No abstract

Objective: This study examined the prospective association of parental reports of intimate partner violence (IPV) involvement (perpetration and/or victimization) with offspring trauma symptoms an average of 6 years later and the moderating influence of positive and negative parenting. Method: The Children in the Community Study followed a representative sample of youth (Generation 2) and their parents (Generation 1) over 25 years, including their own offspring (Generation 3) in the final 2 of these 7 assessments. The sample includes male (n = 92) and female (n = 151) original Generation 2 study members who completed measures of IPV and had children (Generation 3) by Wave 5 (1999). Parents completed measures of parenting at Wave 6 (2001–2004), and child’s trauma symptoms at Wave 7 (2006–08). Results: IPV predicted child trauma symptoms, controlling for demographic risks. For fathers, but not mothers, this association held when controlling for stressful life events and psychopathology. IPV predicted lower positive and higher negative parenting practices. Positive parenting moderated the association of IPV with child trauma symptoms. Conclusion: Childhood exposure to IPV between parents may increase the distal risk for trauma symptoms. IPV predicts more negative and less supportive parenting practices. Positive parenting may be protective, though perhaps not at extreme levels of IPV.

Relationship functioning is assumed to propagate across subsequent generations, but most studies have lacked appropriate methodologies to test this assumption prospectively. In a randomly selected sample of youth (N = 821) followed prospectively for over 25 years across multiple generations, we examined the association of romantic engagement (i.e. emotional involvement and closeness) between parents with offspring romantic relationship quality. We tested two developmental pathways linking parents’ romantic engagement with offspring adult romantic relationship quality, the first operating via parenting practices, and the second operating via adolescent depression. Parents’ romantic engagement predicted offspring romantic relationship quality a mean of 17 years later, net age and socioeconomic status. Results supported a developmental pathway from parents’ romantic engagement at offspring mean age 14, to parenting at offspring mean age 16, to offspring socio-emotional functioning at mean age 22, and offspring romantic relationship quality at mean age 33. However, the influence of parents’ romantic engagement on offspring’s adult romantic relationship quality does not appear to operate via a pathway of adolescent depression. Implications for prevention are discussed.

Objective: This study examines the prospective association of childhood abuse (physical and/or sexual abuse) with subsequent parenting practices in adulthood. Method: The sample is drawn from the Children in the Community Study, a prospective longitudinal study of children’s mental health development in a community sample of children followed for approximately 30 years. The study uses a multimethod, multiinformant design (self-report, parent report, and official records) incorporating data from 3 generations to examine the influence of childhood maltreatment on parenting practices at M age 33, and the mediating effects of adolescent conduct disorder at M age 15 and adult psychopathology at M age 22. Results: Sexual abuse predicted lower availability, time spent with the child, satisfaction with the child, and higher perceived ineffectiveness; physical abuse predicted higher perceived ineffectiveness; and dual abuse predicted lower availability and harsh discipline. Conduct disorder mediated the association of sexual abuse with satisfaction and dual abuse with availability, whereas generalized anxiety disorder mediated the association of sexual abuse with time spent with the child. Conclusions: These results suggest that some mothers and fathers with a history of child abuse may benefit from parenting interventions that address difficulties with emotional disengagement. Specific attention could be paid to assist these parents with emotional regulation strategies to maximize their emotional and physical engagement with their child, so as to increase their capacity for availability, time spent with the child, and parental self-efficacy.

Research consistently indicates that young mothers are at elevated risk for adverse social and economic risks. Recent attention has been paid to the value of maternal educational attainment for their children's economic and social outcomes. Pursuit of post-secondary education requires mothers to balance multiple roles, potentially stressing the parent-child relationship. Yet, almost no studies have addressed parenting and associated stress in young mothers enrolled in post-secondary education, and no preventive intervention trials have been conducted. We screened young mothers (<25 years at child's birth) pursuing post-secondary education in an urban, inner city college for study inclusion based on elevated parenting stress, and participated in a randomized controlled trial to assess the efficacy of a web-based parenting intervention (Triple P Online) in reducing parenting stress and dysfunctional discipline (N = 52). Mothers were randomly assigned to the web-based parenting program condition or to a waitlist control condition. Mothers who completed at least the first four core modules of the online program had lower scores on the Parenting Scale's subscales (Overreactivity, Verbosity, and Laxness), compared to those who did not complete four or more modules. No intervention effects were obtained for parenting stress. The current study provides preliminary evidence of the efficacy of this online parenting program for reducing risk for dysfunctional discipline in student mothers. Future research is warranted to replicate these findings, and to test whether provision of supplemental support for implementation, or briefer program formats may promote both program compliance and outcomes related to reducing parenting stress.