RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: After diagnosis, caregivers of children with cancer, particularly mothers or primary caregivers (PCs), often show elevated depressive symptoms which may negatively impact family functioning. We tested PC and secondary caregiver (SC) depressive symptoms as predictors of family, co-parenting, and marital functioning and whether having a non-depressed SC buffers against potential negative effects of PC depressive symptoms. METHODS: Families (N = 137) were recruited from two major children's hospitals following a diagnosis of pediatric cancer. Caregivers completed self-report measures of depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale; Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale) and marital functioning (Dyadic Adjustment Scale) at 1-month post-diagnosis. A subset of families (n = 75) completed videotaped interaction tasks at approximately 3-months post-diagnosis that were coded for family and co-parenting interactions. RESULTS: Higher PC depressive symptoms at 1-month post-diagnosis was associated with higher adaptability and lower conflict in family functioning. PC depressive symptoms were also associated lower dyadic consensus and lower dyadic satisfaction. SC depressive symptoms were not significantly associated with any family/co-parenting/marital functioning variables. Significant interaction analyses suggested that SC depressive symptoms moderated the effect of PC depressive symptoms on family cohesion, withdrawn parenting, and affective expression in the marriage, such that the relationship between PC depressive symptoms and poorer functioning was attenuated when SC depressive symptoms were at low or average levels. CONCLUSIONS: Having a nondepressed SC buffered against negative effects of PC depressive symptoms on certain domains of family, coparenting, and marital functioning. SCs may play a protective role for families of children with cancer.
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Cuidadores , Neoplasias , Ansiedad , Niño , Depresión/diagnóstico , Femenino , Humanos , Responsabilidad ParentalRESUMEN
Experiencing maltreatment in early childhood predicts poor parasympathetic regulation, characterized by low baseline parasympathetic activity and strong withdrawal of parasympathetic influence in response to tasks. The Promoting First Relationships® (PFR) program improves parental sensitivity toward young children in families identified as maltreating. Using a subsample from a randomized control trial, we examined whether parental participation in PFR had lasting effects on toddlers' parasympathetic regulation, as measured by respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), relative to a resource and referral control condition. In addition, we examined whether parental sensitive and responsive behavior mediated or moderated associations between parent treatment group and children's RSA. More than 6 months after completing treatment, 29 families in the PFR condition and 30 families in the control condition were visited at home, and toddlers' RSA was assessed at baseline and during five moderately challenging tasks. Groups did not differ in baseline RSA, but differed in RSA reactivity to the tasks. Across tasks, toddlers of parents in the control condition manifested significantly larger RSA decreases than toddlers of parents in the PFR condition. Parental behavior showed divergent associations with RSA change for toddlers of parents in the PFR versus control condition, with PFR treatment predicting RSA change ranging from small decreases to increases in toddlers of parents who showed the most sensitive, responsive behavior in the 6 months following treatment. This preliminary study showed that the same intervention that improved parenting also improved toddlers' parasympathetic regulation in response to everyday activities, warranting further experimental investigation.
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Servicios de Protección Infantil/métodos , Padres/psicología , Arritmia Sinusal Respiratoria/fisiología , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Responsabilidad Parental/psicología , Análisis y Desempeño de TareasRESUMEN
The many adverse effects of child maltreatment make the scientific investigation of this phenomenon a matter of vital importance. Although the relationship between maltreatment and problematic emotion reactivity and regulation has been studied, the strength and specificity of these associations are not yet clear. We examine the magnitude of the maltreatment-child-emotion reactivity/regulation link. Studies with substantiated maltreatment involving children aged up to 18 were included, along with a smaller number of longitudinal studies (58 papers reviewed, encompassing more than 11,900 children). In comparison to nonmaltreated children, maltreated children experience more negative emotions, behave in a manner indicative of more negative emotion, and display emotion dysregulation. We outline several theoretical implications of our results.
