EEG responses to infant faces in young adults can be influenced by the quality of early care experiences with caregivers

BACKGROUND

The quality of early experiences with caregivers affects individual adjustment and can modulate adults' responses to salient social stimuli, like infant faces. However, in the framework of Interpersonal Acceptance-Rejection Theory (IPARTheory), no research to date has examined whether early experiences of acceptance or rejection from caregivers are associated with individual differences in the electrophysiological (EEG) responses to infant faces.

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the associations between the perceived quality of care during childhood and the behavioral and EEG responses to infant and adult faces in non-parent young adults.

METHODS

N = 60 non-parent young adults (30 males; 30 females) completed an Emotion Recognition task displaying emotional and unemotional infant and adult faces during an EEG recording. Memories of past care experiences with mothers and fathers were collected using the short form version of the Parental Acceptance-Rejection scale.

RESULTS

At the behavioral level, slower Reaction Times (RTs) in recognizing all faces were related to higher levels of perceived maternal rejection in young adults; in particular, males who reported higher levels of maternal rejection displayed longer RTs in recognizing faces compared to females. At the neurophysiological level, as the level of perceived paternal rejection increased, the N170 amplitude to infant faces increased. Females who reported higher levels of paternal rejection, compared to males, had a larger increase in the N170 amplitude and a larger decrease in the LPP amplitude in response to emotional faces.

CONCLUSIONS

While a higher perception of maternal rejection hindered the behavioral responses of adults in recognizing faces, those who felt more rejected by their own father during childhood showed an enhanced N170 amplitude to infant faces. This might reflect a greater need for discrimination resources, at a very early stage of infant face processing, in those adults who perceived higher levels of paternal rejection. Adults' sex modulated the associations found at the behavioral and neurophysiological levels. Overall, our findings extended the IPARTheory postulates that being neglected during childhood might trigger perceptual changes in adults, hindering the elaboration of social cues like infant and adult faces at different levels.

Parent-child relationship, parenting behaviors, and adolescents' depressive symptoms after an earthquake: unraveling within-adolescent associations from between-adolescent differences

This study assessed temporal associations between parent-child relationship, parenting behaviors (i.e., warmth, rejection, and overprotection), and adolescents' depressive symptoms after trauma, using random-intercept cross-lagged panel models to distinguish between- and within-adolescent differences. We surveyed Chinese adolescents 12 (Aug 2018; T1), 21 (May 2019; T2), 27 (Nov 2019; T3) months after the Jiuzhaigou earthquake that occurred in August 2017. Of the 585 adolescents who participated in at least two waves of the study, mean age at T1 was 15.50 years old (SD = 1.58 years) and 57.8% were girls. Controlling adolescents' gender, age, ethnicity, trauma exposure at T1, and parents' marital status, between-adolescent results showed that parent-child relationship and parenting behaviors, parent-child relationship and depressive symptoms were correlated across models of parental warmth, rejection, and overprotection, whereas depressive symptoms were only correlated with parental rejection and overprotection. Within-adolescent results indicated that parent-child relationship and adolescents' depressive symptoms had bidirectional associations via the mediation of parental warmth from T1 to T3. Over the longer term following the earthquake, we found that parental rejection was bidirectionally associated with adolescents' depressive symptoms, whereas parental overprotection was unidirectionally influenced by adolescents' depressive symptoms from T2 to T3. In addition, more depressive symptoms in adolescents were associated with worsening parent-child relationship from T2 to T3. In conclusion, shortly after trauma, interventions should focus on improving parent-child relationship and relieving adolescents' depressive symptoms. Over the longer term after trauma, relieving adolescents' depressive symptoms should be prioritized to avoid its eroding effects on parent-child relationship and parenting behaviors, and to break the "vicious cycle".

The Associations Between Parental Phubbing, Adolescent Phubbing, and Adolescents' Adjustments: A Cross-Lagged Panel Network Analysis

A growing body of research indicates that phubbing can negatively influence adolescent development, it is not clear how perceived parental phubbing, adolescent phubbing, and adolescents' adjustment problems concurrently relate to each other at the dimension level. This study conducted the contemporaneous network analyses and cross-lagged network analysis to examine the distinct relationships between the various dimensions of perceived father phubbing, perceived mother phubbing, adolescent phubbing and adolescent's adjustment problems. A total of 1447 Chinese students (60.5% females; Mean age = 16.15, SD = 0.65) completed a survey at two-time points. The results of the contemporaneous network analyses indicated that perceived father/mother ignorance have the strongest links with the dimensions of adolescent phubbing and adolescents' adjustment problems, suggesting that adolescents who reported high levels of perceived father/mother ignorance are more likely to concurrently face other issues and thus should be a primary focus of concern. The cross-lagged panel network analysis revealed that academic burnout is the primary catalyst in this dynamic network, which underscores a child-driven effect within the network. This emphasizes the importance of addressing adolescent academic burnout as a pivotal intervention point, both to alleviate phubbing in parent-adolescent interactions and to tackle adolescents' adjustment problems.

Longitudinal links from attachment with mothers and fathers to adolescent substance use: Internalizing and externalizing pathways

The present study examined whether internalizing and externalizing symptoms may mediate the association between adolescent-mother and adolescent-father attachment and substance use. The sample included 167 adolescents (47% girls) who were assessed at five time points with approximately 1 year between each assessment, beginning in middle adolescence (Mage = 14.07) and ending in the transition to young adulthood (Mage = 18.39). The adolescents reported their perceived attachment with both their mother and father during middle adolescence (Times 1 and 2), their internalizing and externalizing symptoms during late adolescence (Times 3 and 4), and their alcohol use during the transition to young adulthood (Time 5). The results showed that less secure adolescent-father attachment, but not adolescent-mother attachment, was predictive of heightened externalizing and internalizing symptoms. In turn, heightened externalizing symptoms were predictive of heightened alcohol use. Despite the nonsignificant direct association between adolescent-father attachment and alcohol use, less secure adolescent-father attachment was indirectly predictive of greater alcohol use, mediated through heightened externalizing symptoms. The findings highlight the importance of close and trusting father-adolescent relationships in the development of psychopathology and substance use behaviors. The developmental cascade from a less secure adolescent-father attachment to greater externalizing symptoms and heightened substance use, as well as implications for prevention and intervention of young adult substance use, are discussed. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: The differential pathways from adolescent-mother and adolescent-father attachment to substance use during the transition to young adulthood are not well known. Longitudinal data were used to test whether internalizing and externalizing symptoms may mediate the association between adolescent-mother and adolescent-father attachment and substance use. Less secure adolescent-father attachment predicted heightened internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and less secure adolescent-father attachment predicted greater alcohol use, mediated through heightened externalizing symptoms. The findings suggest that addressing insecure attachment with fathers during adolescence may reduce unhealthy substance use during the transition to young adulthood.

An intergenerational examination of retrospective and current depression patterns among Black families

BACKGROUND

There is limited information regarding the intergenerational transmission of mental health among three generations (i.e., grandparents, parents, and children) of Black families. Given that intergenerational and kinship ties are integral in Black families, this study explores the context that might contribute to the generational transmission of mental health among Black families.

