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The Association between Stressful Life Events and Emotional and Behavioral Problems in Children 0-7 Years Old: The

Yuan Fang1, Hein Raat1, Dafna A Windhorst1,2,3

  • 1Department of Public Health, Erasmus University Medical Centre, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
|February 15, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Stressful life events (SLEs) are linked to increased emotional and behavioral problems in young children. Identifying specific SLEs can help target interventions for better child well-being.

Area of Science:

  • Child Psychology
  • Developmental Pediatrics
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Stressful life events (SLEs) are known risk factors for emotional and behavioral issues.
  • The association between SLEs and problems in young children (up to 7 years) is understudied.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the association between exposure to SLEs and emotional/behavioral problems in young children.
  • To identify specific SLEs impacting child well-being.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of baseline data from 959 children (mean age 3.3 years) in a Dutch longitudinal study.
  • Linear regression used to assess associations between SLEs and emotional/behavioral problems (CBCL 1.5-5).
  • Exploration of interactions between SLEs and child demographics (age, sex, ethnicity, SES).

Main Results:

  • Higher total SLE exposure correlated with increased CBCL total, internalizing, and externalizing problem scores.
  • Six specific SLEs were independently associated with higher problem scores.
  • No significant differences in associations based on child age, sex, ethnicity, or SES.

Conclusions:

  • SLE exposure is associated with heightened emotional and behavioral problems in young children.
  • The type of SLE may influence its impact on child well-being.
  • Targeting SLEs in interventions could improve emotional and behavioral outcomes for young children.
Abstract

Keywords:
childrenemotional and behavioral problemsexternalizing behaviorsinternalizing behaviorslife events

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