Positive parenting practices support children at neurological risk during COVID-19: a call for accessible parenting interventions.

Children and youth with neurological and/or neurodevelopmental conditions were at high risk for behavioral and mental health challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. Positive and responsive parenting practices may be one way to prevent and manage potential difficulties in families. We aimed to identify whether positive parenting practices were associated with reduced behavioral concerns in children at neurological risk during the late stages and aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, we examined whether ongoing parental stress, anxiety, and depression impacted parenting practices during this time period. Families (N = 179) with children 4 to 15 years old (M = 7.11y, SD = 2.02) diagnosed with neurological (84.3%), neurodevelopmental (54.8%) or comorbid neurological and/or neurodevelopmental conditions (21.2%) were contacted to complete online questionnaires regarding demographics, parent stress, child behavior, COVID-19 conditions, and parenting practices. Multivariable linear regression (MLR) analyses examined the association between positive parenting practices and parenting competency measures with child behavioral outcomes, controlling for relevant covariates, including COVID-19 related stress. MLR were also run to determine whether parental mental health impacted parenting practices. More positive parenting practices predicted fewer child problem behaviors and lower intensity of problem behaviors. Similarly, a higher sense of satisfaction with parenting competence also predicted fewer child problem behaviors and lower intensity of problem behaviors. In addition, higher reported parental depression, anxiety, and stress significantly predicted fewer reported positive parenting practices. Findings points to the promising application of positive parenting interventions to support vulnerable families, as well as the need for parental mental health intervention to support parenting practices.

Professionals' digital competences and user profiles in social agencies and their impact on professional practice, family autonomy and wellbeing.

Introduction: The health crisis of the last 3 years has revealed the weaknesses of the child and family support system based on the professional use of digital resources in social agencies. This study addresses three aims: to examine the level of professional digital competence; to analyze the user profiles in a variety of digital resources; and to test the impact of level of competences and user profiles on four aspects: professional practice, family satisfaction with the services, child and family wellbeing, and family autonomy in the exercise of the parenting role. Methods: Participants were 148 practitioners from social agencies who voluntarily responded to an online survey with 47 questions. Results and discussion: Results showed that professionals perceive themselves as more competent in areas of information / data management and communication / collaboration than in the creation of digital content, security measures, and technical problem solving. Websites, email, and instant messaging were the sources more frequently used and with higher satisfaction, than structured programs, social networks and multimedia content. Variability in the user profiles showed three clusters: Cluster 1 Social network user (n = 13), Cluster 2 Diversified user (n = 75) and Cluster 3 Communicative instant user (n = 60). Participants in Cluster 2 compared to those in the other clusters were the most proficient on their digital competences and acknowledge the positive impact of digital resources on their professional practice and the psychological and social wellbeing of families. This study points the need for improvement in professionals' digital competences in some of the measured areas and the user profile of digital resources since both provide benefits on professional practice and family autonomy and wellbeing.

Childhood maltreatment and resting-state network connectivity: The risk-buffering role of positive parenting.

Unraveling the neurobiological foundations of childhood maltreatment is important due to the persistent associations with adverse mental health outcomes. However, the mechanisms through which abuse and neglect disturb resting-state network connectivity remain elusive. Moreover, it remains unclear if positive parenting can mitigate the negative impact of childhood maltreatment on network connectivity. We analyzed a cohort of 194 adolescents and young adults (aged 14-25, 47.42% female) from the Neuroscience in Psychiatry Network (NSPN) to investigate the impact of childhood abuse and neglect on resting-state network connectivity. Specifically, we examined the SAN, DMN, FPN, DAN, and VAN over time. We also explored the moderating role of positive parenting. The results showed that childhood abuse was linked to stronger connectivity within the SAN and VAN, as well as between the DMN-DAN, DMN-VAN, DMN-SAN, SAN-DAN, FPN-DAN, SAN-VAN, and VAN-DAN networks about 18 months later. Positive parenting during childhood buffered the negative impact of childhood abuse on network connectivity. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate the protective effect of positive parenting on network connectivity following childhood abuse. These findings not only highlight the importance of positive parenting but also lead to a better understanding of the neurobiology and resilience mechanisms of childhood maltreatment.

