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Using data from an eight-year longitudinal study of 214 children's social and emotional development, I conducted three studies to (1) examine patterns of agreement for internalizing (INT) and externalizing (EXT) symptomatology among different informants (mothers, fathers, teachers, and adolescents) using a recently developed structural equation modeling approach for multi-trait, multi-method

Using data from an eight-year longitudinal study of 214 children's social and emotional development, I conducted three studies to (1) examine patterns of agreement for internalizing (INT) and externalizing (EXT) symptomatology among different informants (mothers, fathers, teachers, and adolescents) using a recently developed structural equation modeling approach for multi-trait, multi-method data; (2) examine the developmental trajectories for INT and EXT and predict individual differences in symptom development using temperament and parenting variables; and (3) describe patterns of INT and EXT co-occurrence and predict these patterns from temperament and parenting. In Study 1, longitudinal invariance was established for mothers', fathers' and teachers' reports over a six-year period. Sex, age, and SES did not substantially moderate agreement among informants, although both sex and age were differentially related to symptomatology depending on the informant. Agreement among teachers and mothers, but not among mothers and fathers, differed by domain of symptomatology, and was greater for EXT than for INT. In Study 2, latent profile analysis, a person-centered analytic approach, did not provide easily interpretable patterns of symptom development, a failure that is likely the result of the relatively modest sample size. Latent growth curve models, an alternative analytic approach, did provide good fit to the data. Temperament and parenting variables were examined as predictors of the latent growth parameters in these models. Although there was little prediction of the slope, effortful control was negatively related to overall levels of EXT, whereas impulsivity and anger were positively related. Mutually responsive orientation, a measure of the parent-child relationship, was a more consistent predictor of EXT than was parental warmth. Furthermore, the relation between mutually responsive orientation and EXT was partially mediated by inhibitory control. Across informants, there were few consistent predictors of INT. In Study 3, latent profile analysis was used to classify individuals into different patterns of INT and EXT co-occurrence. In these models, a similar class structure was identified for mothers and for teachers. When temperament and parenting were examined as predictors of co-occurring symptomatology, few significant interactions were found and results largely replicated prior findings from this data set using arbitrary symptom groups.
ContributorsSulik, Michael John (Author) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Thesis advisor) / Spinrad, Tracy L (Thesis advisor) / Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn (Committee member) / Wolchik, Sharlene A (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
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Description
The current study delineated the developmental trajectories of early childhood externalizing and internalizing symptoms reported by mothers and fathers, and examined the role of the 18-month observed parenting quality × Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia

(RSA) interaction in predicting these trajectories. Child sex was tested as a covariate and moderator. It was

The current study delineated the developmental trajectories of early childhood externalizing and internalizing symptoms reported by mothers and fathers, and examined the role of the 18-month observed parenting quality × Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia

(RSA) interaction in predicting these trajectories. Child sex was tested as a covariate and moderator. It was found that children's low baseline RSA or high RSA reactivity , in comparison to high baseline RSA or low RSA reactivity , was more reactive as a function

of early parenting quality when predicting the development of early childhood problem symptoms. Differential patterns of the interaction between parenting quality and RSA were detected for mothers' and fathers' reports. Mother-reported models showed a diathesis-stress pattern, whereas the father-reported model showed a vantage-sensitivity pattern, especially for internalizing symptoms. This may imply the potential benefit of fathers' active engagement in children's early development. In addition, the effect of the parenting quality × RSA interaction in predicting the mother-reported models was found

to be further moderated by child sex. Specifically, the parenting quality × baseline RSA interaction was significantly predictive of girls' 54-month internalizing, and the parenting quality × RSA reactivity interaction significantly predicted boys' internalizing slope. Girls with low baseline RSA or boys with high RSA reactivity were vulnerable to the less positive parenting, exhibiting high levels of 54-month internalizing symptoms or slow decline in internalizing over time, respectively. Future research directions were discussed in terms of integrating the measures of SNS and PNS in psychopathology study,

exploring the mechanisms underlying the sex difference in parenting quality × RSA interaction, and comparing the findings of children's typical and atypical development.
ContributorsLi, Yi (Author) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Thesis advisor) / Spinrad, Tracy (Thesis advisor) / Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn (Committee member) / Wilkens, Natalie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
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Description
This study examined whether social support available to parents moderated the heritability of parent-reported social approach at 12 months (N = 286 twin pairs, 52.00% female) and social competence at 30 months (N = 259 twin pairs, 53.30% female). Genetic and environmental covariance across age is also reported. Social support

This study examined whether social support available to parents moderated the heritability of parent-reported social approach at 12 months (N = 286 twin pairs, 52.00% female) and social competence at 30 months (N = 259 twin pairs, 53.30% female). Genetic and environmental covariance across age is also reported. Social support consistently moderated genetic influences on children’s social approach and competence, such that heritability was highest when parents reported low social support. Shared environment was not moderated by social support and explained continuity across age. Findings provide further evidence that genetic and environmental influences on development vary across context. When parents are supported, environmental influences on children’s social competence are larger, perhaps because support helps parents provide a broadly promotive environment.
ContributorsClifford, Sierra (Author) / Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn (Thesis advisor) / Doane, Leah (Committee member) / Shiota, Michelle (Committee member) / Grimm, Kevin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017
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Description
Several decades of research have concluded that child social functioning is a critical predictor of wellbeing across various developmental domains. Most scientists agree that both genetic and environmental influences play defining roles in social behavior; the processes by which they concurrently affect child development, however, has been the subject of

Several decades of research have concluded that child social functioning is a critical predictor of wellbeing across various developmental domains. Most scientists agree that both genetic and environmental influences play defining roles in social behavior; the processes by which they concurrently affect child development, however, has been the subject of less research. This work examines distinct mechanisms that shape child prosociality by examining genetic and environmental influences on development, via two empirical studies. The first study analyzed the evocative-reactive and the evocative-socially-mediated hypotheses as gene-environment correlation (rGE) mechanisms connecting the arginine vasopressin receptor 1a (AVPR1a) and dopamine receptor D2 (DRD2) genes, child prosocial behavior, and parent differential treatment (PDT). Findings present modest evidence for the evocative-reactive rGE hypothesis; specifically, AVPR1a marginally influenced child prosociality, which subsequently predicted mother preference in adolescence. The second study examined several gene-environment interactions (GxEs) in exploring how social environmental variables- positive and negative parenting- predicted child prosociality, as moderated by socially-implicated child genes, DRD2 and dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4). Findings indicated that while positive parenting was predictive of child prosociality regardless of genetic variants, the effects of negative parenting on child prosociality were dependent on child genetic variants. Together, findings from these studies suggest modest genetic and environmental influences on child behavior in middle childhood and adolescence, consistent with previous research and theory. Directions for future research are offered, and intervention and policy implications are discussed.
ContributorsMeek, Shantel E (Author) / Jahromi, Laudan B (Thesis advisor) / Lemery-Chalfant, Kathryn (Thesis advisor) / Valiente, Carlos (Committee member) / Iida, Masumi (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013