Not all mindfulness is equal: certain facets of mindfulness have important implications for well-being and mental health across the lifespan.

The connections between the five facets of mindfulness, well-being, and mental health across the lifespan have traditionally been investigated using variable-centered approaches. Less research has investigated these relationships from a person-centered, profile-based approach. In this work, we aimed to identify the profiles of mindfulness in a Canadian lifespan sample (14 to 90 years of age) and investigate how these profiles compared on age, well-being, and mental health. An age- and gender-balanced sample of 1,600 participants completed a questionnaire that measured the five facets of mindfulness; life satisfaction; existential well-being; and anxiety, depression, and stress symptoms. A latent profile analysis was conducted. Five profiles based on the five-facet model of mindfulness were identified: high mindfulness, moderate mindfulness, low mindfulness, nonjudgmentally aware, and judgmentally observing. The 3-step approach to profile comparisons was used to assess age, mental health, and well-being differences across the profiles. Those in the high mindfulness and nonjudgmentally aware profiles were generally older, while the judgmentally observing profile contained younger individuals. Those in the high mindfulness and nonjudgmentally aware profiles reported the greatest mental health and well-being. Conversely, those in the low mindfulness and judgmentally observing profiles had worse mental health than the other profiles. The moderate mindfulness profile was situated between these profile groups on age, mental health, and well-being outcomes. This pattern of results has implications for mindfulness-based intervention research and practice to better account for heterogeneity in mindfulness and better support well-being across the lifespan.

Physiological Dysregulation in Children With and Without Externalizing Difficulties: Novel Insights From Intensive Longitudinal Data.

Extant research on physiological dysregulation in children has focused on point-in-time measures and absolute mean levels of physiology. However, these methods do not capture dynamic fluctuations in physiology that characterize dysregulation. In the present work, we aimed to assess whether physiological dysregulation as captured by fluctuations rather than mean levels would differentiate between children with and without clinically elevated levels of externalizing behavior. As an exploratory approach, we examined fluctuations in children's physiological responses (i.e., root mean square of successive differences [RMSSD] in beat-to-beat heart rate intervals) to social transgression scenarios across 15 short-term measurement occasions (5-second bins). Controlling for mean RMSSD, as well as emotional and cognitive correlates of externalizing behavior (i.e., sympathy and inhibitory control), children with externalizing difficulties exhibited greater within-person fluctuations in RMSSD (i.e., physiological dysregulation) compared to children without externalizing difficulties. The present findings provide preliminary support for using intensive longitudinal data comprised of short-term physiological measurements and point to the centrality of within-child physiological variability as a marker of dysregulation, particularly amongst children with externalizing disorders for whom self-regulation is a core challenge.

Suicidality risk in children and adolescents with externalizing disorders: symptoms profiles at high risk and the moderating role of dysregulated family relationships.

Children and adolescents with externalizing disorders are at risk for suicidal ideation or behavior. Factors that put them at risk could be symptoms related or facilitated by their environment. We evaluated the links of symptoms profiles with suicidality, and the effects of family relationship characteristics on these links. Latent profile analysis was used to subgroup participants referred for ADHD assessment (n = 1249, aged 6-17) based on their externalizing and internalizing symptoms. Self- and parent-reported child suicidal ideation (S-SI, P-SI), and parent-reported self-harm behavior (P-SHB) were compared across profiles. The moderating effects of parent-reported marital conflict and parenting practices were examined. A four-profile model showed optimal fit. Participants of the Low Symptoms profile followed by the Inattentive-Hyperactive/Impulsive profile showed lower P-SI compared to those of the Irritable-Defiant and the Conduct Problems profiles. Low Symptoms participants also reported lower S-SI compared to those of the Inattentive-Hyperactive/Impulsive and the Irritable-Defiant profiles. Participants of the Irritable-Defiant and the Conduct Problems profiles had higher P-SHB compared to the Low Symptoms and the Inattentive-Hyperactive/Impulsive participants. Dysregulated marital conflict practices were associated with greater increase in P-SI in all profiles compared to the Low Symptoms profile. Aggressive marital conflict practices were associated with increased P-SHB in the Conduct Problems profile compared to the Inattentive-Hyperactive/Impulsive profile. Children and adolescents with irritability and defiance symptoms with or without conduct problems show higher risk for suicidal ideation and behavior compared to those with ADHD symptoms alone. Dysregulated and aggressive marital conflict practices might pose additional suicidality risk in children and adolescents with disruptive behavior.

Systematic Integration of Multi-Informant Externalizing Ratings in Clinical Settings.

