Parent-child Interaction Task Research Articles

Parent Stress and Observed Parenting in a Parent-Child Interaction Task in a Predominantly Minority and Low-Income Sample

Parent Stress and Observed Parenting in a Parent-Child Interaction Task in a Predominantly Minority and Low-Income Sample

Korean Mothers’ Speech to Young Children with Cochlear Implants in Parent-Child Interaction

Objectives: Infant-directed speech is the particular form of spontaneous speech observed in interactions between parents and their young children. There are reasons to believe that infant-directed speech may help to make language acquisition easier for young children. Thus, this study investigates the effects of cochlear implantation on mothers’ speech to their young children.Methods: Fourteen children with cochlear implants (CIs) and 14 agematched children with normal hearing (NH), aged 12 to 35 months, participated in this study. We recorded mothers’ utterances through a parent-child interaction task. Mothers’ speech features such as fundamental frequency, utterance length, speech rate, and pause duration were measured across speech samples.Results: There were no significant differences between the CI and NH groups in fundamental frequency, utterance length, and pause duration variables. However, the speech of mothers in the CI group was significantly slower than that of the NH group.Conclusion: Mothers used typical infant-directed speech styles when speaking to their children with CIs. Additionally, mothers of the CI group tended to speak more slowly than mothers of the NH group in the parent-child interactions. Given that the language skills of children with CIs are significantly lower than those of children with NH in this study, mothers of the CI group may speak to their children at a slower rate than those of the NH group to provide their linguistic input more efficiently. These findings suggest that children with CIs are exposed to infant-directed speech with similar acoustic qualities as children with NH.

Psychometric properties of the family assessment task parental monitoring scenario among adolescents receiving substance use treatment

IntroductionThe Family Assessment Task (FAsTask) is an observer-rated parent-child interaction task used in adolescent substance use intervention. The parental monitoring component of the FAsTask is thought to provide an objective assessment of parental monitoring that can guide treatment planning and circumvent the potential limitations of self-report measures. Yet, the factor structure, measurement invariance, and concurrent validity of the parental monitoring FAsTask has not been evaluated; doing so is essential to effectively guide clinical care. This study examined if the parental monitoring FAsTask can be reliably administered across adolescent age and sex, and to identify which components of the parental monitoring FAsTask are most consistently associated with adolescent substance use. MethodsThe study pooled data from 388 adolescent-caregiver dyads across six separate clinical trials (adolescents [Mage = 15.7, 57.5% male, 61.9% White, 31.2% Latine]; caregivers [Mage = 42.14, 88.7% female, 72.7% White, 24.2% Latine]). Dyads completed the FAsTask and the Timeline Followback at baseline, prior to randomization. Analyses proceeded in three steps. First, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted in half of the sample, followed by a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in the second half of the sample. Second, measurement invariance was tested as a function of adolescent age and biological sex. Third, a series of structural equation models were used to assess the associations of each factor with alcohol use, binge drinking, and cannabis use. ResultsEFA and CFA indicated the presence of four factors (labeled Supervised/Structured, Active Monitoring, Task Engagement, and Parental Rules/Strategies). Evidence of measurement invariance was found across adolescent age and sex. The Supervision/Structure was negatively associated with adolescent alcohol use, binge drinking, and cannabis use. ConclusionsThe parental monitoring FAsTask demonstrates validity and retains its structure across adolescent age and sex. Items focused on parental supervision and structure are most strongly associated with adolescent substance use and may best inform clinical care for adolescent substance use.

Observations of Positive Parenting from Online Parent–Child Interactions at Age 1

SYNOPSIS Objective. Brief, reliable, and cost-effective methods to assess parenting are critical for advancing parenting research. Design. We adapted the Three Bags task and Parent Child Interaction Rating System (PCIRS) for rating online visits with 219 parent–child dyads (White, n = 104 [47.5%], Black, n = 115 [52.5%]) and combined the video data with survey data collected during pregnancy and when children were aged 1. Results. The PCIRS codes of positive regard, stimulation of child cognitive development, and sensitivity showed high reliability across the three parent–child interaction tasks. A latent positive parenting factor combining ratings across codes and tasks showed good model fit, which was similar regardless of parent self-identified race or ethnicity, age, socioeconomic disadvantage, marital/partnered status, and parity, as well as methodological factors relevant to the online video assessment method (e.g., phone vs. laptop/tablet). In support of construct validity, observed positive parenting was related to parent-reported positive parenting and child socioemotional development. Finally, parent reports of supportive relationships in pregnancy but not neighborhood safety or pandemic worries, were prospectively related to higher positive parenting observed at age 1. With the exception of older parental age and married/partnered status, no other parent, child, sociodemographic, or methodological variables were related to higher overall video exclusions across tasks. Conclusions. PCIRS may provide a reliable approach to rate positive parenting at age 1, providing future avenues for developing more ecologically valid assessments and implementing interventions through online encounters that may be more acceptable, accessible, or preferred among parents of young children.