Child Adult Relationship Enhancement in Primary Care (PriCARE) theory of change: A promising intervention to reduce child maltreatment.

Child maltreatment (CM) is a pervasive public health problem and there is a critical need for brief, effective, scalable prevention programs. Because problematic parent-child relationships lie at the core of CM, interventions targeting this relationship hold promise as CM prevention strategies. Evidence-based positive parenting interventions, as discussed here, are manualized behavioral interventions that focus on teaching caregivers positive parenting skills and techniques to improve the effectiveness of their parenting and improve their relationship with their child. In this article, we describe one specific parenting intervention, Child Adult Relationship Enhancement in Primary Care (PriCARE)/Criando Niños con CARIÑO, and review the proposed mechanisms through which PriCARE may contribute to CM prevention. PriCARE is a 6-session group parenting intervention for parents of 2-to-6-year-old children. PriCARE was developed and iteratively adapted with input from racially and ethnically diverse families, including low-income families, and was designed specifically for implementation in primary care with inclusion of strategies to align with usual care workflow to increase uptake and retention. PriCARE has the potential to reduce risk of CM directly through improving parenting behaviors and indirectly through the impact of those changes in parenting behaviors on child behaviors. PriCARE has also been shown to reduce parenting-related stress. Finally, by strengthening and bringing warmth to the parent-child relationship, PriCARE may buffer against the negative health consequences associated with CM and childhood adversity.

Parental Burnout and Child Behavior: A Preliminary Analysis of Mediating and Moderating Effects of Positive Parenting.

Despite its significant growth over the past fifteen years, research on parental burnout is just beginning to explore the relationships of the syndrome with child behavior. Previous research with adolescents has shown the existence of associations between parental burnout and internalizing and externalizing behaviors in the offspring. The current study is an attempt to (i) replicate this preliminary evidence specifically among Chilean preschool children and (ii) explore the mediating/moderating effects of positive parenting that may be involved in these putative associations. A sample of 383 Chilean mothers participated in this cross-sectional online study. The results confirmed the associations between parental burnout and child internalizing and externalizing behaviors. We also observed that positive parenting was a mediator in the relationship linking parental burnout and the child's internalizing (full mediation) and externalizing (partial mediation) behaviors. Positive parenting also partially mediated the association between the child's externalizing behavior and parental burnout. Our results further suggested that the child's externalizing behavior was possibly a more substantial contributing factor to parental burnout than the child's internalizing behavior.

Parent-adolescent discrepancies in positive parenting and adolescent problem behaviors in Chinese families.

Based on the discrepancy-maladaptive hypothesis and general strain theory, in this study, we examined two key aspects: first, the mediating role of self-control in the relationship between parent-adolescent discrepancies in positive parenting and adolescent internalizing and externalizing problems, and second, variations in problem behavior among subgroups with different parent-adolescent dyads reporting patterns. The participants were 349 intact Chinese families, with parents as the primary caregivers and teenagers aged 15-18 years who are attending secondary vocational schools. The results revealed that adolescents generally perceived lower levels of caring and behavioral control than parents. Compared to behavioral control, discrepancies in perceived levels of caring had more significant predicting levels of internalizing and externalizing problems, and the relationship between discrepancies of caring and internalizing and externalizing problems was mediated by self-control. Latent profile analysis revealed three parent-adolescent responding patterns (subgroups); compared to the other subgroups, only the subgroup characterized by adolescents perceiving lower caring and behavioral control than parents exhibited higher levels of internalizing and externalizing problems. The findings of this study provide insights on how parent-adolescent discrepancies may lead to adolescent problem behaviors and highlight the importance of self-control as a mediating mechanism.

Bidirectional Relationship between Positive Parenting Behavior and Children's Self-Regulation: A Three-Wave Longitudinal Study.