Best practice clinical assessment of externalizing problems often necessitates collection of information from parents, youth themselves, and teachers. The present study tested the predictive validity of a psychometrically-driven scoring procedure to integrate multi-informant, dimensional ratings of externalizing problems. Participants were 2264 clinic-referred youth ages 6-18. Parents, teachers, and youth completed questionnaire ratings of externalizing problems (hyperactivity-inattention, conduct problems, and oppositionality-defiance) prior to an initial clinical appointment. The predictive validity of simple (highest informant rating; and all informant ratings separately) and more complex (latent S-1 bifactor model with specific informant factors; and moderated nonlinear factor analysis accounting for child age and sex) methods of informant integration was tested in predicting impairment, comorbidity, and number of clinical encounters. A simple model, in which all informant ratings were included, showed the best predictive validity across outcomes, performing as well or better than the use of the highest informant ratings or more complex latent variable models. The addition of child age and sex as moderators in the factor model did not improve predictive validity. Each informant (parent, teacher, and youth) contributes important information to the prediction of clinically-relevant outcomes. There is insufficient evidence at present to suggest that complex latent variable models should be favored over simpler models that preserve each informant's ratings.

Dysregulation profile in children of ethnoracially diverse at-risk families: Factor structure and longitudinal correlates.

The present work sought to confirm the factor structure and examine longitudinal strengths-based and mental health correlates of the dysregulation profile (DP) in children of at-risk fragile families of diverse ethnoracial backgrounds. The data came from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 2125 families). Mothers (Mage = 25.3) were mostly unmarried (74.6%), and children (51.4% boys) were identified as Black (47.0%), Hispanic (21.4%), White (16.7%), or multiracial or other backgrounds. Childhood DP was constructed using mother reports of the Child Behavior Checklist at age 9. Mothers' in-home parent-child interactions and depressive symptoms were assessed at child age 5. At age 15, children responded about their own mental health, social skills, and other strengths-focused outcomes. A bifactor DP structure fit well to the data, with the DP factor representing difficulties in self-regulation. Using SEM, we found that mothers who were more depressed and used less warm parenting at child age 5 had children who presented with higher DP at age 9. DP was in turn associated with less social skills, perseverance, optimism, and more anxiety, depression, and impulsivity at adolescence. Childhood DP appears to be relevant and applicable for at-risk, diverse families, and may also impede on children's future positive functioning.

Dual process in parent-adolescent moral socialization: The moderating role of maternal warmth and involvement.

INTRODUCTION: It has been argued that moral identity can be conceptualized as implicit and automatic or explicit and controlled dualities of cognitive information processing. In this study, we examined whether socialization in the moral domain may also exhibit a dual process. We further tested whether parenting that is warm and involved may play a moderating role in moral socialization. We assessed relations between mothers' implicit and explicit moral identity, warmth and involvement, and the prosocial behavior and moral values of their adolescent children. METHODS: Participants were 105 mother-adolescent dyads from Canada, with adolescents between 12 and 15 years of age and 47% girls. Mothers' implicit moral identity was measured using the Implicit Association Test (IAT), adolescents' prosocial behavior was measured using a donation task, and the remaining mother and adolescent measures were self-reported. Data were cross-sectional. RESULTS: We found that mothers' implicit moral identity was associated with adolescents' greater generosity during the prosocial behavior task, but only when mothers were warm and involved. Mothers' explicit moral identity was associated with adolescents' more prosocial values. CONCLUSIONS: Moral socialization may occur through dual processes, and as an automatic process may only take place when mothers are also high in warmth and involvement, setting the conditions for adolescents' understanding and acceptance of the moral values being taught and ultimately their automatic morally relevant behaviors. Adolescents' explicit moral values, on the other hand, may be aligned with more controlled, reflective socialization processes.

Mindfulness, Parental Attributions, and Parenting: the Moderating Role of Child Mental Health.

Objectives: Research interest in mindfulness, the capacity for present-oriented, nonjudgmental attention and awareness, and its relation to parenting has been growing in recent years. However, factors facilitating the association between mindfulness and parenting are not yet well understood. In the present study, we examined whether parents' biased causal thinking about children's misbehaviors, i.e., parental attributions, may mediate the link between parents' dispositional mindfulness and parenting. Given that parents of children with clinically elevated mental health difficulties tend to report more biased parental attributions, we further examined whether the proposed mediation may differ across parents of children with and without clinical diagnoses or referrals for mental health difficulties. Methods: Parents (59.8% mothers) of 8- to 12-year-old children with (n = 157) and without (n = 99) clinical diagnoses or referrals for mental health difficulties participated in online surveys assessing their mindfulness, parental attributions, and negative parenting behaviors. Results: More mindful parents reported less negative parenting, with the link significantly mediated by less biased parent-directed attributions, but not child-directed attributions. The mediating effect via parent-directed attributions was significantly moderated by the child's clinical status: the effect was retained only for parents of children with clinical diagnoses or referrals for mental health difficulties. No significant moderation effect emerged for child-directed attributions. Conclusions: The results provide initial support for the links among parents' mindfulness, parental attributions, and parenting. The present findings suggest that parental mindfulness may be important for less biased parental attributions, with implications for parenting behaviors at least in the context of children's mental health disorders.

Initial risk factors, self-compassion trajectories, and well-being outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic: A person-centered approach.

