Nonresidential fatherhood and father-child relationships among Curaçaoan and Dutch adolescents and young adults.

Growing up with a nonresident biological father has been portrayed as problematic for different aspects of father-child relationships, but it is unclear whether experiencing nonresidential fatherhood is less problematic in countries where this family structure is more common and thus probably less stigmatized. Cross-country research into nonresidential fatherhood is scarce, especially including Caribbean countries where many children grow up without their biological father in the home. This study examined associations between nonresidential fatherhood and father-child relationship quality and fathers' parenting behaviors among Curaçaoan and Dutch adolescents and young adults. Curaçaoan (n = 450) and Dutch (n = 585) participants completed a digital questionnaire in class, using the same procedures on Curaçao and in the Netherlands. We estimated structural equation models of perceived avoidant and anxious father-child attachment and paternal emotional warmth, rejection, and monitoring for both groups separately because of measurement variance across countries. Nonresidential fatherhood was unrelated to perceptions of most aspects of father-child relationships among both Curaçaoan and Dutch participants. This study adds an important cross-country perspective to the current literature on nonresidential fatherhood and tentatively suggests that correlates of nonresidential fatherhood for father-child relationships might be less evident than previous studies suggest. Instead, young people's socioeconomic status (SES) and the frequency of contact between fathers and children seem to be more important for father-child attachment and paternal rearing behaviors. Further research across demographic characteristics and child outcomes is required to understand whether, when, and how nonresidence of the biological father might affect child well-being and development in different countries. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Gene-Environment Interplay in the Development of Overweight.

PURPOSE: Overweight in youth is influenced by genes and environment. Gene-environment interaction (G×E) has been demonstrated in twin studies and recent developments in genetics allow for studying G×E using individual genetic predispositions for overweight. We examine genetic influence on trajectories of overweight during adolescence and early adulthood and determine whether genetic predisposition is attenuated by higher socioeconomic status and having physically active parents. METHODS: Latent class growth models of overweight were fitted using data from the TRacking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey (n = 2720). A polygenic score for body mass index (BMI) was derived using summary statistics from a genome-wide association study of adult BMI (N = ∼700,000) and tested as predictor of developmental pathways of overweight. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to examine effects of interactions of genetic predisposition with socioeconomic status and parental physical activity (n = 1675). RESULTS: A three-class model of developmental pathways of overweight fitted the data best ("non-overweight", "adolescent-onset overweight", and "persistent overweight"). The polygenic score for BMI and socioeconomic status distinguished the persistent overweight and adolescent-onset overweight trajectories from the non-overweight trajectory. Only genetic predisposition differentiated the adolescent-onset from the persistent overweight trajectory. There was no evidence for G×E. DISCUSSION: Higher genetic predisposition increased the risk of developing overweight during adolescence and young adulthood and was associated with an earlier age at onset. We did not find that genetic predisposition was offset by higher socioeconomic status or having physically active parents. Instead, lower socioeconomic status and higher genetic predisposition acted as additive risk factors for developing overweight.

Genetic confounding in bullying research: Causal claims revisited.

Bullying research has shown repeatedly that victims of bullying have an increased risk for later internalizing problems and bullies have an increased risk for later externalizing problems. Bullying involvement is often, either explicitly or implicitly, presented as part of a causal mechanism for maladjustment. However, genetic vulnerability may confound the reported associations. This study examined to what extent genetic vulnerability can account for the reported associations between bullying involvement (age 11-14) and later internalizing and externalizing problems (age 16), using data from the TRacking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey (n = 1604). Because polygenic scores capture only a fraction of the total genetic effect, they were extrapolated to the size of single-nucleotide polymorphism and twin heritability estimates to examine genetic confounding while controlling for (hypothetical) polygenic scores that fully capture the genetic effect. Genetic vulnerability for internalizing and externalizing problems confounded, respectively, the association between bullying victimization and later internalizing problems, and the association between bullying perpetration and later externalizing problems. As such, this study showcases a method that can be broadly used to assess the magnitude of genetic confounding. Caution is, however, warranted in interpreting particularly the less straightforward extrapolations of polygenic scores to the size of twin heritability estimates.

