A prospective three generational study of fathers' constructive parenting: influences from family of origin, adolescent adjustment, and offspring temperament

Effects of a preventive parenting intervention for bereaved families on the intergenerational transmission of parenting attitudes: Mediating processes

This study evaluated whether the Family Bereavement Program (FBP), a prevention program for parentally bereaved families, improved parenting attitudes toward parental warmth and physical punishment in young adult offspring 15 years after participation and identified mediational cascade pathways. One hundred fifty-six parents and their 244 offspring participated. Data were collected at pretest (ages 8-16), posttest, and six- and 15-year follow-ups. Ethnicity of offspring was: 67% non-Hispanic Caucasian, 16% Hispanic, 7% African American, 3% Native American, 1% Asian or Pacific Islander, and 6% other; 54% were males. There was a direct effect of the FBP on attitudes toward physical punishment; offspring in the FBP had less favorable attitudes toward physical punishment. There were also indirect effects of the FBP on parenting attitudes. The results supported a cascade effects model in which intervention-induced improvements in parental warmth led to fewer externalizing problems in adolescence/emerging adulthood, which in turn led to less favorable attitudes toward physical punishment. In addition, intervention-induced improvements in parental warmth led to improvements in anxious romantic attachment in mid-to-late adolescence/emerging adulthood, which led to more favorable attitudes toward parental warmth in emerging/young adulthood. These findings suggest that the effects of relatively brief prevention programs may persist into subsequent generations.

Previously institutionalized toddlers' social and emotional competence and kindergarten adjustment: Indirect effects through executive function

Longitudinal multimethod data across three time points were examined to explore the associations between previously institutionalized toddlers' (N = 71; 59% female) socioemotional skills (Time Point 1: 18 months to 3-years-old), executive functioning (i.e., attention, working memory, inhibitory control) in the preschool years (Time Point 2: 2-4-years-old), and adjustment in kindergarten (5-6-years-old). Children were from multiple regions (35% Eastern European, 31% Southeast Asian, 25% African, and 9% Latin American), and 90% of adoptive parents were White from the Midwestern United States. Socioemotional competency at Time Point 1 was associated with fewer attention problems and greater inhibitory control at Time Point 2, which were subsequently associated with more observed social competence, greater observed classroom competence, and less teacher-reported teacher-child conflict in kindergarten. Indirect effects from socioemotional competencies in toddlerhood to kindergarten adjustment via executive functioning during the preschool period emerged. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Transmit Radiant Individuality to Offspring (TRIO) study: investigating intergenerational transmission effects on brain development

Intergenerational transmission is a crucial aspect of human development. Although prior studies have demonstrated the continuity of psychopathology and maladaptive upbringing environments between parents and offspring, the underlying neurobiological mechanisms remain unclear. We have begun a novel neuroimaging research project, the Transmit Radiant Individuality to Offspring (TRIO) study, which focuses on biological parent-offspring trios. The participants of the TRIO study were Japanese parent-offspring trios consisting of offspring aged 10-40 and their biological mother and father. Structural and functional brain images of all participants were acquired using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Saliva samples were collected for DNA analysis. We obtained psychosocial information, such as intelligence, mental health problems, personality traits, and experiences during the developmental period from each parent and offspring in the same manner as much as possible. By April 2023, we completed data acquisition from 174 trios consisting of fathers, mothers, and offspring. The target sample size was 310 trios. However, we plan to conduct genetic and epigenetic analyses, and the sample size is expected to be expanded further while developing this project into a multi-site collaborative study in the future. The TRIO study can challenge the elucidation of the mechanism of intergenerational transmission effects on human development by collecting diverse information from parents and offspring at the molecular, neural, and behavioral levels. Our study provides interdisciplinary insights into how individuals' lives are involved in the construction of the lives of their descendants in the subsequent generation.

Parental history of positive development and child behavior in next generation offspring: A two-cohort prospective intergenerational study

This study examined whether positive development (PD) in adolescence and young adulthood predicts offspring behavior in two Australasian intergenerational cohorts. The Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Study assessed PD at age 19-28 (years 2002-2010) and behavior in 1165 infants (12-18 months; 608 girls) of 694 Australian-born parents (age 29-35; 2012-2019; 399 mothers). The Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Parenting Study assessed PD at age 15-18 (years 1987-1991) and behavior in 695 preschoolers (3-5 years; 349 girls) and their New Zealand born parents (age 21-46; 1994-2018; 363 mothers; 89% European ethnicity). In both cohorts, PD before parenthood predicted more positive offspring behavior (β_range  = .11-.16) and fewer behavior problems (β_range  = -.09 to -.11). Promoting strengths may secure a healthy start to life.

Psychosocial Resources Predicting Maternal and Paternal Positive Parenting and Lower Child Abuse Risk

Young children have the highest victimization rates of physical abuse in their first year of life, making up nearly half of all child abuse-related fatalities. More effective prevention is needed to reduce child victimization, yet many risk reduction models rely on problematic inclusion criteria, only intervene after maltreatment has occurred, or focus only on mothers. More proactive prevention models that promote positive parenting practices early in the transition to parenthood could be key to reducing child maltreatment. The current study sought to assess how both mothers' and fathers' psychosocial resources (e.g., emotion regulation, coping, and social support) and empathy can predict positive parenting and predict lower child abuse risk across time in a cross-lagged model. Parenting and abuse risk were examined prenatally, through the transition into parenthood, until children were 4 years old. First time mothers and their partners were recruited in the third trimester of pregnancy and assessed again when children were 6 months, 18 months, and 4 years old. Separate path models for mothers and fathers analyzed whether psychosocial resources and empathy at earlier timepoints predicted their positive parenting and lower abuse risk by the time children were age 4. Findings demonstrated that mothers' earlier empathy predicted later positive parenting and earlier positive parenting predicted later empathy. Fathers' lower prenatal abuse risk predicted greater subsequent empathy. Both mothers' and fathers' psychosocial resources and empathy at earlier timepoints predicted later positive parenting. Parents' psychosocial resources can be integral assets in positive, effective parenting approaches both concurrently and longitudinally. Mothers' and fathers' resources are an important point of intervention prior to and during the transition into parenthood to support healthier families that would confer benefits to child functioning.

The Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 study: a population-based multigenerational prospective cohort study of socioemotional health and development

PURPOSE

The Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Study (ATPG3) was established to examine the extent to which offspring social and emotional development is shaped in the decades prior to conception, in parent and grandparent histories of psychosocial adjustment (eg, emotional regulation, relationship quality and prosociality) and maladjustment (eg, depressive symptoms, substance use and antisociality).

