A Daily Diary Study of the Reciprocal Relation between Parental Psychological Aggression and Adolescent Anxiety in China.

The daily reciprocal relations between parental psychological aggression and adolescent anxiety and the heterogeneity, i.e., whether these relations vary across different adolescents, remain unclear. This study examined this issue with a 15-day daily diary study among 326 Chinese adolescents (Mage = 14.53 years, SD = 0.60, 47.2% girls). Dynamic structural equation models revealed that parental psychological aggression co-fluctuated with adolescent anxiety within a day. For lagged associations, only father-driven effects were supported but not mother-driven effects, whereas child-driven effects were supported for both parents. These within-person associations were heterogeneous across adolescents. Moreover, adolescents with more parental psychological aggression reported higher anxiety. This study revealed the reciprocal relations between parental psychological aggression and adolescent anxiety at the micro timescale and also highlighted that the within-person associations were heterogeneous across different adolescents.

Longitudinal Associations from Maternal and Paternal Internalizing Symptoms to Preschooler's Problem Behavior and Social Competence in China: The Mediating Role of Executive Function.

By using a two-year longitudinal design, the current study recruited 199 preschoolers and their parents in Beijing to examine the effects of parental internalizing symptoms (T1) on children's internalizing and externalizing problem behavior and social competence (T3), and further explore whether executive function (EF, T2) may act as the mediator. The results showed that maternal internalizing symptoms and paternal internalizing symptoms at T1 separately had significant direct predictive effect on children's internalizing and externalizing problem behavior but not on social competence at T3 after controlling family socioeconomic status. Further analysis indicated that children's inhibitory self-control at T2 mediated the association between maternal and paternal internalizing symptoms at T1 and children's externalizing problem behavior at T3, and metacognition at T2 could mediate the influence of maternal internalizing symptoms at T1 on children's internalizing problem behavior, externalizing problem behavior and social competence at T3. These findings to some extent highlight the importance of including both parents and exploring mother-father differences in effective interventions aiming to promoting child development. Metacognition and self-control skill training would be helpful to reduce children's problem behavior or to improve their social competence.

The intergenerational transmission of executive function: The mediating effect of parental harsh discipline.

BACKGROUND: The important roles of parental EF in shaping children's EF is less clear, especially in Chinese families. Moreover, it is suggested that the negative parenting behavior may be important environmental mechanisms underlying the EF transmission. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine the transmission of EF across generations and the mediating roles of parental harsh discipline in this transmission in a Chinese sample. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: A total of 311 Chinese preschool-aged children and their fathers and mothers were recruited from three public kindergartens in Beijing. METHODS: The Chinese version of Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Adult Version (BRIEF-A), Parent-child Conflict Tactics Scales (CTSPC) and Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function-Preschooler Version (BRIEF-P) were respectively used to assess parental EF, harsh discipline and children's EF. RESULTS: Both paternal and maternal EF positively predicted children's EF (ßpaternal = 0.16, p < .01; ßmaternal = 0.42, p < .001), and maternal but not paternal psychological aggression (standardized indirect estimate = 0.03, p < .05) and corporal punishment (standardized indirect estimate = 0.02, p < .05) mediated the above transmission. CONCLUSIONS: These findings broaden our understanding of the distal or proximal factors and processes that account for the development of child EF in Chinese culture. Interventions focusing on improving parental especially maternal parenting practices would be helpful to shape children's EF or to interrupt the transmission of poor EF.

Parental Rejection and School-aged Children's Externalizing Behavior Problems in China: The Roles of Executive Function and Callous-unemotional Traits.

This study examined the mediating role of children's executive function (EF) in the relation between parental rejection and children's externalizing behavior problems and whether this mediation varies depending on their callous-unemotional (CU) trait levels. Two hundred and eighty-four Chinese school-aged children and their fathers and mothers participated. Both fathers and mothers reported on parental rejection, children's externalizing behavior problems, EF, and CU traits. The results showed that EF mediated the association between parental rejection and externalizing behavior problems. Moreover, the negative link between EF and externalizing behavior problems was moderated by CU traits; in particular, the combination of higher-level CU traits and lower-level EF predicted more externalizing behavior problems. Our findings point to the importance of considering family context and multiple personal factors simultaneously to decrease children's behavior problems.

Reciprocal relation between executive function and receptive vocabulary in Chinese preschoolers: Evidence from a two-year longitudinal study.

By using a three-time longitudinal design, the present study focuses on three components of executive function (EF), respectively, to examine whether the relation between EF and receptive vocabulary was reciprocal and whether the direction of the above relation would differ by EF components and child gender. A total of 320 Chinese preschool children were assessed when they enrolled in preschool the first year (T1), the second year (T2) and the third year (T3), respectively. Children's EF was assessed by six computerized tasks, and receptive vocabulary was assessed by the Peabody Picture Vocabulary test (PPVT-4). Data were analyzed in the random intercept cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM). Findings provided some support for within-person reciprocal relations between EF and receptive vocabulary, but the reciprocal patterns varied depending on EF components. In specific, inhibitory control/attention shift and receptive vocabulary were reciprocally predicted between T1 and T2, and inhibitory control/attention shift at T2 could significantly predict receptive vocabulary at T3, but not vice versa. In addition, working memory and receptive vocabulary were reciprocally predicted between T1 and T2 and between T2 and T3. Finally, no child gender differences were found in the above relations. Our findings suggest that the instructions and interventions integrating EF and language skills may be an important avenue for enhancing success across skills. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Parental Corporal Punishment and Child Temperament: Independent and Interactive Predictors of Child Emotion Regulation in China.

