Prosocial Behavior Problems Research Articles

Prosocial behavior and psychopathology: An 11-year longitudinal study of inter- and intraindividual reciprocal relations across childhood and adolescence.

The current study investigated whether prosocial behavior and emotional problems, peer problems, conduct problems, and hyperactivity and inattention problems were long-term longitudinally and bidirectionally related at inter- and or intra-individual levels from early childhood through mid-adolescence. Parents in the United Kingdom reported their child's prosocial behavior and multidimensional psychopathology at ages 3, 5, 7, 11, and 14 years (N = 16,984, 51% male, 83% White). Four random intercepts cross-lagged panel models were fitted. Higher levels of earlier prosocial behavior were associated with greater than expected decrements in psychopathology. At an intraindividual, within-person level, prosocial behavior was negatively bidirectionally associated with peer, conduct, and hyperactivity and inattention problems. Also at an intraindividual, within-person level, prosocial behavior was unidirectionally protective against emotional problems. At an interindividual level, prosocial behavior and each dimension of psychopathology were negatively associated. Therefore, engaging in prosocial behavior can reduce psychopathological symptoms over time (and vice versa), and youth who are more prosocial also tend to experience fewer psychopathological symptoms. Intraindividual associations were small while interindividual associations were moderate to large. Implications for theory, future research, and evidence-based interventions are discussed.

Kick-starting youth wellbeing and access to mental health care: Efficacy of an integrated model of care within a junior sports development program

One productive avenue for building adolescents' personal strengths and reducing mental health problems is integrating assessment and intervention into organised sports programs. We investigated the efficacy of the RISE program, a rugby league development program for 12- to 15-year-old boys, which integrated a mental health and wellbeing system called Life-Fit-Learning. The Life-Fit System is designed to measure youth's strengths and mental health symptoms and sends mental health feedback to parents, provides group-based workshops, connects youth and parents to online psychoeducation resources, and provides individual telephone follow-up and referral with parents of youth at high-risk for mental health problems. In this study, mental health and wellbeing outcomes were compared in participants who did (RISE, N = 94) and did not (Comparison, N = 82) receive the RISE/Life-Fit-Learning program. RISE players reported their self-satisfaction, grit, gratitude, prosocial behaviour, anxiety, depression, and behavioural problems using the Life-Fit System pre- and post-program. Comparison participants completed measures twice, 6-months apart. Self-satisfaction did not change in RISE participants but declined among comparison participants. In both groups, 26% of players scored in the high-risk range on at least one mental health measure. On mental health measures, high-risk RISE players' depression and behavioural problems improved from pre-to post-program relative to no change among Comparison players. Among participants who were not high-risk, RISE players' anxiety, depression, and behavioural problems did not change whereas Comparison players' behavioural problems increased significantly. Results underscore the value of integrating strengths-based interventions and targeting youth mental health problems within the context of junior sports development programs.

Prevalence Of Behavioural Disorders and Its Correlates Among Adolescents in Uttara Kannada, Karnataka –A Cross Sectional Study

Background: Childhood and adolescence are critical stages of life for mental health. This is a time when rapid growth and development takes place. Half of all mental health conditions start by 14 years of age but most cases are undetected and untreated. Behavioural patterns of adolescents are not much explored in India. In this study, we aim to assess the behavioural pattern and its correlates among adolescents in Karwar of Uttara kannada district, Karnataka. Methodology: It is a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study conducted on adolescents studying in Government Pre-University college of Karwar in the month of June and July 2019.The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to assess the mental health status of adolescents. The total difficulties score is used to categorize adolescents as normal (0-15) and high [borderline (16-19) and abnormal (20-40)]. Results: Although majority of adolescents were in the normal range, a significant number of adolescents were in borderline (18.4%) and abnormal (14.1%) SDQ scores. Binary logistic regression analysis shows that use of social media, abnormal emotional grade, conduct grade, hyperactivity grade, peer grade and impact grade were found statistically significant. Conclusion: Significant numbers of adolescents were in high range of SDQ scores and suffered from emotional, conduct, prosocial behaviour and hyperactivity problems.

Longitudinal associations between prosocial behavior and behavioral problems across childhood: A robust random-intercept cross-lagged panel model.

