Association between parental depressive symptoms and impaired bonding with the infant

Impaired bonding with the infant is associated with maternal postpartum depression but has not been investigated extensively in fathers. The primary study aim was to evaluate associations between maternal and paternal depressive symptoms and impaired bonding with their infant. A secondary aim was to determine the associations between parents’ marital problems and impaired bonding with the infant. The study is part of a population-based cohort project (UPPSAT) in Uppsala, Sweden. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 6 weeks and 6 months postpartum and the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire at 6 months postpartum were completed by 727 couples. The prevalence of impaired bonding was highest among couples in which both spouses had depressive symptoms. Impaired bonding was associated with higher EPDS scores in both mothers and fathers, as well as with experiencing a deteriorated marital relationship. The association between maternal and paternal impaired bonding and the mothers’ and fathers’ EPDS scores remained significant even after adjustment for relevant confounding factors. Depressive symptoms at 6 weeks postpartum are associated with impaired bonding with the infant at 6 months postpartum for both mothers and fathers. It is critical to screen for and prevent depressive symptoms in both parents during early parenthood.     

Parenting in context: systemic thinking about parental conflict and its influence on children.

Fauber and Long's (1991) overview of research on family therapy with children is a valuable integration of the literatures on the family correlates of and treatments for childhood disorders. Several concerns apply to some of the inferences they draw from risk research, however. Their assertion that various sources of family distress have effects that are mediated primarily through parenting is questionable, as is their suggestion that parenting therefore is the appropriate focus of family treatment. The conceptual issues of reductionism, linearity, holism, and change in defining causality are discussed in questioning these conclusions about etiology and treatment. Other empirical and methodological issues are raised briefly, particularly as they relate to statistical models of direct and indirect influences and to the body of correlational and analogue research on how parental conflict influences children.     

Anorexia nervosa and parental bonding: the contribution of parent-grandparent relationships to eating disorder psychopathology

The present study adopted an intergenerational approach in examining the association between parental bonding and anorexia nervosa. Forty-three anorexic participants and 33 nonclinical comparison participants completed eating disorder questionnaires and the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI). The participant's parents also completed the PBI. The anorexic participants perceived both parents as less caring and fathers as more controlling than nonclinical participants. Among anorexic participants, mother control and father care were associated with symptom severity. Intergenerational effects were present. Among anorexic participants, maternal grandmother care was associated with eating disorder psychopathology. The present findings suggest that parental characteristics of grandparents might play a role in the development of eating disorders in granddaughters.     

在日中国幼儿母亲的育儿压力特点及相关因素

目的:考察居住于日本的中国母亲的育儿状况及育儿压力的相关因素。方法:采用方便取样,选取在日本关东圈内与配偶共同居住、育有0～6岁婴幼儿的中国母亲132名,用夫妻关系满足量表(Quali-ty Marriage Index,QMI)来测量夫妻关系满意程度(≥18分为夫妻关系良好组,18分为夫妻关系不良组),用育儿压力量表考察中国母亲的育儿压力特点。结果:3个或3个以上孩子的母亲(n=7)的育儿压力低于拥有2个孩子的母亲(n=48)或1个孩子的母亲(n=77)[(60.14±15.46)vs.(87.29±19.79),(83.70±20.31);P=0.009,0.003];女孩母亲(n=62)的育儿压力低于男孩母亲(n=70)[(79.45±22.50)vs.(87.57±18.11);P=0.023]。夫妻关系不良组母亲(n=51)的育儿压力高的可能性比夫妻关系良好组母亲(n=81)高4.21倍;无职业母亲(n=59)的育儿压力高的可能性是有职业母亲(n=73)的2.63倍。结论:夫妻关系满意度、就职状况、孩子的数量及性别与在日中国人母亲的育儿压力相关,夫妻关系满意度高、有职业、孩子数量较多且为女孩的在日中国母亲育儿压力更低。     

Sex-specific role of alexithymia in associations between parental bonding and mental health: A moderated mediation model

Objective

This study aimed to explore the role of alexithymia and potential sex differences in the associations between perceived parental bonding and mental health.

