Children and marital conflict resolution: Implications for emotional security and adjustment.

This study addresses multiple gaps in understanding the implications of marital conflict resolution for children. Mothers' diary home reports (N = 102 mothers, N = 578 reports) of marital conflict resolution (i.e., compromise, apology, submission, agreement to disagree, withdrawal) and of children's responses, along with the reactions of children (N = 163) to analogue presentations of the same conflict endings in the laboratory, were examined. The significance of specific marital conflict endings, including the emotionality of endings, was supported and demonstrated for the first time in the home. Parents' and children's appraisals of resolution were generally similar, although for some endings these appraisals differed, supporting the notion that children are sensitive to the broader implications of conflict endings for interparental relations and family functioning. Children's responses to conflict resolution were related to their broader adjustment, further indicating the significance of conflict endings to understanding the impact of marital conflict. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict and children's adjustment: A cognitive-contextual framework.

Marital problems have been related to numerous indexes of maladjustment in children. Although several parameters of this association have been identified, the process by which exposure to interparental conflict gives rise to adjustment problems in children is largely unexplored. Research on the link between marital conflict and child maladjustment therefore is critically evaluated, and a framework is presented that organizes existing studies and suggests directions for future research on processes that may account for the association. According to the framework, the impact of marital conflict is mediated by children's understanding of the conflict, which is shaped by contextual, cognitive, and developmental factors. The implications of the framework for children's adjustment are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict, maternal and paternal parenting, and child adjustment: A test of mediation and moderation.

Parenting was examined as a mediator of associations between marital and child adjustment, and parent gender was examined as a moderator of associations among marital, parental, and child functioning in 226 families with a school-age child (146 boys). Parenting fully mediated associations between marital conflict and child internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Parent gender did not moderate associations when data from the full sample or families with girls only were evaluated. Parent gender did moderate associations when families with boys were evaluated, with the association between marital conflict and parenting stronger for fathers than mothers. A trend suggested fathers' parenting may be more strongly related to internalizing behavior and mothers' parenting may be more strongly related to externalizing behavior in boys. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict, gender, and children's appraisals and coping efficacy as mediators of child adjustment.

The role of children's perceptions and appraisals in the impact of marital conflict was examined for 51 9- to 12-yr-olds from intact families. Gender differences were found in the cognitions and coping processes related to marital conflict and child adjustment. Appraisals of coping efficacy and the threat posed by marital conflict predicted adjustment in boys, whereas self-blame was linked with internalizing problems for girls. The appraised destructiveness of conflict was significantly related to perceived threat in boys and self-blame in girls. Boys appeared more attuned or, alternatively, less shielded from marital conflict, as reflected by the higher correlations with mothers' reports of marital conflict for boys than for girls. The significance of boys' appraisals to adjustment was suggested by the fact that boys' perceptions were better predictors of adjustment outcomes than were mothers' reports. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict and boys' peer relationships: The mediating role of mother-son emotional reciprocity.

This study examined the role of mother-son emotional reciprocity in connections between marital conflict and the quality of boys' peer relationships. Parents from 84 intact families with preadolescent boys reported on the level of conflict in their marital relationship. Observations of mother-son interaction were coded for emotional reciprocity, and assessments of boys' peer relationships were obtained from both teachers and classmates. No direct connection between marital conflict and boys' peer relationships was observed. Rather, marital conflict affected boys' social competence indirectly, through its effect on the emotions expressed between mother and son. The findings support the proposal that emotional processes play an important role in connections between marital conflict and children's peer relationships and suggest that family emotional expressiveness deserves greater attention in both research and intervention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Understanding the association between marital conflict and child adjustment: Overview.

To highlight advances in the literature linking marital discord and child adjustment, a heuristic distinction is drawn between 1st and 2nd generation research. A review of 1st generation research documenting the existence of an association between marital and child functioning points to the need for 2nd generation research on why this association exists. Several issues that will facilitate research on the mechanisms linking marital and child functioning are therefore discussed. This discussion provides a framework for outlining how each of the contributions to the special section advances understanding of the impact of marital discord on child adjustment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived conflict and violence in childhood sibling relationships and later emotional adjustment.