Prior studies have indicated that prosocial behavior might be a protective factor for developing internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems. However, little research has been conducted on within-person changes of prosocial behavior and behavioral problems over time. With random-intercept cross-lagged panel models (RI-CLPMs), the current study analyzed longitudinal associations between prosocial behavior and behavioral problems in two twin cohorts (98% Western European): in early childhood (age M = 4.77, SD = .58, 52% girls, N = 440) and middle childhood (age M = 7.94, SD = .67, 51% girls, N = 512). To obtain robust results, two parental reported questionnaires and an observational task were used as prosocial behavior assessments. In line with the literature, we found a significant between-person association between externalizing behavior and parent reported prosocial behavior in middle childhood, but not in early childhood. Some evidence indicated that changes in externalizing problems affect later prosocial behavior in middle childhood. Overall, however, the RI-CLPMs provided most support for the hypothesis that within-person changes in prosocial behavior are not related to within-person changes in behavioral problems. Thus, our findings did not support the hypothesis that increased prosocial behavior directly results in decreased behavioral problems, but emphasizes the need to take into account the multifaceted nature of prosocial behavior. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

The unique relevance of executive functions and self-regulation behaviors for understanding early childhood experiences and preschoolers' outcomes in rural Pakistan.

Performance-based measures of children's executive functions (EFs) do not capture children's application of these skills during everyday emotionally-laden and socially-mediated interactions. The current study demonstrates the value of using assessor report of self-regulation behaviors (inhibitory control and positive affect/engagement) in addition to EF tasks when studying early childhood experiences and development in a rural lower-middle-income country setting. In a sample of 1302 disadvantaged 4-year-olds living in rural Pakistan, we found that directly assessed EFs were significantly related to assessor observations of children's inhibitory control and positive affect/engagement during a structured assessment protocol. However, EFs and two types of self-regulation behaviors demonstrated unique associations with children's (1) contextual experiences, as indexed by family socio-economic resources, participation in parenting interventions, and children's physical growth; and (2) age-salient developmental outcomes, as indexed by direct assessment of pre-academic skills and maternal report of prosocial behaviors and behavior problems. First, family wealth uniquely predicted only observed positive affect/engagement, whereas maternal education uniquely predicted only EFs. Second, children's antecedent linear growth was a significant predictor of both EFs and positive affect/engagement, but exposure to an enhanced nutrition intervention during the first 2 years of life and preschoolers' hair cortisol concentration were associated only with observed self-regulation behaviors. Finally, both EFs and observed positive affect/engagement uniquely predicted children's pre-academic skills. In contrast, only assessors' ratings of positive affect/engagement uniquely predicted maternal report of prosocial behaviors and only assessors' ratings of inhibitory control uniquely predicted maternal report of behavioral problems.

Spanish Validation of The Experiences in Close Relationships-Relationship Structures Questionnaire for Pre-adolescents

This study aimed to validate the Spanish version of the Experiences in Close Relationships–Relationship Structures questionnaire (ECR–RS; Fraley et al., 2011). This instrument measures the two-dimensional structure of attachment (anxiety and avoidance) in different relational domains (mother, father, and friends). The sample was composed of 795 pre-adolescents (49.1% girls), aged 9–14 (M=12.86; SD=1.28), who were randomly selected from seven Biscayan schools. The participants completed the measures of attachment, prosocial behavior, emotional and behavioral problems, and difficulties in emotional regulation. The confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the Spanish adaptation of the ECR–RS supported the original two-factor structure and was invariant across genders. Both attachment dimensions were positively associated with emotional and behavioral problems, and difficulties in emotional regulation, and were negatively correlated with prosocial behavior. Gender differences were found in friends, mother, and global measures, in which boys scored higher than girls in anxiety and girls higher than boys in avoidance. This study demonstrated that the Spanish adaptation of the ECR–RS for pre-adolescents is a reliable and valid instrument to measure anxiety and avoidance attachment in different relational domains

Prosocial Behavior of Students Using Social Media

This research is motivated by the existence of prosocial behavior problems in students who use social media. This study aims to describe the prosocial behavior of students using social media at Muhammadiyah University of Sidoarjo quantitatively descriptively. The population in this study were all active students of Muhammadiyah University of Sidoarjo as many as 9943 people. The sample used is 335 people based on an error rate of 5% in the table developed by Isaac and Michael. The sampling technique used in this study is a convenience sampling technique. The data collection technique in this study used a psychological scale, namely the prosocial behavior scale in the form of a Likert scale. The result of the reliability test is 0.894. The results showed that the prosocial behavior of students using social media at Muhammadiyah University of Sidoarjo was mostly in the moderate category (64.2%) and less than half in the high category (20.3%) and in the low category (15.5%). This means that students who use social media are able to carry out prosocial behavior that can benefit and change the physical and psychological conditions of other individuals without having to get a direct benefit.

