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Sudo M, Won YQ, Chau WWY, Meaney MJ, Kee MZL, Chen H, Eriksson JG, Yap F, Rifkin-Graboi A, Tiemeier H, Setoh P. Physical discipline as a normative childhood experience in Singapore. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health 2023; 17:81. [PMID: 37386570 PMCID: PMC10311744 DOI: 10.1186/s13034-023-00632-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The cultural normativeness theory posits that specific parenting behaviors can be interpreted as displays of appropriate parenting in contexts where they are deemed normative. Previous studies suggest high acceptance of physical discipline in Singapore, where strict parenting could be interpreted as care for the child. However, there is a lack of studies on the local prevalence and implications of physical discipline. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of Singaporean children experiencing parental physical discipline, longitudinal changes in this prevalence, and how exposure to physical discipline relates to children's evaluation of their parents' parenting. METHODS Participants were 710 children with parental reports of physical discipline at one or more assessments at ages 4.5, 6, 9, and 11 years in the Growing Up in Singapore Towards healthy Outcomes birth cohort study. Parental reports of physical discipline were obtained using the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire or the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire across the four assessments. Child reports of their parents' care and control were obtained using the Parental Bonding Instrument for Children at the age 9 assessment. Prevalence was specified as being exposed to at least one physical discipline at any frequency. A generalized linear mixed model was performed to examine whether children's age predicted their exposure to physical discipline. Linear regression analyses were conducted to investigate whether children's exposure to physical discipline predicted their evaluation of their parents' parenting. RESULTS The prevalence of children experiencing at least one physical discipline was above 80% at all ages. There was a decrease in this prevalence from age 4.5 to 11 years (B = - 0.14, SE = 0.01, OR = 0.87, p < 0.001). The more frequent the paternal physical discipline children were exposed to, the more likely they were to report lower levels of care (B = - 1.74, SE = 0.66, p = 0.03) and higher levels of denial of psychological autonomy by fathers (B = 1.05, SE = 0.45, p = 0.04). Maternal physical discipline was not significantly associated with children's evaluation of their mothers' parenting (ps ≥ 0.53). CONCLUSIONS Physical discipline was a common experience among our Singaporean sample, consistent with the notion that strict parenting could be regarded as a form of care. However, exposure to physical discipline did not translate to children reporting their parents as caring, with paternal physical discipline being negatively associated with children's evaluations of paternal care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mioko Sudo
- Psychology Division, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 48 Nanyang Ave, Singapore, 639818, Singapore
| | - Ying Qing Won
- Psychology Division, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 48 Nanyang Ave, Singapore, 639818, Singapore
| | - Winnie W Y Chau
- Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, 9 Arts Link, Singapore, 117570, Singapore
| | - Michael J Meaney
- Agency for Science, Technology and Research (ASTAR), 30 Medical Drive, Brenner Centre for Molecular Medicine, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), Singapore, 117609, Singapore
- Sackler Program for Epigenetics & Psychobiology, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, 6875 Boulevard LaSalle, Montréal, QC, H4H 1R3, Canada
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University, 6875 Boulevard LaSalle, Montréal, QC, H4H 1R3, Canada
| | - Michelle Z L Kee
- Agency for Science, Technology and Research (ASTAR), 30 Medical Drive, Brenner Centre for Molecular Medicine, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), Singapore, 117609, Singapore
| | - Helen Chen
- Department of Psychological Medicine, KK Women's and Children's Hospital, 100 Bukit Timah Road, Singapore, 229899, Singapore
- Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Rd, Singapore, 169857, Singapore
| | - Johan Gunnar Eriksson
- Agency for Science, Technology and Research (ASTAR), 30 Medical Drive, Brenner Centre for Molecular Medicine, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), Singapore, 117609, Singapore
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Human Potential Translational Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 10 Medical Dr, Singapore, 117597, Singapore
- Human Potential Translational Research Programme, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 10 Medical Dr, Singapore, 117597, Singapore
- Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Helsinki, Tukholmankatu 8 B, 00290, Helsinki, Finland
- Public Health Research Program, Folkhälsan Research Center, Topeliuksenkatu 20, 00250, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Fabian Yap
- Department of Paediatrics, KK Women's and Children's Hospital, 100 Bukit Timah Road, Singapore, 229899, Singapore
- Academic Medicine Department, Duke-NUS Medical School, 8 College Rd, Singapore, 169857, Singapore
- Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, 59 Nanyang Dr, Singapore, 636921, Singapore
| | - Anne Rifkin-Graboi
- Centre for Research in Child Development, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, 1 Nanyang Walk, Singapore, 637616, Singapore
| | - Henning Tiemeier
- Department of Social and Behavioral Science, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, 677 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Peipei Setoh
- Psychology Division, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 48 Nanyang Ave, Singapore, 639818, Singapore.
