Determinants of harsh parenting in Mexico

Determinants of severe physical disciplinary practices against children in Egypt

BACKGROUND

Although nearly 43 % of Egyptian children aged less than 14 years had ever experienced severe physical violent punishment at home, no previous studies identified the predictors of the practice in Egypt.

OBJECTIVE

This research aims at identifying the determinants of the use of any severe violent physical practice to discipline children.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

The latest national Egyptian Demographic and Health Survey is the main source of data. The caregivers of 13024 children were interviewed.

METHODS

A binary logistic regression model is developed to identify the determinants of the use of severe physical disciplinary practices.

RESULTS

Results show that children whose parents believe that physical punishment is necessary to discipline children are more likely to experience severe violence (OR = 3.3). Children in the preprimary stage have a high odds ratio of experiencing a severe violent punishment compared to those in preparatory and secondary stages (OR = 3.5). Children whose mothers have experienced domestic physical violence are more likely to be subject to severe physical violence (OR = 1.6 for husband violence, and 1.4 for parents/siblings violence). Children living in Urban Lower Egypt are approximately twice likely as children living in urban governorates to be subject to severe physical violence. Children living in the poorest households are the most likely to experience severe physical violence.

CONCLUSION

Severe violent disciplinary practice inside the home is common in Egypt. The findings urge for activating Egyptian Child Law and implementing continuous training programs for parents on positive parenting.

Intergenerational effects of childhood maltreatment: A systematic review of the parenting practices of adult survivors of childhood abuse, neglect, and violence

A history of maltreatment in childhood may influence adults' parenting practices, potentially affecting their children. This systematic review examines 97 studies investigating associations of parental childhood victimization with a range of parenting behaviors that may contribute to the intergenerational effects of abuse: abusive parenting, problematic parenting, positive parenting, and positive parental affect. Key findings include: (1) parents who report experiencing physical abuse or witnessing violence in the home during childhood are at increased risk for reporting that they engage in abusive or neglectful parenting; (2) a cumulative effect of maltreatment experiences, such that adults who report experiencing multiple types or repeated instances of victimization are at greatest risk for perpetrating child abuse; (3) associations between reported childhood maltreatment experiences and parents' problematic role reversal with, rejection of, and withdrawal from their children; (4) indirect effects between reported childhood maltreatment and abusive parenting via adult intimate partner violence; and (5) indirect effects between reported childhood maltreatment and lower levels of positive parenting behaviors and affect via mothers' mental health. Thus, childhood experiences of maltreatment may alter parents' ability to avoid negative and utilize positive parenting practices. Limitations of this body of literature include few prospective studies, an overreliance on adults' self-report of their childhood victimization and current parenting, and little examination of potentially differential associations for mothers and fathers.

Like Father, like Child: Early Life Family Adversity and Children's Bullying Behaviors in Elementary School

Family adversity has been associated with children’s bullying behaviors. The evidence is, however, dominated by mothers’ perceptions of the family environment and a focus on mothers’ behaviors. This prospective population-based study examined whether children’s bullying behaviors were associated with mother- and father-reported family adversity, assessed before and after child birth. Peer-nominations were used to assess bullying behaviors of 1298 children in elementary school (mean age 7.5 years). The following paternal risk factors were prospectively associated with children’s bullying behaviors: (1) father-reported prenatal family distress, (2) fathers’ hostility at preschool age, and (3) fathers’ harsh disciplinary practices at preschool age, but effect sizes were relatively small. The effect of maternal risk factors was less consistent, only mother-reported family distress in childhood was associated with children’s bullying behaviors. The associations were independent of background family risk factors (i.e., life stress, contextual factors, and other background factors such as parental education and risk taking record) and early childhood externalizing problems. Moreover, our results indicated that father-reported family adversity predicted children’s bullying behaviors over and above the background family risk factors, early childhood externalizing problems and mother-reported family adversity. We also demonstrated that the association of fathers’ prenatal hostility and family distress with subsequent bullying behavior of their child at school was partly mediated by fathers’ harsh disciplinary practices at preschool age. Our findings highlight the importance of fathers’ behaviors in the development of children’s bullying behaviors.

