OLS with extensive controls, a value added approach and individual fixed effects in order to address potential endogeneity problems. Our results reveal that mothers’ exposure to work-related hazards negatively affects children's cognitive development and to work-related stress negatively affects children's behavioral development. While maternal time investments play a small but significant role in mediating these negative associations, paternal time investments neither reinforce nor compensate these associations.     

Prosocial development in relation to children's and mothers' psychological problems

The study tested whether children's prosocial behavior was negatively or positively related to children's and mothers' psychological problems. Participants were 149 London families when mothers were pregnant and followed up in infancy and at ages 4 and 11. Children's cooperation at 4 and general prosocial tendencies at 11 were negatively associated with externalizing problems but unrelated to internalizing problems. A subgroup of children who were more prosocial than average expressed clinically significant worries about family members. Maternal depression decreased prosocial behavior in the eyes of adults, but children of depressed mothers saw themselves to be prosocial. Early cooperation protected children against later risk for externalizing problems, even when their early behavioral problems were taken into account.     

Grade repetition and psychological referrals in relation to child behavior checklist scores for students in elementary school

A sample of 738 students from grades 1 to 5 who were exhibiting behavior problems were nominated by teachers and subsequently assessed for behavioral disturbance using the Teacher's Report Form (TRF) of the Child Behavior Checklist. The data were analyzed to assess the accuracy of the TRF in discriminating disturbed and nondisturbed students, the internal consistency of the instrument, and its validity against measures of school functioning in terms of grade repetition and referral for special services support.     

Experiences of psychological and physical aggression in adolescent romantic relationships: Links to psychological distress

ObjectiveThis research examined links between adolescents’ experiences of psychological and physical relationship aggression and their psychological distress. Experiences of psychological and physical aggression were expected to correlate positively with symptoms of psychological distress, but experiences of psychological aggression were expected to partially account for the association between experiences of physical aggression and psychological distress. In addition, psychological aggression was hypothesized to be perceived as more unpleasant and less playful than physical aggression.MethodParticipants were 125 high school students. Relationship aggression was assessed over an 8-week period using two methods: (1) a retrospective method based on a single assessment at the end of the 8-week period, and (2) a cumulative method based on multiple assessments conducted during the 8-week period. Adolescents’ appraisals of the aggression were also measured, as were their reports of symptoms of psychological distress.ResultsAdolescents’ experiences of psychological and physical relationship aggression correlated positively, but inconsistently, with their symptoms of psychological distress. In analyses considering both forms of aggression simultaneously, psychological aggression was related to adolescents’ distress, but physical aggression was not. This finding emerged across both methods of assessing for relationship aggression. Psychological aggression was more likely than physical aggression to be rated as unpleasant, and less likely to be attributed to the partner “playing around.”ConclusionsThe study of adolescent relationship aggression will benefit by expanding the focus of aggression to include psychological aggression as well as physical aggression, and by examining adolescents’ appraisals of the aggression they experience.Practice implicationsThe findings highlight the importance of a broad view of aggression in adolescent relationships. Psychological aggression appears to be at least as important to adolescent well-being as physical aggression in dating relationships. In addition, it may be useful to consider how adolescents’ interpret the intent of the aggression that they experience.     

Maternal use of physical punishment in response to child misbehavior: implications for child abuse prevention

OBJECTIVE: The objective was to examine the roles of cognition and affect in maternal use of physical punishment. METHOD: Through a review of the literature, distal and proximal predictors (cognitive and affective) of physical punishment use were identified. One hundred and ten mothers of 3-year-old children were interviewed regarding two disciplinary situations that occurred during the previous 2-week period that elicited their strongest reactions: one which resulted in the use of physical punishment (if this occurred) and one which did not. The individual and combined contributions of the predictors of physical punishment use were analyzed through logistic regression. RESULTS: The predictors of physical punishment following individual analyses were: maternal attitude toward physical punishment, maternal perception of the seriousness and intent of the child misbehavior, and maternal anger in response to the child misbehavior. Through multivariate analysis 54% of the variance in physical punishment use was explained. CONCLUSIONS: Both cognitive and affective factors affect the decision to use physical punishment with children. These findings can be useful in establishing parenting educational programming that is directed at decreasing the rates of physical punishment and subsequently child physical abuse.     

