Mindful Parenting, Caregiver Distress, and Conduct Problems in Children With Autism

Children with autism may display an externalizing problem behavior, which are associated with increased parenting stress and depression in caregivers. Mindful parenting is defined as having a non-judgmental moment-to-moment awareness during caregiver-child interactions. The extant literature is mixed, with some reporting that associations between child problem behavior and parenting stress and depression vary by level of mindful parenting, while others have not found these relations. We sought to extend these explorations. Participants who were caregivers of 75 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) ages 5–10, in the Pacific Northwestern region of the United States. Child conduct problems, parenting stress and caregiver depression, and mindful parenting were measured using caregiver-reported measures. Child conduct problems, parenting stress, and caregiver depression, and mindful parenting were all significantly correlated. The association between child conduct problems and parenting stress was significant for caregivers with high and low levels of mindful parenting. In contrast, the association between child conduct problems and caregiver depression was significant only for caregivers with low levels of mindful parenting. Our results suggest that mindful parenting may be a promising protective factor for the well-being of caregivers of children with autism. Implications are discussed.

Harsh parenting and child conduct and emotional problems: parent- and child-effects in the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort

In high-income countries, links between harsh and abusive parenting and child conduct and emotional problems are well-documented. However, less is known about these relationships in low- and middle-income countries, where harsh parenting may be more widely accepted and higher rates of conduct or emotional problems may exist which could influence the strength of these associations. We sought to investigate these relationships in a large population-based, prospective longitudinal study from Brazil, which also allowed us to test for sex differences. Using data from the 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study (N = 4231) at ages 6 and 11 years, we applied cross-lagged path analysis to examine the relationships between harsh parenting (Conflict Tactics Scale Parent–Child version), and child conduct and emotional problems (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire). We found reciprocal relationships between harsh parenting and child conduct problems, with harsh parenting at age 6 predicting child conduct problems at age 11, and vice versa, even after adjusting for initial levels of conduct problems and harsh parenting, respectively. For child emotional problems, only unidirectional effects were found, with harsh parenting at age 6 predicting child emotional problems at age 11, after adjusting for initial levels of emotional problems, but not vice versa. No significant sex differences were observed in these relationships. These observations based on a middle-income country birth cohort highlight the potential universality of detrimental effects of harsh parenting on child conduct and emotional problems and affirm the importance of addressing parent- and child-effects in preventive and treatment interventions, especially those targeting conduct problems.

Parent- and teacher-reported long-term effects of parent training on child conduct problems in families with child protection and other support services: a randomized controlled trial

Background This randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluated the long-term effectiveness of the Incredible Years® (IY) Parenting Program in modifying children’s externalizing problems among families in Child Protection Services (CPS) and using other special support services. We also examined whether parent-reported effects of the IY® generalize to the daycare/school setting as reported by teachers. Methods Participants in the study were 3–7-year-old children with behavioural problems (N = 102 at baseline, N = 89 at one-year follow-up). Participants were randomized to intervention (N = 50) and control groups (N = 52) after the baseline assessment. The intervention group received 19-week IY® Parenting Program. The effectiveness of the intervention was analyzed using linear mixed model. Results Our previously reported pre-post intervention effects on CBCL (Child Behavior Checklist) and ECBI (Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory) were not sustained to the one-year follow-up. Child conduct problems decreased from baseline to follow-up in both intervention and control groups. The positive changes were not observed at daycare/school from baseline to post-intervention or to the one-year follow-up, and there were no significant differences in changes between the groups. Conclusions Evidence-based parenting program IY® seems to be an effective intervention for child conduct problems in the short term in families in the CPS context, but sustaining the positive effects and generalizing them to the daycare/school context are challenging. Trial registration: The trial is registered in the ClinicalTrials.gov registry (NCT03239990), Registered August 4th, 2017; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/results?cond=&term=NCT03239990&cntry=&state=&city=&dist=

Maternal depressive symptoms and infant temperament in the first year of life predict child behaviour at 3 years of age

Postnatal maternal depression is associated with negative developmental outcomes in infancy and childhood. In a longitudinal study, mothers (N=63) completed questionnaires about their own depressive symptoms and their child’s behaviour at four time-points during the first year postpartum and again at 3 years postpartum. Maternal depressive symptoms and infant temperament measured in the first year of life by the Beck Depression Inventory-II (Beck et al., 1996) and the Infant Behavior Questionnaire – Revised, Very Short Form (Putnam et al., 2014), respectively, were related to child behaviour at 3 years of age as measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (Goodman, 1997). Maternal depressive scores during infancy was associated with later child conduct problems, suggesting a long-term association between maternal mental health and the development of child behaviour. Temperament across the first year of life was also associated with behavioural outcomes at 3 years of age: whereas infant negative affect predicted child conduct problems, infant surgency was associated with hyperactivity, and, along with infant orienting/regulatory capacity, also with child prosocial behaviour. These findings highlight the need for identification of those mothers and infants who struggle in the first postnatal year and for early interventions that can support optimal child development.

Mothers with Internalizing Problems Benefit More from Group versus Individual Behavior Management Treatment for Children's Disruptive Behavior

Background: Comparing the efficacy of psychotherapy services for different family needs is critical for advancing more personalized treatment approaches. We examined maternal internalizing mental health problems as a predictor of treatment response for individualized treatment for mothers and their child, versus Coping Power (CP), a manualized group-based program, for children with disruptive behavior. Methods: Families were recruited from a large hospital setting and randomized to 15 weeks of parent and child individualized treatment or CP. Of the 133 families who began treatment, 103 returned for follow-up of which 93 provided baseline data on maternal internalizing mental health problems (defined as scores of 3 or above on the GAIN-SS internalizing subscale). Outcomes included primary treatment targets across child (conduct problems, emotional symptoms, and prosocial skills) and parenting (inconsistent discipline, positive parenting, and parenting sense of competence) factors. Results: Repeated measure ANOVAS indicate that group-based CP was either similar or better than individualized treatment for families with maternal-internalizing status. For both child conduct problems and parent inconsistent discipline, families with maternal-internalizing status only improved in CP (not individualized treatment). For child emotional symptoms and parenting sense of competence outcomes, families in both CP and individualized treatment exhibited similar improvements over time. Main effects indicated maternal-internalizing status was linked to lower parenting satisfaction and higher child emotional symptoms. No changes over time were observed for child prosocial symptoms or positive parenting. Conclusions: Results highlight the efficacy of group-based CP, compared to individualized treatment, for addressing child behavioral problems and parenting needs in families with maternal internalizing problems.