Parent Spanking and Verbal Punishment, and Young Child Internalizing and Externalizing Behaviors in Latino Immigrant Families: Test of Moderation by Context and Culture

Objective

This study examined the prevalence and correlates of spanking and verbal punishment in a community sample of Latino immigrant families with young children, as well as the association of spanking and verbal punishment with child internalizing and externalizing problems 1 year later. Parenting context (e.g., warmth) and cultural context (e.g., the cultural value of respeto) are considered as potential moderators.

Design

Parenting and cultural socialization practices were assessed via parent self-report in sample of 633 Mexican and Dominican immigrant families with young children (M age = 4.43 years). Parent and teacher assessments of child internalizing and externalizing were also collected at baseline and 12 months later.

Results

At Time 1, male child gender was positively correlated with concurrent spanking; familial social support and U.S. American cultural knowledge were negatively correlated with mothers' spanking. Verbal punishment at Time 1 was associated with externalizing problems at Time 2 among both Mexican and Dominican American children, and this relation was not moderated. Additionally, verbal punishment was associated with Time 2 child internalizing problems among Mexican American children. There were no significant associations between spanking and later child internalizing or externalizing behaviors.

Conclusion

It is important that researchers examine both physical and verbal discipline strategies to understand their unique influences on Latino child outcomes, as well as contextual influences that may elucidate the use and long-term effects of spanking and verbal punishment on Latino children at different developmental stages.

Effect of socioeconomic status on behavioral problems from preschool to early elementary school - A Japanese longitudinal study

Purpose

Social inequalities are widely accepted to have a deleterious effect on children’s mental health, and those with lower socioeconomic status generally experience more mental health issues. In this study, we examine the impact of socioeconomic situations of children’s families during their early childhood on the children’s social adaptation in Japanese elementary school.

Methods

The current investigation consisted of two sets of data relating to two separate years (with a one-year interval). The participants included preschoolers aged five years at Time 1 (the first year) and first graders aged six years at Time 2 (the second year); 1,712 met the inclusion criteria for both years. Parents of the participants completed a self-reported questionnaire regarding their SES (i.e., family economy and mother’s education) and their children’s mental health. Mental health was assessed using the Child Behavior Checklist/4–18, Parent Report.

Results

For each SES indicator, we found an inverse relationship across all the symptom dimensions. Specifically, bivariate analyses revealed that lower family income, maternal education level, and paternal education level predict all three domains of behavioral problems (i.e., internalized problems, externalized problems, and total behavioral problems). Further, multivariate analyses revealed that lower family income consistently predicts all domains of behavioral problems, lower maternal education level predicted externalized problems and total behavioral problems, and paternal education level did not predict any clinically significant behavioral problems.

Conclusion

In this sample, we found that, for children, family income and parental education when entering preschool were significant predictors of mental health problems after elementary school enrollment; in particular, low income and low maternal educational achievement predicted a high probability of the development of a psychiatric disorder. A greater understanding of the mechanisms of these associations could contribute to improvements in interventions aimed at preventing child maladjustment.

The association between child maltreatment and adult poverty - A systematic review of longitudinal research

Child maltreatment is a global problem affecting millions of children and is associated with an array of cumulative negative outcomes later in life, including unemployment and financial difficulties. Although establishing child maltreatment as a causal mechanism for adult economic outcomes is fraught with difficulty, understanding the relationship between the two is essential to reducing such inequality. This paper presents findings from a systematic review of longitudinal research examining experiences of child maltreatment and economic outcomes in adulthood. A systematic search of seven databases found twelve eligible retrospective and prospective cohort studies. From the available evidence, there was a relatively clear relationship between 'child maltreatment' and poorer economic outcomes such as reduced income, unemployment, lower level of job skill and fewer assets, over and above the influence of family of origin socio-economic status. Despite an extremely limited evidence base, neglect had a consistent relationship with a number of long-term economic outcomes, while physical abuse has a more consistent relationship with income and employment. Studies examining sexual abuse found less of an association with income and employment, although they did find a relationship other outcomes such as sickness absence, assets, welfare receipt and financial insecurity. Nonetheless, all twelve studies showed some association between at least one maltreatment type and at least one economic measure. The task for future research is to clarify the relationship between specific maltreatment types and specific economic outcomes, taking account of how this may be influenced by gender and life course stage.

