Robin A. Barry

Interplay of Genes and Early Mother-Child Relationship in the Development of Self-Regulation from Toddler to Preschool Age

BACKGROUND A broad capacity for deliberate self-regulation plays a key role in emotion regulation. This longitudinal investigation from infancy to preschool age examines genotype by environment (G x E) interaction in the development of self-regulation, using molecular measures of childrens genotypes and observed measures of the quality of early mother-child relationship, as reflected in attachment organization in infancy. METHODS In 89 children, we assessed the polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR, ss/sl vs. ll allele status), security of attachment to mothers at 15 months in the Strange Situation, and childrens ability for self-regulation at 25, 38, and 52 months, using behavioral batteries of tasks that called for deliberately suppressing a dominant response and performing instead a sub-dominant response. RESULTS There was a robust G x E interaction between genetic risk and the quality of early relationship. Among children who carried a short 5-HTTLPR allele (ss/sl ), those who were insecurely attached developed poor regulatory capacities, but those who were securely attached developed as good regulatory capacities as children who were homozygotic for the long allele (ll ). There was no effect of security for ll homozygotes. CONCLUSIONS Those findings, consistent with diathesis-stress model, bridge research on self-regulation in typically developing children with research on non-human primates and research on psychopathology. They also indicate that a secure attachment relationship can serve as a protective factor in the presence of risk conferred by a genotype.

Children’s genotypes interact with maternal responsive care in predicting children’s competence: Diathesis–stress or differential susceptibility?

We examined Genotype × Environment (G × E) interactions between childrens genotypes (the serotonin transporter linked promoter region [5-HTTLPR] gene) and maternal responsive care observed at 15, 25, 38, and 52 months on three aspects of childrens competence at 67 months: academic skills and school engagement, social functioning with peers, and moral internalization that encompassed prosocial moral cognition and the moral self. Academic and social competence outcomes were reported by both parents, and moral internalization was observed in childrens narratives elicited by hypothetical stories and in a puppet interview. Analyses revealed robust G × E interactions, such that childrens genotype moderated the effects of maternal responsive care on all aspects of childrens competence. Among children with a short 5-HTTLPR allele (ss/sl), those whose mothers were more responsive were significantly more competent than those whose mothers were less responsive. Responsiveness had no effect for children with two long alleles (ll). For academic and social competence, the G × E interactions resembled the diathesis-stress model: ss/sl children of unresponsive mothers had particularly unfavorable outcomes, but ss/sl children of responsive mothers had no worse outcomes than ll children. For moral internalization, the G × E interaction reflected the differential susceptibility model: whereas ss/sl children of unresponsive mothers again had particularly unfavorable outcomes, ss/sl children of responsive mothers had significantly better outcomes than ll children.

Guilt and effortful control: two mechanisms that prevent disruptive developmental trajectories.

Childrens guilt associated with transgressions and their capacity for effortful control are both powerful forces that inhibit disruptive conduct. The authors examined how guilt and effortful control, repeatedly observed from toddlerhood to preschool age, jointly predicted childrens disruptive outcomes in 2 multimethod, multitrait longitudinal studies (Ns = 57 and 99). Disruptive outcomes were rated by mothers at 73 months (Study 1) and mothers, fathers, and teachers at 52 and 67 months (Study 2). In both studies, guilt moderated effects of effortful control: For highly guilt-prone children, variations in effortful control were unrelated to future disruptive outcomes, but for children who were less guilt prone, effortful control predicted such outcomes. Guilt may inhibit transgressions through an automatic response due to negative arousal triggered by memories of past wrongdoing, regardless of child capacity for deliberate inhibition. Effortful control that engages a deliberate restraint may offset risk for disruptive conduct conferred by low guilt.

Relationship Adjustment, PTSD Symptoms, and Treatment Utilization Among Coupled National Guard Soldiers Deployed to Iraq

Although combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with considerable impairment in relationship adjustment, research has yet to investigate how PTSD symptoms and relationship distress uniquely and jointly predict utilization of a range of mental health services. The present study sought to examine these issues utilizing a longitudinal sample of National Guard soldiers surveyed 2-3 months following return from deployment to Iraq and again 12 months later (N = 223). Results indicated that PTSD symptom severity, but not relationship adjustment, uniquely predicted greater odds of utilizing individual-oriented mental health services. A significant interaction was found indicating associations between PTSD symptoms and the odds of using services were increased when soldiers reported greater relationship adjustment. For utilization of family-oriented care, greater relationship distress was significantly correlated with greater odds of using services, but associations with PTSD symptoms were nonsignificant. The association between relationship distress and utilization of family-oriented services did not vary significantly with severity of PTSD symptoms. Results suggest supportive intimate relationships facilitate mental health treatment utilization for soldiers with PTSD symptoms.

A developmental model of maternal and child contributions to disruptive conduct: the first six years.

BACKGROUND The parent-child relationship is considered important for childrens future conscience, and conscience is seen as protecting them from disruptive behavior problems, but specific mechanisms of this developmental process are rarely studied. METHODS This multi-trait multi-method study examined, in a longitudinal design, paths linking early maternal responsiveness to the child with the childs future conscience and disruptive behavior in 102 mother-child dyads. We tested a conceptual model where maternal responsiveness to the child, observed at 7 and 15 months, engenders a responsive stance in the child, observed at 25 and 38 months; that stance, in turn, becomes enduring and generalized, promoting multiple aspects of the childs conscience, observed at 52 months. In turn, conscience serves as a protective factor from disruptive behavior problems, rated by mothers and fathers at 67 months. RESULTS The postulated paths were examined using sequential regressions and mediation effects were tested using bootstrapping analyses. Child responsive stance at 25-38 months fully mediated the link between maternal responsiveness in infancy and conscience at 52 months, and conscience fully mediated the link between child responsive stance and future disruptive behavior at 67 months. CONCLUSIONS Examination of developmental links among early maternal behavior, the childs responsive stance toward the mother, conscience, and disruptive behavior is a promising step toward elucidating mechanisms of childrens adaptive and maladaptive trajectories.