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Maltrato a los Niños/psicología , Conducta Infantil/psicología , Emociones/fisiología , Adolescente , Niño , Preescolar , Cognición , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Sesgo de Publicación , Aprendizaje SocialRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Pediatric cancer is highly stressful for parents. The current prospective study examines the impact of several stressors (financial strain, life threat, treatment intensity, treatment-related events, and negative life events) on the trajectory of marital adjustment across the first year following diagnosis. We examined whether average level of stressors across the year was related to (1) levels of marital adjustment at the end of the first year of treatment and () the rate of change in marital adjustment. METHOD: One hundred and thirty families of children newly diagnosed with cancer (M age = 6.33 years, SD = 3.61) participated. Primary caregivers provided 12 monthly reports on marital adjustment and stressors. RESULTS: Multilevel models indicated that although marital adjustment was stable across the first year on average, random effect estimates suggested that this was the result of differing trajectories between families (eg, some increasing and others decreasing). Five individual stress constructs and a cumulative stress composite were then used to predict this variability. Higher average economic strain was related to consistently poorer marital adjustment across time. Higher average frequency of treatment-related events and negative life events were associated with decreasing adjustment over time and lower adjustment at the end of the first year of treatment. Perception of life threat and treatment intensity were not associated with final levels or trajectory of adjustment. Finally, higher cumulative stress was associated with consistently poorer marital adjustment across time. CONCLUSION: Implications for identification of at-risk families are discussed, and importance of delivering tailored interventions for this population.
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Matrimonio/psicología , Neoplasias , Padres/psicología , Estrés Psicológico/psicología , Adolescente , Adulto , Cuidadores , Niño , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Análisis Multinivel , Estudios Prospectivos , Factores de TiempoRESUMEN
Objective: When a child is diagnosed with cancer, problems may arise in family relationships and negatively affect child adjustment. The current study examined patterns of spillover between marital and parent-child relationships to identify targets for intervention aimed at ameliorating family conflict. Method: Families (N = 117) were recruited from two US children's hospitals within 2-week postdiagnosis to participate in a short-term prospective longitudinal study. Children with cancer were 2-10 years old (M = 5.42 years, SD = 2.59). Primary caregivers provided reports of marital and parent-child conflict at 1-, 6-, and 12-month postdiagnosis. Results: Results indicated that a unidirectional model of spillover from the marital to the parent-child relationship best explained the data. In terms of specific temporal patterns, lower marital adjustment soon after diagnosis was associated with an increase in parent-child conflict 6 months later, though this pattern was not repeated in the latter 6 months of treatment. Conclusion: Targeting problems in marital relationships soon after diagnosis may prevent conflict from developing in the parent-child relationship.
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Conflicto Familiar/psicología , Matrimonio/psicología , Neoplasias/psicología , Neoplasias/terapia , Relaciones Padres-Hijo , Adaptación Psicológica , Niño , Preescolar , Relaciones Familiares/psicología , Femenino , Humanos , Estudios Longitudinales , Masculino , Matrimonio/estadística & datos numéricos , Padres/psicología , Estudios Prospectivos , Estrés Psicológico/psicología , Estados UnidosRESUMEN
Objective: The current study examined the effect of stress on sibling conflict during the first year of pediatric cancer treatment. Method: Families (N = 103) included a child with cancer (aged 2-17 years, Mage = 6.46, SD = 3.52) and at least one sibling aged <5 years of the child with cancer (Mage = 8.34, SD = 5.61). Primary caregivers completed monthly questionnaires throughout the first year of treatment assessing five sources of stress (i.e., general life, cancer-related, financial, perceived treatment intensity, and life threat) and level of sibling conflict. Using multilevel modeling, we explored the effects of these stressors on conflict both at the within- and between-family levels to examine if changes in stress resulted in concurrent changes in conflict within an individual family, and whether greater average stress affected the trajectory of conflict between families, respectively. Results: At the between-family level, higher average levels of cancer-related stress, general life stress, and financial stress were associated with higher sibling conflict at the end of the first year of treatment. Perceived treatment intensity and life threat were not associated with conflict. No stressors were associated with conflict at the within-family level. Conclusions: During pediatric cancer treatment, some stressors may spill over into family relationships and contribute to increases in sibling conflict.