A longitudinal study of socioeconomic status, family processes, and child adjustment from preschool until early elementary school: the role of social competence

OBJECTIVE

Using a short-term longitudinal design, this study examined the concurrent and longitudinal relationships among familial socioeconomic status (SES; i.e., family income and maternal and paternal education levels), marital conflict (i.e., constructive and destructive marital conflict), parenting practices (i.e., positive and negative parenting practices), child social competence (i.e., social skills), and child behavioral adjustment (i.e., internalizing and externalizing problems) in a comprehensive model.

METHODS

The sample included a total of 1604 preschoolers aged 5 years at Time 1 and first graders aged 6 years at Time 2 (51.5% male). Parents completed a self-reported questionnaire regarding their SES, marital conflict, parenting practices, and their children's behavioral adjustment. Teachers also evaluated the children's social competence.

RESULTS

The path analysis results revealed that Time 1 family income and maternal and paternal education levels were respectively related to Time 1 social skills and Time 2 internalizing and externalizing problems, both directly and indirectly, through their influence on destructive and constructive marital conflict, as well as negative and positive parenting practices. Notably, after controlling for Time 1 behavioral problems as mediating mechanisms in the link between family factors (i.e., SES, marital conflict, and parenting practices) and behavioral adjustment, Time 1 social skills significantly and inversely influenced both the internalization and externalization of problems at Time 2.

CONCLUSIONS

The merit of examining SES, marital conflict, and parenting practices as multidimensional constructs is discussed in relation to an understanding of processes and pathways within families that affect child mental health functioning. The results suggest social competence, which is influenced by the multidimensional constructs of family factors, may prove protective in reducing the risk of child maladjustment, especially for children who are socioeconomically disadvantaged.

Madres, padres y profesores como educadores de la resiliencia en niños colombianos

Resumen El objetivo del estudio consistió en analizar el aporte de las prácticas educativas de madres, padres y profesores en el desarrollo de la resiliencia en niños(as). Se contó con 417 niños(as), 199 profesores, 111 mamás y 80 papás de zona rural de nivel socioeconómico bajo. Fue un estudio transversal, de análisis correlacional, explicativo. Las niñas mostraron mayor nivel de generosidad, laboriosidad y resiliencia total en comparación con los niños. Las mamás tienden a practicar la aceptación y apoyo, la afirmación del poder, el retiro del afecto y el trato rudo más que los papás. Las profesoras también ejercen estás prácticas pero en menor proporción que los dos padres. La aceptación de papás y profesoras, el monitoreo de los dos padres y la afirmación del poder de las profesoras, son variables que pesan de manera significativa en la explicación de resiliencia en los niños(as). Es importante diseñar estrategias de intervención conjuntas en el contexto familiar y escolar desde edades tempranas, con el fin de desarrollar procesos de resiliencia en niños, teniendo en cuenta el papel protagónico de los padres y los profesores en este proceso.

The Relationship between Post-Traumatic Symptoms, Parenting Style, and Resilience among Adolescents in Liaoning, China: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background

In China, a growing number of adolescents have experienced traumatic events that have resulted in PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). Post-traumatic symptoms are common psychological problems in adolescents who have experienced traumatic events. However, existing studies tend to focus on the factors influencing PTSD, such as the response styles and social support, and studies on the relationships between parenting style, resilience and post-traumatic symptoms are still rare.

Objectives

To analyze the relationships between parenting style, resilience and post-traumatic symptoms among adolescents in China.

Methods

A cross-sectional survey was conducted from June to December 2013 in the Liaoning Province, China. N = 5765 adolescents (aged 12 to 18 years old) were ultimately chosen to participate. The Chinese version of the Essen Trauma Inventory for Kids and Juveniles (ETI-KJ), a modified version of the Parental Authority Questionnaire, and the Chinese Resilience Scale were used to estimate the post-traumatic symptoms, parenting style, and resilience, respectively. Pearson’s correlations, multiple linear regression analyses and structural equation modeling (SEM) were applied to analyze the data.

