Profiles of Racial Socialization Among African American Parents: Correlates,Context, and Outcome

Self report and observational data on racial socialization practices in a sample of 218 African American parents of young children were used to determine whether or not parents could be characterized in terms of their pattern of racial socialization practices. Parents fell into four groups: silence about race, emphasis on cultural socialization, emphasis on cultural socialization and coping strategies, or a balanced approach. Silence about race was more common among parents of boys, whereas an emphasis on cultural socialization was more common among parents of girls. Silence about race was less common in neighborhoods with high levels of negative social climate, and a combination of cultural socialization with coping strategies for discrimination was more common in neighborhoods with high neighborhood potential for community involvement with children. The coping emphasis/cultural socialization approach was associated with significantly lower child problem behavior, although some gender differences were evident. A cultural socialization emphasis was associated with higher cognitive scores among girls, and a combination of cultural socialization, coping with discrimination, and promotion of mistrust was associated with higher cognitive scores among boys. Implications of this profile approach for the study of racial socialization practices in ethnic minority families are discussed.     

Parenting and Prematurity: Understanding Parent Experience and Preferences for Support

Infants born very preterm are at risk of developmental and behavioural problems and their parents are at risk of psychological distress and compromised parenting. This study has two key aims: (1) to identify, from the parents’ own perspective, the unique aspects of parenting an infant born very preterm and (2) to assess parent preferences for support including opinions of a new, tailored parenting intervention, Prem Baby Positive Parenting Program (Triple P). A qualitative approach was taken with focus groups of 18 parents of infants born preterm and a thematic analysis conducted. Parents identified several unique aspects of parenting an infant born preterm including: difficulty coping with the stress of hospitalisation; institutionalisation to the hospital environment; a lack of preparation for the transition to parenthood; grief; isolation; getting into “bad parenting habits” of overnurturance and a lack of certainty about developmental expectations. Parents preferred parenting support that is tailored to parents of infants born preterm, has flexible delivery, enhances coping skills and the spousal relationship and is sensitive to the emotional context of parenting an infant born preterm. Understanding the experiences and the preferences of parents of infants born preterm is an important step in tailoring parenting interventions to fit their needs.     

Caregiving Burden and Parent–Child Quality of Life Outcomes in Neurodevelopmental Conditions: The Mediating Role of Behavioral Disengagement

The aim of this study was to analyze the direct and indirect effects, via parents’ behavioral disengagement coping, of caregiving burden on the quality of life (QL) of parents and their children with neurodevelopmental conditions. Self-completion questionnaires on the target variables were administered to a sample of 156 parents who had a child with a neurodevelopmental condition, namely epilepsy (n = 65) and cerebral palsy (n = 91). Structural equation modeling was used to test a mediation model and ascertain direct and indirect effects among study variables. Significant direct effects of caregiving burden on parents’ and their children’s QL were found. Additionally, caregiving burden had a significant indirect effect on parents’ QL, via behavioral disengagement, but not on their children’s QL. Finally, this model was found to be invariant across conditions and patients’ age groups. Caregiving burden may be elected as a strategic intervention target to improve parent–child QL outcomes in neuropediatric settings. Parents should be encouraged to avoid or reduce behavioral disengagement coping in relation to their caregiving stress, and alternatively adopt active coping strategies that may positively affect their children’s QL and impede or attenuate the deleterious effects of caregiving burden on their own QL.     

Adverse Life Events, Coping and Internalizing and Externalizing Behaviors in Urban African American Youth

African American youth residing in low income urban neighborhoods are at increased risk of experiencing negative life events in multiple domains, increasing their risk for internalizing and externalizing behaviors. However, little is known about youth’s differential responses to life event stress, or protective processes and coping strategies for urban African American youth exposed to adverse life events. Thus, the present study examined whether variability in predominantly low income, urban African American youth’s responses to life event stress are accounted for by the type of life event experienced or the type of coping strategies used. Participants were a community sample of 353 urban African American youth (52.8 % girls; age range 8–12 years) who participated in the Multiple Opportunities to Reach Excellence (MORE) Project. Youth reported about their experiences with adverse life events, coping strategies, and internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Results indicated that violent life events were uniquely associated with externalizing behavior, while discrimination and economic stress were uniquely associated with internalizing behavior. The utility of coping strategies varied by gender, such that avoiding problems was protective for girls who experienced violent life events, but not for boys. For boys, exposure to violence was significantly positively associated with externalizing symptoms regardless of the amount of avoiding problems coping used. Findings suggest that interventions to develop coping strategies may need to be gender-specific as well as tailored for the types of stressors common for low income urban youth.     

