Melissa A. Barnett

Economic Disadvantage in Complex Family Systems: Expansion of Family Stress Models.

Economic disadvantage is associated with multiple risks to early socioemotional development. This article reviews research regarding family stress frameworks to model the pathways from economic disadvantage to negative child outcomes via family processes. Future research in this area should expand definitions of family and household to incorporate diversity and instability. This expansion would be particularly relevant for research among low-income ethnic minority families and families with young children. This line of research would highlight specific pathways to target to prevent the onset of early parental and child dysfunction.

Interdependence of Parenting of Mothers and Fathers of Infants

This study examined the relations among parenting behaviors of 97 coresident mothers and fathers of infants during a dyadic free-play setting. The authors examined the extent to which observed sensitive and intrusive parenting behaviors in mother-child and father-child dyads were related and how perceived marital quality may be associated with the similarity between maternal and paternal parenting behaviors. The authors found support for interdependence of parenting by mothers and fathers. High perceived marital quality was associated with interdependence of sensitive parenting behaviors in mother-infant and father-infant interactions. Negative parenting behaviors by mothers and fathers were interrelated regardless of marital quality. The findings highlight the importance of studying parenting by mothers and fathers as embedded within particular family systems.

Psychophysiological correlates of parenting behavior in mothers of young children

This study investigated HPA and vagal functioning as correlates of parenting in mothers of 175 six-month-old children. Salivary cortisol indexed HPA functioning and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) reduction indexed vagal regulation. Positive engagement and negative intrusiveness were observed during the Face-to-Face Still Face Paradigm (FFSFP) reunion and a semi-structured free play episode. Mixed modeling was used to examine differences in maternal behaviors across contexts as a function of psychophysiology. Main effects of cortisol levels, as well as interactions with RSA reduction and context, predicted negative intrusiveness. Mothers with high cortisol exhibited more negative intrusiveness if they also had lower RSA reduction. Mothers were also less negatively intrusive during the FFSFP than the free play if they had lower cortisol levels. There were no associations between psychophysiological measures and positive engagement. The findings suggest: (1) that parenting behaviors are associated with maternal stress physiology; (2) considerations of single physiological systems related to parenting behaviors may be incomplete; and (3) type and context of behaviors must be considered when examining biobehavioral associations with parenting.

Father Contributions to Cortisol Responses in Infancy and Toddlerhood

The current study is one of the first prospective examinations of longitudinal associations between observed father caregiving behaviors and child cortisol reactivity and regulation in response to emotional arousal. Observations of father and mother caregiving behaviors and child cortisol levels in response to challenges at 7 months and 24 months of child age were collected. Analyses were based on a subsample of children from the Family Life Project who lived with both their biological mothers and fathers and for whom there was at least partial cortisol data (7 months: n = 717; 24 months: n = 579). At the challenge conducted at 7 months of child age, 49.0% of the sample were girls; racial composition of the sample was 25.8% African American and 74.2% European American. At the challenge conducted at 24 months of child age 49.9% of the sample were girls; racial composition was 24.7% African American and 75.3% European American. We conducted analyses across assessment points simultaneously using mixed linear modeling for repeated measures data to test for differential effects of fathering across infancy and toddlerhood. Concurrent measures of father negativity were positively associated with greater increases in child cortisol levels in response to emotion challenge at 7 months (p = .01) and with higher overall levels of cortisol at 24 months (p < .001). However, there was no evidence that father caregiving during infancy independently predicted later cortisol activity during toddlerhood.

Independent and Interactive Contributions of Parenting Behaviors and Beliefs in the Prediction of Early Childhood Behavior Problems

SYNOPSIS Objective. This study examined interactions between parenting beliefs and parenting behaviors in the prediction of early childhood externalizing and internalizing symptoms. Design. The authors observed sensitive and negative intrusive parenting behaviors during infancy and toddlerhood in conjunction with self-reported maternal beliefs about the importance of discipline/control and concerns regarding spoiling in a community sample of 185 African American and European American mother–child dyads. Multiple regression techniques modeled interactions between parenting self-reported parenting beliefs and observed parenting behaviors to predict mother-reported child internalizing symptoms and mother-reported child externalizing symptoms at 30 and 36 months. The analyses also explored the role of ethnicity as a moderator of these relations. Results. The combination of high and average spoiling beliefs and low levels of sensitive parenting was associated with elevated child internalizing symptoms. Negative parenting and beliefs reflecting concerns about spoiling were independent risk factors for elevated child externalizing symptoms. Conclusion. Parenting beliefs and behaviors should be considered jointly to identify risks for the development of early behavior problems.