Results

Of the adolescents, 39.76% (N = 2292) had been exposed to traumatic events during their lives. The prevalence of probable PTSD at the time of the interview (one-month-prevalence) was 12.65%. Parenting style and resilience were significantly associated with post-traumatic symptoms. According to the SEM, parenting style had a significant direct effect on resilience (0.70, P<0.01) and post-traumatic symptoms (-0.15, P<0.05), and resilience had a significant direct effect on the post-traumatic symptoms (-0.43, P<0.01). Furthermore, parenting style had a significant indirect effect (-0.43×0.70 = -0.30. P<0.01) on the post-traumatic symptoms through resilience. The SEM significantly explained 49% of the variance in resilience and 30% of the variance in post-traumatic symptoms.

Conclusions

Parenting style and resilience have significant effects on adolescents’ post-traumatic symptoms. Schools and social-related departments could share knowledge on the impact of parenting style with parents enabling them to improve their own parenting style and their children’s resilience and ability to respond effectively to traumatic events.

Contributions of Matrilineal and Patrilineal Kin Alloparental Effort to the Development of Life History Strategies and Patriarchal Values

Childrearing behaviors are often shaped by familial and cultural principles that function as guides for socialization goals and effective childrearing practices. For an increasing number of Latino families, the extended kin often acts as a source of childcare support. Due to a scarcity of research on the familial support configurations of Latin American families, the current study utilizes a cross-cultural retrospective approach to explore the associations between matrilineal/patrilineal kin and life history strategies in relation to childrearing. Applying a family system and life history framework, the present model tested 200 university students from Mexico and Costa Rica on measures of family emotional environment and traditional social values (e.g., familismo/simpatía and patriarchal values). Results found that childcare assistance from patrilineal and matrilineal kin was associated with positive family emotional environment, which weakly mediated the association between kin care and slow life history. Positive associations were also found between matrilineal kin childcare and traditional Latin social values. However, patriarchal values were only predicted by higher levels of patrilineal kin aid. The results are consistent with the general theoretical literature of life history theory and family systems theory, suggesting that high levels of childcare produce positively emotional family climates, which in turn perpetuate the development of prosocial individuals with slow life history strategies. Implications for further research are discussed.

Management of physical child abuse in South Africa: literature review and children's hospital data analysis

BACKGROUND

The reason for this review is the lack of data on the management of physical abused children in Africa. The primary goal of the first part is to outline the management of physical child abuse in (South) Africa and provide suggestions for other governments in Africa on which to base their management of physical child abuse, at both governmental and hospital management level. The main aim of the second part is to outline the extent of the problem as seen at the Red Cross Memorial Children's Hospital (RCH) in Cape Town.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The National Library of Medicine's PubMed database was searched for articles specifically about the management of physical child abuse. Hospital data were analysed in two phases: one addressed various types of assault in order to assess the number of patients admitted to the trauma unit of RCH between 1991 and 2009, and the other to identify all children with suspected non-accidental injury (NAI) presenting to the trauma unit at RCH from January 2008 until December 2010.

RESULTS

Information on physical abuse of children in Africa in the English scientific literature remains disappointing with only two articles focusing on its management. RCH data for the period 1991-2009 recorded a total number of 6415 children hospitalised with injuries following assault, who accounted for 4.2% of all trauma admissions. Types of abuse included assault with a blunt or sharp instrument, rape/sexual assault and human bite wounds. Over the last 2 decades, there has been a minor decline in the number of cases of severe abuse requiring admission; admissions for other injuries have remained stable. More detailed analysis of hospital data for 2008-2010, found that boys were far more commonly assaulted than girls (70.5% vs 29.5%). Physical abuse appeared to be the most common cause of abuse; 89.9% of all boys and 60.5% of all girls presented after physical abuse.

CONCLUSION

In order to eradicate child abuse, awareness of it as to be promoted in the community at large. Because the types of child abuse vary between countries, each requires its own research in order to develop a policy tailored to their particular requirements. In summary, an increased focus on the prevention of violence against children is urgently needed in order to curb the increasing trend of assaults on children. As the causes and risk factors for violence against children vary, multi-disciplinary and multi-sectoral co-operation and collaboration will be required. It is hoped that this report will help raise awareness among health-care practitioners of NAI and its complexities.

Efficacy of the Incredible Years group parent program with families in Head Start who self-reported a history of child maltreatment

OBJECTIVE

A prevention form of the Incredible Years (IY) parenting program was offered to parents who had children enrolled in Head Start, regardless of whether they reported having a history of child maltreatment. This study compared whether parenting practices and child behavioral outcomes differed in families who self reported a history of child maltreatment relative to families who did not.

