Mental health in Swedish children living in joint physical custody and their parents' life satisfaction: A cross‐sectional study

This study compared the psychological symptoms of 129 children in joint physical custody with children in single care and nuclear families, using a nationally representative 2011 survey of 1,297 Swedish children aged between four and 18 years. The outcome measure was the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and its association with three dimensions of parental life satisfaction was investigated. Linear regression analyses showed higher SDQ‐scores for children in joint physical custody (B = 1.4, p < 0.001) and single care (B = 2.2, p < 0.001) than in nuclear families, after adjustment for socio‐demographic variables. The estimates decreased to 1.1 and 1.3, respectively, after being adjusted for parental life satisfaction ( p < 0.01). Our findings confirm previous research that showed lower symptom scores for children in nuclear families than children in single care and joint physical custody. Parental life satisfaction should be investigated further as a possible explanation of differences in symptom load between children in different living arrangements.     

父母教养与MAOA基因rs6323多态性对学前儿童外化问题的共同作用

采用G×E交互作用的研究范式,以295名学前儿童（M=4.49）和其母亲、父亲作为研究对象,探讨母亲和父亲的教养方式与MAOA基因rs6323多态性对学前儿童外化问题行为的影响。结果发现：母亲、父亲教养方式和MAOA基因多态性对学前儿童外化问题行为的影响存在性别差异,预测男孩外化问题行为时,母亲和父亲教养方式的主效应显著,与MAOA基因多态性的交互作用不显著;在预测女孩外化问题行为时,父亲教养方式的主效应显著,母亲教养方式与MAOA基因多态性的交互作用显著,显著性区域分析发现,携带T等位基因的女孩更容易受到母亲消极教养的不利影响而产生更多外化问题行为,也更容易受到其积极教养的有利影响而减少外化问题行为,这一结果支持差别易感性理论模型。     

父母教养与MAOA基因rs6323多态性对学前儿童外化问题的共同作用

采用G×E交互作用的研究范式,以295名学前儿童（M=4.49）和其母亲、父亲作为研究对象,探讨母亲和父亲的教养方式与MAOA基因rs6323多态性对学前儿童外化问题行为的影响。结果发现：母亲、父亲教养方式和MAOA基因多态性对学前儿童外化问题行为的影响存在性别差异,预测男孩外化问题行为时,母亲和父亲教养方式的主效应显著,与MAOA基因多态性的交互作用不显著;在预测女孩外化问题行为时,父亲教养方式的主效应显著,母亲教养方式与MAOA基因多态性的交互作用显著,显著性区域分析发现,携带T等位基因的女孩更容易受到母亲消极教养的不利影响而产生更多外化问题行为,也更容易受到其积极教养的有利影响而减少外化问题行为,这一结果支持差别易感性理论模型。     

Rethinking NIMBYism: The role of place attachment and place identity in explaining place‐protective action

The ‘NIMBY’ (Not In My Back Yard) concept is commonly used to explain public opposition to new developments near homes and communities, particularly arising from energy technologies such as wind farms or electricity pylons. Despite its common use, the concept has been extensively critiqued by social scientists as a useful concept for research and practice. Given European policy goals to increase sustainable energy supply by 2020, deepening understanding of local opposition is of both conceptual and practical importance. This paper reviews NIMBY literature and proposes an alternative framework to explain local opposition, drawing upon social and environmental psychological theory on place. Local opposition is conceived as a form of place‐protective action, which arises when new developments disrupt pre‐existing emotional attachments and threaten place‐related identity processes. Adopting a social constructivist perspective and drawing on social representation theory, a framework of place change is proposed encompassing stages of becoming aware, interpreting, evaluating, coping and acting, with each stage conceived at multiple levels of analysis, from intrapersonal to socio‐cultural. Directions for future research and potential implications of the place‐based approach for public engagement by energy policy‐makers and practitioners are discussed. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Pathways to behavior problems in Norwegian kindergarten children: The role of parent emotion socialization and child emotion understanding

More than two decades of research have shown that parental emotion-related socialization behaviors (ERSBs) significantly predict child emotion understanding and externalizing behavior problems. This study aimed to replicate these findings in a sample of 40 Norwegian preschool children and to test whether the effect of parental ERSBs on externalizing child behavior problems was mediated through child emotion understanding. Parental report on ERSBs was obtained using the Coping with Children’s Negative Emotions Scale (CCNES) questionnaire. Child emotion understanding was assessed directly using the Test of Emotion Comprehension (TEC). The results showed that parental distress reactions and externalizing child behavior problems were significantly correlated and that parental expressive encouragement was significantly correlated with child emotion understanding. Estimation of indirect effects was conducted using process analysis and showed that parental expressive encouragement was indirectly related to externalizing child behavior problems (b = −0.17) via child emotion understanding. The results suggest that better child emotion understanding, and lower parental distress are related to lower levels of behavior problems in preschool children. These findings provide support for the Parental Meta-Emotion Philosophy (PMEP) model, where the effect of parental emotion socialization on externalizing child behavior problems is mediated through emotion understanding.     