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Michalska KJ, Zhou E, Borelli JL. School-aged children with higher anxiety symptoms show greater correspondence between subjective negative emotions and autonomic arousal. J Exp Child Psychol 2022; 221:105451. [PMID: 35623311 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2022.105451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2021] [Revised: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Individuals exhibit variability in the degree of correspondence between autonomic and subjective indicators of emotional experience. The current study examined whether convergence between autonomic arousal and negative emotions during emotion-inducing story vignettes is associated with internalizing symptoms in school-aged children. A diverse sample of 97 children aged 8 to 12 years participated in this study in which they reported on their anxiety and depression. Children's electrodermal activity was assessed while they read vignettes depicting children experiencing sadness and fear. Participants also reported on their emotional reaction to the vignettes. Children's anxiety and electrodermal activity to fear vignettes were associated only at high levels, but not mean or low levels, of self-reported negative emotions to fear vignettes. These findings suggest that hyperawareness, in which self-reported negative emotionality is high when physiological reactivity is also high, is associated with greater risk for anxiety, but not depression, during middle childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kalina J Michalska
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA.
| | - Elayne Zhou
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Jessica L Borelli
- Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
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Civilotti C, Dennis JL, Acquadro Maran D, Margola D. When Love Just Ends: An Investigation of the Relationship Between Dysfunctional Behaviors, Attachment Styles, Gender, and Education Shortly After a Relationship Dissolution. Front Psychol 2021; 12:662237. [PMID: 34168592 PMCID: PMC8217834 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.662237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Much information is known about the long-term consequences of separation and divorce, whereas there is a paucity of studies about the short-term consequences of such experiences. This study investigates the adoption of dysfunctional behaviors (e.g., insistent telephone calls and text messages, verbal threats, and sending unwanted objects) shortly after a relationship dissolution. A total of 136 participants who declared to have been left by their former partner in the previous 6 months were included in this study (i.e., females: n = 84; males: n = 52; mean age = 30.38; SD = 4.19). Attachment styles were evaluated as explanatory variables when facing a relationship dissolution, in connection with a set of (1) demographic variables (i.e., gender, education, and current marital/relationship status), (2) dysfunctional behaviors, and (3) motivations on the basis of those behaviors. Results showed that a secure or dismissing attachment style, a higher education, and currently married (but awaiting separation) status were the protective factors in adopting such dysfunctional behaviors, while the preoccupied and fearful-avoidant subjects, especially females, tended to adopt dysfunctional behaviors (i.e., communication attempts and defamation) and reported fear of abandonment and need for attention as underlying motivations. Future study on longitudinal aspects of the relationship dissolution processes is required to have deeper insights into this phenomenon. This study sheds light on the relationship between adult attachment styles and the motivations behind the adoption of dysfunctional behaviors after a relationship dissolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Civilotti
- Department of Psychology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
- Istituto Universitario Salesiano, Turin, Italy
| | - John Lawrence Dennis
- Department of Philosophy, Social & Human Sciences and Education, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
- Centre for Higher Education Internationalisation, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Davide Margola
- Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
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Liang Z, Delvecchio E, Cheng Y, Mazzeschi C. Parent and Child's Negative Emotions During COVID-19: The Moderating Role of Parental Attachment Style. Front Psychol 2021; 12:567483. [PMID: 33746813 PMCID: PMC7973364 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.567483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2020] [Accepted: 02/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
