No abstract

Although the importance of parenting styles directly influencing child development is well established, fewer studied have examined whether parenting styles also affect children's behavioural problems indirectly, mediated through children's academic self‐concept (ASC). We examined direct and shared effects of parenting styles on behavioural problems of 199 Kurdish primary school children with a mean age of 11 years 7 months (range 11 years 5 months to 12 years 3 months). Questionnaires measured parenting styles (child version of Alabama Parenting Questionnaire), assessed children's ASC (Myself‐As‐Learner Scale) and identified children's behavioural problems with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). PROCESS analysis was used to perform the mediation analysis. The results revealed that positive and negative parenting composites are indirectly related to children's internalising behaviour problems. In addition, ASC partially mediated the relationship between the negative parenting composite and prosocial behaviour. However, the mediation analysis did not show the expected indirect effect of parenting styles on externalising problems as being mediated via ASC. Hence, we argue that the ASC serves as a significant mediator in the relationship between parenting styles with prosocial behaviour and internalising problems.

Background: Parenting interventions are rarely offered in developing countries and there is an urgent need to include low-income countries. Aims: To examine the effectiveness of Systematic Training for Effective Parenting (STEP) among Kurdish parents and their children. Methods: This was a randomized control pilot trial using pre-and post-test scores of 17 mothers (mean age 35.25 years, standard deviation 4.3 years; range: 29.58-45.3 years) who agreed to participate in the intervention. We utilized the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire (APQ) to assess parenting style; Parental Stress Scale (PSS) to investigate parental stress; and Step Parenting Assessment Technique (SPAT) to identify whether participants in the treatment group had learned the material of the intervention. Results: There were significant differences between the groups on 3 subscales of the APQ: mother involvement subscale, F(1.13) = 25.81, P < 0.001, η 2 p = 0.67; inconsistent discipline subscale, F(1.13) = 25.46, P < 0.001, η 2 p = 0.66; and corporal punishment subscale F(1.13) = 17.3, P < 0.005, η 2 p = 0.57. A significant difference between groups was also found on the PSS, F(1.13) = 19.63, P < 0.001, η 2 p = 0.60. The changes were sustained over a 3-month period. No significant differences were found in academic self-concept and behavioural problems between children whose mothers attended STEP and others whose mothers did not attend. Conclusions: The STEP programme appears to promote parenting style and reduce the level of parental stress in Kurdish mothers.

Parental monitoring is a factor which affects verbal and nonverbal inhibition components of children's executive functions.,. Method: 112 sixth-grade Kurdish children (mean age: 11 years 5 months) participated in the study. Children were matched on level of hyperactivity. Parents completed the Parental Monitoring Assessment (PMA) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Children completed theStop-Signal task, Modified Opposite Worlds and a challenging star puzzle in order to assess executive function components. PROCESS analysis was also used to perform the moderation analysis. Results: Children characterized by poor parental monitoring had deficits in inhibitory control and had significantly slower processing speeds and made significantly more errors than their matched controls. Furthermore, children with high levels of hyperactivity had difficulties in inhibitory control, accuracy, processing speed, and task persistence compared with the control group.Contrary to our prediction, there were no significant differences in reaction times compared with the control group. PROCESS analysis showed a significant moderating role of parental monitoring in the association between each of accuracy, verbal inhibition, and task persistence with hyperactivity. Conclusion: the current study suggests that, similar to hyperactivity, children with poor parental monitoring appear to have difficulties in executive function.