Crossover Effects Among Parental Hostility and Parent-Child Relationships During the Preschool Period

Adverse childhood experience and young adult's problematic Internet use: The role of hostility and loneliness

BACKGROUND

Few studies have explored the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and problematic Internet use (PIU) during young adulthood. Moreover, even fewer studies have explored the roles of loneliness (social and emotional) and hostility in this relationship.

METHODS

This study used data from the Taiwan Youth Project (2011-2017). The analytical sample included 1885 participants (mean age = 31.3 years). PIU was measured using the short form of Chen's Internet Addiction Scale (2017). ACEs were assessed at the baseline of the adolescent phase (mean age = 14.3 years); this indicator has undergone recent revision. Hostility (three items from the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised) and loneliness (six items from the De Jong Gierveld scale) were measured in 2011 and 2014, respectively.

RESULTS

ACEs were associated with hostility and loneliness (emotional and social). Additionally, hostility (β = 0.62, p < .01) and emotional loneliness (β = 0.44, p < .01) were significantly associated with PIU. Most mediating paths (e.g., ACE → hostility → PIU) were significant, based on the bootstrapping results.

CONCLUSIONS

This study suggests that ACEs have a long-term shadow effect on PIU in young adults. ACEs show an indirect association with PIU through both hostility and loneliness, as well as involving the relationship between them.

Gendered Parenting: Maternal Son Preference and Depressive Symptoms in Chinese Early Adolescents

This study focused on the nuanced phenomenon of gendered parenting by exploring how maternal son preference is associated with depressive symptoms among Chinese early adolescents. Focusing on 1093 junior high school students from a relatively affluent city in Western China, this study examined the mediating roles of mother-child attachment and father-child attachment as well as the moderating role of school connectedness in the relationship between maternal son preference and depressive symptoms. The results revealed a noteworthy positive correlation between maternal son preference and depressive symptoms among female adolescents, with no significant association observed in males. In addition, mother-child attachment and father-child attachment mediated the relationship between maternal son preference and girls' depressive symptoms, supporting the "spillover effect" and "crossover effect". Moreover, a moderation effect analysis indicated that a higher level of school connectedness can buffer the effect of maternal son preference on girls' depressive symptoms, while a lower level of school connectedness can enhance the effect of maternal son preference on girls' depressive symptoms. In addition, maternal son preference was negatively correlated with boys' depressive symptoms in relation to high school connectedness. These insights help enhance people's understanding of gendered parenting, emphasizing the enduring necessity of addressing son preference within the broader context of promoting gender equality.

Continuity in hostile family relationships mediated by family psychopathology: An application of systems perspective

Grounded in the family systems theory within the life course systems perspective, this study sought to investigate (a) long-term transmission processes of hostility from interparental relationships to parent-young adult relationships and (b) the mediational roles of parents' and adolescents' psychopathology in these long-term processes. Research has examined the long-term transmission of hostility from interparental relationships to young adults' relationships with their parents. However, less is known about how this transmission process differs for father-young adult and mother-young adult relationships and if psychopathology is a mechanism that contributes to the transmission of hostility. Utilizing a structural equation model and prospective, longitudinal data from couples in enduring marriages and their offspring (n = 345 families), we examined long-term associations between interparental hostility when offspring were adolescents and young adults (1990 and 2001), adolescents' hostile relationships with their fathers and mothers (1991), and young adults' hostile relationships with their fathers and mothers (2003) as well as the mediating roles of fathers', mothers', and adolescents' psychopathology (1992 and 1994). Interparental hostility was more strongly linked to hostility between mothers (rather than fathers) and their young adult offspring. Fathers', mothers', and adolescents' psychopathology uniquely mediated the transmission processes. This study elucidated transmission processes of interparental hostility to young adults' relationship hostility with their parents and offers insights into the unique mediational roles of each family member's psychopathology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Older Parents' Cynical Hostility and Their Relationships with Their Adult Children: A Longitudinal Dyadic Study of North American Couples

Older adults' relationships with their children are often a source of reciprocal emotional and instrumental support, but also of strain. Cynical hostility is a cognitive schema, according to which people cannot be trusted. Previous studies showed that cynical hostility has adverse implications for social relationships. Little is known about the possible outcomes of parental cynical hostility on older adults' relationships with their children. Two waves of the Health and Retirement Study and Actor-Partner Interdependence Models were used to examine the way spouses' cynical hostility at Time 1 is associated with their own and their spouse's relationship with the children at Time 2. Both partners' cynical hostility predicts his or her own strain in the relationship with the children, and for husbands, their spouse's cynical hostility also predicts strain. For husbands only, their own cynical hostility is associated with reduced perceived support from their children. Finally, a husband's cynical hostility is associated with both partners' reduced contact with their children. These findings illuminate the social and familial costs of cynical hostility in old age, suggesting that older adults with higher levels of cynical hostility may be more susceptible to strained relationships with their children.

