Children's Behavior Research Articles

Audio–Visual Modeling and its Effect on Behavior of Pediatric Patient: An Observational Study

ABSTRACT Background: The prognosis and patients’ cooperation are interdependent on each other. In case of children, this aspect becomes all the more highlighted because of heightened response to pain and anxiety. Material and Methodology: Hundred (4-to-10 years old) children who were rated as negative on Frankl Behavior Rating Scale were taken for the study. The children were shown a video of a positive child model, and also various procedures of the dental treatment were shown. Results: Sixty-one children out of 100 demonstrated positive behavior and 3 showed definitely positive behavior during preventive treatment procedures. On the other hand, 73 children out of 100 demonstrated positive behavior and 3 showed definitely positive behavior during main treatment procedures. Significant change was observed in behavior of children in before and after the video was shown to them (<0.001). Conclusion: Audio–visual modeling has been proved to be a very efficient method in developing positive behavior of children toward dental treatment.

German Parents and Educators of Two to Four-Year-Old Children as Informants for the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).

Screeners are used in early intervention and early childhood education and care programs to identify children's potential need for further evaluation and diagnostics. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is a brief behavioral screening instrument that can be completed by both parents and educators to assess the social and emotional traits of children. However, multiple informants' reports vary. In this study, the extent to which parents' (n = 241) and educators' (n = 157) differ and agree in their assessments of children aged 3.5 years on average, was examined. T-tests were used to examine differences between informants and correlations within a multitrait-multimethod matrix (MTMM) in their agreement. Results showed moderate to high levels of rater agreement ranging from r = .35 and r = .53 on the five subscales of the SDQ. We found that hyperactivity, peer relationship problems, and prosocial behavior vary due to meaningful reasons, e.g., the home vs. pre-school setting, and the informant's relationship towards the child. Hyperactivity seems to be relatively consistent across settings. Methodological variations might explain differences in emotional symptoms and conduct problems. Considering ratings from multiple informants outlines a more comprehensive view of children's behavior and should be preferred over single-informant research designs.

Influence of the consumatory behavior onto the risk of obesity and its complications in primary school children

Objective. To identify the relationship of eating behavior and clinical and metabolic status of 6–11-year-old children in order to develop effective methods for prevention and treatment of obesity and its complications. Materials and methods. 94 children aged 6 to 11 participated in the research. They formed 2 groups: group I (n = 64) – obese children (standard deviation score (SDS) of body mass index (BMI) ≥ +2.0), group II (n = 30) – children with normal body weight (SDS BMI –1.0 … +1.0). Clinical and laboratory parameters were studied and eating behavior was assessed using the Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire. Results. As a result of the study, it was determined that average values of triglycerides (TG), uric acid (UA), thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), fasting glycemia (FG), p = 0.001, p = 0.002, p 0.001, p 0.001 were higher in obese children. The following features of the eating behavior in obese children have been revealed: a more active reaction to food and emotional overeating, p = 0.016, p = 0.004 Statistically significant direct moderate correlations between SDS BMI and the level of TG, UA, TSH and FG under the influence of eating behavior according to the “eating approach” type were established. Conclusions. An association between the pattern of eating behavior in obese children aged 6–11 and their clinical and metabolic status, which determines the risk of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases in the future was revealed. The results obtained are a justification for identifying the nature of children`s eating behavior in order to prevent the development of obesity and associated complications, as well as to increase the effectiveness of therapy.

Prediction by Young Autistic Children from Visual and Spoken Input.

Recent theoretical accounts suggest that differences in the processing of probabilistic events underlie the core and associated traits of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). These theories hypothesize that autistic individuals are differentially impacted by disruptions in probabilistic input relative to neurotypical peers. According to this view, autistic individuals assign disproportionate weight to prediction errors such that novel input is overweighted relative to the aggregation of prior input; this is referred to as 'hyperplasticity' of learning. Prediction among autistic individuals has primarily been examined in nonverbal, visual contexts with older children and adults. The present study examined 32 autistic and 32 cognitively-matched neurotypical (NT) children's ability to generate predictions and adjust to changes in predictive relationships in auditory stimuli using two eye gaze tasks. In both studies, children were trained and tested on an auditory-visual cue which predicted the location of a reward stimulus. In Experiment 1 the cue was non-linguistic (instrumental sound) whereas in Experiment 2 the cue was linguistically-relevant (speaker gender). In both experiments, the cue-reward contingency was switched after the first block of trials, and predictive behavior was evaluated across a second block of trials. Results: Analyses of children's looking behavior revealed similar performance in both groups on the non-linguistic task (Exp. 1). In the linguistically-relevant task (Exp. 2), predictive looking was less disrupted by the contingency switch for autistic children than NT children. Results suggest that autistic children may demonstrate hyperplastic learning in linguistically-relevant contexts, relative to NT peers.