In this study, we used a cross-lagged design to explore the relationship between children's self-regulation and positive parenting behaviors. Children aged 3 years (N = 84) were tested individually three times a year for their hot and cool self-regulation, while their parents' positive parenting behaviors (warmth, structure, and autonomy support) were collected through questionnaires. In the structural equation panel model, bidirectional relations between children's inhibitory control and parental positive parenting were found. Children's inhibitory control and positive parenting predicted changes in each other for the first six months. Such a reciprocal relationship also existed between parental autonomy support and children's inhibitory control. There was a cross-lagged effect between parental warmth and children' inhibitory control rather than a simultaneous relation. Children's inhibitory control positively predicted parental structural behaviors rather than vice versa. Children's delayed waiting and positive parenting (autonomy support) were only positively correlated, rather than having a lagging effect. All the relationships faded over time.

Relationship between positive parenting and adolescents' depressive symptoms: Evidence from a Chinese research survey.

BACKGROUND: Adolescents often carry their depression well into their adulthood. This creates perpetual difficulties for their family and society. Research on the relationship between positive parenting and adolescent depressive symptoms is rare. The protective effect of positive parenting on adolescent depressive symptoms also remains underexplored. Parents are a vital source of feedback that shapes adolescents' self-view in crucial ways. AIMS: This study examines the latent relationships between four factors related to positive parenting and adolescent depressive symptoms. METHOD: Using data from the Chinese Family Panel Studies (CFPS), Stata MP 17.0 was used for preliminary data processing and descriptive statistics. The structural equation model (SEM) was adopted to test the seven proposed hypotheses. RESULTS: The study participants were 2,816 adolescents (52.34% male). The SEM showed that positive communication and parental praise can directly reduce depressive symptoms in adolescents (path coefficients of -0.24 and -0.13 [p < .001], respectively). Additionally, both positive communication and positive parent-adolescent interactions can reduce adolescents' depressive symptoms by heightening the intermediate factor of parental praise (path coefficients of 0.30 and 0.44 [p < .001], respectively). Conversely, positive parent-adolescent interactions did not negatively affect adolescents' depressive symptoms, as we hypothesized. CONCLUSIONS: High level of positive parenting negatively predicts the level of depressive symptoms among adolescents. Specifically, positive communication, positive parent-adolescent communication, and parental praise are the main protective factors related to positive parenting for adolescents' depressive symptoms.

Positive Parenting and Sociodemographic Factors Related to the Development of Chilean Children Born to Adolescent Mothers.

The lack of economic resources has a negative effect on the maternal role of younger mothers. In Chile, the majority of adolescent pregnancies occur in socially and economically vulnerable contexts. The current study aimed to examine the relationship between demographic variables within the family context and parenting behaviors among Chilean adolescent mothers (including affection, responsiveness, encouragement, and teaching). These factors were correlated with communication, problem-solving abilities, and personal-social development in typically developing infants. The study included a sample of 79 Chilean adolescent mother-child dyads with children aged 10 to 24 months. Communication, problem-solving, and personal-social development were assessed using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire-3, along with a demographic information questionnaire. The parenting behaviors mentioned above were observed using the Spanish version of Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes. The findings indicated that mothers in employment and those who had not dropped out of school had children with better problem-solving skills. Additionally, children residing with their fathers and female children performed better in communication, problem-solving, and personal-social development. Maternal responsiveness was associated with communication and problem-solving, while maternal encouragement was linked to improved problem-solving skills. Maternal teaching was connected to communication, problem-solving, and personal-social development. The study emphasized the significance of parenting and sociodemographic factors among adolescent mothers and their influence on their children's development.

Factors Associated with Parenting Adaptability in Facing the First COVID-19 Lockdown: A Study on Portuguese Parents.

