A Model-Based Cluster Analysis of Maternal Emotion Regulation and Relations to Parenting Behavior

Maternal Emotional and Behavioral Regulation/Dysregulation and Parenting Practices: A Systematic Review

Emotional and behavioral regulations are crucial for the development of perceptive, responsive, and flexible parenting. Moreover, maternal emotional dysregulation constitutes a risk for maltreatment behaviors. The present study aimed to conduct a systematic review of empirical studies on the associations between mothers' emotional and behavioral regulations and parenting practices with their children or adolescents. A systematic review was conducted, including papers that addressed these variables, analyzing the direct effects, and moderation or mediation effects of maternal emotional and behavioral regulation on parenting practices, targeting child and adolescent samples. We identified 35 studies for analysis. Most of the studies (86%) showed significant associations between maternal emotional and behavioral regulation and parenting practices. Mothers' emotional dysregulation was related to a high risk of maltreatment and negative parenting, such as unsupportive reactions and harsh discipline. High maternal emotional dysregulation and negative parenting, in turn, were associated with children's aggressive behaviors. Conversely, when mothers exhibited high emotional regulation, they engaged in more positive and supportive parenting. Additionally, maternal behavioral regulation with inhibitory control and effortful control led to supportive and warm parenting. Individual and contextual factors, such as maternal victimization history and symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity, had effects on maternal emotional dysregulation, which, in turn, impacted their parenting practices. Consequently, emotional and behavioral regulation played a crucial role in mothers' parenting practices with their children and adolescents. The findings of the current review could contribute to planning parenting interventions, including maternal emotional and behavioral regulation skills, aimed at preventing maltreatment of their children.

Psychological burden of hearing-impaired children and their parents through the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective

Childhood hearing impairment has potential repercussions on the mental well-being of both children and their parents. As a vulnerable population in accessing health care services, they may face specific challenges, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. This cross-sectional study aims to investigate the association between childhood hearing impairment and the mental health of children and their parents, and to assess health care utilization of hearing-impaired children and its impact on mental outcomes for both during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

Using the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) database, we analyzed data for 15,989 children aged 5-17 and their corresponding parents. The correlations between childhood hearing impairment and mental outcomes were examined using logistic regression models. The 2020 (quarter 3 and quarter 4)-2021 NHIS data was singled out and re-analyzed, focusing on the utilization of medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Results

After accounting for covariates, hearing-impaired children exhibited a higher frequency of anxiety (OR 2.33, 95% CI 1.79-3.02) or depression (OR 2.14, 95% CI 1.59-2.88). Parents of hearing-impaired children had significantly higher odds of a higher frequency of anxiety (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.20-2.01) or depression (OR 1.73, 95% CI 1.30-2.29). Interaction effect of hearing impairment with survey year on parents' mental health outcomes was observed (p for interaction <0.1). Children with hearing loss had higher odds of reporting delayed medical care (OR 2.00, 95% CI 1.11-3.59) or canceled medical care (OR 1.96, 95% CI 0.98-3.96, p = 0.059) due to the pandemic. Delayed medical care (OR 12.41, 95% CI 2.78-55.46) or canceled medical care (OR 6.26, 95% CI 1.28-30.75) due to the COVID-19 pandemic significantly contributed to the increase of anxiety frequency in hearing-impaired children.

Conclusion

Childhood hearing impairment exhibits a substantial impact on children's and parental mental health, which is further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Families of hearing-impaired children appear to be in a vulnerable position during public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which can further exacerbate their mental outcomes.

Parent Emotion Regulation, Mindful Parenting, and Youth Attachment: Direct and Indirect Associations with Internalizing and Externalizing Problems

The direct associations between two dimensions of parent emotion regulation within the parent-youth relationship (dysregulation; suppression), mindful parenting, and youth internalizing and externalizing problems were examined among 759 parents of youth with significant behavioural or emotional problems. The indirect associations of parent emotion regulation and mindful parenting with youth functioning through youth attachment anxiety and avoidance were also investigated. Parent dysregulation was associated with internalizing symptoms both directly and through attachment anxiety, and with externalizing symptoms directly and through attachment anxiety and avoidance. Parent suppression was associated with internalizing symptoms through attachment anxiety, and with externalizing symptoms through attachment anxiety and avoidance. Mindful parenting was associated with lower internalizing symptoms through attachment anxiety and with lower externalizing symptoms through attachment anxiety and avoidance. Emotion regulation within parent-child relationships and mindful parenting may be critical components of parenting programs aimed at promoting youth attachment security and mental health.

