School Substance Use Norms and Racial Composition Moderate Parental and Peer Influences on Adolescent Substance Use

Parental and peer influences on adolescent substance use have been well demonstrated. However, limited research has examined how parental and peer influences vary across school contexts. This study used a multilevel approach to examine the effects of school substance use norms and school racial composition in predicting adolescent substance use (a composite measure of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use) and in moderating parental and peer influences on adolescent substance use. A total of 14,346 adolescents from 34 schools in a mid‐western county completed surveys electronically at school. Analyses were conducted using hierarchical linear modeling. Results indicated that school‐level disapproval against substance use and percentage of minority students at school were negatively associated with adolescent substance use. School‐level disapproval moderated the association between peer substance use and adolescent substance use, with the association being stronger when school‐level disapproval was lower. School racial composition moderated the influence of parental disapproval and peer substance use on adolescent substance use. Specifically, both the association between parental disapproval and adolescent substance use and the association between peer substance use and adolescent substance use were weaker for adolescents who attended schools with higher percentages of minority students. Findings highlighted the importance of considering the role of school contexts, in conjunction with parental and peer influences, in understanding adolescent substance use.     

Parental practices of Italian mothers and fathers during early infancy: The role of knowledge about parenting and child development

Our contribution aims to verify whether parental knowledge about child development and parenting constitutes a protective factor in the application of dysfunctional educational practices. Numerous studies have found that parental knowledge has a great influence on parenting, however it remains unclear whether both are casually linked in a direct and linear way. Data currently available on parental knowledge almost exclusively refers to mothers and subjects at risk. Furthermore, there are almost no studies which take into consideration subjects who are Italian citizens.In contrast our work takes into consideration a normative sample of 157 Italian couples who are the parents of children aged between 16 and 36 months and who completed the Knowledge of Infant Development Inventory (KIDI; MacPhee, 1981) and the Parenting Scale (Arnold, O’Leary, Wolff, & Acker, 1993). The results highlight differences between mothers and fathers, both in terms of knowledge levels (higher for mothers) and educational practices (maternal practices are more frequently dysfunctional); knowledge influences educational practices above all in the case of fathers, although said effect is slight, which supports the idea that interaction between knowledge and parental practices is not linear but rather mediated by other factors.     

Maternal reflective functioning as a multidimensional construct: Differential associations with children’s temperament and externalizing behavior

Maternal reflective functioning (RF) has been associated with children’s behavioral development. This study examined maternal prenatal and postnatal RF, as measured by the Pregnancy Interview and Parent Development Interview, as multidimensional constructs. It was also examined whether the RF-dimensions were associated with children’s temperament and externalizing behavior, as assessed by several questionnaires. The sample consisted of 123 first-time mothers (M age = 22.85 years, SD = 2.21) and their children (M age = 19.97 months, SD = 0.85, 56% male). Two related but distinct dimensions were found for prenatal RF, termed self-focused and child-focused mentalization. Three dimensions were observed for postnatal RF, termed self-focused, child-focused, and relation-focused mentalization. Results showed that prenatal RF negatively related to reported child physical aggression. Postnatal self-focused RF was positively linked to externalizing behavior and negative emotionality in offspring, while relation-focused RF scores were negatively associated with child physical aggression. Findings show that it is important to also look at the specific RF-dimensions when examining the effects of maternal RF on children’s behavioral development, as differential associations with behavioral outcomes exist. Discussion further focuses on the importance of these findings in prevention and clinical practice, and suggestions are being made to further improve the measurement of maternal RF-dimensions.     

Perceptions of the family, delinquency, and emotional adjustment among youth

This study explored the relationships between perceived family processes (parental bonding and parental discipline styles) and adolescent emotional and behavioural adjustment among a sample of youth. Respondents were 92 (53 female, 39 male) high school students, aged 13–17 years. Significant sex differences were noted regarding levels of self-reported delinquency and parental induction style. After controlling for sex, perceptions of low care and love withdrawal were significantly related to delinquency, while low care, overprotectiveness and love withdrawal were found to be related to poor well being. Structural equation modelling was used to further assess the relationships between perceptions of family life and the outcome variables. It was concluded that adolescent perceptions of family processes form a coherent and integrated network with implications for behavioural and emotional adjustment.     