In February 2020, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) appeared and spread rapidly in Italy. With the health emergency and social isolation, parents started spending more time with their children, and they might have experienced greater distress. Attachment style is considered as an effective emotion regulation strategy in the parent-child relationship. However, few empirical studies have addressed this issue. Based on attachment theory, this study aimed to find parental attachment style as a candidate to moderate the relation between parents' negative emotions and their perceptions of their children's negative emotions related to COVID-19. Parents (Mage = 42.55 ± 6.56, 88.2% female) of 838 Italian children and adolescents aged 3 to 18 years participated in an online survey. Results showed that parents with a fearful attachment style had significantly higher negative emotions when facing COVID-19 than those with other attachment styles. Moreover, parents with a dismissing attachment style perceived fewer negative emotions in their children than parents with fearful and preoccupied styles. At last, higher parents' negative emotions were associated with greater perception of children's negative emotions only in parents classified as secure and fearful. These findings suggest that parents with dismissing and fearful attachment styles and their children may be at higher risk during the COVID-19 pandemic and they should be given long-term attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziqin Liang
- Department of Philosophy, Social Sciences and Education, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
| | - Elisa Delvecchio
- Department of Philosophy, Social Sciences and Education, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
| | - Yucong Cheng
- Department of Philosophy, Social Sciences and Education, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
| | - Claudia Mazzeschi
- Department of Philosophy, Social Sciences and Education, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy
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Penner F, Vanwoerden S, Borelli JL, Sharp C. Discrepancies in Mother-Adolescent Reports of Parenting Practices in a Psychiatric Sample: Associations with Age, Psychopathology, and Attachment. JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL CHILD PSYCHOLOGY 2019; 48:343-360. [PMID: 31758368 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-019-00589-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Discrepancies in parent-adolescent reports of parenting practices may reveal important information about parent-adolescent relationship quality. Youth attachment security has been identified as a factor that may explain discrepancies between parents and adolescents in reporting on parenting. However, previous research has not examined this question among clinical samples, and has generally utilized non-optimal analytic strategies in modeling discrepancies. The current study aimed to extend previous work by using latent profile analysis (LPA) to identify patterns of mother-adolescent divergence in reports of parenting in a large clinical sample, examining the characteristics of discrepancy groups in terms of age, gender, and psychopathology, and examining associations between attachment and discrepancies. A sample of adolescents with psychiatric disorders (N = 416; ages 12-17) and their mothers completed reports of parenting practices. Adolescents also completed the Child Attachment Interview and a measure of psychopathology. LPA was used to identify groups of mother-adolescent dyads with similar patterns of divergence across domains of parenting. Chi-square, ANOVA, and logistic regression analyses were used to test associations between youth age, gender, psychopathology, and attachment and mother-adolescent discrepancy profile membership. Three discrepancy profiles emerged: Strong Divergence, Moderate Divergence, and Low Divergence. Youth in the Moderate Divergence profile were oldest and had highest levels of externalizing pathology. Youth with insecure (dismissing and preoccupied) attachment, relative to securely attached youth, were more likely to be in the Strong Divergence profile. Securely attached adolescents were more likely to be in Low or Moderate Divergence profiles. Clinical implications are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Penner
- Department of Psychology, University of Houston, 3695 Cullen Blvd, Room 126, Houston, TX, 77204, USA
| | - Salome Vanwoerden
- Department of Psychology, University of Houston, 3695 Cullen Blvd, Room 126, Houston, TX, 77204, USA
| | - Jessica L Borelli
- Department of Psychological Science, University of California - Irvine, 4201 Social & Behavioral Sciences, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA
| | - Carla Sharp
- Department of Psychology, University of Houston, 3695 Cullen Blvd, Room 126, Houston, TX, 77204, USA.