Methods

The sample consists of 2421 parents from the FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study who completed the parental bonding instrument, the Toronto alexithymia scale, the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale, and the anxiety subscale of the symptom checklist-90. Moderated mediation analyses were conducted to examine the possible mediating role of alexithymia and moderating role of sex in the associations between parental bonding and depressive/anxiety symptoms.

Results

Alexithymia was found to be a potential mediator and sex be a moderator in the relations between perceived dysfunctional parental bonding and the psychological symptoms. Specifically, dysfunctional paternal bonding, especially paternal overprotection, had stronger indirect effects (via alexithymia) on the psychological symptoms in males.

Conclusions

This study indicates the importance of alexithymia in the parenting-related mental health impacts and highlights the significance of paternal bonding for the development of alexithymia and mental health problems in male populations. The findings improve the limited understanding of sex-related parental factors for alexithymia and mental health problems. Future studies in longitudinal designs are warranted to clarify the causal process of the mediation.     

Parenting stress in families of children with Prader–Willi syndrome

Prader–Willi syndrome (PWS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by multiple endocrine, metabolic, respiratory, cognitive, and behavioral/psychiatric symptoms that may lead to severe emotional strain in their caregivers. In this study, we evaluated parenting stress by the Parenting Stress Index‐short form (PSI/SF) and parent‐reported behavioral symptoms by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL/6–18) in families of children with PWS. Sixty‐seven home‐resident PWS patients and their families were recruited in this study. The patients' mean age was 14.9 ± 8.3 years, and 33 (50.8%) were male. High parenting stress was reported by 41.5% families, as determined by high total stress scores of PSI/SF. The patients in high stress families were significantly older than those in low stress families (18.2 ± 8.0 vs. 12.6 ± 7.8 years, p = .007). CBCL/6–18 was used to evaluate the somatic and neuropsychiatric symptoms of PWS patients aged between 6 and 18 in the subgroup of the 35 families. In this subgroup, 37.1% of families reported high parenting stress. High stress families reported a higher T‐score in anxiety/depression, withdrawn behavior, somatic complaints, thought problems, attention problems, and delinquent and aggressive behavior of their children with PWS. After multivariate stepwise logistic regression analysis, the T‐score of somatic complaints was the only factor related to high parenting stress, with an odds ratio of 1.279. Our data demonstrated the high care burden of families with PWS and highlighted the importance of having dedicated medical care for both somatic and neuropsychiatric symptoms.     

Parenting stress and psychosocial well-being among parents with twins conceived naturally or by reproductive technology

This study compared parenting stress and psychosocial well-being among parents with 1 year old twins conceived in three different ways: (i) spontaneously without any medical assistance (54 families), (ii) spontaneously following hormonal treatment (25 families) and (iii) following in-vitro fertilization (IVF) or artificial insemination (AI) with the semen of the social father (24 families). The investigation included the Parenting Stress Index (PSI) and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-30). Since the presence of older children differed significantly between the three groups, this factor was included in the statistical analysis. Overall, no significant differences were found between the three study groups, either for the mothers or for the fathers. Nevertheless, we found a main effect of the presence of older children and an interaction effect of the presence of older children and the conception mode on some of the scales for the mothers: first-time mothers showed significantly higher stress related to parental competence, health and the partner relationship compared with mothers who had older children. First-time mothers with a history of infertility obtained significantly higher stress scores for parental competence and health and showed lower psychosocial well-being compared with naturally conceiving first-time mothers and mothers with a history of infertility who already had children.     

