Family expressiveness and parental emotion coaching: their role in children's emotion regulation and aggression

In this study, we explored the relations between positive and negative family expressiveness, parental emotion coaching, child emotion regulation, and child aggression. The sample included 120 fourth-grade children and their mothers. Mothers completed the Emotion Regulation Checklist, the Family Expressiveness Questionnaire, and a portion of the meta-emotion interview to assess their awareness and acceptance of, and instruction in managing their child's anger and sadness (3 dimensions of parental emotion coaching). Teachers rated each child's aggression and completed the Emotion Regulation Checklist for each child. The 3 dimensions of parental emotion coaching and positive and negative family expressiveness were not directly related to child aggression. However, both negative family expressiveness and the mother's acceptance of the child's negative emotions were indirectly related to child aggression through the child's emotion regulation.     

Maternal meta-emotion philosophy and socialization of adolescent affect: The moderating role of adolescent temperament

This study explored the associations between maternal meta-emotion philosophy (MEP) and maternal socialization of preadolescents' positive and negative affect. It also investigated whether adolescent temperament and gender moderated this association. MEP involves parental awareness and acceptance of their own and their child's emotions and their coaching of child emotions. Event-planning (EPI) and problem-solving (PSI) interactions were observed in 163 mother-adolescent dyads, and maternal behaviors were coded to provide indices of socialization responses to adolescent emotion. In addition, maternal MEP was assessed via interview, and preadolescents provided self-reports of temperament on 2 occasions. Maternal MEP that is higher in awareness and acceptance was associated with reduced likelihood of negative socialization behaviors during the EPI. Moreover, preadolescents' temperamental negative emotionality (NEM) and effortful control (EC) moderated some of these MEP-socialization associations. During the positive EPI task, greater maternal awareness and acceptance is associated with reduced likelihood of negative socialization toward preadolescents with "easy" temperaments, that is, low NEM or high EC. However, during the conflict task, greater maternal awareness is associated with reduced likelihood of negative socialization among preadolescents with "difficult" temperaments. Some male-specific associations were also found.     

Parent and child agreement on anxiety disorder symptoms using the DISC predictive scales

Growing recognition of the negative impact of anxiety disorders in the lives of youth has made their identification an important clinical task. Multiple perspective assessment (e.g., parents, children) is generally considered a preferred method in the assessment of anxiety disorder symptoms, although it has been generally thought that disagreement between parent and youth ratings of the child's emotions is common. This study examined parent and child reports of the child's anxiety disorder symptoms using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children-Predictive Scales (DISC-PS) in a clinic-referred sample of substance using adolescents. Parents and adolescents (N = 480) who were referred for substance abuse treatment were screened for anxiety disorder symptoms using the DISC-PS at pretreatment. Results suggest similar (low) levels of agreement between the parent report and child report versions as found with other anxiety symptom and anxiety disorder measures. Findings provide data on multi-informant agreement and highlight issues in the use of the DISC-PS to identify anxiety problems in youth.     

Mothers' emotional expressivity and children's behavior problems and social competence: mediation through children's regulation.

The relations between mothers' expressed positive and negative emotion and 55-79-month-olds' (76% European American) regulation, social competence, and adjustment were examined. Structural equation modeling was used to test the plausibility of the hypothesis that the effects of maternal expression of emotion on children's adjustment and social competence are mediated through children's dispositional regulation. Mothers' expressed emotions were assessed during interactions with their children and with maternal reports of emotions expressed in the family. Children's regulation, externalizing and internalizing problems. and social competence were rated by parents and teachers, and children's persistence was surreptitiously observed. There were unique effects of positive and negative maternal expressed emotion on children's regulation. and the relations of maternal expressed emotion to children's externalizing problem behaviors and social competence were mediated through children's regulation. Alternative models of causation were tested; a child-directed model in which maternal expressivity mediated the effects of child regulation on child outcomes did not fit the data as well.     