- Centre for Development Support, University of the Free State, PO Box 339, Bloemfontein, 9300, South Africa.
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Carone N, Baiocco R, Lingiardi V, Kerns K. Child attachment security in gay father surrogacy families: Parents as safe havens and secure bases during middle childhood. Attach Hum Dev 2019; 22:269-289. [PMID: 30873903 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2019.1588906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Child attachment security and utilization of parents as safe havens and secure bases were compared in 33 surrogacy children with gay fathers and 37 donor-conceived children with lesbian mothers during middle childhood. Assessments included data coded from parent-child interactions, interviews, and questionnaires administered to children and both parents. Findings indicated that children of gay fathers perceived high attachment security and their scores did not differ from those of children with lesbian mothers or from normative scores of children with heterosexual parents. Children's greater attachment security was associated with higher levels of parental warmth, responsiveness, and willingness to serve as an attachment figure; lower levels of parental negative control and rejection; and the child's younger age. Finally, children used the primary attachment figure more as a safe haven and the secondary attachment more as a secure base, though they reported high levels of both types of support from both parents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicola Carone
- Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Roberto Baiocco
- Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Vittorio Lingiardi
- Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, Faculty of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Kathryn Kerns
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kent State University, Kent, OH, USA
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7
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How do adolescents regulate distress according to attachment style? A combined eye-tracking and neurophysiological approach. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2019; 89:39-47. [PMID: 30165119 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2018.08.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2018] [Revised: 08/14/2018] [Accepted: 08/22/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
According to attachment theory, attachment representations influence emotion regulation (ER) across the lifespan. However, research into attachment-related ER in adolescence is still scarce. The aim of this study was to assess attachment-related ER using a multimodal approach, relying on behavioral and neurophysiological parameters. Attachment styles in eighty-one adolescents were assessed with the Attachment Style Interview (ASI). A distress-then-comfort paradigm based on visual stimuli (the Besancon Affective Picture Set-Adolescents) was employed to "activate" then "deactivate" the attachment system. Gaze and neurophysiological parameters of ER strategies were assessed using eye-tracking synchronized with a physiological device. During the first phase "distress exposure", attachment style was associated with the early stage of distress processing indexed by first fixation duration. Withdrawn adolescents fixated distress pictures less than other groups. Fearful adolescents showed a longer first fixation duration than withdrawn adolescents. During the following phase, "comfort-seeking", all groups initially fixed joy-complicity and comfort pictures earlier than neutral pictures, except for withdrawn adolescents, who fixated comfort pictures later than neutral pictures. Additionally, withdrawn adolescents explored comfort pictures less than enmeshed adolescents. Enmeshed adolescents explored neutral pictures less than comfort and joy-complicity pictures. Concerning neurophysiological parameters, first fixation duration correlated positively with Skin Conductance Response (SCR) rise time in fearful adolescents, while glance count correlated negatively with SCR latency in withdrawn adolescents. This study provides an innovative and objective evaluation of behavioral and neurophysiological parameters for attachment-related ER in adolescents, with a temporal resolution. These parameters constitute potential biomarkers that could contribute to our understanding of ER differences in insecure adolescents. This study was registered with the clinical trials database ClinicalTrials.gov on August 01, 2016, under the number NCT02851810.
