Negative parental attribution and emotional dysregulation in Chinese early adolescents: Harsh fathering and harsh mothering as potential mediators

Co-occurring Intimate Partner Violence, Mental Health, Human Immunodeficiency Virus, and Parenting Among Women: A Scoping Review

Little research exists on the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-intimate partner violence (IPV)-mental health (MH) syndemic impact on parenting. The objective of this scoping review is to identify and summarize the available evidence regarding the syndemic relationship between HIV or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), IPV, and poor MH among mothers and caregivers who identify as women. We conducted the review according to the Joanna Briggs Institute and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and meta-analyses extension for scoping reviews guidelines, a comprehensive search was conducted from 2001 to September 2023. The inclusion criteria targeted studies examining at least two of the HIV, IPV, or MH epidemics among participants and their syndemic impact on parenting. Both qualitative and quantitative studies were included. Covidence software was used to screen and extract data. Twenty-three studies were included in the analysis. Most of the studies were conducted in the United States. Furthermore, all the studies used quantitative research designs, with most being longitudinal. Most of the research was concentrated on the IPV-MH syndemic with no research found on the HIV-IPV syndemic impact on parenting. Research on the HIV-IPV-MH syndemic found that an HIV diagnosis exacerbated the negative impacts of IPV-MH on parenting. Research on IPV-MH showed that this syndemic significantly influences parenting, leading to less nurturing and more punitive behaviors. Studies did not find a direct association between IPV and harsh parenting practices, the relationship was mediated by poor MH. Studies examining the HIV-MH syndemic found that anxiety and maternal depression were the most frequent MH disorders. The review revealed that living with the different syndemics, (IPV-MH-HIV, HIV-MH, and IPV-MH) adversely affects parenting practices, resulting in harsher parenting.

When Parents Are at Fault: Development and Validation of the Parental Guilt and Shame Proneness Scale

Research has linked individuals' dispositional guilt and shame to their interpersonal processes. Although caregivers' guilt and shame proneness in the parenting context likely have important implications for their mental health and parenting, there is a lack of validated measures for such dispositions. In three studies with Chinese parents, we developed and validated the Parental Guilt and Shame Proneness scale (PGASP), which was based on the Guilt and Shame Proneness scale (GASP). The PGASP comprises two guilt subscales-negative behavior-evaluations (guilt-NBE) and repair action tendencies (guilt-repair)-and two shame subscales-negative self-evaluations (shame-NSE) and withdrawal action tendencies (shame-withdraw). Study 1 (N = 604) provided support for the four-factor structure of the PGASP, which was replicated in Study 2 (N = 451). The concurrent validity of the PGASP was examined in Study 2 and Study 3 (N = 455). The two guilt subscales were associated with better mental health and more positive parenting, whereas parents' shame-withdraw exhibited the opposite pattern; weak or no relations were found for shame-NSE. Findings highlight the need to differentiate between parents' shame-NSE and shame-withdraw. PGASP may be a useful tool for identifying parents at risk of engaging in negative parenting.

Estimating the Heterogeneous Causal Effects of Parent-Child Relationships among Chinese Children with Oppositional Defiant Symptoms: A Machine Learning Approach

Oppositional defiant symptoms are some of the most common developmental symptoms in children and adolescents with and without oppositional defiant disorder. Research has addressed the close association of the parent-child relationship (PCR) with oppositional defiant symptoms. However, it is necessary to further investigate the underlying mechanism for forming targeted intervention strategies. By using a machine learning-based causal forest (CF) model, we investigated the heterogeneous causal effects of the PCR on oppositional defiant symptoms in children in Chinese elementary schools. Based on the PCR improvement in two consecutive years, 423 children were divided into improved and control groups. The assessment of oppositional defiant symptoms (AODS) in the second year was set as the dependent variable. Additionally, several factors based on the multilevel family model and the baseline AODS in the first year were included as covariates. Consistent with expectations, the CF model showed a significant causal effect between the PCR and oppositional defiant symptoms in the samples. Moreover, the causality exhibited heterogeneity. The causal effect was greater in those children with higher baseline AODS, a worse family atmosphere, and lower emotion regulation abilities in themselves or their parents. Conversely, the parenting style played a positive role in causality. These findings enhance our understanding of how the PCR contributes to the development of oppositional defiant symptoms conditioned by factors from a multilevel family system. The heterogeneous causality in the observation data, established using the machine learning approach, could be helpful in forming personalized family-oriented intervention strategies for children with oppositional defiant symptoms.