Parenting was drastically challenged during the COVID-19 pandemic as families complied with the consequent containment for sanitary and social reasons. The purpose of this study is to explore the relationships among self-report measures (co-parenting, emotional experience and parental support network) and the employment condition (teleworking parents and at-home parents with governmental leave aid) that might be associated with the everyday life change, and their contribution towards family's daily routines during the first COVID-19 lockdown. A sample of 878 parents (90.2% mothers), aged from 21 to 61 years (39.58 ± 6.08), and mainly of Portuguese nationality (97.2%), was gathered through an online survey. Participants completed sociodemographic data and answered questions related to four positive parenting dimensions (Daily routines, Co-parenting, Emotional experience, and Support network) rating on a five-point Likert scale how much their behavior changed during the lockdown. Descriptive statistics and multilinear regression models were tested as well as a mediation model. The results showed that Emotional experience, Co-parenting, and Support network played an important role in family Daily routines, reinforcing that the first COVID-19 lockdown was lived differently by parents according to their employment conditions. Furthermore, the pathways model of factors associated with parental adaptability is suggestive that the direct effect of Emotional experience on Daily routines is partially mediated by Co-parenting and Support network. In line with previous studies on the complexity and dynamic ecology of parenting, the reported indicators showcase the interrelated facets of parenting and its corresponding support needs. Further, clear indicators for the design of family support interventions and family resilience enhancement to stressor events are discussed.

The thriving kids and parents schools project: protocol of an incomplete stepped wedged cluster randomised trial evaluating the effectiveness of a Triple P seminar series.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the normality of daily life for many children, their families, and schools, resulting in heightened levels of anxiety, depression, social isolation, and loneliness among young people. An integrated public health model of interventions is needed to address the problem and to safeguard the mental health and wellbeing of children. The Triple P - Positive Parenting Program is one system of parenting support with a strong evidence-base and wide international reach. When implemented as a public health approach, Triple P has demonstrated population level positive effects on child wellbeing. This study will be the first large-scale, multi-site randomised controlled trial of a newly developed, low-intensity variant of Triple P, a school-based seminar series, as a response to the impacts of the pandemic. METHODS: The evaluation will employ an Incomplete Batched Stepped Wedge Cluster Randomised Trial Design. At least 300 Australian primary schools, from South Australia, Queensland, and Victoria will be recruited and randomised in three batches. Within each batch, schools will be randomly assigned to either start the intervention immediately or start in six weeks. Parents will be recruited from participating schools. The Triple P seminar series includes three seminars titled: "The Power of Positive Parenting", "Helping Your Child to Manage Anxiety", and "Keeping your Child Safe from Bullying". Parents will complete measures about child wellbeing, parenting, parenting self-regulation and other key intervention targets at baseline, six weeks after baseline, and 12 weeks after baseline. Intervention effectiveness will be evaluated with a Multilevel Piecewise Latent Growth Curve Modelling approach. Data collection is currently underway, and the current phase of the project is anticipated to be completed in January 2024. DISCUSSION: The findings from this study will extend the current knowledge of the effects of evidence-based parenting support delivered through brief, universally offered, low intensity, school-based parenting seminars in a post pandemic world. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The trial is registered at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (Trial Registration Number: ACTRN12623000852651).

The Influence of Perceived Security in Childhood on Adult Self-Concept: The Mediating Role of Resilience and Self-Esteem.

Secure attachment, developed through consistent relationships with attachment figures in childhood, is a crucial factor in fostering healthy interpersonal relationships and a positive self-perception. Part of the positive parenting approach and the theory of affect is taken as a basis to assess how perceived security, as an indicator of secure attachment, predicts adult self-concept through the mediating effects of resilience and positive self-esteem. A quantitative, cross-sectional, and nonprobabilistic study was conducted with 383 participants. We unveiled significant positive associations between perceived security, self-concept, resilience, and positive self-esteem. Path analysis demonstrated that resilience and positive self-esteem sequentially mediate the relationship between perceived security during childhood and adult self-concept. Findings suggest that the ability to cope with adversity and personal acceptance underlie the impact of perceived security on self-concept. It is recommended to promote family intervention programs framed within positive parenting that focus on fostering secure attachment given its influence on adult life. It is also deemed essential to incorporate the promotion of resilience and self-esteem into programs aimed at youths, and adult role models can enhance their self-perception and resilience in the face of potential effects stemming from insecure parenting practices.

