Parenting Stress and Youth Symptoms Among Girls With and Without Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Objective. To examine the aspects of parenting stress—parental distress and parental stress due to dysfunctional interactions—reported by mothers of girls with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in both childhood and adolescence and to understand their associations with internalizing and externalizing symptoms in adolescence. Design. The diverse sample comprised 120 girls with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and 81 age- and ethnicity-matched comparison girls, evaluated at ages 6–12 years and followed prospectively for 5 years. Basic demographics, oppositionality, childhood behavioral outcomes and symptoms, and key parenting practice were covaried in the analyses. Results. Longitudinally, parental distress during the participants’ childhood was positively associated with adolescent externalizing and internalizing behaviors, even when statistically controlling for parallel childhood behaviors. Parental stress due to dysfunctional interactions during adolescence was associated with contemporaneous adolescent depressive symptoms and externalizing behaviors, but parental distress was associated with only internalizing behaviors. With respect to moderation by diagnostic group, parental stress due to dysfunctional interactions (in childhood) was associated with adolescent internalizing symptoms only in girls with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. However, associations between parental distress in childhood and internalizing behaviors were stronger in the comparison than the ADHD sample. Conclusions. Minimizing early dysfunctional interactions might reduce internalizing behaviors in girls with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Interventions targeting parental distress may be beneficial for girls, regardless of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder status.     

Responsive Parenting Buffers the Impact of Maternal PTSD on Young Children

SYNOPSIS

Objective. This study investigates maternal responsive parenting behaviors as a theorized buffer to the detrimental impact of maternal PTSD symptoms on young children’s depression and anxiety symptoms, disruptive behavior, and stress-related symptoms. Design. A multi-ethnic sample of 242 trauma-exposed mothers and their preschool-aged children was assessed. Maternal responsive parenting behaviors were observed during standardized parent-child interactions. Maternal and child mental health symptoms were reported by mothers. Results. Maternal PTSD symptoms were associated with their responsive parenting behaviors and predicted children’s mental health symptoms. Responsive parenting was inversely associated with children’s depression and stress-related symptoms. Moderation analyses revealed an interactive effect of maternal symptoms and responsive parenting on preschool children’s disruptive behavior and stress-related symptoms. Conclusions. Responsive parenting behaviors can mitigate the ill effects of maternal PTSD symptoms. Nurturing relationships buffer the impact of maternal PTSD. Helping parents’ to sensitively respond to their young children’s distress can support positive outcomes in children.     

Post-traumatic stress as a pathway to psychopathology among adolescents at high-risk for victimization

ObjectiveVictimization by violence elevates adolescents’ risk for developing internalizing and externalizing psychopathology. Recent findings suggest that disruptions in developmental processes associated with post-traumatic stress (PTS) reactions may partially account for the relationship between victimization and the subsequent development of psychopathology during adolescence. The present study tested the temporal sequencing of these associations using multi-informant measurements in a large, diverse sample of adolescents at high-risk for victimization.MethodData were collected from a multi-site consortium of prospective studies, the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN). Information about 833 youth’s victimization experiences (i.e., direct, indirect, familial, and non-familial violence), PTS, and affective, anxiety, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and conduct disorder (CD) symptoms were gathered from youth and their caregivers during biannual face-to-face interviews when youth were between the ages of 4 and 14 years, and continuously from official child protective services records.ResultsStructural equation modeling revealed that cumulative victimization contributed to elevations in youth and caregiver reported late childhood and early adolescent psychopathology. While PTS mediated the association between victimization and youth reported ADHD, ODD, CD, major depressive, and generalized anxiety symptoms during adolescence, it only mediated the association between victimization and caregiver reported affective symptoms.ConclusionsPTS reactions following childhood victimization partially accounted for escalations in psychopathology during the transition to adolescence. These findings underscore the importance of integrating trauma-informed assessment and intervention approaches with at-risk adolescents. Researchers should determine whether trauma-focused interventions sufficiently ameliorate other psychopathology among victimized adolescents or if additional interventions components are necessary.     

