Parenting and Sibling Relationships in Family with Disruptive Behavior Disorders. Are Non-Clinical Siblings More Vulnerable for Emotional and Behavioral Problems?

Disruptive Behavior Disorders (DBD) are the most common mental health disorders in the school-aged child population. Although harsh parenting is a key risk factor in the shaping of DBD, studies neglect the presence of siblings and differential parenting. This study aims to compare: (1) parenting style and sibling relationship in sibling dyads of clinical families, composed of a DBD child and a non-clinical sibling, with control families composed of two non-clinical siblings; (2) parenting style, sibling relationship, and emotional and behavioral problems in DBD child, non-clinical sibling, and non-clinical child of control group. Sixty-one families (composed of mother and sibling dyads), divided into clinical (n = 27) and control (n = 34) groups, completed the APQ, SRI, and CBCL questionnaires. Results indicated differential parenting in clinical families, compared to control group families, with higher negative parenting toward the DBD child than the sibling; no difference emerged in sibling relationship within sibling dyads (clinical vs. control). Finally, externalizing and internalizing problems were higher in DBD children and their siblings, compared to control, indicating DBD sibling psychopathology vulnerability. Findings suggest inclusion of siblings in the clinical assessment and rehabilitative intervention of DBD children, given that the promotion of positive parenting could improve mental health in the offspring.

Unravelling Quasi–Causal Environmental Effects via Phenotypic and Genetically Informed Multi–Rater Models: The Case of Differential Parenting and Authoritarianism

This study investigated the association between different experiences of parenting and individual right–wing authoritarianism (RWA) using twin family data comprising self– and informant reports. We applied a design that allowed us to examine whether the link between retrospective assessments of parenting and current RWA is effectively environmental or whether the association is attributable to genetic influences. We hypothesized that an authoritarian parenting style (low responsiveness and high demandingness) provided by the parents is associated with higher offspring's RWA, and that this association is similar for both twin siblings as a function of their genetic relatedness and shared familial experiences—that is, genotype–environment correlation. A sample of 875 twins as well as 319 mothers and 268 fathers completed a questionnaire on twins’ parental environment and their own authoritarian attitudes. Additionally, 1322 well–informed peers assessed twins’ RWA. Applying structural equation modelling, we found twins’ experiences of parental responsiveness and demandingness to be positively associated with self–reported and peer–reported RWA. The correlation between responsiveness and RWA was similar for both twins due to their genetic similarity, whereas twin differences in demandingness were positively associated with twin differences in RWA, indicating quasi–causal environmental effects. Implications for the interdependence between parenting and RWA are discussed. Copyright © 2018 European Association of Personality Psychology

PERUKAH MEMBEDAKAN?” PENGALAMAN PENGASUHAN DALAM KELUARGA YANG MEMILIKI ANAK AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER (ASD) DAN TIPIKAL

Caring for typical and atypical (especially autism spectrum disorder) children is not an easy task for parents. Different approaches were required to meet these two children who have differences in the characteristic of development. This was a phenomenological qualitative study aimed to describe the experience of parents caring of two children (typical and ASD). Data collection was conducted through in-depth interviews and was analyzed using data explication as one of descriptive analysis model in qualitative approach. Subjects consisted of four parents of children with typical and ASD (range from 8-12 years old). The result showed that parents provide a different approach to care for their children were typical and ASD. The decision to give a differential in parenting based on different needs and characteristics of child’s development and the exsistence of supporting system (support from extended family, ex: grandmother). The examples of the differential parenting were 1) dividing the proportion of the role between fathers and mothers, where mothers concentrated on child care for ASD while fathers are more concentrated on typically child assisted by a grandmother or aunty, 2). involving typical children as siblings for ASD children in teaching a variety of developmental tasks to minimize sibling rivalry. Another interesting finding was the family's financial determine the effort of parents in providing education as part of the discharge of duties of care.

Quality of sibling relationship and substance misuse: A comparative study

The aim of the current study is to examine the quality of sibling relationship in families with a sibling with substance misuse (SSU) and compare the relationship to families with a sibling with no use (SNU). Thirty-six (36) families participated in the study (17 with SSU and 19 with SNU; N = 144). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 40 siblings (20 SNU and 20 SSU; 18-31 years old) in order to qualitatively investigate the characteristics of the sibling relationship. The siblings were not identified with any psychopathology, according to SCL-90R. Moreover, we considered the family cohesion and adaptability, as identified by the FACES III (administered to the whole sample) and the family constellation (including number of children, birth order, gender, family size, family structure, years of substance misuse and socioeconomic level). The results of the thematic analysis seem to support Furman and Buhrmester’s (1985) framework, in the context of SNU families. Nevertheless, when considering families with SSU the framework is enriched with a new axis: Loss/mourning. The substance misuse seems to provoke an overturn of the representation of the sibling relationship: the behavioral changes (i.e. disengagement) of the sibling with drug use are experienced as a loss by the sibling non user, thus triggering the psychological process of ‘mourning’. Moreover, in these families, the sibling with no drug use seem to experience differential parenting, they feel neglected, angry and they take up a parental role towards the SSU, whom they experience as “sensitive” and “vulnerable”.

A Longitudinal Investigation of the Associations Among Parenting, Deviant Peer Affiliation, and Externalizing Behaviors: A Monozygotic Twin Differences Design

Non-shared parenting and deviant peer affiliation are linked to differences in externalizing behaviors between twins. However, few studies have examined these two non-shared environments simultaneously. The present study examined the transactional roles of differential parenting (i.e., warmth and hostility) and deviant peer affiliation on monozygotic (MZ) twin differences in externalizing behaviors using a two-wave longitudinal study of twins and their parents. The sample consisted of 520 pairs of MZ twins (46.5% males, 53.5% females), with a mean age of 13.86 years (SD = 2.10) at the T1 assessment, residing in Beijing, China. The association between non-shared hostility in parenting and adolescent externalizing behaviors was mainly explained by a child-driven effect whereby the twin with a higher level of externalizing behaviors than his or her co-twin was more likely to receive more hostility from the parents. Similarly, the relationship between deviant peer affiliation and adolescent externalizing behaviors supported the selection effect whereby the twin with a higher level of externalizing behaviors than his or her co-twin was more likely to affiliate with deviant peers. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.