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Sichko S, Borelli JL, Smiley PA, Goldstein A, Rasmussen HF. Child and maternal attachment predict school-aged children’s psychobiological convergence. Dev Psychobiol 2018; 60:913-926. [DOI: 10.1002/dev.21748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2017] [Revised: 04/27/2018] [Accepted: 05/14/2018] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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9
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Movahed Abtahi M, Kerns KA. Attachment and emotion regulation in middle childhood: changes in affect and vagal tone during a social stress task. Attach Hum Dev 2017; 19:221-242. [PMID: 28277093 PMCID: PMC5536172 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2017.1291696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
In middle childhood, more securely attached children show better emotion regulation when assessed as general tendencies (e.g. coping style), but studies looking at emotion in response to specific stressors have revealed mixed results. This study examined how attachment security, avoidance, and ambivalence - assessed with a story stem task (99 children, 9-11 years old) - relate to dynamic indices of affective and autonomic responses (baseline, reactivity, recovery). Reports of positive and negative affect, and high-frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV), were assessed during a social stressor task. Securely attached children did not show reactivity effects, although they did show greater recovery of positive affect after the task ended. Avoidant children showed both less reactivity and recovery of negative affect, suggesting a dampened emotional response. Ambivalent children showed more reactivity and more recovery of negative affect. Autonomic response changes were only evident for ambivalent children, who showed less suppression of HF-HRV variability under stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahsa Movahed Abtahi
- a Department of Psychological Sciences , Kent State University , Kent , OH , United States
| | - Kathryn A Kerns
- a Department of Psychological Sciences , Kent State University , Kent , OH , United States
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Interactive effects of 5-HTTLPR genotype and rearing environment on affective attitude towards own infant in Japanese mothers. Behav Brain Res 2017; 325:173-180. [PMID: 27816559 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2016.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2016] [Revised: 10/29/2016] [Accepted: 11/01/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Maternal positive attitude towards one's own infant is the cornerstone of effective parenting. Previous research has revealed an influence of both genetic and environmental factors on maternal parenting behavior, but little is known of the potential gene-environment interaction in shaping a mother's affective attitude. To address this gap, we investigated the effect of a mother's childhood rearing environment and a serotonin transporter gene polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) on affective attitude towards her infant. Our analyses found an interactive effect between rearing environment and 5-HTTLPR genotype on maternal attitude. Specifically, a poor rearing environment (characterized by low maternal care and high paternal overprotection) decreased positive attitude towards one's own infant in mothers with homozygous short allele genotype. In contrast, this detrimental effect was almost eliminated in long allele carriers. Altogether, our results indicate that the 5-HTTLPR gene moderates the influence of experienced rearing environment on maternal parental behavior in a manner consistent with the notion that the short 5-HTTLPR allele amplifies environmental influence.
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11
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Privizzini A. The Child Attachment Interview: A Narrative Review. Front Psychol 2017; 8:384. [PMID: 28352244 PMCID: PMC5348517 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2016] [Accepted: 02/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Attachment theory promoted an impressive body of research on the psychic developmental processes, resulting in studies on both typical and atypical development. Much of the diffusion of the attachment theory in the clinical field was related to the design of reliable instruments to evaluate the organization of attachment in infancy as well as in adulthood. Until recently, the lack of a suitable instrument to assess attachment in middle childhood as well as in adolescence hindered the expansion of research in these developmental phases during which the parent-child relationship takes on a different, albeit still crucial, role. The Child Attachment Interview (CAI), a measure that was recently designed to assess attachment at a representational level in middle childhood and adolescence, filled the measurement gap. The aim of the current review was to summarize previous empirical investigations concerning CAI in order to (a) provide an overview of the state of current research, (b) identify unanswered questions, and (c) propose future research directions. A narrative review was conducted to map the current research findings by searching for the term “Child Attachment Interview” in the Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, and PsychINFO databases, followed by a search in Mendeley. Limits were set to exclude dissertations, chapters in books, and qualitative or theoretical papers, while empirical studies were included if they used the CAI and were published in English language, peer-reviewed journals by July, 2016. The review, which ultimately included 39 studies meeting the criteria, showed that the CAI is a reliable instrument to assess attachment organization in clinical and non-clinical samples, thus providing a worthwhile contribution to the investigation of the influence of the parent-child relationship beyond infancy and early childhood. Nevertheless, the review pointed out a number of relevant open issues, the most critical of which concerned the CAI coding and classification system. In particular, some relevant questions arose about (a) how opportune it would be to maintain a distinct classification for mother and father, (b) coding challenges regarding both the father and the Preoccupied and Disorganized classification, and finally (c) the advantage of a dimensional vs. a categorical approach.