METHODS

The present study examined the retrospective family history of mental health among fathers and mothers, current reports of their depression, and their children's internalizing and depressive symptoms among a sample of 2530 Black families from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study using waves 4 to 6. All analyses were conducted using STATA 15.1.

RESULTS

Focal children's maternal and paternal grandparents' history of mental health was associated with higher odds of depression in their mothers and fathers; in addition, child-internalizing symptoms were associated with a report of depression in maternal grandparents in waves 4 and 5. Children of mothers who were depressed had higher internalizing scores in waves 4, 5, and 6.

LIMITATIONS

This descriptive study did not account for how parenting might also be protective against childhood internalizing behaviors. A retrospective account may not fully encapsulate a complete understanding of mental health patterns.

CONCLUSIONS

In treating the mental and behavioral health of Black families, it is essential to focus on multiple generations of family health, given that family history is the strongest predictor of the youth's onset of depression. The utility of these findings in understanding psychological distress and strengths among Black families is discussed.

The Relationship Between Parental Phubbing and Interpersonal Aggression in Adolescents: The Role of Rejection Sensitivity and School Climate

The impact of parental phubbing has attracted the attention of researchers, especially concerning adolescents' online behavior. However, limited research has studied the influence of parental phubbing on interpersonal aggression, including the underlying mechanism. Grounded in parental acceptance-rejection theory, the present study investigated the association between parental phubbing and interpersonal aggression as well as the mediating role of rejection sensitivity among adolescents. Additionally, school climate was explored as a moderator based on social ecological theory. The multiple questionnaires were completed by 914 Chinese adolescents (M = 12.61; SD = 1.73; 49.78% girls). The results revealed a positive correlation between parental phubbing and aggression, which was mediated by rejection sensitivity. That is, adolescents who experienced parental phubbing were more likely to exhibit rejection sensitivity, which further triggered aggression. Moreover, school climate acted as a moderator in the model. Specifically, we found no significant moderating effect of school climate on parental phubbing and aggression. However, school climate moderated the relationship between rejection sensitivity and aggression. A positive school climate buffered the associations of rejection sensitivity and aggression. Additionally, school climate moderated the relationship between parental phubbing and rejection sensitivity. The relationship between parental phubbing and rejection sensitivity became nonsignificant when adolescents were in a negative school climate, and those adolescents reported higher rejection sensitivity whether they experienced parental phubbing or not. Parental phubbing was more strongly associated with adolescents' rejection sensitivity in a positive school climate. With a lower level of parental phubbing, rejection sensitivity is sharply reduced. The results deepen our understanding of the relationship between parental phubbing and aggression and its underlying mechanisms. It also implicates preventative interventions to reduce the risk of parental phubbing in interpersonal aggression among adolescents.

Structural model of resilience based on parental support: the mediating role of hope and active coping

Resilience is an essential trait in the academic and non-academic lives of students that has been associated with positive psychological and non-psychological outcomes. Given the importance and role of resilience, the main goal of this study was to create a structural model of resilience based on parental support and emphasizing the mediating role of hope and coping. The research design was correlational in nature and used structural equation modeling (SEM). The population of this study included high school students in Tehran city in 2019-2020 school year, and the sample consisted of 560 students selected by cluster sampling method. By applying Spearman correlation analysis and structural equation modeling, a significant relationship between hope, coping, resilience, and parental support was found. Both the SEM measurement and structural models provided a good fit. The significant findings of the present study include the direct and significant effect of parental support on resilience. The indirect and significant effect of parental support on resilience through the mediating role of hope and coping was also confirmed. Overall, the results of this study show that the effect of parental support on resilience can be improved by promoting hope and coping styles.

Feeling Not Wanted/Loved and Depression: Does Gender Matter?

Depression affects over 17 million American adults yearly and has been identified as the leading cause of disability in people between the ages of 15 and 44 years. There is evidence that feeling neglect or a lack of parental attachment during childhood is associated with depression. One construct that has been overlooked is love from a parent. The purpose of this study was to analyze the association between individuals who felt not wanted/loved during adolescence and lifetime depression and to examine this association by gender. We examined 5114 participants aged 24-32 years at Wave IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) public use dataset. We used logistic regression analysis to determine the association between an individual feeling not wanted/loved by their parent/caregiver prior to age 18, covariates, and lifetime depression. We then stratified by gender and ran logistic models for both men and women separately. Overall, 16.2% (n = 827) reported lifetime depression diagnosis, while 16.5% of the participants reported feeling not wanted/loved "often," while 29.8% reported it as "sometimes." Feeling not wanted/loved "often" was associated with higher odds of depression (AOR = 3.00; 95% CI, 2.45-3.66; p < .001) versus "sometimes" (AOR = 1.59; 95% CI, 1.31-1.90; p < .001). When stratified by gender, feeling not loved/wanted was associated with depression among both men (AOR = 3.70; 95% CI, 2.60-5.25; p < .001) and women (AOR = 2.73; 95% CI, 2.13-3.48; p < .001). Feeling not loved or wanted by a parent/caregiver during adolescence has serious implications, for both men and women. Future studies should further examine this construct and identify family-based interventions that focus on parent/caregiver and child relationships.

New Paths for Parental Warmth and Subjective Well-Being: The Mediator Roles of Automatic Negative Thoughts

A growing number of studies have pointed out that parental acceptance-rejection, which is the degree of warmth in parenting, is an important factor that influences not only children's but also adults' subjective well-being. However, few studies have analyzed subjective well-being in adulthood based on the emergence of cognitive automatic thinking processes that are triggered by the level of parental warmth. Specifically, the mediator role of negative automatic thoughts in the relationship between parental warmth and subjective well-being is still under debate. This present study extended the parental acceptance and rejection theory by integrating automatic negative thoughts into the core concept of cognitive behavioral theory. The present study attempts to examine the mediator role of negative automatic thoughts in the relationship between retrospective reports of emerging adults' parental warmth and their subjective well-being. The participants consist of 680 of 49.4% women and 50.6% men Turkish-speaking emerging adults. The Adult Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire Short-Form was used to measure parental warmth for their past experience, the negative automatic thoughts measured by the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire, and life satisfaction, negative and positive emotions of participants were measured by the Subjective Well-being Scale for their present level. Mediation analysis through the bootstrap sampling method via indirect custom dialog was used to examine data. The models supported the hypotheses, the retrospective reports of parental warmth in childhood predict the subjective well-being of emerging adults. The automatic negative thoughts had competitive mediation on this relationship. The perceived parental warmth in childhood decreases automatic negative thoughts, then turns to affect greater subjective well-being in adulthood. The current study results contribute to the counselling practice by suggesting that decreasing negative automatic thoughts could benefit the subjective well-being of emerging adults. Further, parental warmth interventions and family counselling have the potential to enhance these benefits.

The Mediation of Care and Overprotection between Parent-Adolescent Conflicts and Adolescents' Psychological Difficulties during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Which Role for Fathers?