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Cuidadores/psicología , Conflicto Familiar/psicología , Neoplasias/psicología , Relaciones entre Hermanos , Hermanos/psicología , Estrés Psicológico/etiología , Adolescente , Adulto , Niño , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Estudios Longitudinales , Masculino , Modelos Psicológicos , Neoplasias/terapia , Estrés Psicológico/diagnóstico , Encuestas y CuestionariosRESUMEN
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to examine whether respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA)-a physiological index of children's emotion regulation-moderates the relation between cancer diagnosis and internalizing problems in children. METHODS: Participants were twenty-two 7-12-year survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and 20 age-matched controls. RSA was calculated from cardiac interbeat interval using spectral time-series analysis. t-Scores on the Child Behavior Checklist Anxious/Depressed, Withdrawn/Depressed, and Somatic Complaints subscales were computed. RESULTS: Respiratory sinus arrhythmia moderated the relation between diagnostic status and both child somatic complaints and withdrawn/depressed symptoms. The positive association between diagnostic status and somatic complaints was significant for children with low RSA but not significant for children with high RSA. This association was also significant for withdrawn/depressed symptoms. Low RSA was associated with more somatic complaints and withdrawn/depressed symptoms for children with cancer but not for control participants. CONCLUSIONS: Children who have poor emotion regulation abilities may be more vulnerable to the range of stressors associated with the diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship of cancer. Behavioral interventions targeting emotion regulation skills may reduce internalizing symptoms in this population.
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Inteligencia Emocional , Leucemia-Linfoma Linfoblástico de Células Precursoras/psicología , Arritmia Sinusal Respiratoria , Trastornos Somatomorfos/psicología , Sobrevivientes/psicología , Ansiedad , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Niño , Depresión , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Leucemia-Linfoma Linfoblástico de Células Precursoras/terapia , Sobrevivientes/estadística & datos numéricosRESUMEN
Parental intrusiveness is associated with internalizing problems in healthy children. Given the unique demands that childhood cancer places on parents, it is important to determine whether intrusiveness operates differently in survivors of childhood cancer. The current study tested whether cancer survivorship moderates the relation between maternal directiveness-one aspect of intrusiveness-and children's internalizing problems. Survivors (7-12 years old) of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) (n = 25) and their mothers, and healthy controls (n = 22) and their mothers engaged in parent-child interactions. Mothers completed a measure of children's psychosocial adjustment, and observations of 10-min parent-child interactions were obtained. Cancer survivorship moderated the relation between directiveness and children's withdrawn/depressed symptoms. Maternal directiveness was associated with increased withdrawn/depressed symptoms for children in the control group. This association was not significant for survivors of ALL. Findings suggest that childhood cancer may alter the context in which children experience maternal directiveness.
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Trastornos de la Conducta Infantil/psicología , Relaciones Madre-Hijo , Madres/psicología , Responsabilidad Parental/psicología , Leucemia-Linfoma Linfoblástico de Células Precursoras/psicología , Sobrevivientes/psicología , Adaptación Psicológica , Adulto , Niño , Trastornos de la Conducta Infantil/complicaciones , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Leucemia-Linfoma Linfoblástico de Células Precursoras/complicacionesRESUMEN
Objectives: This study examined specificity in the effects of three perinatal mindfulness-based prevention programs that differed in their timing (prenatal, postpartum) and target (maternal well-being, parenting). Effects on maternal mental health (depression, anxiety, resilience), mindfulness, and observed parenting, as well as observed, physiological, and mother-report indicators of infant self-regulation, were examined. Methods: The programs were evaluated in a racially and ethnically diverse sample of first-time mothers (n = 188) living in low-income contexts using intention-to-treat analysis. Mothers were assigned to a prenatal well-being, postpartum well-being, parenting, or book control group. Multi-method assessments that included questionnaire, observational, and physiological measures were conducted at four time points: during pregnancy (T1) and when infants were 2-4 months (T2), 4-6 months (T3), and 10-12 months. Results: Compared to the postpartum intervention and control groups, the 6-week prenatal well-being intervention was related to decreases in depressive symptoms during pregnancy but not postpartum, higher maternal baseline respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), fewer intrusive control behaviors, and lower infant cortisol levels in the early postpartum period. Compared to all other groups, the postpartum parenting intervention was related to decreases in maternal anxiety and increases in responsive parenting. Some differential effects across programs might be due to differences in attendance rates in the prenatal (62%) vs. postpartum (35%) groups. Conclusions: The findings suggest that brief mindfulness-based well-being and parenting preventive interventions can promote maternal and infant mental health in families living in low-income, high-stress settings, particularly if accessibility can be enhanced. Preregistration: This study is not preregistered.
RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Previous work has examined family income and material hardship in pediatric cancer. However, few studies have focused on perceived financial strain (PFS), or the extent to which caregivers perceive financial stress and worry related to their child's cancer. The current study addresses this gap by a) describing the trajectory of perceived financial strain over the first year of pediatric cancer treatment; b) examining sociodemographic predictors of that trajectory; and c) examining associations between PFS and caregiver and child psychological adjustment. METHOD: Primary caregivers of children (Mage = 6.31) recently diagnosed with cancer provided 12 monthly reports of their own perceived financial strain and depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress symptoms, as well as their child's internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Data were analyzed using multilevel models. RESULTS: Caregiver PFS decreased over the first year of treatment. Nonmarried caregivers and those with lower income reported higher levels of PFS over time. Caregivers with higher PFS relative to other caregivers and relative to their own average PFS in a given month experienced psychological maladjustment. PFS was not associated with child adjustment. CONCLUSIONS: On average caregivers perceive less financial strain over the first year of treatment; however, nonmarried caregivers and those with lower income are at risk for higher PFS over time, and PFS may contribute to psychological maladjustment in caregivers. Caregivers may benefit from psychosocial support focused on managing financial strain. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
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Cuidadores , Neoplasias , Niño , Ajuste Emocional , Familia , Humanos , Neoplasias/terapia , Estrés PsicológicoRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: To use observational methods to assess the quality of peer relationships in 51 7- to 12-year-old acute lymphoblastic leukemia survivors as compared to healthy children. METHODS: Children were audiotaped as they engaged in free play with their best friend and interactions were coded to assess their ability to maintain engagement with one another during play as well as the affective dimension of their play. RESULTS: Results indicated that dyads with survivors of childhood cancer were less likely to be highly engaged with their best friend and more likely to experience disengagement than dyads with healthy participants. There were no group differences in positive or negative affect. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, these data suggest that survivors of childhood cancer's relationships with their best friend may be compromised in some specific areas when compared to the relations of healthy children. Implications for intervention are discussed.
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Adaptación Psicológica , Amigos/psicología , Relaciones Interpersonales , Juego e Implementos de Juego , Leucemia-Linfoma Linfoblástico de Células Precursoras/psicología , Sobrevivientes/psicología , Afecto , Análisis de Varianza , Niño , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Grupo Paritario , Calidad de VidaRESUMEN
Emotional and cognitive changes that occur during adolescence set the stage for the development of adaptive or maladaptive beliefs about emotions. Although research suggests that parents' behaviors and beliefs about emotions relate to children's emotional abilities, few studies have looked at parental socialization of children's emotions, particularly in families with depressed adolescents. The present study examined associations between parent and adolescent meta-emotion philosophies (MEP), defined as thoughts, reactions, and feelings about their own emotions. Additionally, adolescent depressive status was tested as a moderator of relationships between parents' and adolescents' MEP. One hundred and 52 adolescents, aged 14-18 (65.8% female), and their parents (148 mothers, 106 fathers) participated in a study on emotion socialization in families of depressed and healthy adolescents. Depressed adolescents (n = 75) and matched healthy adolescents (n = 77) were recruited based on research criteria for mental health status. The sample was largely Caucasian (82%) and of middle socioeconomic class status. Results indicated that mothers' and fathers' MEP about their children's emotions were associated with adolescents' MEP, although parents' MEP about their own emotions was unrelated to adolescents' MEP. Fathers' MEP about children's emotions made unique contributions to adolescents' MEP across both adolescent groups. Adolescents' depressive status moderated the relationship between mothers' and adolescents' MEP such that mothers' MEP was particularly relevant for depressed adolescents. The continued influence of parents in the emotional lives of adolescents is discussed as well as differences in emotion socialization in families with depressed and healthy adolescents.