PARTICIPANTS

The Australian Temperament Project (ATP) commenced in 1983 as a population representative survey of the social and emotional health of 2443 young Australians (Generation 2: 4-8 months old) and their parents (Generation 1). Since then, families have been followed from infancy to young adulthood (16 waves). Between 2012 and 2018, the cohort was screened biannually for pregnancies (Generation 3), with assessments conducted in the third trimester of pregnancy, and at 8 weeks and 1 year postpartum.

FINDINGS TO DATE

A total of 1167 offspring (607 female) born to 703 Generation 2 parents (400 mothers) were recruited into the ATPG3 Study. Findings to date highlight: (1) strong continuities in depressive symptoms and substance use from adolescence through to becoming a parent; (2) a role for persistent preconception mental health problems in risk for parent-child bonding difficulties, as well as infant emotional reactivity and behaviour problems; (3) the importance of secure attachments in adolescence in reducing long-term risk for postpartum mental health problems; and (4) the protective nature of perceived social support, both preconception and postpartum, in strengthening relationship quality and social support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

FUTURE PLANS

Assessments of ATPG3 families in preschool and middle childhood are currently funded and underway. We intend to maintain the offspring cohort through childhood, adolescence, young adulthood and into parenthood. Data will be used to map preconception determinants of emotional health, and enhance approaches to population monitoring and targeted intervention over the life course and across generations.

Intergenerational Transmission of Peer Aggression

It is plausible that peer aggression—like general forms of aggression—is transmitted from one generation to the next. As such, parental behavior in childhood and adolescence may be associated with offspring aggressive behavior against peers. This study used 1970 British Cohort Study data to test intergenerational transmission of peer aggression. The baseline sample consisted of 13,135 participants. At the first assessment that was used in this study, participants were on average 4.95 years old (SD = 0.79; 48.20% female). At the last assessment, participants were on average 33.88 years old (SD = 0.36; 52.1% female). Models were computed for early and middle childhood, and adolescence. Significant associations between parents’ and offspring peer aggression were found in most models – especially when correlating aggression in similar developmental periods for parents and children. Other transmission mechanisms such as genetic transmission may be relevant and should be taken into account in future studies.

When friendships surpass parental relationships as predictors of long-term outcomes: Adolescent relationship qualities and adult psychosocial functioning

Perceptions of adolescent-parent and adolescent-peer relationship qualities, and adolescents' attachment states of mind were examined as predictors of adult social and romantic relationship quality, depressive symptoms, and work performance. Adolescents (86 male, 98 female; 58% White, 29% African American, 8% mixed race/ethnicity, 5% other groups) were followed from age 13 to 24 via observational, self-, parent-, and close friend-reports. Adolescent close friendship quality was a significantly better predictor of adult peer and romantic outcomes, work performance, and depressive symptoms than parental reports of the parent-teen relationship; attachment security was also a strong predictor of numerous outcomes. Results are interpreted as reflecting the difficulty for parents judging parent-teen relationship quality and as reflecting the growing importance of close friendships during this period.

Intergenerational Associations in Crime for an At-Risk Sample of US Men: Factors that May Mitigate or Exacerbate Transmission

PURPOSE

To examine moderation of intergenerational transmission of crime and antisocial behavior of parents to adult arrests of sons (from age 18 years to ages 37-38 years). Moderators examined were from late childhood (constructive parenting and sons' inhibitory control, internalizing symptoms, and cognitive function), adolescence (delinquency and deviant peer association), and early adulthood (educational achievement, employment history, substance use, deviant peer association, and partner antisocial behavior).

METHODS

Study participants were parents and sons (N = 206) from the longitudinal Oregon Youth Study, recruited from schools in the higher crime areas of a medium-sized metropolitan region in the Pacific Northwest. Assessment included official arrest records, school data, interviews, and questionnaires.

RESULTS

As hypothesized, parents' and sons' histories of two or more arrests were significantly associated. Predictions of sons' arrests from a broader construct of parental antisocial behavior were significantly moderated by sons' late childhood cognitive function and early adult employment history, substance use, and romantic partner's antisocial behavior. Overall, there was relatively little intergenerational association in crime at low levels of these moderators.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings indicate relatively large intergenerational associations in crime. The identified moderators may be used as selection criteria or targeted in prevention and treatment efforts aimed at reducing such associations.

Parental Anxiety and Depression Moderate Intergenerational Transmission of Parental Psychological Aggression in China

The present study examined the intergenerational patterns in the transmission of parental psychological aggression in China and the moderating effects of parental anxiety and depression. Participants were 552 children (M_age = 12.81 years, 250 boys) and their parents who were recruited from two junior high schools in Jinan, the capital city of Shandong Province in China. The results showed that both maternal and paternal psychological aggressions were transmitted in Chinese societies, and maternal but not paternal anxiety and depression moderated the transmission of psychological aggression. The strength of transmission was stronger for mothers with high levels of anxiety and depression than those with low levels of anxiety and depression. The findings highlighted the roles of parental distal (psychological aggression experiences) and proximal (negative emotions) factors in their use of psychological aggression and suggested the need for intervention programs to focus on reduction of parental negative emotions.

Major depression, temperament, and social support as psychosocial mechanisms of the intergenerational transmission of parenting styles

In this three-generation longitudinal study of familial depression, we investigated the continuity of parenting styles, and major depressive disorder (MDD), temperament, and social support during childrearing as potential mechanisms. Each generation independently completed the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI), measuring individuals' experiences of care and overprotection received from parents during childhood. MDD was assessed prospectively, up to 38 years, using the semi-structured Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (SADS). Social support and temperament were assessed using the Social Adjustment Scale - Self-Report (SAS-SR) and Dimensions of Temperament Scales - Revised, respectively. We first assessed transmission of parenting styles in the generation 1 to generation 2 cycle (G1→G2), including 133 G1 and their 229 G2 children (367 pairs), and found continuity of both care and overprotection. G1 MDD accounted for the association between G1→G2 experiences of care, and G1 social support and temperament moderated the transmission of overprotection. The findings were largely similar when examining these psychosocial mechanisms in 111 G2 and their spouses (G2+S) and their 136 children (G3) (a total of 223 pairs). Finally, in a subsample of families with three successive generations (G1→G2→G3), G2 experiences of overprotection accounted for the association between G1→G3 experiences of overprotection. The results of this study highlight the roles of MDD, temperament, and social support in the intergenerational continuity of parenting, which should be considered in interventions to "break the cycle" of poor parenting practices across generations.

