Relationships between parenting stress and developmental functioning among 2-year-olds

Examining the influence of irritability and ADHD on domains of parenting stress

Parents of children with ADHD typically report higher levels of parenting stress than parents of typically developing children. Children with ADHD display developmentally inappropriate levels of hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention. Some children with ADHD are also prone to particularly high levels of tonic irritability that may explain some of the impairments typically found in ADHD. The present study sought to determine the unique impact of ADHD and tonic irritability on child-related parenting stress domains (e.g., difficult child, parent-child dysfunctional interactions). 145 mothers of children with and without ADHD aged 7-12 years participated in the current study. Mothers completed self-report measures of parenting stress as well as a diagnostic structured interview. Ecological momentary assessment (EMA) was used to assess tonic irritability in an ecological environment. Indirect effects models were specified using PROCESS Model 4. For the parent-child dysfunctional interaction domain, the data were best fit by a model specifying a significant total effect of ADHD that was fully accounted for by an indirect effect through irritability. For the difficult child domain, model testing indicated a significant total effect of ADHD that was partially accounted for by an indirect effect through irritability. The current study adds support to the growing body of literature acknowledging the role of tonic irritability in children with ADHD. Furthermore, the results provide novel insight in the complex relation of irritability, child ADHD, and domains of parenting stress.

Parenting Stress and Child Externalizing and Internalizing Problems Among Low-Income Families: Exploring Transactional Associations

Although the association between parenting stress and child behavioral outcomes is well established (Deater-Deckard, Clin Psychol 5:314-332, 1998), longitudinal research examining the direction of these effects is limited. This study examined transactional associations between parenting stress and child externalizing and internalizing behaviors among 1209 low-income female caregivers (M_age = 34.51) with children in early childhood or early adolescence (i.e., either 2- to 5-years-olds or 9- to 15-year-olds at Time 1) across a 6 year time span using three time points. Parent-driven associations between parenting stress and child internalizing problems for the early childhood group were found. In the early adolescent group, transactional and child-driven associations were found between parenting stress and child externalizing problems, but only child-driven associations for internalizing problems. Thus, transactional associations were only supported for the early adolescent group. These findings suggest developmental differences in how parenting stress and child behavioral problems are linked among low-income families. Clinical implications are discussed.

Self-care in caregivers of children with FASD: How do caregivers care for themselves, and what are the benefits and obstacles for doing so?

BACKGROUND

Caregivers of children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) have elevated levels of stress, which can negatively impact family functioning and caregivers' mental and physical health. Self-care is a critical resource to address caregivers' stress.

AIMS

This study describes strategies and obstacles related to self-care reported by caregivers of children with FASD. It also examines how caregivers' perceived confidence in and frequency of self-care is related to stress, parenting attitudes, and family needs.

METHODS & PROCEDURES

Forty-six caregivers of children with FASD identified self-care strategies and obstacles and rated their confidence and frequency of self-care. Additional measures of perceived parenting efficacy, stress, family needs, child behavior, and family demographics were administered. Correlation analyses examined associations between self-care and measures of child and family functioning.

RESULTS

Self-care strategies and obstacles were varied. Greater reported confidence in self-care was associated with less parental distress and more satisfaction in the parenting role. Frequency of self-care was positively associated with confidence in self-care but not with any other measure of family functioning.

CONCLUSIONS

Caregivers use a variety of strategies and face significant obstacles in self-care. Confidence in self-care may be associated with lower stress and greater satisfaction in the parenting role.

Neighborhood Characteristics, Maternal Parenting, and Health and Development of Children from Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Families

The present study examined the direct and indirect effects of neighborhood conditions on the health and development of children from socioeconomically disadvantaged families. Two waves of data were analyzed from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study and its subsample of 3,656 mothers and their young children at ages 3 and 5. The results show that social cohesion was directly and indirectly associated with children's behavioral problems and health status. Social control was found to have an indirect effect on children's behavioral problems and cognitive development transmitted through maternal parenting quality and parenting stress. There were significant direct effects of neighborhood physical disorder on children's behavioral problems and cognitive development. In terms of effect size, mothers' parenting stress and parenting quality, economic hardship, education level, and health care coverage were also prominent factors in determining the health and development of children. Implications for interventions and future research are discussed.