Caregiver, community health worker, and dentist feedback on a behavioral intervention for caregivers of children with severe early childhood caries.

Severe early childhood caries (S-ECC) is a common disease within marginalized pediatric populations. S-ECC is often treated under general anesthesia to facilitate extensive treatment in young children, but treatment does not address etiology of an infectious disease that is rooted in health behaviors. Without behavior changes related to toothbrushing and sugar consumption, many children experience recurrent disease and some require subsequent surgeries. To improve post-surgery oral health, we developed PROTECT (Preventing Recurrent Operations Targeting Early Childhood Caries Treatment), a community health worker (CHW)-delivered behavioral intervention for caregivers that focuses on children's oral health behaviors. The purpose of this study was to use qualitative research methods to receive feedback on the planned protocol for a pilot study of PROTECT, a six-month intervention initiated at the time of a child's surgery to treat severe early childhood caries. Study participants included caregivers of children presenting for surgery [n = 12], CHWs [n = 8] and dentists [n = 8] in a series of audio-video recorded semi-structured interviews. Five coders used Braun and Clarke's six-phase framework for data analysis. Participant feedback on the pilot study protocol yielded the following themes: (1) right time, population, and type of support; (2) flexible intervention delivery and content; (3) inclusion of other social determinants of health; and (4) cultural considerations. Implementing a behavioral intervention for caregivers in the immediate time during a child's surgery for treating dental caries was widely deemed important and timely in order to affect post-surgical behavioral and clinical outcomes. Flexibility in content, timing, and communication were all named as facilitators to participant engagement and study retention. Caregivers and CHWs emphasized the relevance of addressing other social determinants of health. CHWs emphasized the importance of training in becoming aware of culture and practicing with understanding and humility, given the influence on health beliefs, behaviors, and family dynamics. Cultural considerations in intervention delivery were deemed an important factor for participant retention and engagement. Participant feedback led to critical modifications of the pilot study protocol, specifically in intervention content and CHW-led delivery.

Chaotic or crowded? The role of physical household environment in children's learning during the COVID-19 pandemic

Household chaos and crowding are known to significantly influence children's development; however, their relative contributions remain less clear. Furthermore, previous research has primarily focused on children's socioemotional and cognitive development, with limited attention to the learning process. This study explores the relation of household chaos and crowding with children's learning behaviors and emotions during the COVID-19 pandemic in Hong Kong. A sample of 262 parents and their primary school-aged children were recruited in Hong Kong. Both parents and children completed separate online questionnaires. Structural equation modeling revealed that while household chaos was correlated with crowding, it was specifically chaos, rather than crowding, that negatively related to children's learning behaviors. Importantly, the direct relationship between household chaos and children's learning behaviors remained significant even after accounting for family socioeconomic status (SES) and parents' involvement. This study enhances our understanding of the relation of physical environment with children's learning, emphasizing the distinct role of household chaos, separate from crowding and family SES.

Assessing the Accuracy of Activity Classification Using Thigh-Worn Accelerometry: A Validation Study of ActiPASS in School-Aged Children.

