Developmental antecedents of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms in middle childhood: The role of father-child interactions and children's emotional underregulation.

The present study examined the influence of fathers' parenting quality during infancy on children's emotion regulation during toddlerhood and, subsequently, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in middle childhood. Fathers and their 8-month-old infants (N = 124) were followed over time to obtain home observations of parenting quality at 8 and 24 months, laboratory observations of children's emotion regulation at 24 months, and teacher reports of children's ADHD symptoms at 7 years. A path analysis revealed that fathers' emotional disengagement in infancy and minimizing responses to children's distress in toddlerhood forecast children's development of ADHD symptoms in middle childhood. Further, a significant indirect effect was found such that fathers' parenting at 8 and 24 months predicted subsequent development of ADHD symptoms at age 7 through toddlers' difficulty regulating emotion. Implications of this study for early intervention and directions for future research are discussed.

Triadic family interactions at 2 years: The role of prenatal marital quality and infants' attachment configuration with mother and father.

This longitudinal study uncovered prenatal marital antecedents of infants' attachment configurations with both mother and father at 12-15 months (n = 125). We also examined the contribution of both marital quality and infants' attachment configurations (secure with both parents, insecure with both parents, secure with mother-insecure with father, and insecure with mother-secure with father) to the quality of triadic (mother-father-toddler) interactions observed two years post-birth. Couples who displayed less negative affectivity and were more emotionally attuned were more likely to have infants securely attached with father and insecurely attached with mother (vs. insecure with both parents) and they engaged in more adaptive family interactions at two years. Also, a secure infant-father attachment relationship forecast more balanced triadic family interactions, regardless of whether the infant-mother attachment was secure or insecure. In contrast, a secure infant-mother attachment relationship was related to less controlling behavior during triadic interactions, regardless of infant-father attachment security.

Attachment goes to court: child protection and custody issues.

Attachment theory and research are drawn upon in many applied settings, including family courts, but misunderstandings are widespread and sometimes result in misapplications. The aim of this consensus statement is, therefore, to enhance understanding, counter misinformation, and steer family-court utilisation of attachment theory in a supportive, evidence-based direction, especially with regard to child protection and child custody decision-making. The article is divided into two parts. In the first, we address problems related to the use of attachment theory and research in family courts, and discuss reasons for these problems. To this end, we examine family court applications of attachment theory in the current context of the best-interest-of-the-child standard, discuss misunderstandings regarding attachment theory, and identify factors that have hindered accurate implementation. In the second part, we provide recommendations for the application of attachment theory and research. To this end, we set out three attachment principles: the child's need for familiar, non-abusive caregivers; the value of continuity of good-enough care; and the benefits of networks of attachment relationships. We also discuss the suitability of assessments of attachment quality and caregiving behaviour to inform family court decision-making. We conclude that assessments of caregiver behaviour should take center stage. Although there is dissensus among us regarding the use of assessments of attachment quality to inform child custody and child-protection decisions, such assessments are currently most suitable for targeting and directing supportive interventions. Finally, we provide directions to guide future interdisciplinary research collaboration.

Do Mothers' Experiences Count? An Actor-Partner Interdependence Model of Language Brokering Experiences in Mexican Immigrant Families.

Language brokering is a shared parent-child experience with implications for parent-child relationships and, in turn, individuals' psychological well-being; however, few studies recognize the role of parents. This study took a dyadic approach to investigate the association between brokering experiences and internalizing symptoms, and the mediating role of parent-child alienation. Participants were 604 Mexican-origin adolescents (54% female, Mage = 12.41) and their mothers (N = 595). Both adolescents' and their mothers' brokering experiences were related to their own internalizing symptoms via their self-reported parent-child alienation. Mothers' brokering experiences also affected adolescents so that when mothers experienced more negative brokering experiences, adolescents perceived greater parent-child alienation, and in turn more internalizing symptoms, suggesting the necessity of considering language brokering's influence on members involved as a dyadic process.

Not just about food: attachments representations and maternal feeding practices in infancy.

The present study examined maternal attachment contributions on infant feeding behavior. Feeding is central for the development of the caregiver-infant relationship with lasting effects for children's health and self-regulation. Caregivers need to be attuned during feeding, so caregivers' attachment likely influences their feeding practices. While pregnant, 116 mothers were administered the Adult Attachment Interview. They completed an assessment of infant temperament at 6 weeks. At 8 months, mother-infant dyads were videotaped during feeding and mothers completed a depression assessment. Mothers classified as preoccupied showed higher levels of feeding conflict and control and less dyadic reciprocity compared with dismissing or secure. Regression analyses revealed that both involving anger and passivity predicted control. Maternal depression moderated the effect that both involving anger and passivity had on control. Maternal unresolved trauma increased the risk that mother-infant dyads showed controlling behaviors during feeding, though was not related to conflict or attunement.