BACKGROUND

There is evidence of a significant raise in youths' emotional and behavioral difficulties during the pandemic. Only a few studies have addressed parent-adolescent conflict, and none investigated the possible mediating effect of parenting in the association between conflicts with parents and adolescents' symptoms. This study aimed at investigating youths' psychological symptoms during the pandemic, focusing on the predicting effect of parent-adolescent conflict. The mediating role of care and overprotection was also explored, considering whether adolescent gender moderated this mediation.

METHODS

195 adolescents aged 14-18 years participated in an online longitudinal study. Perceived conflict with parents and parenting dimensions (Parental Bonding Instrument; PBI) were assessed at baseline (2021). Self-reported psychological difficulties (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; SDQ) were collected at baseline and after one year (2022).

RESULTS

A significantly severer symptomatology was found in adolescents having a conflictual relationship with one or both parents. Major conflicts with parents correlated with lower care and greater overprotection in mothers and fathers. However, parental overprotection and maternal care were not mediators of the relationship between conflict and youths' difficulties. The only exception was represented by paternal care that fully mediated this relationship in both adolescent males and females.

CONCLUSIONS

Although further investigations are needed to overcome limitations due to the small sample, findings extend our insight into the impact of parent-adolescent conflict, highlighting the role of fathers' care and the need to maximize their involvement in clinical interventions.

The role of paternal and maternal warmth and hostility on daughter's psychosocial outcomes: The insidious effects of father warmth combined with high paternal hostility

Introduction

Despite the well-accepted view on the importance of parental warmth and parental hostility for adolescent development, few studies have examined the joint interactive effects of these two key aspects of parenting. Furthermore, research comparing maternal and paternal parenting is limited, with the father-daughter relationship during adolescence remaining one of the more understudied familial contexts. Given that family processes are key for the intergenerational transmission of inequality, these parent-child relationships may be especially important for youth at risk for exposure to violence.

Objectives

Using a sample of juvenile female offenders, this study examined the associations between the perceived warmth and hostility in the father-daughter and mother-daughter relationships on daughters' depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, romantic partner warmth, romantic partner hostility, and the daughter's sense of agency. We hypothesized that high perceived parental warmth would moderate the effects of parental hostility by protecting daughters from the negative effects of parental hostility, with stronger effects for the father-daughter than the mother-daughter relationship.

Results

In contrast, our paternal relationship findings across four of the five outcomes suggest a moderation in the opposite direction - that is, high perceived father warmth exacerbates the deleterious effects of father hostility on daughters' depressive symptoms, anxiety, romantic partner warmth, and romantic partner hostility. Maternal warmth, and not hostility, had a direct association with these four outcomes, with stronger explanatory power shown for the father-daughter than the mother-daughter model. Higher agency was associated with maternal hostility only.

Conclusion

Our findings suggest that daughters might be modeling and internalizing the relationship with their fathers (for better or worse) when they perceive it as warm and supportive. Consequently, adolescent girls whose fathers exhibit hostile behavior may benefit from emotional distancing from their fathers.

Perceived Parental Undifferentiated Rejection and Children's Personality Dispositions: A Meta-Analysis of Multicultural Studies

Prior multicultural meta-analyses have shown that three of the four individual expressions of parental rejection (viz., coldness/lack of affection, hostility/aggression, and indifference/neglect) tend to be significantly associated with all seven of the personality dispositions most central to interpersonal acceptance-rejection theory (IPARTheory). These dispositions include hostility/aggression, dependence, negative self-esteem, negative self-adequacy, emotional instability, emotional unresponsiveness, and negative worldview. However, it was unknown whether the fourth expression of rejection (i.e. undifferentiated rejection) tends to be associated transculturally, as predicted by the theory, with this cluster of dispositions among children. Thus, this meta-analysis investigated 1) the extent to which children's perceptions of maternal and paternal undifferentiated rejection were related to these personality dispositions, and 2) the extent to which these relations varied by gender of parent. To address these questions, we performed a meta-analysis on 16 studies involving 12,538 children in 14 countries. Results showed significant associations between all seven personality dispositions and both maternal and paternal undifferentiated rejection. The results also showed significantly stronger relations between maternal than paternal undifferentiated rejection on five of the seven indices of children's personality.

The Relationship Between Parental Phubbing and Short-Form Videos Addiction Among Chinese Adolescents

"Phubbing" is a new term that is used to define an act of neglecting an individual's companion/s in a daily social context to focus on that individual's smartphone. This study explored the relationship between parental phubbing (PP) and adolescent short-form videos addiction (SFVA), and the mediating role of relative deprivation (RD) and the moderating role of peer communication (PC) in this relationship. A total of 549 high-school students from Northern China voluntarily participated in the survey. The direct effect indicated that PP was positively related to adolescents' SFVA. The mediating effect indicated that RD played a mediating role between PP and adolescents' SFVA. The moderating effect indicated that PC buffered the negative associations of PP/RD with adolescents' SFVA.

Parental Socialization, Delinquency during Adolescence and Adjustment in Adolescents and Adult Children

Although parental socialization has an influence on child development, current research is questioning which combination of parental strictness and warmth acts as protective or risk factors, especially during adolescence when the child is more vulnerable. The sample was 2125 participants, 58.7% female, divided into four age groups: adolescents (28.57%), young adults (28.38%), middle-aged adults (23.95%), and older adults (19.11%). The families were classified into four parenting styles: neglectful, indulgent, authoritative, and authoritarian according to their warmth and strictness scores. The psychosocial adjustment was measured by children’s scores on academic/professional self-concept, self-esteem, delinquency during adolescence, and benevolence values. A MANOVA 4 × 2 × 4 was applied with parenting styles, sex, and age group as independent variables. The results showed that, for adolescents and adult children, only parenting styles characterized by warmth (i.e., indulgent, and authoritative) were found to factor against delinquency during adolescence and benefit greater academic/professional self-concept, self-esteem, and benevolence values, while parenting without warmth (i.e., authoritarian, and neglectful) were identified as risk factors. Contrary to classical research, the present findings seriously question the universal benefits of strict parenting as the only optimal strategy to protect not only against delinquency, but also to foster an adequate self and the internalization of social values.

"Mtoto Wa Nyoka Ni Nyoka," The Child of a Snake is a Snake: A Narrative Analysis of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Perpetration of Interpersonal Violence Among Men in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Childhood exposure to adversity, including abuse and neglect, is consistently found to be a predictor of intimate partner violence (IPV) and peer violence (PV) perpetration in adulthood. The purpose of this study is to qualitatively examine factors that may facilitate or impede the use of violence among those who have been exposed to adversity early in life. We are particularly interested in protective experiences or environments for these participants. The qualitative data were analyzed through thematic coding and narrative analysis of participant life histories.We found three salient themes: (a) parental acceptance and early attachment is protective for coping with stress with intimate partners in adulthood; (b) certain key life turning points can provide a protective context against violent behavior in adulthood; and (c) poverty in adulthood compromises one's ability to cope with stress and anger in adulthood.Our findings contextualize the different factors that may affect the behavior of perpetration of interpersonal violence among high-risk men in Dar es Salaam who have been exposed to adversity in childhood. These findings provide important information on the risk and protective factors for interpersonal violence spanning from childhood to adulthood. This study highlights the importance of child development interventions in this situation, both for the primary prevention of child adversity and for promoting resilience and mitigating the effects of childhood adversity that put men at risk for perpetration of interpersonal violence in adulthood.

