Parental distress and children's problems among single-parent families in China

The coercion model explains reciprocal relationships between parents' and children's adjustment problems, with the mediation of parenting behavior and social relationships. A survey of 301 single parents in Guangzhou, China, was performed to test such a model with reference to parental distress, perceived behavioral problems and anxiety of the eldest child, acceptance of the child, and experienced social pressure and social support. Structural equation modeling demonstrated a good fit of the coercion model as a theoretically based and simplified representation of the relationships, supporting the hypotheses that (a) the parent's acceptance helps prevent the child's behavioral problems, (b) the child's behavioral problems and anxiety contribute to the parent's distress, (c) the child's behavioral problems and anxiety invite social pressure on the parent, (d) social pressure on the parent aggravates and social support for the parent attenuates the parent's distress, (e) social pressure on and social support for the parent facilitate the parent's acceptance of his or her child. However, the effect of parental distress on acceptance of the child was not significant.     

Moral internalization, parental power, and the nature of parent-child interaction.

The following arguments are offered for the view that the frequent correlation between discipline and internalization reflects parental influence: (a) Since parental discipline exerts more constraint on the child than the child exerts on the parent, child attributes like internalization that probably derived from behaviors and inner states associated with compliance are more apt to be consequents than antecedents of discipline. (b) Congenital and other factors that may affect discipline do not negate its effects on internalization. It is also hypothesized that discipline is important because it gives children the experience, necessary for internalization, of achieving balance between expressing and controlling desires. The parent-child relation is conceptualized so as to fit the facts of both everyday interaction and long-term effects, especially on the child. (42 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Connectedness and autonomy support in parent–child relationships: Links to children's socioemotional orientation and peer relationships.

Connectedness and autonomy support in the parent-child relationship are constructs that emerge from object relations and attachment theories but that overlap with other commonly studied qualities of parent–child relationships to provide a unifying focus for research in this domain. In this study, these constructs were examined in relation to children's relational competence, including socioemotional orientation, friendship, and peer acceptance. Semistructured conversations between mothers and their 5-year-olds (N? =?192) were videotaped at home and rated for (a) connectedness between the members of the dyad and (b) the parent's support for the child's autonomy. Results showed that connectedness was correlated with children's socioemotional orientations, number of mutual friendships, and peer acceptance and that the relation between parent–child connectedness and children's peer relationships was mediated by children's prosocial-empathic orientation. Implications of these findings for theories that link parent–child relationships to the development of relational competence in children are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Discipline and internalization.

J. E. Grusec and J. J. Goodnow (see record 1994-25033-001) made interesting suggestions about discipline variables that may effect internalization. Unfortunately, (1) their ideas are not integrated into a theory; (2) their definition of internalization is limited because parent–child similarity may result from children's attributing their values to parents; and (3) their ideas seem too heavily cognitive (e.g., the importance assigned to level of generality of parental reprimands, children's understanding of meta-rules, and children's viewing parental interventions as fair and reasonable). A theory linking discipline and internalization must encompass children's capacity for empathy and their feelings of anxiety, fear, and resentment at being interrupted by parents. In this article, the author's own theory of internalization and children's affective and cognitive responses in discipline encounters is summarized, and some of its shortcomings are noted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Using the Marschak Interaction Method Rating System for Chinese families: Relationship between parent-child interaction pattern and child's social behavior.

This study investigated the use of the Marschak Interaction Method Rating System (MIMRS) in assessing parent–child interaction patterns and its relationship with preschool children's social behavior in a Chinese sample. Fifty-two preschoolers and their parents (either mother or father) participated in the study. The MIMRS demonstrated moderate to high internal consistency. There was also a moderate positive correlation between the MIMRS and the Kinship Centre Attachment Questionnaire (Kappenberg & Halpern, 2006). With reference to parent–child interaction and the child's social behavior, a negative relationship was identified between child anger/aggressive behavior and parent's nurturing toward his or her child. In addition, a child's demonstration of exploratory behavior, reciprocity with parent, and regulatory capacities were positively related to that child's social competence and negatively related to the child's anger/aggressive behavior. The practical uses of the MIMRS as a screening tool for working with parents and children in a non-Western culture are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Erratum: "Moral Internalization, Parental Power, and the Nature of Parent-Child Interaction."