Fathers' attachment representations and infant feeding practices.

This study examined how fathers' adult attachment representations, assessed before the birth of their first child, predict feeding practices with their 8-month-old infants. Fathers have been underrepresented in child feeding research, particularly in longitudinal and observational studies. Feeding is a key parenting task of infancy and a growing number of studies have begun to explore the connection between attachment and parental feeding practices and behavior, revealing a clear link between mothers' adult attachment and how they feed their children. This is the first longitudinal examination of attachment as a prenatal predictor of fathers' infant feeding behavior. Participants were 118 first-time fathers and their infants. Adult Attachment Interviews were conducted in the third trimester of pregnancy, and father-infant feeding interactions were observed at home when the infant was 8-months-old. Videotaped feedings were coded using Chatoor's Feeding Scale (1997). Compared to other fathers, (1) those with secure attachment representations were more attuned to their infants during feeding, (2) those with dismissing representations were less attuned, and (3) those with unresolved trauma displayed more controlling behaviors. Fathers were more controlling with their sons than their daughters across all attachment representations. Study results suggest that father's infant feeding behaviors may influence by their own attachment representations. The links to fathers' controlling feeding practices are noteworthy because of the negative implications controlling parental feeding practices can have on child outcomes. The prediction of paternal feeding behaviors from assessments conducted prenatally has important intervention implications.

Parents' prenatal joint attachment representations and early caregiving: the indirect role of prenatal marital affect.

This research examined couples' marital affect as a mediator between the couples' combined attachment representations (assessed prenatally) and each of their caregiving quality at 8 months postpartum. We followed 125 couples pregnant with their first child over the transition to parenthood. Prenatally, the Adult Attachment Interview was administered and marital interactions were observed. Parents were categorized in joint attachment pairs: secure/secure, secure mother/insecure father, secure father/insecure mother, and insecure/insecure. Caregiving in dyadic parent-infant interactions was observed at home, 8 months postpartum. Results indicated the secure/secure pairing displayed the most positive marital affect overall and predicted higher sensitivity in both mothers and fathers compared to parents in secure mother/insecure father pairs. Indirect effects indicate marital affect mediated the relations between joint attachment pairs and caregiving. Findings suggest that joint attachment pairs relate to prenatal marital quality, which in turn spills over to predict each parent's later caregiving quality.

Attachment representations of school-aged Korean children: comparing family drawing and narrative assessments in a clinical and a community sample.

This study explored the links between two different methods of assessing children's attachment representations, a narrative task (the Manchester Attachment Story Task, MCAST) and a drawing task (the Family Drawing Task, FDT), in a clinical sample of 51 and a community sample of 45 Korean children aged 7-9. In both samples, attachment classifications derived from the MCAST were related to attachment classifications and global ratings derived from the FDT. In addition, rates of insecure attachment determined by MCAST classifications and by FDT global scales indicative of insecure attachment were higher in the clinical sample than the community sample. Variations in attachment patterns for these Korean samples are discussed in relation to Korean child-rearing customs. Results of this study contribute to the cross-cultural validation of both of these instruments, as well as extending our understanding of patterns of attachment in Korea from infancy to middle childhood.

Parents' Perceived Discrimination and Adolescent Adjustment in Chinese American Families: Mediating Family Processes.

Parental discriminatory experiences can have significant implications for adolescent adjustment. This study examined family processes linking parental perceived discrimination to adolescent depressive symptoms and delinquent behaviors by using the family stress model and incorporating family systems theory. Participants were 444 Chinese American adolescents (Mage.wave1  = 13.03) and their parents residing in Northern California. Testing of actor-partner interdependent models showed a significant indirect effect from earlier paternal (but not maternal) perceived discrimination to later adolescent adjustment through paternal depressive symptoms and maternal hostility toward adolescents. The results highlight the importance of including both parents and examining actor and partner effects to provide a more comprehensive understanding of how maternal and paternal perceived discrimination differentially and indirectly relate to adolescent adjustment.

Very extensive nonmaternal care predicts mother-infant attachment disorganization: Convergent evidence from two samples.