Parent behaviors as predictors of preadolescent appraisal and coping

Preadolescent appraisal and coping are significant predictors of youth psychopathology. However, little research examines how parenting behaviors relate to the development of these skills by forming a key context in which children learn to manage stressors. This study examined how observed maternal and paternal behaviors derived from a parent-child interaction task relate to levels of and growth in child appraisal (threat, positive) and coping (active, avoidant) across three years in preadolescence (n = 214, ages 8–12 years old at Time 1). Greater maternal warmth predicted lower threat appraisal and avoidant coping, and greater maternal negativity predicted greater increases in avoidance. Increased paternal warmth predicted lower initial levels of threat appraisal. Boys showed less growth in active coping than girls. These findings suggest parenting behaviors relate to preadolescents' utilization of maladaptive coping strategies such as avoidance and may be important intervention targets for supporting youth managing stressors.

The Influence of Pandemic-Related Worries During Pregnancy on Child Development at 12 Months.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been linked to increased risk for perinatal anxiety and depression among parents, as well as negative consequences for child development. Less is known about how worries arising from the pandemic during pregnancy are related to later child development, nor if resilience factors buffer negative consequences. The current study addresses this question in a prospective longitudinal design. Data was collected from a sub-study (n = 184) of a longitudinal study of pregnant individuals (total n = 1173). During pregnancy (April 17-July 8, 2020) and the early postpartum period (August 11, 2020-March 2, 2021), participants completed online surveys. At 12months postpartum (June 17, 2021-March 23, 2022), participants completed online surveys and a virtual laboratory visit, which included parent-child interaction tasks. We found more pregnancy-specific pandemic worries were prospectively related to lower levels of child socioemotional development based on parent report (B = - 1.13, SE = .43, p = .007) and observer ratings (B = - 0.13, SE = .07, p = .045), but not to parent-reported general developmental milestones. Parental emotion regulation in the early postpartum period moderated the association between pregnancy-specific pandemic worries and child socioemotional development such that pregnancy-specific pandemic worries did not relate to worse child socioemotional development among parents with high (B = - .02, SE = .10, t = - .14, p = .89) levels of emotion regulation. Findings suggest the negative consequences of parental worry and distress during pregnancy on the early socioemotional development of children in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results highlight that parental emotion regulation may represent a target for intervention to promote parental resilience and support optimized child development.

Examining Phenotypical Heterogeneity and its Underlying Factors in Gesture Skills of Chinese Autistic Children: Clustering Analysis.

The heterogeneity of autism is well documented, but few studies have studied the heterogeneity of gesture production ability in autistic children. The present study aimed to identify subgroups of autistic children who displayed heterogeneous gesture production abilities and explore the underlying factors, including autism characteristics, intellectual ability, and language ability, that were associated with the heterogeneity. A total of 65 Chinese autistic children (mean age = 5;3) participated. Their autism characteristics and intellectual ability were assessed by standardized measurements. Language output and gesture production were captured from a parent-child interaction task. We conducted a hierarchical cluster analysis and identified four distinct clusters. Cluster 1 and Cluster 2 both had low gesture production whereas Cluster 3 and Cluster 4 had high gesture production. Both Clusters 1 and 2 had relatively strong autism characteristics, in comparison to Clusters 3 and 4. Our findings revealed that children with stronger autism characteristics may gesture less often than those with weaker characteristics. However, the relationship between language ability and intellectual ability and gesture production was not clear. These findings shed light on the directions of intervention on gesture production for autistic children, especially those with stronger autism characteristics.

Mothers' and fathers' reflective functioning and its association with parenting behaviors and cortisol reactivity during a conflict interaction with their adolescent children.