Predictors of psychological distress and positive resources among Palestinian adolescents: trauma, child, and mothering characteristics

OBJECTIVE: The aim was to examine how traumatic and stressful events, responses to violence, child characteristics, and mothering quality, as measured in middle childhood predict psychological distress and positive resources in adolescence. METHOD: The participants were 65 Palestinian adolescents (17+/-.85 years; 52% girls), who had been studied during the First Intifada (T1), during the Palestinian Authority rule (T2) and before the Second Al Aqsa Intifada (T3) in Gaza. Psychological distress was indicated by PTSD, and depressive symptoms and positive resources by resilient attitudes and satisfaction with quality of life, all measured at T3. The predictors that were measured at T1 were exposure to military violence, active coping with violence and children's intelligence, cognitive capacity, and neuroticism. Mothering quality and stressful life-events were measured at T2, the former reported by both the mother and the child, and the latter by the mother. RESULTS: Adolescents' PTSD symptoms were most likely if they had been exposed to high levels of traumatic and stressful experiences and had poor cognitive capacity and high neuroticism in middle childhood. Only high levels of childhood military violence and stressful life-events predicted high depressive symptoms and low satisfaction with quality of life in adolescence. CONCLUSIONS: Military violence in childhood forms risks for both increased psychological distress and decreased positive resources. However, child characteristics such as cognitive capacity and personality are important determinants of psychological vulnerability in military trauma.     

Mediating effects of parental psychological distress and individual-level social capital on the association between child poverty and maltreatment in Japan

Child poverty is well known as a major risk factor for child maltreatment. However, it is not known whether parental psychological distress and individual-level social capital mediate the association. We examined the mediation effect of these two factors on the association between child poverty and maltreatment. In the Adachi Child Health Impact of Living Difficulty (A-CHILD) Study, a questionnaire was administered to all caregivers of first-grade children in every public elementary school in Adachi City between July and November 2015, and valid responses were used for analysis (N = 3944). Logistic and Poisson regression analyses were employed to examine the association between child poverty and maltreatment. Child poverty was defined in this study as meeting one of these criteria: 1) household income less than 3 million yen; 2) deprivation of specific material items that children or the household requires, or 3) experience of being unable to pay for lifeline utilities. Child maltreatment (physical abuse, neglect, and psychological abuse) was answered by parents. We confirmed a robust association between child poverty and maltreatment. Mediation analysis indicated that parental psychological distress mediated more than 60% of the association between child poverty on physical abuse and psychological abuse, while individual-level social capital mediated only 10% of the association with any type of maltreatment. In addition, structural equation modeling analysis revealed that the association was mediated by both parental psychological distress and social capital simultaneously. The findings suggest that supporting parental psychological distress may be an effective intervention to remedy the negative impact of child poverty on maltreatment.     

Untangling the links of parental responsiveness to distress and warmth to child outcomes

This study demonstrated separate linkages between 2 features of positive parenting--responsiveness to distress and warmth--and different aspects of children's socio-emotional functioning, in a sample of 106 children (6-8 years old). As expected, mothers' and fathers' responsiveness to distress, but not warmth, predicted better negative affect regulation. Maternal responsiveness to distress also predicted children's empathy and prosocial responding. Maternal warmth, but not responsiveness to distress, was linked to better regulation of positive affect and (in boys only) to greater peer acceptance. Additionally, negative affect regulation mediated between maternal responsiveness to distress and children's empathic responding. Positive affect regulation mediated between maternal warmth and boys' peer acceptance. The findings support a differentiated approach to positive parenting.     

Predictors of psychological recommendations in child protection evaluation

Child protection matters from an important social and legal challenge, in which psychologists may be called upon to address a series of questions relevant for judicial decision-making. In an explorative manner, the current study investigates variables that influence psychological evaluators’ recommendations in child protection cases. The data is based on a quantitative content review of 103 psychological evaluation reports, conducted at an institute of forensic psychology in Germany. Using bivariate and logistic regression analyses, the following predictors were analyzed in this study: Child-related factors, familial risk factors, and general custody criteria. The outcome measure was the evaluator’s recommendation regarding long-term placement of the child and long-term custody arrangements. Evaluators were more likely to recommend permanent foster placement if the child showed insecure or disorganized attachment patterns, especially when combined with developmental delays, or if the child was temporarily in institutional or foster placement at the time of evaluation. The results support the conclusion that the most important factors for psychological expert recommendations refer to the “harm of the child” criterion in terms of developmental and psychological maladaptation.     