The ActiPASS software was developed from the open-source Acti4 activity classification algorithm for thigh-worn accelerometry. However, the original algorithm has not been validated in children or compared with a child-specific set of algorithm thresholds. This study aims to evaluate the accuracy of ActiPASS in classifying activity types in children using 2 published sets of Acti4 thresholds. Laboratory and free-living data from 2 previous studies were used. The laboratory condition included 41 school-aged children (11.0 [4.8]y; 46.5% male), and the free-living condition included 15 children (10.0 [2.6]y; 66.6% male). Participants wore a single accelerometer on the dominant thigh, and annotated video recordings were used as a reference. Postures and activity types were classified with ActiPASS using the original adult thresholds and a child-specific set of thresholds. Using the original adult thresholds, the mean balanced accuracy (95% CI) for the laboratory condition ranged from 0.62 (0.56-0.67) for lying to 0.97 (0.94-0.99) for running. For the free-living condition, accuracy ranged from 0.61 (0.48-0.75) for lying to 0.96 (0.92-0.99) for cycling. Mean balanced accuracy for overall sedentary behavior (sitting and lying) was ≥0.97 (0.95-0.99) across all thresholds and conditions. No meaningful differences were found between the 2 sets of thresholds, except for superior balanced accuracy of the adult thresholds for walking under laboratory conditions. The results indicate that ActiPASS can accurately classify different basic types of physical activity and sedentary behavior in children using thigh-worn accelerometer data.

Development, usability, and preliminary efficacy of a virtual reality experience to promote healthy lifestyle behaviors in children: pilot randomized controlled trial.

Virtual reality (VR) shows promise for supporting behavior change in children. This study used user-centered design to translate key tenets of behavioral health interventions into VR for children aged 6-12 years and their caregivers and examined the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of the VR experience in a pilot parallel, two-group randomized controlled trial (RCT). The VR experience incorporates psychoeducational content from evidence-based behavioral health interventions using voiceover and an interactive go-kart game related to the concepts of "food as fuel" and nutrition guidelines. Study 1 involved usability testing with n=5 child-caregiver dyads, which informed technical and content refinements to the experience. Study 2 involved children aged 6-12 years with body mass index (BMI) ≥85th percentile for age and sex who were comfortable speaking English and their caregivers with BMI ≥25 kg/m2. After participants completed baseline assessments in lab on eating-related behavioral cognitions and behaviors, participants were randomly assigned to the 10-minute VR experience or a control condition (i.e., nutrition education video and mobile phone food game), and were unblinded to condition. Child and caregivers completed assessments immediately post-intervention (eating-related behavioral cognitions) and at 2-week follow-up (behaviors, caregiver readiness to change). The objectives were to evaluate the feasibility, usability, and acceptability of the VR experience, and examine the preliminary efficacy of VR compared to the control condition on the primary outcomes of child behavioral cognitions and behaviors. Non-parametric tests examined differences in change scores across conditions as well as overall and within-group changes in outcomes. Twenty-seven child-caregiver dyads (14 in VR, 13 in control) were enrolled (child mean age =10.4 years; 14 girls). Caregivers reported good usability and excellent immersion in the virtual environment. Children reported significantly greater acceptability of VR compared to control (P=0.02). Child self-efficacy for healthy eating, self-efficacy for physical activity, attitudes toward healthy eating, and behavioral intentions for healthy eating increased from pre- to post-test in both conditions. From baseline to 2-week follow-up, all children reported greater weekly vegetable servings and more active days in the past week. Children in the VR condition had greater change in attitudes towards healthy eating from pre- to post-test compared to children in the control condition [effect size r=0.44, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.03-0.72]. Readiness to help child change significantly increased for caregivers in the VR condition from pre- to 2-week follow-up, but did not change for caregivers in the control condition. No adverse events were reported. A VR program to promote healthy eating among children shows high feasibility and acceptability, and high potential for improving child and caregiver behavioral cognitions in this pilot RCT. Future work should examine the impact of repeated exposure to the experience over time, and examine long-term effects. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04845568.

A routine within a routine: Can bedtime yoga improve sleep for the whole family?

Parents often point to bedtime as a source of frustration, yet early bedtimes and sufficient sleep are important for children's development, learning, and behavior. ObjectivesThis pilot study aimed to assess the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of a yoga-based bedtime routine in a sample of parent-child dyads from a rural community. MethodsUsing a waitlist control study design, children aged 2–5 years and their parent were randomized to either intervention (yoga) or control (bedtime story) groups. Pre- and post-intervention measures included the CHAOS, CSHQ, and FNPA scales. Height, weight, and waist circumference were measured by trained staff, while sleep and physical activity were tracked using accelerometry. ResultsOf the 15 dyads that completed all assessments, 13 (81.2%) completed at least 16 yoga sessions. CSHQ scores improved in both groups (Cohen's d 0.42 vs. 0.52 for intervention and control, respectively), and FNPA scores improved in the intervention group (Cohen's d = 0.4). The number of sessions completed was inversely correlated with changes in CHAOS score (r = −0.74, p = 0.003). DiscussionThese findings suggest that a yoga-based bedtime routine is feasible for families with 2-5-year-old children, with good adoption and adherence. Improvements in sleep and household chaos measures indicate that a yoga routine may be slightly more effective than a story-based one. This study provides preliminary support for further research on a yoga-based bedtime routine in a larger sample.