We examined whether a maximum threshold of time spent in nonmaternal care exists, beyond which infants have an increased risk of forming a disorganized infant-mother attachment. The hours per week infants spent in nonmaternal care at 7-8 months were examined as a continuous measure and as a dichotomous threshold (over 40, 50 and 60 hr/week) to predict infant disorganization at 12-15 months. Two different samples (Austin and NICHD) were used to replicate findings and control for critical covariates: mothers' unresolved status and frightening behavior (assessed in the Austin sample, N = 125), quality of nonmaternal caregiving (assessed in the NICHD sample, N = 1,135), and family income and infant temperament (assessed in both samples). Only very extensive hours of nonmaternal care (over 60 hr/week) and mothers' frightening behavior independently predicted attachment disorganization. A polynomial logistic regression performed on the larger NICHD sample indicated that the risk of disorganized attachment exponentially increased after exceeding 60 hr/week. In addition, very extensive hours of nonmaternal care only predicted attachment disorganization after age 6 months (not prior). Findings suggest that during a sensitive period of attachment formation, infants who spend more than 60 hr/week in nonmaternal care may be at an increased risk of forming a disorganized attachment.

Coparenting Problems with Toddlers Predict Children's Symptoms of Psychological Problems at Age 7.

This study examined whether coparenting during toddlerhood predicts children's later symptoms of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, affective disorder, and somatic complaints. When children were 2 years old, 108 middle-class nonclinical families were observed in triadic interactions to assess two domains of dyadic coparenting (competitive and cooperative), as well as each parent's individual competitive behavior toward the spouse. Teachers and mothers reported children's symptoms of psychological problems at age 7. Independent of cooperative coparenting and each parents' individual harsh parenting, competitive coparenting predicted children's symptoms of ADHD and ODD. Interactions with child gender indicated that competitive coparenting predicted ADHD symptoms in boys (not in girls) and teacher-reported (not mother-reported) somatic complaints in girls (not in boys). ODD and ADHD symptoms were also predicted by fathers' (not mothers') individual competitive behaviors. The children of parents who were both low in competitive behaviors had the lowest teacher-rated symptoms of affective disorder.

Trust over the transition to parenthood: Links to attachment, perception of partner's caregiving, and parenting.

We examined couples' dyadic trust profiles over the transition to parenthood and their associations with couples' attachment representations, perceptions of partner's caregiving, and parenting quality. We followed 125 couples from pregnancy to 24 months postpartum and applied the latent profile analysis (LPA) to examine whether distinct dyadic patterns of trust would emerge among couples. We then examined couples' attachment representations and perceptions of partner's caregiving as factors that might explain their trust profiles. Finally, we examined how couples' trust profiles would be related to their parenting quality 24 months postpartum. The dyadic LPA yielded three trust profiles: a both high profile (N = 64), a mother high, father moderate profile (N = 42), and a mother moderate to low, father moderate profile (N = 19). Mothers with dismissing attachment were able to hold high-stable trust when their partner also held high trust toward them, whereas mothers with preoccupied attachment, in general, were likely to have low and declining trust over time. Mothers' more positive perceptions of their husband's caregiving quality were also related to their high-stable trust over time. Mothers' high trust, in turn, was associated with their less emotionally disengaged and less role-reversed parenting. The findings highlight mothers' important role in couples' dyadic trust over the transition to parenthood. Implications of study findings are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Mothers' resilience and potential for disrupted parenting in COVID-19: The protective effect of cognitive reappraisal.

Stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic may pose acute threats to caregivers' capacity to cope and result in problematic parenting. However, studies have suggested that some caregivers were able to maintain high resilience when facing hardship. The goal of the present study was to examine how COVID-19-related stress affects resilience and parenting of mothers with young children and whether mothers' individual differences in emotion regulation skills lead to different resilience and parenting outcomes. We followed a sample of 298 mothers in the United States with children between 0 and 3 years old over 9 months beginning in April 2020 when most states were on lockdown. Results indicated that both COVID-19-related stress in April 2020 and greater increases/smaller decreases of COVID-19-related stress across 9 months were associated with mothers' lower resilience in January 2021. Low resilience, in turn, was associated with mothers' higher parenting stress, perceptions of parenting incompetence, and risk for child abuse. Furthermore, for mothers with low and moderate levels of cognitive reappraisal, a greater increase/smaller decrease in COVID-19-related stress was associated with their lower resilience after 9 months. In contrast, for mothers with high cognitive reappraisal, the change in COVID-19-related stress was not related to their resilience. This study demonstrates the importance of cognitive reappraisal for mothers of young children to resist and thrive against chronic and uncontrollable external stressors, which are crucial to preventing mothers' child abuse potential and maintaining positive parenting. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Maternal sensitivity and infant attachment security in Korea: cross-cultural validation of the Strange Situation.