Behavioural and emotional symptoms among schoolchildren: a comparison between Jordanians and Syrian refugees.

There is a high prevalence of mental illnesses, including depression, anxiety, nicotine dependence, and sleep disorders among Jordanian adolescents and schoolchildren. There are many young Syrian refugees in Jordan, who have an increased risk of physical and psychological illnesses. To assess the behavioural and emotional symptoms among Syrian schoolchildren refugees in Jordan and their Jordanian counterparts. A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted from October to December 2018 on Syrian and Jordanian schoolchildren, aged 12-17 years, attending the same schools in 4 cities with the highest density of Syrian refugees. A self-reported questionnaire was used to collect information about sociodemographic characteristics. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire was used to measure behavioural and emotional symptoms. This study included 1877 Jordanian schoolchildren and 1768 Syrian schoolchildren refugees. The Syrian children's parents were significantly less educated and had significantly lower incomes and larger families than Jordanian parents had. The total difficulties and peer relationship problems were abnormally high in more than half of children. Compared to Jordanians, Syrian schoolchildren had more total difficulties (58.2% vs 52.5%), and peer relationship (55.5 vs 53.6%), conduct (47.6% vs 44.8%), and emotional problems (32.0% vs 30.8%), but they had fewer hyperactivity/inattention problems (35.5% vs 36.9%), and prosocial behaviour problems (42.5% vs 43.0%). In binary logistic regression, Syrian were more likely than Jordanian schoolchildren to experience overall difficulties and emotional symptoms. There were significant but unspoken behavioural and emotional symptoms and mental health needs among Syrian and Jordanian schoolchildren. They are all in need of urgent psychosocial support.

Heterogeneity of decision-making strategies for preschoolers on a variant of the IGT

Adaptive decision-making strategies are critical for dealing with the complexity of the social world. The present study investigated the use of decision-making strategies in preschoolers and their association to prosocial behavior and peer problems. Eighty-six preschoolers aged 3- and 4-years completed the preschool decision-making task (PGT), a child variant of the Iowa Gambling task . Win-stay/lose-shift responses along with exploration (consecutive choices from the advantageous deck) and exploitation (shifting between options) were examined. Preschoolers showed a range of strategies, with 4-year-olds adapting their approach as the game progressed and making better use of feedback in comparison to 3-year-olds. Children who differed in terms of choices from the advantageous deck were distinguished by different combinations of exploration and exploitation. Furthermore, unique combinations of decision-making strategies also distinguished children who were rated as high versus low in prosocial behavior as well as children rated as having a high versus low level of peer problems. The findings suggest that consideration of strategies used in decision-making tasks could provide useful insight in a clinical setting, particularly for populations with social difficulties.

Eating Behaviour-Consumption Frequency of Certain Foods in Early Childhood as a Predictor of Behaviour Problems: 6-year follow-up study.

ObjectivesThis study aimed to evaluate food consumption frequency in 1–6-year-olds as an eating behaviour-related predictor of behavioural problems over a span of six years. Eating behaviour in early childhood serves as a foundation for future health outcomes. Diet patterns can have long-term beneficial or adverse effects on social behaviour development.MethodsThis longitudinal study was performed based on information obtained between July 2011 and August 2017 provided from a project named ‘Community Empowerment and Care for Wellbeing and Health Longevity’ initiated in 1991; the current study involved 124 mother-child dyads from the project. Children aged 1–6 years were studied in July 2011, with a follow-up assessment in August 2017. The primary exposure examined was the frequency of food items intake. The primary outcome was behaviour problems as assessed by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ).ResultsThe adjusted results suggested that a higher intake of leafy green and light-coloured vegetables were significantly associated with decreased odds of conduct problems and prosocial behaviour problems in Japanese children. However, no associations were observed among fruits, milk, small fish, eggs, soybeans, seaweed and any SDQ subscales.ConclusionThis study shows that eating leafy green and light-coloured vegetables may have a protective effect on a child’s conduct and against prosocial behaviour problems. Due consideration should be given to children’s eating habits in the early stages of their lives to ensure better mental health.