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Depresión/psicología , Emociones , Relaciones Padres-Hijo , Psicología del Adolescente , Socialización , Adolescente , Actitud , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Estudios Transversales , Femenino , Humanos , MasculinoRESUMEN
The prevalence and impact of child maltreatment make the scientific investigation of this phenomenon a matter of vital importance. Prior research has examined associations between problematic patterns of parents' emotion reactivity and regulation and child maltreatment and maltreatment risk. However, the strength and specificity of these relationships is not yet clear. To address this, we conducted a systematic literature search of four databases from inception through February 2021 to identify studies that reported these relationships. Our resulting meta-analysis of maltreatment involved parents of children who are up to 18 years of age (k = 46, encompassing 6669 parents). Our focus was the magnitude of the difference in levels of emotion reactivity and regulation between parents who maltreat or are at risk of maltreating and parents who do not maltreat their children or are not at risk of maltreating their children. As expected, results from meta-analyses using robust variance estimation indicated significantly higher problems with reactivity and regulation in maltreating parents / parents at risk (r = 0.40, k = 140; 95% CI [0.34, 0.45]), indicating that maltreating / at risk parents were more likely to have overall worse measures of reactivity and regulation. In comparison to non-maltreating parents, maltreating / at risk parents experience more negative emotions, display more negative emotion behavior, and are more dysregulated. These effects were fairly stable with little to no remaining heterogeneity. The current review concludes with a theoretical framework outlining the role of emotion reactivity and regulation in multiple risk factors of maltreatment, aiming to guide future study in this area.
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Maltrato a los Niños , Niño , Emociones , Humanos , Padres , Factores de RiesgoRESUMEN
Purpose: Despite the developmental relevance and role in social support, research on relationships between adolescents with cancer and healthy peers is limited. To address this gap, we aimed to describe adolescents' perceptions of their friendships during the 1st year following a cancer diagnosis, including relationship changes, factors that promote/inhibit relationships, and definitions and experiences of peer support. Methods: Eligible adolescents were 12-20 years old, <1 year of a new cancer diagnosis, and English speaking. Participants completed 1:1 semistructured interviews that were analyzed using inductive content analysis. Results: Fourteen adolescents enrolled and completed interviews (mean [M]age = 14.8, standard deviation [SD] = 1.8; M = 6.3 months postdiagnosis, SD = 3.2 months). Domains included (1) shifting relationships, (2) staying connected, (3) making it hard to stay close, and (4) showing me they care. Relationship changes were positive and negative, and many described a process of recognizing true friends. Staying connected with peers through communication, technology, and feeling up to date promoted closeness, while distance, treatment-related restrictions, and friends' discomfort were hindrances. Adolescents defined supportive friends as those who were there for them, checked in often, and gave them gifts. Conclusion: Despite relationship changes, adolescents with cancer desire connection with peers during treatment and perceive that healthy peers provide valuable support. Supporting connectedness to healthy peers during treatment may be a promising future direction to mitigate social disruption and promote well-being.