The goal of this study was to simultaneously examine the independent and interactive effects of paternal and maternal corporal punishment, and child temperament on child emotion regulation over time in China. These links were assessed on a longitudinal study of 619 father-mother dyads and their children in primary schools (data collected in 2011 and 2014). Results showed an additive model where both parental corporal punishment and child temperament independently predicted child emotion regulation 3 years later. In addition, the effects of parental corporal punishment exhibited gender differences, with paternal corporal punishment predicting girls' emotion regulation and both paternal and maternal corporal punishment predicting boys' emotion regulation 3 years later. Moreover, the interactive effects of paternal and maternal corporal punishment and temperament on child emotion regulation were not found in the present study. These findings point to the importance of examining multiple factors within the family system to further understand the developmental process of child emotion regulation, particularly within the Chinese cultural context.

Parental Anxiety and Depression Moderate Intergenerational Transmission of Parental Psychological Aggression in China.

The present study examined the intergenerational patterns in the transmission of parental psychological aggression in China and the moderating effects of parental anxiety and depression. Participants were 552 children (Mage = 12.81 years, 250 boys) and their parents who were recruited from two junior high schools in Jinan, the capital city of Shandong Province in China. The results showed that both maternal and paternal psychological aggressions were transmitted in Chinese societies, and maternal but not paternal anxiety and depression moderated the transmission of psychological aggression. The strength of transmission was stronger for mothers with high levels of anxiety and depression than those with low levels of anxiety and depression. The findings highlighted the roles of parental distal (psychological aggression experiences) and proximal (negative emotions) factors in their use of psychological aggression and suggested the need for intervention programs to focus on reduction of parental negative emotions.

Parental Harsh Discipline and Preschooler's Inhibitory Control in China: Bidirectional Relations and Gender Differences.

The goals of this study were to examine the bidirectional associations between parental harsh discipline and Chinese preschool children's inhibitory control and to further explore the possible gender differences in these associations. Participants were Chinese preschool children and their parents. At Time 1 (T1) and Time 2 (T2), both fathers and mothers, respectively, reported their use of psychological aggression and corporal punishment, and children's inhibitory control was assessed by laboratory tasks and maternal rating. Structural equation modeling revealed that child inhibitory control significantly predicted both paternal and maternal psychological aggression and corporal punishment 1 year later, but the predictions from both types of parental harsh discipline to child inhibitory control were nonsignificant. Multiple-group analyses further suggested that boys' but not girls' inhibitory control could significantly predict paternal corporal punishment 1 year later, and no child gender differences existed for parental psychological aggression or for maternal corporal punishment. The findings suggest that the longitudinal associations between parental hash discipline and preschool children's inhibitory control in China may differ according to the types of harsh discipline and parental and children's gender.

Cortisol stress reactivity moderates the effects of parental corporal punishment on Chinese preschoolers' executive function.

BACKGROUND: To date whether the effects of parental corporal punishment (CP) on executive function (EF) distinct components are different is less clear. Moreover, theory and empirical work suggest that physiological regulation system may help to explain the individual differences in the developmental outcomes associated with parental CP. OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effects of parental CP on Chinese preschoolers' EF and whether the cortisol stress reactivity would moderate such effects. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: One hundred and fifty-two preschool-aged children and their parents from Beijing China participated in the present study. METHODS: Parental CP was reported by fathers and mothers respectively in the first year of the study (2015, spring), and children's EF was assessed and salivary cortisol was collected in the second year (2016, spring). RESULTS: Both paternal and maternal CP were negatively correlated with children's EF one year later, and the relation between maternal, but not paternal CP and children's EF was moderated by cortisol stress reactivity. Specifically, compared to children with high cortisol stress reactivity levels, children with low cortisol stress reactivity levels who experienced maternal CP in the past year showed poorer global EF and working memory. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight the critical importance of examining the interactive effects of individual physiological level and environmental-level risks on young children's self-regulation outcomes.

Parental corporal punishment in relation to children's executive function and externalizing behavior problems in China.

The current study examined the relationship among paternal and maternal corporal punishment (CP), children's executive function (EF), and children's externalizing behavior problems. In total, 328 Chinese preschool-aged children and their parents and teachers participated. Paternal and maternal CP was assessed by father-reports and by mother-reports, respectively. Children's EF was assessed by the Executive Function Touch program. Children's externalizing behavior problems were assessed by mother-reports and by teacher-reports. The results of structural equation modeling generally supported working memory as a mediator linking paternal CP and children's externalizing behaviors and inhibitory control as a mediator linking maternal CP and children's externalizing behaviors. No differences by children's gender were found. The current findings highlight the importance of EF in behavioral outcomes of children who experience parental CP.