Reports an error in the original article by M. L. Hoffman (Developmental Psychology, 1975[Mar], 11[2], 228-239). The sentence beginning on the fifth line in the third paragraph, second column, page 233, should read: "An affectionate, trusting child, for example, may be expected to elicit more inductive and less power-assertive discipline than a less affectionate, less trusting child." (The following abstract of this article originally appeared in record 1975-20841-001.) The following arguments are offered for the view that the frequent correlation between discipline and internalization reflects parental influence: (a) Since parental discipline exerts more constraint on the child than the child exerts on the parent, child attributes like internalization that probably derived from behaviors and inner states associated with compliance are more apt to be consequents than antecedents of discipline. (b) Congenital and other factors that may affect discipline do not negate its effects on internalization. It is also hypothesized that discipline is important because it gives children the experience, necessary for internalization, of achieving balance between expressing and controlling desires. The parent-child relation is conceptualized so as to fit the facts of both everyday interaction and long-term effects, especially on the child. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Treating anxiety disorders in children: Results of a randomized clinical trial.

Investigated a psychosocial treatment for 47 Ss (aged 9–13 yrs) with anxiety disorders. A 16-session cognitive-behavioral treatment was compared with a wait-list condition. Outcome was evaluated using child self-report, parent report, teacher report, cognitive assessment, and behavioral observations. Pretreatment–posttreatment changes and maintenance of gains at 1-yr follow-up were examined. Results revealed that many treated Ss were found to be without a diagnosis at posttest and at follow-up and to be within normal limits on many measures. The child's perception of the therapeutic relationship and the therapist's perception of parental involvement were measured but were not related to outcome. Discussion focuses on characteristics of effective child therapy and the need for further research on treatment components and alternative treatment methods. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Correction to Beaulieu and Sylvie Normandeau (2011).

Reports an error in "Prédicteurs des pratiques parentales: Cognitions sociales parentales et comportement des enfants TDAH" by Marie-Christine Beaulieu and Sylvie Normandeau (Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science/Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, Advanced Online Publication, Jul 25, 2011, np). There was an error in the English abstract. This error is corrected in the correction. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2011-15455-001.) The purpose of this study was to examine the association between parental social cognitions (parental causal attributions, parental self-efficacy) and the behavioural characteristics of their child (ADHD subtypes, comorbidity, oppositional and anxiety/shy symptoms). Participants were 110 families with a child with ADHD (ADHD-I : n = 31, ADHD-H : n = 11, ADHD-C : n = 68). Multiple regressions show that parental self-efficacy is associated with more use of appropriate discipline, praise and incentives, positive verbal discipline, and less use of harsh and inconsistent discipline and physical punishment. Results also show that parental causal attributions for the child's misbehaviour to their own efforts are a predictor of positive verbal discipline whereas parents' causal attributions for the child's misbehaviour to the child's lack of efforts are a predictor of harsh and inconsistent discipline. Parents' perception of their child's oppositional symptom is a predictor of appropriate discipline and positive verbal discipline. Finally, children's comorbidity is a predictor of harsh and inconsistent discipline. The findings of this study highlight the importance of parental self-efficacy, because from all the variables studied, it shows the strongest association with positive and negative parenting practices. No association between ADHD subtype and parenting practices were observed. Implications of these results are explored in the discussion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Comments on the Grusec and Goodnow (1994) model of the role of discipline in moral internalization.

J. E. Grusec and J. J. Goodnow (see record 1994-25033-001) provided a compelling framework for organizing parameters of disciplinary encounters found to affect moral internalization. However, their central hypothesis (that cognitions of accurate perception and acceptance of the message mediate the impact of specific tactics on internalization) remains untested. Before embarking on research programs designed to reveal the determinants of acceptance of parental messages in the hope that such research will inform our understanding of internalization, researchers would be well advised to devise conceptually sound measures of message acceptance and to show that message acceptance does indeed mediate internalization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Child and parent effects in boys' conduct disorder: A reinterpretation.

