Top

Gepubliceerd in:

29-09-2022 | Original Paper

When Parents Wear Dark Glasses: An Experimental Study on Parental Negative Attributions and Parenting Behavior

Auteurs: Benedicte Mouton, Joyce Weeland, Patty Leijten, Geertjan Overbeek

Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Child and Family Studies | Uitgave 12/2022

Abstract

This experimental study aimed to advance our understanding of parental negative attributions of children’s misbehavior (parental interpretations of what causes children’s misbehavior) and how they relate to other parental characteristics. Specifically, we examined: (1) How different measures of parental negative attributions relate to cognitive and affective parental characteristics (e.g., stress, temperament, parental self-efficacy); and (2) How reducing negative parental attributions affects parenting. In all steps, we differentiated between two types of negative parental attributions: parent-causal attributions (identifying one’s parenting or parent characteristics as cause for the child’s behavior) and child-responsible attributions (identifying the child as responsible for the behavior). Data were collected from 78 parents and their 3 to 5-year-old children (M = 51.67 months, SD = 8.56) in a lab experiment. Parents were randomly assigned to conditions aimed to reduce negative attributions (parent-causal, child-responsible) or a control condition. Results suggest that different parental characteristics tap into complementary aspects of negative parental attributions. Global parental negative attributions were associated with parent negative affect, laxness and positive discipline, and these associations were stronger for parent-causal than child-responsible attributions. Experimental manipulation of parental negative attributions seemed to reduce situation-specific attributions (both parent-causal and child-responsible), but not global attributions, parental self-efficacy or parenting behavior. Our findings suggest parental negative attributions of child’s misbehavior may be a node in the complex parenting network of parental cognitions, affect, and behavior. Understanding the causal effects and malleability of negative parental attributions may advance parenting process theory and practice.

vorige artikel “They Just Keep Coming”: A Study of How Anti-Black Racial Violence Informs Racial Grief and Resistance Among Black Mothers

volgende artikel Randomized Controlled Trial on an Online Training to Support Caregivers of Young Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disability managing Problem Behaviors at Home

Alleen toegankelijk voor geautoriseerde gebruikers

Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215.CrossRefPubMed

Beckerman, M., van Berkel, S. R., Mesman, J., & Alink, L. R. A. (2017). The role of negative parental attributions in the associations between daily stressors, maltreatment history, and harsh and abusive discipline [Article]. Child Abuse and Neglect, 64, 109–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2016.12.015.CrossRefPubMed

Beckerman, M., van Berkel, S. R., Mesman, J., & Alink, L. R. A. (2018). Negative parental attributions mediate associations between risk factors and dysfunctional parenting: A replication and extension. Child Abuse and Neglect, 81, 249–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2018.05.001.CrossRefPubMed

Beckerman, M., van Berkel, S. R., Mesman, J., Huffmeijer, R., & Alink, L. R. A. (2020). Are negative parental attributions predicted by situational stress?: From a theoretical assumption toward an experimental answer. Child Maltreatment, 25(3), 352–362. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077559519879760.CrossRefPubMed

Belsky, J., Crnic, K., & Woodworth, S. (1995). Personality and parenting: exploring the mediating role of transient mood and daily hassles. Journal of Personality, 63(4), 905–929. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1995.tb00320.x.CrossRefPubMed

Benjamini, Y., & Yekutieli, D. (2001). The control of the false discovery rate in multiple testing under dependency. Annals of statistics, 1165–1188. https://doi.org/10.1214/aos/1013699998

Bugental, D. B., & Johnston, C. (2000a). Parental and child cognitions in the context of the family. Annual Review Of Psychology, 51, 315–344. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.51.1.315.CrossRefPubMed

Bugental, D. B., New, M., Johnston, C., & Silvester, J. (1998). Measuring parental attributions: Conceptual and methodological issues. Journal of Family Psychology, 12(4), 459–480. https://doi.org/10.1037/0893-3200.12.4.459.CrossRef

Cicchetti, D. V. (1994). Guidelines, criteria, and rules of thumb for evaluating normed and standardized assessment instruments in psychology. Psychological Assessment, 6(4), 284–290. https://doi.org/10.1037/1040-3590.6.4.284.CrossRef

Coleman, P. K., & Karraker, K. H. (2003). Maternal self-efficacy beliefs, competence in parenting, and toddlers’ behavior and developmental status. Infant Mental Health Journal, 24(2), 126–148. https://doi.org/10.1002/imhj.10048.CrossRef

