Temperament Variation in Sensitivity to Parenting: Predicting Changes in Depression and Anxiety

Temperament was examined as a moderator of maternal parenting behaviors, including warmth, negativity, autonomy granting, and guidance. Observations of parenting and questionnaire measures of temperament and adjustment were obtained from a community sample (N = 214; ages 8–12). Trajectories of depression and anxiety were assessed across 3 years. The pattern of parenting as a predictor of internalizing symptoms depended on temperament. Maternal negativity predicted increases in depression for children low in fear. Effortful control moderated sensitivity to maternal negativity, autonomy granting, and guidance. Children low in effortful control reported more symptoms in the presence of negative or poor-fitting parenting. The results support differential responding, but also suggest that temperament may render children vulnerable for the development of problems regardless of parenting.     

Temperament as a moderator of the relation between neighborhood and children's adjustment

Although proposed by bioecological models, there has been minimal empirical examination of whether children's individual differences moderate neighborhood effects on development. We used an urban community sample (8-12 years, N = 316) to examine interactions among neighborhood characteristics (problems and social organization) and children's temperament (fear, irritability and impulsivity) in predicting psychosocial adjustment. The main effects of neighborhood and temperament on outcomes were consistent with previous research. Findings show that development is challenging in disadvantaged neighborhoods whatever one's temperament, however, some effects of neighborhood were conditioned by temperament, particularly children's fear and irritability. Neighborhood problems were more strongly related to lower social competence for fearful and for less irritable children. Neighborhood problems were more strongly related to higher internalizing problems for low-fear children. Neighborhood social organization was more strongly related to greater social competence for low-fear children. Findings are discussed in relation to "diathesis-stress" and "differential responsiveness" models of temperament.     

Internalizing and Externalizing Problem Behavior: a Test of a Latent Variable Interaction Predicting a Two-Part Growth Model of Adolescent Substance Use

Externalizing symptoms robustly predict adolescent substance use (SU); however, findings regarding internalizing symptoms have been mixed, suggesting that there may be important moderators of the relationship between internalizing problems and SU. The present study used a longitudinal community sample (N?=?387, 55% female, 83% White) to test whether externalizing symptoms moderated the relationship between internalizing symptoms and trajectories of alcohol and marijuana use from early (age 11–12 years old) to late (age 18–19 years old) adolescence. Two-part latent growth models were used to distinguish trajectories of probability of use from trajectories of amount of use among users. Results suggested that externalizing symptoms moderated the association between internalizing symptoms and probability of alcohol, but not marijuana use. The highest probability of alcohol use was observed at high levels of externalizing symptoms and low levels of internalizing symptoms. A negative protective effect of internalizing symptoms on probability of alcohol use was strongest in early adolescence for youth high on externalizing symptoms. Although moderation was not supported for amount of use among users, both domains of symptomology were associated with amount of alcohol and marijuana use as first-order effects. High levels of externalizing symptoms and low levels of internalizing symptoms were associated with high levels of amount of use among users. These findings suggest that developmental models of substance use that incorporate internalizing symptomology should consider the context of externalizing problems and distinguish probability and amount of use.     

The additive and interactive effects of parenting and temperament in predicting adjustment problems of children of divorce

Investigated the interaction between parenting and temperament in predicting adjustment problems in children of divorce. The study utilized a sample of 231 mothers and children, 9 to 12 years old, who had experienced divorce within the previous 2 years. Both mothers' and children's reports on parenting, temperament, and adjustment variables were obtained and combined to create cross-reporter measures of the variables. Parenting and temperament were directly and independently related to outcomes consistent with an additive model of their effects. Significant interactions indicated that parental rejection was more strongly related to adjustment problems for children low in positive emotionality, and inconsistent discipline was more strongly related to adjustment problems for children high in impulsivity. These findings suggest that children who are high in impulsivity may be at greater risk for developing problems, whereas positive emotionality may operate as a protective factor, decreasing the risk of adjustment problems in response to negative parenting.     

Appraisal and Coping as Mediators of the Effects of Cumulative Risk on Preadolescent Adjustment

This study examined the concurrent and longitudinal relations among cumulative risk, appraisal, coping, and adjustment. Longitudinal path models were tested in a community sample of 316 children in preadolescence to examine hypotheses that threat appraisal and avoidant coping mediate the effects of cumulative risk on child adjustment, whereas positive appraisal and active coping were hypothesized to predict better adjustment independently. Children and their mothers were assessed during in-home interviews at three time points at one-year intervals. Children reported on appraisal and coping strategies. Mothers and children reported on child adjustment problems and positive adjustment. Rank-order changes in appraisal and coping predicted rank-order changes in adjustment. Cumulative risk was concurrently related to higher threat appraisal and avoidant coping at each time point. Threat appraisal and avoidant coping mediated the relations of cumulative risk to rank-order changes in adjustment. There is specificity in the relations of cumulative risk to threat appraisal and avoidant coping, whereas positive appraisal and active coping are independent of risk and operate as individual resource factors.     

Poverty and Single Parenting: Relations with Preschoolers' Cortisol and Effortful Control

Poverty and single parent status, which often co‐occur, have been shown to relate to lower effortful control, and this may be in part due to disruptions in hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis activity. Both poverty and single parent status may compromise parenting, which in turn may disrupt HPA axis activity and the development of effortful control. We examined whether parenting and HPA axis activity accounted for the effects of poverty and single parent status on the development of effortful control in preschool children (N = 78). Effortful control was measured at two time points, 6 months apart. Individually, poverty and single parent status were related to blunted HPA axis activity, characterized by low AM and PM cortisol. However, when examined together, the effects were present only for preschoolers whose parents were in poverty. Parental warmth and negativity accounted for the relations between poverty and blunted cortisol. Blunted cortisol was related to lower effortful control at Time 2. These results suggest a pathway through which poverty may impact children's developing effortful control through parenting, which in turn may shape HPA axis activity. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Associations of coping and appraisal styles with emotion regulation during preadolescence

We investigated the associations of appraisal and coping styles with emotion regulation in a community sample of preadolescents (N = 196, 9-12 years of age), with appraisal, coping styles, and emotion regulation measured at a single time point. In a previous study, we identified five frustration and four anxiety emotion regulation profiles based on children’s physiological, behavioral, and self-reported reactions to emotion-eliciting tasks. In this study, preadolescents’ self-reported appraisal and coping styles were associated with those emotion regulation profiles. Overall, findings revealed that children who were more effective at regulating their emotions during the emotion-eliciting tasks had higher levels of positive appraisal and active coping when dealing with their own problems. Conversely, children who regulated their emotions less effectively had higher levels of threat appraisal and avoidant coping.     

Predicting developmental outcomes at school entry using a multiple-risk model: four American communities. The Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group

The contributions of different risk factors in predicting children's psychological and academic outcomes at the end of 1st grade were examined. Using a regression model, levels of ecobehavioral risk were assessed in the following order: specific demographics, broad demographics, family psychosocial status, mother's depressive symptoms, and neighborhood quality. Participants were 337 families from 4 American communities. Predictor variables were assessed in kindergarten, and teacher, parent, and child outcomes (behavioral and academic) were assessed at the end of 1st grade. Results indicated that (a) each level of analysis contributed to prediction of most outcomes, (b) 18%-29% of the variance was predicted in outcomes, (c) a common set of predictors predicted numerous outcomes, (d) ethnicity showed little unique prediction, and (e) the quality of the neighborhood showed small but unique prediction to externalizing problems.