A comparative study of parental stress among mothers and fathers of deaf school-age children

This study examined parental stress among mothers and fathers of deaf school-age children (n = 42). Maternal and paternal stress did not significantly differ as measured by the Questionnaire on Resources and Stress-Short Form's (QRS-SF, Friedrich, Greenberg, & Crnic, 1982, 1983) four scales and total score. Correlational findings showed that paternal stress increased as family occupational status and father's educational attainment increased, whereas maternal stress was not significantly related to these variables. Limited correlational findings suggested a relationship between earlier parental use of sign language and present levels of parental stress. Also, maternal stress increases were associated with older aged children. For both mothers and fathers, increased stress was associated with teacher-reported immaturity. Unlike maternal stress, increased paternal stress was correlated with teacher-reported withdrawn behavior, less developed lipreading skills, and lower peer ratings of social acceptance. The study's findings are discussed in the frameworks of differing parental roles, parent and child communication, and the association of a child's socioemotional school behavior and parental stress.     

Effects of stress on parental care are sexually dimorphic in prairie voles

The effects of stress on parental care are poorly understood, especially in biparental species where males also display care. Data from previous studies in prairie voles, as well as parallels with pair-bonding behavior, suggest the hypothesis that a stressful experience might facilitate parental care in males but not in females. In the present study, male and female prairie voles were exposed to either a 3-min swim stressor or no stressor; 45 min later each animal was tested in a parental care paradigm. Following the parental care test, blood samples were collected and assayed for corticosterone (CORT). After the stressor males, but not females, showed significant changes in parental behavior including significantly more time in kyphosis (arched-back huddling), and a tendency to spend more time licking and grooming pups. In males, CORT levels measured following the parental care test were inversely related to licking and grooming but positively correlated with retrievals. These findings support earlier studies suggesting that the neuroendocrine substrates of parental behavior, as well as the effects of stressors, are sexually dimorphic in this species.     

孤独症儿童母亲亲职压力的6个月随访

目的:探讨孤独症儿童母亲在养育和照料患儿过程中亲职压力的变化趋势及相关因素.方法:选取符合美国精神障碍诊断与统计手册第4版(DSM-Ⅳ)孤独症诊断标准的78名儿童及其母亲(n=78),研究基线时使用0～6儿童神经心理发育量表、婴儿-初中生社会生活能力量表、儿童孤独症评定量表(CARS)、孤独症行为评定量表(ABC)评估儿童的发育商、适应行为、疾病严重程度、行为问题;采用流调用抑郁自评量表(CES-D)、焦虑自评量表(SAS)、亲职压力指标简表(PSI-SF)评估孤独症儿童母亲抑郁状态、焦虑状态及亲职压力水平.分别在研究3个月和研究6个月时再次使用亲职压力指标简表(PSI-SF)对母亲亲职压力进行评估.结果:3个月与6个月时,母亲的亲职压力指标简表中亲职压力总分[(101.9±17.9),(99.9±17.6) vs.(103.1±18.6)]、亲职愁苦得分[(35.3±9.4),(33.7±8.5)vs.(36.9±8.3)]均低于基线(P＜0.05);3个月时困难儿童得分高于6个月时得分[(34.6±8.1)vs.(32.5±7.2),P＜0.05],但与研究基线相比差异无统计学意义.多层线性模型分析显示,6个月中母亲亲职压力指标简表得分呈下降趋势(P＜0.001),与基线相比,3个月、6个月时母亲亲职压力指标简表的得分每隔3个月分值降低1.19.基线时,孤独症儿童的婴儿-初中生社会生活能力量表得分与母亲的PSI-SF得分呈负相关(β=-0.20,P＜0.01),儿童的CARS(β=0.92,P＜0.01)及母亲的CES-D(β=0.69,P＜0.01)、SAS (β=0.89,P＜0.01)均与母亲的PSI-SF得分呈正相关.儿童的婴儿～初中生社会生活能力量表得分(β=-0.02,P＜0.05)及母亲的SAS得分(β=0.1,P＜0.01)与6个月时的母亲亲职压力指标简表得分仍然相关.结论:孤独症儿童母亲存在较高的亲职压力,母亲焦虑程度越高、儿童适应行为能力越低时母亲亲职压力可能越高.     

