Maternal Depression and Early Parenting: A Comparison Between Culturally and Linguistically Diverse and Australian born Mothers

Objective: To examine the risk of perinatal depression, parenting stress and infant sleep practices in Australian culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) women. Method: Within the Mercy Pregnancy and Emotional Wellbeing Study, we examined 487 pregnant women of whom 52 were CaLD and 435 non-CaLD. Depression was measured using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. In addition, Parenting Stress Index and infant sleep measures were collected. Results: Fewer CaLD women had a depression diagnosis but there were no differences between CaLD and non-CaLD women for perinatal mental health symptoms. More mothers in the CaLD group were bed sharing with their infant during the night at six months; however, bedsharing was only associated with higher parenting stress for non-CaLD mothers. Conclusions: Findings suggest both differences in infant sleep parenting practices and in parenting stress but not general emotional wellbeing. Future research is required to replicate these findings.

Measurement Invariance of Alabama Parenting Questionnaire Across Age, Gender, Clinical Status, and Informant

This study aimed to investigate the measurement invariance of the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire (for both long [APQ-lg] and short [APQ-9] forms) across age, gender, clinical status, and informant (i.e., parent vs. child reports). The sample was composed of adolescents (community sample: N = 1,746; clinical sample: N = 166) and parents ( N = 149). The analyses were conducted in R. Measurement invariance was assessed via multi-group confirmatory factor analysis, equivalence test, and subsampling approach. The original model of APQ-lg (five factors) showed a significantly better fit than other concurrent models (five concurrent models were specified, based on prior literature). For APQ-lg, we found measurement invariance across gender and partial measurement invariance across age, clinical status, and informant. For APQ-9, we confirmed the measurement invariance across gender and clinical status, while across age and informant partial measurement invariance was attested. Overall, our study indicated that APQ-lg and APQ-9 are two valid tools for measuring parenting practices with some caveats.

‘Hitting to Teach is One Thing, but to Hurt is a Different Thing, isn’t it?’: Understanding Cycles of Intergenerational Violence within Families

Using a qualitative case study approach, this study aimed to investigate the family context in the childhood of adults who themselves have been violent toward their own children. The study, conducted in Brazil, included the participation of three adults, of both genders, who were neglectful as well as physically and psychologically violent toward their children. Data collection was carried out using the Interview About the Past of Parents (IAPP) and family genograms. Findings demonstrate factors that contribute to the perpetuation of violence across generations, and explain the difficulties in breaking cycles of violence. Importantly, findings highlight how the discipline practices used with their own children were reproductions of the models of parenting and related manifestations of violence that the participants themselves were exposed to in childhood. From these findings, the importance of psychosocial interventions that assist family members in replacing coercive parenting practices with healthier strategies is reiterated.

Relationship between Punitive Discipline and Child-to-Parent Violence: The Moderating Role of the Context and Implementation of Parenting Practices

This study examines the influence of punitive parental discipline on child-to-parent violence (CPV). The moderating roles of parental context (stress and parental ineffectiveness), mode of implementation of parental discipline (parental impulsivity or warmth/support) and the gender of the aggressor in the relationship between punitive discipline and CPV are examined. The study included 1543 university students between 18 and 25 years old (50.2% males, Mage = 19.9 years, SD = 1.9) who retrospectively described their experience between the ages of 12 and 17 years old. The results indicated that stress, ineffectiveness and parental impulsivity increase the negative effect of punitive discipline on CPV. There is no moderating effect of parental warmth/support. The gender of the aggressor is only a moderator in the case of violence toward the father, and the effect of punitive discipline is stronger in males than in females. The study draws conclusions regarding the importance of context and the mode by which parents discipline their children, aspects that can aggravate the adverse effects of physical and psychological punishment on CPV. It is necessary for interventions to focus not only on promoting positive disciplinary strategies but also on the mode in which they are administered and on contextual aspects.

Parenting Practices and Adolescents’ Eating Behaviors in African American Families

Parents play an important role in developing the eating behaviors of their children by adopting specific parenting practices. As the prevalence of obesity is high amongst African American adolescents, investigations into associations of specific parenting practices and adolescents’ eating behaviors are essential. In this exploratory study, 14 African American parent–adolescent dyads were interviewed to characterize the influence of eight different parenting practices on the consumption of three main food categories (dairy, fruits and vegetables, and unhealthy snacks). The results revealed that authoritarian parenting practices were correlated with a higher BMI percentile in adolescents, whereas modeling and monitoring are correlated with a higher parent BMI. In addition, reasoning, monitoring, modeling, and authoritative parenting practices were associated with less unhealthy snack consumption among adolescents. Reasoning and monitoring were the only parenting practices associated with higher fruit and vegetable consumption. Finally, a significant correlation was found between eating fruits and vegetables and unhealthy snacks and the location of eating. In conclusion, different parenting practices and environmental factors may impact BMI and food consumption of African American dyads. The results of this study can be used to guide improvement in, and/or development of, nutritional education interventions considering the cultural differences of racial minorities.

