Sexual dysfunction, depression, and marital dissatisfaction among Brazilian couples.

BACKGROUND: Health professionals treating sexual dysfunction and relational dissatisfaction recognize that they are multifactorial phenomena, and depression can be bidirectionally associated with both. AIM: The purpose of this study was to investigate sexual dysfunction in heterosexual couples in relation to the quality of their marital relationship and depression symptoms. METHODS: The sample consisted of 100 heterosexual couples recruited in Brazil. Both partners of each couple completed the Golombok-Rust Inventory of Sexual Satisfaction and the Golombok-Rust Inventory of Marital Satisfaction, which were translated and adapted, and the Beck Depression Inventory, which was validated for the Brazilian population. Both partners completed their questionnaires separately, and the couple's surveys were linked to preserve conjugal data for dyadic analysis. The Actor-Partner Interdependence Model was used to understand how sexual dysfunction in couples is related to depression and relationship quality among and between partners. RESULTS: Sexual dysfunction was found to be strongly associated with dissatisfaction in the relationship (husbands, ß = 0.57, P < 0.001; wives, ß = 0.60, P < 0.001), and a positive association was found between depressive symptoms and marital dissatisfaction (husbands, ß = .32, P < .001; wives ß = .40, P < .001). CLINICAL IMPLICATION: The results suggest that it is important for health professionals to be aware of the dyadic impact of struggles with both sex and the relationship and the presence of depression symptoms in patients who seek care for sexual complaints or depression and who are in a marital relationship. STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS: The different results found for men and women may shed light on the biopsychosocial dimensions of human sexuality. When treated as a purely physical experience, sex is myopic. In this study we demonstrated psychosocial aspects associated with gender and sexuality, and the partner's variables were found to have a greater impact on women than they did on the men. A limitation of this study is that the sample is not generalizable as it is not demographically representative of all socioeconomic groups in Brazil. Furthermore, the participants in this sample did not have clinical levels of depression, so the results cannot be extended to couples in which one or both spouses have depressive disorder. CONCLUSION: It was found that sexual dysfunction is strongly associated with the quality of the couple relationship, and that the quality of relationship plays a mediating role between depression and marital quality, especially for the women.

Parental Alcohol Use and the Alcohol Misuse of their Offspring in a Finnish Birth Cohort: Investigation of Developmental Timing.

There is a positive association between parental alcohol use and the alcohol use of their offspring. It is less clear whether this relation exists at different developmental periods. The purpose of the current study was to examine the associations between parental alcohol use at two developmental periods (prenatal and adolescence) and the alcohol misuse of their offspring at two developmental periods (adolescence and young adulthood). Data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 (NFBC1986; n = 6963; 51% of offspring were girls) were used. The NFBC1986 is a population-based study of individuals born during a 1-year period in Finland. Multi-informant (parent, teacher, and youth) and multi-method (surveys and population registers) data were collected at four developmental periods (prenatal, childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood). The findings indicated that parents' alcohol use was stable from the prenatal period to adolescence. Mothers' and fathers' (based on mothers' perceptions) alcohol use during the prenatal period and adolescence were directly related to adolescents' heavy drinking. Prenatal alcohol use by mothers and fathers were related to young adults' alcohol use disorder indirectly (but not directly) through mothers' and fathers' alcohol use during adolescence and then through adolescents' heavy drinking. The results suggest that early and ongoing screening for alcohol use by mothers and fathers could help identify individuals at risk for heavy drinking and alcohol-related problems during adolescence and young adulthood.

Words can hurt: The effects of physical and psychological partner violence on condom negotiation and condom use among young women.

Physical and psychological intimate partner violence (IPV) are prevalent on college campuses and may affect young women's condom use behavior. This study explored condom negotiation as a mediator of the relation of physical and psychological IPV to condom use among college women. A total of 235 heterosexual college women were recruited during September 2012-May 2013. Participants completed online questionnaires assessing lifetime history of IPV, frequency of condom negotiation, and use of condoms during the last 30 days. Specific forms of psychological IPV were related to less condom use. This association was mediated by condom negotiation, such that those who had experienced psychological IPV were less likely to negotiate condom use, and as a result, less likely to report using condoms in the past 30 days. Campus-based sexual health efforts should consider the relation of psychological IPV to condom negotiation and condom use and offer skills to promote condom negotiation among college women to increase condom use and reduce their risk of sexually transmitted infections.

