Coercive parenting: modifiable and nonmodifiable risk factors in parents of children with developmental disabilities

Abstract

Background Parents of children with developmental or intellectual disabilities tend to report greater use of coercive parenting practices relative to parents of typically developing children, increasing the risk of adverse child outcomes. However, to date, there is limited research exploring the role and relative contribution of modifiable and nonmodifiable risk factors in parents of children with a disability. The present study aimed to explore the role of various modifiable and nonmodifiable parenting, family and sociodemographic factors associated with the use of coercive parenting practices in parents of children with a disability. Methods Caregivers (N = 1392) enrolled in the Mental Health of Young People with Developmental Disabilities (MHYPeDD) programme in Australia completed a cross‐sectional survey about their parenting and their child aged 2–12 years with a disability. Measures covered a range of domains including relevant demographic and family background, use of coercive parenting practices, intensity of child behavioural difficulties and questions relating to parent and family functioning such as parental self‐efficacy, adjustment difficulties and quality of family relationships. Results Parents of older children, those who were younger at the birth of their child, and parents who were co‐parenting or working reported more use of coercive parenting practices. Greater intensity of child difficulties, poorer parental self‐efficacy and parent–child relationships, and more parental adjustment difficulties were also significantly associated with more use of coercive parenting. Examination of the relative contribution of variables revealed parent–child relationship was a key contributing factor, followed by intensity of child behaviour problems, parent adjustment and parent confidence. Conclusions These findings highlight a range of factors that should be targeted and modified through upstream prevention programmes and further inform our understanding of how coercive practices may be influenced through targeted parenting interventions.

Supporting Families with Children Who Display Severe Challenging Behavior

“…Others have characterized parent-child interactions for those who have children with disabilities and challenging behavior as sometimes being "coercive" (Day et al, 2021;Lucyshyn et al, 2004Lucyshyn et al, , 2015. This refers to the work of Gerald Patterson and his colleagues who studied the interactions between families and their children with conduct disorder (Patterson, 1982;Patterson et al, 1989).…”

Predictors of Change in Stepping Stones Triple Interventions: The Relationship between Parental Adjustment, Parenting Behaviors and Child Outcomes

“…Examples of questions include: “ I feel satisfied with my life ” or “ I cope with the demands of being a parent ”. PAFAS-DD Parental Adjustment subscale has been shown to be a reliable measure to assess parental adjustment difficulties with internal consistency found in previous studies ranging from α = 0.81; [ 11 ] to α = 0.82 [ 19 ]. PAFAS-DD has also been shown to have satisfactory construct and convergent validity [ 19 ].…”

“…This relationship was mediated by adversarial parenting practices between ages 3 and 5 years. Day et al [ 11 ] also surveyed 1392 families of children with a disability aged between 2 and 12 years and found that parental adjustment difficulties (depression, anxiety and stress) were among the strongest predictors of coercive parenting.…”

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“…The literature widely reports how positive parenting and positive parent-child interactions support and foster children’s wellbeing, sustaining adaptive adjustments and psychosocial development. In families with children affected by DD, positive parenting behavior is consistently associated with positive child outcomes, quality of parental support in children’s activities, increased capacity for independent living, development of social skills, and reductions in challenging behaviors [ 17 , 18 , 19 ].…”