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.

Validating the Supervision Partnership as a Phase of Attachment

The goal of this study was to expand current attachment models by validating a three-component model of the supervision partnership conceptualization of attachment (accessibility and availability of attachment figures, willingness to communicate, and mutual recognition of other’s rights in decision-making). The model was tested by examining associations with parenting, friendship quality, other attachment measures, temperament, and IQ. In a sample of 92 10- to 14-year-olds, the three components of the supervision partnership were significantly related to each other, other attachment measures and child reports of parenting and friendship, and demonstrated some discriminant validity with temperament and IQ. This study provides support for the supervision partnership as a phase of attachment in late middle childhood and early adolescence.

The direct and indirect effects of parental trauma on child adjustment for resettled refugees in Australia

Purpose Understanding the effects trauma has on refugee parents and consequently, their children, is the first step in interrupting the intergenerational transmission of trauma. This study aims to investigate the impacts of parental exposure to trauma pre-settlement on parent and child reports of developmental difficulties as mediated by parental post-traumatic stress symptomology and harsh parenting. Design/methodology/approach The study included 414 refugee children (age M = 14.04, SD = 2.00; 48.3% female) and their caregivers (age M = 41.78, SD = 5.24, 77% female). The sample was drawn from the Building a New Life in Australia study, a large, representative cohort study of resettled refugees in Australia. Only data collected where both parents and their children could be matched were used in this study. Findings Results indicated that trauma was significantly associated with increased parental post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in all models and was negatively, albeit weakly, associated with lower levels of harsh parenting in the overall model which combined parent and child reports. Trauma also had a weak, positive indirect effect on developmental difficulties via parental PTSD in both the overall model and the model assessing parent-rated developmental difficulties. In all models, harsh parenting was associated with increased developmental difficulties, although harsh parenting did not act as a significant mediator of the effects of trauma or parental PTSD. Originality/value Results suggest that prior traumas had less of an adverse effect on parenting and child adjustment as was expected. Parenting, however, was strongly associated with poor child adjustment, indicating that this may be a key factor to encourage positive adjustment for refugee children.

The Association between Parent and Child-Report Measures of Alexithymia in Children with and without Developmental Language Disorder

Accurate measures of alexithymia, an inability to recognise and describe one’s own emotions, that are suitable for children are crucial for research into alexithymia’s development. However, previous research suggests that parent versus child reports of alexithymia do not correlate. Potentially, children may report on the awareness of their emotions, whereas parent-report measures may reflect children’s verbal expression of emotion, which may be confounded by children’s communicative abilities, especially in conditions such as Developmental Language Disorder (DLD). Given theoretical arguments that alexithymia may develop due to language impairments, further research into alexithymia in DLD is also needed. This project examined parent and child report measures of alexithymia in children with DLD (n = 106) and without DLD (n = 183), and their association to children’s communication skills. Parent and child reports were not significantly correlated in either group, and children with DLD had higher alexithymia scores on the parent-report measure only. Thus, parent and child measures of alexithymia likely reflect different constructs. Pragmatic language problems related to more parent-reported alexithymia, over and above group membership. Structural language abilities were unrelated to alexithymia. We suggest decreased social learning opportunities, rather than a language measure artefact, underlie increased alexithymic difficulties in DLD.

Parent and Child Reports of Parenting Behaviors: Agreement Among a Longitudinal Study of Drug Court Participants

Identifying ways to support children of parents with substance use disorder is a critical public health issue. This study focused on the parent-child relationship as a critical catalyst in child resilience. Using data from a longitudinal cohort study, the aims of this study were to: (1 ) examine the agreement between parent and child reports of parenting behaviors and (2 ) describe the association between agreement and child mental health. Participants were 50 parent-child dyads that included parents enrolled in an adult drug court and their children, aged 8–18. Overall, agreement (i.e., concordance) between parent and child reports of parenting was slight to fair. Parents reported their parenting behaviors to be slightly more positive than how children rated the same behaviors in the areas of: involvement, 0.53 (SD = 0.80); positive parenting, 0.66 (SD = 0.87), and monitoring behaviors, 0.46 (SD = 0.90). Parents also rated themselves, in comparison to their children's reports, as using less inconsistent discipline, −0.33 (SD = 1.00), and less corporal punishment, 0.13 (SD = 1.01). Agreement was related to some, but not all, child mental health outcomes. When parents rating their parenting as more positive than their child reported, that had a negative effect on child self-esteem and personal adjustment. Contrary to hypotheses, we did not find a significant relationship between positive parenting and internalizing problems. Findings have implications for obtaining parent and child reports of parenting within the drug court system, and for identifying children at higher risk for externalizing problems.