We assessed parental reflective functioning (PRF) with the Parent Development Interview-Revised and investigated its association with parenting behaviors, that is, autonomy support and psychological control (operationalized in terms of behaviors promoting and undermining autonomy relatedness), and stress responses (cortisol reactivity) during a parent-child conflict interaction task (Family Interaction Task). Participants were 40 mothers and 28 fathers, who took part in the study together with their adolescent children (N = 49). Mothers had significantly lower PRF and displayed more psychologically controlling behaviors in the interaction with their children than fathers. Rather than sex per se, high levels of PRF were the best predictors of autonomy support, whereas lower levels of PRF predicted more psychological control. Higher levels of PRF were also the best predictor for lower levels of parenting stress. Stress in the context of parenting was neither related to autonomy support nor to psychological control, which were best predicted by divorced family status and, for psychological control only, by parental sex. The findings point to the potential utility of interventions aimed at improving PRF, especially in divorced families, given its protective effect on parenting behaviors and stress in the context of parenting. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

0105 INSIGHT Study associations between sleep health and child behavior at age 6 years

Abstract Introduction Sub-optimal sleep duration, quality and timing are associated with the presence of disruptive behaviors in childhood. Previous studies have largely utilized parent-/teacher-report of children’s behaviors and focused on mean sleep duration and quality measures, ignoring sleep variability. This analysis uses actigraphy and standardized laboratory behavioral tasks to examine the associations of average levels and variability (SD) of sleep duration, timing, and quality with child behavior. Methods The Intervention Nurses Start Infants Growing on Healthy Trajectories (INSIGHT) Study randomized families with firstborn newborns to a responsive parenting intervention or a safety control shortly after delivery. At age 6 years, children wore a wrist actigraphy device (Spectrum Plus) for 7 days to measure sleep and completed frustration (Transparent Box) and parent-child interaction (Picture Frame) tasks. Tasks were recorded and coded using global behavioral coding schemes; inter-rater reliability was sufficient (Transparent Box ICCs=.83-.97; Picture Frame=.83-1). Children with data on sleep (≥3 valid days) and both behavioral tasks were included in this secondary data analysis (n=143). Separate linear regression models examined associations between 10 sleep variables (M/SD of onset, offset, and midpoint of sleep timing, sleep maintenance efficiency, and total sleep time) and 4 behavioral variables (Transparent Box: emotion regulation, impulsivity; Picture Frame: prosocial and antisocial behavior). Models controlled for child sex and age, household income, and study group. Results Children were aged 6.7 ± 0.3 years and predominantly White, non-Hispanic (95%). Sleep onset (timing) variability was positively associated with impulsivity (B=.85, p=.004) and negatively associated with emotion regulation (B=-.65, p=.01). Sleep midpoint (timing) variability was positively associated with impulsivity (B=.80, p=.03). Mean sleep timing, sleep duration, and sleep maintenance efficiency were not associated with any of the behavioral variables. Conclusion The regularity of sleep timing (onset and midpoint) at age 6 had a greater role in behavioral and emotional regulation than duration and quality of sleep. These findings support existing literature that highlight the importance of parents implementing consistent routines (e.g., consistent bedtime) and how such routines play a key role in socioemotional outcomes among children. Support (if any) R01DK088244

Emotional reactivity and parenting in families experiencing homelessness.

Parents are key protective systems in the lives of children experiencing homelessness. Evidence suggests that parent emotional reactivity, expression, and regulation play a critical role in promoting adaptive parenting behaviors. Studies of emotional reactivity in parents utilize different methods, including self-report, observations, and physiological measures. However, these methods are rarely evaluated together, particularly among disadvantaged families. The present study examined how subjective (i.e., self-report), observed, and physiological measures of parent emotional reactivity relate to each other and to observed parenting behaviors in problem-solving and teaching parent-child interaction tasks. Participants included fifty 4- to 7-year-old children and their caregivers staying in an emergency homeless shelter. Observed and subjective emotional reactivity were largely uncorrelated, except for positive emotions during problem-solving tasks. Adaptive parenting behavior was related to lower scores on measures of subjective and observed negative emotions and higher observed scores for positive emotions during problem-solving tasks, as well as higher observed scores of positive emotions during teaching tasks. Physiological reactivity was not related to parenting behaviors. Results suggest that associations of emotional reactivity with parenting behavior depend on the context of the parent-child interaction and how emotional reactivity is measured. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Early parenting behaviour is associated with complex attention outcomes in middle to late childhood in children born very preterm