The Role of Grandparents in Facilitating Children's Physical Activity.

Research suggests there is considerable opportunity to improve children's movement behaviors while they are being cared for by their grandparents. An understanding of the extent to which grandparent practices facilitate children's engagement in physical activity is critical to the development of health interventions targeting grandparent caregivers. This study examined the activity-related beliefs and practices of grandparents and their association with grandchildren's engagement in various movement behaviors while in grandparental care. Australian grandparents (N = 1190; 60% women) who provided regular care to a grandchild aged 3-14years were recruited via a web panel provider to complete an online survey. The survey assessed grandparents' physical activity-related beliefs (eg,perceived importance) and practices (eg,support and social control) and their grandchildren's engagement in physical activity (unstructured, structured, and outdoor play) and screen-based activities while in grandparental care. The importance of grandchildren's physical activity was rated highly by grandparents. Grandparents' support for their grandchildren's physical activity was positively associated with their grandchildren's engagement in structured physical activity, unstructured physical activity, and outdoor play. Negative social control was associated with greater engagement in screen-based activities. Other correlates of grandchildren's physical activity and screen-based activities included grandparents' own engagement in these activities. Findings highlight the importance of reinforcing the beliefs and practices that positively influence children's movement behaviors and addressing those that have unintended consequences. Encouraging grandparents to support their grandchildren's physical activity and discouraging forms of negative social control are likely to be important in efforts to promote physical activity in children.

Dynamic coupling of maternal sensitivity and toddlers' responsive/assertive behaviors predicts children's behavior toward peers during the preschool years.

We examined the extent to which dynamic coupling of (a) maternal sensitivity and (b) children's responsive and assertive behaviors toward mothers during a semistructured play session predicts children's responsive and assertive behavior toward an unfamiliar peer at 39 months and a close friend at 58 and 66 months. Maternal and child behaviors were rated in 30-s epochs during play when children were 32 months old (Time 1; N = 128; 66 girls). Children were rated on their responsiveness and assertiveness toward an unfamiliar peer in the early preschool years (Time 2) and toward a friend in the late preschool years (Time 3). Residual dynamic structural equation models showed that stronger positive contemporaneous coupling of maternal sensitivity and children's responsiveness in a given 30-s epoch of the play session predicted greater observed responsiveness toward a friend in the late preschool years, after controlling for mean levels of maternal sensitivity and child responsiveness. On the other hand, positive contemporaneous coupling of maternal sensitivity and child assertiveness predicted children's higher levels of observed assertiveness toward an unfamiliar peer in the early preschool years, after controlling for mean levels of maternal sensitivity and child assertiveness. Results suggest that the dynamic coupling of specific positive behaviors during mother-child interaction may provide children with social scripts to draw on in diverse peer contexts. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

“We Were Beaten Down”: Parents' Concerns about Children's Digital Media Use

ABSTRACTParents' concerns about children's digital media use were investigated using data from semi‐structured interviews with 17 parents of children ages five to 11 at three branches of a U.S. urban public library system. Data were analyzed using collaborative inductive thematic analysis and analyzed with the lens of culturally‐constructed anxieties about new media. The most common concerns included worries about exposure to inappropriate content, worries about digital media taking up time that children would otherwise spend engaging in more meaningful activities, concerns about safety and privacy, and worries about negative effects on children's behaviors, attitudes, and social skills. Further analysis showed parents' deeper concern for children's healthy development to underlie these narrower concerns. The authors conclude with the recommendation to shift the framing of discourse around parenting with digital media from risk protection to digital media education. Such a shift could raise awareness that framing children and digital media only in terms of risks is overly simplistic, and it could help parents come to understand that children's digital media use is not just risky but also an opportunity for children to derive educational and social benefits, and learn how to operate in a digital media‐dominated information ecosystem.