METHODS

A site-randomized controlled trial of the IY parenting program was conducted in 64 classrooms in seven Head Start centers in Seattle, Washington. Families of 481 children took part in the study, with 335 in the IY condition and 146 in the control condition. Parenting practices and child behavior were measured by blinded raters through in-home observations and self-report questionnaires prior to the start of the IY program, in the spring after the IY program had concluded, and 12-18 months after study enrollment when children were in kindergarten. Analyses examine the impact of the IY program on parenting practices and children's behavior, exploring whether the program had differential impacts for parents with and without a self-reported history of child maltreatment.

RESULTS

The IY program resulted in improvements along many parenting dimensions and on characteristics of observed child behavior. Program impacts were similar for parents who did and did not report a history of child maltreatment. However, parents with a reported history of prior maltreatment had greater initial room for improvement in areas such as harsh/critical parenting, nurturing/supportive parenting, and discipline competence than parents without such a history.

CONCLUSIONS

The IY parenting program has positive impacts for parents who self-reported a history of child maltreatment. While similar benefits were observed for both groups of parents in this study, results support delivering evidence-based parenting programs of longer duration and higher intensity than often used by agencies serving parents in contact with child welfare.

PRACTICE

Agencies serving parents referred for child maltreatment should carefully examine the characteristics of the parenting programs they deliver. Use of a parenting program that has a sound base of empirical support, such as IY, and sufficient intensity and duration, is likely to make substantial changes in parents' child-rearing practices.

The determinants of parental childrearing behavior trajectories: The effects of parental and child time-varying and time-invariant predictors

“Why do parents parent the way they do?” remains an important question since it concerns both scientific issues, such as the stability or change of childrearing behavior, and clinical issues, such as the way to promote positive parenting in evidence-based programs. Using an accelerated design, the aim of this study was to examine several parental and child predictors of childrearing behavior trajectories among 373 mothers and 356 fathers of 2- to 9-year-old children. Hypotheses were drawn from Belsky (1984) and subsequent studies of the determinants of parenting. The parental and child predictors were assessed and analyzed as time-varying (parental self-efficacy beliefs and child externalizing behavior) or time-invariant (parental educational level and personality traits) predictors, according to their conceptual properties. The results show a linear decrease in both supportive and controlling childrearing behavior in mothers and an improvement in supportive but a decrease in controlling childrearing behavior in fathers over time. Moreover, the results support the idea that childrearing behavior is determined by multiple factors, in particular the parents’ self-efficacy beliefs and the child’s behavior. Finally, the results confirm the hypothesis of a greater influence of child predictors than of parental ones in the case of mothers, while the reverse hypothesis of a greater predictive power of parental variables than of child ones is confirmed for fathers. The results are discussed both for research and clinical purposes.

Predicting Filipino Mothers' and Fathers' Reported Use of Corporal Punishment From Education, Authoritarian Attitudes, and Endorsement of Corporal Punishment

The relations of education, authoritarian childrearing attitudes, and endorsement of corporal punishment to Filipino parents' reported use of corporal punishment were examined using two waves of data. Structured interviews using self-report questionnaires were conducted with 117 mothers and 98 fathers from 120 families when their children were 8 years old, and when their children were 9 years old. Path analyses showed that, among mothers, higher education predicted lower authoritarian attitudes, which in turn predicted lower reports of corporal punishment use. Among fathers, higher education predicted lower endorsement of corporal punishment, which in turn predicted lower reports of its use. Results suggest that education has an indirect relation to use of corporal punishment through parenting cognitions, and highlight distinctions in Filipino mothers' and fathers' parenting roles.

