Exploring the Relationship between Turkish Mothers' Parenting and Psychological Well-Being in Early Childhood: The Role of Child Emotion Regulation and Dysregulation

Although the importance of psychological well-being in early childhood is emphasized, the number of studies conducted with children and adolescents in this field is less than those carried out with adults. The present study aimed to explore the role of child emotion regulation in the relationship between parenting and psychological well-being among a sample of Turkish preschoolers aged 5-6. It further examines the mediating role of emotion regulation. The sample consisted of 416 mothers with children aged 5-6 (Mage = 5.38, SD = 0.48; 50% girls-boys). We collected the data using the Multidimensional Assessment of Parenting Scale (MAPS), the Emotion Regulation Checklist (ERC), and the Psychological Well-Being Scale for Children (PWBS-C). The findings revealed significant relationships among parenting practices (positive/negative), the child's emotion regulation/dysregulation, and the child's psychological well-being. Moreover, the findings revealed that positive parenting, directly and indirectly, affects children's psychological well-being through children's emotion regulation. On the other hand, findings disclosed that negative parenting has both a direct and indirect impact on children's psychological well-being through children's emotion regulation. Overall, the study may shed light on a possible process in which positive parenting boosts a child's emotional regulation and psychological well-being among preschoolers.

Caregiver and parent-child relationship during COVID-19: The mediator role of anxiety and life satisfaction

AIM

This research was conducted to evaluate the mediation effect of anxiety and life satisfaction on the relationship between Care burden and Parent Child Relationship in Turkish parents during the COVID-19 epidemic.

METHODS

The research was carried out with parents (221 women and 219 men) who have children between the ages of 6-18 living in Turkey. Data were collected in June-July 2021 using the demographic data form, "Care Burden Scale," "Pervasive Anxiety Disorder-7 Test," "Satisfaction with Life Scale," and "Parent Child Relationship Scale." Path analysis was used to analyse the relationships. In this study, structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to examine the path analysis.

RESULTS

It was found that the burden of care and anxiety of the parents and the parent-child conflict relationship were positively correlated and negatively correlated with the life satisfaction and parent-child closeness relationship (p < 0.05). Path model analyses revealed that the burden of care had a direct effect on anxiety and life satisfaction, and an indirect effect on the parent-child relationship, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

It shows that parents' perceptions of how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting their mental health have implications for parent and child well-being, with stronger relationships for low-income families. Anxiety and life satisfaction had a mediating effect between care burden and parent-child relationship. Given the demonstrable impact of COVID-19 on the parent-child relationship, this study may guide the planning of coping strategies and programmes focused on mental health.

Coherence of Parental Representations Following Therapy for Autistic Children

Autistic children experience high rates of mental health challenges, and links have been found between child mental health and the parent-child relationship. As parents of autistic children are often actively involved in their child's treatment, it is important to consider aspects of the parent-child relationship within this context. The present study investigated changes in a component of the parent-child relationship, the coherence of parental representations, following participation in a 10-week cognitive behavioural therapy intervention designed to address autistic children's mental health challenges. Relationships were examined between coherence and child characteristics (i.e., autism symptoms, mental health), and associations with child treatment outcomes (i.e., mental health). Participants included 81 children (89% boys) aged 8 to 13 years and their parents (85% mothers) aged 35 to 54 years. Baseline levels of coherence were related to children's mental health symptoms but not autism symptoms. Although there were no significant changes in overall coherence across therapy, subscale-level improvements (i.e., concern, acceptance) emerged. Changes in coherence across therapy were linked with children's post-intervention behavioural symptoms and were approaching significance for internalizing problems, but were not associated with externalizing problems. It is critical to investigate factors that shape the coherence of parents' representations of their children, as this may provide insight into potential targets for intervention. Ascertaining whether participation in therapy improves parental coherence, and consequently child treatment outcomes, can advocate for parent-involved therapy, which will ultimately benefit the well-being of autistic children.

Neighborhood deprivation and depressive symptoms in Chinese adolescents: Mediated by parenting styles and moderated by relative family status

BACKGROUND

Previous research has shown that neighborhood and family have a crucial impact on adolescent mental health. However, limited research has been conducted on the intersection between neighborhood and family and the mechanisms behind its influence. This study investigates the direct and indirect associations between neighborhood deprivation and adolescent depressive symptoms through parental responsiveness and demandingness. The heterogeneity of neighborhood effects, varying across different relative family statuses, is also discussed.