Variability in Parenting Self-Efficacy Across Prudential Adolescent Behaviors

Objective. Extant research examining the predictors and outcomes of parenting self-efficacy has predominantly focused on families with young children. Adolescence is a time of increased autonomy during which parents may be uncertain about their abilities to influence their adolescents’ risk-taking behavior. Design. Parents’ (N = 145 mothers and 53 fathers) confidence in their parenting abilities across prudential adolescent behaviors was investigated, including alcohol consumption, cyber activities, eating behaviors, and problem peer associations. Additionally, we explored how adolescents’ (N = 161, M_age = 14.4 years, 60% female) reports of their engagement in those behaviors were associated with parents’ perceptions of their ability to impact their adolescents’ behavior (i.e., self-efficacy). Results. Mixed-model analysis of variance revealed that mothers and fathers felt most efficacious in reducing their adolescents’ engagement in problematic cyber activities and least efficacious regarding alcohol consumption. Bivariate correlations indicated multiple negative associations between adolescents’ engagement in prudential behaviors and both mothers’ and fathers’ behavior-specific parenting self-efficacy. Conclusions. Results suggest that parents with adolescents have varying levels of confidence in their ability to parent different types of prudential adolescent behaviors. Additionally, for multiple behavior categories, mothers’ and fathers’ behavior-specific parenting self-efficacy was negatively associated with adolescent engagement in corresponding behaviors, such that increased adolescent engagement was related to lower levels of behavior-specific parenting self-efficacy.     

Family Routines and Parental Monitoring as Protective Factors Among Early and Middle Adolescents Affected by Maternal HIV/AIDS

The influence of parenting skills on adolescent outcomes among children affected by maternal HIV/AIDS (N = 118, M age = 13) was investigated. Among families with more frequent family routines, over time adolescents showed lower rates of aggression, anxiety, worry, depression, conduct disorder, binge drinking, and increased self‐concept. Among families with higher levels of parental monitoring, adolescents showed significant declines in anxiety and depression, conduct disorder, and binge drinking, along with increased self‐concept. Mothers’ level of illness was associated with parenting. Greater variability in parental monitoring resulted in higher levels of problem behaviors.     

Longitudinal Relations among Maternal Self-Efficacy,Maternal Warmth,and Early Adolescents’ Prosocial Behavior

SYNOPSIS

Objective. This article examined two-wave longitudinal paths among maternal self-efficacy, maternal warmth, and early adolescents’ prosocial behavior. Design . Participants were 194 Italian mother/child dyads from 9–13 years at the first assessment and 12–15 years at the second assessment. Using a two-wave longitudinal design, the present study tested cross-lagged paths among maternal self-efficacy, warmth, and early adolescents’ prosocial behavior controlling for the stability of these variables and their concurrent associations. Results . Maternal warmth mediated the link between maternal self-efficacy and adolescents’ prosocial behavior, and bi-directional effects between maternal self-efficacy and maternal warmth were found. Conclusions . These findings support a parent-driven model in the promotion of prosocial behaviors across early adolescence and a general need to consider simultaneously parental cognitions (maternal self-efficacy) and actions (maternal warmth) in explaining adolescents’ prosocial behaviors. Implications for parenting program interventions are discussed.     

Maternal Coparenting Attitudes and Toddler Adjustment: Moderated Mediation through Father’s Positive Engagement

Objective. To better understand the antecedents of fathers’ positive engagement and child externalizing behaviors, we examined the roles of maternal coparenting attitudes and fathers’ prenatal intuitive parenting behaviors in predicting fathers’ positive engagement and toddler externalizing behaviors. Design. One hundred and eighty-two dual-earner families residing in Columbus, Ohio, were recruited when parents were expecting their first child. They were followed across the transition to parenthood and assessed at the third trimester (Time 1), 3 months postpartum (Time 2), 9 months postpartum (Time 3), and when the child reached approximately 27 months of age (Time 4). Mothers reported their perceptions of their partners’ parenting competence (i.e., coparenting attitudes) and their children’s externalizing behaviors at Times 2 and 4, respectively. Fathers reported their own positive engagement at Times 2 and 3. Fathers’ intuitive parenting behaviors were observed at Time 1. Results. After controlling for fathers’ positive engagement at Time 2, maternal endorsement of fathers’ parenting competence positively predicted fathers’ positive engagement at Time 3, especially for fathers who displayed average or high levels of prenatal intuitive parenting behaviors. For families with fathers who displayed average or above-average intuitive parenting behaviors, maternal endorsement of fathers’ parenting competence was negatively associated with children’s externalizing behaviors through its positive association with fathers’ positive engagement. Conclusions. Maternal coparenting attitudes in conjunction with fathers’ prenatal intuitive parenting predicted toddler externalizing behaviors through their association with fathers’ positive engagement.     

