The effects of neighborhood factors, maternal depression and parental emotional support on social – behavioral outcomes of children involved in the child welfare system

Abstract

ABSTRACT Children involved in the child welfare system (CWS) are exposed to various negative neighborhood and family-level factors contributing to their poor developmental outcomes, including poor social-behavioral health. Considering the importance of social-behavioral functioning for children’s cognitive growth and academic success, it is important that the interplay of neighborhood and family-level factors and their effects on the social-behavioral outcomes of at-risk children are well understood. By utilizing the first two waves of nationally representative data from the National Survey of Child Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW II), the study examines the potential direct and indirect effects of mothers’ perceived neighborhood factors on the social-behavioral outcomes of young children involved in the CWS. Hypothesized direct and indirect pathways operating through mediating mechanisms such as maternal mental health, parental responsiveness, and harsh discipline were tested by using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results suggest that perceived neighborhood danger is significantly related to mothers’ depressive symptoms, increasing the likelihood of harsh and negative parenting being used by depressed mothers, ultimately resulting in negative social-behavioral outcomes of young children in the CWS.