Polygenic risk for aggressive behavior from late childhood through early adulthood.

Twin studies suggest a substantial role for genes in explaining individual differences in aggressive behavior across development. It is unclear, however, how directly measured genetic risk is associated with aggressive behavior at different moments across adolescence and how genes might distinguish developmental trajectories of aggressive behavior. Here, a polygenic risk score derived from the EAGLE-Consortium genome-wide association study of aggressive behavior in children was tested as predictor of latent growth classes derived from those measures in an adolescent population (n = 2229, of which n = 1246 with genetic information) and a high-risk sample (n = 543, of which n = 335 with genetic information). In the population sample, the polygenic risk score explained variation in parent-reported aggressive behavior at all ages and distinguished between stable low aggressive behavior and moderate and high-decreasing trajectories based on parent-report. In contrast, the polygenic risk score was not associated with self- and teacher-reported aggressive behavior, and no associations were found in the high-risk sample. This pattern of results suggests that methodological choices made in genome-wide association studies impact the predictive strength of polygenic risk scores, not just with respect to power but likely also in terms of generalizability and specificity.

Bullying perpetration and social status in the peer group: A meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Associations between bullying perpetration and social status vary, not only between different facets of social status but also between bullying in primary versus secondary school. The main aim of the present study was to meta-analyse existing evidence regarding the prospective associations between bullying perpetration and various facets of social status, that is, popularity, peer acceptance, peer rejection, and social preference. METHODS: Electronic databases were searched to identify studies on bullying perpetration and later social status published up to January 17, 2022. Multilevel random effects models were performed using Metafor and differences in effect sizes as a function of substantive and methodological moderators were tested. RESULTS: In total, 116 effects were included from 18 publications, reporting on 17 different samples and more than 15,000 participants (mean age bullying assessment = 11.57 years, on average 51% female participants). Most samples were from the United States (7) or Europe (7). Overall, bullies were more popular, but also more rejected and scored lower on social preference compared with non-bullies. These associations remained when effects were adjusted for previous social status and other confounders. No link between bullying perpetration and acceptance was found. There was little evidence that effect sizes differed as a function of moderators. CONCLUSIONS: Bullies become more popular over time, but also have a higher risk of being rejected and being less socially preferred. Bullying perpetrators are more popular but also more rejected by their peers. There is no evidence that these links differ depending on sex or age at which perpetrators bully, reporter or type of bullying.

Gene-environment interplay in externalizing behavior from childhood through adulthood.

BACKGROUND: Genetic and environmental influences on externalizing problems are often studied separately. Here, we extended prior work by investigating the implications of gene-environment interplay in childhood for early adult externalizing behavior. Genetic nurture would be indicated if parents' genetic predisposition for externalizing behavior operates through the family environment in predicting offspring early adult externalizing behavior. Evocative gene-environment correlation would be indicated if offspring genetic predisposition for externalizing behavior operates through child externalizing behavior in affecting the family environment and later early adult externalizing behavior. METHOD: Longitudinal data from seven waves of the TRacking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey, a prospective cohort study of Dutch adolescents followed from age 11 to age 29 (n at baseline = 2,734) were used. Child externalizing behavior was assessed using self and parent reports. Family dysfunction was assessed by parents. Early adult externalizing behavior was assessed using self-reports. Genome-wide polygenic scores for externalizing problems were constructed for mothers, fathers, and offspring. RESULTS: Offspring polygenic score and child behavior each predicted early adult externalizing problems, as did family dysfunction to a small extent. Parents' polygenic scores were not associated with offspring's early adult externalizing behavior. Indirect effect tests indicated that offspring polygenic score was associated with greater family dysfunction via child externalizing behavior (evocative gene-environment correlation) but the effect was just significant and the effect size was very small. Parents' polygenic scores did not predict family dysfunction, thus the data do not provide support for genetic nurture. CONCLUSIONS: A very small evocative gene-environment correlation was detected but effect sizes were much more pronounced for stability in externalizing behavior from childhood through early adulthood, which highlights the necessity to intervene early to prevent later problems.