Arrested Motherhood: Parenting,Cognitive Distortions,and Depressive Symptoms in Mothers Being Released from Incarceration

Objective. The present study examines cognitive and emotional problems in mothers being released from incarceration. Design. Participants were 98 mothers who were about to be released or had just been released from incarceration, and 63 comparison mothers from disadvantaged areas with low socioeconomic status, both with young children. Mothers provided self-report data on parenting behaviors, cognitive distortions, depressive symptoms, and socioeconomic difficulties. Results. Mothers being released from incarceration reported less optimal parenting behaviors (i.e., less involvement and poorer monitoring) and higher levels of cognitive distortions and depressive symptoms than comparison mothers. Cognitive distortions and depressive symptoms were related to less optimal reported parenting behaviors. Conclusions. Cognitive distortions, depressive symptoms, and less optimal reported parenting behaviors may be factors in incarcerated and formerly incarcerated mothers, which might put their children at risk, beyond risks associated with low socioeconomic status.     

Maternal Stress and Sensitivity: Moderating Effect of Positive Affect

Objective. Stress felt by parents is often negatively related to their ability to engage in optimal parenting; however, research on relations of parenting stress to parenting behaviors typically examines negative associations instead of taking a strengths-based approach. The current study examines longitudinally the role of positive affect as a moderator of the relation of parenting stress to later maternal sensitivity, controlling for prior levels of sensitivity. Design. Maternal positive affect and maternal sensitivity were observed for 93 mother–child dyads during free-play sessions when children were 4- to 5-years-old (T1) and 8- to 9-years-old (T2), respectively. Mothers reported on parenting stress felt from dysfunctional parent–child interactions (T1). Results. Maternal positive affect moderated the association of parenting stress to sensitivity at T2, after controlling for prior levels of sensitivity at T1. Mothers who exhibited low positive affect were less likely to respond sensitively at T2 to their children when parenting stress was high; however, no association was found when positive affect was high. Conclusions. Maternal positive affect may buffer the effect of parenting stress on maternal sensitivity with school-aged children.     

Emotion Regulation Strategies and Parenting Practices among Parents of Children With Clinic-Referred Conduct Problems

Objective. This study examined the cognitive-affective strategies used by parents of young children with conduct problems to regulate emotions. Key questions concerned the extent to which these emotion regulation strategies are associated with positive and negative parenting practices and predict quality of parenting through interplay with parental depression. Design. Participants were families of toddlers (n = 84) referred to a tertiary-level health service for the treatment of disruptive behavior problems. Parenting practices were indexed through observational coding of parent–child interactions and self-report data on multiple dimensions of positive and negative parenting. Parents self-reported their use of cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression—the two emotion regulation strategies that are most robustly associated with psychosocial functioning in adults. Results. Associations between emotion regulation strategy and quality of parenting were moderated by parental depressive symptom severity, with distinct effects seen for positive and negative parenting practices. In terms of positive parenting, more frequent use of cognitive reappraisal was associated with increased use of labeled praise among parents with lower levels of depressive symptoms, whereas parents who had higher levels of depressive symptoms engaged in less such praise regardless of how frequently they used reappraisal. In terms of negative parenting, frequent use of cognitive reappraisal and expression suppression were associated with reduced levels of negative parenting, but only among parents with high levels of depression. Conclusions. These findings add to growing support for the integration of emotion regulation strategies into family process models of early-onset conduct problems and related clinical interventions.     

Risk and Protective Factors Related to Fathers’ Positive Involvement and Negative Reinforcement With 1-Year-Olds

Objective. Guided by a social interaction learning model, this study investigated potential risk and protective factors related to fathers’ early parenting behaviors. Design. Parenting behaviors in 726 Norwegian fathers with their 1-year olds (51.7% boys) were assessed by both micro social coding and global ratings from direct observation of structured interactions. Father and child factors were reported by fathers when the child was 6 months and 1 year old. Results. Fathers’ positive involvement was associated with children’s observed sustained attention, and lack of positive involvement was associated with children’s communicative risk and fathers’ lower education. Fathers’ negative reinforcement was associated with children’s developmental difficulties and communicative risk. Positive involvement and negative reinforcement were not correlated and were predicted by different factors, indicating they are separate dimensions of parenting. Conclusion. Multiple predictors relate to different parenting dimensions and point to factors that may enhance father–infant interaction and identify fathers and children who may benefit from early intervention.     

Maternal warmth and prosocial behaviors among low-SES adolescents: Considering interactions between empathy and moral conviction

ABSTRACT

The study examined the links among maternal warmth and adolescents’ empathic concern, moral conviction and prosocial behaviors. Participants were 311 adolescents from a low-income community (M age = 16.10 years; range = 14–19 years; 58.7% girls; 82.7% white; 13.6% Latinx). The results demonstrated that maternal warmth was positively associated with adolescents’ empathic concern and moral conviction. Empathic concern was positively associated with three common forms of prosocial behaviors, and moral conviction was positively associated with four types of prosocial behaviors. Empathic concern and moral conviction also interacted to predict selfishly and selflessly motivated prosocial behaviors. Discussion will focus on the role of maternal warmth in fostering sociomoral tendencies.     

