Christina M. Rinaldi

Male and Female University Students’ Experiences of Indirect Aggression

This study examines the role of sex, gender role orientation, social representations of indirect aggression, and indicators of psychosocial adjustment in indirect aggression and victimization in an emerging adult sample. A total of 42 participants (19 men, 23 women) recruited are required to complete the questionnaires, along with 18 participants out of the total study sample also completing daily journals. No sex differences are found for either indirect aggression or victimization. Indirect victimization is found to be the most significant predictor of indirect aggression. When controlling for indirect aggression, mania is the most significant predictor of indirect victimization. An inductive thematic analysis of the journals is conducted. The results are interpreted in relation to previous research and theory. Limitations, implications, and directions for future research are discussed. Cette étude a examiné l’association entre le genre, les perceptions des rôles sexuelles, et les représentations des comportements d’agression indirecte et les indicateurs d’adaptation psychosociale d’une agression indirecte en relation avec la victimisation chez un échantillon de jeunes adultes. Quarante-deux participants (19 hommes, 23 femmes) ont complété des questionnaires. De ce nombre, 18 ont décrit, sur une base quotidienne, les interactions sociales vécues. Cette étude ne montre aucune différence de genre quand il s’agit d’agression indirecte ou de victimisation. La victimisation indirecte est la meilleure indicatrice d’agression indirecte. Quand l’agression indirecte est contrôlée, la manie a une association significative avec la victimisation indirecte. Une analyse thématique des journaux personnels a été effectuée et interprétées relativement aux recherches et théories antérieures. Nous discutons les limites et les implications de notre étude pour les recherches futures.

MEASURING PARENT–CHILD MUTUALITY: A REVIEW OF CURRENT OBSERVATIONAL CODING SYSTEMS

Mutuality is defined as a smooth, back-and-forth positive interaction consisting of mutual enjoyment, cooperation, and responsiveness. The bidirectional nature of mutuality is an essential component to the parent-child relationship since a high quality parent-child mutual relationship is crucial to encouraging childrens positive socialization and development (S. Lollis & L. Kuczynski, 1997; E.E. Maccoby, 2007). Several coding systems have been developed in recent years to assess this distinct and crucial aspect of the parent-child relationship. The present article reviews the following four mutuality coding schemes: the Parent-Child Interaction System (K. Deater-Deckard, M.V. Pylas, & S. Petrill, 1997), the Mutually Responsive Orientation Scale (N. Aksan, G. Kochanska, & M.R. Ortmann, 2006), the Caregiver-Child Affect, Responsiveness, and Engagement Scale (C.S. Tamis-LeMonda, P. Ahuja, B. Hannibal, J.D. Shannon, & M. Spellmann, 2002), and the Synchrony and Control Coding Scheme (J. Mize & G.S. Pettit, 1997). The review will focus on observational coding schemes available to researchers interested a central element of quality parent-child relationships in the early years.

An examination of the conflict resolution strategies and goals of children with depressive symptoms

The purpose of this study was to examine (a) the reports of conflict strategies and goals in response to hypothetical conflict situations, (b) generation of solutions to hypothetical conflicts, and (c) conflict in observed dyadic exchanges in children with high and low depressive symptoms. Children from Grades 4, 5, and 6 were divided into high (n = 57) and low (n = 57) depressive symptoms groups. Results indicated that the two groups differed on the types of conflict strategies but not conflict goals chosen in hypothetical social problem‐solving tasks. Also, children reporting depressive symptoms typically chose less effective strategies to solving social problems. In observed dyadic exchanges, the high depressive symptoms group employed more negative strategies than the low depressive symptoms group, but no significant differences were noted for the prosocial conflict resolution strategies exhibited. Findings and implications for children with depressive symptoms are highlighted.

Understanding Students' Interactions: Why Varied Social Tasks Matter.

Many social interactions between school‐age children contain both competitive and cooperative elements. In order to gain a better understanding of how students at risk for emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) negotiate social exchanges in cooperative and competitive‐related tasks in comparison with non‐EBD students: (a) prosocial; (b) negative; and (c) conflict behaviours were assessed. Fifty‐seven children at risk for EBD and 57 comparison children participated in three different social tasks with non‐target partners. Both students and teachers completed a standardised behaviour checklist. Social ability and sex differences were considered. Results are discussed from a social‐cognitive framework, and practical implications will be highlighted.