ABSTRACT Attention deficits are common in children born very preterm (VP), especially for children with higher social risk. The aim of this study was to examine the association between parenting behavior and attention in children born VP, and whether this association is influenced by familial social risk. Two hundred and twenty-four children born <30 weeks’ gestation and/or with a birth weight <1250 g were recruited at birth. At 2 years, social risk was calculated and parenting behaviors were observed during a parent-child interaction task, with children’s attention skills assessed at 7 and 13 years using standardized assessments. Higher levels of sensitive parenting at 2 years were positively associated with divided attention at age 7 years, and higher levels of intrusive parenting were negatively associated with divided attention at 13 years. Children born VP with higher social risk were more positively influenced by sensitive parenting behavior for sustained attention at 7 years, selective attention at 13 years, and divided attention at 7 and 13 years than children born VP with lower social risk. Additionally, children born VP with higher social risk were more negatively influenced by intrusive parenting for sustained attention outcomes at 7 years than those with lower social risk. In summary, the evidence for a contribution of early parenting to attention outcomes in children born VP was stronger for more complex attention (divided attention) compared with basic attention domains. Our findings also suggest that early parenting behavior has a particular influence on children born VP from socially disadvantaged environments for attention outcomes.

Prenatal internalizing symptoms as a mediator linking maternal adverse childhood experiences with infant temperament

BackgroundMaternal adverse childhood experiences are known to significantly influence offspring development. However, mediators linking maternal early-life adversity with infant temperament remain largely unknown. AimsThe current study investigated whether prenatal internalizing symptoms mediate the association between maternal adverse childhood experiences and infant temperament at two months. Maternal sensitivity/responsiveness during the postpartum period was also examined as a moderator of these associations. Study designWe used a repeated-measures design, with self-report measures administered during pregnancy. Self-report and observational data were also collected at 2 months postpartum. SubjectsThe study included a community sample of 64 pregnant women and their infants. Outcome measuresParticipants completed measures assessing their early-life adversity and current depression/anxiety symptoms. At two months postpartum, mothers reported on their infant's temperament and participated in a parent-child interaction task designed to assess maternal sensitivity/responsiveness. Results and conclusionsMaternal adverse childhood experiences indirectly predicted poor self-regulation during early infancy via prenatal internalizing symptoms. Maternal sensitivity/responsiveness was also found to moderate the association between maternal adverse childhood experiences and certain aspects of infant regulatory capacity and positive affectivity at two months. This research has implications for mental health screening procedures during pregnancy and the development of early intervention programs.

Children's Maternal Representations Moderate the Efficacy of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy-Emotion Development (PCIT-ED) Treatment For Preschool Depression.

A randomized controlled trial (RCT) demonstrated that a novel psychotherapy, Parent-Child Interaction Therapy-Emotion Development (PCIT-ED), effectively treats preschool-onset depression. However, little is known about which children benefit most from PCIT-ED. As positive parent-level factors are associated with lesser depressive symptoms, this study explored the potential moderating role of positive parenting relationships on PCIT-ED efficacy. This study examined mothers and their children aged 3-6 (N = 185) who participated in the PCIT-ED RCT. Children wererandomized to immediatePCIT-ED treatment(n = 94)or a waitlist control condition(n = 91) that received treatmentafter 18weeks.Prior to treatment, children completed a narrative story completion task that was videotaped and coded for children's positive and negative representations of their mothers. Parent-child interaction tasks were also completed pre-treatment and videotaped and coded to measure observed parenting. Odds of MDD diagnosis post-treatment were predicted by the interaction of children's negative maternal representations and treatment group (Estimate = -.68; SE = .27; [Formula: see text] = 6.45; p = .01) and the interaction of children's relatively more positive than negative maternal representations and treatment group (Estimate = .30; SE = .13; [Formula: see text] = 5.27; p = .02). Observed parenting measures did not significantly predict odds of MDD diagnosis. Thus, PCIT-ED predicted loss of MDD diagnosis for children who displayed maternal representations that were less negative, and relatively more positive than negative. Results suggest that children with relatively more positive maternal representations may be more likely to benefit from PCIT-ED, whereas children with more negative maternal representations may need targeted work to decrease negative maternal perceptions before initiating PCIT-ED in order for treatment to be most effective.

Socioeconomic disadvantage and parental mood/affective problems links negative parenting and executive dysfunction in children born very preterm.