Fathers and mothers' parenting stress and adolescent depressive symptoms: the mediating roles of overt and covert coparenting conflict behaviors

BACKGROUND

It is yet to be clarified if and how parenting stress was linked to adolescent depressive symptoms during the pandemic.

OBJECTIVES

This study adopted an interdependent approach to examine the relationship between parenting stress and adolescent depressive symptoms in Chinese families. It then examined the mediating effects of overt and covert coparenting conflict behaviors.

METHODS

As a national survey, data were obtained from different regions in China. Fathers, mothers, and adolescents from 1031 families participated in this study. The fathers and mothers reported parenting stress; the adolescents rated their fathers and mothers' overt and covert coparenting conflict behaviors and their own depressive symptoms.

RESULTS

Maternal parenting stress was related to adolescent depressive symptoms through the mediating effects of paternal overt and maternal covert coparenting conflict behaviors. Both paternal and maternal parenting stress were directly related to adolescent depressive symptoms. However, maternal parenting stress had a more substantial effect on adolescent depressive symptoms than paternal parenting stress.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings support the effects of parenting stress on adolescent depressive symptoms. The study also highlights the mediating roles of paternal overt and maternal covert coparenting conflict behaviors in relationships.

Actor-partner association of work-family conflict and parental depressive symptoms during COVID-19 in China: Does coparenting matter?

Parental depressive symptoms and their related factors have not been widely examined during the COVID‐19 pandemic. Therefore, the current study examined the actor and partner associations of work–family conflict and parental depressive symptoms. Considering the new demands and challenges for families during the COVID‐19 pandemic, we further explored the moderation effect of coparenting. A cross‐sectional online survey with 985 paired fathers and mothers was conducted in Mainland China. In 11.6% of families, only mothers reported moderate to severe depressive symptoms; in 10.6% families, only fathers reported moderate to severe depressive symptoms; in 9.5% families, the mother and father reported mild to moderate depressive symptoms. Results of the actor–partner interdependence model showed that parental family‐to‐work conflict was negatively associated with their own depressive symptoms. The negative actor association of maternal family‐to‐work conflict and depressive symptoms was moderated by undermining coparenting. The partner effects of maternal family‐to‐work and work‐to‐family conflicts on paternal depressive symptoms were moderated by undermining coparenting. Moreover, supportive coparenting moderated the actor association of work‐to‐family conflict and the depressive symptoms of fathers. Results highlight the importance of family‐to‐work conflict and family function for parental depressive symptoms. These findings can help promote parental well‐being during the COVID‐19 pandemic.

Parental hostility predicts reduced cortical thickness in males

Although impacts of negative parenting on children's brain development are well-documented, little is known about how these associations may differ for males and females in childhood. We examined interactions between child sex and early and concurrent parental hostility on children's cortical thickness and surface area. Participants included 63 children (50.8% female) assessed during early childhood (Wave 1: M age = 4.23 years, SD = 0.84) and again three years later (Wave 2: M age = 7.19 years, SD = 0.89) using an observational parent-child interaction task. At Wave 2, children completed a structural MRI scan. Analyses focused on regions of interest. After correcting for multiple comparisons, Wave 1 parental hostility predicted males' reduced thickness in middle frontal and fusiform cortices, and Wave 2 parental hostility was concurrently associated with males' reduced thickness in the middle frontal cortex. Interactions between sex and parenting on children's surface area did not survive corrections for multiple comparisons. Our findings provide support for a male-specific neural vulnerability of hostile parenting across development. Results have important implications for uncovering neural pathways to sex-differences in psychopathology, learning, and cognitive disabilities.