The Interaction Effect of Parental Rejection and Oxytocin Receptor Gene Polymorphism on Depression: A Cross-Cultural Study in Non-Clinical Samples

Parental rejection has been consistently empirically implicated in a wide array of developmental, behavioural and psychological problems worldwide. However, the interaction effect between parental rejection in childhood and the oxytocin receptor genotype on psychological adjustment has yet to be investigated. The present study aimed to investigate gene–environment interaction effects between parental rejection (maternal and paternal) and oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene polymorphisms (rs53576 and rs2254298) on depressive symptoms in adults in different cultural contexts. Adults from Italy and Japan (N = 133, age = 18–27 years, females = 68) were preliminarily genotyped and then completed the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire for mothers and fathers and the Beck Depression Inventory. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis showed that paternal rejection was related to self-reported depression and that the effect of parental rejection was moderated by OXTR gene polymorphisms and nationality. Among Italians, OXTR rs2254298 A-carriers showed resilience to negative early parental care, whereas among Japanese, OXTR rs53576 non-A-carriers showed resistance to negative early paternal care. These findings align with expected relations between perceived acceptance–rejection and an individual’s psychological adjustment, as proposed by interpersonal acceptance–rejection theory, and indicate the need for future studies adopting a multicultural and multilevel approach to better understand how the effects of parental rejection extend into adulthood.

Childhood parenting and adolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms: Moderation by multilocus hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis-related genetic variation

Genetic variants that regulate hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function have been demonstrated to moderate the association between parenting and mental health. However, extant research has focused primarily on (i) effects of individual genes or (ii) maternal as opposed to paternal parenting. Using a multilocus genetic profile score (MGPS) approach, the current study is the first to examine the moderation effect of multilocus HPA-axis related genetic variants on the association of both maternal and paternal parenting with adolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms. In a sample of 772 Chinese Han adolescents (Mage = 16.48 ± 1.40 years; 50.1% girls), a theory-driven MGPS was calculated using six polymorphisms within HPA-axis related genes (CRHR1, NR3C1, NR3C2, FKBP5, COMT, and HT1RA). Results showed that the MGPS interacted with both maternal and paternal parenting in the association with adolescent internalizing symptoms, but not externalizing symptoms. Consistent with the differential susceptibility model, adolescents with high versus low MGPS exhibited not only more internalizing symptoms when exposed to low quality of parenting but also less internalizing symptoms when exposed to high quality of parenting. The current findings highlight the potential value of using a multilocus approach to understanding gene-by-environment interaction (G×E) effects underlying mental health. Within such G×E effects, not only maternal but also paternal parenting should be addressed.

Intergenerational impacts of trauma and hardship through parenting

BACKGROUND

Millions of people worldwide experience severe trauma in their lifetime. Trauma has immediate and long-term effects on emotional wellbeing. Moreover, the experiences of one generation may influence subsequent generations via social and biological pathways. Poor mental health and emotion dysregulation associated with trauma may affect parenting behaviours, which may have long-lasting effects on children's development.

METHODS

We use longitudinal data from a unique sample of 732 caregivers of children aged 6-36 months living in extremely poor rural households in Rwanda to examine associations of caregiver lifetime trauma, recent daily hardships, mental health, and emotion dysregulation with parenting behaviours reflecting parental acceptance and rejection of their offspring.

RESULTS

Cumulative trauma exposure (β = .234, p < .001) and recent daily hardships (β = .323, p < .001) are associated with higher levels of internalising symptoms. Trauma (β = .257, p < .001) and daily hardships (β = .323, p < 0.001) are also associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Internalising symptoms predict more rejection (β = .177, p = .001), but show no association with acceptance. Caregiver PTSD symptoms predict more rejection (β = .277, p < .001) and less acceptance (β = -.190, p = .003). Both internalising symptoms (β = .557, p < .001) and PTSD symptoms (β = .606, p < .001) are strongly associated with poor emotion regulation. Indirect effects suggest that caregiver trauma and hardships affect parenting indirectly via elevated caregiver internalising symptoms and PTSD and that some of these effects are accounted for by emotion dysregulation.

CONCLUSIONS

Caregiver internalising and PTSD symptoms are important mechanisms through which caregiver trauma and hardship affect parenting behaviours. Emotion dysregulation is a shared mechanism linking caregivers' mental health problems with parenting behaviours that reflect acceptance and rejection of the child. Emotion regulation is indicated as a key target for prevention of adverse effects of caregiver trauma on mental health and child wellbeing.

Effects of Parental Warmth and Behavioral Control on Adolescent Externalizing and Internalizing Trajectories Across Cultures

We investigated the effects of parental warmth and behavioral control on externalizing and internalizing symptom trajectories from ages 8 to 14 in 1,298 adolescents from 12 cultural groups. We did not find that single universal trajectories characterized adolescent externalizing and internalizing symptoms across cultures, but instead found significant heterogeneity in starting points and rates of change in both externalizing and internalizing symptoms across cultures. Some similarities did emerge. Across many cultural groups, internalizing symptoms decreased from ages 8 to 10, and externalizing symptoms increased from ages 10 to 14. Parental warmth appears to function similarly in many cultures as a protective factor that prevents the onset and growth of adolescent externalizing and internalizing symptoms, whereas the effects of behavioral control vary from culture to culture.

Examining effects of mother and father warmth and control on child externalizing and internalizing problems from age 8 to 13 in nine countries

This study used data from 12 cultural groups in 9 countries (China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and United States; N = 1,315) to investigate bidirectional associations between parental warmth and control, and child externalizing and internalizing behaviors. In addition, the extent to which these associations held across mothers and fathers and across cultures with differing normative levels of parent warmth and control were examined. Mothers, fathers, and children completed measures when children were ages 8 to 13. Multiple-group autoregressive cross-lagged structural equation models revealed that evocative child-driven effects of externalizing and internalizing behavior on warmth and control are ubiquitous across development, cultures, mothers, and fathers. Results also reveal that parenting effects on child externalizing and internalizing behaviors, though rarer than child effects, extend into adolescence when examined separately in mothers and fathers. Father-based parent effects were more frequent than mother effects. Most parent- and child-driven effects appear to emerge consistently across cultures. The rare culture-specific parenting effects suggested that occasionally the effects of parenting behaviors that run counter to cultural norms may be delayed in rendering their protective effect against deleterious child outcomes.