Poverty increases the risk of poorer executive function (EF) in children born full-term (FT). Stressors associated with poverty, including variability in parenting behavior, may explain links between poverty and poorer EF, but this remains unclear for children born very preterm (VPT). We examine socioeconomic and parental psychosocial adversity on parenting behavior, and whether these factors independently or jointly influence EF in children born VPT. At age five years, 154 children (VPT = 88, FT = 66) completed parent-child interaction and EF tasks. Parental sensitivity, intrusiveness, cognitive stimulation, and positive and negative regard were coded with the Parent-Child Interaction Rating Scale. Socioeconomic adversity spanned maternal demographic stressors, Income-to-Needs ratio, and Area Deprivation Index. Parents completed measures of depression, anxiety, inattention/hyperactivity, parenting stress, and social-communication interaction (SCI) problems. Parental SCI problems were associated with parenting behavior in parents of children born VPT, whereas socioeconomic adversity was significant in parents of FT children. Negative parenting behaviors, but not positive parenting behaviors, were related to child EF. This association was explained by parental depression/anxiety symptoms and socioeconomic adversity. Results persisted after adjustment for parent and child IQ. Findings may inform research on dyadic interventions that embed treatment for parental mood/affective symptoms and SCI problems to improve childhood EF.

Autonomic Nervous System Inflexibility During Parent-child Interactions is Related to Callous-unemotional Traits in Youth Aged 10-14 Years Old.

Youth with callous-unemotional (CU) traits are at high risk for aggression and antisocial behavior. Extant literature suggests that CU traits are related to abnormal autonomic responses to negatively-valenced emotional stimuli, although few studies have tested autonomic responding specifically during social interactions. To address this knowledge gap, the current study tested whether CU traits were related to autonomic activity, assessed via respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), during several parent-child interaction tasks designed to provoke negative emotion. The sample was 162 clinically referred youth (M age = 12.03, SD = .92; 47% female). Using piecewise latent growth models, we estimated individual differences in RSA during three semi-structured social interaction tasks (reading aloud to a parent and research assistant; a recovery period from the reading task; and a parent-child conflict discussion) and tested whether CU traits were related to patterns of RSA responding across tasks. Overall, youth showed expected RSA decreases during the reading period, increases in RSA during recovery, and further decreases during the conflict discussion. However, youth with clinically-elevated CU traits had a different pattern of RSA change across tasks, such that CU traits were related to significantly less RSA change during reading and recovery. Findings suggest that less RSA engagement during social interactions and less RSA recovery may be a biomarker of CU traits. Future research is needed to examine whether this inflexibility contributes to the development of CU traits beginning early in childhood.

Adversity is Linked with Decreased Parent-Child Behavioral and Neural Synchrony

Parent-child synchrony—parent-child interaction patterns characterized by contingent social responding, mutual responsivity, and co-regulation—has been robustly associated with adaptive child outcomes. Synchrony has been investigated in both behavioral and biological frameworks. While it has been demonstrated that adversity can influence behavioral parent-child synchrony, the neural mechanisms by which this disruption occurs are understudied. The current study examined the association between adversity, parent-child behavioral synchrony, and parent-child neural synchrony across lateral prefrontal cortical regions using functional near-infrared spectroscopy hyperscanning during a parent-child interaction task that included a mild stress induction followed by a recovery period. Participants included 115 children (ages 4-5) and their primary caregivers. Parent-child behavioral synchrony was quantified as the amount time the dyad was synchronous (e.g., reciprocal communication, coordinated behaviors) during the interaction task. Parent-child neural synchrony was examined as the hemodynamic concordance between parent and child lateral PFC activation. Adversity was examined across two, empirically-derived domains: sociodemographic risk (e.g., family income) and familial risk (e.g., household chaos). Adversity, across domains, was associated with decreased parent-child behavioral synchrony across task conditions. Sociodemographic risk was associated with decreased parent-child neural synchrony in the context of experimentally-induced stress. These findings link adversity to decreased parent-child behavioral and neural synchrony.

Prenatal Internalizing Symptoms as a Mediator Linking Maternal Adverse Childhood Experiences with Infant Temperament

