The Mediating Effects of Parenting Behaviors on Maternal Affect and Reports of Children’s Behavior

Abstract

Parenting behaviors have received ample support as a mediator of the relationship between maternal affect and child behavior problems. The majority of these research efforts were based on a uni-dimensional conceptualization of maternal mood, even though decades of theory and research suggest that mood is multidimensional. We examined the mediating role of parenting behaviors on positive affect (PA) and negative affect (NA) and reports of child behavior problems. Evidence for mediation was demonstrated for both PA and NA for children in early to middle childhood. Consistent with the positive psychology movement, our results suggest that maternal PA plays an important role in parents' utilization of effective parenting behaviors. Implications for clinical intervention and future research are discussed.

Parents' depressive symptoms and children's adjustment over time are mediated by parenting, but differentially for fathers and mothers

“…In a clinical sample, maternal depression and maternal parenting (laxness, overreactivity, verbosity) were related to children's internal and external problems (Herwig, Wirtz, & Bengel, 2004). Also, maladaptive parenting mediated not only the effect of parents' depression on children's adjustment but also the effect of mothers' negative and positive affect on children's problem behaviour (Karazsia & Wildman, 2009). Again, however, longitudinal studies that have compared mothers' and fathers' effect as well as studies that have tested for children's gender as a moderator are scarce: all of the aforementioned studies either analyzed data from one parent only or did not differentiate parent gender and rather assumed that the model was the same for mothers and fathers.…”

The Mediating Effects of Positive Cognitions on Autism Caregivers' Depression and Their Children's Challenging Behaviors

“…According to Goodman and Gotlib's theory, one of the identified risks of child's psychopathology is the child's exposure to negative maternal cognitions, behaviors, and affect. The study is also informed by Karazsia and Wildman (2009)conceptual model of maternal affect, and children's behavior ( Karazsia & Wildman, 2009). According to Karazsia and Wildman's model, maternal affect has a direct influence on the child's behavior problems.…”

“…There is ample research that has focused on the relationship between maternal depression and childhood behavioral problems (Baker et al, 2011, Karazsia and Wildman, 2009and Karst and Van Hecke, 2012. A recent study conducted by Raposa, Hammen, Brennan, and Najman (2014), found that prenatal maternal depressive symptoms predicted worse physical health during early childhood for offspring, and this effect was partially explained by ongoing maternal depression in early childhood.…”

Positive Parenting Interacts With Child Temperament and Negative Parenting to Predict Children's Socially Appropriate Behavior

“…In contrast, positive parenting, conceptualized as positive affect (PA) and supportiveness/warmth, has received relatively less consideration (Karazsia & Wildman, 2009), although that is changing. There are cross-sectional links between parental PA and supportive parenting and social competence in children (Denham, Mitchell-Copeland, Strandberg, Auerbach, & Blair, 1997; Denham, Renwick, & Holt, 1991).…”