The present study sought to analyze infant and maternal behavior both during the Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) and a free play session in a Korean sample (N = 87) to help understand whether mother-infant attachment relationships are universal or culture-specific. Distributions of attachment classifications in the Korean sample were compared with a cross-national sample. Behavior of mothers and infants following the two separation episodes in the SSP, including mothers' proximity to their infants and infants' approach to the caregiver, was also observed, as was the association between maternal sensitivity observed during free play session and infant security. The percentage of Korean infants classified as secure versus insecure mirrored the global distribution, however, only one Korean baby was classified as avoidant. Following the separation episodes in the Strange Situation, Korean mothers were more likely than mothers in Ainsworth's Baltimore sample to approach their babies immediately and sit beside them throughout the reunion episodes, even when their babies were no longer distressed. Also, Korean babies less often approached their mothers during reunions than did infants in the Baltimore sample. Finally, the link between maternal sensitivity and infant security was significant. The findings support the idea that the basic secure base function of attachment is universal and the SSP is a valid measure of secure attachment, but cultural differences in caregiving may result in variations in how this function is manifested.

Fathers' Sensitivity in Infancy and Externalizing Problems in Middle Childhood: The Role of Coparenting.

The present study examined the role of father sensitivity and couple coparenting quality in the first 2 years of life in relation to the development of externalizing behavior problems in middle childhood, focusing on the unique role of fathers. In this study, 125 mothers, fathers, and their first-born children were followed from 8 months to age 7 years. Paternal sensitivity was rated when infants were 8 and 24 months old. Fathers were videotaped at home playing, feeding, and changing their 8-month-old infants' clothes. They also were videotaped in a lab playing with their 24-month-olds and solving a variety of challenging tasks. At 24 months, competitive coparenting was assessed via videotaped triadic family interactions at home in which families participated in a variety of tasks (i.e., clothes change, eating a snack together and solving tasks). Teachers rated externalizing behavior problems when the children were age 7. Continuity in paternal sensitivity was documented from 8 to 24 months, and paternal sensitivity at 8 months predicted externalizing behavior in middle childhood through father sensitivity at 24 months. Moreover, paternal sensitivity at 8 months predicted competitive coparenting which, in turn, forecast externalizing behavior problems in middle childhood, even after controlling for maternal sensitivity at 8 and 24 months. These findings highlight the unique role of paternal caregiving quality during the first year of life on couple coparenting and children's subsequent development of externalizing problems and have implications for creating effective interventions to prevent children from developing externalizing disorders.

Pathways to earned-security: the role of alternative support figures.

This study explored the kinds of relationship experiences associated with earned-security, i.e., the extent to which mothers who report early negative relationship histories with their parents are later able to form a secure working model of attachment (indicated by the ability to speak clearly and coherently about these histories). Mothers from a low-risk sample (N = 121) expecting their first child completed the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI), which was used to assess earned-security retrospectively using the stringent definition recommended by Main and Hesse (Hesse, 2008 ; Main, Goldwyn, & Hesse, 2002 ), as well as to identify alternative support figures. Participants also completed self-report measures of depressive symptomatology, questionnaires concerning their experiences in therapy, and later, when their babies were 12 to 15 months old, the Strange Situation procedure. Sixteen mothers were classified as earned-secure (25% of those classified as secure-autonomous and 13% of the whole sample). Women who were earned-secure (vs. insecure and continuous-secure) reported significantly higher levels of emotional support, but not instrumental support, from alternative support figures. They also spent more time in therapy than did insecure and continuous-secure women and were more likely to form secure attachments with their infants than insecure women. These findings were obtained even after controlling for depressive symptoms.

Understanding marital conflict 7 years later from prenatal representations of marriage.

