P300 Event-Related Potentials Mediate the Relationship Between Child Physical Abuse and Externalizing Behavior

The psychophysiological mechanism linking early childhood experiences to behavior problems remains unclear. This study aimed to examine the association of child physical abuse with P300 event-related potentials (ERP), and to test the mediating effect of P300 amplitude and latency in the relationship between child physical abuse and externalizing behaviors. Cross-sectional secondary data were obtained from 155 children (55.5% boys, mean age: 11.28 ± 0.57 years) who participated in the China Jintan Child Cohort Study. Children self-reported maternal and paternal physical abuse and externalizing behaviors, as well as P300 were obtained in 2013. Additionally, parents and teachers reported child externalizing behaviors in preschool in 2007. P300 were recorded during a standard novel auditory oddball task. Path analysis shows that after controlling for child sex, socioeconomic status, area of residence, IQ, and child externalizing behavior in preschool, children exposed to maternal physical abuse exhibited increased novelty P300 amplitude, which links to more externalizing behavior. Novelty P300 amplitude partially mediated the relationship between maternal physical abuse and externalizing behavior. These findings are the first to document the partial mediating effect of P300 amplitude on the abuse-externalizing relationship and are consistent with the view that physical abuse affects the attention bias to novel cues that likely places them at increased risk for the development and maintenance of externalizing behavior.

A Pilot Study of a Parent Emotion Socialization Intervention: Impact on Parent Behavior, Child Self-Regulation, and Adjustment

Adequate emotion regulation in children is crucial for healthy development and is influenced by parent emotion socialization. The current pilot study aimed to test, for the first time in a Scandinavian population, whether an emotion-focused intervention, Tuning in to Kids (TIK), had positive effects on parent emotion-related socialization behaviors (ERSBs), and children's self-regulation, anxiety, and externalizing behavior problems. We conducted a controlled trial of the 6-week evidence-based TIK parenting program with 20 parents of preschool children aged 5–6 years and 19 wait-list controls. Assessments at baseline and 6 months after the intervention included parent-report questionnaires on parent ERSBs and child adjustment, as well as aspects of children's self-regulation assessed with two behavioral tasks, the Emotional Go/No-Go task (EGNG) and the AX-Continuous Performance Task (AX-CPT). Results showed a significant increase in reported parent emotion coaching behavior and an uncorrected significant decrease in parents' report of child externalizing problems in intervention participants compared to controls. The behavioral data showed an uncorrected significant improvement in child emotion discrimination in the control condition compared to the intervention condition, while measures of children's executive control improved from baseline to follow-up for both conditions but were not significantly different between conditions. These findings suggest that this emotion-focused parenting intervention contributed to improvement in parents' emotion coaching and their appraisal of child externalizing problems, while children's self-regulation showed mainly normative developmental improvements. Further research with a larger sample will be the next step to determine if these pilot findings are seen in an adequately powered study.

Contact with biological parents following placement in foster care: Associations with preschool child externalizing behavior

Externalizing behavior problems are a salient issue in the context of child protection services, where associations with placement stability and caregiving behavior have been documented. Moreover, although research on the association between contact with biological parents and foster child externalizing behavior problems is scarce and has yielded mixed results, several studies have shown links between the two variables. The purpose of this study is to determine the association of face-to-face contact with biological parents and externalized behaviors, while taking into account placement instability and foster parent interactive sensitivity. Fifty preschoolers and their foster parents were visited at home. Child externalizing behavior problems were self-reported by foster parents, foster parent sensitivity was measured via play observations, and information relative to placement was collected through interviews with biological parents and gathered from social services data. Results reveal that more frequent contact with biological parents and lower levels of foster parent sensitivity are independently linked to greater levels of externalizing behavior problems even after controlling for placement instability. Discussion focuses on the importance of children’s relationship experiences during foster care and the necessity to investigate their role to more clearly understand foster child socioemotional development.

Child Externalizing and Internalizing Behavior and Parental Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In this study we surveyed families’ experiences with parental depression, stress, relationship conflict, and child behavioral issues during six months of the COVID-19 pandemic through the COVID-19: Global Social Trust and Mental Health Study. The current analyses used data collected from online surveys completed by adults in 66 countries from April 17, 2020-July 14, 2020 (Wave I), followed by surveys six months later at Wave II (October 17, 2020-January 31, 2021). Analyses were limited to 175 adult parents who reported living with at least one child under 18 years old at Wave I. Parents reported on children’s level of externalizing and internalizing behavior at Wave I. At Wave II, parents completed self-reported measures of stress, depression, and inter-partner conflict. Child externalizing behavior at Wave I significantly predicted higher levels of parental stress and marginally predicted parental depression at Wave II, controlling for covariates. Child internalizing behavior at Wave I did not predict parental stress or depression, controlling for covariates. Neither child externalizing nor internalizing behavior predicted parental relationship conflict. The overall findings demonstrate that child behavior likely influenced parental stress and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings suggest that mental health interventions for children and parents may improve the family system during times of disaster.

Child Externalizing and Internalizing Behavior and Parental Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Author Notes**This manuscript has been submitted for publication and is likely to be edited as part of the peer-review process. Correspondence regarding this paper should be addressed to Keri Ka-Yee Wong, [email protected].** AbstractIn this study we surveyed families’ experiences with parental depression, stress, relationship conflict, and child behavioral issues during six months of the COVID-19 pandemic through the COVID-19: Global Social Trust and Mental Health Study. The current analyses used data collected from online surveys completed by adults in 66 countries from April 17, 2020-July 14, 2020 (Wave I), followed by surveys six months later at Wave II (October 17, 2020-January 31, 2021). Analyses were limited to 175 adult parents who reported living with at least one child under 18 years old at Wave I. Parents reported on children’s level of externalizing and internalizing behavior at Wave I. At Wave II, parents completed self-reported measures of stress, depression, and inter-partner conflict. Child externalizing behavior at Wave I significantly predicted higher levels of parental stress and marginally predicted parental depression at Wave II, controlling for covariates. Child internalizing behavior at Wave I did not predict parental stress or depression, controlling for covariates. Neither child externalizing nor internalizing behavior predicted parental relationship conflict. The overall findings demonstrate that child behavior likely influenced parental stress and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings suggest that mental health interventions for children and parents may improve the family system during times of disaster.