The moderating role of attachment insecurities in the association between social and physical pain

We examined the effects of social exclusion and attachment insecurities (anxiety, avoidance) on physical pain sensitivity, hypothesizing that anxiety would predict greater physical pain sensitivity only following social exclusion. Participants were either included in or excluded from a computer-based ball-tossing game and then completed a coldpressor task. Anxious men showed greater physical pain sensitivity when excluded, but not when included. Moreover, individuals (men and women) high on both anxiety and avoidance showed greater physical pain sensitivity when excluded, but not when included. Conclusions: Anxious individuals’ heightened physical pain sensitivity following exclusion is a manifestation of hyperactivation of their attachment systems, and when threatened, avoidant individuals who are also high in anxiety are less successful in deactivating their attachment systems.     

Pure Versus Co-occurring Externalizing and Internalizing Symptoms in Children: The Potential Role of Socio-Developmental Milestones

Co-occurring internalizing and externalizing disorders are moderately prevalent in children, adolescents, and adults (Anderson, Williams, McGee, & Silva, 1987; McConaughy & Skiba, 1994), but much remains to be understood regarding why some children show “pure” versus co-occurring internalizing and externalizing symptoms. One possible influence that has previously not been considered is the failure to attain socio-developmental milestones, which paradoxically may prevent the development of co-occurring symptoms for some children. The present study proposes a model in which failure to attain relevant socio-developmental milestones might explain why some children may not develop heterotypic co-occurring symptoms. Specifically, it is proposed that specific clusters of internalizing symptoms (i.e., high social anxiety, withdrawal, and inhibition) and externalizing symptoms (i.e., high impulsivity, hyperactivity, and emotional reactivity) may be associated with the failure to attain socio-developmental milestones (i.e., poor peer relations for anxious children, lack of self-reflection and evaluation for impulsive/reactive children) that, in turn, may prevent subgroups of children from developing co-occurring, heterotypic symptoms.     

The relationship between cognitive abilities and maternal ratings of externalizing behaviors in preschool children

The association between child cognitive abilities and maternal ratings of child externalizing behaviors was investigated in a randomly selected sample of 290 preschool children. Child cognitive abilities were assessed by the WPPSI-R, whereas mothers completed the Yale Children's Inventory for the assessment of child externalizing behaviors. Maternal education, and maternal child-rearing style, as defined by scores on the Child Rearing Practices Report, was significantly related to perceived externalizing child behavior. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that for girls, low child IQ remained a significant predictor of perceived externalizing behavior when effects of maternal education and child-rearing style were controlled for (p < 0.01). Maternal child-rearing style made independent contributions to explaining variance in girls' and boys' behavior score. The results are discussed in terms of differential gender socialization practices and gender stereotypes.     

Externalizing shame responses in children: The role of fragile‐positive self‐esteem

When faced with shame, children can either respond in submissive ways to withdraw from their environment or in externalizing ways to oppose their environment. This study tested the hypothesis that fragile‐positive views of self predispose children to respond in externalizing ways to shame situations. Narcissism, actual and perceived social preference, global self‐worth and propensity towards externalizing shame responding were measured in 122 pre‐adolescent children. As expected, results revealed that narcissism, in contrast to global self‐worth, was associated with externalizing shame responding. In addition, actual but not perceived social preference was inversely related to externalizing shame responding, suggesting that the social self‐perceptions of children prone to employ externalizing shame responses may be inflated. Discussion focuses on the self‐regulatory function of externalizing shame responses.     

Adult attention and interaction can increase moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity in young children

Evidence suggests that physical inactivity is prevalent among young children. To combat this, one recommendation for caregivers is to become actively involved in their child's physical activities. However, this general recommendation does not specify how or when a parent should become involved. The purpose of the current study was to conduct a functional analysis to identify a social consequence that would increase the moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity (MVPA) exhibited by preschool‐aged children, and then to compare the effects of that social consequence when it was provided contingent on MVPA and when provided independent of MVPA. The results of the functional analyses indicated that 3 of 7 children were most active when attention or interactive play was provided contingent on MVPA. Results of the intervention analysis suggested that caregivers of young children should provide attention or interactive play contingent on MVPA when those consequences are identified as reinforcers in a functional analysis.     

Individual differences in attachment and dispositional mindfulness: The mediating role of emotion regulation

Recent interest in the relationship between individual differences in attachment and dispositional mindfulness has led to empirical investigations into this association. Although several studies have demonstrated an association between attachment and mindfulness, little is known as to why these two seemingly distinct constructs are related. In a sample of 572 individuals we explored whether the relationship between attachment and mindfulness was mediated by emotion regulation difficulties. Difficulties in emotion regulation fully mediated the association between attachment anxiety and mindfulness, and between attachment avoidance and mindfulness. Thus, the mechanism by which attachment and mindfulness are related is through emotion regulation difficulties. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed.     

