Middle Class African American Mothers’ Depressive Symptoms Mediate Perceived Discrimination and Reported Child Externalizing Behaviors

McNeil, Sharde’ N.; Harris‐McKoy, DeAnna; Brantley, Cicely W.; Fincham, Frank D.; Beach, Steven R. H.

doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9788-0

Cited by 32 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Thus, while our study did not result in associations between parental well-being and child conduct problems, it is conceivable that child age and/or gender may unearth problems for the child in the future because of lack of support, frequency of environmental discrimination, and changing relationship between parent and child. Additionally, given that Black families are not monolithic, it is of interest that McNeil et al (2014) found evidence for child externalizing problems in middle-class Black families, whereas our study only identified problems related to child internalizing symptoms with low-income families. It is worthwhile to investigate how economic and ecological systems influence the functioning of Black families; furthermore, how discrimination manifests in children of varying economic backgrounds via parental well-being.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 78%

Pathways to Pain

Anderson

Hussain

Wilson

et al. 2014

Journal of Black Psychology

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The relationship between racial discrimination, parental functioning, and child adjustment is not well understood. The goal of the present study was to assess parental reports of discrimination in relation to depression and parenting practices, as well as on subsequent child internalizing and externalizing problems in low-income Black families. Data include a subsample of the Early Steps project, a multisite longitudinal study of financial and behaviorally at-risk families. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze our hypothesized model. Excellent model fit was established after removing externalizing problems from the model. As predicted, indirect associations were found from discrimination to parental depression, parenting, and child internalizing problems; and direct associations were found from discrimination to child internalizing problems. The results are consistent with findings suggesting that discrimination is negatively associated with adult well-being; moreover, contribute to the sparse literature on the effects of discrimination beyond the direct recipient. Finally, that parent discrimination was directly associated with child emotional problems suggests the continued need to address and treat discriminatory practices more generally.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 78%

Pathways to Pain

Anderson

Hussain

Wilson

et al. 2014

Journal of Black Psychology

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“…Our study has both limitations and strengths. Evaluating an understudied economically diverse sample of African American families is a strength because doing so may help disentangle pervasive confounds in the literature between African American race/ethnicity and uniformly low income status Bakersmans‐Kranenburg et al, 2004 (Cabrera et al., 2012; Cabrera & the SRCD Ethnic Racial Committee, 2013; Liu & Tronick, ), and because middle‐class African American families are growing in prevalence in the United States (McNeil, Harris‐McCoy, Brantley, Fincham, & Beach, ). Moreover, very little is known about associations between maternal postpartum depressive symptom trajectories and toddlers’ attachment outcomes in this population.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Associations Between Early Maternal Depressive Symptom Trajectories and Toddlers’ Felt Security at 18 Months: Are Boys and Girls at Differential Risk?

Beeghly

Partridge

Tronick

et al. 2017

Infant Mental Health Journal

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The goal of this study was to evaluate whether there are sex differences in children’s vulnerability to caregiving risk, as indexed by trajectories of maternal depressive symptoms assessed from 2 to 18 months postpartum, and children’s rated attachment security in toddlerhood, adjusting for maternal social support and demographic risk. Analyses utilized longitudinal data collected for 182 African American mother-child dyads from economically diverse backgrounds. Participants were recruited at the time of the child’s birth and followed to 18 months postpartum. Results of conditional latent growth models indicated that an increasing rate of change in level of maternal depressive symptoms over time negatively predicted toddlers’ felt attachment security. Higher social support was associated with decreasing levels of maternal depressive symptoms over time, whereas higher demographic risk was associated with increasing levels of maternal depressive symptoms. A subsequent multi-group conditional latent growth model revealed that child sex moderated these associations. For male (but not female) children, a rapid increase in maternal depressive symptoms was associated with lower felt attachment security at 18 months. These findings suggest that boys, compared to girls, may be more vulnerable to early caregiving risks such as maternal depression, with negative consequences for mother-child attachment security in toddlerhood.

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“…For older adolescents, experiences of racial discrimination, moderated by gender, age, and stress levels, have been related to coping challenges, including higher alcohol consumption (Metzger et al, 2018;Terrell, Miller, Foster, & Watkins, 2006). Within the family, Black parents who perceive more discriminatory experiences rate their children as having greater internalizing (Simons et al, 2002) and externalizing (McNeil et al, 2014) problems. Furthermore, parents who perceive more discriminatory events may also experience impaired psychological functioning and parenting practices, which, in turn, are associated with greater child emotional problems (Anderson et al, 2015).…”

Section: Johnsonmentioning

confidence: 99%

EMBRace: Developing a Racial Socialization Intervention to Reduce Racial Stress and Enhance Racial Coping among Black Parents and Adolescents

2018

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Researchers have illustrated the deleterious psychological effects that racial discrimination has exerted on Black Americans. The resulting racial stress and trauma (RST) from experiences with discrimination has been linked to negative wellness outcomes and trajectories for Black youth and families. Racial socialization (RS)—defined as the verbal and nonverbal messages that families use to communicate race to their children—can be a cultural strength and has been associated with positive outcomes in Black youth. Furthermore, the Racial Encounter Coping Appraisal and Socialization Theory (RECAST) encourages the frequent and competent use of RS between family members to cope with the negative impact of RST. Guided by RECAST, the purpose of this article is to describe the development of the Engaging, Managing, and Bonding through Race (EMBRace) intervention targeting the RS practices between Black adolescents and families. The authors explore current research on RST, discuss why traditional coping models for stress are inadequate for racially specific stressors, highlight RECAST as a burgeoning racial coping and socialization model, and describe how RS can be used as a tool to intervene within Black families. This is followed by a detailed description of the development and use of the EMBRace intervention which seeks to reduce RST through RS psychoeducation and practice, stress management, and the promotion of bonding in Black families. This article aims to serve as an example of a culturally relevant RS intervention for Black families who may benefit from clinical treatment for psychological distress from racially discriminatory encounters.

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Middle Class African American Mothers’ Depressive Symptoms Mediate Perceived Discrimination and Reported Child Externalizing Behaviors

Cited by 32 publications

References 39 publications

Pathways to Pain

Pathways to Pain

Associations Between Early Maternal Depressive Symptom Trajectories and Toddlers’ Felt Security at 18 Months: Are Boys and Girls at Differential Risk?

EMBRace: Developing a Racial Socialization Intervention to Reduce Racial Stress and Enhance Racial Coping among Black Parents and Adolescents

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