Breaking Down the Coercive Cycle: How Parent and Child Risk Factors Influence Real-Time Variability in Parental Responses to Child Misbehavior

Objective. Parent–child coercive cycles have been associated with both rigidity and inconsistency in parenting behavior. To explain these mixed findings, we examined real-time variability in maternal responses to children’s off-task behavior to determine whether this common trigger of the coercive cycle (responding to child misbehavior) is associated with rigidity or inconsistency in parenting. We also examined the effects of risk factors for coercion (maternal hostility, maternal depressive symptoms, child externalizing problems, and dyadic negativity) on patterns of parenting. Design. Mother–child dyads (N = 96; M child age = 41 months) completed a difficult puzzle task, and observations were coded continuously for parent (e.g., directive, teaching) and child behavior (e.g., on-task, off-task). Results. Multilevel continuous-time survival analyses revealed that parenting behavior is less variable when children are off-task. However, when risk factors are higher, a different profile emerges. Combined maternal and child risk is associated with markedly lower variability in parenting behavior overall (i.e., rigidity) paired with shifts toward higher variability specifically when children are off-task (i.e., inconsistency). Dyadic negativity (i.e., episodes when children are off-task and parents engage in negative behavior) are also associated with higher parenting variability. Conclusions. Risk factors confer rigidity in parenting overall, but in moments when higher-risk parents must respond to child misbehavior, their parenting becomes more variable, suggesting inconsistency and ineffectiveness. This context-dependent shift in parenting behavior may help explain prior mixed findings and offer new directions for family interventions designed to reduce coercive processes.     

The Roles of Maternal Psychopathic Traits,Maternal Antisocial Personality Traits,and Parenting in the Development of Child Psychopathic Traits

Objective. The development of psychopathic traits in children has been largely understudied compared with the etiology of these traits in adults; therefore, this study aims to elucidate factors that may be involved in the development of psychopathic traits in childhood. Design. The potential impact of maternal personality traits on parenting practices and child personality were examined. Specifically, statistical relations were examined among maternal psychopathic traits, maternal antisocial personality traits, and child psychopathic traits, and the role of parenting as a potential mediator and/or moderator of these relations within an all-male sample (N = 75) between the ages of 7 and 11 years. Results. Parenting mediated the relation between maternal antisocial personality traits and child psychopathic traits, but not the relation between maternal and child psychopathic traits. In addition, positive parenting interacted statistically with maternal psychopathic traits, such that maternal and child psychopathic traits were related only when positive parenting practices were lacking. Conclusion. These findings support the consideration of parenting as a point of intervention in the prevention of childhood psychopathic traits.     

A Methylome‐Wide Association Study of Trajectories of Oppositional Defiant Behaviors and Biological Overlap With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

In 671 mother–child (49% male) pairs from an epidemiological birth cohort, we investigated (a) prospective associations between DNA methylation (at birth) and trajectories (ages 7–13) of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and the ODD subdimensions of irritable and headstrong; (b) common biological pathways, indexed by DNA methylation, between ODD trajectories and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); (c) genetic influence on DNA methylation; and (d) prenatal risk exposure associations. Methylome‐wide significant associations were identified for the ODD and headstrong, but not for irritable. Overlap analysis indicated biological correlates between ODD, headstrong, and ADHD. DNA methylation in ODD and headstrong was (to a degree) genetically influenced. DNA methylation associated with prenatal risk exposures of maternal anxiety (headstrong) and cigarette smoking (ODD and headstrong).     

The term comorbidity is of questionable value in reference to developmental disorders: data and theory

Over the last decade, there has been an enormous increase in the number of studies evaluating the overlap of developmental syndromes or disorders in both children and adults. This overlap of symptoms is often referred to as comorbidity, a term we criticize in this article because of its unsubstantiated presumption of independent etiologies. The premise of this article is that discrete categories do not exist in real life, and that it is misleading to refer to overlapping categories or symptoms as "comorbidities." We illustrate our point by presenting data from 179 school-age children evaluated with rigorous research criteria for seven disorders: reading disability (RD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), developmental coordination disorder (DCD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), conduct disorder (CD), depression, and anxiety. Fully 50% of this sample met the criteria for at least two diagnoses. The children with ADHD were at higher risk of having at least a second disorder compared to the children with RD. Overall, the high rates of overlap of these behavioral, emotional, and educational deficits in this broadly ascertained sample support the idea that the concept of comorbidity is inadequate. We discuss the concept of atypical brain development as an explanatory idea to interpret the high rate of overlap of developmental disorders.     