Tests of linear and nonlinear relations between cumulative contextual risk at birth and psychosocial problems during adolescence.

This study tested whether there are linear or nonlinear relations between prenatal/birth cumulative risk and psychosocial outcomes during adolescence. Participants (n = 6963) were taken from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort Study 1986. The majority of participants did not experience any contextual risk factors around the time of the target child's birth (58.1%). Even in this low-risk sample, cumulative contextual risk assessed around the time of birth was related to seven different psychosocial outcomes 16 years later. There was some evidence for nonlinear effects, but only for substance-related outcomes; however, the form of the association depended on how the cumulative risk index was calculated. Gender did not moderate the relation between cumulative risk and any of the adolescent psychosocial outcomes. Results highlight the potential value of using the cumulative risk framework for identifying children at birth who are at risk for a range of poor psychosocial outcomes during adolescence.

Parent Training to Reduce Problem Behaviors over the Transition to High School: Tests of Indirect Effects through Improved Emotion Regulation Skills.

Adolescent problem behaviors are costly for individuals and society. Promoting the self-regulatory functioning of youth may help prevent the development of such behaviors. Parent-training and family intervention programs have been shown to improve child and adolescent self-regulation. This study helps fill gaps in knowledge by testing for indirect effects of the Common Sense Parenting® (CSP) program on reduced substance use, conduct problems, and school suspensions through previously identified short-term improvements in parents' reports of their children's emotion regulation skills. Over two cohorts, 321 low income families of 8th graders were enrolled and randomly assigned to either the standard CSP program, an adapted CSP Plus program, or a minimal-contact control condition. Pretest, posttest, 1-year follow-up, and 2-year follow-up survey assessments were completed by parents and students with 94% retention. Intent-to-treat multivariate path analyses were conducted. Neither intervention had statistically significant total effects on the three targeted adolescent outcomes. CSP, but not CSP Plus, had statistically significant indirect effects on reduced substance use and school suspensions at the 1-year follow-up as well as conduct problems and school suspensions at the 2-year follow-up through increased child emotion regulation skills at posttest. Findings provide some support for emotion regulation as one pathway through which the intervention was associated, indirectly, with reduced substance use, conduct problems, and school suspensions among at-risk students over the high school transition.

An introduction to latent variable mixture modeling (part 1): overview and cross-sectional latent class and latent profile analyses.

OBJECTIVE: Pediatric psychologists are often interested in finding patterns in heterogeneous cross-sectional data. Latent variable mixture modeling is an emerging person-centered statistical approach that models heterogeneity by classifying individuals into unobserved groupings (latent classes) with similar (more homogenous) patterns. The purpose of this article is to offer a nontechnical introduction to cross-sectional mixture modeling. METHOD: An overview of latent variable mixture modeling is provided and 2 cross-sectional examples are reviewed and distinguished. RESULTS: Step-by-step pediatric psychology examples of latent class and latent profile analyses are provided using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999 data file. CONCLUSIONS: Latent variable mixture modeling is a technique that is useful to pediatric psychologists who wish to find groupings of individuals who share similar data patterns to determine the extent to which these patterns may relate to variables of interest.

An introduction to latent variable mixture modeling (part 2): longitudinal latent class growth analysis and growth mixture models.

OBJECTIVE: Pediatric psychologists are often interested in finding patterns in heterogeneous longitudinal data. Latent variable mixture modeling is an emerging statistical approach that models such heterogeneity by classifying individuals into unobserved groupings (latent classes) with similar (more homogenous) patterns. The purpose of the second of a 2-article set is to offer a nontechnical introduction to longitudinal latent variable mixture modeling. METHODS: 3 latent variable approaches to modeling longitudinal data are reviewed and distinguished. RESULTS: Step-by-step pediatric psychology examples of latent growth curve modeling, latent class growth analysis, and growth mixture modeling are provided using the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999 data file. CONCLUSIONS: Latent variable mixture modeling is a technique that is useful to pediatric psychologists who wish to find groupings of individuals who share similar longitudinal data patterns to determine the extent to which these patterns may relate to variables of interest.

