Greta L. Doctoroff

Parent-rated externalizing behavior in preschoolers: the predictive utility of structured interviews, teacher reports, and classroom observations.

This study investigated multiple forms of home and school assessment as predictors of parent-rated behavior problems across a preschool year. Participants were a community sample of 79 preschool children, their parents, and their teachers. Parent ratings of behavior problems were obtained toward the beginning of the school year and approximately 6 months later. Behavior problems were also assessed early in the school year using parent structured interviews, teacher-rating scales, and classroom observations of problem and prosocial behavior. Consistent with hypotheses, each assessment method significantly predicted year-end parent ratings of behavior problems, even above initial ratings.

Attention in the Preschool Classroom: The Relationships among Child Gender, Child Misbehavior, and Types of Teacher Attention.

Research in preschool classrooms has shown that boys receive more attention from their teachers than girls do, and also that misbehavior is positively associated with teacher attention. However, these previous findings relate primarily to total attention, ignoring the many different types of teacher attention that are likely to have different antecedents and consequences. Additionally, previous studies have not investigated the way teachers treat difficult children when they are not misbehaving. This study examined the relationships among child gender, child misbehavior, and specific types of non‐disciplinary teacher attention. An ethnically and sociometrically diverse sample of 153 preschool children and their teachers were observed through videotapes of preschool classrooms. Girls received more positive interactions than boys, and misbehavior predicted commands unrelated to discipline. Both gender and misbehavior were involved in the prediction of rewards. When these relationships were examined within Puerto Rican, Black, and Caucasian groups, some differences in attention distribution appeared.

The Disruptive Behavior Rating Scale—Parent Version (DBRS-PV) Factor Analytic Structure and Validity Among Young Preschool Children

Objective: Despite recognition that disruptive behavior disorders often begin early in development, existing assessment tools are largely based on research with school-aged children. Further empirical work is needed to evaluate the utility of these tools in younger children. Methods: The present study investigated the factor structure, internal consistency, and validity of the Disruptive Behavior Rating Scale -Parent Version (DBRS-PV) in a sample of preschoolers. Participants included mothers and fathers of 261 three- to four-year-old children with and without behavior problems. Results: Findings provide support for the use of the DBRS-PV as a measure of disruptive behavior disorder symptoms in this age group, with strong internal consistency and evidence of convergent/divergent and discriminative validity. Conclusions: Results provide evidence in favor of a two-factor (a. inattention/hyperactivity -impulsivity and b. oppositional defiant behaviors) and moderate support for a three-factor (a. inattention, b. hyperactivity -impulsivity, and c. oppositional defiant behaviors) conceptualization of attention and disruptive behavior disorder symptoms among preschool children.

Engaging Fathers in Effective Parenting for Preschool Children Using Shared Book Reading: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Engaging fathers and improving their parenting and, in turn, outcomes for their children in preventive/promotion-focused parenting interventions has been a notable, but understudied, challenge in the field. This study evaluated the effects of a novel intervention, Fathers Supporting Success in Preschoolers: A Community Parent Education Program, which focuses on integrating behavioral parent training with shared book reading (i.e., Dialogic Reading) using key conceptual models (i.e., common elements, deployment model, task shifting) to engage and improve father (i.e., male guardians) and child outcomes. One hundred twenty-six low-income, Spanish-speaking fathers and their children were recruited across three Head Start centers in urban communities and were randomized to the intervention or to a waitlist control condition. Outcomes were obtained before and immediately postintervention and included observed and father-reported parenting and child behaviors, standardized assessments of language, and father self-reported parental stress and depressive symptoms. Attendance data were also collected as a proxy measure of engagement to the intervention. Parenting behaviors (observed and father-reported), child behaviors (father-reported), and language development of the children in the intervention group improved significantly relative to those in the waitlist control condition. Effect sizes (ESs) were in the small to large range across outcomes. Fathers can be engaged in parenting interventions, resulting in improved parent and child outcomes. Greater attention must be given to methods for maximizing parenting within a family and toward developing effective, engaging, and sustainable intervention models for fathers.

Moderators of Intervention Effects on Parenting Practices in a Randomized Controlled Trial in Early Childhood

The current study examined whether parent psychological resources (parenting stress, depression, and social support from friends and family) moderated the effects of early family preventive intervention on parenting among high-risk families. Ninety-two preschool-age children (M age = 3.94 years) at familial risk for conduct problems participated in a randomized controlled trial of a family intervention to prevent conduct problems. The majority of families were African American or Latino and experienced multiple stressors associated with poverty and familial antisocial behavior. Families were randomized to a 22-session group-based intervention or to a no-intervention, assessment-only control condition. Parents reported on their psychological resources (parenting stress, depression and social support from friends and family) at baseline. Parenting (responsive, harsh, stimulation for learning) was assessed through self-report and observational measures four times over 24 months. Previously-reported intervention effects on responsive parenting and stimulation for learning were moderated by depression and social support from friends, respectively, such that benefits were concentrated among those at greatest risk (i.e., depressed, limited support from friends). The intervention effect on harsh parenting was not moderated by any of the parent psychological resources examined, such that parents with high and low resources benefited comparably. Consideration of moderators of preventive intervention effects on parenting provides important information about intervention impact among families experiencing multiple barriers to engagement and effective parenting. Findings suggest that parents with diminished psychological resources are just as likely to benefit. Family-focused, group-based intervention is promising for strengthening parenting among the highest risk families.