The effectiveness of parent-Child observation in parent-Mediated programmes for children with developmental disabilities and externalizing disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

This systematic review evaluated the treatment effects of communication-focused parent-mediated interventions (CF-PMT), a form of intervention that involves therapists observing parent-child interactions and giving feedback to parents on how they can practice positive parenting strategies to prevent or reduce externalizing behaviours in children with developmental disabilities. A literature search was conducted on three electronic databases. To be included in the review, studies had to: evaluate CF-PMT where therapists give feedback after observing parent-child interactions; examine changes in externalizing behaviours amongst children with any forms of developmental disability; and adopt a randomised controlled trial study design. Fifteen studies met eligible criteria for the literature review, of those, 13 studies had available data on changes in the primary (child externalizing behaviours) and secondary outcomes (parental stress, child linguistic abilities and child social responsiveness). We found significant treatment effects for CF-PMT in reducing child externalizing behaviours (d = -.60) but not for any of the secondary outcomes. A sensitivity analysis showed a small but significant treatment effect for parental stress (d = -.18). Considerable bias was observed due to the lack of available information reported by studies on aspects measured by the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Overall, we found evidence to support the benefits of complex interventions which incorporate direct parent-child observations and feedback to improve behavioural outcomes amongst children with developmental disabilities.

Development and initial evaluation of the COnfident Parent INternet Guide program for parents of 3-8 year olds.

Introduction: Positive parenting promotes children's cognitive, social and emotional development and parenting programs based on social learning theory are effective in supporting parents to help reduce behavioral problems among high challenge children. However there is less evidence for programs with non-clinical populations. COPING (COnfident Parent INternet Guide) is a 10-week online universal program for parents of 3 - 8 year olds presenting evidence-informed principles based on social learning theory to support parents in addressing common challenges with their children. This study explored the development and feasibility of delivery of the program in terms of recruitment, retention and acceptability. It also reports on initial program effectiveness, evaluated via a pilot randomized controlled trial. Methods: Data on child behavior, parental skills and mental health were collected at baseline and three months later for all participants and six months post-baseline for the intervention group only. Results: Those parents who accessed the course provided very positive feedback however the trial experienced challenges with recruitment and initial engagement, particularly for parents referred by professionals. For parents who engaged with the program there were significant improvements in reported parenting skills with evidence of longer-term maintenance. Discussion: This paper provides limited evidence of effectiveness for the COPING program however further feasibility work, particularly around recruitment, is needed before conducting larger effectiveness trials.

The effect of positive parenting on adolescent life satisfaction: the mediating role of parent-adolescent attachment.

This study explores the impact of positive parenting on adolescents' life satisfaction and the mediating role of parent-adolescent attachment, based on the family systems theory and attachment theory. The sample included 5,047 adolescents (2,353 males, 2,694 females) with a mean age of 16.65 (SD = 1.21) from Henan Province, China. This study used the Positive Parenting Scale, the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment and the Satisfaction with Life Scale to survey 5,047 adolescents. The results showed that: (1) father's positive parenting positively predicted adolescent life satisfaction, while mother's positive parenting did not significantly predict adolescent life satisfaction; (2) Father-adolescent attachment and mother-adolescent attachment play a mediating role in the relationship between fathers' positive parenting, mothers' positive parenting, and adolescent life satisfaction, respectively; (3) Differences in the mechanisms of father's positive parenting and mother's positive parenting on adolescent life satisfaction. Among them, mothers' positive parenting positively predicts mother-adolescent attachment, which in turn affects adolescent life satisfaction. On the other hand, fathers' positive parenting can influence adolescent life satisfaction through two pathways: by positively predicting father-adolescent attachment and by positively predicting mother-adolescent attachment. The research findings indicate that father's and mother's positive parenting have different direct effects on adolescent's life satisfaction, and both can indirectly influence adolescent life satisfaction through the mediating variables of father-adolescent and mother-adolescent attachment. These findings have important theoretical and practical implications for promoting family education and adolescent psychological well-being.