Background: Maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are known to significantly influence offspring development. However, mediators linking maternal ACEs with infant temperament remain largely unknown. Aims: The current study investigated whether prenatal internalizing symptoms mediate the association between maternal ACEs and infant temperament at two months. Maternal sensitivity/responsiveness during the postpartum period was also examined as a moderator of these associations. Study Design: We used a repeated-measures design, with self-report measures administered during pregnancy. Self-report and observational were also collected at 2 months postpartum. Subjects: The study included a community sample of 64 pregnant women and their infants. Outcome Measures: Participants completed measures assessing their early-life adversity and current depression/anxiety symptoms. At two months postpartum, mothers reported on their infant’s temperament and participated in a parent-child interaction task designed to assess maternal sensitivity/responsiveness. Results and Conclusions: Maternal ACEs indirectly predicted poor self-regulation during early infancy via prenatal internalizing symptoms. Maternal sensitivity/responsiveness was also found to moderate the effects of maternal ACEs on infant regulatory capacity and positive affectivity at two months. Women with ACEs experienced increased internalizing symptoms during pregnancy, which elevated the risk for non-optimal temperament profiles at two months. Sensitive/responsive parenting buffered against the negative effects associated with maternal ACEs. This research has implications for mental health screening procedures during pregnancy and the development of early intervention programs.

Parental hostility predicts reduced cortical thickness in males.

Although impacts of negative parenting on children's brain development are well-documented, little is known about how these associations may differ for males and females in childhood. We examined interactions between child sex and early and concurrent parental hostility on children's cortical thickness and surface area. Participants included 63 children (50.8% female) assessed during early childhood (Wave 1: M age=4.23years, SD=0.84) and again three years later (Wave 2: M age=7.19years, SD=0.89) using an observational parent-child interaction task. At Wave 2, children completed a structural MRI scan. Analyses focused on regions of interest. After correcting for multiple comparisons, Wave 1 parental hostility predicted males' reduced thickness in middle frontal and fusiform cortices, and Wave 2 parental hostility was concurrently associated with males' reduced thickness in the middle frontal cortex. Interactions between sex and parenting on children's surface area did not survive corrections for multiple comparisons. Our findings provide support for a male-specific neural vulnerability of hostile parenting across development. Results have important implications for uncovering neural pathways to sex-differences in psychopathology, learning, and cognitive disabilities.

Permanency and well-being outcomes for maltreated infants: Pilot results from an infant-toddler court team

BackgroundEvaluations of infant-toddler court teams suggest improvements related to permanency, service provision, and parenting. However, findings regarding permanency are limited in that they do not capture children who remain in care for long periods. Less is known about how court teams impact child development. ObjectiveThe first two objectives are to describe baseline development for a small group of infants and toddlers participating in a pilot court team project and to explore changes in their development and behavior. The third objective is to describe permanency outcomes. Participants and settingInfants and toddlers (n = 25) under court jurisdiction for substantiated maltreatment and their parents participated in pre-and posttest evaluation of a pilot court team project. All dyads were referred to a parenting intervention, Infant Mental Health Home Visiting. Infant development was assessed using the Bayley-III and behavior was assessed in the Crowell parent-child interaction task. Court records were reviewed for permanency outcomes. ResultsThirty-five percent of children had a developmental delay at program entry and showed significant improvements in expressive language development (p < .01). Increases in prosocial behavior were seen in domains of positive affect (p < .05) and enthusiasm (p < .02) and significant reductions child withdrawal (p < .06). More than two-thirds of children were reunified with their parent(s) and they spent an average of 18.7 months in out-of- home care. ConclusionsThese preliminary findings add to the limited literature on the potential impact that infant-toddler court teams can have on permanency and well-being.

Effortful control, interpretation biases, and child anxiety symptom severity in a sample of children with anxiety disorders

IntroductionEffortful control—the ability to inhibit impulsive reactions in favor of more adaptive responses—is negatively related to child anxiety severity. One potential explanation is that greater effortful control may “slow down” automatic, threat-laden interpretations, thereby lowering children’s anxiety. The present investigation tested this hypothesis by examining associations between effortful control (and its subcomponents) and anxiety symptom severity, mediated by interpretation biases, in a diverse sample of clinically anxious youth. MethodParticipants (N = 105; Mage = 10.09 years, SD = 1.22; 56.7% female; 49% ethnic minority) completed a diagnostic interview; self-report measures of temperament, anxiety, and interpretation biases; a performance-based measure of interpretation biases; and a parent–child interaction task for which an index of behavioral anxiety was computed. ResultsSignificant indirect effects were found for effortful control, attentional control, and inhibitory control on child self-reported anxiety severity by way of self-reported (but not behaviorally-indexed) interpretation biases. Models predicting behaviorally-indexed child anxiety severity were not significant. DiscussionGreater effortful control may result in enhanced attentional capacities that allow children to assess automatic cognitions more objectively, potentially lowering their anxiety. Future work should evaluate whether targeting malleable temperamental constructs, such as effortful control, leads to clinically meaningful reductions in interpretation biases and child anxiety symptoms.