Objective ratings of relationship skills across multiple domains as predictors of marital satisfaction trajectories

Expanding upon social-learning and vulnerability-stress-adaptation approaches to marriage, the impact of multiple dyadic behaviors on marital satisfaction trajectories was examined in 101 couples. Semi-structured interviews were administered separately to husbands and wives at three months of marriage. Interviewers generated objective ratings for five domains: emotional closeness/intimacy, sexual intimacy/sensuality, interspousal support, decision-making/relational control, and communication/conflict management. Marital satisfaction was assessed four times over three years. Dyadic behaviors were associated with initial levels and rates of change in satisfaction, demonstrating the unique contributions of each relational skill on marital development. For husbands, sexual intimacy was the strongest predictor of change whereas for wives, communication/conflict management was the strongest predictor of change compared to other domains. Theoretical, methodological and clinical implications are discussed.

Validity and Utility of a Multidimensional Model of Received Support in Intimate Relationships

The authors of the present study statistically address the largely conceptual debate about the multidimensional nature of received support in intimate relationships. The Support in Intimate Relationships Rating Scale (SIRRS) was factor analyzed in 3 samples of dating and married couples. A novel, 4-factor structure of support types was generated that constituted esteem/emotional, physical comfort, informational, and tangible support types. This structure was reliable and valid in dating and marital relationships, across men and women, and across time. Each support type also demonstrated incremental validity for explaining marital adjustment, depression symptoms, and anxiety symptoms longitudinally. This study is among the first to generate and cross-validate a factor analytically derived set of support types for received support and the first to do so regarding partner support specifically. This is also the first study to replicate a distinct set of support types across different types of intimate relationships, across both sexes, and over time within relationships. Implications for enhancing functional theories of support and for augmenting the construct validity of a multidimensional model of received support are discussed.

Internet Administration of Paper-and-Pencil Questionnaires Used in Couple Research Assessing Psychometric Equivalence

This study examined the psychometric equivalence of paper-and-pencil and Internet formats of key questionnaires used in couple research. Self-report questionnaires assessing interpersonal constructs (relationship satisfaction, communication/conflict management, partner support, emotional intimacy) and intrapersonal constructs (individual traits, psychological symptoms, contextual influences) were administered to young adults in committed dating relationships. The same measures were administered twice via paper-and-pencil and/or Internet methods over a 2-week period. Method order was counterbalanced among participants, and temporal stability was controlled. Intrapersonal and interpersonal measures generally remained reliable when administered online and demonstrated quantitative and qualitative equivalence across methods. The implications of online administration of questionnaires are discussed, and specific recommendations are made for researchers who wish to transition to online data collection.

Relationship Problems among Men in Treatment for Engaging in Intimate Partner Violence

Although the content of relationship problems has received considerable study in research on couple adjustment, little of this work has focused on relationship problems among men who engage in intimate partner violence (IPV). Theory and research on IPV indicate that relationship problems are an important contributing factor, and the assessment of relationship problems may prove clinically useful in IPV treatment. With a sample of 589 men presenting for services at an abuser intervention program (AIP), the current study aimed to (1) provide descriptive information about rates of endorsement and problem severity for 30 relationship problems, (2) identify different areas of relationship problems via principal component analysis, and (3) examine bivariate correlations between relationship problems and use of physical IPV, emotional abuse, and relationship satisfaction. Results indicated that poor communication, difficulties over money, constant bickering, lack of trust between partners, and selfishness/lack of cooperation were the most commonly endorsed relationship problems. Principal component analysis identified seven broad areas of relationship problems, including communication/money management, substance use, sexual difficulties, cultural differences, mistrust/jealousy, togetherness, and shared friends/activities. As predicted, the severity of relationship problems was positively associated with IPV and emotional abuse and negatively associated with relationship satisfaction. These findings provide key preliminary information about relationship problems among men in treatment for partner abuse and highlight directions for future research.

More or less: Newlyweds’ preferred and received social support, affect, and relationship satisfaction.

Matching theories of social support suggest that receiving the amount and type of support one prefers from one’s romantic partner promotes more favorable affect and higher relationship satisfaction. Individuals who feel they are provided with less support from their partner than they desire (underprovision) generally experience less positive affect, more negative affect, and tend to be less satisfied in their relationships. However, research findings are mixed with regard to whether receiving more of a particular type of support from one’s partner than one desires (overprovision) is associated with more favorable affect and higher relationship satisfaction. The purpose of the present study was to examine whether underprovision and overprovision of two theoretically important types of social support from spouses—emotional or informational support—were associated with more favorable affect and higher relationship satisfaction in a sample of newlywed couples. Participants were 114 newlywed couples. Data were analyzed using Actor-Partner Interdependence Moderation Models. Results suggested that receiving more emotional support was associated with more favorable affect and higher relationship satisfaction regardless of support preferences. Also, wives who received more informational support from their husbands had higher relationship satisfaction regardless of support preferences. In contrast to findings for relationship satisfaction, the association between informational support and affect were consistent with matching hypotheses. Husbands who experienced underprovision of informational support from their wives, experienced less favorable affect. In contrast, wives who experienced overprovision of informational support from their husbands experienced higher depressive symptoms. Implications for research, theory, and practice are discussed.