Growing through adversity: the relation of early childhood educator post-traumatic growth to young children's executive function.

Introduction: Early childhood educators (ECEs) play a critical role in supporting the development of young children's executive functions (EF). EF, in turn, underpins lifelong resilience and well-being. Unfortunately, many ECEs report adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) that may compound high stress levels associated with an emotionally and physically demanding profession. ACEs have well-established negative implications for adult well-being and may dampen ECEs' capacities to engage in emotionally responsive interactions with children. However, many individuals who experience ACEs also report post-traumatic growth experiences that foster empathy, self-determination, and resilience. Such post-traumatic growth may equip teachers with skills to engage in responsive interactions with children that support children's EF. The aim of this study was to explore the relations of ECE ACEs and post-traumatic growth to the EF of children in their classrooms. Methods: Fifty-three female ECEs self-reported on their ACEs and post-traumatic growth. Parents of 157 children (53% male, 47% female, M age = 4.38 years) rated children's EF. Results: In a set of linear mixed models that accounted for multiple demographic factors and ECE perceived workplace stressors, ECE ACEs were not significantly related to children's EF scores. However, controlling for ACEs, higher levels of ECE post-traumatic growth were associated with fewer parent-reported EF difficulties in children. Discussion: ECEs may draw on the coping skills they have developed in times of adversity to model and promote healthy EF for children. Mental health supports to facilitate ECEs' processing of their own trauma may be a fruitful means to foster positive early childhood environments that nurture the well-being and resilience of future generations.

Perceptions of Parental Awareness of Emotional Responses to Stressful Life Events.

There is a need to better understand family processes related to recovery from past stressful life events. The present study aimed to investigate links between perceptions of parental awareness regarding stressful life events, continued event-related rumination, and current symptoms of depression. Students at a diverse, urban university completed a life events checklist and a semi-structured interview regarding family processing of stressful life events, as well as self-report measures of event-related rumination and depression. Results indicated that perceptions of mothers' and fathers' awareness of sadness regarding stressful life events as well as mothers' and fathers' verbal event processing predicted symptoms of event-related rumination and depression. Results support the inclusion of perceptions of parental awareness in the understanding of how emerging adults continue to cope with past stressful life events.

Investigation of the bidirectional relations between adolescents' anger at their parents and symptoms of depression.

Objective: This study examined the associations between adolescents' anger at their parents and depression over a 1-year period. Background: Anger tends to co-occur with depression during adolescence. Most research on anger has investigated anger in general and has not focused on specific sources of anger. Anger at parents is likely an important source of adolescents' anger. Method: Participants were 321 adolescents (M age at enrollment = 13.41 years [SD = 0.52]; 46.7% male) and one of their parents. Families completed questionnaires at two time points separated by 1 year. Results: High levels of adolescents' anger at their parents were related to increased levels of depression 1 year later (based only on parent-reported anger at parents). Similarly, high levels of depression were associated with increased levels of adolescents' anger at their parents 1 year later (based on adolescent- and parent-reported anger at parents). Conclusions: The findings suggest that adolescents' anger at their parents and depression are mutually reinforcing during middle adolescence. Implications: The results highlight the importance of assessing anger at parents when working with adolescents who are experiencing depressive symptoms. Further, adolescents' feelings of anger at their parents when evident should be incorporated into case conceptualizations and treatment plans.

Factors influencing familial decision-making regarding human papillomavirus vaccination.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this review is to summarize the research regarding Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination uptake among families with adolescent/preadolescent daughters. METHODS: Literature searches (utilizing PubMed and PsychInfo databases) were conducted and research examining psychological and environmental factors which relate to HPV vaccine uptake and intentions was reviewed. RESULTS: Factors such as physician recommendations, perceptions of the beliefs of peers and significant others, history of childhood immunizations, and communication with adolescents regarding sexual topics appear to influence HPV vaccination outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Although primary prevention of cervical and other cancers is available for preadolescent and adolescent girls, rates of HPV vaccine uptake are low. Future interventions should target vaccine intent and physician/family communication as a means to increasing HPV vaccination.

An event-level examination of successful condom negotiation strategies among young women.