Children’s mental health in different contexts: Results from a multi-informant assessment of Estonian first-grade students

The current study sought to investigate the agreement between teachers and parents about the mental health of first-grade students, the factors that affected this agreement and the associations between measures completed by students, parents and teachers. The investigation used baseline data collected during the PAX Good Behavior Game (PAX GBG) effectiveness study in 42 Estonian schools (N = 708). Information was collected about externalizing and internalizing difficulties and prosocial behaviour, and about inhibitory control. Our research showed higher agreement between parents and teachers about externalizing behaviour and lower agreement regarding prosocial behavior and emotional problems. Inhibition was correlated with teacher-rated questionnaires, but not with parents’ responses. Sociodemographic factors influenced the agreement between teachers and parents somewhat differently. This study highlights the importance of a multi-informant approach in students’ mental health assessments, as some problems might be less observable in certain environments or by some respondents. The practical implications of these findings are discussed and suggestions are provided for the development of a school-based mental health screening system.

Differences in Children's Social Development: How Migration Background Impacts the Effect of Early Institutional Childcare Upon Children's Prosocial Behavior and Peer Problems.

This article focuses on the early years of children from immigrant families in Germany. Research has documented disparities in young children’s development correlating with their family background (e.g., immigrant or ethnic minority status), making clear the importance of early intervention. Institutional childcare—as an early intervention for children at risk—plays an important role in Germany, as 34.3% of children below the age of three and 93% of children above that age are in external childcare. This paper focuses on the extent to which children from families with a background of migration differ in their social development when considering their age of entry into early external childcare (and thus its duration). Data from the infant cohort study of the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS, N = 1,846) is used to analyze the impact of early institutional childcare before the age of 3 years on children’s social competence at the age of 5 years, controlling for gender, siblings, temperament, home learning activities, and socioeconomic status. Results show the effects of duration of early external childcare on peer problems for children from families with a background of migration, in such a way that children who attend early external childcare for more than 1 year before the age of three show less problem behavior with peers than those who attend for less than a year. These findings have equity implications for children with a migration background living in Germany, especially as the proportion of these children is trending upwards.

Sibling Adjustment and Sibling Relationships Associated with Clusters of Needs in Children with Autism: A Novel Methodological Approach

We tested a novel methodological approach to examine associations between characteristics of autistic children and outcomes for siblings. Cluster analysis was used to define five groups of children with autism (n = 168) based on autism symptoms, adaptive behavior, pro-social behavior, and behavior problems. Primary and secondary parent carers, and siblings themselves, reported on sibling relationship quality and psychological adjustment. Siblings of autistic children with a mild symptom profile, high levels of adaptive skills, but high internalizing and externalizing problems had the highest level of these problems themselves and more conflict in their relationship. Siblings of autistic children with the most complex support needs (adaptive skills deficits, severe autism symptoms) reported lower warmth relationships but not elevated internalizing and externalizing problems.

Familial cultural activities and child development – Findings from a longitudinal panel study

ABSTRACT We investigated the associations between parent-child leisure activities and perceived relationships longitudinally during the transition from childhood to adolescence. The German Family Panel (pairfam) covering four biannual waves (N = 1,816 children; age range: 8–15 years; 48.4% female) between 2009 and 2015/16 served as our data base. Frequencies of engaging in book reading (Reading), singing or playing music (Music), and playing computer games (Computer), were entered as independent measures, and children’s views on Intimacy, Prosocial Behaviour and Conduct Problems in their relationships with parents were entered as dependent measures in a series of regression analyses. The results revealed complex associations between parent-child leisure activities and parent-child relationships across waves. Specifically, Reading and Music were found positively associated with Prosocial Behaviour, and Computer was found negatively associated with this variable, and positively associated with Conduct Problems. Gender differences and influences of socioeconomic variables were noted. These findings suggest important and continued roles of parent-child leisure activities to regulate intrafamilial relationships during later childhood and the early stages of puberty. Further research is required to investigate the moderators of these associations and underlying mechanisms.

Mental Health Problems and the Associated Family and School Factors in Adolescents: A Multilevel Analysis.