The importance of parent and child influences on the development of conduct disorder (CD) in boys is evaluated. The research approaches reviewed include studies of interactions between unrelated mothers and children, reaction to punishment, autonomic reactivity, biochemical factors, and drug treatment and longitudinal studies of delinquency. Evidence from this research and from research on parental influences, reviewed in detail elsewhere, is interpreted as demonstrating the primacy of the child's own contribution to CD within a reciprocal parent–child interactive system, thus corroborating control systems theory (R. Q. Bell, 1977). Demonstrated parental influences are interpreted as actions that are elicited by or that exacerbate the child's tendencies and that may represent genetic continuities. The heuristic utility and consequences of this model are outlined. It is emphasized that child effects do not imply immutability of behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

School, occupation, culture, and family: The impact of parental schooling on the parent–child relationship.

Hypothesized that among the enduring effects of schooling on the individual are certain behavioral dispositions that determine how he/she will behave as a parent. As a result, parental behavior will have important consequences for a child's development of specific cognitive skills, learning strategies, and personality characteristics. In several studies, attempts were made to determine whether parental schooling, parental occupational status, and maternal employment each had a distinct pattern of influences on educationally related aspects of the parent–child relationship. The inquiry was conducted in the context of issues regarding ethnic diversity, individual variability within ethnic groups, and educational and occupational equity, giving particular attention to Chicano families. The findings regarding linkages between parental schooling and the parent–child relationship suggest plausible explanations of the frequent scholastic failure observed among the members of certain ethnic minorities in the US. A broad theoretical model is presented that causally links parental schooling, family interaction processes, and children's scholastic performance. (78 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parenting, peers, and the stability of antisocial behavior in preadolescent boys.

This study examined the linkages between parental discipline practices, peer relationships, and antisocial behavior in a 2-yr longitudinal study (N?=?206) of preadolescent boys (aged 9–10 yrs at 1st assessment). Structural equation models were used to estimate the stability of parenting, peer relations, and antisocial constructs, and their effects on each other. The results showed that preadolescent antisocial behavior had substantial concurrent negative effects on the quality of parental discipline and peer relationships. Evidence for a reciprocal relationship between parental discipline and child antisocial behavior was found. The study specifies how parental discipline practices are involved in maintaining the stability of antisocial behavior in preadolescents. Low popularity with peers did not directly influence the child's antisocial behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Beyond cognition: Expanding the search for the early roots of internalization and conscience.

J. E. Grusec and J. J. Goodnow (see record 1994-25033-001) offered a new comprehensive reformulation of discipline encounters as context for children's internalization of parental views. They focused mainly on children's social information processing and how it affects perception and acceptance of parental messages. The model seems best suited for middle childhood and adolescence. This commentary suggests additional directions in research on internalization in early childhood. It is argued that processes such as social referencing, sensitivity to standard violations, emergence of self, emotional reactions to wrongdoing, early self-conscious emotions, and self-regulation may be important antecedents and signs of internalization in the 1st 3 yrs of life. The proposed shift from cognitive to affective and self-regulatory aspects of early conscience reveals children's temperament as an important but neglected contributor to early moral development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of food acceptance patterns.

Suckling and feeding are central to the child's health and development. In addition, feeding provides a context for early parent–child interaction. Despite the centrality of feeding to the child's development, it has been largely neglected by developmental psychologists as an area of study. To interest the developmental researcher in the acquisition of food acceptance patterns, this article provides a rationale for the significance of the study of early feeding and delineates major questions and issues that require investigation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

A longitudinal study of noncustodial parents: Parents without children.

Reports the results of a 3-wave longitudinal study of a sizable, regionally representative sample of both noncustodial and custodial parents interviewed initially before their divorce was final. A model was tested that predicted the noncustodial parent's postdivorce contact with the child and the payment of child support from a series of factors related to a social exchange orientation. This orientation highlights the noncustodial parent's implicit calculation of the rewards vs the costs of continuing involvement and support of the child. It was found that noninvolvement was, in general, well-predicted, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, by the model. The most powerful factor in the model was the noncustodial parent's perception that he or she had some control over the child's upbringing. Among fully employed noncustodial parents who reported high perceived control, there was an excellent record of involvement and child support payment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Direct observation of maternal sensitivity and dyadic interactions in the home: Relations to maternal thinking.