METHODS

Using a sample (n = 6775) from the two waves of the China Education Panel Survey, this study used moderated mediation analysis to analyze simultaneously the mediation roles of parental responsiveness and demandingness and the moderating effect of relative family status.

RESULTS

Neighborhood deprivation (W1) was positively associated with adolescent depressive symptoms (W2). Parental responsiveness (W2) rather than demandingness (W2) partially mediated the relationship between neighborhood deprivation and adolescent depression. Additionally, relative family status moderated the direct relationship between neighborhood deprivation and depression and the indirect relationship through parental responsiveness.

LIMITATIONS

First, Neighborhood deprivation in this study was self-reported. Second, relative family status was a single-item measure. Third, only family and neighborhood environments were discussed in this study. Finally, long-term changes in the mental health of adolescents in poor neighborhoods could not be captured in this study.

CONCLUSIONS

The results highlight that neighborhood deprivation and relative family status can influence adolescent mental health individually and intersectively. This study also contributes to a more nuanced understanding of parenting styles in the Chinese context.

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

OBJECTIVE

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

METHODS

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

RESULTS

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

CONCLUSIONS

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

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

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

The father experiences and challenges of Namibian and South African offshore working men

BACKGROUND: Offshore working fathers’ extended absence from families influences families’ well-being, and fathers’ own psychological well-being and job satisfaction. Moreover, it impacts on job safety and performance. The paternal experiences and challenges of offshore working men, however, remains relatively unexplored with most research conducted with men from western or northern hemisphere contexts. OBJECTIVE: To explore the father ideas, experiences, practices, and challenges of Namibian and South African men of colour who work offshore the African coast; and if and how these are informed by traditional and “new” fatherhood ideas. METHODS: We used a qualitative method that involved interviewing 15 fathers about their experiences and challenges. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the resulting data. RESULTS: Fathers viewed themselves as part-time fathers; They identified with contemporary notions of affectionate fathers who desire close connections with children but found it challenging to form and maintain close relationships with older children; They valued the fulfilment of traditional father roles of disciplinarian, provider and protector; and, They resorted to authoritarian practices when confronted with problematic child behaviour. Traditional gender notions seemed to underpin many of their father ideas, practices, and challenges. CONCLUSION: Both new and traditional father and gender ideas informed fathers’ experiences and challenges. Fathers need awareness about their taken-for-granted gender and father role assumptions, as well as knowledge and skills to enable close relationships with their children across children’s developmental stages.

Evaluación del Emotion Regulation Checklist para Niños y Adolescentes

Resumen Durante la infancia y la adolescencia la regulación de las emociones tiene repercusiones en diferentes ámbitos, tanto en estas etapas como en la vida adulta. El objetivo de este artículo fue evaluar un test de regulación emocional, Emotional Regulation Checklist (ERC), utilizando el CET-R como marco de referencia. Se analizaron 71 artículos que emplearon el ERC para la evaluación de la regulación emocional. La información se clasificó teniendo en cuenta la descripción del test, su fiabilidad y validez. Todos los resultados de fiabilidad se mostraron mediante el coeficiente alfa de Cronbach. En relación a la validez, fue adecuado el promedio de las correlaciones del ERC con sus criterios, pero con algunas carencias. Es recomendable plantear investigaciones con modelos psicométricos avanzados.

Conflict Resolution and Emotional Expression in Mother-Preadolescent Dyads: Longitudinal Associations with Children's Socioemotional Development

How youth learn to manage emotions during mother-child conflict influences their socioemotional development. Ninety-four mother-preadolescent (aged 9-13, 57.4% female) dyads were observed during conflict discussions and completed questionnaire measures at one prior time-point (Time 1; ages 6-10) and one subsequent time-point (Time 3; ages 11-16) to the observations (Time 2). The temporal associations between individuals' emotional expressions and their own and their partners' verbal conflict behaviors were observed. Mothers and preadolescents were more attacking and assertive when angry, and more conciliatory and avoidant when sad. Neutral affect predicted the most constructive behaviors, while positive affect promoted avoidance. The responses were similar following their partners' emotions. Maternal conflict-escalating responses to anger were associated with difficult characteristics in earlier childhood and socioemotional difficulties in adolescence. Maternal and child de-escalation following sadness predicted socioemotional adjustment in adolescence. These results demonstrate that conflict resolution between preadolescents and their mothers is influenced by the emotional climate of the interaction, and that the management of negative emotions within the dyad is tied to youth's socioemotional development.