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Conducta del Adolescente , Neoplasias , Adolescente , Adulto , Niño , Estado de Salud , Humanos , Grupo Paritario , Investigación Cualitativa , Apoyo Social , Adulto JovenRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: To examine effects of stress on caregiver psychological adjustment during the first year of pediatric cancer. METHOD: Caregivers (N = 159) of children with cancer completed monthly questionnaires assessing domains of caregiver psychological adjustment (depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress symptoms) and stress (general life stress, treatment-related stress, caregiver perceptions of treatment intensity and life threat). Effects of stress were assessed at two levels to examine whether within-person changes in stress predicted concurrent changes in caregiver adjustment and whether average stress was associated with between-person differences in caregiver adjustment trajectories. RESULTS: Overall, higher levels of stress factors were associated with poorer caregiver adjustment at both the between- and within-person levels, with high average levels of treatment-related stress and general life stress emerging as leading predictors of worse adjustment. CONCLUSIONS: Both types of stressors, those directly related as well as unrelated to a child's cancer, contribute uniquely to caregiver distress. Caregiver distress is impacted by both overall levels of stress over time as well as month-to-month changes in stress. Implications for informing care for at-risk caregivers are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
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Cuidadores/psicología , Ajuste Emocional , Neoplasias/psicología , Padres/psicología , Estrés Psicológico/psicología , Adolescente , Adulto , Cuidadores/estadística & datos numéricos , Niño , Preescolar , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Neoplasias/terapia , Encuestas y CuestionariosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to identify the aspects of cardiac physiology associated with depressive disorder early in life by examining measures of autonomic cardiac control in a community-based sample of depressed adolescents at an early phase of illness, and matched on a number of demographic factors with a nondepressed comparison group. METHODS: Participants were 127 adolescents (44 boys), ages 14-18, who formed two demographically matched groups of clinically depressed and nondepressed participants. Adolescents were excluded if they evidenced comorbid externalizing or substance-dependence disorders, were taking medications with known cardiac effects, or reported regular nicotine use. Resting measures of heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia, skin conductance level, blood pressure, and pre-ejection period were collected. RESULTS: Depressed adolescents had resting heart rates significantly higher than those of healthy adolescents. No other measure of autonomic functioning differentiated the groups. Post hoc analyses were conducted to examine the influence of illness chronicity, severity, comorbidity, and sex on cardiac psychophysiology. These variables did not appear to exert a significant influence on the findings. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that neither autonomic cardiac control, illness chronicity, or severity, nor medication effects fully explain resting heart rate differences between depressed and nondepressed adolescents. Future research on depression and heart rate should consider mechanisms other than sympathetic or parasympathetic control as potential explanations of heart rate differences, including blood-clotting mechanisms, vascular and endothelial dysfunction of the coronary arteries, and inflammatory immune system response.
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Nivel de Alerta/fisiología , Sistema Nervioso Autónomo/fisiopatología , Trastorno Depresivo/fisiopatología , Corazón/inervación , Adolescente , Presión Sanguínea/fisiología , Cardiografía de Impedancia , Trastorno Depresivo/diagnóstico , Trastorno Depresivo/psicología , Electrocardiografía , Emociones/fisiología , Femenino , Frecuencia Cardíaca/fisiología , Humanos , Entrevista Psicológica , Masculino , Tamizaje Masivo , Sistema Nervioso Parasimpático/fisiopatología , Reconocimiento Visual de Modelos/fisiología , Procesamiento de Señales Asistido por Computador , Sistema Nervioso Simpático/fisiopatologíaRESUMEN
The current study examines associations between emotional competence (i.e., awareness, regulation, comfort with expression) and adolescent risky behavior. Children from a longitudinal study participated at age 9 and 16 (N=88). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with children about their emotional experiences and coded for areas of emotional competence. Associations were examined for the emotions of sadness and anger concurrently during adolescence, and longitudinally from middle childhood to adolescence. Results suggested that children with poor emotional awareness and regulation had a higher likelihood of using hard drugs. Difficulty regulating emotions was associated with having more sexual partners, and both emotion regulation and expression difficulties were associated with greater behavioral adjustment problems. Results were consistent across the concurrent and longitudinal findings and pointed to anger as an important emotion. Findings suggest that children's emotional competence may serve as a useful point of intervention to decrease risky behavior in adolescence.