Analyzing the Relationship Between Child-to-Parent Violence and Perceived Parental Warmth

The relationship between child-to-parent violence (CPV) and the perceived parental warmth dimension has been well established. However, it is necessary to further investigate the nature of this relationship considering the involvement of other variables. The objective of this study was to analyze the role of cognitive (hostile attribution), emotional (anger), and social variables (deviant peer group and drug use) in the relationship between the perceived parental warmth dimension (warmth-communication and criticism-rejection) and CPV motivated by reactive or instrumental reasons. The community sample consisted of 1,599 Spanish adolescents (54.8% girls) between the ages of 12 and 18 years (M_age = 14.6, SD = 1.6 years) from different secondary schools in Jaén (75.3%) and Oviedo (24.7%) (Spain). Each participant completed the Child-to-Parent Violence Questionnaire (CPV-Q), the Warmth Scale (WS), adolescents’ version, the Social Information Processing (SIP) in Child-to-parent Conflicts Questionnaire and Deviant Peers and Drug Use Questionnaires. The results indicate that perceived parental warmth is negatively correlated with hostile attribution, adolescent anger, relationship with a deviant peer group, while perceived parental criticism is positively linked to these variables. Likewise, hostile attribution and adolescent anger are positively linked to reactive CPV. Relationship with a deviant peer group is associated with drug use, which also predicts both reactive and instrumental CPV. In sum, a lack of perceived parental warmth has important repercussions in the form of the psychological and social maladjustment of children, which in turn is differentially correlated with reactive or instrumental CPV. Thus, prevention and intervention programs for CPV should consider, on the one hand, working with parents on parental practices that incorporate parental warmth as a fundamental element and, on the other hand, working with children on cognitive, emotional, and social aspects, taking into account the different motivations for this type of violence.

The effects of parental control and warmth on problematic internet use in adolescents: A prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Problematic internet use (PIU) is a highly prevalent condition with severe adverse effects. The literature suggests that parent-child bonding and parental behavioral control exert protective effects against PIU. However, the most relevant studies rely on simplistic measurement of parenting, cross-sectional designs and mixed-aged samples. Our study analyzed the effect of maternal and paternal parenting on PIU by using a prospective design and a cohort sample of same-aged children.

METHODS

Data from 1,019 Czech 12-year-old sixth-graders who were followed until ninth grade were used. Maternal and paternal responsiveness and strictness were reported by children using the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire (PARQ) and the Parental Control Scale (PCS). PIU was measured by the Excessive Internet Use Scale (EIUS).

RESULTS

The self-reported PIU prevalence in nine-graders (15-year-old) was 8.1%. Parenting, reported by adolescents 18 months before PIU screening, showed significant relationships with PIU: parental responsiveness was negatively and moderately associated, while maternal strictness showed a weak positive association; the authoritative parenting style in both parents decreased PIU, with a PIU probability of 3.21%, while a combination of maternal authoritarian and paternal neglectful parenting was associated with PIU probability as high as 20.9%.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

The self-reported prevalence of PIU in Czech adolescents was found to be high. The effects of parenting on PIU were similar to the effects of parenting on other problematic behavior among adolescents. Our findings showed the need for interventions to prevent PIU by helping parents to apply optimal parenting styles.

The effects of parental control and warmth on problematic internet use in adolescents: A prospective cohort study

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Problematic internet use (PIU) is a highly prevalent condition with severe adverse effects. The literature suggests that parent-child bonding and parental behavioral control exert protective effects against PIU. However, the most relevant studies rely on simplistic measurement of parenting, cross-sectional designs and mixed-aged samples. Our study analyzed the effect of maternal and paternal parenting on PIU by using a prospective design and a cohort sample of same-aged children.

METHODS

Data from 1,019 Czech 12-year-old sixth-graders who were followed until ninth grade were used. Maternal and paternal responsiveness and strictness were reported by children using the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire (PARQ) and the Parental Control Scale (PCS). PIU was measured by the Excessive Internet Use Scale (EIUS).

RESULTS

The self-reported PIU prevalence in nine-graders (15-year-old) was 8.1%. Parenting, reported by adolescents 18 months before PIU screening, showed significant relationships with PIU: parental responsiveness was negatively and moderately associated, while maternal strictness showed a weak positive association; the authoritative parenting style in both parents decreased PIU, with a PIU probability of 3.21%, while a combination of maternal authoritarian and paternal neglectful parenting was associated with PIU probability as high as 20.9%.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

The self-reported prevalence of PIU in Czech adolescents was found to be high. The effects of parenting on PIU were similar to the effects of parenting on other problematic behavior among adolescents. Our findings showed the need for interventions to prevent PIU by helping parents to apply optimal parenting styles.

Maternal use of physical and non-physical forms of discipline and preschoolers' social and literacy skills in 25 African countries

OBJECTIVES

Little is known about associations between different forms of discipline and children's literacy, social skills, and behavior in low- and middle-income countries. This study examined maternal use of physical discipline, harsh physical discipline, psychological aggression, and nonphysical discipline and their relative associations with preschool-aged children's social and literacy skills and behavioral difficulty in 25 diverse African countries. We also explored whether belief in physical discipline and sociodemographic factors moderate the associations between different forms of discipline and childhood outcomes.

METHODS

The participants were 32,817 biological mothers and their preschool-aged children from the UNICEF Multiple indicator Cluster Surveys. Information regarding belief in and use of physical and nonphysical forms of discipline and children's social and literacy skills and behavioral difficulty were obtained via questionnaires obtained from mothers in each household.

RESULTS

Psychological aggression was negatively, and nonphysical discipline positively associated with children's literacy skills. Harsh physical discipline, physical discipline, and psychological aggression were positively, and nonphysical discipline negatively associated with behavioral difficulty in children. Psychological aggression, physical discipline, and nonphysical discipline were positively associated with and harsh physical discipline negatively associated with children's social skills. Maternal education, preschool enrollment, and household wealth variously moderated the associations between different modes of discipline and children's literacy and social skills and behavioral difficulty.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings underline the negative consequences of harsh discipline on children's social and literacy skills and behavioral difficulty in African cultural communities.

Psychological maladjustment mediates the link between remembrances of parental rejection in childhood and loneliness in adulthood: A cross-cultural comparative study

Drawing stimulus from interpersonal acceptance-rejection theory, this multicultural study examined relations between men's versus women's remembrances of maternal and paternal acceptance-rejection in childhood and their current level of loneliness, as mediated by adults' self-reported psychological maladjustment. Adults (N = 899) from five nations (Iraq, Italy, the Netherlands, Pakistan, and the United States) responded to the Adult version of the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire-short form for mothers and fathers, the Adult version of the Personality Assessment Questionnaire-short form, and the Interpersonal Acceptance-Rejection Loneliness Scale. Adults' remembrances of maternal and paternal rejection in childhood significantly and independently predicted feelings of loneliness but remembered paternal rejection was more strongly related to these feelings than were remembrances of maternal rejection. Psychological maladjustment fully mediated the effect of remembered maternal rejection but only partially mediated the effect of remembered paternal rejection on loneliness. There were no significant differences in these results across the five countries or genders. Overall, the results suggest that adults' remembrances of parental rejection in childhood-along with the theoretically expected development of psychological maladjustment-are likely to be associated panculturally with the experience of loneliness in adulthood.

