Maternal Anger Research Articles

Mothers' Adverse Childhood Experiences Moderate the Association between Maternal Anger and Children's Externalizing Symptoms.

This study examined the association between maternal anger, children's externalizing symptoms, and the moderating impact of maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV). The primary objective was to investigate whether maternal ACEs alter the link between maternal anger and children's externalizing symptoms, guided by theoretical frameworks such as the stress sensitization and stress steeling models. A sample of 159 Portuguese mothers exposed to IPV participated in the study, completing a protocol of self-report measures. Measured variables included maternal anger, ACEs, children's externalizing symptoms, and IPV. Results indicate a significant moderation effect of ACEs on the association between maternal anger and externalizing symptoms at low levels of ACEs. Conversely, at moderate and high ACEs levels, no statistically significant association exists between maternal anger and children's externalizing symptoms. Clinical implications emphasize the importance of tailored parenting interventions to prevent externalizing symptoms in children, integrating diverse emotion regulation strategies while considering the impact of maternal ACEs.

Fluctuations in Maternal Depressive Symptoms, Anxiety, and Anger and Children’s Depression Risks in Middle Childhood

Research suggests a robust link between the severity of maternal depression and children’s depression risks in middle childhood. Variations among depressed mothers in terms of affective dysregulation and frequent mood changes are also observed. However, the understanding of how fluctuations in maternal depressive symptoms and negative affect influence children is limited. Guided by life history theory, the current study tested whether the degree of fluctuations in maternal depressive symptoms, anxiety, and anger contributed to depression risks among school-aged children. The sample included 1,364 families where maternal depressive symptoms, anxiety, and anger were longitudinally assessed when children were in Grades 1, 3, 5, and 6. Children’s anxious depression and withdrawn depression behaviors were rated in Grades 1, 3, 4, 5, and 6 by two caregivers. Parallel latent growth curve analyses revealed that, first, fluctuations in maternal anxiety from Grade 1 to 6 were related to an increase in children’s withdrawn depression over the same period. Second, mean maternal anger over time was related to higher mean levels of child anxious and withdrawn depression, yet fluctuations in maternal anger were not linked to child outcomes. Findings support life history theory by highlighting the degree of fluctuations in maternal anxiety as a source of environmental unpredictability and reveal different effects of maternal anxiety and anger in the intergenerational transmission of depression, with important theoretical and clinical implications.

Seeing Red: A Grounded Theory Study of Women's Anger after Childbirth.

Persistent intense anger is indicative of postpartum distress, yet maternal anger has been little explored after childbirth. Using grounded theory, we explained how and why mothers develop intense anger after childbirth and the actions they take to manage their anger. Twenty mothers of healthy singleton infants described their experiences of anger during the first two postpartum years. Mothers indicated they became angry when they had violated expectations, compromised needs, and felt on edge (e.g., exhausted, stressed, and resentful), particularly around infants’ sleep. Mothers described suppressing and/or expressing anger with outcomes such as conflict and recruiting support. Receiving support from partners, family, and others helped mothers manage their anger, with more positive outcomes. Women should be screened for intense anger, maternal-infant sleep problems, and adequacy of social supports after childbirth. Maternal anger can be reduced by changing expectations and helping mothers meet their needs through social and structural supports.

The Process Linking Child-Invested Contingent Self-Esteem and Conditional Regard: The Roles of Maternal Anger and its Regulation

Parents whose self-esteem is contingent on their children’s achievements tend to exert more control over their children by displaying decreased affection and regard after failure in school (parental academic conditional negative regard). The current study examined parental anger and dysregulated anger expression as possible mechanisms in the respective association. In total, 221 mothers reported their child-invested contingent self-esteem, habitual dysregulated anger expression, anticipated anger after child failure, and their explicit use of conditional negative regard; their 12- to 14-year-old adolescent children reported perceived conditional negative regard. The moderated mediation analysis revealed that anger after child failure partially mediated the effect of child-invested contingent self-esteem on maternal explicit use of conditional negative regard, which, in turn, predicted adolescents’ perception of conditional negative regard. The effect of anger was moderated by dysregulated anger expression, and anger was only positively related to conditional negative regard when expressed as medium- to highly-dysregulated. The results support our hypotheses and provide an explanation for parental application of conditional negative regard apart from socialization goals or a lack of knowledge about its suboptimal nature. Furthermore, our results underscore the importance of parents’ self-esteem concerns and strategies for anger regulation. We discuss the practical implications of an anger-driven, reactive type of conditional regard.