Objective: Mental health is one of the most important issues in adolescents’ life. Adolescents’ health is highly important, because of their role in the future. This study was conducted using multilevel analysis to investigate the risk factors at student and school levels. Method : This was a cross sectional study for which 1740 students and 53 schools were selected between February and March 2018 in Qazvin, Iran. Multistage stratified cluster sampling was used for data collection. Mental health problems were measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Emotional symptom, conduct problem, hyperactivity, peer relationship problem, and prosocial behavior were the subscales. This study used multilevel analysis to determine the association between each of the questionnaire scales and students and schools variables. Results: The prevalence of the mental health problems was 16.2%. Conduct problem was more prevalent than others (21.1%). Overall, the score of mental health problems was significantly lower in boys’ schools, in adolescents with physical activity, and in families with high socioeconomic status. Hyperactivity and emotional symptoms were significantly higher in girls’ schools. While prosocial behavior and peer relationship problems were significantly higher in boys’ schools. The association between variables and the scales of mental health problems was different.Conclusion: Results indicated desirable physical activity and socioeconomic status are effective components in the adolescents’ mental health, and, mostly girls’ schools were more vulnerable than boys’ schools. Therefore, the educational authorities and health policymakers should consider this diversity to design interventional programs and pay more attention to the high-risk adolescents in different schools.

Dietary diversity and mental health in preschoolers in rural China.

To investigate the prevalence of mental health problems among preschoolers in rural China and examine the relationship between dietary diversity and mental health. A cross-sectional survey analysis was performed. Child mental health was assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Child dietary diversity was assessed with the dietary diversity score (DDS), which was calculated based on nine food groups using a 24-h recall method. Data were analysed using unadjusted and adjusted logistic regression models. Two nationally designated poverty counties in Hunan Province of China. Preschoolers (n 1334) aged 3-5 years, preschools (n 26). Of 950 preschoolers with data on both dietary diversity and mental health, 663 (70 %) were classified as having at least one kind of mental health problem. The prevalences of emotional symptoms, conduct problems, symptoms of hyperactive/inattention, peer relationship problems and poor prosocial behaviour were 39, 27, 23, 12 and 26 %, respectively. Male preschoolers showed higher risks of having mental health problems than their female counterparts on each SDQ subscale except for conduct problems. Moreover, a higher DDS was significantly associated with a lower likelihood of having symptoms of hyperactivity/inattention, peer relationship problems and prosocial behaviour problems after adjustment for confounders (preschoolers' age, gender, cognitive ability, parental migration status, primary caregiver's education and household socio-economic status). The prevalence of mental health problems was high among preschoolers in rural China. Improving child dietary diversity might be an important strategy to consider in the design of interventions to improve child mental health.

Brief Research Report on Adolescent Mental Well-Being and School Closures During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Indonesia.

The COVID-19 pandemic does not affected only physical but also mental health and socioeconomic part. The social distancing, social quarantine, school from home, and work from becomes a new normal these days. Being adolescence, the above conditions may be challenging due to their developmental milestones. Therefore, this brief report aimed to preliminary identify proportion of adolescents' emotional and behavior problems and several factors related to it during COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia. The findings might raise some understanding of youth mental well-being and programs that can be applied in schools and community in general to overcome the issues. The study was designed as cross sectional and used online survey that started on April 2020. During April 15–May 10, 2020, there were 113 adolescents participated on this survey. Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) 11–17 years old was used to assess adolescent emotional and behavior problems; and specific life experience questionnaire was designed to collect other independents variables (Cronbach's α = 0.75). All participants fulfilled the online informed consent before they started to complete the questionnaire. All data was analyzed by using SPSS version 20 for Mac. The average age of research subjects were 14.07 (2.18) years old; 98.2% was school from home. There was 14.2% of the total research subject at risk on total difficulties problems; 38.1% of adolescent was at risk on peer-relationship problems, 28.3% at risk on pro-social behavior problems, 15% at risk on conduct behavior and 10.6% at risk on emotional problems. The number of adolescent that perceived worse to significantly worse self-mental well-being prior COVID-19 increased during COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia (p < 0.05). There was significantly association between having mental health information and conduct behavior (OR = 10.34, 95%CI = 1.27–78.86); Subjective anxiety due to COVID-19 pandemic and pro-social behavior problems (OR = 2.37, 95% CI = 1.00–5.63), parental support and total difficulties (OR = 0.09, 95% CI = 0.14–0.60) and pro-social behavior problems (OR = 0.09, 95% CI = 0.01–0.82); friends support during COVID-19 pandemic and conduct behavior (OR = 0.20, 95% CI = 0.04–1.00) and pro-social behavior problems (OR = 0.14, 95% CI = 0.02–0.75). To be concluded, during phase 1 and 2 COVID-19 pandemic and school closures in Indonesia, adolescents were at risk for having emotional and behavior problems. Therefore, maintain clear mental health information, keep them on connection with school by designing an optimal tele-education, tele-consultation, and virtual activity programs to accommodate adolescents' biopsychosocial needs in the near future.