RSA instability in mothers of preschoolers and adolescents is related to observations of supportive parenting behaviors

Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA; a measure of respiratory modulation of vagal control of heart rate) is a dynamic process. For mothers, RSA functioning has been associated with depressive symptoms and coincides with supportive parenting. However, research has largely focused on RSA suppression (i.e., difference score from rest to stress task). The present study examined depressive symptoms and supportive parenting with RSA instability-a dynamic measure of the magnitude of RSA change across a task. In two samples of mothers (N = 210), one with preschoolers (Study 1: n = 108, Mage = 30.68 years, SD = 6.06, 47.0% Black, 43.0% White) and one with adolescents (Study 2: n = 102, Mage = 35.51, SD = 6.51, 75.2% Black), RSA instability was calculated during an interaction task. In both studies, instrumental supportive parenting behaviors were negatively related to RSA instability. Findings provide preliminary support for RSA instability as an indicator of physiological dysregulation for mothers.

Self-Regulated Parenting: A Systematic Review of the Relations Between Effortful Control, the Big-Five, and Parenting Practices

It is well established that parents' own self-regulation is related to adaptive parenting practices (such as warmth and sensitivity) as well as to maladaptive ones (such as laxness and over-reactivity). However, parenting practices are not solely determined by parents' self-regulation. We discuss how broad personality dimensions (drawn from the Big-Five model) relate to temperamental self-regulation (effortful control) and to parenting practices. Considering the limited empirical literature linking these three constructs, we present extant evidence for each of the dyadic connections between these three constructs. We then propose a comprehensive model that includes the plausible moderation/mediation role of different personality dimensions (such as conscientiousness and agreeableness) on the connection between self-regulation and parenting practices. This systematic review summarizes the extant empirical findings from 74 studies, linking effortful control, character and parenting practices. It is the first to systematically review and organize the accumulating knowledge regarding their relations. Based on the reviewed literature, a conceptual framework is proposed for predicting parenting practices, which are, in turn, a crucial concept predicting children's behavioral and cognitive outcomes. In doing so, it provides a theoretical basis for the importance of parental character traits, specifically conscientiousness and agreeableness, as mediators between the parent's effortful control and their actual parenting practices.

Resting respiratory sinus arrythmia and cognitive reappraisal moderate the link between political climate stress and anxiety symptoms in Latina and Black mothers

Guided by the Family Stress Model for minority families, the present study examined the potential buffering effect of resting respiratory sinus arrythmia (RRSA), cognitive reappraisal, and mindfulness on the association between political climate stress (PCS) and anxiety symptoms in a sample of Latina and Black mothers. Participants were 100 mothers living in the southeastern United States. Mothers reported on PCS, cognitive reappraisal, mindfulness, and symptoms of anxiety. RRSA were measured during a resting task. Moderation analyses tested the influence of these three factors (RRSA, cognitive reappraisal, mindfulness) on the relation between PCS and anxiety. Results showed that the relation between PCS and anxiety symptoms was strongest at low levels of RRSA and cognitive reappraisal. At high levels of these two factors, there was no association between PCS and anxiety symptoms. Mothers with high levels of RRSA and cognitive reappraisal may be able to interact with and evaluate environmental stimuli in such a way that allows for adaptive adjustment, buffering against the negative impact of PCS. RRSA and cognitive reappraisal may be important targets of interventions designed to address the rising rates of anxiety symptoms in Latina and Black mothers.

Effects of emotion coaching group programme for mothers of preschool children with smart device overdependence: a mixed methods study

BACKGROUND

Smart device overdependence adversely affects the overall development of preschool children. This study aimed to provide an emotion coaching group programme to mothers raising preschool children who are overly dependent on smart devices and to confirm the programme's effectiveness.

METHODS

This concurrent embedded mixed methods study used a non-equivalent control group pre-post design to verify the quantitative effect of the programme, and a descriptive research design to verify the qualitative effect. The study collected data from June 2019 to March 2021 from 51 (25 experimental, 26 control) mothers raising children aged 3-6 years in South Korea. The quantitative study examined the effects of an eight-session programme, conducted once a week for two hours, on mothers' emotional intelligence, parenting behaviour, and their children's attachment stability and smart device overdependence using a non-equivalent control group pre-post design. The analysis used a generalized estimate equation. For qualitative research, focus group interviews were used as a descriptive research design method, and content analysis was used for analysis.

RESULTS

Quantitatively, the results showed significant differences between the experimental and control groups in terms of changes in maternal emotional intelligence (χ2 = 14.99, p = .001), maternal positive parenting behaviour (χ2 = 9.32, p = .009), children's unstable attachment to their mothers (χ2 = 9.49, p = .009), and children's overdependence on smart devices (χ2 = 14.48, p = .001). Qualitatively, the study derived five themes for the experiences of mothers who participated in the programme: "hope for desirable parenting without emotional difficulties," "feelings touched by reflection," "warm but authoritative parenting," "children who became responsible by gaining psychological stability," and "changed view of my home."

CONCLUSIONS

The emotion coaching group programme was effective in improving the emotional intelligence and parenting behaviour of mothers raising preschool children. The programme also improved preschool children's attachment stability to their mothers and overdependence on smart devices. The programme can be useful in community practice, and the present study can be used as evidence for education and research related to device overdependence.

