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Updated: Dec 31, 2025

Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood
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Psychophysiological Assessment of the Effectiveness of Emotion Regulation Strategies in Childhood

Published on: February 11, 2017

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Intimate partner violence indirectly dysregulates child diurnal adrenocortical functioning through positive parenting

Leah C Hibel1, Amy K Nuttall2, Kristin Valentino3

  • 1Department of Human Ecology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, USA.

International Journal of Developmental Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the International Society for Developmental Neuroscience
|January 8, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Mothers experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) showed less positive parenting, which was linked to higher child waking cortisol. This suggests a pathway impacting children's stress regulation.

Area of Science:

  • Child Psychology
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Stress and Health

Background:

  • Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a significant stressor for mothers.
  • Maternal stress and parenting practices can influence child physiological regulation.
  • Understanding the pathways linking maternal IPV to child outcomes is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the indirect impact of maternal intimate partner violence (IPV) on child diurnal cortisol levels.
  • To examine the mediating role of parenting practices (positive parenting and autonomy support) in the IPV-child cortisol relationship.
  • To explore the influence of maternal diurnal cortisol as a potential mediator.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal study of 221 preschooler dyads.
  • Mothers self-reported intimate partner violence (IPV) and parenting practices.
  • Salivary cortisol was collected from mothers and children at waking, midday, and bedtime over two consecutive days.
  • Bootstrapped mediation analyses were employed to examine indirect effects.

Main Results:

  • Greater maternal exposure to IPV was associated with reduced positive parenting.
  • Reduced positive parenting indirectly predicted higher child waking cortisol levels.
  • IPV did not indirectly impact child diurnal cortisol via autonomy-supporting parenting or maternal diurnal cortisol.

Conclusions:

  • Maternal experiences of IPV may indirectly affect child physiological regulation through reduced positive parenting.
  • Positive parenting acts as a mediator in the pathway between maternal IPV and child waking cortisol.
  • Findings highlight the importance of supporting mothers exposed to IPV to promote positive parenting and child well-being.

Keywords:
childrencortisoldiurnal rhythmintimate partner violenceparenting

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