The Premise and Promise of Activation Parenting for Fathers: A Review and Integration of Extant Literature

Although research on fathers tends to focus on mother-derived conceptualizations of caregiving, such as sensitivity, it has been theorized that fathers play a unique role in opening their children to the world by encouraging exploration and risk-taking. However, extant research on these forms of paternal caregiving is scattered across multiple related but distinct domains, namely rough-and-tumble play, challenging parenting behavior, and the activation relationship. Based on the overlap in theory and operationalizations of these domains, the present review aimed to define and operationalize a new caregiving construct: activation parenting (AP). Fathers who exhibit frequent and high-quality AP behaviors encourage children to take risks, challenge children physically and socioemotionally, and set appropriate limits during stimulating interactions to ensure safety and prevent over-arousal. Using Belsky's (1984) process of parenting model as a foundation, associations between paternal AP and characteristics of the father, his environment, and his child are reviewed, with a focus on early childhood (i.e., ages 0-5 years). The present review found some support for paternal AP occurring more frequently, but not necessarily with higher quality, when fathers had children older than one years old. Unexpectedly, the frequency and quality of paternal AP did not differ much by paternal age or indicators of socioeconomic status, or by child age or gender. In line with underlying theories, higher quality paternal AP in early childhood has been found to be associated with children's self-regulation skills and lower levels of internalizing and externalizing problems. Limitations of the current paternal AP literature are discussed and future directions for research, policy, and clinical work are proposed.

Intergenerational Transmission of Corporal Punishment: The Independent and Interactive Moderating Role of Children's Negative Affectivity and Effortful Control

The present study examined the independent and interactive moderating effects of children's negative affectivity (NA) and effortful control (EC) on the relations between parental childhood history of corporal punishment (CP) and their current use of CP. A total of 634 Chinese father-mother dyads with preschoolers (M age = 4.69 years, 53.8% boys) reported on their experience of CP in childhood, their current use of CP toward children, and their children's NA and EC. For both mothers and fathers, hierarchical regression analyses revealed that children's NA and EC independently and interactively moderated the relations between parental childhood history of CP and their current use of CP. Specifically, high NA intensified but high EC weakened the relations between parental childhood history of CP and their current use of CP. Moreover, high EC also weakened the intensifying effect of NA, with the intergenerational stability of CP being weakest and even disrupted when children were at low NA and high EC meanwhile. Findings from the present study highlight the importance of considering how the child factor may influence the intergenerational transmission of CP.

Intergeracionalidade no Contexto das Práticas Educativas de Mães de Crianças Pré-Escolares

Resumo Este estudo objetivou analisar as lembranças de infância e das práticas educativas de mães de crianças pré-escolares que usam práticas coercitivas ou indutivas na criação dos próprios filhos. Foram entrevistadas 12 mães, sendo que seis delas adotavam estratégias predominantemente indutivas (MPI) e seis, predominantemente coercitivas (MPC). A teoria fundamentada norteou a análise qualitativa. Entre os resultados, constatou-se que a infância das MPI foi caracterizada pelo predomínio do afeto e de eventos positivos e lúdicos. Ainda que algumas mães tenham sido alvo de ações coercitivas, elas relataram forte presença de práticas educativas indutivas. Por outro lado, as MPC relataram vivência de situações traumáticas, como alcoolismo, violência psicológica e sexual, associadas ao uso de punição física, ameaças e privação de afeto como estratégias disciplinares. Os dados sugerem a transmissão intergeracional das práticas educativas, caracterizadas pela forma como os pais educam, e as diversas estratégias que utilizam para orientar o comportamento dos filhos. Discute-se a implementação de programas de orientação parental que possam favorecer o uso de práticas educativas indutivas.

Intergenerational transmission: Theoretical and methodological issues and an introduction to four Dutch cohorts

Behaviors, traits and characteristics are transmitted from parents to offspring because of complex genetic and non-genetic processes. We review genetic and non-genetic mechanisms of intergenerational transmission of psychopathology and parenting and focus on recent methodological advances in disentangling genetic and non-genetic factors. In light of this review, we propose that future studies on intergenerational transmission should aim to disentangle genetic and non-genetic transmission, take a long-term longitudinal perspective, and focus on paternal and maternal intergenerational transmission. We present four large longitudinal cohort studies within the Consortium on Individual Development, which together address many of these methodological challenges. These four cohort studies aim to examine the extent to which genetic and non-genetic transmission from the parental generation shapes parenting behavior and psychopathology in the next generation, as well as the extent to which self-regulation and social competence mediate this transmission. Conjointly, these four cohorts provide a comprehensive approach to the study of intergenerational transmission.

Transmission of Intergenerational Parenting Attitudes and Natural Mentorship: Associations Within the LONGSCAN population

BACKGROUND

Evidence suggests that families transmit child maltreatment and parenting attitudes. Natural mentorship may mediate intergenerational parenting attitudes' risk for maltreatment but has not been studied.

OBJECTIVE

To compare parenting attitudes between adolescents exposed to or at risk for maltreatment and their caregivers and to determine if natural mentorship mediates differences in parenting attitudes' maltreatment risk.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

The study included 779 children and their caregivers from the Longitudinal Studies of Child Abuse and Neglect (LONGSCAN) study, METHODS: Standardized measures assessed parenting attitudes, natural mentorship and demographic characteristics. Repeated measures, multivariable logistic regressions were used to predict low risk parenting attitudes for maltreatment among adolescents with and without natural mentors.

RESULTS

In adjusted analysis, natural mentorship did not predict an adolescent having low risk parenting attitudes when their caregivers had moderate or high risk attitudes: appropriate empathy adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.26; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.52 -3.01; appropriate expectations aOR = 1.35; CI 0.62-2.93; physical punishment rejection aOR = 1.74; CI 0.78-3.88; and appropriate roles aOR = 1.11; CI 0.57-2.18. Low risk caregiver parenting attitudes for appropriate empathy related to adolescents having low risk empathy attitudes (aOR = 2.89; CI 1.31-6.37). Male gender, African American race and Hispanic ethnicity were negatively associated with an adolescent having low risk parenting attitudes for maltreatment.

CONCLUSIONS

Natural mentorship did not mediate adolescent parenting attitudes. While prevention and intervention strategies should include natural mentoring given positive health impacts, services must be cognizant of and designed for gender, racial and ethnic diversity.

