Hostname: page-component-7c8c6479df-7qhmt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-03-19T03:01:37.126Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Noncompliant behavior, overactivity, and family stress as predictors of negative maternal control with preschool children

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 October 2008

Susan B. Campbell
Affiliation:
University of Pittsburgh
Elizabeth W. Pierce
Affiliation:
University of Pittsburgh
Cynthia L. March
Affiliation:
University of Pittsburgh
Linda J. Ewing
Affiliation:
University of Pittsburgh

Abstract

The independent contributions of preschool children's noncompliance and overactivity/inattention and measures of family stress to the prediction of negative maternal control were examined in two cohorts of children. In Cohort 1, children's noncompliant and hyperactive behavior each predicted more negative maternal control, whereas in Cohort 2, the interaction between noncompliance and overactivity was predictive of particularly high levels of negative control. In Cohort 2, stressful life events, maternal depression, and marital distress were also associated with negative maternal control. Stressful life events interacted with noncompliance indicating that the combination of a difficult child and a high level of family stress exacerbated the tendency of mothers of preschool children to exert negative control to gain compliance. Results indicate that factors external to the mother-child relationship exert an independent influence on maternal behavior.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1991

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

American Psychiatric Association. (1980). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (3rd ed.). Washington, DC: Author.Google Scholar
Barkley, R. A., Karlsson, J., & Pollard, S. (1985). Effects of age on the mother–child interactions of ADD-H and normal boys. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 13, 631638.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Belsky, J. (1984). Determinants of parenting: A process model. Child Development, 55, 8396.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Campbell, S. B. (1990). The socialization and social development of hyperactive (ADDH) children. In Lewis, M. & Miller, S. (Eds.), Handbook of developmental psychopathology. New York: Plenum.Google Scholar
Campbell, S. B., Breaux, A. M., Ewing, L. J., & Szumowski, E. K. (1986). Correlates and predictors of hyperactivity and aggression: A longitudinal study of parent-referred problem preschoolers. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 14, 217234.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Campbell, S. B., Breaux, A. M., Ewing, L. J., Szumowski, E. K. & Pierce, E. W. (1986). Parent-identified problem preschoolers: Mother-child interaction during play at intake and 1-year follow-up. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 14, 425440.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Campbell, S. B., & Cluss, P. (1982). Peer relationships in young children with behavior problems. In Rubin, K. H. & Ross, H. S. (Eds.), Peer relationships and social skills in childhood. New York: Springer-Verlag.Google Scholar
Campbell, S. B., & Ewing, L. J. (1990). Follow-up of hard-to-manage preschoolers: Adjustment at age 9 and predictors of continuing symptoms. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 31, 871889.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Campbell, S. B., March, C. L., Pierce, E. W., Ewing, L. J., & Szumowski, E. K. (1991). Hard-to-manage preschool boys: Family context and the stability of externalizing behavior. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 19, 301318.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Campbell, S. B., Szumowski, E. K., Ewing, L. J., Gluck, D. S., & Breaux, A. M. (1982). A multidimensional assessment of parent-identified behavior problem toddlers. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 10, 569592.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cicchetti, D., & Rizley, R. (1981). Developmental perspectives on the etiology, intergenerational transmission, and sequelae of child maltreatment. New Directions for Child Development, 11, 3155.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Conrad, M., & Hammen, C. (1989). Role of maternal depression in perceptions of child maladjustment. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 57, 663667.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dumas, J. E., & Wahler, R. G. (1985). Indiscriminate mothering as a contextual factor in aggressive-oppositional child behavior: “Damned if you do and damned if you don't.” Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 13, 117.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hinshaw, S. P. (1987). On the distinction between attentional deficits/hyperactivity and conduct problems/aggression in child psychopathology. Psychological Bulletin, 101, 443463.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kuczynski, L., Kochanska, G., Radke-Yarrow, M., & Girnius-Brown, O. (1987). A developmental interpretation of young children's noncompliance. Developmental Psychology, 23, 799806.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lahey, B. B., Conger, R. D., Atkeson, B. M., & Treiber, F. A. (1984). Parenting behavior and emotional status of physically abusive mothers. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 52, 10621071.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lee, C. L., & Bates, J. E. (1985). Mother-child interaction at age two years and perceived difficult temperament. Child Development, 56, 13141323.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Loeber, R., Brinthaupt, V. P., & Green, S. M. (in press). Attention deficits, impulsivity, and hyperactivity with and without conduct problems: Relationships to delinquency and unique contextual factors. In McMahon, R. J. & Peters, R. Dev (Eds.), Behavior disorders of adolescence: Research, intervention, and policy in clinical and school settings. New York: Plenum.Google Scholar
Masten, A. S., & Garmezy, N. (1985). Risk, vulnerability, and protective factors in developmental psychopathology. In Lahey, B. B. & Kazdin, A. E. (Eds.), Advances in clinical child psychology (Vol. 8). New York: Plenum.Google Scholar
McGee, R., Williams, S., & Silva, P. A. (1984). Background characteristics of aggressive, hyperactive, and aggressive-hyperactive boys. Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 23, 280284.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moffitt, T. (1990). Juvenile delinquency and attention deficit disorder: Boys' developmental trajectories from age 3 to 15. Child Development, 61, 893910.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Panaccione, V. F., & Wahler, R. G. (1986). Child behavior, maternal depression, and social coercion as factors in the quality of child care. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 14, 263278.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Patterson, G. R. (1980). Mothers: The unacknowledged victims. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 45 (5, Serial No. 186).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pelham, W., & Bender, M. E. (1982). Peer relationships in hyperactive children: Description and treatment. In Gadow, K. & Bialer, I. (Eds.), Advances in learning and behavioral disabilities (Vol. 1). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.Google Scholar
Radloff, L. (1977). The CES-D Scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Journal of Applied Psychological Measurement, 1, 385401.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Richman, N., Stevenson, J., & Graham, P. J. (1982). Preschool to school: A behavioural study. London: Academic.Google Scholar
Rutter, M. (1987). Psychosocial resilience and protective mechanisms. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 57, 316331.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sarason, I. G., Johnson, J. A., & Siegel, J. M. (1978). Assessing the impact of life changes: Development of the Life Experiences Survey. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 46, 932946.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Spanier, G. B. (1976). Measuring dyadic adjustment: New scales for assessing the quality of marriage and similar dyads. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 38, 1528.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Webster-Stratum, C. (1988). Mothers' and fathers' perceptions of child deviance: Roles of parent and child adjustment and child deviance. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56, 909915.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Werner, E. E., & Smith, R. S. (1982). Vulnerable but invincible: A longitudinal study of resilient children and youth. New York: Adams Bannister Cox.Google Scholar