Role of maternal emotion in child maltreatment risk during the COVID-19 pandemic.

PurposePreliminary research early in the COVID-19 pandemic suggested children appeared to be at increased risk for child maltreatment, particularly as parents struggled with mental health and economic strains. Such strains were likely to influence parental emotions about their children, affecting their parent-child interactions to contribute to elevated maltreatment risk. To identify the potential affective elements that may contribute to such increased maltreatment risk, the current study focused on whether maternal worry about children’s behavior specifically as well as maternal anger were related to increased risk for neglect or physical or psychological aggression six months into the pandemic.MethodThe racially diverse sample included 193 mothers who completed an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic in late September-early October 2020.ResultsMothers’ reported increases in neglect and physical and psychological aggression during the pandemic were significantly related with established measures of maltreatment risk. Furthermore, path models indicated that maternal anger and worry about children’s behavior, as well as their interaction, were significantly related to indicators of physical aggression risk and neglect during the pandemic, but only maternal anger related to increased psychological aggression during the pandemic.ConclusionsMaternal worry and anger about children’s behavior may have exacerbated risk for maltreatment under the stressful conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings suggest affective reactions of both parental worry and anger focused on child behavior warrants greater empirical attention and consideration in intervention efforts both during the pandemic and potentially post-pandemic.

Associations of Maternal Trait Anger Expression and Lifetime Traumatic and Non-traumatic Experiences with Preterm Birth.

Most studies examining psychosocial factors contributing to preterm birth (PTB) have focused on negative life events. Studies examining the influence of negative emotion, in particular maternal anger, remain sparse. We examined associations of maternal trait anger expression and lifetime traumatic and non-traumatic experiences with the risk of PTB. Mother-newborn pairs were enrolled in the PRogramming of Intergenerational Stress Mechanisms pregnancy cohort based in Boston and New York City. Women completed the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory-2 (STAXI-2), Life Stressor Checklist-Revised (LSC-R), and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) in pregnancy. We used modified Poisson regression to estimate the relative risk (RR) of PTB (1) in relation to continuous STAXI-2 Anger Expression-In (AX-I) and Anger Expression-Out (AX-O) subscales, (2) in relation to continuous LSC-R scores, and (3) between women who did versus did not experience childhood sexual, emotional, and/or physical abuse in six separate models. We also examined interactions between maternal anger expression and lifetime stress/childhood trauma. Younger, single, minority women had higher outward anger expression and inward anger suppression. AX-I and AX-O scores were higher among women who experienced abuse in childhood and who had higher lifetime stress. Maternal lifetime stress, outward anger expression, and inward anger suppression were associated with an increased risk of PTB in separate models; however, stress, trauma and anger did not interact to further increase the risk of PTB. CONCLUSIONSFOR PRACTICE: Higher anger expression and higher lifetime stress experiences were associated with an increased risk of PTB among a racially and ethnically diverse sample of pregnant women.

Parental Anger and Trajectories of Emotional Well-Being from Adolescence to Young Adulthood.

This study assesses the relationship of parental anger on children's anger and self-derogation from adolescence to young adulthood. We examine a life-course perspective and incorporate theories of emotion regulation and self-referent behavior. Using structural equation models and hierarchical growth curve models with the Kaplan Longitudinal and Multigenerational data, the results indicate that parental anger leads to anger in adolescence, supporting theories of learning through modeling in adolescence. In young adulthood, as predicted by self-referent behavior theory, parental anger contributes to increases in self-derogation. Interestingly, maternal anger, but not paternal anger, is correlated with child's anger and self-derogation.