Parents' Past Bonding Experience with Their Parents Interacts with Current Parenting Stress to Influence the Quality of Interaction with Their Child

Healthy dyadic interactions serve as a foundation for child development and are typically characterised by mutual emotional availability of both the parent and child. However, several parental factors might undermine optimal parent-child interactions, including the parent's current parenting stress levels and the parent's past bonding experiences with his/her own parents. To date, no study has investigated the possible interaction of parenting stress and parental bonding history with their own parents on the quality of emotional availability during play interactions. In this study, 29 father-child dyads (18 boys, 11 girls; father's age = 38.07 years, child's age = 42.21 months) and 36 mother-child dyads (21 boys, 15 girls; mother's age = 34.75 years, child's age = 41.72 months) from different families were recruited to participate in a 10-min play session after reporting on their current parenting stress and past care and overprotection experience with their parents. We measured the emotional availability of mother-child and father-child play across four adult subscales (i.e., sensitivity, structuring, non-intrusiveness, non-hostility) and two child subscales (i.e., involvement and responsiveness). Regression slope analyses showed that parenting stress stemming from having a difficult child predicts adult non-hostility, and is moderated by the parents' previously experienced maternal overprotection. When parenting stress is low, higher maternal overprotection experienced by the parent in the past would predict greater non-hostility during play. This finding suggests that parents' present stress levels and past bonding experiences with their parents interact to influence the quality of dyadic interaction with their child.

Cortisol and Parenting Predict Pathways to Disinhibited Social Engagement and Social Functioning in Previously Institutionalized Children

Previously institutionalized children on average show persistent deficits in physiological and behavioral regulation, as well as a lack of normative reticence towards strangers, or disinhibited social engagement (DSE). Post-adoption parenting, specifically a combination of supportive presence and structure/limit-setting, may protect against DSE over time via better adrenocortical functioning. This study examined the impact of adrenocortical activity and post-adoption parenting on DSE across the first two years post-adoption (age at adoption: 16-36 months) and observed kindergarten social outcomes in previously institutionalized children (n = 94) compared to non-adopted children (n = 52). Path analyses indicated a developmental cascade from institutional care (operationalized as a dichotomous group variable, age at adoption, and months of institutionalization) to blunted adrenocortical activity, increased DSE, and lower kindergarten social competence. Consistent with a permissive parenting style, higher parental support was associated with increased DSE, but only when not accompanied by effective structure/limit-setting. Further, parental structure reduced the association between blunted adrenocortical activity and DSE behaviors.

Building a Safe and Healthy America: Eliminating Corporal Punishment via Positive Parenting

corporal punishment (CP) is associated with negative short-term and long-term children outcomes. However, many caregivers continue to administer spankings and other forms of CP. Pediatric nurse practitioners are in a unique position to affect change in parental behavior related to CP use and other parenting practices. This article will summarize the research on the dangers of CP and the corresponding benefits of positive parenting. It defines positive parenting and offers resources pediatric health care providers, including pediatric nurse practitioners, can use to educate both themselves and caregivers about specific discipline techniques appropriate to each developmental stage. Finally, it suggests practice strategies pediatric nurse practitioners can use to help caregivers replace CP and other harsh parenting practices with positive parenting to build a safe and healthy America.

Once and Again : History of Rearing Experiences and Psychosocial Parenting Resources at Six Months in Primiparous Mothers

Animal and human studies suggest that parenting style is transmitted from one generation to the next. The hypotheses of this study were that (1) a mother's rearing experiences (G1) would predict her own parenting resources (G2) and (2) current maternal mood, motivation to care for her offspring, and relationship with her parents would underlie this association. In a subsample of 201 first-time mothers participating in the longitudinal Maternal Adversity, Vulnerability and Neurodevelopment project, we assessed a mother's own childhood maltreatment and rearing experiences (G1) using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and the Parental Bonding Instrument. At 6 months postpartum, mothers completed questionnaires on parenting stress (G2), symptoms of depression, maternal motivation, and current relationship with their own parents. The sample consisted of mostly high socioeconomic status mothers recruited from Montréal (n = 135) or Hamilton (n = 66), Canada, with an age range from 18 to 43 years (M = 29.41, SD = 4.85 years). More severe maltreatment and less supportive rearing by the mother's parents (G1) predicted increased parenting stress at 6 months (G2). These associations were mediated through distinct psychosocial pathways: maltreatment (G1) on parenting stress (G2) through symptoms of depression (Z = 2.297; p = .022); maternal rearing (G1) on parenting stress (G2) through maternal motivation (Z = -2.155; p = .031) and symptoms of depression (Z = -1.842; p = .065); and paternal rearing (G1) on parenting stress (G2) through current relationship with the father (Z = -2.617; p = .009). Maternal rearing experiences predict a mother's own parenting resources though distinct psychosocial pathways, including depressed mood, maternal motivation, and social support.

Intergenerational transmission of harsh discipline: The moderating role of parenting stress and parent gender

The present study examined the intergenerational transmission of harsh discipline (psychological aggression and corporal punishment) and the moderating effects of parenting stress and parent gender in Chinese societies. Utilizing a sample of 634 Chinese father-mother dyads with preschoolers, findings revealed that both mothers' and fathers' harsh discipline were transmitted across generations and the strength of transmission varied by the severity of harsh discipline and the parent gender. For both mothers and fathers, high parenting stress intensified the intergenerational transmission of psychological aggression and corporal punishment, whereas low parenting stress weakened the transmission of psychological aggression and even disrupted the transmission of corporal punishment. Moreover, the moderating effects of parenting stress on the transmission were stronger for mothers than for fathers. Findings from the present study highlight the importance of considering how the proximal environmental factors (such as parenting stress) may influence the intergenerational transmission of harsh discipline.

From Fathers to Sons: The Intergenerational Transmission of Parenting Behavior among African American Young Men

This study examined the intergenerational transmission of fathering among young, African American fathers in rural communities. A sample of 132 African American young men living in the rural South reported on the quality of their relationship with their biological and social fathers in the family of origin, their own involvement with their young children, and relational schemas of close, intimate relationships. Results of path analyses supported the hypothesized mediational model, such that a better relationship with one's biological (but not social) father predicted increased father involvement in the next generation, and this association was partially mediated through positive relational schema after controlling for a range of covariates. Tests of moderated mediation indicated that the link between relational schema and father involvement was significantly stronger among fathers of girls than fathers of boys. Findings highlight the unique influence of close, nurturing father-child relationships for downstream father involvement, and the role of relational schemas as a mechanism for intergenerational transmission among young, rural, African American fathers of girls.