Benefits of Mindfulness for Parenting in Mothers of Preschoolers in Chile

The present study evaluated whether mothers’ participation in a mindfulness-based intervention led to statistically significant differences in their general levels of stress, depression, anxiety, parental stress, mindful parenting, and mindfulness. Forty-three mothers of preschool-age children participated, 21 in the intervention group and 22 in the comparison group. Scores of mental health variables were within normal ranges before the intervention. All of the participants worked at the Universidad Católica de Chile (Catholic University of Chile), and their children attended university preschool centers. Repeated measured ANOVA analysis were performed considering differences between gain scores of each group, rather than post-treatment group differences. This was chosen in order to approach initial differences in some of the measures (mindfulness, mindful parenting, and stress) probably due to self-selection. As predicted, the intervention group showed a significant reduction in general and parental stress and an increase in mindful parenting and general mindfulness variables when compared with the comparison group. Effect sizes ranged from small to medium, with the highest Cohen’s d in stress (general and parental) and mindful parenting. In most cases, the significant change was observed between pre- and post-test measures. Follow-up measures indicated that the effects were maintained after 2 months.

Associations among mothers' representations of their relationship with their toddlers, maternal parenting stress, and toddlers' internalizing and externalizing behaviors

This study examined the array of associations among the emotional valence and the coherence of mothers' representations of their relationship with their toddlers, mothers' reported parenting stress, and toddlers' internalizing and externalizing behaviors. To evaluate maternal representations, 55 mothers were interviewed using the Five Minute Speech Sample procedure (FMSS; Magaña et al., 1986), which was coded for criticism and positive comments (Magaňa-Amato, 1993), as well as coherence (Sher-Censor & Yates, 2015). Mothers also completed the Parenting Stress Index - Short Form (PSI; Abidin, 1997) to evaluate their parenting stress and the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL/1.5-5; Achenbach & Rescorla, 2000) to assess their toddlers' internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Results indicated that parenting stress was associated with maternal criticism and fewer positive comments in the FMSS, but not with the coherence of mothers' FMSS. Parenting stress, criticism, and lower coherence in the FMSS were associated with maternal reports of externalizing behaviors. Only parenting stress and lower coherence in the FMSS were related to mothers' reports of internalizing behaviors of the child. Thus, the emotional valence and the coherence of mothers' representations of their relationship with their child and parenting stress may each constitute a distinct aspect of parenting and contribute to the understanding of individual differences in toddlers' internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Implications for research and practice with families of toddlers are discussed.

Reducing children's behavior problems through social capital: A causal assessment

Behavior problems among young children have serious detrimental effects on short and long-term educational outcomes. An especially promising prevention strategy may be one that focuses on strengthening the relationships among families in schools, or social capital. However, empirical research on social capital has been constrained by conceptual and causal ambiguity. This study attempts to construct a more focused conceptualization of social capital and aims to determine the causal effects of social capital on children's behavior. Using data from a cluster randomized trial of 52 elementary schools, we apply several multilevel models to assess the causal relationship, including intent to treat and treatment on the treated analyses. Taken together, these analyses provide stronger evidence than previous studies that social capital improves children's behavioral outcomes and that these improvements are not simply a result of selection into social relations but result from the social relations themselves.

Parenting Stress among Low-Income and Working-Class Fathers: The Role of Employment

Contemporary norms of fatherhood emphasize the dual demands of breadwinning and daily involvement in childcare. Recent qualitative research suggests that working-class fathers find it difficult to meet these demands due to job instability and workplace inflexibility. Yet, little quantitative research has examined how employment characteristics are related to fathers' parenting stress, in comparison with mothers'. Analyses using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 3,165) show that unemployment and workplace inflexibility, but not overwork, multiple jobs, odd-jobs, and nonstandard hours, are related to more parenting stress for fathers. Although these two factors are also related to more parenting stress for mothers, nuanced gender differences emerged: these are better predictors than other parental or child characteristics for fathers only, and the effect size of workplace inflexibility is greater for fathers than mothers. In sum, securing a job with flexible schedule is central to reducing fathers' parenting stress.