Integrating Islamic Values and Sports for Children's Moral Development

The general background shows the need for an educational approach that integrates Islamic values and sports activities to shape children's morals holistically. The specific background underscores the importance of this research at TPQ Al-Mu’minun, which teaches the Qur’an and integrates sports into its curriculum. The existing knowledge gap is the lack of in-depth understanding of the impact of integrating Islamic values in sports on children's behavior. The aim of this research is to analyze how this integration affects the morals of children at TPQ Al-Mu’minun. The results show that sports activities such as archery and martial arts enhance children's discipline, responsibility, and ability to manage emotions. The novelty of this research lies in the holistic approach that combines physical and moral aspects in children's education. The implications of these findings indicate that character education that integrates Islamic values and sports can provide significant benefits in shaping positive morals in children, which in turn strengthens their self-confidence, respectful attitudes, and obedience in daily life. Highlights: The integration of Islamic values in sports contributes to the positive development of children's morals. Activities such as archery and martial arts enhance discipline, responsibility, and the ability to manage emotions. The post-activity reflection process deepens children's understanding of Islamic values in their daily lives. Keywords: Integration Islamic Values, Sports, Children's Morals, Character Education, Reflection

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on children's social, emotional, and moral development: A systematic literature revie

This research aims to better understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected children's social, emotional, and moral development. Articles and related studies were gathered from the Education Resources Information Centre (ERIC), Scopus, and Science Direct databases. After a quality review following the PRISMA 2020 protocol, 16 articles were selected for a systematic literature review (SLR). The findings from this review were organized into four main themes: (1) the impact of technology and distance learning on children, (2) children's behavior and emotions, (3) the conditions of people around them, and (4) social support. It is suggested that future studies focus on the positive effects of COVID-19 on education.

THEORETICAL AND SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF PARENT-CHILD RELATIONSHIP ISSUES IN THE RESEARCH OF UZBEK PSYCHOLOGISTS

In this article, research by Uzbek psychologists emphasizes that parents should systematically organize education, taking into account the age and individual psychological characteristics of the child, and a sense of responsibility. In every family, parents should be well aware of the socio-psychological characteristics of their children, pay attention to who their children interact with, correct the negative aspects of their children's behavior so that the positive traits of their children appear, and parents should treat their children in the same way. , do not spoil the child too much, do not discriminate, take into account the factors that cause conflicts between parents and children, maintain friendly relations with them and follow strict rules when working with children, it is recommended to take, take into account the changes that are taking place, accept him as a person, do not blame him, do not criticize his actions and behavior. The purpose of this article is to highlight the main philosophical and psychological-pedagogical approaches to the problem of relationships between children and parents in the family.

ACTUAL PROBLEMS OF DEVELOPING SAFE BEHAVIOR SKILLS IN CHILDREN OF THE SENIOR PRESCHOOL GROUP

In the article, the authors consider the problems that hinder the development of safe behavior skills of children of the senior preschool group. A literary review of the works of foreign and Kazakhstani teachers and scientists on the safe behavior of older preschool children is made. The definitions of “safety” and “safe behavior” are analyzed. The current state of work on the development of safe behavior skills in a preschool organization, at home, on the street is studied; the characteristic of behavioral reactions of senior preschool children is given; the normative legal documents, the State mandatory standard of preschool education and training of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Standard curriculum of preschool education and training of the Republic of Kazakhstan in the educational direction “Formation of socio-emotional skills” are analyzed. The purpose of the study is to identify current problems that hinder the development of safe behavior skills in children of the senior preschool group. The authors analyzed the types of child safety (social, physical and psychological, information, transport, educational, environmental, medical, legal and others), which are currently debatable. Based on the analysis of psychological and pedagogical literature, the current problems of ensuring and threatening the safety of children at home, on the street, in a preschool organization are identified. The ways of solving the problems reflected in foreign and Kazakhstani studies on ensuring the safety of older preschool children are considered. In the perspective of our research, determining the effectiveness of “playful learning” in the development of safe behavior skills and its implementation in the educational process of a preschool organization.