부부갈등이 유아의 문제행동에 미치는 영향 : 어머니의 분노 및 우울과 학대 및 방임의 매개적 역할

This study focused on the effects of marital conflict and maternal anger, depression, abuse and neglect on problem behaviors of preschoolers. A total of 1,517 mothers of 3 to 4-year-old preschoolers living in Seoul participated in this study. The Data were analyzed by Pearson correlations, and SEM using SPSS 21.0 and Amos 21.0 for the abuse and neglect models. The results are as follow: First, marital conflict had no direct effects in both models. Second, marital conflict had indirect effects on problem behaviors through maternal anger only for the neglect model, and through depression for both models. Third, marital conflict had indirect effects on problem behaviors through maternal abuse or neglect. Fourth, marital conflict had indirect effects on problem behaviors through maternal anger and abuse, sequentially, and through maternal anger and neglect, sequentially. Fifth, maternal conflict had indirect effects on problem behaviors through maternal depression and neglect, sequentially. Finally, marital conflict had indirect effects on problem behaviors through maternal anger, depression and neglect, sequentially. These results indicated that the neglect model was more influential than the abuse model. The results of this study have a lot of meaningful implications for future research and practice. It should be highlighted that improving maternal emotion regulation as well as marital relationships and parenting behaviors is so crucial for preventing and intervening problem behaviors of preschoolers.

Anger in the context of postnatal depression: An integrative review.

Contrary to social constructions of new motherhood as a joyous time, mothers may experience postnatal depression and anger. Although postnatal depression has been thoroughly studied, the expression of maternal anger in the context of postnatal depression is conceptually unclear. This integrative review investigated the framing of anger in the context of postnatal depression. After undertaking a search of CINAHL, Ovid-Medline, PsycInfo, and Web of Science, we identified qualitative (n=7) and quantitative (n=17) papers that addressed maternal anger and postnatal depression. We analyzed the data by developing themes. Our review indicated that anger was a salient mood disturbance for some postnatally depressed women with themes integrated as: (i) anger accompanying depression, (ii) powerlessness as a component of depression and anger, and (iii) anger occurring as a result of expectations being violated. Our findings indicate that anger can coexist with women's postnatal depression. Anger can be expressed toward the self and toward children and family members with negative relationship effects. We recommend that health care providers and researchers consider anger in the context of postnatal mood disturbances.

Approach-related emotion, toddlers' persistence, and negative reactions to failure.

Approach behavior, defined as differences in behavior to an incentive event and anger at its removal, was assessed during contingency learning in 87 5-month-olds was related to maternal ratings of mastery behaviors at two years. Mothers reported on infants' concurrent temperament, as well as the occurrence of anger and tantrums, and their own anger at 12 months. Approach behavior was expected to predict persistence with objects and persistent motor behavior, but not negative reactions to failure. Negative reactions to failure were expected to be mediated by a distress-prone temperament. The moderating effect of maternal anger on these relations was also explored using conditional process regression models. Controlling for soothability, early approach behavior predicted toddlers' persistence, especially gross motor persistence, moderated by maternal anger. With more maternal anger, approach behavior and toddler's persistence were more strongly related. Distress to limits, infant anger at 12 months, and maternal anger were significantly correlated, but only infant anger was related to negative reactions to failure. Prior to six months, goal-directed behavior is related to later behavioral persistence, but maternal responses to child anger are an important contributor to this relation and by 12 months, infant anger directly predicts mastery frustration at two years.

Barriers to Mothers’ Implementation of Non-Harsh Discipline Techniques: Anger, Impulsivity, and Situational Demands

Although predictors of harsh parental discipline are well known, relatively little is understood about why mothers use harsh discipline even when they believe they should not do so, hereafter referred to as discrepant harsh discipline. We investigated affective, behavioral, and situational predictors of discrepant harsh discipline, in two independent studies. Participants in Study 1 were 60 mothers of 1–3 year-old children recruited from the community. Participants in Study 2 were 61 mothers of 2–4 year-old children recruited from the community. In both studies, we found significant associations between the interaction of maternal reported anger and impulsivity and discrepant harsh discipline. Study 2 found significant main effects of maternal reported anger and the interaction between impulsivity and multitasking demands in predicting discrepant harsh discipline. The results of these 2 studies indicate that higher levels maternal impulsivity, in combination with higher levels of maternal anger or in the context of situations that require multitasking by mothers, may serve as barriers to mothers’ use of non-harsh discipline techniques. It may be beneficial for parenting interventions to address these potential barriers in addition to teaching appropriate and effective discipline techniques.