Introduction: We investigated whether initial risk classes and heterogeneous trajectories of self-compassion over the course of the pandemic may impact well-being outcomes 1 year into the pandemic. Methods: A large, representative sample of Canadians (N = 3,613; 50.6% women) was sampled longitudinally over 11 waves (April 2020-April 2021), using a rolling cross-sectional survey design. Analyses were conducted in three steps: (1) latent class analysis to identify heterogeneity in risk factors (sociodemographic, cognitive-personality, health-related) early in the pandemic, (2) latent class growth analysis (LCGA) to identify longitudinal self-compassion trajectories, and (3) GLM to examine effects of risk factor classes and self-compassion trajectories, as well as their interaction, on later well-being (mental health, perceived control, life satisfaction). Results and Discussion: Four risk factor classes emerged, with 50.9% of participants experiencing low risk, 14.3% experiencing multiple risks, 20.8% experiencing Cognitive-Personality and Health risks, and 14.0% experiencing sociodemographic and Cognitive-Personality risks. Four self-compassion trajectories also emerged, with 47.7% of participants experiencing moderate-high self-compassion that decreased then stabilized, 32.0% experiencing moderate self-compassion that decreased then stabilized, 17.3% experiencing high and stable self-compassion across time, and 3.0% experiencing low and decreasing self-compassion. Comparisons of well-being outcomes 1 year post-pandemic indicated that higher levels of self-compassion over time may protect against the impact of initial risk on well-being outcomes. Further work is still needed on heterogeneity in experiences of risk and protective factors during stressful life events.

Parental Attributions in Ethnocultural Minority, Immigrant, and Country of Origin Parents: A Scoping Review and Call for Research.

OBJECTIVE: Maladaptive parental attributions for their children's behavior have been linked to poorer parenting skills, heightened child internalizing and externalizing difficulties, and parents' less willingness to engage in treatment. Although most parental attributions research has been focused on White or European-origin parents, attention has recently turned to ethnic and cultural groups that are underrepresented literature. The present scoping review synthesized existing work on parental attributions among ethnocultural minority and immigrant parents in an adopted country and parents residing in their native non-Western country of origin. METHOD: A systematic search of five databases was conducted for literature published up to and including the last week of December 2020. Title and abstract screening, then full-text screening, identified 18 records for inclusion in the review. RESULTS: Although descriptive, single-culture studies showed that maladaptive parental attributions were associated with poorer parenting and child outcomes across cultures, studies comparing ethnocultural groups demonstrated differences in parental attributions across groups. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the rise in and importance of literature on parental attributions, these results point to a limited scope in understanding parental attributions of ethnocultural minority, immigrant, and country of origin parents. Gaps identified in the literature point to promising future research directions, and a call is made for culturally sensitive parental attribution measures.

Transdiagnostic Associations Among Parental Causal Locus Attributions, Child Behavior and Psychosocial Treatment Outcomes: A Systematic Review.

Parents' interpretations of the cause of their children's behavior, i.e., parental attributions, are linked to parenting behavior and child development. However, it is not yet known whether parental attributions are systematically associated with children's internalizing and externalizing symptoms and behavior or psychosocial treatment engagement and outcomes across diagnostic categories. This systematic review aimed to fill this knowledge gap using a transdiagnostic perspective to synthesize the literature on the associations between parent-causal and child-responsible attributions and children's internalizing and externalizing behavior, treatment engagement, and treatment outcomes for parents and children. A total of 67 studies were identified. Overall, biased child-responsible attributions were associated with elevated child internalizing and externalizing symptoms and behavior across diagnoses, while findings on the association between parent-causal attributions and child behavior were inconsistent. The link between parental attributions and treatment engagement was also mixed, varying across treatment type, child diagnosis, and focus of attributions. Regarding treatment outcomes, less biased parent-causal and child-responsible attributions were linked to post-treatment improvements in children's behaviors, while mixed findings were reported on post-treatment improvements in parental attributions. Findings are discussed with a focus on approaches to enhance the effectiveness of assessment and psychosocial treatment approaches across diagnostic categories with consideration of parental attributions.

Psychometric Properties of the Parent Cognition Scale in a Clinical Sample of Parents of Children With Disruptive Behavior.

The Parent Cognition Scale (PCS; Snarr, Slep, & Grande, 2009) is a self-report measure of parental attributions of child behavior that has demonstrated validity in community samples. However, its psychometric properties have not been examined in a clinical sample of parents of children with disruptive behavior. Examining the psychometric properties of the PCS in this population is important given research linking parent attribution with childhood disruptive behavior. The present study aimed to: (a) examine the psychometric properties of the PCS in a sample of parents whose children were clinic-referred for disruptive behavior problems; and (b) investigate the concurrent validity of the PCS and its factors using correlations with parent reports of children's emotional and behavioral difficulties, and parenting skills (i.e., discipline, supervision). A confirmatory factor analysis was run on 225 parents' responses on the PCS, and revealed that a two-factor structure of the PCS fit the data well. Significant correlations were found between Parent Causal Attributions (Factor 1) and parent-reported parenting difficulties. Child Responsible Attributions (Factor 2) were correlated with elevations in children's emotion, attention, and conduct difficulties. The results provide information on the utility of the PCS for parents of children with disruptive behavior and its potential clinical relevance.