Asian Indian Mothers’ Emotion Socialization and Child Emotion Expression as a Function of Situational Context

The present study examined whether reports of maternal socialization and child emotion expression differ depending on the emotion-eliciting context. Early adolescents and their mothers (N = 146) from suburban middle-class families in Gujarat, India participated. In response to hypothetical academic and interpersonal situations, children rated the intensity of felt emotion, and likelihood of expressing felt emotion, and mothers rated the acceptability of their children’s emotional expressions, and their behavioral responses to children. Results revealed that across both situations children reported expressing sadness more than anger, and expressing both emotions more in interpersonal than academic situations. Mothers reported child sadness to be significantly more acceptable than anger, and both emotions were significantly more acceptable in interpersonal than academic situations. Mothers reported problem-focused responses (solution) and scolding more in response to academic than interpersonal situations, whereas they reported problem-focused responses (explanation), coaxing, and distraction more in interpersonal than academic situations.     

The role of parental emotional distress in parent report of child anxiety

Evaluated the role of maternal and paternal emotional distress in parent report of anxiety in their child. Participants were 239 children (ages 7.5 to 15 years) diagnosed with a primary anxiety disorder and their parents (193 fathers, 238 mothers). Parents individually completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children-Parent Version (a report of the child's anxiety). Children completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children. Mothers and fathers reported more anxiety in their children than the children reported themselves. No significant relations were found between parental anxiety and parent report of child anxiety. When we examined girls only, both maternal and paternal BDI scores were significant predictors of parent report of the child's anxiety after we controlled for parental anxiety. Separate analyses by child age revealed that parent reports of child anxiety were more correlated with the self-reports of younger children. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

Revisiting the accuracy hypothesis in families of young children with conduct problems

Revisited the accuracy hypothesis in an examination of the relation between maternal depressive symptomatology and child conduct problems. All data were gathered as part of the pretreatment assessment in an outcome study of families with clinic-referred children with conduct problems (age 3 to 6). The mothers varied in their depressive symptomatology, from not at all symptomatic to severely symptomatic. Correlations indicated that with increasing depressive symptomatology, mothers (N = 97) displayed a higher rate of physical negative behaviors towards their child and reported more child conduct problems. Regression analyses revealed that at the lowest levels of maternal depressive symptomatology there was a discrepancy between mothers' reports of child behavior problems and child deviant behaviors observed during mother-child interaction. In contrast, at higher levels of depression, mothers' reports of child behavior were consistent with laboratory observations of their child's behavior. These findings provide evidence to support the accuracy hypothesis in reference to mothers who display a high degree of depressive symptomatology, but the results also call into question the validity of maternal report in families with children with conduct problems.     

Parenting and Children's Intrinsic Motivation in Age Group Swimming

The parenting correlates of children's intrinsic motivation in swimming were examined. Mothers and fathers of 135 9- to 12-year-old competitive swimmers completed questionnaires about their child's swimming ability and about their current parenting practices. Children provided information about their swimming motivations. Results showed that children's ability in swimming (based on both mother and father ratings and on objective swimming performance) was positively associated with children's reports of intrinsic motivation. After controlling for child ability, mothers', but not fathers', parenting practices predicted children's intrinsic motivation: maternal directiveness was negatively associated with intrinsic motivation and maternal performance goals showed a positive association. Curvilinear effects were significant as well, with the highest level of intrinsic motivation found among children whose mothers showed intermediate values on performance goals and either high or low levels of directiveness.     

Effects of discrete emotions on young children's suggestibility

Two experiments investigated the effects of sadness, anger, and happiness on 4- to 6-year-old children's memory and suggestibility concerning story events. In Experiment 1, children were presented with 3 interactive stories on a video monitor. The stories included protagonists who wanted to give the child a prize. After each story, the child completed a task to try to win the prize. The outcome of the child's effort was manipulated in order to elicit sadness, anger, or happiness. Children's emotions did not affect story recall, but children were more vulnerable to misleading questions about the stories when sad than when angry or happy. In Experiment 2, a story was presented and emotions were elicited using an autobiographical recall task. Children responded to misleading questions and then recalled the story for a different interviewer. Again, children's emotions did not affect the amount of story information recalled correctly, but sad children incorporated more information from misleading questions during recall than did angry or happy children. Sad children's greater suggestibility is discussed in terms of the differing problem-solving strategies associated with discrete emotions.     