Longitudinal Associations between Parental Support and Parental Knowledge on Behavioral and Emotional Problems in Adolescents

When testing longitudinal effects of parenting practices on adolescent adjustment, an integrated consideration of externalizing and internalizing behaviors is a gap in research. This study analyzed how parental support and parental knowledge directly and indirectly influence both antisocial behavior and emotional problems. The sample had 642 adolescents aged 12-15 (mean age = 12.49; 45.4% females) from Spain, who participated in a three-year long study. The results showed longitudinal bidirectional associations between parental support and parental knowledge. Only parental knowledge, however, directly predicted antisocial behavior and emotional problems. Parental support had an indirect effect on outcomes through the mediating effect of parental knowledge. This study has practical implications by indicating that increasing parental knowledge should be the target of educational-prevention programs.

Parent SMART (Substance Misuse in Adolescents in Residential Treatment): Protocol of a Randomized Effectiveness Trial of a Technology-assisted Parenting Intervention (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Adolescents in residential substance use treatment are at extremely high risk for relapse following discharge to the community. Parenting practices, including parental monitoring and parent-adolescent communication, have been established as key predictors of adolescent substance use outcomes and relapse. However, traditional office-based therapy may not be feasible for parents who face structural and systemic barriers. There is a clear need for effective, accessible, and scalable interventions for parents of adolescents receiving residential substance use treatment. In a prior pilot randomized controlled trial, we tested Parent SMART (Substance Misuse among Adolescents in Residential Treatment) – a technology-assisted parenting intervention informed by extensive formative research - as an adjunct to residential treatment as usual (TAU). Parent SMART demonstrated high feasibility and acceptability, as well as evidence of effectiveness in improving parental monitoring and communication. OBJECTIVE This protocol paper describes a fully-powered randomized controlled pragmatic effectiveness trial of Parent SMART as an adjunct to residential TAU. We hypothesize that families who receive Parent SMART will demonstrate greater improvements in parenting skills, reductions in adolescent substance use, and reductions in adolescent problem behaviors, relative to families that receive residential TAU. We will test the exploratory hypothesis that reductions in adolescent substance use will be partially mediated by improvements in parenting skills. METHODS Adolescent-parent dyads (n = 220 dyads; 440 total) will be randomized to either residential TAU only or Parent SMART + TAU. Parents randomized to Parent SMART will receive access to a networking forum, an off-the-shelf computer program called Parenting Wisely, and up to four telehealth coaching calls. Multi-method follow-up assessments consisting of self-report parent and adolescent measures, a parent-adolescent in vivo interaction task, and 8-panel urine screens will be conducted 6-, 12-, and 24-weeks post-discharge from residential. Measures will assess parenting skills, adolescent substance use, and adolescent problem behaviors. Analyses will be conducted using latent change score structural equation modeling. RESULTS The trial was funded August 2021; ethics approval was obtained in August 2020, prior to funding. Due to concerns with the administrative interface in the pilot trial, the Parent SMART networking forum is currently being rebuilt by a different vendor. The programming is scheduled to be completed by December 2021 with recruitment beginning in February 2022. CONCLUSIONS The proposed research has the potential to advance the field by: serving a high-need, underserved population during a vital treatment juncture; targeting parenting practices (putative mediators) that have been shown to predict adolescent substance use outcomes; addressing barriers to accessing continuing care; and testing a highly scalable intervention model. CLINICALTRIAL clinicaltrials.gov/ awaiting release (internal Brown University identifier: 2006002748) adolescent, residential, technology-assisted, substance use, parent

Risky Parental Practices and Their Implications in Adult Psychopathology

There are many ways in which an individual may fail as a parent. Most parents have good intentions, but that’s the exact reason why there’s an urgent need to clarify good parenting practices. This paper will look at risky parenting practices (e.g., guilt-inducing criticism) and their relationship with psychopathology (depression and anxiety, in this case) using socially prescribed perfectionism as a mediator. All eight mediations turned out to be statistically significant with six out of eight analyses being full mediations. Also, the relationships between the facets of perfectionism, depression, and anxiety are consistent with the findings of other studies up until this point. Considering the relationship between socially prescribed perfectionism and psychopathology, practical implications are discussed.

Parenting Practices and Emerging Adult Well-Being in the United States and China

Parenting practices that promote or inhibit autonomy in their emerging adult child can impact the well-being of emerging adults. This study explored a variety of parenting practices and how these practices impact emerging adult well-being across two cultures. Associations between parental support, involvement, helicopter parenting, and psychological control and emerging adults’ well-being were compared between two samples of participants ages 18-25: American ( n = 643) and Chinese ( n = 514). Results indicate that parental support can promote well-being among emerging adults, but autonomy-limiting practices of psychological control and helicopter parenting seem to be unfavorable for emerging adults regardless of culture. Differences in reported mean levels of the four parenting practices were observed across the two culturally specific samples; however, the strength of associations between practices and emerging adult well-being was not statistically different.