Mainland Chinese parenting styles and parent–child interaction

Parenting styles and mother–child interaction were examined with 97 Mainland Chinese mothers (M age 1/4 29.64 years, SD 1/4 3.64) and their young children (M 1/4 24.30 months, SD 1/4 4.57). Mothers completed questionnaires about their parenting styles, orientation to Chinese cultural values, perceived parenting stress, and sources of social support. The regression analyses showed that mothers’ adherence to Chinese values was associated with both authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles. Other characteristics of the family contexts, such as perceived parenting distress, social support, and years of education, also contributed to Chinese mothers’ parenting styles. Mother–child dysfunctional interaction was associated with mothers’ heightened parenting distress, a lack of perceived social support, and perceptions of children's difficultness. Group comparisons revealed that Chinese mothers who had high scores for both authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles adhered most strongly to the Chinese cultural values. The findings suggest that the aspects of families’ eco-cultural settings such as mothers’ endorsement of Chinese cultural values and perceived parenting stress contribute to their parenting styles and interaction with their children.

The Co-Development of Parenting Stress and Childhood Internalizing and Externalizing Problems

Although the detrimental influence of parenting stress on child problem behavior is well established, it remains unknown how these constructs affect each other over time. In accordance with a transactional model, this study investigates how the development of internalizing and externalizing problems is related to the development of parenting stress in children aged 4-9. Mothers of 1582 children participated in three one-year interval data waves. Internalizing and externalizing problems as well as parenting stress were assessed by maternal self-report. Interrelated development of parenting with internalizing and externalizing problems was examined using Latent Growth Modeling. Directionality of effects was further investigated by using cross-lagged models. Parenting stress and externalizing problems showed a decrease over time, whereas internalizing problems remained stable. Initial levels of parenting stress were related to initial levels of both internalizing and externalizing problems. Decreases in parenting stress were related to larger decreases in externalizing problems and to the (stable) course of internalizing problems. Some evidence for reciprocity was found such that externalizing problems were associated with parenting stress and vice versa over time, specifically for boys. Our findings support the transactional model in explaining psychopathology.

Parenting stress and external stressors as predictors of maternal ratings of child adjustment

This study sought to disentangle the effects of different kinds of stress on maternal ratings of child externalizing and internalizing problems, social inhibition, and social competence, with a primary focus on parenting stress. The relations were explored in a sample consisting of mothers of 436 children (Mage  = 7 years) in Sweden. Half the sample had had early clinical contacts during infancy due to child regulation problems, and the rest were mothers without known such early contacts. Demographic factors, family stressors, and parenting stress were examined in stress - adjustment models. Family stressors were clinical contact during infancy, current child and parent health problems, recent negative life events, and insufficient social support. Parenting stress as a mediator of the effect of other stressors on rated child adjustment was tested as was social support as a moderator of the effect of parenting stress on adjustment. The results showed that a higher parenting stress level was associated with maternal ratings of more externalizing and internalizing behaviors, more social inhibition, and lower social competence. Other family stressors and background variables were also found to be of importance, mainly for externalizing and internalizing problems and to some extent for social competence. Social inhibition had a unique relation to parenting stress only. Parenting stress mediated effects of other stressors in twelve models, whereas social support had no moderating effect on the link between parenting stress and child adjustment. Thus, parenting stress seems to be an important overarching construct. Clinical implications are proposed.

Perceived child behavior problems, parenting stress, and maternal depressive symptoms among prenatal methamphetamine users

The present study was designed to examine parenting stress, maternal depressive symptoms, and perceived child behavior problems among mothers who used methamphetamine (MA) during pregnancy. Participants were a subsample (n = 212; 75 exposed, 137 comparison) of biological mothers who had continuous custody of their child from birth to 36 months. The subsample was drawn from a larger, ongoing longitudinal study on the effects of prenatal methamphetamine exposure (n = 412; 204 exposed, 208 comparison) (Arria et al in Matern Child Health J 10:293-302 2006). Mothers who used MA during pregnancy reported more parenting stress and more depressive symptoms than a matched comparison group. There were no differences between groups on perceived child behavior problems. In a hierarchical linear model, depressive symptoms, and perceived child behavior problems, but not MA exposure, were statistically significant predictors of parenting stress. Screening for potential parenting problems among mothers with a history of substance abuse is warranted. Parenting interventions targeting depressive symptoms, parenting stress, and child behavior problems are needed for this population.

Effects of attentional/ hyperactive and oppositional/ aggressive problem behaviour at 14 months and 21 months on parenting stress

BACKGROUND

  To evaluate effects of attentional/ hyperactive (Att/Hi) and oppositional/ aggressive (Opp/Agg) behaviours of children at 14 and 21 months of age on parenting stress at 21 months.

