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Parenting stress and child behavior problems: a transactional relationship across time
Cameron L Neece1, Shulamite A Green, Bruce L Baker
1University of California, Los Angeles, USA. cneece@llu.edu
American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
|January 24, 2012
Summary
Parenting stress and child behavior problems influence each other across development. This bidirectional relationship was observed in both typically developing children and those with developmental delays.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Child Psychiatry
- Family Studies
Background:
- Parenting stress and child behavior problems are theoretically linked in a transactional model.
- Empirical evidence for this bidirectional relationship across development remains limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the longitudinal, transactional relationship between parenting stress and child behavior problems.
- To examine this relationship in both typically developing children and those with developmental delays from ages 3 to 9.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study design involving 237 children (144 typically developing, 93 with developmental delays).
- Cross-lagged panel analyses were used to assess the bidirectional effects between parenting stress and child behavior problems over time.
- Data collected from mothers and fathers.
Main Results:
- Significant covariation was found between parenting stress and child behavior problems across the study period for both child groups.
- Cross-lagged panel analyses supported a bidirectional influence between parenting stress and child behavior problems for both mothers and fathers.
Conclusions:
- Findings support a transactional model where parenting stress and child behavior problems mutually influence each other.
- This bidirectional relationship is evident in both typically developing children and those with developmental delays, highlighting its developmental significance.
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