Reactive attachment disorder symptoms and prosocial behavior in middle childhood: the role of Secure Base Script knowledge

BackgroundChildren with attachment disorder show prosocial behavior problems. Children with a reactive attachment disorder show inhibited and emotionally withdrawn behavior. Consequently, these children typically display prosocial behavior problems. However, the underlying mechanism between reactive attachment disorder and prosocial behavior problems is still unclear and findings in literature are mixed.MethodsThe current study investigated the role of children’s attachment representations in this association. Attachment representations reflect knowledge about a cognitive script regarding the attachment figure as a source for support (Secure Base Script). We tested whether secure base script knowledge 1) mediates or 2) moderates the link between reactive attachment disorder and prosocial behavior problems in 83 children (6–11 years; 83.1% boys) recruited from special education schools for children with behavioral problems. Children completed a pictorial Secure Base Script Test. Their reactive attachment disorder symptoms were assessed during an interview with the primary caregivers. Primary caregivers and teachers filled out a prosocial behavior questionnaire about the child.ResultsResults did not support the mediation hypothesis, but evidence for the moderation hypothesis was found. Secure base script knowledge attenuated the negative association between attachment disorder symptoms and prosocial behavior.ConclusionsThese findings contribute to the discussion about the link between attachment representations and attachment disorders.

Student subjective wellbeing, school functioning, and psychological adjustment in high school adolescents: A latent variable analysis

Well-being is a multi-faceted construct that encompasses all aspects of healthy and successful human functioning across multiple domains. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the predictive power of student subjective wellbeing on several specific adolescent school and psychological adjustment indicators: school achievement, academic satisfaction, prosocial behavior, and internalizing and externalizing problems. Participants included 223 adolescents, comprising of 54.9% girls, ranging in age from 13 to 18 years (M= 15.67, SD= 1.21). Findings from the LVPA indicated that student subjective wellbeing was significantly associated with youth school functioning and adjustment outcomes, ranging from small-to-large effect size (R2 range = .05 to .42). Student subjective wellbeing had the strongest predictive effect on prosocial behavior, followed by academic satisfaction, psychological health problems, and school achievement. With regard to the first-order models, school connectedness and joy of learning significantly predicted student academic satisfaction, prosocial behavior, and psychological adjustment problems. However, the predictive effect of these variables on student school achievement was non–significant. Educational purpose and academic efficacy were significant predictors of all adolescent outcomes. Taken together, these results suggest that student subjective wellbeing is an essential resource for improving youth academic functioning and psychological health.

Mothers’ and fathers’ parenting stress, responsiveness, and child wellbeing among low-income families

Robust research shows that parenting stress is associated with lower levels of parental sensitivity toward their children (i.e., parental responsiveness), thus negatively influencing child outcomes. While research supports these associations, most studies utilize self-report measures of parental responsiveness and exclude fathers. This study examines whether observed parental responsiveness mediates the relationship between parenting stress and child cognitive development, prosocial behavior, and behavior problems in a large sample of diverse low-income families. Data were obtained from the Building Strong Families Project (N = 1,173). Dyadic bootstrapped mediation models were estimated in Mplus. For mothers and fathers, parenting stress was negatively associated with responsiveness (B = −0.08, 95% CI = [−0.14, −0.02], p = .012), and responsiveness was positively associated with child cognitive development (B = 0.15, 95% CI = [0.11, 0.19], p < .001) and child prosocial behavior (B = 0.12, 95% CI = [0.08, 0.15], p < .001). Mothers’ responsiveness was negatively associated with child behavior problems (B = −0.07, 95% CI = [−0.13, −0.01], p = .020), but fathers’ responsiveness was not (B = −0.01, 95% CI = [−0.06, 0.05], p = .814). For mothers and fathers, parenting stress was indirectly related to child cognitive development and prosocial behavior via responsiveness. Indirect effects were not found for mothers or fathers when predicting child behavior problems. To improve children’s wellbeing, interventions may consider strengthening responsiveness and reducing parental stress among both mothers and fathers.