Longitudinal relationship between harsh parenting and adolescent non-suicidal self-injury: The roles of basic psychological needs frustration and self-concept clarity

BACKGROUND

Harsh parenting has been shown to be associated with adolescents' non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) behavior. However, less is known about the mechanism underlying the association.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to use a one-year longitudinal design to investigate the mediating role of basic psychological needs frustration and the moderating role of self-concept clarity in the association between harsh parenting and NSSI.

METHODS

Three waves of data (called T1, T2 and T3) were collected 6 months apart, between April 2021 and 2022, in a sample of 786 Chinese adolescents (52.0 % girls; Mage at Wave 1 = 13.27 years). Structural equation model was used to test a longitudinal moderated mediation model, with gender, age and baseline NSSI as covariates.

RESULTS

The results showed process of mediation in which T1 harsh parenting was longitudinally and positively associated with T3 NSSI through T2 basic psychological needs frustration. Furthermore, moderated mediation analyses revealed that T2 self-concept clarity buffered the adverse impact of T2 needs frustration on T3 NSSI, thereby mitigating the mediation process.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings support the self-determination theory, and suggest that fostering adolescents' self-concept clarity and satisfying their psychological needs may be useful in programs designed to lower the risk of NSSI.

Mother phubbing and harsh mothering: Mothers' irritability and adolescents' gender as moderators

BACKGROUND

While extant evidence supports the link between mother phubbing (Mphubbing) and harsh mothering, the current understanding of factors that may affect this relationship is limited.

METHODS

Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted to examine the relation between Mphubbing and harsh mothering, as well as to explore whether mothers' irritability and adolescents' gender would moderate this relationship. The participants included 482 middle school students (51.7 % girls) and their mothers from China.

RESULTS

The results revealed a significant positive association between Mphubbing as reported by adolescents and their perception of harsh mothering. However, the predictive power of Mphubbing for harsh mothering varied based on mothers' irritability and adolescents' gender. Specifically, the association between Mphubbing and harsh mothering was perceived more strongly in girls than in boys, but this gender difference was only observed among adolescents whose mothers rated themselves as high in irritability.

CONCLUSIONS

The current study offers a preliminary understanding of the association between Mphubbing and harsh mothering through mothers' irritability and adolescents' gender as moderators, which has certain theoretical and practical implications for comprehending harsh mothering in the digital age.

Harsh parenting and adolescent non-suicidal self-injury: A moderated mediation model of alienation and cognitive reappraisal

OBJECTIVE

Harsh parenting has been shown to be associated with non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) in adolescents. Based on the integrated theoretical model of the development of NSSI and the cognitive-emotional model of NSSI, we proposed a moderated mediation model to investigate "how" and "when" harsh parenting is associated with adolescent NSSI. Specifically, we tested whether feelings of alienation mediated the association between harsh parenting and NSSI, and whether this indirect effect was weakened by cognitive reappraisal as an adaptive emotion regulation strategy.

METHODS

A total of 1638 Chinese adolescents (54.7 % girls; ages 12-19 years) completed self-report questionnaires in their classrooms. The questionnaires assessed harsh parenting, feelings of alienation, cognitive reappraisal skills, and incidents of NSSI.

RESULTS

Path analyses showed that harsh parenting positively predicted NSSI, and alienation mediated this association. Both the direct effect of harsh parenting on NSSI and the indirect effect through alienation were moderated by cognitive reappraisal. Specifically, cognitive reappraisal skills weakened the direct and indirect associations between harsh parenting and NSSI.