Supporting Primary School Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Qualitative Investigation of Teaching Staff Experiences

Background: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) has a deleterious impact on numerous areas of children’s lives, including school functioning. This study moves beyond eliciting child reports of school functioning to examine teaching staff’s experiences of supporting a child with JIA in school. Methods: A total of 51 UK-based teaching staff members with experience of supporting a child aged 7–11 years with JIA in school were recruited. Participants completed an online qualitative survey regarding their perceptions and experiences of supporting a child with JIA in school, with a subsample of 9 participants completing a subsequent telephone interview to explore responses in greater detail. Survey and interview data were analyzed using the conventional approach to qualitative content analysis. Results: Analyses generated 4 themes: (1) communicating, (2) flexing and adapting, (3) including, and (4) learning and knowing. Findings highlighted the importance of clear communication between teaching staff and parents in addition to the need for teaching staff to provide individualized support for children with JIA which maximized their inclusion within the class. Conclusions: This paper provides new knowledge regarding how teaching staff adopt proactive and creative strategies to support children with JIA, often in the absence of appropriate training, identifying support needs and resources for teaching staff.

Does the Way We Teach Children Interview Ground Rules Impact the Number of Details They Provide?

<p>Ground rules are instructions commonly provided to children in investigative interviews. The ultimate aim of ground rules is to help children provide accurate accounts and resist acquiescence. Therefore, it is no surprise that research into ground rule use has so far focused on the impact ground rule training has on the accuracy of children’s reports. Yet, the amount of information a child provides is also important when it comes to legal processes ensued when a child reports abuse. This study is unique as it focuses on how ground rule training impacts the amount of information a child provides and whether this varies as a result of more intense training. So far, there is little research available that systematically evaluates multiple training methods within one study. The current study involves a condition with no ground rule training, one with the standard training often suggested in interview protocols, and two more intense training methods informed by relevant learning theories. Children aged between 5 and 12-years-old experienced a live event at their school and were interviewed about this event after a delay of approximately 2-weeks. Results did not support the hypotheses that ground rule training method would impact the number of unique details provided by children and that this relationship would vary across age. Results also showed that children’s accuracy responding to questions used to elicit ground rule responses was not related to the number of details provided. A larger sample is necessary to investigate whether the findings of the current study are accurate when the analyses are satisfactorily powered. Currently, this study suggests that more intense ground rule training does not compromise the richness of children’s reports. Findings also indicate that children’s acquiescence to suggestive, unanswerable or confusing questions is not related to the amount of information they provide when asked answerable questions. </p>

Does the Way We Teach Children Interview Ground Rules Impact the Number of Details They Provide?

<p>Ground rules are instructions commonly provided to children in investigative interviews. The ultimate aim of ground rules is to help children provide accurate accounts and resist acquiescence. Therefore, it is no surprise that research into ground rule use has so far focused on the impact ground rule training has on the accuracy of children’s reports. Yet, the amount of information a child provides is also important when it comes to legal processes ensued when a child reports abuse. This study is unique as it focuses on how ground rule training impacts the amount of information a child provides and whether this varies as a result of more intense training. So far, there is little research available that systematically evaluates multiple training methods within one study. The current study involves a condition with no ground rule training, one with the standard training often suggested in interview protocols, and two more intense training methods informed by relevant learning theories. Children aged between 5 and 12-years-old experienced a live event at their school and were interviewed about this event after a delay of approximately 2-weeks. Results did not support the hypotheses that ground rule training method would impact the number of unique details provided by children and that this relationship would vary across age. Results also showed that children’s accuracy responding to questions used to elicit ground rule responses was not related to the number of details provided. A larger sample is necessary to investigate whether the findings of the current study are accurate when the analyses are satisfactorily powered. Currently, this study suggests that more intense ground rule training does not compromise the richness of children’s reports. Findings also indicate that children’s acquiescence to suggestive, unanswerable or confusing questions is not related to the amount of information they provide when asked answerable questions. </p>