Mediating roles of character traits and parenting in the relationship between maternal effortful control and children's conduct problems

Background

Parenting practices are crucial to children's development and are important predictors of children's conduct problems. The aim of the current study was to test the mediating role of mothers' character traits on the relationship between their temperamental self-regulation and their parenting practices, and on their children's conduct problems.

Method

A representative sample of 387 Israeli mothers of kindergarten children was recruited online. They completed questionnaires about their own effortful control (adult temperament questionnaire; ATQ), character traits (temperament and character inventory-revised (TCI-R), big five inventory (BFI)), and parenting practices (coping with children's negative emotions scale; CCNES), as well as conduct problems of their children (strengths and difficulties questionnaire; SDQ). Structural equation models were fitted, testing for direct and indirect connections, once with character traits drawn from the TCI and once with BFI traits.

Results

In both analyses, the first model presented a significant direct effect between mothers' effortful control and children's conduct problems. When including mother's parenting and character (based on the TCI or on the BFI) in the model, the direct path became insignificant and significant mediation effects were found; specifically, the indirect path through the parenting practices, as well as the mediated mediation path through the parenting practices and character. Moreover, mediation effects were found between mothers' effortful control and parenting practices through some character traits. The selected models showed a good fit (e.g., NFI = 0.985; CFI = 0.997; RMSEA = 0.038).

Discussion

Our findings emphasize the importance of the mother's mature personality characteristics, the mother's actual parental practices, and the crucial value of this path for predicting child behavior outcomes.

Maternal Intimate Partner Violence Exposure and Autonomic Reactivity: Associations With Positive Parenting

Intimate partner violence (IPV) can negatively impact parenting, posing a threat both to the wellbeing of mothers and their young children. Parenting may also be influenced by emotion regulation (ER), which can support parents' ability to navigate relational challenges or buffer against the influence of adverse experiences on parenting. Changes in maternal respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) during parent-child interactions have been conceptualized as a psychophysiological index of ER. Competing theoretical models posit that RSA response may mediate or moderate the relation between IPV and parenting or may be independently associated with parenting, however, there is little prior evidence concerning these hypothesized associations. This study examined these associations in a sample of 125 low-income maltreating and comparison mothers and their 3- to 5-year-old children. Dyads completed a moderately challenging laboratory task, and positive parenting and maternal RSA were measured during the task. Maternal verbal IPV exposure, but not physical IPV, was associated with less positive parenting, while greater maternal RSA activation over the task was associated with more positive parenting. Maternal RSA activation did not mediate or moderate the relationship between IPV exposure and parenting, and this association did not differ by whether or not the mother had perpetrated child maltreatment. Consequently, verbal IPV exposure and greater RSA activation independently predicted positive parenting. Results suggest that interventions for IPV-exposed mothers of young children may benefit from ensuring psychological safety and improving maternal ER to promote positive parenting for at-risk children.

Associations Between Emotion Dysregulation Dimensions and Parenting Behaviors in Trauma-Exposed African American Mothers

Parenting behavior is key to understanding transmission of intergenerational trauma-related risk. Emotion dysregulation (ED) and psychological symptoms are associated with negative parenting behaviors, although their unique roles remain unclear. The current study examined associations of ED dimensions, depression, PTSD, and substance use with parenting behaviors in African American mothers. Participants included 98 mother-child dyads recruited from an urban hospital setting. Trauma exposure, ED, depression, substance use, and parenting behaviors (overreactivity, laxness, demandingness, warmth, corporal punishment) were assessed using self-report measures. PTSD was assessed using a semi-structured interview. Correlational results showed significant positive associations between ED and dysfunctional parenting behavior (p < .001), overreactivity (p < .001), and laxness (p < .01) and negative associations with warmth (p < .01). These associations varied across the dimensions of ED examined. Regression analyses were run to examine the unique effects of ED (separate models for overall and specific dimensions) and psychological symptoms; overall ED and its dimensions accounted for significant variance in parental behaviors (R2 = .10-.24, p's < .01), while additional model steps including psychological symptoms were not significant except for the association between depression and lower warmth. In efforts to reduce the intergenerational effects of trauma, parenting interventions that include a direct focus on certain dimensions of ED may be critical.

Parental Emotion Regulation and Mentalization in Families of Children With ADHD

Objective: The aim of this study is to examine the role of parental emotion regulation (ER) and parental mentalization as possible contributors to hostile and coercive parenting in families of children with ADHD. Method: Seventy-four Israeli families (64 mothers and 48 fathers) seeking parent training for child ADHD completed measures during the intake session. Measures included parental ER; parental mentalization; hostile, coercive, and submissive parenting; and child symptoms. Results: Findings suggested a relationship between parental ER and coercive parenting independent of child age, symptom level, and parental mentalization. Parental mentalization appeared to buffer against hostility specifically among parents with low ER capacities. Patterns were parallel for mothers and fathers. Conclusion: Study findings highlight the importance of evaluating and addressing parental ER in interventions attempting to reduce coercive parenting. The findings also highlight the potential role of parental mentalization as a protective mechanism against hostile parenting in families of children with ADHD.