Influence of the bonding substrate in dental composite polymerization stress testing

Our objective was to compare the polymerization stress (σ_pol) of a series of composites obtained using poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) or glass as bonding substrates, and to compare the results with those from in vitro microleakage of composite restorations. The tested hypothesis was that stress values obtained in a less rigid testing system (i.e. using PMMA) would show a better relationship with microleakage data. Five dental composites were tested: Filtek Z250 (FZ), Z100 (Z1), Concept (CO), Durafill (DU) and Heliomolar (HM). σ_pol was determined in 1 mm high specimens inserted between two rods (? = 5 mm) of either PMMA or glass. The composite elastic modulus (E) was obtained by three-point bending. σ_pol and E data were submitted to a one-way analysis of variance/Tukey test (α = 0.05). For the microleakage test (MI), bovine incisors received cylindrical cavities (? = 5 mm, h = 2 mm), which were restored in bulk. After storage for 24 h in water, specimens were subjected to dye penetration using AgNO₃ as tracer. Specimens were sectioned twice, perpendicularly, and microleakage was measured (in millimeters) under 20× magnification. Data from MI were submitted to the Kruskal–Wallis test. Means (SD) of σ_pol (MPa) using glass/PMMA were FZ: 7.5(1.8)^A/2.5(0.2)^bc; Z1: 7.3(0.5)^A/2.8(0.3)^ab; CO: 6.8(1.1)^A/3.2(0.5)^a; DU: 4.5(0.7)^B/2.0(0.2)^bc; HM: 3.5(0.2)^B/2.3(0.3)^c. σ_pol obtained using PMMA rods were 34–67% lower than with glass. Means (SD) for tooth average/tooth maximum microleakage were FZ: 0.92(0.19)^B/1.53(0.30)^a; Z1: 1.19(0.21)^A/1.75(0.20)^a; CO: 1.26(0.25)^A/1.78(0.24)^a; DU: 0.83(0.30)^B/1.68(0.46)^a; HM: 0.81(0.27)^B/1.64(0.54)^a. The tested hypothesis was confirmed, as the composites showed the same ordering both in the polymerization stress test using PMMA rods and in the microleakage test.     

Treatment of parental stress to enhance therapeutic change among children referred for aggressive and antisocial behavior

This study evaluated a parent problem-solving (PPS) intervention designed to augment the effects of evidence-based therapy for children referred to treatment for aggressive and antisocial behavior. All children (N = 127, ages 6-14 years) and their families received problem-solving skills training (PSST), and parents received parent management training (PMT). Families were randomly assigned to receive or not to receive an additional component (PPS) that addressed parental stress over the course of treatment. Children improved with treatment; the PPS intervention enhanced therapeutic change for children and parents and reduced the barriers that parents experienced during treatment. The implications of the findings for improving evidence-based treatment as well as the limitations of adding components to treatment are detailed.     

Physiological reactivity to stress and parental support: comparison of clinical and non‐clinical adolescents

An Alarm Stress Task was developed to study affect regulation in the context of parent–child interactions in adolescents (mean age = 12.72, standard deviation = 2.06) with (n = 20) and without (n = 20) mental health problems. Changes in heart rate (HR), preejection period (PEP) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) were used as indicators of affect regulation. HR increased, and PEP and RSA decreased significantly in reaction to a suggested failure on a simple task, indicating that this procedure induced affective arousal in adolescents. During reunion with the parent, RSA increased significantly. Support seeking on reunion was associated with stronger parasympathetic reactivity during stress and reunion, consistent with the model that the parasympathetic system is involved when affect is regulated by social engagement. Quality of parent–adolescent interactive behaviour was overall lower in the clinical sample. Individual and relationship‐based processes of affect regulation may be simultaneously assessed, highlighting the continuing importance of the parent–child relationship in adolescence for affect regulation and mental health. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.