CONCLUSIONS

Adolescents may benefit from interventions that decrease feelings of alienation and increase cognitive reappraisal strategies to reduce the risk of NSSI in the context of harsh parenting.

Negative association between harsh parenting and life satisfaction: negative coping style as mediator and peer support as moderator

BACKGROUND

Previous research has demonstrated that harsh parenting negatively affects children's psychological development. This study examined the association between harsh parenting during childhood and life satisfaction of Chinese college students. We further looked at whether this association is explained in part by negative coping styles, and whether peer support lessens the potential effect of harsh parenting on negative coping styles and life satisfaction.

METHOD

The sample included 609 Chinese students (aged 17-21 years, M = 18.39, SD = 0.82). The participants responded to questionnaires measuring past experiences with harsh parenting, life satisfaction, negative coping styles, and peer support.

RESULTS

Regression analysis showed that harsh parenting negatively contributed to students' life satisfaction via the mediator of negative coping styles, and peer support moderated this negative relationship. Specifically, the negative impact of harsh parenting on life satisfaction was only significant when there was low peer support. The effect of harsh parenting on negative coping styles was higher in individuals with high peer support than in those with low peer support.

CONCLUSION

This study highlights the roles of intrinsic (negative coping style) and extrinsic (peer support) factors in understanding the negative effects of harsh parenting on adolescents' life satisfaction. These results provide insight into how to enhance adolescents' life satisfaction by reducing harsh parenting and negative coping styles and by promoting peer support.

Spare the rod, spoil the child?--Predictive effects of parental adult attachment on adolescent anxiety: The mediating role of harsh parenting

Based on family system theory, this study explores the relationship between parental adult attachment and adolescent anxiety, and the mediating effect of harsh parenting. A total of 997 families participated in the survey. The Experiences in Close Relationships Scale, Harsh Parenting Scale, and Trait Anxiety Scale were used to investigate students and their parents. The results showed that: (1) both paternal and maternal adult attachment avoidance positively predicted adolescent anxiety. (2) Parental harsh parenting mediates the relationship between parental attachment and adolescent anxiety. The results show that adult attachment and harsh parenting have important effects on adolescents' anxiety and family harmony.

A Systematic Review of Multiple Family Factors Associated with Oppositional Defiant Disorder

Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) is characterized by a recurrent pattern of angry/irritable emotional lability, argumentative/defiant behavior, and vindictiveness. Previous studies indicated that ODD typically might originate within a maladaptive family environment, or was at least maintained within such an environment. As such, the present review summarized pertinent research from the last 20 years that focused on the pathways connecting family risk factors to the development of child ODD symptoms. A systematic search of electronic databases was completed in August 2020, resulting in the inclusion of 62 studies in the review. The review established a multi-level framework to describe the mechanisms underlying the pathway from familial factors to ODD psychopathological symptoms: (a) the system level that is affected by the family's socioeconomic status and family dysfunction; (b) the dyadic level that is affected by conflict within the marital dyad and parent-child interactions; and (c) the individual level that is affected by parent and child factors. Additionally, from the perspective of family systems theory, we pay special attention to the interactions among and between the various levels of the pathway (moderation and mediation) that might be associated with the occurrence and severity of ODD symptoms. Considering future prevention and intervention efforts, this three-level model emphasizes the necessity of focusing on familial risk factors at multiple levels and the mechanisms underlying the proposed pathways.

