Parent Informants for Child Personality: Agreement,Discrepancies, and Clinical Utility

A long-standing issue in child clinical research is the integration of various informants, but this topic has not been comprehensively applied to the domain of child personality. Mothers and fathers rated their children (N = 346) on personality traits and behavioral problems. Mother–father agreement was highest for Conscientiousness and lowest for Neuroticism and Agreeableness. Each parent's ratings added incremental variance in predicting behavioral problems, and mother–father discrepancy predicted internalizing problems. These results suggest that both parents should be used as informants in child personality assessment and discrepancies might reflect meaningful variance with clinical utility.     

Cross-informant consistency in externalizing and internalizing problems in early adolescence

The concept of cross-informant consistency has long been a topic of interest for those involved in assessment of behavior problems in adolescence. The purpose of the present study was to replicate and expand the existing literature by including four informants (mother, father, teacher, and adolescent self-report) and examining correlations among them as well as differences between reporters on an absolute level of both internalizing and externalizing problems. Fifty-two young adolescents (ranging in age from 11 to 15 years) and their mothers, fathers, and social studies teachers participated in the study. The Conduct Disorder subscale, Socialized Aggression subscale, and Anxiety/Withdrawal subscale of the Revised Behavior Problem Checklist were used. Results indicated that teachers showed little agreement with other informants on conduct problems (teachers reporting fewer problems), while parents and adolescents showed significant agreement. Informants showed no agreement on the measure of covert problems (socialized aggression), and all reports showed agreement on internalizing problems (although teachers continued to report fewer problems). Implications for assessment of young adolescents are discussed.This research was supported, in part, by the William T. Grant Foundation and the University of Georgia's Institute for Behavior Research.     

Agreement of adolescent ratings with mother ratings and teacher ratings of ADHD symptom groups: A correlated trait-correlated method minus one analysis

This study examined the level of agreement of adolescent ratings with mother ratings, and adolescent ratings with teacher ratings of the inattention (IA) and hyperactivity/impulsivity (HI) symptom groups of ADHD. A total of 214 adolescents provided self-ratings of IA and HI, and their IA and HI were also rated by their mothers and teachers. The correlated trait-correlated method minus one model was applied, with adolescent ratings as the reference method, and the other two ratings as the non-reference methods. The findings indicated no additional variance in adolescent ratings for IA and HI that could not be accounted by mother ratings of IA and HI, respectively. In contrast, there was additional variance in adolescent ratings for IA and HI that could was not accounted by teacher ratings of IA and HI, respectively. The findings suggest that when diagnosing ADHD in adolescents, their reports of their own ADHD behaviors are not needed when mother reports of such behaviors are used.     

多主体评定青少年外化问题行为的一致性问题

以529名城乡初一学生为被试进行短期追踪研究,考察了青少年自我、同伴和教师三种主体对学校情境中的青少年外化问题行为评定的一致性问题。采用相关分析、多质多法分析、验证性因素分析和检出率分析对三种主体的评定结果进行了分析比较。结果显示,青少年自我、同伴和教师对外化问题行为的评定只存在中低程度的一致性;通过同伴评定测得的四种外化问题行为群之间的相关性高于通过教师评定和自我报告测得的结果,而自我报告测得的四种外化问题行为群之间的相关性最低。不同报告主体对青少年外化问题行为评定的跨时间稳定性存在差异,同伴评定的稳定性最高,其次为教师评定,青少年自我报告的稳定性最低。通过同伴评定测得的结果对多主体评定的解释率高于教师评定和自我报告的结果,自我报告的结果对多主体评定的解释率最低。三种主体所检出的不同形式的外化问题行为的人数比例没有呈现出规律性的差异,只有通过同伴评定检出的不同形式的外化问题行为者的人数比例随着检出标准的提高而减小     

The Impact of Maternal Depressive Symptoms on Adolescents’ Aggression: Role of Parenting and Family Mediators

Previous research has found an association between mothers’ depressive symptoms and their adolescents’ involvement in aggression. The present study examined three mechanisms believed to account for this relation: parenting practices, family functioning, and informant discrepancy. Participants were a high-risk sample of 927 mother–adolescent dyads (66% African American) who completed baseline assessments for the Multisite Violence Prevention Project. Maternal depressive symptoms were assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale. Adolescents’ aggression was assessed using parent- and teacher-report on the Behavior Assessment System for Children and student-report on the Problem Behavior Frequency Scale. Mothers’ reports of depressive symptoms were significantly related to their adolescents’ aggression based on student, teacher, and mothers’ reports, with the strongest correlations found with mothers’ reports. Multilevel modeling indicated that maternal depressive symptoms were related to the degree of discrepancy between mothers’ ratings of their adolescents’ aggression and ratings by adolescents and their teachers. Smaller discrepancies between mothers’ and teachers’ ratings of adolescents’ aggression were found for depressed mothers, as compared to non-depressed mothers. Structural equation models indicated that the relation between maternal depressive symptoms and mothers’ report of adolescents’ aggression was mediated by several parenting and family functioning variables, with the clearest effects for parenting practices. Similar findings were not found in analyses predicting adolescents’ ratings and teachers’ ratings. These findings underscore the potential direct and indirect benefits of interventions focused on reducing depression among mothers with adolescent children.     