Intergenerational Transmission of Peer Aggression.

It is plausible that peer aggression-like general forms of aggression-is transmitted from one generation to the next. As such, parental behavior in childhood and adolescence may be associated with offspring aggressive behavior against peers. This study used 1970 British Cohort Study data to test intergenerational transmission of peer aggression. The baseline sample consisted of 13,135 participants. At the first assessment that was used in this study, participants were on average 4.95 years old (SD = 0.79; 48.20% female). At the last assessment, participants were on average 33.88 years old (SD = 0.36; 52.1% female). Models were computed for early and middle childhood, and adolescence. Significant associations between parents' and offspring peer aggression were found in most models - especially when correlating aggression in similar developmental periods for parents and children. Other transmission mechanisms such as genetic transmission may be relevant and should be taken into account in future studies.

The association between obesity-related legislation in the United States and adolescents' weight.

Effective obesity prevention requires intervening at all levels of society, including the governmental level. Policy interventions at the governmental level are especially promising as they tend to involve minimal individual effort while, at the same time, reach many people. The amount of state-level obesity-related legislation in the United States has increased over the years, and several laws were installed in contexts that reach young people, such as schools. Given this increase in state-level obesity-related legislation targeting youth, we tested whether the quantity of obesity-related legislation in U.S. states was associated with adolescent BMI and overweight/obesity prevalence. Linear and multilevel analyses showed that the quantity of physical activity-related legislation was associated with lower overweight/obesity prevalence yet with very modest effect size (b = -0.002, p = .042). Our results underline the likely importance of obesity-related legislation. In addition, the value of examining both BMI and overweight/obesity prevalence when evaluating interventions is demonstrated.

Internalizing and externalizing correlates of parental overprotection as measured by the EMBU: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Aspects of parenting including overprotection explain individual differences in child adjustment. This review and meta-analysis summarizes studies on parental overprotection and internalizing and externalizing problems. To ensure that findings could be compared as systematically as possible, the focus was on studies that used the overprotection scale of the Egna Minnen Beträffande Uppfostran ("Memories of my Parents' Upbringing") (EMBU) questionnaire, a popular instrument to measure parental overprotection. In total, we extracted 176 effects from 29 studies. A modified version of the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used to perform quality assessments for the included studies. Parental overprotection was associated positively with offspring internalizing and externalizing problems, with overall estimates ranging from r = .14 to .18. Moderator analyses suggested that effects of maternal were larger than effects of paternal overprotection. Other factors that moderated the strength of the association between overprotection and maladjustment included whether outcomes were self-reported or parent-reported, the design was cross-sectional or longitudinal, and publication year. Cultural context, age at exposure, and child sex did not explain differences between effect sizes. Most findings were based on cross-sectional studies and therefore do not constitute proof of causal relations. Many studies were of less-than-satisfactory quality regarding representativeness of the sample, descriptions of the data collection, and statistical analyses. There is a clear need for well-powered longitudinal studies to strengthen inferences about associations between parental overprotection and internalizing and externalizing problems.

Benefits of Bullying? A Test of the Evolutionary Hypothesis in Three Cohorts.

Recent work on bullying perpetration includes the hypothesis that bullying carries an evolutionary advantage for perpetrators in terms of health and reproductive success. We tested this hypothesis in the National Child Development Study (n = 4998 male, n = 4831 female), British Cohort Study 1970 (n = 4261 male, n = 4432 female), and TRacking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey (n = 486 male, n = 521 female), where bullying was assessed in adolescence (NCDS, BCS70: age 16, TRAILS: age 14) and outcomes in adulthood. Partial support for the evolutionary hypothesis was found as bullies had more children in NCDS and engaged in sexual intercourse earlier in TRAILS. In contrast, bullies reported worse health in NCDS and BCS70.

Prevalence of overweight among Dutch primary school children living in JOGG and non-JOGG areas.