Positive and negative affect in parenting disabled children

Research on parents' positive and negative affect may clarify critical aspects in the emotional impact of raising a child with disabilities, as related to stress-resistance factors such as personal coping and family climate. Parental affect (positive and negative), coping strategies (active and avoidant), and family climate (relationships, personal growth, and system maintenance) among 71 families with disabled children were compared (using MANCOVA) to parental measures of 77 families with nondisabled children, revealing significant differences. Parents of disabled children reported higher levels of negative (distressed) affect, adopted more avoidant coping strategies, and differed in their familial interrelations and the opportunities for personal growth available to them in their families. The discrepancies between the fathers' and mothers' scores in avoidant coping and in the family climate areas of personal growth and system maintenance were greater among the parents of disabled children than among the control parents. Positive and negative affect were differently predicted in the two groups of parents, highlighting the different role of coping resources and family resources in mediating stress. Implications were drawn for intervention planning and family empowerment.     

Children’s Influence on Their Parent’s Adult Development: Mothers’ and Fathers’ Receptivity to Children’s Requests for Change

This mixed-method study examined parents’ experiences of their children’s influence on parent’s continuing adult development. Mothers and fathers from 30 families were separately interviewed regarding two of their children who were between 8 and 14 years old. Parents reported on recent events when their younger and older child successfully requested that parents change their preferences, attitudes, and personal behaviors. Mothers reported more direct child influence than fathers, and both parents reported that they were more receptive to influence from their older children. Thematic analyses revealed that parents were generally comfortable with child influence and constructed their children as actors and agents. Parents attributed their receptivity to agentic qualities of children’s requests, goals for empowering children, and maintaining their mutual relationship. The findings provided insight into the transactional and relational nature of children’s influence and the direct and indirect impact of children on the adult development of parents.     

Correlates of African American and Latino parents' messages to children about ethnicity and race: a comparative study of racial socialization

Recently, social scientists have become increasingly interested in the nature of communications from parents to children regarding ethnicity and race. Termed racial socialization, race-related messages to children may have important consequences for children's identity development and well-being. This study examined the frequency and correlates of two dimensions of racial socialization—messages about ethnic pride, history, and heritage (Cultural Socialization) and messages about discrimination and racial bias (Preparation for Bias)—among 273 urban African American, Puerto Rican, and Dominican parents. Parents reported more frequent Cultural Socialization than Preparation for Bias. There were no significant ethnic group differences in the frequency of Cultural Socialization. However, African American parents reported more frequent Preparation for Bias than did Dominican parents who, in turn, reported more frequent messages of this sort than did Puerto Rican parents. Ethnic identity was a stronger predictor of Cultural Socialization among Puerto Rican and Dominican parents than among their African American counterparts. In contrast, perceived discrimination experiences was a stronger predictor of Preparation for Bias among African American and Dominican parents than among Puerto Rican parents. Finally, race-related phenomenon accounted for more variance in both Cultural Socialization and Preparation for Bias among parents reporting on their behaviors with children 10–17 years old as compared to parents reporting on their behaviors with children 6–9 years old.     

The medical context of parental coping with childhood cancer

This research assessed the extent to which contextual factors, especially the medical context, are related to the use of specific coping strategies by 74 parents of surviving children with cancer. Parents reported that they coped reasonably well by using information-seeking, problem-solving, help-seeking, maintaining emotional balance, relying on religion, being optimistic, denying, and accepting. More highly educated parents tended to use problem solving, optimism, and information seeking significantly more and denial significantly less than well-educated parents. However, gender and income were unrelated to coping. The use of specific coping strategies was not related to severity of the child's medical condition, stress level, or parents' own evaluations of their coping effectiveness. However, the quality of relations with the medical staff was strongly related to coping strategies. Use of passive coping strategies was positively related to good relations with the medical staff.     

