Socially anxious mothers' narratives to their children and their relation to child representations and adjustment

Abstract

Anxious mothers' parenting, particularly transfer of threat information, has been considered important in their children's risk for social anxiety disorder (SAnxD), and maternal narratives concerning potential social threat could elucidate this contribution. Maternal narratives to their preschool 4- to 5-year-old children, via a picture book about starting school, were assessed in socially anxious (N = 73), and nonanxious (N = 63) mothers. Child representations of school were assessed via doll play (DP). After one school term, mothers (Child Behavior Checklist [CBCL]) and teachers (Teacher Report Form) reported on child internalizing problems, and child SAnxD was assessed via maternal interview. Relations between these variables, infant behavioral inhibition, and attachment, were examined. Socially anxious mothers showed more negative (higher threat attribution) and less supportive (lower encouragement) narratives than controls, and their children's DP representations SAnxD and CBCL scores were more adverse. High narrative threat predicted child SAnxD; lower encouragement predicted negative child CBCL scores and, particularly for behaviorally inhibited children, Teacher Report Form scores and DP representations. In securely attached children, CBCL scores and risk for SAnxD were affected by maternal anxiety and threat attributions, respectively. Low encouragement mediated the effects of maternal anxiety on child DP representations and CBCL scores. Maternal narratives are affected by social anxiety and contribute to adverse child outcome.

Parents’ Verbal Communication and Childhood Anxiety: A Systematic Review

“…However, the following threatrelated variables were significantly positively associated with the presence of child anxiety disorder: 'overall threat' , 'catastrophizing' (Moore et al 2004;Whaley et al 1999), and 'threat attribution' (Murray et al 2014). Effect sizes were calculable for all of these variables other than 'catastrophizing' in Moore et al (2004), and all effects were in the large range [r = .40 for 'threat attribution' (Murray et al 2014) to .46 for 'catastrophizing' (Whaley et al 1999)].…”

“…Eight of these carried out separate diagnostic interviews with children and parents and considered both informants' reports to determine child anxiety diagnostic status using either the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule for DSM-IV (ADIS-IV-C/P) Hosey and Woodruff-Borden 2012;Schrock and Woodruff-Borden 2010;Suveg et al 2005Suveg et al , 2008, or the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-age Children (K-SADS) (Turner et al 2003;Whaley et al 1999), or both (Moore et al 2004). Murray et al (2014) relied solely on the parent version of the ADIS-IV. Eight of these studies assessed children for the presence of any anxiety disorder Hosey and Woodruff-Borden 2012;Moore et al 2004;Schrock and Woodruff-Borden 2010;Suveg et al 2005Suveg et al , 2008Turner et al 2003;Whaley et al 1999), and one assessed for the presence of social phobia only (Murray et al 2014).…”

“…Murray et al (2014) relied solely on the parent version of the ADIS-IV. Eight of these studies assessed children for the presence of any anxiety disorder Hosey and Woodruff-Borden 2012;Moore et al 2004;Schrock and Woodruff-Borden 2010;Suveg et al 2005Suveg et al , 2008Turner et al 2003;Whaley et al 1999), and one assessed for the presence of social phobia only (Murray et al 2014). Half of these studies included parents who themselves were identified as having an anxiety disorder.…”

“…Five of the studies that examined associations between parental verbal communication and child anxiety disorder status looked at one or more threat-related parental verbal communication variables Moore et al 2004;Murray et al 2014;Turner et al 2003;Whaley et al 1999), and in most cases (i.e., 57.1 %), these variables were not significantly associated with child anxiety disorder status (see Table 4). However, the following threatrelated variables were significantly positively associated with the presence of child anxiety disorder: 'overall threat' , 'catastrophizing' (Moore et al 2004;Whaley et al 1999), and 'threat attribution' (Murray et al 2014).…”

“…However, the basic idea is that certain genetically/environmentally determined personality traits are associated with increased susceptibility to threat/negative information. For example, Murray et al (2014) found that the association between the amount of threat information in parental narratives and child social phobia diagnosis was significant only for dyads in which children had earlier been identified as being securely attached. For insecurely attached children, the likelihood of them being diagnosed with social phobia was raised regardless of their parents' level of verbal threat communication.…”