This study assessed whether 3 forms of maternal views (recall of her own parental acceptance, the sense of self, and perceptions of the child) are related to each other and to mother–child interaction. The Mother–Father–Peer Scale was sent to mothers of infants aged 11–19 mo; 37 mothers were selected as extremes on the basis of the Acceptance subscale. Ss were observed in their homes using Ainsworth-type observations. The Maternal Sensitivity Scale, Dyadic Physical Avoidance Scale, and Dyadic Harmony Classification by M. D. Ainsworth et al (1978) were used. Mothers were sent questionnaires assessing the sense of self and perceptions of the child. There was 84% concordant classification between recall of parental acceptance and the observationally assessed dyadic harmony classification. Furthermore, mothers' recall of parental acceptance, perception of infant responsiveness, covert anxiety, and the observational measures showed intriguing relationships with each other. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Impacts d'un programme d'interventions multidimensionnel con?u pour les parents et leur enfant ayant un TDAH sur le stress parental et la relation parent–enfant.

The behaviours that characterize ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) often lead to impairments in the parent–child relationship and contribute to increased stress amongst parents of children with the disorder. The main objective of this research is to evaluate the impact of a multimodal intervention program (Multi-Propulsions) on parental stress and on parent–child relationship as perceived by parents. The program combines: (1) a cognitive-behavioural program for ADHD children including physical activities in an adapted gymnasium; (2) a cognitive-behavioural parent training program; (3) joint activities with children and parents under the supervision of professionals. Sample contents 23 families with ADHD children aged between 6 and 12 years old from the ADHD clinic of the Rivière-des-Prairies Hospital in Montreal. Participants were randomly assigned to treatment or waiting group. Results highlight the efficiency of Multi-Propulsions program for diminishing parental stress, particularly stress associated with child's characteristics, and these therapeutic gains were maintained four months after the treatment. Furthermore, the results show an improvement in the quality of parent–child relationship. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Informativeness of child and parent reports on substance use disorders in a sample of ADHD probands, control probands, and their siblings

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate parent-child agreement on psychoactive substance use disorder (PSUD) reporting among children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and to test whether agreement level could be predicted from measures of parent and child psychopathology and substance use severity. METHOD: The authors examined 348 pairs of child and parent assessments in a sample of 108 ADHD and 68 normal control probands and their 172 siblings aged 12 and older. RESULTS: PSUD rates were higher when the child was the reporter than when the parent was. Agreement between parent and child reports was strongest for cigarette smoking, alcohol dependence, and any PSUD. Although parental reports were frequently endorsed by the child's report, the reverse was rarely true. Predictors of parental awareness of the child's PSUD included impaired social functioning, younger age of the child, presence of multiple substance use disorders in the child, and comorbid bipolar disorder. CONCLUSIONS: PSUD rates vary by informant and are higher when the child is the reporter. Because severity of PSUD and multiple substance use were the strongest predictors of parental awareness, more efforts are needed to identify the more covert and milder cases of PSUD that may not reach clinical attention.     

Parental child-rearing attitudes and preadolescents' problem behaviors.

Correlated teacher's ratings of 278 5th and 6th graders on internalization and externalization behaviors with scores on ss' reports of their parents' child-rearing behaviors as assessed by schaefer's child report of parental behavior inventory. While the degrees of both internalization and externalization were inversely related to reported parental acceptance, externalization alone was related to reported parental control in a positive direction. High correlations between internalization and externalization were also found. Results are discussed in terms of the ss' characteristics, past findings, and conceptualization of internalization and externalization as categories of a more general dimension of maladjustment. (28 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Childhood origins of psychopathology.

Discusses family interaction and genetic influences on the development of psychopathology in childhood. Mounting evidence suggests that genetic factors significantly influence most personality traits, most forms of psychopathology, and sex differences in the prevalence of psychopathology. The sex and temperamental characteristics of children affect parent–child interaction as does the strength of the allegiance pressures emanating from a mother and father locked in hostile conflict. Children who are opposite to the sex of the more powerful parent experience the greatest allegiance conflict and consequent psychopathology. Also moderating the pathogenic effects of parental conflict are consistency of parental love and the ruthlessness of efforts to win the child's allegiance. The practical implications of these views are discussed. (3l ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)