Family Coping During Hospitalization of Children with Chronic Illnesses

Information about family coping when a child with a chronic illness is hospitalized for procedures related to his or her illness is needed. The current research presents the results of two pilot studies designed to assess family resilience and coping, during a hospitalization for medical procedures for a child with a chronic condition. Sixty-one parents participated in the first study and reported on their child’s hospital experiences and completed a survey designed to assess family coping. Twelve mothers and one grandmother completed interviews examining their perceptions of their coping, siblings’ coping, and coping of the child with an illness for study two. Results of Study 1 indicated parents’ perceived the family as resilient. Cognitive strategies were used to see the hospital stay as positive for the child or to accept what had to occur as having the possibility of improving the child’s life. Some of the mothers mentioned financial stress as being difficult for the family. Results of Study 2 also supported resilient functioning for mothers, siblings, and children with illnesses. Mothers reported they stayed strong for their child. Siblings could serve as protectors, helpers, and companions and were described as adapting well. Children with illnesses used distraction (e.g., play, art, music) to facilitate their coping. Findings of this study indicated parents perceived the family as coping well and supporting the child with an illness. Future research will need to assess perceptions of siblings and fathers and assess family members’ perspectives at different times over the course of children’s illnesses.     

Parenting Stress, Social Support, and Depression for Ethnic Minority Adolescent Mothers: Impact on Child Development

Rates of teenage pregnancies are higher for African American and Latina adolescents compared to their White peers. African American and Latina adolescent mothers also experience more adversities than their White peers, such as higher rates of depression, school dropout, and economic disadvantage. Furthermore, children of adolescent mothers are at higher risk for adverse development. Parenting stress and social support can impact outcomes experienced by adolescent parents and their children. The present study examined the influence of adolescent mothers’ parenting stress and perceived social support on maternal depression at baseline (6 months after birth), and its impact on infant development 1 year later (18 months after birth). Participants were 180 adolescent mothers of African American or Latino/Hispanic descent. Results suggest that higher levels of parenting stress and less perceived social support were associated with higher levels of depression in the adolescent mothers at baseline. Higher levels of maternal depression were also associated with more developmental delays in infants 1 year post-baseline. Additionally, depression mediated the relationship between parenting stress and later child outcomes. These findings highlight the importance of examining parenting factors such as parenting stress, social support, and maternal depression in ethnic minority adolescent parents, and provide valuable information regarding unique risk and protective factors associated with positive maternal outcomes for ethnic minority adolescent parents and healthy development for their children.     

Ethnicity differences in child and parental outcomes following involvement the PACE program

This study investigated ethnic differences in the extent to which engagement (i.e., attendance and quality of participation) in the PACE (Parenting our Children to Excellence) program predicted positive child and parent outcomes. PACE is an 8-week preventive intervention aimed at parents of preschool children. The study investigated the relation of engagement to outcomes in an ethnically diverse sample of 298 African American and 280 European American parents. Overall results demonstrated that engagement in PACE significantly improved child and parent outcomes for both African American and European American participants. Some improvements were evident at post-assessment already and were maintained or became stronger at a one-year follow-up assessment, whereas others only became evident at follow-up. Specifically, results revealed that attendance in PACE significantly improved child coping competence and parenting stress for both the African American and European American samples. PACE attendance also significantly improved child behavior problems, parental satisfaction and parental efficacy for the European American sample. Findings indicate that PACE is a promising intervention for parents of African American and Caucasian preschoolers; although further research and program refinement is necessary in order to understand the mechanisms with the PACE intervention that seem to vary for African American compared to Caucasian families.     