Do parents still matter regarding adolescents' alcohol drinking? Experience from South Africa

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to improve our understanding of adolescents' perceptions of parental practices relating to their (adolescents') alcohol use. A total of 704 students were conveniently selected and completed self-administered questionnaires. More than half (54%) of the adolescents reported that they had consumed alcohol at some time in their life. Parental marital status was significantly associated with whether adolescents ever consumed alcohol or not (p < 0.05). A large number of mothers/female guardians (66.3%) and fathers/male guardians (69.3%) did not allow alcohol use at home. More mothers (54.6%) and fathers (65.3%) were not aware of their adolescents' alcohol consumption (p < 0.05). Adolescents were more likely to use alcohol when they reported that they had often seen either their father or mother drunk or both (p < 0.05). There were also significant associations between parents' views against alcohol use and their adolescents' alcohol use (p < 0.05). Prevalence of alcohol uptake was quite high among these adolescents. Compulsory parenting programmes and skills development should be practiced by education, health, cultural and religious groups. Parents should be motivated to delay the age at which their children are initiated into alcohol use and be provided with guidance on how to counteract social pressures.

Young children's sibling relationship quality: distal and proximal correlates

BACKGROUND

Relationships within families are interdependent and related to distal environmental factors. Low socioeconomic status (SES) and high household chaos (distal factors) have been linked to less positive marital and parent-child relationships, but have not yet been examined with regard to young children's sibling relationships. The present study tested direct associations between these distal factors and sibling relationship quality, as well as examining parenting as a potential mediator and/or moderator.

METHOD

One hundred and eighteen families with children aged 4 to 8 years were interviewed and completed questionnaires during home visits. Children provided reports about the quality of their sibling relationships via a puppet interview, and mothers and fathers reported on household chaos and their exertion of harsh discipline. Researchers rated parental warmth towards the children. Finally, parental education and household density were assessed as indicators of SES.

RESULTS

Using structural equation modelling (SEM), we found that lower levels of household chaos were related to better quality sibling relationships, and that this link was mediated by maternal warmth and paternal harsh discipline, as well as moderated by maternal harsh discipline.

CONCLUSION

Household chaos was more strongly linked to relationship quality between family members than SES, warranting further research and practical application. The study of children's sibling relationships should take into account inter-relations between proximal and distal environmental factors to fully reveal the complexity of family life.

Efficacy of the Chicago parent program with low-income African American and Latino parents of young children

This study tested the efficacy of a 12-session parent training program, the Chicago Parent Program (CPP), which was developed in collaboration with African American and Latino parents. Using growth curve modeling, data were analyzed from 253 parents (58.9% African American, 32.8% Latino) of 2-4 year old children enrolled in seven day care centers serving low-income families. Day care centers were matched and randomly assigned to intervention and waiting-list control conditions. At 1-year follow-up, intervention group parents used less corporal punishment and issued fewer commands with their children. Intervention children exhibited fewer behavior problems during observed play and clean-up sessions than controls. Additional group differences were observed when dose was included in the analytic model. Parents who participated in at least 50% of CPP sessions also reported greater improvements in parenting self-efficacy, more consistent discipline, greater warmth, and a decline in child behavior problems when compared to reports from controls. The implications of these results for preventive parent training with low-income African American and Latino parents and the role of intervention dose on parent-child outcomes are discussed.

Corporal punishment: mother's disciplinary behavior and child's psychological profile in Alexandria, Egypt

Although all professionals oppose abusive physical punishment, nonabusive physical punishment is still controversial. The aim of the present study was (i) to determine parents' behavior regarding the discipline of their children using corporal punishment or other alternative disciplinary methods, (ii) to identify the different associated factors for corporal punishment, and (iii) to determine the association between exposure of the child to corporal punishment and his or her psychosocial well-being. A representative sample of 400 fifth-grade primary school children and their mothers were subjected to a cross-sectional survey. Mothers were subjected to a questionnaire to assess their behavior on corporal punishment and other disciplinary methods. The children were subjected to Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory to assess their self-esteem, and a questionnaire to assess their relationship with others. About three-quarter of children (76.3%) were corporally punished, and about half of them (46.2%) were punished on sites other than the extremities or buttocks. In 59.3% of them the frequency of the punishment ranged from once or twice/week to more than once/day, and it left marks in about 20%. Other disciplinary methods used by mothers were yelling/insulting (43.5%), taking away a toy or privilege (39.3%), discussing/explaining (9.5%), and time out (2.8%). The significant predictors of mothers' use of corporal punishment were male gender of the child (p < 0.01), rural origin of the father (p= 0.02), the mother's bad history of rearing experience (p < 0.01), and poor interparental relationship (p= 0.02). The relation between corporal punishment of children and their self-esteem was not statistically significant; however, corporally punished children scored lower on their relationship with others than noncorporally punished ones (Z= 2.60, p < 0.05). Corporal punishment is a widespread disciplinary method in Alexandria. The use of corporal punishment could have adverse effects on the child especially on his or her relationship with others. Planning an awareness-raising educational program for current and expectant parents is recommended, to promote positive nonviolent methods of child rearing, via the media and campaigns, and encouragement of political, community, and religious leaders; medical personnel; journalists; and sports and entertainment figures to share in these campaigns.