The developmental origins of cognitive vulnerability to depression: temperament, parenting, and negative life events in childhood as contributors to negative cognitive style

Cognitive models of depression have been well supported with adults, but the developmental origins of cognitive vulnerability are not well understood. The authors hypothesized that temperament, parenting, and negative life events in childhood would contribute to the development of cognitive style, with withdrawal negativity and negative parental feedback moderating the effects of negative life events to predict more depressogenic cognitive styles. These constructs were assessed in 289 children and their parents followed longitudinally from infancy to 5th grade; a subsample (n = 120) also participated in a behavioral task in which maternal feedback to child failure was observed. Results indicated that greater withdrawal negativity in interaction with negative life events was associated with more negative cognitive styles. Self-reported maternal anger expression and observed negative maternal feedback to child's failure significantly interacted with child's negative events to predict greater cognitive vulnerability. There was little evidence of paternal parenting predicting child negative cognitive style.     

Mother-child relationships of children with ADHD: the role of maternal depressive symptoms and depression-related distortions

We investigated the DepressionDistortion hypothesis by examining the effects of maternal depressive symptoms on cross-informant discrepancies in reports of child behavior problems and several measures of parent–child relationship. The sample included ninety-six 6 to 10-year-old children diagnosed with ADHD-Combined Type, and their mothers, who provided baseline data before participating in a randomized clinical trial. Measures incorporated child characteristics, self-reports of maternal depressive symptoms, parenting practices, and laboratory mother–child interactions. Elevations in maternal depressive symptoms were associated with maternal reports of negative parenting style but not with observed laboratory interactions. Mothers' levels of depressive symptoms predicted negative biases in their reports of their child's ADHD symptoms, general behavior problems, and their own negative parenting style. Whereas levels of depressive symptoms did not predict observed parenting behaviors, maternal distortions did predict problematic parent–child interactions. Exploratory analyses showed a marginally significant mediation effect of the relationship between maternal depressive symptomatology and reports of negative parenting by depressive distortions. We discuss implications of linkages between depressive symptoms in mothers, depression-related distortions, and mother–child relationships for research and intervention in developmental psychopathology.     

Quality of maternal thinking and mother-child interaction in at-risk contexts

This study investigates how the maternal level of perspectivistic reasoning and the level of socialization goals in the representation of their actions are related to the quality of mother-child behaviors as well as to the expert ratings on maternal practices in at-risk contexts. It also investigated whether there is any direct link between mother and child behaviors and expert ratings. A sample of 75 mothers of children between 8 and 12 years old reported on their level of perspectivistic reasoning and were characterized by the social workers of municipal services as being coercive, neglectful or meeting their child's needs. Interactions during a collaborative task were observed to obtain information on level of socialization goals and mother-child behaviors. Structural equation models showed that mothers' higher levels of perspectivism and higher levels of socialization goals positively predicted the mother's and child's sensitivity and active involvement in the task and negatively predicted avoidance and passivity. Higher levels of perspectivism consistently predicted experts' views on maternal practices. However, only mother's avoidance predicted negatively expert ratings on coercion practice, indicating that expert views were mostly derived from the mothers' perspective on their child. The implications of these results for parental assessment and intervention programs are discussed.     