Parenting dimensions/styles and emotion dysregulation in childhood and adolescence: a systematic review and Meta-analysis

Emotion dysregulation is a transdiagnostic factor in the development of various mental and behavioral disorders, thus requiring ample evidence for prevention and intervention approaches. The aim of the current systematic review and meta-analysis was to investigate the association between parenting dimensions/styles and emotion dysregulation in childhood and adolescence. Following the PRISMA guidelines, the review was registered (PROSPERO CRD42021251672) and search terms were entered in Web of Science, Scopus, PsycINFO, and PubMed in May 2021. Articles needed to report on empirical studies that examined the association between parenting dimensions/styles and emotion dysregulation in children/adolescents with primary data, and be published in English in a peer-reviewed journal. Additionally, articles were excluded based on certain designs and focus on special populations. The narrative synthesis includes 30 articles, and of which 27 are included in the meta-analysis. An NHLBI tool with 14 items (e.g., validity) was utilized for assessing the quality of the included studies. General trends indicate that positive parenting (e.g., warmth, supportiveness) is negatively associated with emotion dysregulation, whilst negative parenting (e.g., psychological control, authoritarian) is positively associated. The meta-analysis reveals an overall small yet significant effect, however, the heterogeneity of the studies is moderate to high. A funnel plot demonstrated no evidence of publication bias. Limitations include the varying conceptualizations of emotion dysregulation, as well as a lacking focus on specific types of emotion. Although more research is needed, addressing factors such as culture, gender, and age, the review provides first indications of the significance of parenting dimensions/styles for emotion dysregulation.

Paternal and Maternal Harsh Parenting and Chinese Adolescents' Social Anxiety: The Different Mediating Roles of Attachment Insecurity With Fathers and Mothers

Although negative parenting and attachment insecurity have been demonstrated to place children at risk for social anxiety, the different roles of fathers and mothers in this association need to be further clarified. This study examined the different mediating roles of attachment insecurity with fathers and mothers in the association between harsh parenting and social anxiety among Chinese adolescents. A sample of 395 students in the sixth through eighth grades with their parents was enlisted as participants of this survey from two public middle schools located in Northern China. Parents were required to report on their harsh parenting, and students were asked to report on their social anxiety and perceived attachment insecurity with both parents. The results demonstrated that both paternal harsh parenting and maternal harsh parenting were positively associated with attachment insecurity with both parents. More importantly, we found that attachment insecurity with mothers partially mediated the association between maternal harsh parenting and adolescent social anxiety but completely mediated the relation of paternal harsh parenting to adolescent social anxiety. These results expanded extant understandings on the associations among harsh parenting, attachment insecurity, and child social anxiety by taking the different roles of both parents into consideration.

Exploring the Influence of Parenting Style on Adolescents’ Maladaptive Game Use through Aggression and Self-Control

Adolescent aggression manifests in problematic game use and ultimately undermines life quality. This study deals with the mechanisms behind adolescents’ perception of parenting, maladaptive game use, self-control, and life satisfaction within the context of integrated supportive-positive parenting and harsh-negative parenting. Using 778 valid panel data from the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA), we reached the conclusions that both supportive-positive parenting and harsh-negative parenting, mediated by self-control and maladaptive game use, are major predictors of adolescents’ life satisfaction. PLS-SEM analysis was used for the hypothesized model test. This study helped bridge the gap in existing research by finding clues to recovering parent–child relationships from the side effects of youth game use.

Psychometric Properties of the Parent Cognition Scale in a Clinical Sample of Parents of Children With Disruptive Behavior

The Parent Cognition Scale (PCS; Snarr, Slep, & Grande, 2009) is a self-report measure of parental attributions of child behavior that has demonstrated validity in community samples. However, its psychometric properties have not been examined in a clinical sample of parents of children with disruptive behavior. Examining the psychometric properties of the PCS in this population is important given research linking parent attribution with childhood disruptive behavior. The present study aimed to: (a) examine the psychometric properties of the PCS in a sample of parents whose children were clinic-referred for disruptive behavior problems; and (b) investigate the concurrent validity of the PCS and its factors using correlations with parent reports of children's emotional and behavioral difficulties, and parenting skills (i.e., discipline, supervision). A confirmatory factor analysis was run on 225 parents' responses on the PCS, and revealed that a two-factor structure of the PCS fit the data well. Significant correlations were found between Parent Causal Attributions (Factor 1) and parent-reported parenting difficulties. Child Responsible Attributions (Factor 2) were correlated with elevations in children's emotion, attention, and conduct difficulties. The results provide information on the utility of the PCS for parents of children with disruptive behavior and its potential clinical relevance.