Crouch, J. L., Irwin, L. M., Milner, J. S., Skowronski, J. J., Rutledge, E., & Davila, A. L. (2017). Do hostile attributions and negative affect explain the association between authoritarian beliefs and harsh parenting. Child Abuse and Neglect, 67, 13–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2017.02.019.CrossRefPubMed

Cunningham, A., & Renk, K. (2018). Parenting in the context of childhood trauma: self-efficacy as a mediator between attributions and parenting competence. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 27(3), 895–906. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0899-x.CrossRef

De Los Reyes, A. (2011). Introduction to the special section: more than measurement error: discovering meaning behind informant discrepancies in clinical assessments of children and adolescents. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 40(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1080/15374416.2011.533405.CrossRef

Deater-Deckard, K., & Bell, M. A. (2017). Maternal executive function, heart rate, and EEG alpha reactivity interact in the prediction of harsh parenting. Journal of Family Psychology, 31(1), 41.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Dix, T. (1991). The affective organization of parenting: adaptive and maladaptative processes. Psychological Bulletin, 110(1), 3–25. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.110.1.3.CrossRefPubMed

Dix, T., Ruble, D. N., Grusec, J. E., & Nixon, S. (1986). Social cognition in parents: inferential and affective reactions to children of three age levels. Child Development, 57(4), 879–894.CrossRefPubMed

Evans, D. E., & Rothbart, M. K. (2007). Developing a model for adult temperament. Journal of Research in Personality, 41(4), 868–888. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2006.11.002.CrossRef

Fazio, R. H., Ledbetter, J. E., & Towles-Schwen, T. (2000). On the costs of accessible attitudes: Detecting that the attitude object has changed. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78(2), 197–210. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.78.2.197.CrossRefPubMed

Feldman, R. (2012). Bio-behavioral synchrony: a model for integrating biological and microsocial behavioral processes in the study of parenting. Parenting, 12(2-3), 154–164. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295192.2012.683342.CrossRef

Fukkink, R. G. (2008). Video feedback in widescreen: A meta-analysis of family programs [Review]. Clinical Psychology Review, 28(6), 904–916. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2008.01.003.CrossRefPubMed

Goldsmith, H. H., Buss, A. H., Plomin, R., Rothbart, M. K., Thomas, A. M., Chess, S., Hinde, R. A., & McCall, R. B. (1987). What is temperament? Four approaches. Child Development, 58(2), 505–529. https://doi.org/10.2307/1130527.CrossRefPubMed

Hamilton, V. E., Matthews, J. M., & Crawford, S. B. (2015). Development and preliminary validation of a parenting self-regulation scale: “me as a parent”. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(10), 2853–2864.CrossRef

Heider, F. (1958). The psychology of interpersonal relations Hillsdale. New Jersey: LEA.

Hendriks, A. M., Van der Giessen, D., Stams, G. J. J. M., & Overbeek, G. (2018). The association between parent-reported and observed parenting: A multi-level meta-analysis. Psychological Assessment, 30(5), 621–633. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000500.CrossRefPubMed

Herbers, J. E., Garcia, E. B., & Obradović, J. (2017). Parenting assessed by observation versus parent-report: moderation by parent distress and family socioeconomic status. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26(12), 3339–3350. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0848-8.CrossRef

Hou, Y., Benner, A. D., Kim, S. Y., Chen, S., Spitz, S., Shi, Y., & Beretvas, T. (2019). Discordance in parents’ and adolescents’ reports of parenting: a meta-analysis and qualitative review. American Psychologist. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000463.

Johnston, C., Belschner, L., Park, J. L., Stewart, K., Noyes, A., & Schaller, M. (2017). Mothers’ implicit and explicit attitudes and attributions in relation to self-reported. Parenting Behavior. Parenting, 17(1), 51–72. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295192.2016.1184954.CrossRef

Johnston, C., & Freeman, W. (1997). Attributions for child behavior in parents of children without behavior disorders and children with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 65(4), 636–645. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.65.4.636.CrossRefPubMed

Johnston, C., & Ohan, J. L. (2005). The importance of parental attributions in families of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity and disruptive behavior disorders. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 8(3), 167–182. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-005-6663-6.CrossRefPubMed

Johnston, C., Park, J., & Miller, N. (2018). Parental cognitions: relations to parenting and child behavior. In Sanders, M. R., & Morawska, A. (Eds.), Handbook of Parenting and Child Development Across the Lifespan (pp. 395–414). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94598-9_17.