Prenatal Risk and Infant Regulation: Indirect Pathways via Fetal Growth and Maternal Prenatal Stress and Anger.

Pathways from maternal tobacco, marijuana, stress, and anger in pregnancy to infant reactivity and regulation (RR) at 9months of infant age were examined in a low-income, diverse sample beginning in the first trimester of pregnancy, with fetal growth and postnatal stress/anger as potential mediators, and infant sex as a moderator. Participants were 247 dyads (173 substance-exposed infants). There were no direct effects of prenatal risk on RR and no moderation by sex. However, there were significant indirect effects on RR via poor fetal growth and higher postnatal anger. The study adds to the sparse literature on joint effects of tobacco and marijuana, and highlights the role of fetal growth and maternal anger as important pathways from prenatal risk to infant RR.

Predictors of Parenting: Family-Wide and Child-Specific Factors

SYNOPSISObjective. The goal of the study was to identify determinants of child perceptions of parenting. Design. By using two children per family, the current study predicted siblings’ (106 pairs) perceptions of mothering and fathering at ages 9–13 from children’s perceptions of parenting and parent ratings of child difficulty, parental emotionality, and household organization, when the children were 4–8 years old. Multi-level modeling was used to differentiate between- and within-family variation. Results. Stability in child perceptions was moderate, and this stability was due to family-wide parenting shared by siblings. Conversely, the majority of variance in the 9- to 13-year-olds’ perceptions indicated differential, rather than similar, parental treatment. Maternal anger predicted maternal hostility. In contrast, household chaos predicted paternal hostility. Conclusions. Relationships between individuals in the family are part of a larger system, and children are equally as likely as parents to reap the benefits of services or interventions directed toward enhancing maternal well-being.

How Parental Reactions Change in Response to Adolescent Suicide Attempt

This study examined parental reactions to adolescents’ suicide attempts and the association of reactions with future suicidal self-directed violence. Participants were 81 mothers and 49 fathers of 85 psychiatric inpatient adolescents. Maternal hostility and paternal anger and arguing predicted future suicide attempts. From pre- to post-attempt, mothers reported feeling increased sadness, caring, anxiety, guilt, fear, and being overwhelmed; fathers reported increased sadness, anxiety, and fear. Findings have clinical implications; improving parent-child relationships post-suicide attempt may serve as a protective factor for suicide.

Socialization in the Context of Risk and Psychopathology: Maternal Emotion Socialization in Children of Incarcerated Mothers.

Children of incarcerated mothers are at increased risk for psychological, social, and emotional maladaptation. This research investigates whether perceived maternal socialization of sadness and anger may moderate these outcomes in a sample of 154 children (53.9% boys, 61.7% Black, M age = 9.38, range: 6 - 12), their 118 mothers (64.1% Black), and 118 caregivers (74.8% female, 61.9% grandparents, 63.2% Black). Using mother, caregiver, and child report, seven maternal socialization strategies were assessed in their interaction with incarceration-specific risk experiences predicting children's adjustment. For sadness socialization, the results indicated that among children reporting maternal emotion-focused responses, incarceration-specific risk predicted increases in psychological problems, depressive symptoms, increased emotional lability, and poorer emotion regulation. For children who perceived a problem-focused response, incarceration-specific risk did not predict outcomes. There were no significant interactions with incarceration-specific risk and perceived maternal anger socialization strategies. These results indicate a critical need to examine how socialization processes may operate differently for children raised in atypical socializing contexts.

Mother-Adolescent Conflict: Stability, Change, and Relations with Externalizing and Internalizing Behavior Problems.

Stability and change in mother-adolescent conflict reactions (CRs) and the prediction of CRs from adolescents' earlier behavior problems (and vice versa) were examined with 131 mothers and their adolescents (63 boys). Dyads engaged in a 6-minute conflict discussion twice, 2 years apart (M age was 13 at Time 1 (T1). Nonverbal expressive and verbal CRs during the conflict discussion were coded. Mothers, fathers, and teachers reported on adolescents' problem behaviors. There was inter-individual (rank-order) stability for adolescents' CRs whereas mothers' reactions were less stable. Mean levels of mothers' negativity, anger, and positive reactions and adolescents' negativity declined with time. Mothers' CRs predicted and were predicted by adolescents' problem behaviors more often than adolescents' CRs in zero-order correlations. In structural models with the stability of the constructs accounted for, adolescents' externalizing problems at T1 predicted higher maternal anger at T2. Mothers' anger and positive CRs at T1 predicted fewer T2 adolescents' internalizing problems. Stability and change in CRs are discussed.