Assessing Associations in Substance Use across Three Generations: From Grandparents to Sons and from Sons to Their Children

The Three Generational Study (3GS) began in the early 90s and involves the third generation (G3) offspring of second generation (G2) fathers who were originally recruited in 1984 as part of the Oregon Youth Study (OYS) in mid childhood (ages 9-10 years) along with their first- generation (G1) parents. As boys, the G2 fathers lived in higher delinquency neighborhoods of a medium-sized Pacific Northwestern United States city. The OYS-3GS examines questions concerning socially mediated intergenerational transmission versus discontinuity (or moderation) of antisocial behavior, substance use, and related problem behaviors. Questions address influences of the grandparents, or Generation 1 (G1), on their sons in G2 and in turn of these sons and their partners on their own children in G3. In this article, we present an overview of the study design-and underlying theory-related to general and outcome-specific transmission pathways. We then summarize key issues and findings to date related to the current main focus of the study regarding intergenerational associations in substance use.

Peer Problems Among Postinstitutionalized, Internationally Adopted Children: Relations to Hypocortisolism, Parenting Quality, and ADHD Symptoms

Seventy-eight postinstitutionalized (PI) children adopted at ages 17-36 months were assessed 2, 8, 16, and 24 months postadoption on measures of cortisol and parenting quality, and compared to same-aged children adopted from foster care (FC, n = 45) and nonadopted children (NA, n = 45). In kindergarten (M_age  = 6.0 years), teachers, parents, and trained observers completed measures of peer relationships and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. PI children had more peer problems and ADHD symptoms according to teachers and observers than NA children with FC children in between, whereas both PI and FC children were at significantly greater risk of hypocortisolism (i.e., blunted cortisol diurnal rhythm and reactivity). Hypocortisolism and ADHD symptoms mediated the association between preadoption adversity and peer difficulties. Higher postadoption parenting quality was protective.

Parents' childhood experiences of bonding and parental psychopathology predict borderline personality disorder during adolescence in offspring

Previous studies on borderline personality disorder (BPD) development suggest a transgenerational transmission of parent-child relationship quality, which may also be influenced by parents' mental health status. The aim of this study was twofold. First, we aimed to investigate the transgenerational effect of parental bonding experiences on the development of BPD in their offspring. Second, we examined the association between parents' mental health status and BPD in offspring. Ninety-one female adolescent psychiatric inpatients along with 87 mothers and 59 fathers were enrolled in the study. Adolescent BPD was assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-II, parental bonding with the Parental Bonding Instrument, and parents´ psychiatric symptoms with the Patient Health Questionnaire. We found that low parental care produced a transgenerational effect from mother to BPD in offspring. Further, significant associations were found between paternal psychiatric symptoms and adolescent BPD. High paternal stress levels mediated the association between maternal affect reported by fathers and BPD in daughters. There is evidence of a transgenerational effect of parental bonding specifically for female adolescents with BPD, compared with other clinical control subjects. Our findings highlight the importance of including both parents in future research and in early clinical treatment in adolescents with BPD.

Conceptualizing and Measuring Safe, Stable, Nurturing Relationships and Environments in Educational Settings

Most children and adolescents older than five years spend at least six hours of their day in school settings. Like parents, education professionals can promote health and protect youth from harm by providing safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has developed a framework which posits that safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments are Essentials for Childhood and are fundamental to promoting health and well-being; protecting youth from maltreatment and other violence and victimization; and ensuring optimal, healthy development. In this paper, the authors propose an approach to applying safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments to the school ecology; review select survey measures to examine these constructs within educational settings; and suggest available indicators to measure safety, stability, and nurturance within the school context.

Stress and Alcohol, Cigarette, and Marijuana Use Among Latino Adolescents in Families with Undocumented Immigrants

Families in which one or more members are undocumented immigrants experience unique hardships. Yet, little is known about stress and substance use among adolescents growing up in these families. The present study examined associations between two sources of adolescent stress (i.e., low parental involvement due to contextual constraints and family economic insecurity) and lifetime alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use among adolescents in families with undocumented members. The sample was comprised of 102 adolescents (10-18 years old) and one of his or her parents. Participants responded a survey in English or Spanish. Adolescent lifetime use of alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana was 51%, 32.4%, and 37.3%, respectively. Chi-Square analyses found no significant gender differences in lifetime substance use. Logistic regression models showed that adolescent stress due to hindered parental involvement increased the odds of both lifetime cigarette and marijuana use after controlling for gender, age, linguistic acculturation, familism, parental control, and negative peer affiliation. Being a girl increased the odds of lifetime alcohol use. Family economic stress was not associated with lifetime substance use. Results suggest that hindered parental involvement might be a stressor and a risk factor for cigarette and marijuana use among adolescents growing up in families with undocumented members. Because parents in these families are likely to be undocumented, policies that allow immigrants to apply for legal status could improve parents' working conditions and facilitate parental involvement; in turn, such policies could decrease the risk for adolescent substance use among children of Latino immigrants.

Intergenerational transmission of parenting: findings from a UK longitudinal study

BACKGROUND

The quality of parenting is associated with a wide range of child and adult outcomes, and there is evidence to suggest that some aspects of parenting show patterns of intergenerational transmission. This study aimed to determine whether such intergenerational transmission occurs in mothers and fathers in a UK birth cohort.

METHODS

The study sample consisted of 146 mothers and 146 fathers who were recruited from maternity wards in England and followed up for 24 months ['Generation 2' (G2)]. Perceptions of their own parenting [by 'Generation1' (G1)] were assessed from G2 parents at 12 months using the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI). G2 parents were filmed interacting with their 'Generation 3' (G3) children at 24 months.

RESULTS

We found that G1 mothers' 'affection' was associated with positive parenting behaviour in the G2 fathers ('positive responsiveness' β = 0.19, P = 0.04 and 'cognitive stimulation' β = 0.26, P < 0.01). G1 mothers' 'control' was associated with negative parenting behaviour in G2 mothers (decreased 'engagement' β = -0.19, P = 0.04), and negative parenting behaviour in G2 fathers (increased 'control' β = 0.18, P = 0.05). None of the G1 fathers' parenting variables were significantly associated with G2 parenting.