Adolescents at risk of anxiety in interaction with their fathers: Studying non-verbal and physiological synchrony

Adolescence is a vulnerable period in terms of the onset of anxiety disorders, and dyadic parent-adolescent interactions may play a key role in either increasing or reducing the risk of psychopathologies. This study examines the presence of physiological synchrony (specifically, linkage in interbeat interval series) and non-verbal synchrony in positive and negative interactions between adolescents (aged 13-16) and their fathers. Non-verbal synchrony was quantified through the coordination of the interactants' body movements, using an automated video-analysis algorithm (motion energy analysis). Participants were made up of 53 parent-adolescent dyads, the latter at either low (n = 28) or high (n = 25) risk of anxiety. Adolescents at low risk of anxiety displayed statistically significant levels of non-verbal synchrony with their fathers during positive interactions. Non-verbal synchrony was not found in the father-adolescent dyads featuring adolescents at high risk of anxiety. Physiological synchrony was not significantly present above chance level in either of the groups of adolescents. Overall, the results suggest that adolescents at high risk of anxiety may have difficulties in managing non-distressing interactions with their fathers. The results also suggest that physiological synchrony is not a straightforward phenomenon.

Examining effects of parent warmth and control on internalizing behavior clusters from age 8 to 12 in 12 cultural groups in nine countries

BACKGROUND

Studies of U.S. and European samples demonstrate that parental warmth and behavioral control predict child internalizing behaviors and vice versa. However, these patterns have not been researched in other cultures. This study investigates associations between parent warmth and control and three child-reported internalizing behavior clusters to examine this question.

METHODS

Data from 12 cultural groups in 9 countries were used to investigate prospective bidirectional associations between parental warmth and control, and three child-reported internalizing behavior types: withdrawn/depressed, anxious/depressed, and somatic problems. Multiple-group structural equation modeling was used to analyze associations in children followed from ages 8 to 12.

RESULTS

Parent warmth and control effects were most pervasive on child-reported withdrawn/depressed problems, somewhat pervasive on anxious/depressed problems and least pervasive on somatic problems. Additionally, parental warmth, as opposed to control, was more consistently associated with child-reported internalizing problems across behavior clusters. Child internalizing behavior effects on parental warmth and control appeared ubiquitously across cultures, and behaviors, but were limited to ages 8-10. Most effects were pancultural, but culture-specific effects emerged at ages 9-10 involving the associations between parent warmth and withdrawn/depressed and somatic behaviors.

CONCLUSIONS

Effects of parent warmth and control appear stronger on some types of child-reported internalizing behaviors. Associations are especially strong with regard to parental warmth across cultures, and culture-specific effects may be accounted for by cultural normativeness of parent warmth and child-reported somatic symptoms. Child internalizing behavior effects on subsequent parenting are common across cultures.

Childhood maltreatment and alcohol-related problems in young adulthood: The protective role of parental warmth

BACKGROUND

Alcohol use among young adults is highly prevalent. Individuals exposed to childhood maltreatment are particularly vulnerable to alcohol use and alcohol-related problems. Few studies have examined family protective factors, such as parental warmth, that may mitigate the effects of childhood maltreatment on alcohol-related problems.

OBJECTIVE

The current study seeks to examine the extent to which parental warmth reduces the effect of childhood exposure to maltreatment on alcohol-related problems in young adulthood.

PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING

Participants were young adults (N = 337; mean age = 21.7), who were recruited from an urban community and completed in-person interviews assessing childhood maltreatment, parental warmth, and alcohol-related problems.

METHODS

Multiple hierarchical linear regression models were used to examine whether maternal and paternal warmth reduced the impact of childhood exposure to maltreatment on alcohol-related problems in young adulthood. Common risk factors for alcohol-related problems, including psychological symptoms and peer and parental alcohol use, were also entered into the models.

RESULTS

We found a significant moderating effect of paternal warmth on the associations between childhood emotional abuse and alcohol-related problems (β= -0.29, p < .05). Specifically, the association between emotional abuse and alcohol-related problems was weaker among individuals with higher levels of paternal warmth. Moderating effects of maternal warmth on the maltreatment-problematic alcohol use relation were not supported.

CONCLUSION

The results of this research suggest that parental warmth may not only relate to fewer alcohol-related problems among offspring, but may also modify the associations between childhood emotional abuse and alcohol-related problems during young adulthood.

Remembrances of parental rejection are associated with loneliness as mediated by psychological maladjustment in young Bangladeshi men but not women

Loneliness is a significant public health issue that affects young adults. This investigation drew from interpersonal acceptance-rejection theory to understand how remembrances of parental rejection contributed to psychological maladjustment and loneliness in Bangladeshi college students (N = 300; 50% female). Students reported their remembrances of mothers' and fathers' acceptance-rejection, their current psychological maladjustment, and loneliness. Remembrances of rejection by parents in childhood were associated with psychological maladjustment (hostility/aggression, negative self-esteem, negative self-adequacy, emotional unresponsiveness, emotional instability, and negative worldview) for young adult men and women. Psychological maladjustment, in turn, was associated with feelings of loneliness in young adulthood for young men, but not women. Remembrances of parental rejection were also associated with greater hostility and aggression over and above general psychological functioning among both men and women. Findings are discussed in the context of different social and structural features of young adulthood for women and men in Bangladesh.

Relationship between Parental Socialization, Emotional Symptoms, and Academic Performance during Adolescence: The Influence of Parents' and Teenagers' Gender

Scientific interest in students' emotional and psychosocial experiences has been increasing in the last years due to their influence on students' learning processes and academic performance. The present manuscript tries to go further in the study of the relationship between perceived parenting socialization and academic performance by analyzing not only their direct effects, but also by testing their indirect influence through other variables such as students' psychological and school maladjustment, especially focusing on gender differences (both of students and parents). The sample comprised 823 students (416 males and 407 females) from the Basque Country (Spain), with ages ranging between 12 and 16 years (M = 13.7, SD = 1.2). Students completed a sociodemographic data form, the PARQ-Control questionnaire, and the BASC-S3 test. Teachers answered an ad hoc question on each student's academic performance. The data showed that, both for males and females, the same structure of parent-teenager relationship predicted teenagers' academic performance, via psychological and school maladjustment. However, the intensity of the relationship between parental acceptance and teenagers' results in all the other factors differed depending on teenagers' gender. Fathers' influence was greater in males, and mothers' influence was higher in females. This study is considered a starting point for a theoretical model predicting academic performance and psychological and school maladjustment among teenagers.

Parental Socialization Styles: The Contribution of Paternal and Maternal Affect/Communication and Strictness to Family Socialization Style

The aim of this study is two-fold: (a) to determine the general degree of family affect/communication and strictness by examining the combination of the two classical dimensions of mother parenting style: affect/communication and strictness, and (b) to analyze the impact of both parents' affect and strictness on the family style, thereby exploring the specific contribution made by each parent's style and dimension. Participants were 1190 Spanish students, 47.1% boys and 52.3% girls (M = 14.68; SD = 1.76). The Affect Scale (EA-H) and the Rules and Demandingness Scale (ENE-H) (both by Fuentes, Motrico, and Bersabé, 1999) were used. Structural equation models (SEMs) were extracted using the EQS program. The results reveal that it is not the father's and the mother's parenting style combined, but rather the combination of maternal and paternal affect/communication, and maternal and paternal strictness which generates one perception of family affect and another of family strictness. The results also indicated that the weight of both dimensions varies in accordance with the parent's gender, with maternal dimensions playing a more important role in family socialization style.