METHOD

  107 children from the general population with low, intermediate, and high levels of disruptive behaviours at 14 months, as evaluated by parents on a 55-item checklist, participated. Parents completed the Child Behaviour Checklist 1.5-5 and the Dutch version of Parenting Stress Index (NOSI) at 21 months. Effects of problem behaviours were examined in a 2 (Att/Hi and Opp/Agg) by 2 (not high versus high) by 2 (14 and 21 months) multivariate design with parental stress as dependent variable.

RESULTS

  Oppositional/ aggressive behaviour at 14 months had a strong main effect on parenting stress, but not at 21 months. There was a significant interaction between parenting stress and Att/Hi behaviour at 14 and 21 months, indicating that increase in these behaviours over time was associated with parenting stress. Both Opp/Agg behaviour and an interaction between Att/Hi behaviour and parenting stress contributed to maternal role restriction and social isolation. Oppositional/ aggressive behaviour led to higher scores for parental competence and depression, whereas Att/Hi behaviour led to lower scores for attachment.

CONCLUSIONS

  Early Opp/Agg and Att/Hi behaviour had differential effects on parenting stress at 21 months. The increase in parenting stress associated with early Opp/Agg behaviour may be linked to overall feelings of parental competence, whereas the course of Att/Hi behaviour may be associated with increased demands on parent-child interactions and attachment. Our results have implications for development of early intervention programmes.

Maternal anxiety is related to infant neurological condition, paternal anxiety is not

BACKGROUND

Parental anxiety and stress may have consequences for infant neurological development.

AIMS

To study relationships between parental anxiety or well-being and infant neurological development approximately one year after birth.

STUDY DESIGN

Longitudinal study of a birth cohort of infants born to subfertile couples.

SUBJECTS

206 parent-child dyads.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Infant neurology was assessed with the Touwen Infant Neurological Examination (TINE) at 10 months and a developmental questionnaire at 12 months. Parental measures included trait anxiety measured by the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and well-being measured by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ).

RESULTS

Maternal trait anxiety was associated with a less optimal neurological condition (r(s)= -0.19, p<0.01) of the infant. This association persisted after adjusting for confounders and results were confirmed by the outcome of the developmental questionnaire. Paternal trait anxiety and parental well-being were not related to the infant's neurodevelopmental outcome.

CONCLUSIONS

Infants of mothers with high trait anxiety have an increased vulnerability to develop a non-optimal nervous system. The association may be mediated in part by early programming of monoaminergic systems. Future research should include an exploration of specific windows of vulnerability to maternal anxiety.

Applying community-based participatory research methods to improve maternal and child health in Karachi, Pakistan

To achieve health for all, the development of partnerships between community residents and researchers is essential. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) engages community members, uses local knowledge in the understanding of health problems and the design of interventions, and invests community members in the processes and products of research. CBPR pivots on an iterative process of open communication, mutual respect, and power sharing to build community capacity to sustain effective health interventions. This article describes how the tenets of CBPR were applied by a multidisciplinary, international research team of maternal-child health specialists toward better health for women and children in multilingual, multiethnic, low socioeconomic communities in Karachi, Pakistan.

Behaviors of Children Following a Randomized Controlled Treatment Program for Their Abused Mothers

OBJECTIVE

To determine if a treatment program offered to abused mothers positively affects the behaviors of their children.

METHODS

A randomized, two-arm, clinical trial was used to measure child behavior at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months following the application of two levels of abuse treatment services to abused mothers: (1) abuse assessment and receipt of a wallet-size referral card, or (2) abuse assessment, receipt of a wallet-size referral card, and nurse case management sessions. The setting was public primary care clinics. The participants were 233 women who reported physical or sexual abuse within the preceding 12 months, and who had at least one child, ages 18 months to 18 years, living with them. Outcome measures were scores on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) at baseline, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. CBCL scores for a clinically-referred sample of children served as a comparison group.

RESULTS

All children improved significantly (p < .001) on CBCL scores from intake to 24 months, regardless of which treatment protocol their mother received. By 24 months, the majority of children and adolescents had scores significantly less than the referred norms. Children ages 18 months to 5 years showed the most improvement and teenagers showed the least improvement.

CONCLUSIONS

Disclosure of abuse, such as that which happens during abuse assessment, was associated with the same improvement in child behavior scores as a nurse case management intervention. Routine abuse assessment and referral have the potential to positively improve the behavioral functioning of children exposed to domestic violence.