CONCLUSIONS

There is evidence of intergenerational transmission of parenting behaviour in this highly educated UK cohort, with reported parenting of grandmothers associated with observed parenting in both mothers and fathers. No association was seen with reported parenting of grandfathers. This raises the possibility that parenting interventions may have benefits that are realised across generations.

Contextual risks linking parents' adolescent marijuana use to offspring onset

OBJECTIVE

We studied the extent to which parent marijuana use in adolescence is associated with marijuana use onset in offspring through contextual family and peer risks.

METHOD

Fathers assessed (n=93) since childhood, their 146 offspring (n=83 girls), and offspring's mothers (n=85) participated in a longitudinal study. Using discrete-time survival analysis, fathers' (prospectively measured) and mothers' (retrospective) adolescent marijuana use was used to predict offspring marijuana use onset through age 19 years. Parental monitoring, child exposure to marijuana use, peer deviance, peer marijuana use, and perceptions of parent disapproval of child use were measured before or concurrent with onset.

RESULTS

Parents' adolescent marijuana use was significantly associated with less monitoring, offspring alcohol use, the peer behaviors, exposure to adult marijuana use, and perceptions of less parent disapproval. Male gender and the two peer behaviors were positively associated with children's marijuana use onset, controlling for their alcohol use. Parents' adolescent marijuana use had a significant indirect effect on child onset through children's deviant peer affiliations and a composite contextual risk score.

CONCLUSIONS

Parents' histories of marijuana use may contribute indirectly to children's marijuana use onset through their influence on the social environments children encounter; specifically, those characterized by more liberal use norms, exposure to marijuana use and deviant and marijuana-using peers, and less adult supervision. Given that alcohol use onset was controlled, findings suggest that the contextual factors identified here confer unique risk for child marijuana use onset.

Contextual risks linking parents' adolescent marijuana use to offspring onset

OBJECTIVE

We studied the extent to which parent marijuana use in adolescence is associated with marijuana use onset in offspring through contextual family and peer risks.

METHOD

Fathers assessed (n=93) since childhood, their 146 offspring (n=83 girls), and offspring's mothers (n=85) participated in a longitudinal study. Using discrete-time survival analysis, fathers' (prospectively measured) and mothers' (retrospective) adolescent marijuana use was used to predict offspring marijuana use onset through age 19 years. Parental monitoring, child exposure to marijuana use, peer deviance, peer marijuana use, and perceptions of parent disapproval of child use were measured before or concurrent with onset.

RESULTS

Parents' adolescent marijuana use was significantly associated with less monitoring, offspring alcohol use, the peer behaviors, exposure to adult marijuana use, and perceptions of less parent disapproval. Male gender and the two peer behaviors were positively associated with children's marijuana use onset, controlling for their alcohol use. Parents' adolescent marijuana use had a significant indirect effect on child onset through children's deviant peer affiliations and a composite contextual risk score.

CONCLUSIONS

Parents' histories of marijuana use may contribute indirectly to children's marijuana use onset through their influence on the social environments children encounter; specifically, those characterized by more liberal use norms, exposure to marijuana use and deviant and marijuana-using peers, and less adult supervision. Given that alcohol use onset was controlled, findings suggest that the contextual factors identified here confer unique risk for child marijuana use onset.

Fathers' and mothers' attachment representations as predictors of preadolescents' attachment security: A ten-year follow-up of Finnish families

The question of how mothers' and fathers' representations of attachment correlate ten years later with children's perceptions of attachment relationships was examined in a longitudinal study on Finnish families (N = 42). The parents completed the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) during the child's first year of life. At 11 years, the children filled out three scales on how secure they perceive the relationship with each parent. Parents' AAI classifications and AAI dimensions based on continuous scales were used as predictors of the preadolescents' attachment security. Regression analyses demonstrated that fathers' but not mothers' State-of-Mind and Experience dimensions predicted preadolescents' security of attachment to father. The discussion focuses on the predictive validity of the classical categorical versus the recently proposed continuous approach and the different roles of parents in transmitting security from one generation to another.

Intergenerational transmission of corporal punishment in China: the moderating role of marital satisfaction and gender

The goal of this study was to examine the intergenerational patterns in the transmission of parental corporal punishment in China and the moderating effects of marital satisfaction (of the second generation: G2) and gender (of three generations: G1, G2 and G3) on these patterns. Six hundred thirty-five father-mother dyads with preschool-aged children were recruited to participate in this survey. The results provided evidence of cross-generational continuity in parental corporal punishment in Chinese society and also supported the hypothesis that same-gender continuity in parental corporal punishment is stronger than cross-gender continuity. Moreover, it was found that marital satisfaction moderated the transmission of parental corporal punishment, and there were some interesting gender differences in the moderator effect. Specifically, marital satisfaction buffered the transmission of corporal punishment from grandmothers to mothers of daughters and to fathers of sons but strengthened the transmission from grandfathers to fathers of sons. The findings broaden our understanding of the factors and processes that account for both discontinuity and continuity in parental corporal punishment, particularly within the Chinese cultural context.

Intergenerational continuity in high-conflict family environments

In the current study, we examined continuity in conflict across generations and explored potential mediators and moderators that could explain this continuity. We followed 246 targets from adolescence to adulthood and examined family conflict as reported by multiple reporters in targets' family of origin and current families. Results showed that conflict in the current family was strongly correlated with that of the family of origin in women but not in men. Continuity in family conflict across generations was mediated by patterns of elevated adolescent externalizing behavior in members of the second generation (G2). In addition, analyses revealed an interaction between both G2 partners' externalizing behavior such that if one partner in the G2 family demonstrated high levels of externalizing behavior, elevated levels of family conflict resulted. Potential explanations and implications of these findings are considered.

Social support, family functioning and parenting competence in adolescent parents

Depression is known to mediate the association between low social support and parenting competence in adult mothers, but this relationship is rarely assessed in adolescent mothers and fathers. The primary aim of this study was to identify the association between social support, family functioning and social capital on parenting competence, including self-efficacy and satisfaction in adolescent mothers and their partners. Secondary aims included identifying potential partner effects (e.g. whether a partner's social support influenced the respondent's parenting efficacy). Data was obtained from a subset of participants from a longitudinal study of pregnant adolescent females and their partners. Couples completed individual structured interviews via audio computer-assisted self-interview during pregnancy and at 6 months postpartum. To measure the influence of support on parenting outcomes, multi-level modeling was used to assess the Actor-Partner Interdependence model, which examines responses from both members of a dyad in a single analysis. Greater social support was associated with increased parenting self-efficacy (B = 0.062, p = 0.006) and parenting satisfaction (B = 0.111, p < 0.001). Higher family functioning was also associated with greater parenting satisfaction (B = 0.05, p = 0.035). Greater partner family functioning was associated with higher parenting satisfaction (B = 0.047, p = 0.026). This study found the importance of a strong support structure during pregnancy on perceived parenting competence in the early postpartum period for young mothers and fathers. Both social support and family functioning during pregnancy were associated with a greater sense of parenting competence, and these associations were mediated by parental depression. The results of this study underscore the importance of providing social support for young expectant fathers as well as mothers.