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Afecto , Asunción de Riesgos , Autoeficacia , Adolescente , Niño , Comunicación , Familia/psicología , Femenino , Estudios de Seguimiento , Humanos , Entrevistas como Asunto , Masculino , Controles Informales de la SociedadRESUMEN
Post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) are high among female survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV), and children of parents experiencing PTSS are at heightened risk for a wide range of emotional and behavioral problems. Parenting has significant influence on child adjustment, and although links have been found between parental psychopathology and maladaptive parenting, little is known about the factors that may explain this relation. The current study examines mother's emotion regulation (ER) as a factor influencing the relation between mother PTSS and parenting around children's emotions in a study sample of sixty-four female survivors of IPV and their 6- to 12-year-old children. Mothers reported on their own PTSS and their parenting. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) was used as a psychophysiological index of mother's ER. Experiential components of mother's ER was also measured by observer coding of the Meta-Emotion Interview, a structured assessment that asks parents about their attitudes toward and experiences with emotions, including their regulation of emotions. Mother's RSA reactivity moderated the relation between PTSS and negative parenting. There was also a significant indirect relation between mothers' PTSS symptom severity and supportive parenting reactions through mothers' self-report of ER. Results suggest that mother's ER abilities represent factors that significantly affect associations between maternal PTSS and parent's emotion socialization practices. Implications for assessment and intervention with families exposed to the stress of IPV are discussed.
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Regulación Emocional , Violencia de Pareja/psicología , Madres/psicología , Responsabilidad Parental/psicología , Trastornos por Estrés Postraumático/psicología , Sobrevivientes/psicología , Adulto , Niño , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Relaciones Madre-HijoRESUMEN
The current study describes a promising new emotion coaching (EC) parenting intervention for survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) targeting emotion regulation (ER) and parent-child relationships. We discuss the development of an EC parenting intervention, outline its key elements, and use preliminary pilot data to illustrate how such a behavioral intervention can yield improvements in behavioral and physiological indices of ER (i.e., respiratory sinus arrhythmia [RSA]) and parent-child relationships and reductions in mental health difficulties in IPV-exposed mothers and their children. A 12-week skills-based EC parenting program was developed and administered in groups. Fifty mothers were assigned to intervention or waitlist groups. Physiological, observational, and questionnaire data were obtained pre- and postintervention. Because of the small sample size, effect sizes were examined for illustrative purposes of potential effects of the EC intervention. Relative to mothers in waitlist group, mothers in the intervention group showed (a) improvements in emotion awareness and coaching, (b) increases in ER as assessed by baseline RSA, (c) increased use of validation and decreased use of sermonizing/lecturing/scolding during parent-child interaction, and (d) increased sense of parenting competence. Relative to children of mothers in the waitlist group, children of mothers in the intervention group showed (a) increases in ER as measured by parent-report and baseline RSA, (b) decreases in negativity during parent-child interaction, and (c) decreases in depressive symptoms. Discussion highlights potential usefulness of an EC parenting intervention for populations at risk for ER and parenting difficulties. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
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Depresión/terapia , Regulación Emocional/fisiología , Violencia de Pareja/psicología , Conducta Materna/psicología , Relaciones Madre-Hijo/psicología , Responsabilidad Parental/psicología , Psicoterapia de Grupo , Socialización , Adulto , Niño , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Madres , Arritmia Sinusal Respiratoria/fisiología , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Depression is often characterized as a disorder of affect regulation. However, research focused on delineating the key dimensions of affective experience (other than valence) that are abnormal in depressive disorder has been scarce, especially in child and adolescent samples. As definitions of affect regulation center around processes involved in initiating, maintaining, and modulating the occurrence, intensity, and duration of affective experiences, it is important to examine the extent to which affective experiences of depressed youth differ on these dimensions from those of healthy youth. METHODS: The affective behavior and experience of adolescents with major depressive disorder (MDD; n = 75) were compared to a demographically matched cohort of healthy adolescents (n = 77). Both samples were recruited from community high schools. A multi-source (parents and adolescent), multi-method (interviews, behavioral observations, questionnaires) assessment strategy was used to examine positive and negative affects. RESULTS: Depressed youth had significantly longer durations, higher frequency, and greater intensity when experiencing angry and dysphoric affects and shorter durations and less frequency of happy affect when compared to healthy youth. The most consistent, cross-method results were evident for duration of affect. CONCLUSIONS: Clinically depressed adolescents experienced disturbances in affective functioning that were evident in the occurrence, intensity, and duration of affect. Notably, the disturbances were apparent in both positive and negative affects.