Positive parenting moderates associations between childhood stress and corticolimbic structure.

Childhood stress has a deleterious impact on youth behavior and brain development. Resilience factors such as positive parenting (e.g. expressions of warmth and support) may buffer youth against the negative impacts of stress. We sought to determine whether positive parenting buffers against the negative impact of childhood stress on youth behavior and brain structure and to investigate differences between youth-reported parenting and caregiver-reported parenting. Cross-sectional behavioral and neuroimaging data were analyzed from 482 youth (39% female and 61% male, ages 10-17) who participated in an ongoing research initiative, the Healthy Brain Network (HBN). Regression models found that youth-reported positive parenting buffered against the association between childhood stress and youth behavioral problems (ß = -0.10, P = 0.04) such that increased childhood stress was associated with increased youth behavior problems only for youth who did not experience high levels of positive parenting. We also found that youth-reported positive parenting buffered against the association between childhood stress and decreased hippocampal volumes (ß = 0.07, P = 0.02) such that youth who experienced high levels of childhood stress and who reported increased levels of positive parenting did not exhibit smaller hippocampal volumes. Our work identifies positive parenting as a resilience factor buffering youth against the deleterious impact of stressful childhood experiences on problem behaviors and brain development. These findings underscore the importance of centering youth perspectives of stress and parenting practices to better understand neurobiology, mechanisms of resilience, and psychological well-being.

Effect of the INSIGHT Responsive Parenting Intervention on Parenting and Child Behavior at Ages 3 and 6 Years.

OBJECTIVES: To examine effects of the INSIGHT study responsive parenting (RP) intervention on reported and observed general parenting and child behavior during early and middle childhood. STUDY DESIGN: Primiparous mother-newborn dyads (n = 279) were randomized to RP intervention or a safety control, with intervention content delivered at research nurse home visits at infant ages 3-4, 16, 28, and 40 weeks and research center visits at 1 and 2 years. At age 3 (n = 220) and 6 years (n = 171) parenting and child behavior were observed during dyadic interactions and coded using the Iowa Family Interaction Rating Scales. Mothers also reported on child behavior (age 3) and aspects of general parenting (age 6) via the Child Behavior Checklist and The Comprehensive General Parenting Questionnaire, respectively. RESULTS: RP group children had fewer mother-reported externalizing (F = 8.69, P = .004) and problem behaviors at age 3 (F = 4.53, P = .03), and higher observed prosocial (F = 4.73, P = .03) and lower antisocial (ie, externalizing; F = 4.79, P = .03) behavior at age 6 vs controls. There were no study group differences in observed maternal sensitivity at age 3 or 6 years. At age 6, RP group mothers reported higher use of structure defined by establishing consistent rules and routines (F = 5.45, P = .02) and organization of their child's environment (F = 7.12, P = .008) compared with controls. CONCLUSIONS: The INSIGHT RP intervention increased parental organization of the child's environment to facilitate competence, and had beneficial impacts on child behavior at 3 and 6 years. No impacts were found on maternal sensitivity in childhood. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01167270.

Parental Supervision and Its Relation With Emotional and Behavioral Problems in Secondary School Children.