Positive parenting, beliefs about parental efficacy, and active coping: three sources of intergenerational resilience

Prior research involving parents (G1) and their adult children (G2) shows intergenerational continuity in positive parenting. Previous research, however, has not shown circumstances under which the typically modest effect size for intergenerational continuity is augmented or attenuated. Using a multigenerational data set involving 290 families, we evaluated 2 potential moderators of intergenerational continuity in positive parenting (i.e., beliefs about parenting efficacy and active coping strategies) drawn from prior theoretical work on predictors of parenting (Belsky, 1984). These personal resources of the second-generation (G2) parent interacted with G1 positive parenting to predict G2 parenting behavior. Beliefs about parental efficacy and active coping both compensated for low levels of G1 positive parenting by promoting G2 positive parenting when G1 parents were comparatively low on positive parenting. An alternative interpretation of this moderation is that G1 positive parenting compensated for low levels of these personal resources by promoting G2 positive parenting when G2 parents were comparatively low on parenting efficacy and effective coping. These findings indicate the different roles that these personal resources and a history of positive parenting appear to play in promoting a positive parenting environment for the next generation of children.

The interpersonal antecedents of supportive parenting: a prospective, longitudinal study from infancy to adulthood

This study drew on prospective, longitudinal data to test the hypothesis that the intergenerational transmission of positive parenting is mediated by competence in subsequent relationships with peers and romantic partners. Interview-based ratings of supportive parenting were completed with a sample of 113 individuals (46% male) followed from birth to age 32. Results indicated that supportive parenting during adulthood was predicted by observed maternal sensitivity during the first 3 years of life, even after controlling for adults' age at first childbirth and adults' socioeconomic status and educational attainment at the time of the second generation parenting assessments. Moreover, the intergenerational association in parenting was mediated by later competence in relationships with peers and romantic partners. In particular, sensitive caregiving in infancy and early childhood predicted teachers' rankings of children's social competence with peers during childhood and adolescence, which in turn forecasted later interview ratings of romantic relationship competence during young adulthood, which in turn predicted supportive parenting in adulthood. Findings are discussed with respect to current theory and research on the intergenerational transmission of parenting.

Effects of a preventive parenting intervention for divorced families on the intergenerational transmission of parenting attitudes in young adult offspring

This study evaluates whether the New Beginnings Program (NBP), a parenting intervention for divorced mothers, led to positive parenting attitudes in young adult offspring. Data were collected from 240 mothers (G1) and offspring (G2) at ages 9-12 and again in adolescence and young adulthood. Alternative theoretical models were tested to examine mediators of NBP effects on G2 parenting attitudes. Significant interactions between condition and baseline G1 parenting indicated that NBP improved G2's parenting attitudes for those exposed to poorer G1 parenting at program entry. Effects on G2 warm attitudes were partially mediated through program effects on G1 warm parenting. The implications of improving parenting attitudes in offspring who experience parental divorce on well-being in the next generation are discussed.

Openness and avoidance--a longitudinal study of fathers of children with intellectual disability

BACKGROUND

Fathers' interactions with children who have intellectual disabilities (ID) or developmental delays (DD) have increased over the past few decades and may be expected to continue to increase as maternal and paternal roles, along with other gender roles, become more equal. The aim of the present study was to explore fathers' experiences of parenthood in relation to a child with ID/DD from the initial discovery of the disability to 5 years later.

METHODS

Fathers' experiences of parenting children with ID/DD were explored in a longitudinal framework. Seven Swedish fathers of young children with ID/DD participated in a series of semi-structured interviews from 2005 to 2010, and their accounts were subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis.

RESULTS

The analysis revealed three themes: (1) An interrupted path - no longer taking things for granted, which describes the fathers' reactions to their children's diagnosis; (2) Being a good father, which describes the fathers' overall perceptions of their parenting of a child with ID/DD; and (3) Dealing with the unexpected, which describes fathers' individual ways of integrating, managing, and living with the knowledge of their child's disability over the 5 years during which fathers were interviewed.

CONCLUSIONS

Fathers' individual paths need to be taken into consideration when offering psychological support to families of children with ID/DD.

Social mobility in the context of fathering: the intergenerational link in parenting among co-resident fathers

Intergenerational transmissions extend across a number of family-related behaviors, including marriage timing, fertility, and divorce. Surprisingly, few studies investigate the link between the fathering men experience and the fathering they ultimately engage in. I use data on the grandfathers and fathers of the 2001 U.S. birth cohort - measured in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (N=4050) - to test whether men's perception of the parenting they received influences their subsequent paternal self-assessments and behaviors. I find a nonlinear association between experiencing warm fathering and men's self-assessed parenting quality and stress. Men with particularly warm fathers are more likely to report being good fathers themselves. Those who report having the harshest fathers also exhibit better paternal self-perceptions and lower stress. Perceptions of paternal warmth show similar associations with men's fathering engagement. This research sheds light on the significance of family dynamics and how a legacy of fathering may contribute to inequality.

Transmissão intergeracional de práticas educativas parentais: evidências empíricas

O estudo investigou a transmissão intergeracional das práticas educativas parentais em 30 mães e 22 pais, cujo primeiro filho tinha 3 anos. Os participantes responderam a entrevistas sobre as práticas educativas recebidas dos genitores e as utilizadas com o filho. Análises quantitativa e de conteúdo foram realizadas, categorizando-se as práticas em indutivas, coercitivas e não interferência. Os resultados indicaram tanto a manutenção das práticas recebidas, sejam elas indutivas, coercitivas ou de não interferência, como mudanças no tipo de prática utilizada devido a características do casal e da criança. Discute-se que as práticas educativas envolvem um processo dinâmico entre pais e filhos, sendo a transmissão intergeracional não linear e influenciada por fatores que não apenas a reprodução de padrões aprendidos.