We examine how representations of marriage, assessed prenatally, predict different types of marital conflict (cooperation, avoidance/capitulation, stonewalling, and child involvement in parental conflict) at 7 years postpartum (N=132 individuals). We assessed representations of marriage prenatally by interviewing spouses about their own parents' marriage, and then rated the content and insightfulness of their memories. Results show that marital representations characterized by higher insight predict higher cooperation and lower child involvement in parental conflict, whereas content of marital representations was not a significant predictor of marital conflict. Further, individuals who remember negative memories from their parents' marriage with high insight were lowest on child involvement in parental conflict, whereas those who remember negative memories with low insight were highest on child involvement in parental conflict. Finally, women who remember negative content with high insight report the highest cooperation, whereas women who remember negative content with low insight report the lowest cooperation. For men, however, marital representations were less effective in predicting later cooperation. We conclude that marital representations, even when assessed prenatally, influence certain types of marital conflict 7 years later. Using such findings, therapists could help spouses gain insight into how the memories of their parents' marriage relate to the use of specific conflict strategies in their marriage.

Marital interaction quality over the transition to parenthood: The role of parents' perceptions of spouses' parenting.

Drawing from the concept of family systems theory, the present study examined how partners' marital hostility and net positive affect observed in prenatal couple interactions forecast their perceptions of each other's parenting 8 months later, and in turn, how these perceptions forecast their subsequent hostility and net positive affect in couple interactions 24 months after childbirth. Data were obtained from a longitudinal study of 124 families in central Texas over their first 2 years of parenthood. Each parent's perceptions of their spouse's parenting were coded from a couple interaction task when infants were 8 months old, and couple interaction qualities were coded from marital interaction tasks when the mothers were pregnant and 24 months after childbirth. Parents' more positive perceptions of their spouse's parenting at 8 months were predicted by greater couple interaction net positive affect and by less couple interaction hostility before childbirth. Greater couple interaction hostility at 24 months after childbirth was predicted indirectly by greater couple hostility before childbirth through mothers' (but not fathers') less positive perceptions of their spouses' parenting. Greater couple net positive affect before childbirth was associated with greater couple net positive affect 2 years later, controlling for parents' perceptions, and fathers' (but not mothers') more positive perceptions were associated with greater couple net positive affect at 24 months. This study should help researchers further understand the role of parents' attitudes toward each other's parenting in couple interaction qualities during the transition to parenthood. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Parents' perceptions of their spouses' parenting and infant temperament as predictors of parenting and coparenting.

The present study examined how mothers' and fathers' perceptions of each others' parenting competence and infant temperament interact to predict each parent's individual behaviors during coparenting (involvement, support, and warmth) and their dyadic child-centered coparenting behavior. Data were obtained from a longitudinal study of 125 families in central Texas over their first 2 years of parenthood. Ratings of infants' temperament were obtained when infants were 6 weeks old. Each parents' perceptions of their spouse's parenting were coded from a couple interaction task when infants were 8 months old, and parents' coparenting behaviors were coded from triadic (mother-father-child) interactions obtained when children were 24 months old. Parents' perceptions of their spouse's parenting at 8 months interacted with their infants' temperament to predict their later warmth and dyadic child-centered coparenting. High maternal perceptions of fathers' parenting predicted high levels of father warmth and high levels of dyadic child-centered coparenting when infant temperamental reactivity was high. In contrast, high paternal perceptions of mothers' parenting marginally predicted high levels of mother warmth and high dyadic child-centered coparenting when infant temperamental reactivity was low. Parents' individual warmth and fathers' involvement and support were also associated with dyadic child-centered coparenting. This study should help researchers further understand how parents' attitudes toward each other's parenting interact with their infants' temperament qualities across the early years of parenthood to influence the quality of their dyadic coparenting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

The relationship between adult attachment orientation and child self-regulation in eating: The mediating role of persuasive-controlling feeding practices.

The present study examines the hypothesis that adult attachment orientation, specifically anxious attachment, is related to children's diminished ability to self-regulate their food intake, and that this relationship is mediated by parents' persuasive-controlling feeding practices. Two hundred and sixty five mothers and fathers of preschool children completed online questionnaires that included measures of Adult Attachment Orientation, Parental Persuasive-Controlling Feeding Practices, and Child Self-Regulation of Eating. Structural equation modeling revealed a significant relationship between parental anxious attachment and child self-regulatory abilities, which was fully mediated by parental persuasive-controlling feeding. Also as predicted, parents' avoidant attachment was found to be unrelated to persuasive-controlling feeding and child self-regulated eating. Findings suggest that parents with an anxious attachment orientation may be more likely than other parents to try to use persuasive techniques to control their children's food intake, which may impair children's ability to regulate their food intake, increasing their obesity risk. Implications for intervention are discussed.