Evaluating Mindful With Your Baby/Toddler: Observational Changes in Maternal Sensitivity, Acceptance, Mind-Mindedness, and Dyadic Synchrony

Studies on the effectiveness of mindful parenting interventions predominantly focused on self-report measures of parenting, whereas observational assessments of change are lacking. The present study examined whether the Mindful with your baby/toddler training leads to observed changes in maternal behavior and mother-child interaction quality. Mindful with your baby/toddler is a 8- or 9-week mindful parenting training for clinically referred mothers of young children (aged 0-48 months), who experience parental stress, mother-child interaction problems, and/or whose children experience regulation problems. The study involved a quasi-experimental non-random design including a sample of 50 mothers who were diagnosed with a mood disorder (n = 21, 42%), an anxiety disorder (n = 7, 14%), post-traumatic stress disorder (n = 6, 12%), or other disorder (n = 7, 14%). Mothers completed a parental stress questionnaire and participated in home observations with their babies (n = 36) or toddlers (n = 14) during a waitlist, pretest, and posttest assessment. Maternal sensitivity, acceptance, and mind-mindedness were coded from free-play interactions and dyadic synchrony was coded from face-to-face interactions. Sensitivity and acceptance were coded with the Ainsworth's maternal sensitivity scales. Mind-mindedness was assessed by calculating frequency and proportions of appropriate and nonattuned mind-related comments. Dyadic synchrony was operationalized by co-occurrences of gazes and positive facial expressions and maternal and child responsiveness in vocal interaction within the dyad. Coders were blind to the measurement moment. From waitlist to pretest, no significant improvements were observed. At posttest, mothers reported less parenting stress, and were observed to show more accepting behavior and make less nonattuned comments than at pretest, and children showed higher levels of responsiveness. The outcomes suggest that the Mindful with your baby/toddler training affects not only maternal stress, but also maternal behavior, particularly (over)reactive parenting behaviors, which resulted in more acceptance, better attunement to child's mental world, and more "space" for children to respond to their mothers during interactions. Mindful with your baby/toddler may be a suitable intervention for mothers of young children with (a combination of) maternal psychopathology, parental stress, and problems in the parent-child interaction and child regulation problems.

Parental acceptance and children's psychological adjustment: The moderating effects of interpersonal power and prestige across age

The differential contribution of maternal and paternal acceptance-rejection to children's psychological adjustment has been explained by differences in interpersonal power and prestige within families; however, there is not yet enough empirical support for this explanation. This study examines the moderating effects of interpersonal power and prestige on the relationship between perceived parental acceptance-rejection and psychological adjustment across children's sex and age. The sample was composed of 913 children ranging in age from 9 to 16 years. Multiple hierarchical regression analyses in the total sample showed a significant and independent contribution of parental acceptance-rejection and parental power and prestige. No moderating effects of interpersonal power and prestige were found for the total sample. However, when the regression analyses were conducted across different age groups, maternal acceptance had a higher contribution to psychological adjustment in children from nine to ten years old. Interestingly, the moderating effects of interpersonal prestige (not interpersonal power) were also significant in younger participants. Furthermore, the moderating effects of prestige on maternal acceptance-rejection were different in late childhood than in early adolescence. These results suggest how parental prestige may explain the higher contribution of maternal acceptance to younger children's psychological adjustment.

The Role of Parental Acceptance⁻Rejection in Emotional Instability During Adolescence

The present study focuses on analyzing the relationship between the parental acceptance-rejection perceived by adolescents and emotional instability from the early stages of adolescence. Special attention will be paid to potential differences between mothers and fathers. A total of 1181 students, aged 11-17, took part in the study. We used the factor of emotional instability in the Big Five Questionnaire (BFQ-NA) and an affect scale (EA-H) to measure parental acceptance-rejection. The analyses performed show a clear association between emotional instability with maternal/paternal criticism and rejection. Specifically, maternal criticism and rejection in early adolescence and paternal criticism and rejection in middle adolescence were associated with emotional instability, confirming the association between children's and adolescents' emotional adjustment and family dynamics. This study makes interesting contributions to understanding paternal and maternal rejection during the different stages of adolescence. These differences should be incorporated into the research on parental influence and its role in the development of personality among adolescents.

Associations Between Perception of Parental Behavior and "Person Picking an Apple From a Tree" Drawings Among Children With and Without Special Educational Needs (SEN)

The present study examines and compares associations between perceptions of parental acceptance/rejection in 191 Greek school age children (84 inclusion class students and 107 typical class students, age range 10-12), and their "Person Picking an Apple from a Tree" (PPAT) drawings. Perception of parental behavior was measured by the "Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire" (Rohner and Khaleque, 2005). Drawing content was analyzed quantitatively according to a reliable rating system called the Symbolic Content in PPAT drawings (SC-PPAT: Bat Or et al., 2014, 2017). We employed k-means cluster analysis and obtained three relatively discrete PPAT scripts. Drawing content elements and scripts were found to be associated with children's perceptions of parental behavior; these associations were found mainly among children with special educational needs (SEN) and boys. Results are discussed in terms of children's subjective experience, clinical implications, and future research directions.

Impact of the Familiar Environment in 11⁻14-Year-Old Minors' Mental Health

The analysis of the mental health in children under 14 years has become a research topic of global interest where the family can be a key factor for protection or risk against mental health problems. With this work, we intend to determine, employing binary logistic regression analysis, whether parental acceptance-rejection perceived by boys and girls can predict their mental health. Seven hundred sixty-two students participated, the average age was 12.23 years; 53.8% (n = 410) girls and 46.2% (n = 352) boys. We have used the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), self-reported version and the Affection Scale children version (EA-H) for parental acceptance-rejection to assess mental health. The odds ratio (OR) of the logistic models reports that there is a greater probability of having mental health problems in boys and girls when they perceive that they are highly criticized and rejected by their parents. With our work, we highlight the importance of the environment and family affection on mental health. The perception of the children about the rejection, aversion, and criticism of their parents constitutes a risk factor in the manifestation of mental health problems.

Reward sensitivity, impulse control, and social cognition as mediators of the link between childhood family adversity and externalizing behavior in eight countries

Using data from 1,177 families in eight countries (Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the United States), we tested a conceptual model of direct effects of childhood family adversity on subsequent externalizing behaviors as well as indirect effects through psychological mediators. When children were 9 years old, mothers and fathers reported on financial difficulties and their use of corporal punishment, and children reported perceptions of their parents' rejection. When children were 10 years old, they completed a computerized battery of tasks assessing reward sensitivity and impulse control and responded to questions about hypothetical social provocations to assess their hostile attributions and proclivity for aggressive responding. When children were 12 years old, they reported on their externalizing behavior. Multigroup structural equation models revealed that across all eight countries, childhood family adversity had direct effects on externalizing behaviors 3 years later, and childhood family adversity had indirect effects on externalizing behavior through psychological mediators. The findings suggest ways in which family-level adversity poses risk for children's subsequent development of problems at psychological and behavioral levels, situated within diverse cultural contexts.