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Borelli JL, Ramsook KA, Smiley P, Kyle Bond D, West JL, Buttitta KH. Language Matching Among Mother-child Dyads: Associations with Child Attachment and Emotion Reactivity. SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 2016. [DOI: 10.1111/sode.12200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Borelli JL, Somers JA, West JL, Coffey JK, Shmueli-Goetz Y. Shedding light on the specificity of school-aged children's attachment narratives. Attach Hum Dev 2016; 18:188-211. [PMID: 26781084 DOI: 10.1080/14616734.2015.1134605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
A prominent research tradition within the field of attachment involves analyzing relationship narratives for qualities thought to reveal important information regarding the organization of attachment, and the different ways in which attachment insecurity presents. Researchers increasingly use this method to assess attachment in middle childhood, but further work needs to be conducted with respect to the divergent validity of attachment narratives in this age range. Thus, the current study examined differential associations between children's discursive style and linguistic behavior when completing an attachment interview (Child Attachment Interview [CAI]) and Non-Relational Interview (NRI). In addition, the discriminant validity of attachment narratives was assessed in predicting children's physiological reactivity to a relational challenge. Children (N = 125) completed the NRI and the CAI at Time 1. A subset of the original sample (n = 64) completed another assessment 1.5 years later involving simulated non-relational and relational challenges. While narrative coherence was moderately associated across the two interviews, CAI narrative coherence uniquely predicted reactivity to a relational probe. We discuss implications for understanding children's narrative styles across discourse topics as well as the significance of the results for using attachment interviews in this age range.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Jessica L West
- b Department of Psychology , Duke University , Durham , NC , USA
| | - John K Coffey
- c Department of Psychology , Claremont Graduate University , Claremont , CA , USA
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura E. Brumariu
- Gordon F. Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies, Adelphi University
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15
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Tillery R, Long A, Phipps S. Child perceptions of parental care and overprotection in children with cancer and healthy children. J Clin Psychol Med Settings 2015; 21:165-72. [PMID: 24682801 DOI: 10.1007/s10880-014-9392-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The primary aims of this study were to: (a) examine child perceptions of overprotection; and (b) explore how these perceptions relate to child health and adjustment. Children with a prior diagnosis of cancer (n = 205) and children without a history of serious illness (n = 76) reported on parental overprotective and caring behaviors. Children with cancer were recruited from one of four strata based on the elapsed time since their cancer diagnosis (1-6 months; 6-24 months; 2-5 years; >5 years) Children also reported on symptoms of depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress. Children with cancer did not differ from healthy children in their perceptions of parental care or overprotection. Child distress was more strongly related to perceptions of care and overprotection than child's health status. Children with cancer do not report their parents approach to care and protection differently than children without a cancer history. These findings mirror prior research examining parental perceptions of overprotection and suggest that, despite the challenges of parenting a child with serious illness, parental protection is not significantly altered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Tillery
- Department of Psychology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN, 38105-3678, USA
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Borelli JL, West JL, Weekes NY, Crowley MJ. Dismissing child attachment and discordance for subjective and neuroendocrine responses to vulnerability. Dev Psychobiol 2013; 56:584-91. [PMID: 24114310 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2012] [Accepted: 02/04/2013] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Emerging evidence suggests that as with adults, dismissing children underreport their psychological distress relative to physiological indicators of their experience (startle response, neural signals). In this report, we extend these observations to neuroendocrine reactivity. One hundred and six 8-12-year-old children completed the Child Attachment Interview and a computer-based paradigm comprised of vignettes reflecting vulnerability in interpersonal contexts. Dismissing children's cortisol responses remained comparable from pre-to-post paradigm, while secure children's cortisol responses decreased from pre-to-post paradigm. Furthermore, compared to secure children, dismissing children reported less distress than their cortisol response would suggest. Implications for dismissing children's coping and self-regulation are discussed.
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