Family-level Coparenting Processes and Child Gender as Moderators of Family Stress and Toddler Adjustment

The goal of this multi-method study was to examine how child gender and coparenting processes influence associations between family stress and toddlers' social adjustment. The participants, 104 dual-earner couples and their 2-year-old children, were videotaped in their home during a freeplay activity. Mothers and fathers completed questionnaires about stress in their roles as partners, workers, and parents and their child's social-emotional adjustment. Consistent with previous research, higher levels of family stress were associated with poorer adjustment for children. Family harmony, represented by warmth and cooperation, was significantly associated with fewer internalizing problems for children even when family stress was considered. Conversely, coparental banter or 'playful humour' between parents moderated the nature of the association between family stress and children's adjustment. Banter between parents was especially protective for girls suggesting that, even in families with toddler-aged children, gender plays an important role in family-level coparenting processes. Future research needs to consider more fully the impact that child characteristics, such as gender, have on the interplay between the family context and children's development.

A typology of behavior problems in preschool children

The purpose of this study was to produce a typology of behavior problems in preschool children. Distinct subtypes were identified through the use of cluster analytic techniques on data from the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC)-Parent Rating Scales. Analyses were based on archival data collected on a sample of 268 children, aged 2 to 5 years, who were referred to determine their suitability for a day treatment program. Five distinct and reliable subtypes of preschool children's behavior problems emerged. Ratings of adaptive and social skills based on the BASC Adaptive Scales and measures from the Parenting Stress Index served as external variables to assess the distinctiveness of the derived subtypes. The findings provide evidence for the reliability and validity of the subtypes identified in this study that are consistent with the findings of previous subtyping investigations focusing on school-aged children.

Parental Control in Latino Families: An Integrated Review of the Literature

Using social information processing and cultural change models as explanatory frameworks, this article reviews the literature on Latino parental control and its implications for child development. It is argued that the use of parental control in Latino families may have motivational roots in cultural childrearing goals such as familismo (familism), respeto (respect), and educación (moral education). Consideration of these underpinnings, in conjunction with psychological and methodological issues, helps to explain variability in the use of Latino parental control and its effect on child development. Recommendations for future research include refinement of control and acculturation instruments, and attention to both contextual and individual variables.

Toileting concerns, parenting stress, and behavior problems in children with special health care needs

This study examined the relationship between toileting concerns, behavior problems, and parenting stress in parents of children with special health care needs (CSHCN). Participants included parents of 99 males and 71 females aged 4 to 12 years with neural tube defects (NTD), developmental-behavioral disabilities (DBD), or history of perinatal intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH). Parents completed the Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF). Parents expressing toileting concerns on the CBCL reported significantly more personal distress and more externalizing problems versus those with continent children. Variation within subsamples suggested that expectations based on nature of disability may be a factor in parent adjustment. Direct assessment and intervention of toileting issues should be a high priority in secondary stress prevention with CSHCN and their families.

Psychological stress and the risk of diabetes-related autoimmunity: a review article

The beta cell stress hypothesis suggests that any phenomenon that induces insulin resistance, and thereby extra pressure on the beta cells, should be regarded as a risk factor for type 1 diabetes (T1D). Psychological stress decreases insulin sensitivity and increases insulin resistance and may hence be important in the development/onset of T1D. The aim of the current review article was to evaluate existing empirical evidence concerning an association between psychological stress and development/onset of T1D as well as diabetes-related autoimmunity. Ten retrospective case-control studies were found. Nine studies showed a positive association between stress and development/onset of T1D in children, adolescents or adults. One study did not find an association between stress and development/onset of T1D. An association between stress and diabetes-related autoimmunity was found at 1 and 2-3 years of age in a large epidemiological study of the general population. The hypothesis that psychological stress (via beta cell stress or direct influence on the immune system) may contribute to the induction or progression of diabetes-related autoimmunity has gained some strong initial support, but is in need of further empirical verification. It seems much clearer that stress can precipitate manifest T1D, although the biological mechanisms are still not known.

Interactions between maternal characteristics and neonatal behavior in the prediction of parenting stress and perception of infant temperament

BACKGROUND

Prenatal cocaine exposure is a marker of developmental risk. Social environmental risk factors may include maternal stress and maternal perceptions of difficult infant temperament.

OBJECTIVES

To examine factors that may predict or moderate maternal ratings of parenting stress and difficult temperament in cocaine-exposed (CE) infants.