Cross-informant symptoms from CBCL, TRF, and YSR: trait and method variance in a normative sample of Russian youths

A large community-based sample of Russian youths (n = 841, age M = 13.17 years, SD = 2.51) was assessed with the Child Behavior Checklist (mothers and fathers separately), Teacher's Report Form, and Youth Self-Report. The multiple indicator-version of the correlated trait-correlated method minus one, or CT-C(M - 1), model was applied to analyze (a) the convergent and divergent validity of these instruments in Russia, (b) the degree of trait-specificity of rater biases, and (c) potential predictors of rater-specific effects. As expected, based on the published results from different countries and in different languages, the convergent validity of the instruments was rather high between mother and father reports, but rather low for parent, teacher, and self-reports. For self- and teacher reports, rater-specific effects were related to age and gender of the children for some traits. These results, once again, attest to the importance of incorporating information from multiple observers when psychopathological traits are evaluated in children and adolescents.     

Personality traits and parenting: neuroticism,extraversion, and openness to experience as discriminative factors

This study used variable‐ and person‐oriented approaches to examine the relationship between personality traits (at age 33) and parenting (at age 36) among 94 mothers and 78 fathers. The SEM revealed that Openness to Experience (O), low Neuroticism (N), and Extraversion (E) were related to parental nurturance; low O to parental restrictiveness; and low N to parental knowledge about the child's activities. Cluster analysis based on the three parenting factors yielded six gender‐related parenting types with distinguishable personality profiles. Authoritative parents (mostly mothers) and emotionally involved parents (mostly fathers), who were high in nurturance and high to moderate in parental knowledge, were high in E and high to moderate in O. Authoritarian parents (mostly fathers) and emotionally detached parents (mostly mothers), who were low in nurturance, high to moderate in restrictiveness, and moderate to low in parental knowledge, were low in O and E. Permissive parents, who were low in restrictiveness and parental knowledge and moderate in nurturance, were high in N, E, and O. Engaged parents, who were high in nurturance, restrictiveness, and parental knowledge, were moderate in all personality traits. Agreeableness and Conscientiousness did not differ between the parenting types. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Four‐model approach to adolescent–parent attachment relationships and adolescents' loneliness,school belonging,and teacher appraisal

This study tested monotropy, hierarchy, independence, and integration conceptual models of adolescent–mother and adolescent–father attachment to explain adolescents' perceived social interrelationships with extrafamilial attachment figures (peers, teachers). Participants included 356 Israeli adolescents (12–15 years). More adolescents were significantly classified as securely attached to mothers than to fathers, but high concordances emerged. Results supported two of the attachment models, hierarchy and integration, as explaining variation in adolescents' perceived extrafamilial interrelationships. As per the hierarchy attachment model, adolescent–mother attachment outweighed adolescent–father attachment to some extent in predicting adolescents' perceived social interrelationship measures. As per the integration attachment model, significant differences emerged on most social interrelationship measures between the 4 distinct subgroups: secure attachment to both parents, neither, only father, only mother. The Discussion section focuses on the unique importance of attachment to each parent for typically developing junior high students.     

Comparison of Mothers', Fathers', and Teachers' Reports on Problem Behavior in 5- to 6-Year-Old Children

Evidence exists that there is low agreement between multiple informants reporting on children's and adolescents' behavior problems. Few studies, however, focus on agreement between informants in specific age groups. This study examined correspondence and disagreement between mother, father, and teacher reports of problem behavior by analyzing CBCL and TRF data of 2 nonclinical samples of 5- to 6-year-old preschool children (N = 424). Findings indicated that interrater agreement was low to moderate. This was shown by the intercorrelations, the explained variance in regression analyses and the little overlap in the number of children rated as behaviorally disturbed by all 3 informants. Agreement between mother and father reports was highest, whereas agreement between mother and teacher reports was lowest. Disagreement between informants was highest for internalizing problems. Potential explanations for the lack of agreement are discussed. Guidelines are formulated to refine assessment and optimize clinical decision-making processes.     