Maternal and Paternal Perception of Child Vulnerability and Behaviour Problems in Very Preterm Born Children

Preterm born children have more behaviour problems than term born children. Perinatal risks, current child functioning, sociodemographic characteristics, parental psychological distress and parental perceptions of child vulnerability (PCV) have been shown to be risk factors for behaviour problems. However, the role of maternal and paternal PCV is unclear, as these have not been investigated as a risk factor for behaviour problems, with all other risk factors taken into account. Aim of this study is to investigate whether maternal and paternal PCV are independent risk factors for behaviour problems in very preterm (VP) and term born children. The present study is a single centre prospective cohort study. Preterm children (n = 104), born at <30 weeks' gestation and/or birth weight <1000 g, and term children (n = 95) were assessed at age 5. Results showed that risk factors for parent‐rated behaviour problems were low/middle parental education, VP birth, parental stress and, in VP children, maternal PCV. Risk factors for teacher‐rated behaviour problems were low/middle parental education, foreign parental country of birth, intrauterine growth restriction and objective child vulnerabilities. It can be concluded that maternal PCV is a risk factor for parent‐rated behaviour problems in VP children. When VP children are presented with behavioural problems, clinicians ought to be aware of the possibility that parents might still perceive their child as vulnerable. The neonatal history of the child, the way parents experienced that period, their perceptions of the child and possible consequences of these perceptions could be subjects for conversation during visits at follow‐up clinics. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A short-term longitudinal study of the early development of self-regulation

A short-term longitudinal study was conducted to determine whether self-regulation at 4 years could be predicted from child and maternal measures obtained when the children were age 24 months. The subjects were 69 children and their mothers drawn from the general community. Criterion behaviors assessed at 4 years were those suggestive of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Of the 24-month child measures, maternal ratings of the child's impulsivity and attention span, plus an objective measure of delay ability, were the most effective predictors. Maternal negativity, as assessed in mother-child interaction, predicted the criterion behaviors, even after the child's behavior as an elicitor of maternal behavior was controlled. Maternal child-rearing attitudes on the dimensions of warmth and aggravation were also effective predictors, even after controlling for the child's emotionality as a possible determinant of maternal attitudes. It is argued that the results with the maternal attitude measures provide support for the hypothesis that maternal behavior is a contributor to the development of self-regulation.This research was supported by a State of Ohio Academic Challenge Grant to the Bowling Green State University Clinical Psychology Program, and by a Basic Grant awarded to the first author by the Bowling Green State University Faculty Research Committee. The authors are grateful to Eric Dubow, Douglas Ullman, and two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and criticisms on previous versions of this article.     

Current and Past Maternal Depression, Maternal Interaction Behaviors, and Children’s Externalizing and Internalizing Symptoms

Relations among past maternal depressive disorder, current depressive symptoms, current maternal interaction behaviors, and children's adjustment were examined in a sample of 204 women and their young adolescent offspring (mean age = 11.86, SD = 0.55). Mothers either had (n = 157) or had not (n = 57) experienced at least one depressive disorder during the child's life. Mothers and children participated in a problem-solving task, video-taped for later coding. Mothers with current depressive symptoms and those with histories of chronic/severe depressive disorders displayed fewer positive behaviors toward their children; mothers with current depressive symptoms also showed more negative behaviors with their children. The relation between mothers' depression history and their behavior during the interaction with their child was partially mediated by mothers' current mood state. Moreover, high levels of maternal negativity and low levels of positivity during the problem-solving task were related to children's externalizing problems. Maternal positivity partially mediated the relation between maternal depression and children's externalizing symptoms. These findings highlight the importance of providing parenting interventions for depressed mothers.     

Continuity of paternal social support and depressive symptoms among new mothers

The present study examined trajectories of paternal support and maternal depressive symptoms over the first two years after the birth of a child. First-time mothers (N = 582) were assessed 6 times during the first 24 months of their child's life. At each assessment they reported on a number of ways in which their child's father provided support, and at three of the assessments, their own depressive symptomatology was assessed. Latent growth curve models revealed that while higher support was related to lower depressive symptomatology, both paternal support and maternal depression tended to decrease over time. The relationships between paternal support and maternal depression are complex and suggest the importance of considering the multiple ways that parents influence one another over time.     