Problemas de conducta en niños víctimas de violencia familiar: reporte de profesores

El objetivo de esta investigación fue analizar la relación de los problemas de conducta que los niños presentan en la escuela y el maltrato infantil. La muestra la constituyeron 110 menores; 61 fueron identificados como maltratados y 50 fueron de la población general. Se aplicó la lista de chequeo de Achenbach (Achenbach, 1991; Achenbach & McConaughy, 1997) a los maestros, así como la Escala de Tácticas de Conflicto de Straus et al. (1998), la de Depresión de Hamilton (1959), obteniendo también variables demográficas de los niños. Se probó un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales en donde la variable dependiente fueron los problemas de conducta y las independientes la violencia familiar y la depresión. Los resultados indican que el maltrato tuvo un efecto significativo en los problemas de conducta de los menores, mediada por la depresión. Concluimos que los profesores deben ser entrenados en la detección y atención del maltrato infantil para prevenir problemas sociales graves como la delincuencia.

The Development of Children's Ideal and Ought Self-Guides: Parenting, Temperament, and Individual Differences in Guide Strength

Regulatory focus theory (RFT; Higgins, 1997) predicts that individual differences in the strength of promotion (ideal) and prevention (ought) orientations emerge from patterns of parent/child interactions that emphasize making good things happen versus keeping bad things from happening. This article examines the development of individual differences in the strength of children's promotion and prevention goals and presents selected findings from three studies exploring the origins of regulatory focus. We found a three-factor structure for parenting behaviors that differentiated between the presence/absence of positive outcomes versus the presence/absence of negative outcomes in two different data sets and validated that factor structure by examining its associations with maternal temperament. In turn, the parenting factors predicted individual differences in children's orientations to ideal and ought guides, and those associations were moderated by individual differences in child temperament.

CORRELATES AND CONSEQUENCES OF ANGER AT THEIR CHILDREN IN IMMIGRANT TURKISH WOMEN

This study was conducted in order to determine and explain the anger of mothers in reaction to their relations with their children, as well as how to deal with this anger. The sample was taken from 539 volunteers living in Antalya, who were married women aged 15–49 with children. According to results of this study, fighting with other children, disobeying mother, needing interest and truancy were the main causes of anger for mothers. Statistically meaningful relations were found for the reasons of anger, their reactions to anger, coping methods, age of mother, education level and number of children. It was seen that mothers needed proper ways, parental education, methods and solutions in coping with anger.

Biocultural construction of obesogenic ecologies of childhood: Parent-feeding versus child-eating strategies

Human biologists recognize the centrality of parental feeding beliefs and related practices in structuring children's under-nutrition risk in food-insecure settings. By contrast, how they might similarly structure children's nutrition-related health risks in calorically rich ecologies has barely been considered. Using the case of 3- to 6-year-old children in a rural Southeastern U.S. community with very high obesity rates, we use cognitive methods such as consensus analysis to determine how parental cultural models of child eating and feeding are linked to high calorie, obesogenic child diets. We find that parental models are very consistent with biomedical understandings (reduce fat, reduce sugar, portion control, etc.). Regardless, children's diets are extremely high in calories overall as well as in high sugar and fat food items. We suggest three likely and mutually reinforcing contributing factors to persistent and increasing early childhood overweight and obesity: parents' ambivalence about modeling healthy eating, children's active resistance, and the balance of parents' social against nutritive goals at meal times. The active role of children as social architects of their own biology has been little explored in human biological studies, and should provide novel and important understandings of the biocultural construction of childhood over-nutrition.