This study examines the effect of condom negotiation strategies on condom use and partner type and substance use before sex as moderators of strategy effectiveness. Women reported their daily sexual behavior during the last month. Withholding sex was more strongly associated with condom use when utilized with a non-casual sex partner. Directly requesting condom use was more strongly and using deceptive reasons to influence condom use was less strongly related to condom use during substance use. Results underscore the importance of understanding the contexts in which condom negotiation strategies are successful in order to improve HIV/sexually transmitted infection prevention efforts among women.

Profiles of Contextual Risk at Birth and Adolescent Substance Use.

This study examined whether there are subgroups of families with distinct profiles of prenatal/birth contextual risk, and whether subgroup membership was differentially related to adolescent substance use. Data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 were used. A five-class model provided the most meaningful solution. Large Family Size (7.72%) and Low Risk (69.69%) groups had the lowest levels of alcohol, cigarette, and illegal drug use. Similar high levels for each of the three substance-related outcomes were found for Parent Substance Misuse (11.20%), Maternal School Dropout (4.66%), and Socioeconomic Disadvantage (6.72%) groups. Maternal smoking and drinking while pregnant and paternal heavy alcohol use were found to be key prenatal risk factors that tended to cluster together and co-occur with other prenatal risk factors differently for different subgroups of youth.

Frequency of heavy drinking and perceived peer alcohol involvement: comparison of influence and selection mechanisms from a developmental perspective.

The present study investigated social influence and selection explanations for the association between frequency of heavy drinking and perceived peer alcohol involvement in emerging and early adulthood. Participants were 489 young adults recruited from a university setting who were taking part in an 11-year longitudinal study, which includes 6 waves of data. Piecewise latent growth curve analyses indicated that patterns of change from ages 18 to 30 for both frequency of heavy drinking and perceived peer alcohol involvement are best represented by two distinct developmental periods (i.e., college and post-college years). Several models were compared to identify a framework that yielded the best estimates of influence and selection effects. Evidence suggests that selection mechanisms may best account for the relation between frequency of heavy drinking and perceived peer alcohol involvement especially during the post-college years.

Investigation of profiles of risk factors for adolescent psychopathology: a person-centered approach.

Latent variable mixture modeling was used to identify subgroups of adolescents with distinct profiles of risk factors from individual, family, peer, and broader contextual domains. Data were drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Four-class models provided the most theoretically meaningful solutions for both 7th (n = 907; 48% boys) and 11th (n = 1039; 51% boys) graders. The 4-class solution for 7th graders included low risk (LR; 66%), socioeconomic disadvantage (SD; 19%), peer high risk (PHR; 9%), and family high risk (FHR; 6%) groups. Similarly, the 4-class model for 11th graders included LR (32%), SD (43%), high risk (HR; 21%), and FHR (4%) groups. Subgroup membership predicted reported levels of depressive symptoms and conduct problems both concurrently and over time. Strengths and potential limitations of using latent variable mixture modeling to investigate risk profiles for adolescent psychopathology are discussed.

Evaluation of Boys Town In-Home Family Services with Families Referred by Child Welfare.

This study evaluated the Boys Town In-Home Family Services model with families referred by child welfare for issues related to maltreatment. Participants were 135 parents (mean age = 32.15 years, SD = 9.13) who completed intake and discharge assessments. The target child ranged in age from one month to 17 years (M = 4.54, SD = 4.38). We had a high-risk sample (e.g., 57% and 41% of parents reported being victims of physical and sexual abuse, respectively; 24% of parents reported attempting suicide in their lifetimes). The intervention was implemented with a degree of fidelity consistent with model standards. Reduced levels of perceived stressors were found for several domains of functioning with the largest effects observed for family safety, parental capabilities, and environmental factors. Results serve as an important step in building the evidence base of a widely disseminated intervention.

Cumulative contextual risk at birth in relation to adolescent substance use, conduct problems, and risky sex: General and specific predictive associations in a Finnish birth cohort.