Psychometric Properties of a Parental Questionnaire for Assessing Correlates of Toddlers’ Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour

ABSTRACT This study examined the psychometric properties of a questionnaire developed with the guidance of the socialization model of child behaviour to understand modifiable correlates of toddlers’ physical activity and sedentary behaviour. Findings are based on 118 parents (33.7 ± 4.9 years; 86% female) of toddlers (19.3 ± 2.7 months; 48% female) from Edmonton, Canada in The Parents’ Role in Establishing healthy Physical activity and Sedentary behaviour habits study (PREPS). The PREPS questionnaire encompassed 21 variables across the constructs of the socialization model of child behaviour. Of the nine variables assessed for internal consistency reliability, eight had good (α ≥ 0.70) reliability. Of the 15 continuous variables assessed for 1-week test–retest reliability, 10 had moderate (intra-class correlation = 0.50–0.74) and 5 had good (intra-class correlation ≥ 0.75) reliability. Of the six categorical variables assessed for 1-week test–retest reliability, two had fair (К = 0.21–0.40), one had moderate (К = 0.41–0.60), one had substantial (К = 0.61–0.80), and two had almost perfect (К = 0.81–1.00) reliability. Of the 12 sedentary behaviour variables assessed for convergent validity, 7 were significantly correlated with children’s screen time, of which three were small (r ≤ 0.29), two were medium (r = 0.30–0.49), and two were large (r ≥ 0.50) effect sizes.

Parent–child communication and adolescents' problem-solving strategies in hypothetical bullying situations

The current study investigated (1) the types of solutions that students and parents generate in response to hypothetical bullying situations, (2) the effectiveness of the strategies, and (3) the effectiveness of strategies when considering parent–child communication. Two hundred twenty-five junior high school students and their parents were required to read four short scripts involving hypothetical bullying dilemmas and generate as many solutions as possible to solve each situation. Participants also filled out a parent–child communication questionnaire. Results revealed that the most common type of solutions provided by both students and parents were help-seeking strategies. Although students provided significantly more assertive solutions than parents, 41% generated at least one strategy that may worsen the situation. The overall effectiveness rating of solutions for students and parents fell slightly below effective. Finally, parent–child communication was associated with the effectiveness of solutions generated. Educational recommendations and future research steps will be discussed.

Parents’ perceptions of children's weight: the accuracy of ratings and associations to strategies for feeding

The general objective of this study was to assess parents’ perceptions of their preschoolers body weight, and the association between childrens current weight status and parental feeding strategies. A sample of 150 parents of three- to five-year-old children (72 girls and 78 boys) completed questionnaires on sociodemographic information, body-size perception of their child, and feeding practices information. Children were classified into weight categories according to body mass index scores. Results showed that: (1) parents of children who were overweight were less accurate in determining their childs body size, (2) parents who did perceive their childs body size accurately reported being more concerned with their childs eating habits and weight when this child was actually overweight, (3) parents who were accurate in perceiving their childs weight reported using more food restriction than parents who were inaccurate, and (4) parents of girls reported significantly more monitoring of sweets and snack food consumption than parents of boys. Prevention programmes should be implemented in early childhood and include parent education components.

Exploring the Factor Structure of the Revised-Parent as a Social Context Questionnaire

SYNOPSIS Objective. This study explored the factor structure and provided evidence of the validity and reliability of the Revised Parents as a Social Context Questionnaire. Design. Online surveys were completed by 404 parents of children ages 2–18 years. An exploratory factor analysis and a second-order factor analysis were conducted to generate six subscales (warmth, rejection, structure, chaos, autonomy support, and coercion) and an overall measure of parenting style quality based on Self-Determination Theory. Results. Validity and reliability analyses indicate that the Revised Parents as a Social Context Questionnaire can be used to assess six characteristics of parenting style and how well the overall quality of parenting style addresses the psychological needs of children. Conclusions. The Revised Parents as a Social Context Questionnaire can be used as a valid and reliable measure of parenting style for the present sample. Research is needed to provide additional support for the validity and reliability of this measure with other samples.

Testing the PAX Good Behavior Game with and without school-based parenting support: study description and practical challenges

Abstract Despite large government expenditures and the implementation of mental health-related initiatives and strategies, the social, emotional, and behavioral concerns about children remain a significant issue in Canada. Accordingly, our group has undertaken a three-arm cluster school-based field study in Western Canada to examine interventions intended to have positive impact on children. This article describes the structure and design of the study, the interventions deployed, and the challenges encountered in conducting this type of initiative. The main intervention is the PAX Good Behavior Game (PAX GBG), a school-based intervention designed to improve children’s self-regulation, prosocial behavior, and mental health outcomes. The study was designed to test the impact of the PAX GBG with or without school-based parenting support on classroom behavior, child outcomes for social-emotional and behavioral functioning, and teacher stress and wellbeing. The parenting support intervention draws on the Triple P-Positive Parenting Program (Triple P) to provide low-intensity programming for parents seeking to address common childhood behavioral issues. The article outlines the study’s research design, measures, and data collection procedures, describes the interventions, and discusses several practical and methodological challenges that occurred during implementation.