Stress and psychological distress among trainee secondary teachers in England

The relationships between stress and psychological distress were investigated among a cohort of trainee secondary school teachers in England. Specifically, the study examined the structure of a Teacher Stress Scale and its relationship to mental health as measured by the 12‐item General Health Questionnaire. Three factors were identified: behaviour management, workload, and lack of support. Differences were identified between men and women in respect of stressors and psychological distress. Stress attributed to pupils’ disruptive behaviour and stress attributed to perceived occupational stress were found to be significant predictors of psychological distress. The findings are discussed in relation to the degree to which trainees are prepared for the challenges they are likely to experience as teachers.     

社会变迁中父亲职能的凸显: 基于生态系统理论的分析

为了解青少年的父母教养投入状况,采用伍新春等人修订的青少年评价父母教养投入行为问卷,对全国2 370名中小学生进行问卷调查。结果发现,其一,父母呈现基本相似的教养投入模式,即规则教导水平最高、生活照顾和学业支持居中、情感休闲水平最低。其二,无论是在总体上,还是在四个子维度(规则教导、生活照顾、学业支持和情感休闲)上,母亲的教养投入水平都显著高于父亲。其三,母亲对女孩的生活照顾、情感休闲和规则教导显著多于男孩;父亲对男孩的规则教导和学业支持显著多于女孩;父母教养投入水平都随青少年年龄的增长而显著下降;父母对独生子女的教养投入水平都显著高于非独生子女;主观家庭社会经济地位越高,父母教养投入水平越高。     

Dynamic changes in perfectionism dimensions and psychological distress among adolescents assessed before and during the COVID-19 pandemic

This prospective longitudinal study evaluated changes in psychological distress among adolescents, pre-pandemic to intra-pandemic, the extent to which within-person and between-person differences in trait multidimensional perfectionism were associated with such changes, and the role of stress in explaining associations between perfectionism and psychological distress. Adolescents (N = 187; 80% female; 78% White, 7% Asian Canadian, 2% Indigenous Peoples in Canada, 2% Black or African Canadian, 2% Latin Canadian, or 9% Other; M_age = 17.96 years) completed online surveys assessing perfectionism (i.e., self-oriented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism), depression, anxiety, and stress pre-pandemic (i.e., March 12, 2020 or earlier) and during Ontario, Canada's first (i.e., March 13, 2020 to July 24, 2020) and second (December 26, 2020 to February 7, 2021) government-mandated lockdowns. Between-person differences and within-person changes in multidimensional trait perfectionism were associated with increases in psychological distress and perceived stress. Perceived stress served as an intermediary pathway linking multidimensional trait perfectionism to psychological distress during the pandemic.     

Mother-child interaction at age two years and perceived difficult temperament

The current study investigated a hypothesized link between early child temperament and later problem behavior. Early temperament was assessed at ages 6, 13, and 24 months via mother ratings on age-appropriate versions of the Infant Characteristics Questionnaire. The 24-month form was developed in this study. Factor analyses of the questionnaire indicated a clear difficultness factor that was similar in content across all 3 ages. The 6-, 13-, and 24-month difficultness factors were correlated with home observation measures of mother-toddler interaction at age 24 months. Home observation indexes focused on situations where the mother tried to control the toddler's "trouble" behavior. Children rated by their mothers as difficult at 24 months were found to approach "mild trouble" more frequently than children perceived as easy or average. Furthermore, their mothers used intrusive control tactics more frequently than mothers of easy or average children. Analysis of behavior sequence variables showed that difficult children resisted their mothers' control attempts significantly more often than easy or average children, that is, had more conflict with the mothers. The 6- and 13-month difficultness scores predicted both the 2-year-old difficultness rating and the observed conflict indexes. It is suggested that the conflict observed in the interaction between the difficult 2-year-olds and their mothers is conceptually similar to the conflictual behavior characteristic of older, clinically referred, socially aggressive children and their mothers. Thus, the conflicted interactions found at age 2 years may represent an empirically based link between difficult infant temperament and the development of childhood problem behavior.     

从哲学主义到文化主义:心理学时代发展反思与构想

心理学每一时代因为各自局限和偏执使得对心理学的认识与理解陷于“遮蔽”。从根本上说,全面而深刻地认识和理解心理学的性质,把握心理学未来走向,还是应该回到心理学本身。将心理学置于文化框架之中,向文化寻求开放,寻求理解,会重新确立心理学与特定文化框架之间的关联,达到一种深刻的对于历史、文化、人之间内在关系把握,从而步入心理学“文化时代”。