BACKGROUND: One of the most influential integrated approaches towards reducing childhood obesity is EPODE, a program that has been translated to over 20 different countries worldwide. AIM: The goal of this study was to explore how JOGG-the Dutch EPODE adaptation-might reduce overweight prevalence among children. METHODS: To compare whether overweight prevalence was different in JOGG areas vs. non-JOGG areas, in long-term JOGG areas vs. short-term JOGG areas, and in low SES JOGG areas vs. middle/high SES JOGG areas, secondary anthropometric and personal data of 209,565 Dutch children were mapped onto publicly available JOGG data. RESULTS: Findings showed that overweight prevalence decreased from 25.17% to 16.08% in JOGG-areas, and from 32.31% to 18.43% in long-term JOGG areas. However, when taking into account SES, the decrease in prevalence was mainly visible in low SES long-term JOGG areas. CONCLUSION: JOGG appeared to be successful in targeting areas where overweight was most prevalent. Low SES areas that had implemented JOGG for a longer period of time, i.e., six years, appeared to be successful in decreasing overweight prevalence.

The Value of Multiple-Generation Cohorts for Studying Parenting and Child Development.

Participants in longitudinal studies that followed children into adulthood now have children of their own, which has enabled researchers to establish multiple-generation cohorts. In this article, I illustrate the benefits of multiple-generation cohort studies for developmental researchers, including: (a) the impact of child and adolescent characteristics (i.e., preconception factors) on parenthood can be studied from a developmental perspective and without having to rely on retrospective reports, (b) intergenerational continuity and transmission can be examined for psychological, behavioral, and social development, and by comparing parent and offspring generations for the same developmental period, and (c) the interplay of genetic and environmental influences on parenting and child development can be disentangled. Even though multiple-generation studies pose unique logistical and methodological challenges, such cohorts are indispensable for rigorous research into parenting and the origins of child development.

Childhood and Adolescent Bullying Perpetration and Later Substance Use: A Meta-analysis.

CONTEXT: Previous meta-analyses substantially contributed to our understanding of increased drug use risk in bullies but only included research up to 2014 and did not report on other types of substances. OBJECTIVE: To review and meta-analyze existing evidence regarding the prospective association between peer bullying perpetration in childhood and adolescence and later substance use. DATA SOURCES: Electronic databases were searched on March 14, 2019. STUDY SELECTION: We selected peer-reviewed articles and dissertations in English reporting original empirical studies on associations between bullying perpetration in childhood or adolescence and later use of drugs, alcohol, or tobacco. Records were assessed for eligibility independently by 2 authors. DATA EXTRACTION: Data extraction and quality assessment was performed by one author and checked by another author. RESULTS: In total, 215 effects were included from 28 publications, reporting on 22 samples, comprising 28 477 participants. Bullying perpetration was associated positively with all types of substance use (drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and general). The results for combined bullying-victimization were more mixed, with generally weaker effects. LIMITATIONS: Effects were based on a large variability in operationalizations and measures of bullying and substance use, impeding the interpretation of the pooled effect sizes. Although bullying appears to be a risk factor for substance use, no inferences can be made about so-called causal risk factors that can provide the basis for preventive interventions. CONCLUSIONS: There is evidence that adolescents and particularly children who bully their peers have a higher risk of substance use later in life than their nonbullying peers.

Family Belongingness Attenuates Entrapment and Buffers Its Association with Suicidal Ideation in a Sample of Dutch Sexual Minority Emerging Adults.

