Abstract
The purpose of the current study was to examine the mutual relationships between dyadic level (i.e., marital quality and parenting stress) and individual level factors (i.e., children and parental depressive symptoms) in families of children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD). Specifically, we explored whether marital interaction (marital quality) was associated with symptoms of child depression through parent-child interaction (parenting stress) and parent depressive symptoms. We also explored whether parent-child interaction was associated with symptoms of parent depression through marital interaction and child depressive symptoms. This study was conducted with 256 parent-child dyads, consisting of children with ODD and one of each child's parents. Participants were recruited from 14 primary schools located in northern, eastern, and southwestern China. Results revealed that marital quality predicted symptoms of child depression through the parenting stress, but not parent depressive symptoms; and parenting stress predicted symptoms of parent depression through marital quality, but not through child depressive symptoms. Also, parenting stress significantly and directly predicted parent depressive symptoms. We concluded in families of children with ODD, the association of marital interaction and parent-child interaction on both symptoms of parent and child depression highlighted the mutual effects of the couple subsystem and the parent-child subsystem. Furthermore, in regard to parental and child depressive symptoms, implications for intervention are provided.
Highlights
The family systems theories reveal that family is an integrated and hierarchically organized system (Gottman, 1979; Nichols and Schwartz, 1998; McHale and Sullivan, 2008)
Marital quality was negatively associated with child depressive symptoms and parental depressive symptoms, while parenting stress was positively related to child depressive symptoms and parent depressive symptoms
Based on data collected from parents and their children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), findings in the current study clarified the associations between family factors at the dyadic level and individual level
Summary
The family systems theories reveal that family is an integrated and hierarchically organized system (Gottman, 1979; Nichols and Schwartz, 1998; McHale and Sullivan, 2008). Marital interaction and parent-child interaction are two important dynamics at the dyadic level within family systems which concern family functioning and the mental health of children and parents (Erel and Burman, 1995; Kwok et al, 2015). Other studies have revealed the influence of marital interaction and parent-child interaction on parents’ mental health (Whisman, 2001; Proulx et al, 2007; Kouros et al, 2008; National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, 2009). Focusing on children with ODD and their families, the current study would examine the associations among two main dyadic level factors (marital quality and parenting stress) and two individual level factors (parent and children depressive symptoms)
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