Two studies investigating young adults' recollections of high levels of conflict and violence with a sibling during childhood and adolescence compared the experiences of 4 groups: those who were violence perpetrators, violence victims, those with reciprocal violence, and a control group. Of college students in the 1st study, 28% reported high levels of conflict or violence with a sibling. Female Ss and those who were the younger sibling experienced more conflict and violence than did male Ss and older siblings. In the 2nd study, associations of conflict and violence with emotional adjustment revealed that female Ss had more negative emotional outcomes than did male Ss. A positive association was also found among severe violence in the parental and the sibling dyad. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Power assertive discipline, maternal emotional involvement, and child adjustment.

Despite long-standing research, the relations between power assertive discipline and child adjustment continue to be debated. Disentangling disciplinary practices from the parent-child emotional climate may aid understanding of how such parenting practices impact child adjustment. This study explored longitudinal relations between maternal emotional involvement, power assertive discipline, and child adjustment in a sample of 35 mothers of infant, toddler, and preschool-age children. Results indicate that power assertive discipline may differentially impact child adjustment, depending on levels of maternal emotional involvement. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family conflict and child adjustment: Evidence for a cognitive-contextual model of intergenerational transmission.

Three cohorts of 10- to 14-year-old adolescents were sampled to obtain perceptions of their parents' conflict-resolution styles, their own conflict-resolution styles, and their behavioral adjustment, to test J. H. Grych and F. D. Fincham's (1990) cognitive-contextual model of the relationship of marital conflict to child adjustment. As found previously, boys and girls were not exposed to different levels or types of interparental conflict, although boys tended to blame themselves more. Adolescents' reports of their own conflict-resolution styles with siblings were clearly related to level and types of their more general adjustment levels. A series of regressions supported Grych and Fincham's model for internalizing problems (and avoidant resolution style) in adolescents; only minimal support was found with externalizing problems (and attacking resolution style). Gender-specific patterns of intergenerational transmission of resolution styles were found and are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Longitudinal relations between marital conflict and child adjustment: Vagal regulation as a protective factor.

Although associations between marital conflict and children's adjustment problems are established, less is known about child individual differences that can have an impact on these relations. The authors examined longitudinal relations between marital conflict and children's adjustment using a community sample of elementary school-age children and young adolescents and assessed the role of children's vagal regulation in moderating the conflict-child problems link. Elevated marital conflict was predictive of negative child outcomes, and greater vagal suppression to a simulated argument was protective against internalizing problems associated with marital conflict. Findings are supportive of the value of a biopsychosocial perspective and illustrate that child vagal regulation can contribute to the aggregation or amelioration of risk for maladjustment in the context of exposure to marital conflict. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict and children's sleep: Reciprocal relations and socioeconomic effects.

We examined reciprocal relations between parental marital conflict and children's sleep disruptions over two years. The roles of ethnicity (African American and European American) and socioeconomic status were tested as moderators of the examined relations. A community sample of 176 school-age children (M age = 8.68 at T1) and their parents participated at T1 and T2 with a 2-year interval between waves. Mothers, fathers, and children reported on parental marital conflict, and children's sleep was measured via actigraphy and self-reports. Latent variable modeling indicated that T1 marital conflict predicted increases in children's sleep disruptions longitudinally; results were more pronounced for African American children and those from lower SES homes. Further, children's sleep disruptions at T1 predicted increases in marital conflict over time. Results demonstrate the importance of reciprocal relations between a prevalent familial stressor and a fundamental facet of children's health, especially when considering the sociocultural milieu. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital adjustment and outcome following treatments for depression.

Marital adjustment and treatment outcome were evaluated in the Treatment of Depression Collaborative Research Program, a multicenter clinical trial evaluating interpersonal psychotherapy, cognitive therapy, imipramine, and placebo. Marital adjustment and depression were assessed pre- and posttreatment, and depression was assessed at 6, 12, and 18 months after treatment. Results indicate that (1) there was a significant improvement in marital adjustment after treatment, (2) this effect was not moderated by treatment type, and (3) this effect was mediated by change in depression. Poor pretreatment marital adjustment was modestly associated with negative outcome, whereas poor posttreatment marital adjustment was strongly associated with negative outcome during follow-up. The findings suggest that poor marital adjustment at the end of active treatment is a risk factor for increases in depression severity during follow-up. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital power, marital adjustment, and therapy outcome.