Child and parent evaluations of depression and aggression in psychiatric inpatient children

This investigation examined the agreement between children and their parents on measures of depression and aggression. A total of 120 inpatient children (ages 7–13) and their mothers and fathers independently completed self-report and interview measures that focused on the children's dysfunction. Children and their parents differed in their ratings of each symptom area, with children providing significantly less severe ratings than their parents. Children who met DSM III criteria for major depression or conduct disorder were significantly higher in their ratings of depression and aggression than children without these diagnoses, as reflected in both child and parent ratings. Child and parent ratings correlated in the low to moderate range on measures of children's symptoms, whereas mother and father ratings correlated in the moderate to high range. The correspondence between children and parents did not vary as a function of symptom area (depression and aggression) or assessment format (self-report and interviews). The results suggest that children are able to rate the severity of their dysfunction, although they tend to provide lowerbound estimates than do their parents.     

Effects of Parenting and Deviant Peers on Early to Mid-Adolescent Conduct Problems

We investigated the influence of effective parenting behaviors (father and mother reports) and deviant peer association (adolescent reports) on subsequent young adolescent conduct problems (teacher reports) during grades 7–9, using structural equation modeling. Data were from a sample of 226 rural adolescents (n?=?112 boys; n?=?107 girls; n?=?7 gender unknown), their parents, and teachers. Both effective parenting and association with deviant peers influenced later conduct problems; however, the pattern of influence varied across time and between fathers and mothers, with complex patterns of interactions between effective parenting and peer deviance. From seventh to eighth grade, effective parenting by both mothers and fathers buffered the effect of higher levels of peer deviance on conduct problems across adolescent gender. From eighth to ninth grade (i.e., transition into high school), fathers’ effective parenting buffered the effects of deviant peer association on their daughters’ conduct problems, whereas both fathers’ and mothers’ influence was stronger for sons when deviant peer associations were lower. Analyses also evaluated bi-directional longitudinal effects among adolescents, parents, and peers. Although varying by parent and adolescent gender or adolescent age, results generally supported the protective effects of parenting on their children’s conduct problems during early to mid adolescence.     

Says Who?: Decision-Making and Conflicts among Chinese-Canadian and Mainland Chinese Parents of Young Children

The present study explores the decision-making process and conflicts on infant care issues among Chinese mothers and fathers in Canada and China. The study utilized a mother–father informant approach and analyzed inter-parental agreement on parents’ responses. The participants included 127 families of 1-year old infants (68 Chinese–Canadians, 59 mainland Chinese). The findings revealed that parents used various strategies in making decisions about child issues such as mothers taking the lead, joint (mother–father) decisions, taking the child’s interest into consideration, and seeking advice from extended families and professionals. Differences were found by gender of the parent and by country. The inter-parental agreements for how decisions were made and the types of conflicts that occurred were relatively low.     

Trait emotional intelligence and behavioral problems among adolescents: A cross-informant design

This study examined how self and parental ratings of trait emotional intelligence (trait EI), relate to self and parental ratings of internalizing and externalizing problems. A total of 263 adolescents between 13 and 17 years and their parents participated in the study, completing two forms of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue-AF and TEIQue-360°) and the Child Behavior CheckList (CBCL-YSR and CBCL-parents’ report). Results revealed a strong correspondence between father and mother ratings, especially for externalizing problems. A doubly MANOVA, with gender as the between-subjects variable, rating source (father, mother, and adolescent) as the within-subjects variable, and the four trait EI factors as dependent variables revealed a significant effect of ratings. Both fathers and mothers attributed higher Well-being and Self-control to their children than the children attributed to themselves. The findings showed that while multisource ratings of trait EI generally converge, they are differentially predictive of external criteria.     

Accuracy of Informants: Do Parents Think That Mother Knows Best?

A total of 200 mothers and fathers provided their opinions as to the accuracy of mothers, fathers, teachers, children's peers, and children themselves as informants of children's emotional/behavioral problems. The results showed that mothers and fathers had very similar patterns of perceptions of accuracy, although fathers' ratings showed less differentiation between informants than did mothers' ratings. Patterns were very similar for reports on children and adolescents. Overall, mothers were perceived to be more accurate in reporting internalizing problems; mothers and teachers (and fathers to a lesser extent) were perceived to be more accurate in reporting externalizing problems; mothers, fathers, and teachers were seen as more accurate in reporting children's adaptive behaviors, and mothers, fathers, and children were seen as more accurate in reporting family problems. The results are discussed in the context of multiple informants of children's and adolescents' emotional/behavioral problems.     