Sexual minority emerging adults are more likely to engage in suicidal ideation than their heterosexual counterparts. Experiences of homophobic violence are associated with suicidal ideation. Yet, the specific mechanisms linking homophobic violence to suicidal ideation remain unclear. Entrapment and social belongingness were tested to determine their relevance for understanding the link between homophobic violence and suicidal ideation. A sample of sexual minority Dutch emerging adults (N = 675; ages 18-29, M = 21.93 years, SD = 3.20) were recruited through online platforms and flyers. Homophobic violence was expected to be positively associated with suicidal ideation and entrapment. The association between homophobic violence and suicidal ideation was expected to be indirectly linked through entrapment. We explored whether various sources of social belongingness moderated the path between entrapment and suicidal ideation and whether those sources of social belongingness moderated the indirect effect of homophobic violence on suicidal ideation through entrapment. Results showed that homophobic violence and entrapment were positively associated with suicidal ideation and that family belongingness was negatively associated with suicidal ideation. Homophobic violence and suicidal ideation were not indirectly linked through entrapment. The interaction effect between entrapment and family belongingness was significant, suggesting that, on average, the effect of entrapment on suicidal ideation decreased when family belongingness was high. These results suggest that family belongingness may reduce the association between entrapment and suicidal ideation while adjusting for homophonic violence. Reducing entrapment and improving family belongingness may be useful targets for programs aimed at preventing suicidal ideation among sexual minority emerging adults.

Reward Responsiveness, Optimism, and Social and Mental Functioning in Children Aged 6-7: Protocol of a Cross-Sectional Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: There is evidence that reward responsiveness and optimism are associated with mental and social functioning in adolescence and adulthood, but it is unknown if this is also the case for young children. Part of the reason for this gap in the literature is that the instruments that are used to assess reward responsiveness and optimism in adolescents and adults are usually not suitable for young children. OBJECTIVE: Two behavioral tasks to assess reward learning, a questionnaire on reward responsiveness, and a questionnaire on optimism/pessimism will be tested on their feasibility and reliability in children aged 6-7. Depending on their feasibility and reliability, these instruments will also be used to investigate if reward responsiveness and optimism are associated with mental and social functioning in young children. METHODS: For this cross-sectional pilot study, we adapted a number of tasks and questionnaires to the needs of 6-7-year-old children, by simplification of items, oral rather than written assessment, and reducing the number of conditions and items. We will approach teachers and, with their help, aim to include 70 children aged 6-7 to assess the feasibility and reliability of the tasks and questionnaires. Feasibility measures that will be reported are the proportion of children completing the task/questionnaire, the proportion of children that were able to explain the instructions in their own words to the researcher, and the proportion of children that correctly answered the control questions. The reliability of the scales will be assessed by computing Cronbach α and item-total score correlations and the reliability of the tasks by correlations between different consecutive blocks of trials. Ethics approval was obtained from the Ethics Committee of the Department of Pedagogy and Educational Sciences. RESULTS: Data collection was originally planned in March and April 2020, but has been postponed due to Corona virus regulations. We expect to collect the data in the first half of 2021. The findings will be disseminated in preprints and peer-reviewed publications. CONCLUSIONS: The development of feasible and reliable instruments for assessing reward responsiveness and optimism in young children is expected to benefit future research on underlying mechanisms of mental and social functioning in young children. If the instruments assessed in this study are usable with young children, it would be particularly interesting to include them in cohort studies because this would enable investigating not only concurrent associations, but also prospective associations between reward responsiveness and optimism early in life and mental and social functioning later in life. If, as we hypothesize, reward responsiveness and optimism are not only associated with (prospective) mental and social functioning in adults and adolescents but also in young children, this could provide a way of identifying vulnerable children already at an early stage. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/18902.

Peers and Homophobic Attitudes in Adolescence: Examining Selection and Influence Processes in Friendships and Antipathies.

Homophobic attitudes and behavior are a widespread problem among adolescents, but what the role of peer relationships such as friendships and antipathies is in shaping these attitudes remains unclear. Therefore, this study examined to what extent homophobic attitudes are influenced by friends' and foes' homophobic attitudes, and whether homophobic attitudes serve as a selection criterion for the formation of friendships and antipathies. Participants came from three Dutch high schools across two waves (wave 1 November 2014, wave 2 March/April 2015, ages 11-20, N = 1935, 51.5% girls). Stochastic actor-oriented models were estimated for testing hypotheses. The results showed that adolescents adjusted their homophobic attitudes to their friends' homophobic attitudes, but homophobic attitudes were not consistently related to friendship selection. Further, findings indicated that being dissimilar in homophobic attitudes increased the likelihood to dislike cross-sex peers. Together, the findings suggest that adolescents' homophobic attitudes were to some extent subject to peer influence, but homophobic attitudes did not steer who adolescents befriended or disliked.