Leisure time activities of children: Inequalities, determinants, and inter-relations

More studies should adopt a combined approach to modifiable lifestyle behaviors because of their potential synergistic effects on health. This study aims to observe how boys and girls allocate their time on different activities, during week and weekend days, investigate the time inter-relations between different leisure activities, and analyze how child and familial characteristics are associated with children’s time use in multiple activities. In 2016/17, a validated questionnaire collected data from 3-10-year-old Portuguese children (n = 8,472). Parents reported their children’s time use in different behaviors: sleep, study, screen media use, indoor and outdoor play, and school commute, as well as children’s participation in sports, and socio-economic characteristics of the family. A combination of statistical analysis (e.g., t-tests, pairwise correlations and multiple linear regression) revealed that: boys reportedly have higher screen time than girls, but they also accumulate more time in outdoor play; the time spent in different activities was determined by a set of family sociodemographic factors, such as urbanization and parental employment; and exists some inter-relation between leisure activities with high screen time being significantly associated with less sport participation and less sleep duration. Identifying time spent in multiple activities that differ by sex (and associated determinants) is critical for the development of activity promotion strategies, and may help to inform evidence-based policies designed to increase physical activity and decrease sedentary behavior in young children. Present findings highlight the growing importance of electronic media in children’s life and how they can displace other leisure activities.

Dimensions of experienced gender and prospective self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in preadolescent children: A national study

ObjectivesGender diverse youth face higher risk of engaging in self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITBs) compared to cisgender youth. Limitations in past research include a focus on older adolescents, an emphasis on specific gender identity labels that may not be inclusive of the range of youth gender experiences, and reliance on cross-sectional data. Thus, the current study prospectively evaluated dimensions of experienced gender in relation to first-onset SITBs among preadolescents. MethodsData were drawn from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, a longitudinal study of youth across the United States. Youth (n = 7909) were aged 10–11 during initial assessment, and follow-up was conducted one year later. Two dimensions of experienced gender, felt-gender incongruence (not feeling aligned with the gender associated with one's sex assigned at birth) and gender non-contentedness (feeling dissatisfaction with the gender associated with one's sex assigned at birth), were assessed. Primary outcomes included non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), suicidal ideation (SI), and suicide attempts (SA). ResultsLogistic regressions were conducted stratified by sex assigned at birth. For youth assigned female at birth, felt-gender incongruence was prospectively associated with first-onset NSSI and SI and gender non-contentedness was prospectively associated with first-onset of NSSI. For youth assigned male at birth, gender non-contentedness was prospectively associated with first-onset SI. Diverse experienced gender did not prospectively predict SA. ConclusionsDimensions of experienced gender may be associated with subsequent first-onset SITBs among preadolescents. These findings support the need for future research on risk and protective factors that may mediate or moderate this relationship.

FORMATION OF CHILDREN'S INTEREST IN MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

The role of musical instruments is important in the moral and aesthetic development of children. Through the history of the creation of musical instruments, the main goal is to regulate children's moral behavior in the future. Ways to interest students in national musical instruments are shown.

Individual Participant Data Meta-analysis: Individual Differences in Mediators of Parenting Program Effects on Disruptive Behavior

Although parenting programs are the most widely used approach to reduce children's disruptive behavior, there is a notable lack of understanding of the exact changes in parenting that underlie their effects. Challenges include the frequent use of composite measures of parenting behavior, and insufficient power to detect mediation effects and individual differences in these in individual trials. We pooled individual participant data from 14 European randomized controlled trials of social learning-based parenting programs to examine which specific parenting behaviors best explain program effects. Participants were 3,252 families with children aged 1 to 13 years. As putative mediators, we included parental use of praise, tangible rewards, physical discipline, harsh verbal discipline, and not following through on discipline. Additionally, we explored whether subgroups of families showing different mediational pathways exist. Changes in parenting partially mediated program effects, with all included parenting behaviors, except parental use of praise, serving as unique mediators. Less harsh verbal discipline and increased following through on discipline were the strongest mediators. We identified three subgroups with distinct responses to parenting programs. Most families benefited, partly through increased following through on discipline; those with the least or most difficulties were more likely to benefit less, or not at all. Our findings offer insight into the specific parenting behavior changes key to reducing disruptive child behavior, while highlighting the need for innovative research methodologies to gain a deeper understanding of individual differences in parenting program benefits and mechanisms.