Las creencias parentales en el proceso de crianza y sus relaciones con el comportamiento adolescente

Resumen Las creencias parentales están integradas estructuralmente en la relación entre padres e hijos y pueden ser consideradas como contribuciones para comprender el desarrollo adolescente. El presente trabajo busca analizar los vínculos entre las creencias parentales y el comportamiento adolescente, para ello se desarrolló una revisión bibliográfica en seis bases de datos, que incluyó 53 estudios en donde se dimensiona la influencia de las creencias parentales en la crianza con adolescentes. En el análisis de datos, se destacaron como “creencias parentales” los siguientes conceptos: las creencias generales sobre los atributos y las experiencias humanas, las expectativas parentales, las percepciones sobre las capacidades de los hijos, los valores y metas parentales, la autoeficacia parental y las creencias sobre el control de las situaciones. Se concluye que las creencias parentales son afectadas por los atributos y las experiencias de los padres, lo que influye en un efecto de cascada sobre el comportamiento adolescente.

Harsh parenting and adolescent aggression: Adolescents' effortful control as the mediator and parental warmth as the moderator

Although researchers have examined the potential contribution of harsh parenting to child aggression, they have rarely explored how one parent's harsh discipline could interact with warmth by another parent to affect child aggression. We sought to clarify whether the impact of harsh parenting by one parent on child effortful control could be buffered by warmth of the other parent, further reducing the likelihood of child aggression. 867 adolescents were chosen from two public middle schools situated in Jinan, the provincial city in Northern China. Data were gathered with adolescents reporting effortful control, their parents reporting harsh parenting, and their classmates nominating aggressive peers. A moderated mediation model was used to test the mediating and moderating hypotheses. Results indicated that adolescent effortful control partially mediated the relation of harsh fathering to adolescent aggression and completely mediated the relation of harsh mothering to adolescent aggression. Moreover, harsh fathering was only negatively associated with effortful control among adolescents with low maternal warmth and harsh mothering was only negatively associated with effortful control among adolescents with low paternal warmth, thus lowering the risk for aggression. The main conclusion is that harsh parenting by one parent could only indirectly impact on adolescent aggression via the mediator of effortful control only for adolescents with low warmth by the other parent. Our findings add to extant understandings on how different parenting practices by both parents may interact to influence children's aggressive behaviors.

Harsh parenting and child aggression: Child moral disengagement as the mediator and negative parental attribution as the moderator

As the negative outcomes of harsh parenting for child development have been gradually revealed, researchers become increasingly interested in the mechanisms through which harsh parenting affects child development. This study aimed to explore the mediating role of child moral disengagement and the moderating role of negative parental attribution in the relation of harsh parenting to child aggression. A sample of 397 Chinese adolescents aged from 12 to 16 years (227 boys and 170 girls, Mage = 13.98) with their parents were recruited as participants from two public schools situated in rural areas of Shandong province in China. Data were gathered from parents reporting on their harsh parenting and negative parental attribution, adolescents reporting on their moral disengagement, and peers nominating out aggressive children. Results indicated that harsh parenting was both directly and indirectly associated with adolescent aggression via adolescent moral disengagement. Negative parental attribution was found to moderate the indirect relation of harsh parenting to adolescent aggression via moral disengagement. Specifically, harsh parenting was only significantly associated with moral disengagement for adolescents with high levels of moral disengagement was more likely to induce aggression among adolescents with high levels of negative parental attribution (bsimple = of harsh parenting to adolescent aggression, adolescent moral disengagement could mediate the association between harsh parenting and aggressive behaviors for adolescents with high levels of negative parental attribution.