Which neural mechanisms mediate the effects of a parenting intervention program on parenting behavior: design of a randomized controlled trial

Does neural face processing explain effects of an attachment-based intervention on maternal sensitivity? A randomized controlled study including pre- and postintervention measures

BACKGROUND

Although there is a large body of literature highlighting the behavioral effects of parenting interventions, studies on the neurocognitive mechanisms involved in such intervention effects remain scarce.

PURPOSE

The aim of the current study was to test whether changes in neural face processing (as reflected in N170 amplitudes) would act as a mediator in the association between the Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline (VIPP-SD) and maternal sensitivity.

METHODS

A total of 66 mothers of whom a random 33% received the VIPP-SD and the others a "dummy" intervention participated in pre- and postintervention assessments. We recorded mothers' electroencephalographic (EEG) activity in response to photographs of children's neutral, happy, and angry facial expressions. Maternal sensitivity was observed while mothers interacted with their offspring in a semi-structured play situation.

RESULTS

In contrast with our expectations, we did not find evidence for mediation of intervention effects on maternal sensitivity by the N170.

CONCLUSION

We discuss that parenting support programs may yield different effects on neurocognitive processes depending on the population and provide recommendations for future research. Our study underscores the importance of reporting null findings and preregistering studies in the field of neurocognitive research.

Does maternal inhibitory control mediate effects of a parenting intervention on maternal sensitive discipline? Evidence from a randomized-controlled trial

The quality of parenting greatly impacts child development, highlighting the importance of support programs that effectively improve parenting. Studies on successful intervention programs define their efficacy by gains in parenting and/or child development. However, much remains unknown about the internal processes that explain how parenting interventions bring about their effects. The aims of the current randomized‐controlled study were to test whether the Video‐feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline (VIPP‐SD) improved maternal inhibitory control (1) and whether inhibitory control mediated any effects of VIPP‐SD on maternal sensitive discipline (2). In total, 66 mothers of whom a random 33% received the VIPP‐SD and the others a “dummy” intervention participated in pre‐ and post‐intervention assessments. Sensitive discipline was observed during a semi‐structured limit‐setting situation and inhibitory control was measured using a stop‐signal task. Contrary to expectations, inhibitory control improved over time in the control group and sensitive discipline did not show the expected increase in the intervention group. Results did not support mediation. We suggest that the intervention may have induced cognitive restructuring of parenting schemas, delaying improvements in post‐intervention inhibitory control and sensitive discipline. Factors that may be involved in parents’ susceptibility to interventions require attention in future work.

Emerging biomarkers for child & family intervention studies: A review of EEG studies of parenting

Most interventions for childhood mental health problems require significant parental involvement, and treatment programs are increasingly incorporating components aimed at enhancing parents' own self-regulation in the context of potentially stressful parent-child interactions. This paper discusses the promise of EEG in examining the rapidly unfolding perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and regulatory processes that occur in parenting, in hopes of ultimately informing child and family interventions. First, we review two separate bodies of work that have used EEG with parents: one examining event-related potential (ERP) measures, and the other examining frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA). We discuss benefits of each within the study of parenting, and also suggest other EEG metrics (such as event-related time-frequency analyses) that can be leveraged to fill current gaps in our knowledge. Finally, we discuss the potential for these findings to inform clinical work with children and families, such as identifying biomarkers that could aid in assessment, treatment recommendations, and monitoring response to interventions.

Effects of the Video-feedback intervention to promote positive parenting and sensitive discipline on mothers' neural responses to child faces: A randomized controlled ERP study including pre- and post-intervention measures

Parenting interventions have proven to be effective in enhancing positive parenting behavior and child outcomes. However, the neurocognitive mechanisms explaining the efficacy remain largely unknown. We tested effects of the Video-feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline (VIPP-SD) on mothers' neural processing of child faces. Our primary focus was on the N170 and the secondary focus on the LPP. We expected the intervention to enhance the amplitudes of both ERP components in response to emotional compared to neutral faces. A total of 66 mothers visited the lab for two identical sessions separated by 4.28 months (SD = 0.86) during which a random 33% of the mothers received the VIPP-SD. During both pre- and post-intervention sessions, mothers' electroencephalographic (EEG) activity in response to photographs of children's neutral, happy and angry facial expressions were acquired. In contrast to our expectations, we found smaller (less negative) N170 amplitudes at post-test in the intervention group. There was no intervention effect on the LPP, although overall LPP amplitudes were more positive for neutral and angry compared to happy faces. Our study shows that the N170 is affected by the VIPP-SD, suggesting that the intervention promotes efficient, less effortful face processing.Trial registration: Dutch Trial Register: NTR5312; Date registered: 3 January 2017.

Subjective ratings and emotional recognition of children's facial expressions from the CAFE set

Access to validated stimuli depicting children's facial expressions is useful for different research domains (e.g., developmental, cognitive or social psychology). Yet, such databases are scarce in comparison to others portraying adult models, and validation procedures are typically restricted to emotional recognition accuracy. This work presents subjective ratings for a sub-set of 283 photographs selected from the Child Affective Facial Expression set (CAFE [1]). Extending beyond the original emotion recognition accuracy norms [2], our main goal was to validate this database across eight subjective dimensions related to the model (e.g., attractiveness, familiarity) or the specific facial expression (e.g., intensity, genuineness), using a sample from a different nationality (N = 450 Portuguese participants). We also assessed emotion recognition (forced-choice task with seven options: anger, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness, surprise and neutral). Overall results show that most photographs were rated as highly clear, genuine and intense facial expressions. The models were rated as both moderately familiar and likely to belong to the in-group, obtaining high attractiveness and arousal ratings. Results also showed that, similarly to the original study, the facial expressions were accurately recognized. Normative and raw data are available as supplementary material at https://osf.io/mjqfx/.