父母心理控制与ODD症状儿童抑郁、攻击行为的关系

以北京市、山东省和云南省14所小学中的340名有对立违抗障碍(Oppositional Defiant Disorder, ODD)症状的儿童及其158名班主任为被试, 收集了儿童自己填写的父母心理控制、自尊、抑郁量表, 班主任评估的儿童攻击行为量表, 用以考察父亲与母亲心理控制对ODD症状儿童抑郁、攻击行为的不同影响, 以及自尊在其中的中介作用和儿童性别的调节作用。结果发现:(1)与有ODD症状的女孩相比, 具有ODD症状的男孩人数更多, 抑郁、攻击行为问题更为严重, 自尊也更差;(2)父亲对男孩的心理控制显著多于女孩, 而母亲对男孩、女孩的心理控制没有显著差异;(3)父亲和母亲心理控制与ODD症状儿童的抑郁、攻击行为都呈显著正相关且父亲心理控制能显著预测儿童的抑郁和攻击行为, 而母亲心理控制能显著的预测攻击行为;(4)自尊在父亲心理控制与ODD症状儿童的抑郁、母亲心理控制与儿童的攻击行为之间均起部分中介作用, 在父亲心理控制与儿童的攻击行为、母亲心理控制与儿童的抑郁之间均起完全中介作用。     

Parental Attachment and Adjustment to College: The Mediating Role of Avoidant Coping

Many studies have documented an association between parental attachment and college student adjustment. Few studies have explored the mechanisms underlying this association. The authors asked college students nearing the end of their first academic year to complete instruments measuring parental attachment, coping, and adjustment to college. Structural equation modeling was used to model mediation separately for attachment to mother and father. Avoidant coping mechanisms (operationalized as denial, mental disengagement, behavioral disengagement, and substance use) significantly mediated the parental attachment and adjustment to college relationship. Self-sufficient coping mechanisms (operationalized as planning, positive reinterpretation, acceptance, active coping, and suppression) did not mediate the parental attachment and adjustment to college relationship.     

Effects of relational transgressions on idealization of and disillusionment with one's romantic partner: A three‐wave longitudinal study

In this three‐wave study (n = 121 couples), we tested whether one couple‐member's relational transgressions (high and low severity) at Wave 1 predicted less idealization on warmth and competence traits and greater disillusionment by the partner at the next two waves. It was hypothesized that (a) greater frequency of the target partner's severe transgressions in 1 month would be needed to reduce how much the other partner idealized the target in the competence domain, (b) higher frequency of even relatively less severe transgressions would lower the partner's idealization of the target in the warmth domain, and (c) any transgressions would raise perceivers' disillusionment. Longitudinal analyses (controlling for earlier idealization and disillusionment) substantially supported predictions.     

父母婚姻冲突、不良同伴交往对初中生攻击行为的影响:一个有调节的中介模型

采用问卷法对1406名初一学生进行调查,考察了不良同伴交往在父母婚姻冲突与初中生攻击行为关系间的中介效应,以及冲动性对这一中介过程的调节效应。结果发现:(1)在控制了性别、年龄、家庭人均月收入和父母受教育水平之后,婚姻冲突显著正向预测青少年攻击行为;(2)不良同伴交往在婚姻冲突与攻击行为关系间起着显著的部分中介作用;(3)冲动性对中介路径"婚姻冲突→不良同伴交往→攻击行为"具有显著的调节效应。     

Child Characteristics,Parent Education and Depressive Symptoms,and Marital Conflict Predicting Trajectories of Parenting Behavior from Childhood Through Early Adolescence in Taiwan

The study examined how child and parent characteristics, and contextual sources of stress, such as marital conflict predict initial status and trajectories of parent involvement, support, and harsh control, over a 4‐year period in families in Taiwan (n = 4,754). Based on Belsky's (1984) ecological model of parenting, three domains predicting parenting were tested, child characteristics (age cohort and gender), father and mother characteristics (education and depressive symptoms), and contextual sources of stress (marital conflict). The study followed two cohorts of children; the younger cohort was followed from first to fourth grade and the older cohort from fourth to seventh grade. Initially, fourth graders reported more parental involvement, support, and harsh control than first graders. However, involvement, support, and harsh control decreased across the 4 years for the older cohort as they transitioned to early adolescence. In the first year, girls reported more parental involvement and support and less harsh control than boys. Across the 4 years, involvement and support increased, and harsh control decreased for boys; whereas involvement stayed the same, support slightly decreased, and harsh control slightly increased for girls. Children whose parents were more educated reported more parent involvement, support, and harsh control in the first year. Children whose fathers were chronically depressed and whose parents were experiencing marital conflict reported decreasing parent involvement and support over the years.     

Parental involvement,adolescents' self‐determined learning and academic achievement in Urban China

Self‐determined learning is essential to academic success. The motivational resources development model argues that parents promote academic success in their children indirectly by nurturing self‐determined learner. In this study, applying a structural equation modelling and using data collected from 8th graders in Zhuhai, China (n = 1009) in 2012, we aim to answer 2 research questions: (a) What forms of parental involvement are highly correlated with self‐determined learning and (b) Can self‐determined learning fully mediate the relationship between parental involvement and students' academic performance? We find that parental leisure involvement is positively and significantly associated with the development of self‐determined learning, which in turn is significantly and positively correlated with academic achievement. Parental provision of structure or parental academic assistance is not significantly associated with students' self‐regulation and students' academic achievement.