Jones, T. L., & Prinz, R. J. (2005). Potential roles of parental self-efficacy in parent and child adjustment: A review [doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2004.12.004]. Clinical Psychology Review, 25(3), 341–363. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S027273580500005X.CrossRefPubMed

Juffer, F., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., & van Ijzendoorn, M. H. (2008). Promoting positive parenting: An attachment-based intervention. Taylor & Francis Group/Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Kochanska, G., Friesenborg, A. E., Lange, L. A., & Martel, M. M. (2004). Parents’ personality and infants’ temperament as contributors to their emerging relationship. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 86(5), 744–759. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.86.5.744.CrossRefPubMed

Lansford, J. E., Bornstein, M. H., Dodge, K. A., Skinner, A. T., Putnick, D. L., & Deater-Deckard, K. (2011). Attributions and attitudes of mothers and fathers in the United States. Parenting, 11(2-3), 199–213. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295192.2011.585567.CrossRefPubMed

Larson, R., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2014). The experience sampling method. In Flow and the Foundations of Positive Psychology: The Collected Works of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pp. 21-34). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9088-8_2.

Loop, L., Mouton, B., Brassart, E., & Roskam, I. (2017). The observation of child behavior during parent-child interaction: the psychometric properties of the crowell procedure. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26(4), 1040–1050. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-016-0625-0.CrossRef

Magaña, A. B., Goldstein, M. J., Karno, M., Miklowitz, D. J., Jenkins, J., & Falloon, I. R. H. (1986). A brief method for assessing expressed emotion in relatives of psychiatric patients. Psychiatry Research, 17(3), 203–212. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-1781(86)90049-1.

Mesman, J., Stolk, M. N., van Zeijl, J., Alink, L. R. A., Juffer, F., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., van Ijzendoorn, M. H., & Koot, H. M. (2008). Extending the video-feedback intervention to sensitive discipline: The early prevention of antisocial behavior. In Juffer, F., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., & van Ijzendoorn, M. H, (Eds.), Promoting positive parenting: An attachment-based intervention. (pp. 171-191). Taylor & Francis Group/Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Milner, J. S. (2000). Social information processing and child physical abuse: theory and research. Nebraska Symposium on Motivation. Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, 46, 39–84.PubMed

Milner, J. S. (2003). Social information processing in high-risk and physically abusive parents. Child Abuse & Neglect, 27(1), 7–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0145-2134(02)00506-9.CrossRef

Milner, J. S., & Crouch, J. L. (2013). Assessment of maternal attributions of infant’s hostile intent and its use in child maltreatment prevention/intervention efforts. JAMA Pediatrics, 167(6), 588–589. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2013.1467.CrossRefPubMed

Moens, M. A., Weeland, J., Van der Giessen, D., Chhangur, R. R., & Overbeek, G. (2018). In the eye of the beholder? Parent-observer discrepancies in parenting and child disruptive behavior assessments. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 46(6), 1147–1159. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-017-0381-7.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Mouton, B., Loop, L., Stievenart, M., & Roskam, I. (2018). Confident parents: a parental self-efficacy program to reduce preschoolers’ externalizing behavior. Education Sciences, 8(134), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci8030134.CrossRef

Mouton, B., & Roskam, I. (2015). Confident mothers, easier children: a quasi-experimental manipulation of mothers’ self-efficacy. Journal of Child & Family Studies, 24(8), 2485–2495. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-014-0051-0.CrossRef

Nix, R. L., Pinderhughes, E. E., Dodge, K. A., Bates, J. E., Pettit, G. S., & McFadyen-Ketchum, S. A. (1999). The relation between mothers’ hostile attribution tendencies and children’s externalizing behavior problems: The mediating role of mothers’ harsh discipline practices. Child Development, 70(4), 896–909. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8624.00065.CrossRefPubMed

Palm, S. M. E., Sawrikar, V., Schollar-Root, O., Moss, A., Hawes, D. J., & Dadds, M. R. (2019). Parents’ spontaneous attributions about their problem child: associations with parental mental health and child conduct problems. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 47(9), 1455–1466. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-019-00536-3.CrossRefPubMed

Repetti, R. L., Taylor, S. E., & Seeman, T. E. (2002). Risky families: Family social environments and the mental and physical health of offspring. Psychological Bulletin, 128(2), 330–366. https://doi.org/10.1177/074355489272005.CrossRefPubMed

Rothbart, M. K., & Bates, J. E. (2006). Temperament. In Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3, Social, emotional, and personality development (6th ed.). (pp. 99-166). John Wiley & Sons Inc, Hoboken, NJ.