BACKGROUND: Research indicates that risk factors cluster in the most vulnerable youth, increasing their susceptibility for adverse developmental outcomes. However, most studies of cumulative risk are cross-sectional or short-term longitudinal, and have been based on data from the United States or the United Kingdom. Using data from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 Study (NFBC1986), we examined cumulative contextual risk (CCR) at birth as a predictor of adolescent substance use and co-occurring conduct problems and risky sex to determine the degree to which CCR predicts specific outcomes over-and-above its effect on general problem behavior, while testing for moderation of associations by gender. METHODS: Analyses of survey data from 6963 participants of the NFBC1986 followed from the prenatal/birth period into adolescence were conducted using structural equation modeling. RESULTS: CCR had long-term positive associations with first-order substance use, conduct problems, and risky sex factors, and, in a separate analysis, with a second-order general problem behavior factor. Further analyses showed that there was a positive specific effect of CCR on risky sex, over-and-above general problem behavior, for girls only. CONCLUSIONS: This study, conducted within the Finnish context, showed that CCR at birth had long-term general and specific predictive associations with substance use and co-occurring problem behaviors in adolescence; effects on risky sex were stronger for girls. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that early exposure to CCR can have lasting adverse consequences, suggesting the need for early identification and intervention efforts for vulnerable children.

Randomized trial of parent training to prevent adolescent problem behaviors during the high school transition.

This randomized controlled trial tested a widely used general parent training program, Common Sense Parenting (CSP), with low-income 8th graders and their families to support a positive transition to high school. The program was tested in its original 6-session format and in a modified format (CSP-Plus), which added 2 sessions that included adolescents. Over 2 annual cohorts, 321 families were enrolled and randomly assigned to either the CSP, CSP-Plus, or minimal-contact control condition. Pretest, posttest, 1-year follow-up, and 2-year follow-up survey data on parenting as well as youth school bonding, social skills, and problem behaviors were collected from parents and youth (94% retention). Extending prior examinations of posttest outcomes, intent-to-treat regression analyses tested for intervention effects at the 2 follow-up assessments, and growth curve analyses examined experimental condition differences in yearly change across time. Separate exploratory tests of moderation by youth gender, youth conduct problems, and family economic hardship also were conducted. Out of 52 regression models predicting 1- and 2-year follow-up outcomes, only 2 out of 104 possible intervention effects were statistically significant. No statistically significant intervention effects were found in the growth curve analyses. Tests of moderation also showed few statistically significant effects. Because CSP already is in widespread use, findings have direct implications for practice. Specifically, findings suggest that the program may not be efficacious with parents of adolescents in a selective prevention context and may reveal the limits of brief, general parent training for achieving outcomes with parents of adolescents. (PsycINFO Database Record

The drinking situations of adolescents treated for alcohol use disorders: a psychometric and alcohol-related outcomes investigation.

Psychometric properties of the Inventory of Drinking Situations (IDS) were examined using a sample of adolescents with Alcohol Use Disorders (AUDs; N = 352; mean age=16.6; 65.6% boys). Relations of drinking situations to alcohol-related outcomes 1 and 3 years following treatment also were investigated. Consistent with the higher-order structure of the IDS reported in adult samples, findings indicated that a 3 factor solution provided the best fit to the data: Negative (alpha = .98), Social (alpha = .95), and Temptation (alpha = .84) Situations. With regard to convergent and discriminate validity, evidence suggested that the Negative Situations subscale was related more strongly to an indicator of negative emotionality than to an indicator behavioral undercontrol. Conversely, the Social Situations subscale was associated more strongly with an indicator of behavioral undercontrol than an indicator of negative emotionality. Social and temptation drinking situations were associated with alcohol-related outcomes 1 year following treatment, but this was generally not the case 3 years following treatment. These results indicate that the IDS is a reliable and valid measure for use with adolescents receiving treatment for alcohol-related problems.

Condom negotiation: findings and future directions.

The aim of this review was to summarize factors associated with condom negotiation among heterosexual men. Literature searches were conducted using multiple databases spanning several disciplines. Studies examining psychological, demographic, relational, communication, and environmental factors related to condom negotiation are described, and a three-dimensional framework of condom negotiation is proposed. This framework of condom negotiation may aid researchers in operationalizing this construct, organizing this literature, and facilitating measurement development. We used this three-dimensional framework to articulate the influence of gender, ethnicity, relationship type, partner characteristics, trauma history, post-traumatic stress, and alcohol use on condom negotiation. Areas for future research are outlined. More research is needed to understand how these factors interact to influence condom negotiation, as well as the interaction between gender and the identified factors.