The Development of Hyperactive–Impulsive Behaviors During the Preschool Years: The Predictive Validity of Parental Assessments

The objectives of this study were to establish the different developmental trajectories of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors on the basis of both mother and father ratings at 19, 32, 50, and 63 months, and to examine the predictive validity of these trajectories with respect to later hyperactive-impulsive behaviors, as rated by teachers in the first 2 years of school. Hyperactive-impulsive behaviors were assessed in a population-based sample of 1,112 twins (565 boys and 547 girls) at 19, 32, 50, and 63 months of age. The results revealed a differentiated and consistent view of developmental trajectories of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors derived from these repeated assessments, with 7.1% of children seen by mothers (7% for fathers) as displaying high and stable hyperactive-impulsive behaviors. According to mother ratings, children on a high-chronic trajectory were more likely than other children to display hyperactive-impulsive behaviors at 72 and 84 months according to their teachers. Repeated measures over time and father-based trajectories significantly added to the prediction teacher later ratings of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors. These results support the predictive validity of parental assessment of hyperactive-impulsive behaviors during the preschool years and their use to identify children at risk for further evaluation and possible intervention.     

The Effects of Instructions on Mothers’ Ratings of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms in Referred Children

Tested whether instructions for how to rate child attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms would improve the agreement between mothers’ ratings of symptoms in their children and ratings provided by teachers and objective observers. Sixty-eight mothers of 5 to 12 year old children (53 boys and 15 girls) referred for ADHD assessment were randomly assigned to receive or not receive the instructions. Mothers and teachers rated the children on the SNAP-IV Rating Scale and objective observers rated the children’s behavior during structured tasks. Relations between mother and teacher, and mother and observer ratings were generally stronger for mothers in the Instruction group compared to mothers in the No Instruction group, in some cases significantly stronger. The instructional materials also improved mothers’ knowledge of how to rate ADHD symptoms and reduced some associations between mothers’ ratings and family socioeconomic status. These instructions have the potential to improve clinical assessments of child ADHD symptoms.     

Perceived Parenting,Self-Esteem,and Depressive Symptoms in Immigrant and Non-Immigrant Adolescents in Italy: A Multigroup Path Analysis

Previous research has shown that a warm and caring parental style is associated with better psychological adjustment in adolescents from diverse cultural contexts. Yet, the differential role of mothers and fathers in adolescents’ depressive symptoms is still understudied, especially among immigrant populations. This study examined the relationship between perceived care from both mother and father and depressive symptoms among adolescents with and without a migration background, postulating mediation by self-esteem. Participants were 686 first-generation immigrant (44?% girls) and 1295 non-immigrant (46?% girls) Italian adolescents aged 14–20 years, who completed a questionnaire survey. Multigroup path analyses controlling for age, gender, and SES showed that (a) perceived maternal and paternal care and self-esteem were negatively related to depressive symptoms in both groups; (b) self-esteem mediated the link between perceived parenting and youth depressive symptoms in both groups; (c) the direct and indirect effects were invariant across the two groups. Results suggest that involved fathers, just as much as mothers, contribute to adolescents’ positive adjustment irrespective of immigrant status. Interventions may focus on the enhancement of self-esteem as well as the perceived quality of attachment to both mother and father, shifting away from risk models towards more positive youth development models.     

The Validity of the Child Problematic Trait Inventory in 6–12 Year Old Italian Children: Further Support and Issues of Consistency Across Different Sources of Information and Different Samples

In the present study, teacher’s ratings, mother’s ratings, and father’s ratings on the Child Problematic Trait Inventory (CPTI) were obtained on two independent samples (N?=?381 and N?=?406, respectively) of Italian school age children (age range: 6–12 years). Cronbach alpha values greater than 0.80 were observed for all CPTI scale scores based on teacher’s ratings, mother’s ratings, and father’s ratings respectively. Although intraclass correlation values suggested poor parent-teacher agreement, robust weighted least square Confirmatory Factor Analyses (WLSMV CFAs) suggested that the three-factor model of the CPTI was consistently replicated as the best fitting model across all informants. Logistic regression analysis conducted in one of the samples showed that teacher’s ratings and mother’s ratings of the CPTI, but not CPTI father’s ratings, significantly predicted child’s problem behavior at school. Multiple regression analyses showed that CPTI scores were significantly predicted by selected temperament dimensions, but with different relationships for different sources of information. Overall, our findings suggest that the CPTI is a reliable and valid measure of problematic traits with a three-factor structure, although this study indicates that multiple sources of information may prove necessary when assessing psychopathy in school-age children with the CPTI.