Social Support, Parenting, and Social Emotional Development in Young Mexican and Dominican American Children

This study focused on social support and its association with child developmental outcomes, indirectly through parenting practices, in families of 4-5 year old Latino children. Data were collected from mothers and teachers of 610 Mexican American (MA) and Dominican American (DA) children. Mothers reported on perceived social support, parenting practices and children's problem and adaptive behavior functioning at home, and teachers reported on mothers' parent involvement and children's problem and adaptive behavior functioning in the classroom. Results showed that support received from family was higher than support received from school networks for both ethnic groups. Moreover, familial support was associated with child behavior, mediated by positive parenting practices, whereas support from school networks was not associated with child outcomes. During early childhood, social support from family members may be an important protective factor that can promote positive behavioral functioning among Latino children.

Relations among adults' remembrances of parental acceptance-rejection in childhood, self-reported psychological adjustment, and adult psychopathology

AIMS

The aim of the study was to examine relationships among recollections of maternal and paternal acceptance-rejection in childhood and the level of psychological adjustment among adults diagnosed with schizophrenia, social anxiety, and nonclinical control. The study focused primarily on adults with schizophrenia and social anxiety in comparison to nonclinical adults.

METHODS

Fifty-three adults diagnosed with schizophrenia, 51 adults with self-reported social anxiety, and 147 nonclinical controls between the ages of 18 and 62 participated in the study. Data were collected using adult versions of the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire for mothers and for fathers, Personality Assessment Questionnaire, Brief Symptom Inventory, Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, and the Demographic Information Form.

RESULTS

Findings of analyses showed that participants in the schizophrenia and social anxiety groups remembered having experienced significantly more maternal rejection in childhood than did the nonclinical group. Patient with schizophrenia also reported more recollections of paternal rejection than the nonclinical group. Both clinical groups self-reported more psychological maladjustment than did the nonclinical group. Regression analysis indicated that even though the overall psychological adjustment of adults diagnosed with schizophrenia was predicted by both maternal and paternal acceptance-rejection, psychological adjustment of adults in the social anxiety group was predicted only by maternal (but not paternal) acceptance-rejection.

CONCLUSION

This study provides evidence about the long-lasting associations between adults' recollections of parental acceptance-rejection in childhood and their psychological adjustment in two mental disorders, in which genetic and environmental factors have a different weight.

The Daily Relation between Parental Rejection and Emotional Eating in Youngsters: A Diary Study

KEY POINTS  Cross-sectional survey studies have demonstrated significant associations between parental rejection and peer rejection on the one hand and disturbed eating in youngsters, like emotional eating, on the other hand. In this study, we wanted to expand our knowledge on these relationships by investigating the daily fluctuations in these variables. Youngsters completed a 7-day diary to assess daily parental rejection, peer rejection and emotional eating. Using multilevel analyses, our results showed that daily variations in parental rejection were related to daily variations in emotional eating of the youngsters. This highlights the importance of addressing the parent-child relationship in interventions for emotional eating in youngsters. Background: This study investigated the daily relation between parental rejection and peer rejection on the one hand and emotional eating in youngsters on the other hand. Methods: Participants (N = 55) between the ages of 11 and 15 years completed a 7-day diary. A multilevel design was used to examine day-to-day within-person relationships between parental and peer rejection (measured by CHS) and emotional eating (measured by DEBQ-C) of youngsters. Results: The results showed that daily variations in parental rejection were related to daily variations in emotional eating of the youngsters. Daily peer rejection was only marginally significantly related to the emotional eating of the youngsters. Conclusions: These results indicate that especially parental rejection, and to a lesser extent peer rejection, are associated with the emotional eating of youngsters. The findings highlight the importance of addressing the parent-child relationship in interventions for emotional eating in youngsters.

Parental warmth and psychiatric disorders among Puerto Rican children in two different socio-cultural contexts

BACKGROUND

Parental warmth (PW) has a strong influence on child development and may precede the onset of psychiatric disorders in children. PW is interconnected with other family processes (e.g., coercive discipline) that may also influence the development of psychiatric disorders in children. We prospectively examined the association between PW and child psychiatric disorders (anxiety, major depression disorder, ADHD, disruptive behavior disorders) over the course of three years among Puerto Rican youth, above and beyond the influence of other family factors.

METHODS

Boricua Youth Study participants, Puerto Rican children 5 to 13 years of age at Wave 1 living in the South Bronx (New York) (SB) and San Juan and Canguas (PR) (n = 2,491), were followed for three consecutive years. Youth psychiatric disorders were measured by the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children-IV (DISC-IV). Generalized Linear Mixed models tested the association between PW (Wave 1) and psychiatric disorders in the next two years adjusting for demographic characteristics and family processes.

RESULTS

Higher levels of PW were related to lower odds of child anxiety and major depressive disorder over time (OR = 0.69[0.60; 0.79]; 0.49[0.41; 0.58], respectively). The strength of the association between PW and ADHD and disruptive behavior disorder declined over time, although it was still significant in the last assessment (OR = 0.44[0.37; 0.52]; 0.46[0.39; 0.54], respectively). PW had a unique influence on psychiatric disorders beyond the influence of other parenting and family processes. Stronger associations were observed among girls for depression and ADHD.

CONCLUSIONS

Incorporating PW behaviors such as acceptance, support, and comforting into interventions focused on parenting skills may help prevent child psychiatric disorders.

The impact of a family skills training intervention among Burmese migrant families in Thailand: A randomized controlled trial

Objective

To conduct a randomized controlled trial assessing the impact of a family-based intervention delivered to Burmese migrant families displaced in Thailand on parenting and family functioning.

Participants and procedures

Participants included 479 Burmese migrant families from 20 communities in Thailand. Families, including 513 caregivers and 479 children aged 7 to 15 years, were randomized to treatment and waitlist control groups. The treatment group received a 12-session family-based intervention delivered to groups of families by lay facilitators. Adapted standardized and locally derived measures were administered before and after the intervention to assess parent-child relationship quality, discipline practices, and family functioning.

Results

Compared with controls, intervention families demonstrated improved quality of parent-child interactions on scales of parental warmth and affection (Effect size (ES) = 0.25 caregivers; 0.26 children, both p < 0.05) and negative relationship quality (ES = -0.37, p < 0.001 caregivers; -0.22 children, p < 0.05). Both children and caregivers also reported an effect on relationship quality based on a locally derived measure (ES = 0.40 caregivers, p < .001; 0.43 children, p < .05). Family functioning was improved, including family cohesion (ES = 0.46 caregivers; 0.36 children; both p < 0.001) and decreased negative interactions (ES = -0.30 caregivers, p < 0.01; -0.24 children, p < 0.05). Family communication also improved according to children only (ES = 0.29, p < 0.01). Caregivers, but not children, reported decreased harsh discipline (ES = -0.39, p < 0.001), and no effects were observed on use of positive discipline strategies. Treatment attendance was high, with participants attending a mean of 9.7 out of 12 sessions.

Conclusion

The intervention increased protective aspects of family well-being for migrant children and caregivers in a middle-income country. The strongest effects were on parent-child relationship quality and family functioning, while results were mixed on changes in discipline practices. Results suggest that a behavioral family-based approach implemented by lay providers in community settings is a promising intervention approach for strengthening families in highly stressed contexts.

Trial registration

Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT01668992