The Relation of Emotion Knowledge to Coping in European American and Chinese Immigrant Children

Emotion knowledge contributes to emotion regulation and coping among adults, but few studies have investigated its role in children’s coping development, especially in a cross-cultural context. We examine relations between children’s emotion knowledge and coping in European American and Chinese immigrant families. One hundred and three 7- to 10-year-old children and their mothers from European American and Chinese cultural background participated in this study. Children's emotion knowledge was assessed using emotion-situation knowledge production task. This task examines their understanding of situational antecedents o discrete emotions. Children’s use of coping strategies was reported by mothers using the Children’s Coping Strategies Checklist. Results showed that Chinese immigrant children had greater emotion knowledge of fear and pride but were reported using less variety of coping strategies than European American children. The relationship between children’s knowledge of self-conscious emotions and their use of distraction coping strategies was moderated by culture, whereby knowledge of self-conscious emotions was negatively associated with the parent-reported distraction strategies only for European American children but not for Chinese immigrant children. The importance of culture in both theory and practice related to emotion knowledge and coping is discussed. Findings in this study suggest that family intervention and children’s emotion training programs may need to consider children’s cultural background.     

Coping strategies of mother carers of children living with chronic illness and disease in a rural South African community

The present study explored the coping strategies used by mother carers of children living with chronic illness and disease (CID) in a rural South African community. Ten mothers (age range = 30 to 56 years) were selected through snowball sampling to participate in the present study. They provided care to their children, a majority (50%) of whom had epilepsy, followed by asthma (20%) and other conditions. Data on the coping strategies used by mothers of children living with CID were collected using semi-structured interviews and analysed thematically. The results showed that mother carers tended to use three types of coping strategies, namely: appraisal-focused, problem-focused and emotion-focused strategies. Appraisal-focused was commonly used by mother carers whose children had epilepsy, whilst mother carers of children with asthma tended to use problem-focused coping strategies. All mother carers were found to use emotion-focused strategies to varying degrees in coping with the chronic diseases of their children.     

Parental Overprotection,Perceived Child Vulnerability,and Parenting Stress: A Cross-Illness Comparison

The current study sought to investigate differences in parenting capacity variables across four disease groups. Parents (N = 425), the majority of whom were mothers, of children with either cancer, asthma, Type 1 diabetes, or cystic fibrosis, completed measures of parental overprotection, perceived child vulnerability, and parenting stress. After controlling for significant demographic variables, parents of children with cystic fibrosis and asthma reported higher perceived child vulnerability than parents of children with either diabetes or cancer, while parents of children with asthma and diabetes reported higher parenting stress than parents of children with cancer or cystic fibrosis. No differences between disease groups were found for parental overprotection. The current study provides support for an illness-specific approach to understanding parenting capacity variables in the context of childhood chronic illnesses.     

Repressive Adaptive Style Across Ethnicities

There may be significant differences in coping styles across ethnicities. Previous research has suggested disparities in the number of individuals who utilize repressive adaptive coping style among cultural groups. Repressive adaptive style is a coping mechanism in which individuals report low distress levels while they actually experience high levels of stress. Developing an enhanced understanding of the prevalence of the utilization of repressive adaptive style in different ethnic groups is important for informing intervention techniques to better account for the cultural influences on mental health. The present study investigated the utilization of repressive adaptive style across American Indian (n?=?31), African American (n?=?53), and European American (n?=?48) children in the Midwest. The age range of the children was 10 to 13 years and 50.8% were male. Dependent measures included the Children’s Social Desirability Scale and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children. Results indicated significant differences in reports of anxiety between ethnic groups. Additionally, it was discovered that African American and European American children utilized repressive adaptive style more than American Indian children, albeit not significantly. Because of the high rates of suicide and emotional distress believed to be experienced by American Indian children this result is interesting. Continued research investigating protective factors, such as high levels of cultural identity and connectedness, is warranted.     

Bidirectional Relationships Between Parenting Stress and Child Coping Competence: Findings From the Pace Study

The present study was designed to evaluate the bidirectional relationships between parenting stress and child coping competence. Data from a diverse sample of 610 parents enrolled in the parenting our children to excellence program was used to evaluate whether parenting stress negatively contributes to affective, achievement, and social coping competence in preschoolers, as well as whether child coping competence predicts parenting stress; after accounting for child disruptive behavior. Results from cross-lagged panel analyses demonstrated a bidirectional relationship, such that parenting stress predicted later child coping competence and child coping competence predicted later parenting stress. Assessment of ethnicity differences indicated that child coping continues to have a long-term impact on parenting stress, regardless of parent ethnicity. The same relationship did not hold for earlier parenting stress on later child coping competence, however, indicating a bidirectional relationship for African American families, but not for their European American counterparts. The relationship between parenting stress and child coping competence is discussed with respect to their conceptual and clinical implications. Suggestions for parent training intervention and prevention programs are given.     