METHOD

Neonatal behavior, infant temperament, parenting stress, and maternal psychopathology were measured in a large sample of infant-mother dyads with prenatal CE and a nonexposed comparison sample. Participants were drawn from an existing longitudinal data set (Maternal Lifestyle Study).

RESULT

Relations between neonatal behavior and infant temperament ratings were moderated by mothers' ratings of parenting stress. Relations between neonatal cry and parenting stress were moderated by maternal psychopathology ratings. Results were unrelated to drug exposure history.

CONCLUSIONS

For mothers of at risk infants (with or without prenatal CE), psychological distress affects the degree to which infant behavioral characteristics are experienced as stressful or difficult. Implications for treatment and outcome are discussed.

Psychosocial correlates of parenting stress, lack of support and lack of confidence/security

The purpose of the current study was to identify important correlates of parenting stress, frequently conceptualized as a mediator of suboptimal family function, and of social support and confidence/security, often regarded as buffers. Potential correlates of these concepts were assessed in questionnaires at delivery and at one year, in a sample of 16,000 families in Sweden. Predictors (1) of parenting stress were parental dissatisfaction and poor child sleeping patterns; (2) of lack of support included lack of confidence/security, parents born abroad, single motherhood, and maternal health problems; and (3) of lack of confidence/security were lack of support and serious life events. Mothers lacking social support or confidence/security exhibited significantly higher stress. Although parenting stress is a complex phenomenon certain risk factors can be emphasized, such as sleep problems which appear more important than child health problems. These risk factors can be used both in efforts to prevent stress and in studies of stress effects.

The effectiveness of parenting programmes facilitated by health visitors

AIM OF THE STUDY

This study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of parenting programmes that are facilitated by health visitors and offer practical and emotional support to parents in the Down Lisburn Trust, Northern Ireland.

METHODS

All parents (n=78) taking part were given a self-administered questionnaire both before and after attending a 'Positive Parenting' programme. The questionnaire contained items gathering demographic information, standardized measures of clinical anxiety/depression, personality states and coping styles and participants' experience of being a parent and what they wanted from the parenting group. Two items adapted from the Parent Stress Index looked at participants' ratings of themselves as parents, and if they enjoyed this role.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

All statistics were computed using the SPSS for Windows (version 7) statistical package. The parametric paired-samples t-test was used with the ratio data generated by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) questionnaire. It is used to test the difference between the means of the pre and postsets of scores for significance. The nonparametric Wilcoxon test was used to find if there was a significant difference between the pre and postprogramme related samples by ranking the means. The Wilcoxon was chosen firstly because the data were ordinal in nature, hence it cannot be assumed that the findings follow the normal curve of distribution and secondly because it cannot be assumed that the data have homogeneity of variance.

FINDINGS

At the end of the 8-week parenting programme, findings demonstrated significant statistically reduced levels of clinical anxiety and depression. Parents demonstrated an increase in more positive ratings of personality states such as not shouting at their children and being more calm and energetic at the end of the programme. Adaptive problem focused coping strategies were reported as being used more often subsequent to the programme, although some of the less adaptive emotion focused strategies had also increased in use. However, no change was evident in their ratings of how good a parent they were or if they enjoyed being a parent.

CONCLUSIONS

Health visitors have the skills and are in the position to be preventative agents of inadequate parenting, and advocates of positive parenting. Factors relevant to the realm of positive parenting are highlighted as possible avenues for future research.

Parenting practices and expectations among Mexican mothers with young children

Parenting practices and developmental expectations were examined in a sample of 221 Mexican mothers with very young children living in Guadalajara, Jalisco. They completed a Spanish version of the Parent Behavior Checklist (PBC), a 100-item rating scale that measures parents' developmental expectations, discipline, and nurturing practices. The psychometric properties of the PBC for Mexican mothers, including test-retest reliabilities, were very similar to those found for mothers of young children in the United States. Younger Mexican mothers used more frequent discipline and less nurturing with their young children than older mothers did. Married mothers nurtured their children more than unmarried mothers; young, unmarried mothers nurtured their children the least. Lower nurturing scores were associated with lower education levels, and higher nurturing scores were associated with higher education levels. Mothers from higher socioeconomic levels held higher developmental expectations for their children, and they used less frequent discipline and more frequent nurturing practices than mothers from lower socioeconomic levels. These findings are consistent with those for mothers of young children in the United States.