Parental expressed emotion and affective style in an adolescent sample at risk for schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

Investigated the correspondence between interview-assessed parental emotional attitudes toward a particular offspring (expressed emotion; EE) and parental affective behavior manifested in direct family interactions for 52 14–19 yr old disturbed but nonpsychotic adolescents. Individual parents who expressed an excessive number of critical comments during the interview (high EE) manifested significantly more mild and harsh criticisms in direct interactions with their offspring than did low-EE parents. A more complex relationship emerged between attitudes and behavior when both parents' emotional attitudes were considered simultaneously. When both parents were high EE, they expressed high levels of mild and harsh criticisms in direct interactions with their offspring. Parental affective behavior in families with only 1 high-EE parent was characterized by high levels of mild criticisms but low levels of harsh criticisms. When both parents were low EE, they manifested few mild or harsh criticisms in direct interactions. (12 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)