Mothers’ Gender-Role Attitudes and Their Responses to Young Children’s Hypothetical Display of Shy and Aggressive Behaviors

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of child gender and maternal gender-role attitudes in mothers’ reactions to hypothetical vignettes depicting their preschool-aged child displaying aggressive and shy behaviors. Participants were 78 mothers of preschool-aged children (43 girls, 35 boys; M _age?=?47.44?months, SD?=?11.00) living in a mid-sized city in Ontario, Canada. Mothers provided reports of their gender-role attitudes and rated their expectancies and emotional/behavioral reactions following hypothetical vignettes depicting their child displaying physically aggressive and shy-withdrawn behaviors. It was hypothesized that mothers would respond with more negative (and less positive) emotions and expectancies in response to children’s gender-incongruent problem behaviors (i.e., shyness among boys, aggression among girls). It was further hypothesized that these gender effects would be more pronounced among mothers espousing more traditional (i.e., less egalitarian) gender-role attitudes. Results of multiple regression analyses indicated that mothers anticipated more negative consequences to aggression among boys than among girls. Several significant interaction effects also emerged between child gender and maternal gender-role attitudes, particularly with regards to children’s shyness. Among mothers of boys, a more egalitarian gender-role attitude was associated with greater anticipated benefits of shyness, and both more positive and more negative emotional responses to shyness. For mothers of girls, however, the opposite pattern emerged. Results provide some support for the notion that mothers may enforce gender-typical social behaviors in their children, particularly if they themselves hold more traditional gender-role attitudes.     

Perception of emotions by accepted and rejected children

The purpose of this study was to assess the perceptions of emotions by accepted and rejected children. Peer ratings and peer sociometrics were used to identify accepted and rejected children. All children were administered a task specifically designed to measure their ability to perceive emotions. This task consisted of a series of videotaped interactions involving two individuals—either two adults or two children—portraying one of three affective states: happiness, sadness, and anger. After viewing each interaction, children were asked to identify what the person was feeling. In addition, teachers and peers rated the children on their ability to perceive emotions in others. The results indicated that accepted children obtained significantly higher scores than rejected children on the identification of emotions in the interactions. Teachers and peers also rated accepted children as better perceivers of emotions than rejected children. Implications of the results are discussed.     

Parental perception of learning-disabled children's adjustment problems and related stress

Mothers and fathers of learning-disabled (LD) children rated their children's problems on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the stress they experienced as a result of each problem. Data were examined as a function of (a) the child's sex, age, birth order, IQ, discrepancy IQ, and degree of LD, (b) the parents' age, locus of control, and self-concept, and (c) family SES, family size, and mother's working status. Both parents rated externalizing behaviors higher than internalizing. Boys were rated as significantly more problematic and stressful than girls. Greater child adjustment problems and concomitant parental stress were reported by the younger half of the maternal sample and their spouses, and by fathers with a lower self-concept and their wives. Although mothers did not differ from fathers in behavior ratings, they reported greater stress in response to them. This was particularly true of mothers of middle or upper SES with an external locus of control.This research was funded in part by the Ontario Mental Health Foundation Grant number 822–900. The authors are indebted to Leo Lazar, director of the Learning Disabilities Clinic of the Child and Family Studies Centre, and to Cirell Broudy, for their contribution to various aspects of this research.     

The Moderation Role of Self‐perceived Maternal Empathy in Observed Mother–Child Collaborative Problem Solving

Based on L. S. Vygotsky's sociocultural theory, previous scaffolding studies have examined some factors associated with adjustment of parental support during collaborative problem solving. However, a factor that remains unexplored in the literature is the potential relationship between parental empathy and parental support in collaborative problem solving. The present study addresses this question through the observation of 45 preschool children and their mothers cooperating in a problem‐solving task with two levels of difficulty. Teachers rated the children's fine motor skills, and sampled mothers reported their empathy levels towards their children. Consistent with the notion of scaffolding, negative correlations were found between observed maternal verbal support (cognitive, autonomy, and emotional) and child age, and between observed maternal cognitive support and teacher reports of child motor skills. An analysis of covariance revealed significant empathy‐by‐difficulty interactions for physical and cognitive support after controlling for the effect of child motor skills. Implications of these findings are discussed in terms of the role of child motor skills and the importance of parental empathy in collaborative problem solving. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.