Made in America: Perspectives on Friendship in West African Immigrant Families

This qualitative study compared West African immigrant parents’ and adolescents’ perspectives on parental monitoring of adolescents’ peer groups. Parents (n = 31) and adolescent children (n = 25) were interviewed using focus groups and individual interviews, and data were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Parents expressed a general concern about external influences on their children, particularly their mistrust of their children’s friends. Adolescents reported that they were aware of their parents’ fears and described their attempts to manage their parents’ concerns while simultaneously maintaining friendships with same-ethnic and other-ethnic peers. This study offers both parent and adolescent perspectives in an effort to better understand adolescents’ peer socialization and parental monitoring among West African immigrant families, one of the fastest growing demographic groups in the United States. Recommendations for mental health professions are discussed.     

Racism-related stress, Africultural coping, and religious problem-solving among African Americans

This study explored the extent to which three types of racism-related stress (i.e., individual, institutional, and cultural) would predict the use of specific Africultural coping strategies (i.e., cognitive/emotional debriefing, spiritual-centered, collective, and ritual-centered coping) and religious problem-solving styles (i.e., self-directing, deferring, and collaborative) in a sample of 284 African American men and women. The authors found that higher institutional racism-related stress was associated with greater use of cognitive/emotional debriefing, spiritual-centered, and collective coping in African American women. Findings also indicated that higher cultural racism-related stress was predictive of lower use of self-directing religious problem-solving in African American women. Moreover, higher perceived cultural racism-related stress was related to greater use of collective coping strategies in African American men. Individual racism-related stress was not predictive of any forms of Africultural coping strategies or religious problem-solving. Implications of the findings are discussed.     

Children with Asthma and Their Families’ Viewpoints on Spiritual and Psychological Resources in Adaptation with the Disease

Recognition of the spiritual and psychological needs of children and their families with chronic asthma disease may be helpful in a successful coping with their problems in order to control over the condition. In a qualitative content analysis study, nine children with moderate to severe asthma and 10 parents were studied in order to discover the resources of compatibility of them. The participants were chosen purposefully and they were asked some semi-structure questions about their experiences. The spiritual and psychological experiences of the participants were divided into two main categories as follows: (1) contrive to religious-belief consisting of three sub-categories known as “religious rituals, believe in a divine predestination, and Islamic-based patience,” and (2) psycho-intellectual management that includes the five sub-categories of “psycho-intellectual attention, maintaining family’s mental peace, reduction in negative burden of disease, satisfaction from optimal treatment, and matching internal desires with disease conditions.” It is recommended that heath care providers by reinforcing parent’s and children’s religious and spiritual backgrounds and according to child’s cognitive development at this age provide a suitable foreground through necessary instructions for children and their families in order to spiritual growth and suitable adaptation with disease.     

Emotional competence and quality of life of children with asthma: The mediating effect of coping strategies

This study explored the mediating effect of coping strategies on the relationship between emotional competence (EC) and quality of life (QOL) among children with asthma. Participants were 87 children (M age?=?11.72, SD?=?2.58) with controlled and partially controlled asthma, undergoing everyday treatment. They filled in questionnaires assessing EC, coping strategies and QOL. Results showed that the association between some ECs and the QOL of children with asthma was fully mediated by two maladaptive cognitive coping strategies. Among children with asthma, a greater ability to differentiate their emotions, a reduced attention to bodily signals of emotions and a reduced analysis of their current emotional state were related to decreased engagement in two coping strategies (‘Ignoring Asthma’ and ‘Worrying about Asthma’), which in turn increased their QOL. These findings show that EC has an indirect effect on QOL through very specific coping strategies. They also emphasise the importance of screening EC in children with asthma and the importance of developing and using multidisciplinary interventions for them.