Attitudes mediate the intergenerational transmission of corporal punishment in China.

This research aimed to examine the intergenerational transmission of corporal punishment and the role of parents' attitudes toward corporal punishment in the transmission processes in Chinese societies. Based on social-cognitive theory, it was hypothesized that parents' attitudes toward corporal punishment would mediate the transmission of corporal punishment. Seven hundred and eighty-five fathers and eight hundred and eleven mothers with elementary school-age children (data collected in winter 2009) were recruited through convenience sampling techniques. The Chinese version of Parent-Child Conflict Tactics Scale (CTSPC) and Attitude toward Physical Punishment Scale (ATPP) were used as the main assessment tools to measure parents' corporal punishment experiences in childhood, current use of corporal punishment and attitudes toward corporal punishment. Findings revealed that the strength of intergenerational transmission of corporal punishment was strong and parents' attitudes toward corporal punishment played a mediating role in the continuity of corporal punishment for both fathers and mothers in China. The findings highlighted the role of attitudes in the intergenerational transmission of corporal punishment within the Chinese cultural context and also suggested the need for intervention programs to focus on modification of maladaptive attitudes toward what is appropriate and effective discipline.

Child Negative Emotionality and Parental Harsh Discipline in Chinese Preschoolers: The Different Mediating Roles of Maternal and Paternal Anxiety.

Previous research has suggested that harsh discipline is still prevalent in modern Chinese families and it is necessary to explore the cause and the potential mechanisms of Chinese parental use of harsh discipline. This study examined the mediating effects of parental anxiety in the relations between child negative emotionality and parental harsh discipline in China. Using a sample of 328 Chinese father-mother dyads with their young children, findings revealed that maternal anxiety mediated the relations between child negative emotionality and maternal psychological aggression and corporal punishment, but the mediating effects of paternal anxiety on the relations between child negative emotionality and paternal harsh discipline was not significant. The findings provide an important supplement and extension to previous examinations of the factors associated with Chinese parental use of harsh discipline and its mechanisms.

Intergenerational transmission of corporal punishment in China: the moderating role of marital satisfaction and gender.

The goal of this study was to examine the intergenerational patterns in the transmission of parental corporal punishment in China and the moderating effects of marital satisfaction (of the second generation: G2) and gender (of three generations: G1, G2 and G3) on these patterns. Six hundred thirty-five father-mother dyads with preschool-aged children were recruited to participate in this survey. The results provided evidence of cross-generational continuity in parental corporal punishment in Chinese society and also supported the hypothesis that same-gender continuity in parental corporal punishment is stronger than cross-gender continuity. Moreover, it was found that marital satisfaction moderated the transmission of parental corporal punishment, and there were some interesting gender differences in the moderator effect. Specifically, marital satisfaction buffered the transmission of corporal punishment from grandmothers to mothers of daughters and to fathers of sons but strengthened the transmission from grandfathers to fathers of sons. The findings broaden our understanding of the factors and processes that account for both discontinuity and continuity in parental corporal punishment, particularly within the Chinese cultural context.

Psychometric properties of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale (SCAS) in Mainland Chinese children and adolescents.

This study examined the psychometric properties of the Spence Children's Anxiety Scale (SCAS) in a Mainland Chinese community sample. The 38-item Chinese version of SCAS was administered to 1878 children and adolescents. Multiple group confirmatory factor analyses supported a common 6-factor model of SCAS for children and adolescents, and for boys and girls. The internal consistency and test-retest reliability of SCAS were satisfactory. Convergent and divergent validity of SCAS were supported by significant correlations with a measure of anxiety to a greater extent than with a measure of depression. Adolescents reported higher anxiety levels than children, and girls reported higher anxiety levels than boys. Compared to other studies, anxiety symptoms of Chinese children were found at a moderate level, but anxiety symptoms of Chinese adolescents were found at a high level. Our findings suggest that the SCAS is suitable for assessing anxiety symptoms in Mainland Chinese children and adolescents.

Gender differences in the reciprocal relationships between parental physical aggression and children's externalizing problem behavior in China.

The study examines gender differences in the reciprocal relations between parental physical aggression and child externalizing problem behavior in China. Four hundred fifty-four Chinese elementary school-age children reported on three forms of their parents' physical aggression toward them (i.e., mild corporal punishment, severe corporal punishment, and physical abuse) and their externalizing problem behavior at two time points, 6 months apart. Structural equation modeling revealed that the three types of parental physical aggression predicted child externalizing problem behavior for girls but not boys, whereas child externalizing problem behavior predicted severe corporal punishment and physical abuse for boys but not girls; child externalizing problem behavior did not predict mild corporal punishment for either gender. The findings suggest that the intervention for and prevention of child externalizing problem behavior may be somewhat different for boys and girls in China.