Reactive temperament traits and behavioural problems in children: the mediating role of effortful control across sex and age

This study examines the mediating role of effortful control between reactive temperament traits (negative affectivity and extraversion) and children’s internalizing and externalizing behavioural problems. The sample was composed of 424 non-clinical children from 3 to 6 years of age (60% male). Use of a structural equation model revealed effortful control-mediated relations between reactive temperament traits and behavioural problems. Nevertheless, uniquely and directly, negative affect predicted externalizing problems and extraversion predicted internalizing problems. Assessment of invariance by children’s sex showed that the mediating role of effortful control tends to be stronger for externalizing problems in boys than in girls. Results showed no significant age differences. According to these results, effortful control as a method of self-regulation seems to be an essential process through which reactive temperament traits affect a child’s psychological adjustment.     

Skin conductance and heart‐rate responses as indices of covert face recognition in preschool children

Covert face recognition was examined in 12 young preschoolers (age range 26–48 months) by comparing their autonomic functions to slides depicting former playmates from a family nursery school that the preschoolers had attended earlier with slides of their present playmates and unfamiliar children. While all preschoolers reported corroborated overt recognition of present playmates after the experiment, only three of them did so in relation to former playmates. The distribution of yes–no responses on the overt recognition task to former playmates was not significantly different from the responses to unfamiliar children. Nevertheless, the preschoolers evidenced increased skin conductance responses (SCRs) and more pronounced heart rate (HR) deceleration to the slides depicting former classmates compared to unfamiliar children. Thus, although the preschoolers' verbal responses did not differentiate between former playmates and unfamiliar children, their autonomic functions did. These findings suggest that young children can retain memories of past experiences in an implicit form without corroborated overt recognition. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The mental health of children of migrant workers in Beijing: The protective role of public school attendance

The present study aims to understand the mental health status of an understudied group of migrant children – children of migrant workers in China. A total of 1,466 children from Beijing participated in the study that compared migrant children (n = 1,019) to their local peers (n = 447) in public and private school settings. Results showed that overall, migrant children reported more internalizing and externalizing mental health problems and lower life satisfaction than local peers. However, public school attendance served as a protective factor for migrant children's mental health. The mental health status of migrant children attending public schools, including externalizing problems as well as friend and school satisfaction, was not different from local children. In addition, our data indicates that the protective effect of public school attendance for migrant children may be even more salient among girls than boys, and for younger children than older children.     

Attachment relationships and physical activity in adolescents: The mediation role of physical self-concept

ObjectivesBased on the integration of attachment and physical self-perception perspectives, the present study examined links between adolescents' engagement in physical activity and their attachment relationships with mothers, fathers, and friends, respectively, and assessed the potential mediation role of physical self-perception in this link.Design and methodsUsing a cross-sectional design, questionnaire data was obtained from 767 adolescents (49% boys, M_age = 12.92, SD = .86) and structural equation modeling was used to examine relationships among variables.ResultsAttachment security with parents and friend was associated with higher levels of physical activity. There was partial support of the mediation role of physical self-perception, as adolescents who were securely attached to mother and friend perceived themselves as having better physical condition, which in turn predicted greater engagement in physical activity. The mediation role of physical self-perception between mother attachment and PA was stronger for female adolescents. Secure attachment to father had a direct positive effect on physical activity. The direct effect was strongest for male adolescents.ConclusionsOur findings highlight the importance of relationship-based intervention strategies to enhance and maintain healthy regular physical activity among adolescents.     

Associations of physical activity and gross motor skills with executive function in preschool children from low‐income South African settings

Executive function is foundational for cognitive development. Previous research has shown both gross motor skills and physical activity to be related to executive function. However, evidence for these relationships in the preschool years, as well as in low‐ and middle‐income countries is lacking. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the relationships between components of executive function (inhibition, shifting and working memory) and gross motor skills (locomotor skills and object control skills) in a sample of preschool children from urban and rural low‐income settings in South Africa. Results revealed that inhibition and working memory, but not shifting, were associated with gross motor skills. More specifically: inhibition was associated with both locomotor [β = 0.20, p = 0.047] and object control skills [β = 0.24, p = 0.024], whereas working memory was only associated with locomotor skills [β = 0.21, p = 0.039]. Physical activity was not associated with inhibition and shifting but was negatively associated with working memory. These results elaborate a growing evidence base linking executive function and gross motor skills in the early years, and it is the first to look at specific associations of locomotor and object control skills with executive function in the South African context (a low‐ and middle‐income country).