Grandmother involvement as a protective factor for early childhood social adjustment

Despite high rates of grandmother involvement with young grandchildren, very little research has examined the associations between nonresidential grandmother involvement and grandchild social adjustment. The present study involved 127 families enrolled in the Family Transitions Project to consider the degree to which mother-reported maternal grandmother involvement buffered 3- and 4-year-old grandchildren from economic, parenting, and child temperamental risks for reduced social competence and elevated externalizing behaviors. Findings indicate that higher levels of mother-reported grandmother involvement reduced the negative association between observed grandchild negative emotional reactivity and social competence. Furthermore, higher levels of mother-reported grandmother involvement protected grandchildren from the positive association between observed mother harsh parenting and grandchild externalizing behaviors. These findings underscore the relevance of moving beyond the nuclear family to understand factors linked to social adjustment during early childhood.

Teacher–Child Interactions in Infant/Toddler Child Care and Socioemotional Development

Research Findings: The teacher–child relationships that develop in infant/toddler child care provide a critical caregiving context for young children’s socioemotional development. However, gaps remain in researchers’ understanding of the individual-level processes that facilitate socioemotional development, specifically in center-based child care programs. Guided by ecological theory, this article offers a review of the current literature on this topic, including influential factors and developmental outcomes associated with teacher–child interaction quality, the teacher–child relationship as a compensatory mechanism for children facing risk, and differential susceptibility to caregiving experiences. Practice or Policy: Within the context of infant/toddler child care, many opportunities exist for researchers to refine the measurement of individual teacher–child interactions, test young children’s self-regulation as an outcome variable, and develop understanding of compensatory and differential susceptibility mechanisms. Clarifying these processes will inform early childhood education teacher training in terms of how teachers can best facilitate healthy socioemotional outcomes, especially for the most vulnerable children.

Poor infant soothability and later insecure-ambivalent attachment: developmental change in phenotypic markers of risk or two measures of the same construct?

Using data from the Durham Child Health and Development Study (n=148), the current study examines the associations between child and parenting variables at 6 months and child attachment quality at 12 months of age and maternal report of child self regulation at 24 months of age. Child and parent variables predicted distinct forms of insecure attachment relationships. Observations of infant soothability during the reunion session of the Face-to-Face Still Face Paradigm at 6 months differentially predicted children with later insecure-ambivalent attachments from those with secure attachments. Observations of maternal negative intrusiveness at 6 months of age differentially predicted children with insecure-avoidant attachments from those with secure attachments. Maternal sensitivity at 6 months was associated with maternal report of child affective problems at 24 months, but this association was moderated by infant negativity during soothing and later moderated by child attachment quality. Collectively, these results suggest the following two mutually exclusive possibilities regarding infant soothability and later ambivalent attachment quality: either infant soothability is a unique and distinct predictor of later ambivalent attachment quality and this cascade represents a developmental shift in child risk during the first year of life, or that infant soothability following a stressful task at 6 months of age is itself an early indicator of ambivalent attachment behavior with the mother. The data from the current study could not provide differential support for one possibility over the other.

Parent Support Matters for the Educational Success of Sexual Minorities

Abstract Recent research has documented disparities in academic experiences and achievement for sexual minorities. Two important correlates of well-being for all youths are their relationships with family members and experiences at schools. We used nationally representative data to investigate whether the association between perceived maternal and parental support (defined as warm, firm, and accepting parental bonds) and educational outcomes differs for sexual minority compared to heterosexual youths. The sample consisted of 12,064 participants. Results indicated that parent support was significantly associated with grade point average (GPA), school belonging, and school troubles for both sexual minority and heterosexual participants, but the magnitudes differed. In addition, we found a two-way interaction between sexual minority status and parental support in association with school belonging, indicating that for sexual minority youths, low parental support was associated with particularly low levels of school belonging compared to heterosexual youths. This project highlights the importance of family support as a contributor for healthy development.

Risk and Protective Factors, Parenting Stress, and Harsh Parenting in Mexican Origin Mothers with Toddlers

In a community sample of Mexican origin mothers with toddlers (n = 58), we examined risk and protective factors associated with mothers’ feelings of parenting stress and reports of harsh parenting practices. We evaluated maternal depressive symptoms, economic hardship, and child negative affect as risk factors and mothers’ global social support and romantic relationship quality as protective factors. Results indicated that depressive symptoms and economic hardship were unique predictors of increased parenting stress, whereas romantic relationship quality was associated with decreased parenting stress. Maternal depressive symptoms and romantic relationship quality were uniquely associated with harsh parenting practices; moreover, these statistical associations were accounted for by mothers’ feelings of parenting stress. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for programs that work with Mexican origin families with young children who are experiencing parenting stress, highlighting the importance of comprehensive interventions for reducing parenting stress in this rapidly growing population.