Young children's adjustment as a function of maltreatment, shame, and anger

Maltreated children are at increased risk for behavior problems. This study examines a model in which shame mediates the potential relation between maltreatment and anger, and anger mediates the potential relation between shame and behavior problems. Participants were 177 children (ages 3 to 7 years) and their mothers, 90 of whom had histories of perpetrating neglect and/or physical abuse. Physical abuse, but not neglect, was related to increased shame during an evaluative task; shame was related to increased anger; and anger to teacher ratings of total behavior problems and externalizing problems. Age moderated the relation between physical abuse and adjustment, as abuse was related to more total problems only among the younger children. Anger was a significant mediator of shame and both behavior problems and externalizing problems. Shame, anger, age, and type of maltreatment appear to be important factors in explaining variance in behavioral adjustment following a history of maltreatment.

Biocultural aspects of obesity in young Mexican schoolchildren

Obesity related to over-nutrition is investigated in a sample of 219 Mexican children from affluent families, ages 6-12 years. Defined as weight-for-age at or above the 95(th) percentile, obesity rates in middle childhood are very high in this population, being 24.2% of children (29.4% of boys and 19.1% of girls). Binary logistic regression shows that children are more likely to be obese if they are boys, from small households with few or no other children, and have more permissive, less authoritarian parents. Diet at school and activity patterns, including television viewing, are not different for boys and girls and so do not explain this gender variation. The value placed on children, especially sons, in smaller middle-class families, can result in indulgent feeding because food treats are a cultural index of parental caring. Parents also value child fatness as a sign of health. These obese Mexican children have no greater social problems (peer rejection or stigma) or psychological problems (anxiety, depression, or low self esteem) than their non-obese peers. More study specifically focused on feeding practices in the home environment is required to explain very high rates of child obesity. The differences in obesity risk related to specific aspects of children's developmental microniche emphasize the importance of including a focus on gender as a socio-ecological construct in human biological studies of child growth, development, and nutrition.

Long-term effects of child punishment on Mexican women: a structural model

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to investigate long-term effects of parental use of physical and verbal punishment on Mexican women. To study both direct and indirect effects of these phenomena, a structural model was developed and tested.

METHOD

One hundred and fifty Mexican women were interviewed with regard to their history of child abuse, their level of depression, alcohol use, antisocial behavior, and punishment of their own children. Factors representing such constructs were specified within a structural equation model and their inter-relations were estimated. Women's history of abuse was considered as an exogenous latent variable directly affecting three other factors: mothers' antisocial behavior, their alcohol consumption, and their levels of depression or anxiety. These factors, in turn, were specified as influencing mothers' harsh discipline of their own children.

RESULTS

Data supported this model, indicating that a history of abuse has long-term effects on women's behavior and psychological functioning, which in turn cause women's punitive behavior against their children.

CONCLUSIONS

These results are discussed in terms of the theoretical framework of intergenerational transmission of violence. The direct consequences (depression, anxiety, alcohol consumption, and antisocial behavior) of child punishment act as risk factors for the next generation of child abuse.

CNS child abuse: epidemiology and prevention

The problem of child abuse and the central nervous system implications are reviewed from a multidimensional approach. Statistics regarding prevalence, risk factors, epidemiological considerations, and physiological aspects are studied. The incidence is reviewed in the United States and in other countries where incidence and social services are also described. Implications for prevention efforts are considered.

Observed maternal strategies and children's health locus of control in low-income Mexican American families

This study examined the relationship among mothers' health locus of control (HLOC) beliefs, their socialization strategies, and their children's HLOC beliefs in 80 low-income Mexican American families. Maternal socialization strategies were assessed from videotaped interactions of mothers and children engaged in a structured task. Factor analysis of the coded strategies yielded 4 factors: Tell Answer, Teaching, Clarify, and Reinforce. Findings indicated that maternal-health-internally scores negatively predicted mothers' use of the Tell Answer strategies and positively predicted their use of Teaching strategies. Mothers who believed that Powerful Others (e.g., health professionals) controlled their health were more likely to use the Tell Answer strategy. In contrast, mothers who believed that health was due to chance were less likely to use Teaching. Maternal use of Teaching strategies predicted children's internal HLOC, whereas maternal Tell Answer strategies predicted children's external HLOC. Findings suggest that mothers' HLOC beliefs influence the socialization strategies they use and that these strategies are associated with children's HLOC beliefs.