Day-to-day Variation in Autonomy-Supportive and Psychologically Controlling Parenting: The Role of Parents’ Daily Experiences of Need Satisfaction and Need Frustration

Objective. Autonomy-supportive and psychologically controlling parenting have been shown to relate to positive and negative developmental outcomes, respectively. Most research that addresses antecedents of these parenting constructs has focused on the predictive role of between-parent differences (e.g., personality). To gain insight in dynamics of within-parent changes in reported parenting, this study focused on daily fluctuations in reported autonomy-supportive and psychologically controlling parenting and examined the role of parents’ need satisfaction and need frustration in accounting for those fluctuations. Design. Mothers (M age = 45) and fathers (M age = 47) of 198 adolescents (M age = 15) participated in a 7-day diary study. Results. Multilevel modeling provided evidence for significant day-to-day variability in both parenting dimensions. Daily fluctuations in need satisfaction were related to daily fluctuations in reported autonomy-supportive parenting and daily fluctuations in need frustration were related to daily fluctuations in reported psychologically controlling parenting. These associations were not moderated by between-parent differences in those parenting dimensions. Conclusions. The findings provide evidence for the role of parents’ own needs-related experiences in their daily display of autonomy-supportive and psychologically controlling parenting.     

The Role of Negative Affect and Physiological Regulation in Maternal Attribution

Objective. Mothers who attribute child misbehaviors to children’s intentions, and not to situational causes, show more hostile parenting behaviors. Why are some mothers more likely than others to make more hostile attributions (i.e., high intentional attributions and low situational attributions) when confronted with child challenging behaviors? We examined the relation between mothers’ perception of child challenging behaviors and their hostile attributions of child misbehaviors, with an emphasis on how maternal negative affect and resting vagal activity moderated this relation. Design. One hundred sixty mothers of 3- to 7-year-old children reported their perceptions of child problem behaviors, their attributions regarding child misbehaviors, and their temperamental negative affect. Mothers’ respiratory sinus arrhythmia was measured during resting state. Results. Maternal perceptions of child challenging behaviors were positively related to hostile maternal attributions, and this relation was strongest in mothers with high negative affect and low resting RSA. Conclusions. These findings indicate the importance of considering mothers’ affective and physiological attributes when examining social-cognitive processes in parenting.     

Concurrent and Subsequent Associations Between Daily Digital Technology Use and High‐Risk Adolescents’ Mental Health Symptoms

Adolescents are spending an unprecedented amount of time using digital technologies (especially mobile technologies), and there are concerns that adolescents’ constant connectivity is associated with poor mental health, particularly among at‐risk adolescents. Participants included 151 adolescents at risk for mental health problems (M_age = 13.1) who completed a baseline assessment, 30‐day ecological momentary assessment, and 18 month follow‐up assessment. Results from multilevel regression models showed that daily reports of both time spent using digital technologies and the number of text messages sent were associated with increased same‐day attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and conduct disorder (CD) symptoms. Adolescents’ reported digital technology usage and text messaging across the ecological momentary assessment (EMA) period was also associated with poorer self‐regulation and increases in conduct problem symptoms between the baseline and follow‐up assessments.     

Custom-Fit Parenting: How Low- and Well-Accepted Young Adolescents Benefit from Peer-Related Parenting

Objective. The present study investigated whether longitudinal associations between peer-related parenting behaviors (facilitation of peer interactions, social coaching about peer problems) and peer adjustment were moderated by young adolescents’ peer status. Design. Participants included 123 young adolescents (mean age = 12.03 years; 50% boys; 58.5% European American) at Time 1. At Time 1 (summer before the middle school transition), parents reported on their facilitation of peer interaction opportunities and coaching strategies to a hypothetical peer exclusion situation; teachers reported on youth peer acceptance. At Times 1 and 2 (spring after the middle school transition), youth reported on peer adjustment (friendship quality, loneliness, peer victimization). Results. Peer acceptance (pre-middle school transition) moderated prospective associations between peer-related parenting and peer adjustment, yielding two patterns of associations. Parental facilitation predicted better friendship quality and lower levels of loneliness over time among youth with high peer acceptance, but not among youth with low peer acceptance. In contrast, parental social coaching predicted better friendship quality among youth with low peer acceptance, but lower friendship quality among youth with high peer acceptance. Conclusions. Not all forms of positive peer-related parenting are equally beneficial for all youth. Well-accepted youth may have the social opportunities to take advantage of parental facilitation, whereas low-accepted youth may have greater social needs and benefit from support in the form of social coaching. Implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the literatures on peer-related parenting and peer adjustment.