Sawrikar, V., Hawes, D. J., Moul, C., & Dadds, M. R. (2018). The role of parental attributions in predicting parenting intervention outcomes in the treatment of child conduct problems. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 111, 64–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2018.10.004.CrossRefPubMed

Shields, G. S., Sazma, M. A., & Yonelinas, A. P. (2016). The effects of acute stress on core executive functions: A meta-analysis and comparison with cortisol. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 68, 651–668. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.06.038.CrossRef

Slep, A. M. S., & O’Leary, S. G. (1998). The effects of maternal attributions on parenting: an experimental analysis. Journal of Family Psychology, 12(2), 234–243.CrossRef

Smith, A. M., & O’Leary, S. G. (1995). Attributions and arousal as predictors of maternal discipline. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 19(4), 459–471. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02230412.CrossRef

Snarr, J. D., Slep, A. M. S., & Grande, V. P. (2009). Validation of a new self-report measure of parental attributions. Psychological Assessment, 21(3), 390–401. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0016331.CrossRefPubMed

Stalder, T., Kirschbaum, C., Kudielka, B. M., Adam, E. K., Pruessner, J. C., Wüst, S., Dockray, S., Smyth, N., Evans, P., Hellhammer, D. H., Miller, R., Wetherell, M. A., Lupien, S. J., & Clow, A. (2016). Assessment of the cortisol awakening response: Expert consensus guidelines. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 63, 414–432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.10.010.CrossRefPubMed

van Oort, J., Tendolkar, I., Hermans, E. J., Mulders, P. C., Beckmann, C. F., Schene, A. H., Fernández, G., & van Eijndhoven, P. F. (2017). How the brain connects in response to acute stress: A review at the human brain systems level. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 83, 281–297. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2017.10.015.CrossRefPubMed

Verhoeven, M., Deković, M., Bodden, D., & van Baar, A. L. (2017). Development and initial validation of the comprehensive early childhood parenting questionnaire (CECPAQ) for parents of 1–4 year-olds. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 14(2), 233–247. https://doi.org/10.1080/17405629.2016.1182017.CrossRef

Verhoeven, M., & Huijding, J. (2021). Challenging behavior of toddlers: Parental self-efficacy and attributions in shaping maternal disciplinary responses. Communication to Biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child Develop. (SRCD), online, April 7-9 2021, online, unpublished.

Vermulst, A. A., Kroes, G., De Meyer, R. E., Nguyen, L., & Veerman, J. W. (2011). Opvoedingsbelasting vragentlijst. Praktikon bv, Nijmegen.

Wood, W., Quinn, J. M., & Kashy, D. A. (2002). Habits in everyday life: Thought, emotion, and action. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(6), 1281–1297. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.83.6.1281.CrossRefPubMed

Titel: When Parents Wear Dark Glasses: An Experimental Study on Parental Negative Attributions and Parenting Behavior
Auteurs: Benedicte Mouton
Joyce Weeland
Patty Leijten
Geertjan Overbeek
Publicatiedatum: 29-09-2022
Uitgeverij: Springer US
Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Child and Family Studies / Uitgave 12/2022
Print ISSN: 1062-1024
Elektronisch ISSN: 1573-2843
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-022-02446-3

Bohn Stafleu van Loghum

Deel dit onderdeel of sectie (kopieer de link)

Abstract

Log in om toegang te krijgen

Andere artikelen Uitgave 12/2022

Primary Caregiver Influence on Youth Correctional Misconduct

Positive Parenting Scale (E2P): Evidence of Validity and Reliability in a Chilean Sample

Good Traits, Bad Traits, and ‘Ugly’ Behavior: Relations between the Dark Triad, Honesty-Humility, Other HEXACO Personality Traits, and Externalizing Problems in Adolescents

The Development and Validation of the Interpersonal Problem-Solving Inventory for Elementary School Students

Online ACT Matrix Parent Training for Japanese-Speaking Mothers with Distress in the United States

The Impact of an Intensive Summer Treatment Program for Adolescents with ADHD: A Qualitative Study of Parent and Young Adult Perspectives