Anger, hostility, and aggression as predictors of persistent smoking during pregnancy.

We examined the role of anger, hostility, and aggression, in addition to depression and stress, in predicting persistent smoking during pregnancy in a low-income sample. The sample consisted of 270 pregnant women (189 smokers, 81 nonsmokers) recruited into a prospective study of prenatal cigarette exposure in the first trimester. Persistent pregnancy smoking was defined as self-reporting daily smoking in at least two trimesters, a positive salivary cotinine level in at least two trimesters, or infant meconium positive for nicotine and/ or its metabolites. Persistent smokers reported higher prenatal stress and negative affect symptoms (depression, anger, hostility, aggression) than nonpersistent smokers or nonsmokers. However, in the context of model testing, maternal anger, hostility, and aggression each accounted for unique variance in persistent smoking, whereas symptoms of depression and stress did not. To date, interventions for pregnant low-income smokers have been largely ineffective. The current results suggest that anger management interventions may be particularly effective for low-income persistent pregnant smokers and may be more likely to prevent relapse than depression-focused interventions.

부부갈등과 어머니의 분노가 아동학대에 미치는 영향

This study investigated both the direct and indirect influences of marital conflict on child abuse by exploring the pathways between marital conflict, maternal anger, and child maltreatment. A total of 344 mothers with 3-year-old children responded to questionnaires, which including items on marital conflict/violence, maternal anger, and child maltreatment. The data thus collected were analyzed by means of Structural Equation Modeling. The results indicated that maternal anger partially mediated the association between marital conflict and child maltreatment. In more concrete terms, the direct and indirect effects of marital conflict on child maltreatment were a little greater than the direct effect of maternal anger on child maltreatment. The effects of marital conflict on maternal anger was the greatest among all associations between the research variables included in this study. The findings of this study have a number of implications for research and practice, which highlights the important considerations that both cultivating positive marital relationships and regulating maternal anger should be emphasized in prevention and intervention programs for child maltreatment.

Mothers' emotional reactions to crying pose risk for subsequent attachment insecurity.

Links between maternal emotional reactions to crying (anger and anxiety) and infant attachment security were examined in 119 mother-infant dyads. Mothers rated the intensity of their emotional responses to videotapes of crying infants prenatally. Maternal sensitivity was observed during infant exposure to emotion eliciting tasks at six and 16 months postpartum and mothers' self-reported on their responses to their infant's negative emotions at 16 months. Infant attachment security was assessed using the Strange Situation at 16 months postpartum. Results indicated that observed sensitivity was associated with fewer avoidant and resistant behaviors and prenatal maternal anger and anxiety in response to infant crying predicted the developing attachment system independent of observed sensitivity, but in different ways. Maternal anxiety in response to crying was positively associated with resistant behaviors as a direct effect. Maternal anger in response to crying was associated with avoidant behaviors indirectly through mothers' self-reported punitive and minimizing responses to infant distress at 16 months. Theoretical, applied, and methodological implications are discussed.

Children's Disclosure and Secrecy: Links to Maternal Parenting Characteristics and Children's Coping Skills

AbstractThe relations between maternal parenting characteristics, child disclosure and secrecy, and child outcomes (positive and negative strategies for coping with distress), were examined in a study of 140 children (10–12‐year‐olds) and their mothers. Child disclosure and secrecy were shown to be distinct but related constructs with authoritativeness predictive of disclosure and dispositional anger predictive of secrecy. These relations held even when child compliance was included as a control variable. Mothers' authoritative parenting predicted disclosure which in turn predicted children's use of positive coping strategies. Mothers' dispositional anger predicted secrecy which mediated the relation between maternal anger and children's use of negative coping strategies. Results are discussed in terms of parent–child communication and opportunities for mothers to use knowledge gained from child disclosure to teach children successful ways of dealing with distress.