Early life adversity reduces stress reactivity and enhances impulsive behavior: implications for health behaviors

Altered reactivity to stress, either in the direction of exaggerated reactivity or diminished reactivity, may signal a dysregulation of systems intended to maintain homeostasis and a state of good health. Evidence has accumulated that diminished reactivity to psychosocial stress may signal poor health outcomes. One source of diminished cortisol and autonomic reactivity is the experience of adverse rearing during childhood and adolescence. The Oklahoma Family Health Patterns Project has examined a cohort of 426 healthy young adults with and without a family history of alcoholism. Regardless of family history, persons who had experienced high degrees of adversity prior to age 16 had a constellation of changes including reduced cortisol and heart rate reactivity, diminished cognitive capacity, and unstable regulation of affect, leading to behavioral impulsivity and antisocial tendencies. We present a model whereby this constellation of physiological, cognitive, and affective tendencies is consistent with altered central dopaminergic activity leading to changes in brain function that may foster impulsive and risky behaviors. These in turn may promote greater use of alcohol other drugs along with adopting poor health behaviors. This model provides a pathway from early life adversity to low stress reactivity that forms a basis for risky behaviors and poor health outcomes.

The Transmission of Parenting from Fathers to Sons

OBJECTIVE: We address the extent to which parenting practices of fathers and mothers are associated with their sons' parenting behaviors as young adults and whether adolescent behavior explains this association. DESIGN: Data come from 409 young men interviewed in the 2006 Young Adult study of the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. RESULTS: Men whose fathers were positively involved with them when growing up report more positive parenting of their own children, a direct effect. Less harsh mothering and more positive fathering are associated with reduced adolescent behavior problems, and positive mothering is associated with positive adjustment of these young men as adolescents. However, neither adolescent problem behavior nor positive adjustment is associated with young men's fathering of their own children, and thus does not explain the association between the fathering young men received and their own fathering behavior. CONCLUSIONS: Men's parenting of their sons can have a long-term direct effect on how their sons parent their own children. Although parenting is associated with both positive and negative behaviors of sons during adolescence, these adolescent behaviors are not directly linked to later parenting behavior when sons have their own children. More research is needed to examine mediation mechanisms for the intergenerational transmission of parenting.

Parent-child shared time from middle childhood to late adolescence: developmental course and adjustment correlates

The development and adjustment correlates of parent-child social (parent, child, and others present) and dyadic time (only parent and child present) from age 8 to 18 were examined. Mothers, fathers, and firstborns and secondborns from 188 White families participated in both home and nightly phone interviews. Social time declined across adolescence, but dyadic time with mothers and fathers peaked in early and middle adolescence, respectively. In addition, secondborns' social time declined more slowly than firstborns', and gendered time use patterns were more pronounced in boys and in opposite-sex sibling dyads. Finally, youths who spent more dyadic time with their fathers, on average, had higher general self-worth, and changes in social time with fathers were positively linked to changes in social competence.

The association between parent early adult drug use disorder and later observed parenting practices and child behavior problems: testing alternate models

This study tested the association between parent illicit drug use disorder (DUD) in early adulthood and observed parenting practices at ages 27-28 and examined the following 3 theoretically derived models explaining this link: (a) a disrupted parent adult functioning model,(b) a preexisting parent personality factor model, and (c) a disrupted adolescent family process model. Associations between study variables and child externalizing problems also were examined. Longitudinal data linking 2 generations were drawn from the Seattle Social Development Project (SSDP) and The SSDP Intergenerational Project (TIP), and included 167 parents and their 2- to 8-year-old child. Path modeling revealed that parent DUD in early adulthood predicted later observed low-skilled parenting, which was related to child externalizing problems. The preexisting parent personality factor model was supported. Parent negative emotionality accounted for the association between parent early adult DUD and later parenting practices. Parent negative emotionality also was related directly to child externalizing behavior. Limited support for the disrupted transition to adulthood model was found. The disrupted adolescent family process model was not supported. Results suggest that problem drug use that occurs early in adulthood may affect later parenting skills, independent of subsequent parent drug use. Findings highlight the importance of parent negative emotionality in influencing his or her own problem behavior, interactions with his or her child, and his or her child's problem behavior. Prevention and treatment programs targeting young adult substance use, poor parenting practices, and child behavior problems should address parent personality factors that may contribute to these behaviors.

The Association of Externalizing Behavior and Parent-Child Relationships: An Intergenerational Study

We investigated the influence of the child's behavior on the quality of the mutual parent-child attachment relationships across three generations. We did so using a prospective longitudinal study which spanned 20 years from adolescence through adulthood. Study participants completed in-class questionnaires as students in the East Harlem area of New York City at the first wave and provided follow-up data at 4 additional points in time. 390 participants were included in these analyses; 59% female, 45% African American, and 55% Puerto Rican. Using structural equation modeling, we determined that externalizing behavior in the child was negatively related to the mutual parent-child attachment relationship for two generations of children. We also found continuity in externalizing behavior for the participant over time and from the participant to his/her child. Additionally, we found continuity in the quality of the mutual attachment relationship from the participant's relationship with his/her parents to the participant's relationship with his/her child. Finally, the mutual attachment relationship of the participant with his/her parents had a negative association with the participant's externalizing behavior in adulthood. Based on these results, we propose that family interventions should focus on the role of the child's externalizing behavior in the context of the parent-child attachment relationship. Furthermore, we suggest that prevention programs should address externalizing behavior as early as possible, as the effects of externalizing behavior in adolescence can persist into adulthood and extend to the next generation.

Gene-environment interaction and the intergenerational transmission of parenting: testing the differential-susceptibility hypothesis

The current study evaluated the differential-susceptibility hypothesis in explaining the intergenerational transmission of parenting, using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Exposure to maternal parenting was measured prospectively when respondents were adolescents and parental stress was measured when they were parents themselves, some 14 years later, on average. Cumulative-genetic plasticity was measured by dominantly coding the presence of putative plasticity alleles from four genes: the 10R allele of DAT1, the A1 allele of DRD2, the 7R allele of DRD4, and the short allele of 5HTTLPR. Results showed that the more plasticity alleles individuals carried (range 0-4), the more that parenting experienced in adolescence predicted future parenting experience. Those respondents with the most plasticity alleles not only experienced the highest levels of parental stress when exposed to negative maternal parenting in adolescence but the lowest levels when exposed to positive maternal parenting in adolescence. These results indicate that differential susceptibility is operative in the case of the intergenerational transmission of parenting, which could explain why estimates of such transmission have proven so modest in studies which fail to consider GXE interactions.