This study examined the association of marital power type to (1) marital adjustment and (2) response to behavioral marital therapy. A behavioral measure was used to classify 53 distressed couples into egalitarian, husband-dominant, wife-dominant, or anarchic power patterns. Marital adjustment was assessed by measures of marital satisfaction, desired relationship change, and 2 communication indexes. At pretreatment, egalitarian couples showed the best overall marital adjustment, and anarchic couples showed the worst; at posttreatment, egalitarian and wife-led couples reported the highest marital satisfaction, and anarchic couples reported the lowest. Wife dominant couples improved the most, reporting increased marital satisfaction and demonstrating improved communication. The discussion considers the special treatment needs of anarchic couples for whom improved communication occurred in a context of continued marital dissatisfaction. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict in older adults: endocrinological and immunological correlates

Females incarcerated for drug-related offenses represent one of the fastest growing populations within jails and prisons. The few studies of female offenders with substance abuse disorders depict a population with multiple psychosocial problems and treatment needs, and one that is characterized by frequent exposure to sexual abuse and other violence. The current study examined intake assessment results from a sample of 1,655 substance-involved jail inmates referred to a jail treatment program in Tampa, Florida, including 26% female and 74% male inmates. The study was designed to identify gender differences in psychosocial characteristics and substance abuse treatment needs among jail inmates. Results indicate that female inmates more frequently experienced employment problems, had lower incomes, more frequently reported cocaine as the primary drug of choice, and were more likely to report depression, anxiety, suicidal behavior, and a history of physical and sexual abuse. Implications for developing specialized treatment approaches for female offenders are discussed, including use of integrated treatment strategies.     

Marital conflict and parental hostility: Links with children's sibling and peer relationships.

The authors examined the associations between marital conflict and children's relationships with siblings and peers. Mothers' and fathers' hostility toward children and children's interpretations of parents' marital conflict (self-blame and feeling threatened) were investigated as mediators between marital conflict and children's sibling and peer relationships. The sample included 136 intact 2-child families. Children were 7 and 10 years old. Data were collected from observations of marital and family interaction and from family members' reports. Results showed that marital conflict was associated with problematic sibling and peer relationships. Both maternal and paternal hostility mediated the associations between marital conflict and sibling relationships. The link between marital conflict and sibling rivalry was also mediated by children's feelings of self-blame for their parents' conflict. Fathers' hostility toward children mediated the association between marital conflict and children's problematic peer relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict typology and children's appraisals: The moderating role of family cohesion.

Intense and frequent marital conflict is associated with greater appraisals of threat and self-blame in children, but little else is known about contextual factors that might affect appraisals. Systemic family theories propose that to understand child adaptation, it is necessary to understand the interconnected nature of family subsystem relationships. In a sample of 257 families with 8- to 12-year-old children, this study examined whether a four-level typology of marital conflict management was related to children's perceptions of marital conflict and their appraisals of perceived threat and self-blame. In addition, family cohesion was tested as a moderator of the relationship between marital conflict style and children's appraisals. Observational coding was used to group couples into Harmonious, Disengaged, Conflictual-Expressive, and Conflictual-Hostile groups. Children's report of the intensity, frequency, and degree of resolution of interparental discord corresponded well with observers' ratings. The relationship between marital conflict style and appraisals of threat and self-blame was moderated by family cohesiveness. At high levels of family cohesiveness, no group differences were found for either perceived threat or self-blame, whereas when family cohesiveness was low, threat was higher for the Harmonious and Conflictual-Hostile groups, as compared to the Conflictual-Expressive group, and self-blame was higher for both conflict groups (expressive and hostile), as compared to the Disengaged group. The results provide further evidence of interconnected nature of family subsystem relationships and the importance of distinguishing among different approaches to marital conflict management for understanding the complex and perhaps subtle but meaningful effects different family system factors have on child adaptation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Marital conflict and preadolescent behavioral competence: Maternal knowledge as a longitudinal mediator.

The present study considered whether maternal knowledge mediated the relation between overt marital conflict and preadolescent behavioral competence. Four years of self-report data were collected from 133 mothers and their preadolescents, beginning when the preadolescents were in 4th grade. Marital conflict, maternal knowledge, and preadolescent behavioral competence were assessed at all 4 time points in order to apply a stringent methodology for assessing longitudinal mediating patterns. The results indicated that maternal knowledge mediated the relation between marital conflict and preadolescent behavioral competence. Thus, the present study identified one possible process through which marital conflict may affect preadolescent behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)