Explaining Health Disparities between Heterosexual and LGB Adolescents by Integrating the Minority Stress and Psychological Mediation Frameworks: Findings from the TRAILS Study.

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) adolescents experience elevated levels of internalizing problems and use more substances than heterosexual adolescents. The minority stress and psychological mediation framework are complementary theoretical frameworks that were developed to explain these disparities. However, limited empirical research has integrated both frameworks to study health disparities between heterosexual and LGB adolescents. This study attempts such an integration, using data from the first five waves (participant age 11-22) of the TRacking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey (TRAILS), a cohort study of Dutch adolescents (N = 1738; 151 LGB; 54.8% girls). It was tested whether an LGB identity was linked to internalizing problems and substance use through a serial mediation process, in which sexual identity would be associated with peer victimization and negative relationships with parents (first set of mediators, in keeping with the minority stress framework), which in turn would be associated with fear of negative social evaluation and a lack of social support (second set of mediators, in keeping with the psychological mediation framework), and eventually increasing the risk for internalizing problems and elevated levels of substance use. Moreover, it was tested whether the link between minority stress and substance use was mediated by peers' substance use levels, as hypothesized by the psychological mediation framework. Compared to heterosexual participants, LGB participants reported more internalizing problems, smoked more cigarettes, and used more marijuana, but did not consume more alcohol. The relation between sexual identity and internalizing problems was mediated by peer victimization and parental rejection, which is in line with the minority stress framework. No statistically significant support was found for the psychological mediation framework. These findings provide a better understanding of the pathways through which sexual identity disparities in mental wellbeing and substance use come about.

Caught in a vicious cycle? Explaining bidirectional spillover between parent-child relationships and peer victimization.

Relationships with parents and peers are crucial for children's socialization, but how parent-child and peer relationships mutually affect each other is not well understood. Guided by spillover theory, we zoomed in on the bidirectional interplay between parental rejection and warmth on the one hand and peer victimization on the other, and examined whether children's maladjustment symptoms mediated hypothesized cross-domain spillover effects. Data stem from five waves of the longitudinal KiVa study among 9,770 children (50% boys; mean age = 9.16, standard deviation = 1.29). Results from random intercept cross-lagged panel models showed that higher parental rejection and lower parental warmth predicted increases in peer victimization and vice versa across waves, thus supporting the bidirectional model. Moreover, spillover from parent-child rejection and warmth to peer victimization was partially driven by children's depressive symptoms and bullying perpetration. Vice versa, spillover from peer victimization to parent-child rejection and warmth was partially driven by children's social anxiety, depressive symptoms, conduct problems, and bullying perpetration. Thus, children might get caught in persistent problems in two important social domains, and these two domains influence each other through children's maladjustment. Family and school interventions should be integrated to prevent a downwards spiral.

Why Does a Universal Anti-Bullying Program Not Help All Children? Explaining Persistent Victimization During an Intervention.

Although anti-bullying interventions are often effective, some children continue to be victimized. To increase knowledge of potential factors that might impede children's benefiting from an anti-bullying intervention, we examined potential reasons for individual differences in victimization trajectories during a group-based anti-bullying intervention. Data stem from a five-wave survey among 9122 children (7-12 years old; grades 2-5) who participated in the KiVa anti-bullying intervention (n = 6142) or were in control schools (n = 2980 children). Three trajectories were found in the intervention sample, representing children who experienced stable high, decreasing, or stable low/no victimization. A two-trajectory model of high and low trajectories represented the control sample best. Multinomial regressions on the intervention sample showed that children who experienced particularly high levels of peer rejection, internalizing problems, and lower quality parent-child relationships decreased less in victimization; thus these characteristics appeared to contribute to persistent victimization. The results call for tailored strategies in interventions aiming to reduce victimization for more children.