Coparenting Conflict Behavior, Parent-Adolescent Attachment, and Social Competence with Peers: An Investigation of Developmental Differences

Coparenting conflict, which refers to the conflict between parents regarding parenting, has played a central role in children's development and adjustment. The perspective of family and peer systems linkage has suggested that coparenting conflict is linked to peer-related development, but this view has yet to be clarified. This study aimed to investigate the relationships among coparenting conflict behavior, parent-adolescent attachment, and social competence with peers as well as the developmental differences of these relationships in early, middle, and late adolescence within Chinese families. Families (N = 808) that included fathers, mothers, and focal adolescents (53% female, M_age = 13.66 ± 2.53) participated in this study. Fathers and mothers reported their coparenting conflict behaviors separately, and the adolescents rated parent-adolescent attachment and social competence with peers. Results showed that fathers' overt coparenting conflict behavior was related to social competence with peers through the indirect effects of father- and mother-adolescent attachments, whereas mothers' covert coparenting conflict behavior was related to social competence with peers through the indirect effect of mother-adolescent attachment in the total sample. The multigroup analysis revealed that these relationships were significant in early and late adolescence. In addition, fathers' covert coparenting conflict behavior was related to mother-adolescent attachment in late adolescence and all the relationships were insignificant in middle adolescence. The findings support the systematic perspective of family-peer system linkage and highlight the gender differences of parents in the effects of coparenting conflict on social competence with peers and the developmental differences during adolescence.

Family Emotional Climate and Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Little research has examined family emotional climate in the context of having a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The goal of the current study was to determine how the emotional quality of family subsystems (parent-child and parent couple relationships, for both mothers and fathers) combine to create various classes of family emotional climate and to identify predictors of class membership in 148 families of children with ASD. The emotional quality of family subsystems was assessed using Five Minute Speech Samples from mothers and fathers. In total, 148 families of children with ASD (86% male) aged 6-13 years were included in analyses. About one-third of parents did not have a college degree and more than two-thirds were of non-Hispanic White origin. Latent class analysis revealed that 43% of the sample was characterized by high levels of warmth and low levels of criticism in both the parent-child and parent couple relationships; 12% of the sample was characterized by low warmth and high criticism in both sets of relationships; and the rest of the sample was divided among three additional classes of emotional climate characterized by different configurations of warmth and criticism across both sets of relationships. Parent level of broader autism phenotype and child emotional and behavioral problems were associated with emotional climate class membership. Implications for interventions are discussed.

Family Emotional Climate and Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Little research has examined family emotional climate in the context of having a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The goal of the current study was to determine how the emotional quality of family subsystems (parent-child and parent couple relationships, for both mothers and fathers) combine to create various classes of family emotional climate and to identify predictors of class membership in 148 families of children with ASD. The emotional quality of family subsystems was assessed using Five Minute Speech Samples from mothers and fathers. In total, 148 families of children with ASD (86% male) aged 6-13 years were included in analyses. About one-third of parents did not have a college degree and more than two-thirds were of non-Hispanic White origin. Latent class analysis revealed that 43% of the sample was characterized by high levels of warmth and low levels of criticism in both the parent-child and parent couple relationships; 12% of the sample was characterized by low warmth and high criticism in both sets of relationships; and the rest of the sample was divided among three additional classes of emotional climate characterized by different configurations of warmth and criticism across both sets of relationships. Parent level of broader autism phenotype and child emotional and behavioral problems were associated with emotional climate class membership. Implications for interventions are discussed.

Coparenting Behavior, Parent-Adolescent Attachment, and Peer Attachment: An Examination of Gender Differences

Coparenting relationship has been linked to the development and adaptation of adolescents. However, whether and how fathers and mothers' individual behaviors in coparenting relationships are linked to peer outcomes of boys and girls during adolescence have yet to be clarified. The present study addresses this gap in knowledge by examining the relationships among coparenting behavior, parent-adolescent attachment, and peer attachment of adolescents and the gender differences of these relationships. Families (N= 820) that included fathers, mothers, and focal adolescents (53% female, M_age = 13.70 ± 2.51) participated in this study. The fathers and mothers reported their coparenting behavior to their spouse and the adolescents completed the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment. Structure equation modeling in the total sample revealed that maternal positive and paternal negative coparenting behaviors were related to peer attachment through the indirect effects of father- and mother-adolescent attachments. Multi-group analysis revealed that father- and mother-adolescent attachments had strong predicting effects on the peer attachment of offsprings with the same sex. Maternal positive coparenting behavior was related to the peer attachment of boys and girls through the indirect effects of the father- and mother-adolescent attachments. Paternal negative coparenting behavior had a double-edged effect on girls' peer attachment and was not related to boys' peer attachment. This study extended the perspective of a family-peer system linkage by providing evidence that parents' individual behavior in the coparenting process was linked to adolescents' peer outcome. Moreover, this research suggested that encouraging mothers to enhance their positive relationship with fathers and preventing fathers from overtly pursuing conflicts and covertly disparaging mothers may be effective methods to promote adolescents' peer relationships.