Background Emotional and behavioral problems of children are a common concern for parents and mental health stakeholders alike. Poor parenting is a well-known factor associated with behavioral problems in children. There is unanimity regarding the correlation between parental supervision and emotional and behavioral problems. This present study aimed to establish a relationship between parental supervision and emotional and behavioral problems, as it could make way for further research based on the concept of parental supervision, which parents can quickly adopt as an intervention strategy for children with behavioral and emotional problems. Aim We aim to assess parental supervision and its relation with emotional and behavioral problems in secondary school children. Method This is a community-based cross-sectional observational study among 770 parents of children from schools in Dibrugarh, Assam, over a period of one year. Multistage random sampling was applied to obtain the sample size. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to assess children's emotional and behavioral problems, the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire (APQ) was used to assess parental supervision, and sociodemographic proforma was used to study various demographic variables. The observed data were analyzed using the computer program Statistical Package for the Social Sciences for Macintosh version 24.0 (IBM SPSS Statistics, Armonk, NY, USA). Results The study revealed that participants' poor supervision had a positive correlation with emotional and behavioral problems. Poor monitoring/supervision had a positive correlation with total difficulty score levels, and positive parenting practices such as involvement and positive parenting had a negative correlation with emotional and behavioral problems. There was a statistically significant association between behavioral problems and selected demographic variables such as parents' education, socioeconomic status, and family type. The study also found that there was a significant statistical association between sociodemographic variables such as age and negative parenting practices such as poor monitoring/supervision, inconsistent discipline, and corporal punishment. Conclusion It was found that factors such as inconsistent discipline and poor supervision had a significant impact on emotional and behavioral problems in children. In future monitoring research, one can adopt a constructional approach, where the goal should be to explain and distinguish good parental supervision behaviors from poor supervision. This knowledge can be used to develop good intervention strategies to halt such emotional and behavioral problems.

Relations between Positive Parenting Behavior during Play and Child Language Development at Early Ages.

Parental behavior in interactions with children has been related to child language development. Our study contributes to the literature about relations between the characteristics of parent-child interactions during play and a child's language development in typically developing children at early ages, with data from mothers and fathers from the same families in Spain. Our aim was to analyze the relation between positive parenting behaviors assessed with the Spanish version of the Parenting Interactions with Children: Checklist of Observations Linked to Outcomes (PICCOLO) and child language development assessed with the Bayley-III scales. We controlled for some sociodemographic variables. The participants were 90 children aged 15-31 months and their mothers and fathers. Bivariate analysis showed significant positive relations between mothers' responsive, encouraging and teaching behaviors and a child's language scores. Relations were found between fathers' encouraging and teaching behaviors and a child's language. Regression models indicate that maternal and paternal encouraging behaviors predicted 18% of the variability in the child's receptive language, and maternal responsive and teaching behaviors predicted 16% of the variability in the child's expressive language and total language scores. The study provides new data that support the relevance of positive parental behaviors to improve a child's linguistic development.

Positive Parenting and Early Childhood Cognition: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

This review examines the effectiveness of positive parenting interventions aimed at improving sensitivity, responsiveness, and/or non-harsh discipline on children's early cognitive skills, in four meta-analyses addressing general mental abilities, language, executive functioning, and pre-academics. The objectives are to assess the magnitude of intervention effectiveness and identify moderators of effectiveness. We include randomized controlled trials of interventions targeting positive parenting to improve cognition in children < 6 years. Studies that include children with neurodevelopmental and/or hearing disorders were excluded. MEDLINE, PsycINFO, ERIC, and ProQuest Dissertations & Theses (October 2021) and citation chaining identified relevant records. Five reviewers completed screening/assessments, extraction, and risk of bias. Pooled analysis in Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (Version 3) used random effects modeling, with moderation via Q-statistics and meta-regression. Positive parenting interventions led to significant improvements in mental abilities (g = 0.46, N = 5746; k = 33) and language (g = 0.25, N = 6428; k = 30). Effect sizes were smaller and nonsignificant for executive functioning (g = 0.07, N = 3628; k = 14) and pre-academics (g = 0.16, N = 2365; k = 7). Robust moderators emerged for language and cognition. For cognition, studies with higher risk of bias scores yielded larger intervention effects. For language, studies with younger children had larger effect sizes. Studies mitigated selection and detection bias, though greater transparency of reporting is needed. Interventions that promote parental sensitivity, responsiveness, and non-harsh discipline improve early mental abilities and language. Studies examining executive functioning and pre-academics are needed to examine moderators of intervention effectiveness. Trial registration Systematic review PROSPERO registration. CRD42020222143.