Matching Items (65)
Description
The effects of preventive interventions are found to be related to participants' responsiveness to the program, or the degree to which participants attend sessions, engage in the material, and use the program skills. The current study proposes a multi-dimensional method for measuring responsiveness to the Family Bereavement Program (FBP), a parenting-focused program to prevent mental health problems for children who experienced the death of a parent. It examines the relations between individual-level risk-factors and responsiveness to the program, as well as the relations between responsiveness and program outcomes. The sample consists of 90 caregivers and 135 children assigned to the intervention condition of an efficacy trial of the FBP. Caregivers' responsiveness to the 12-week program was measured using a number of indicators, including attendance, completion of weekly "homework" assignments, overall program skill use, perceived helpfulness of the program and program skills, and perceived group environment. Three underlying dimensions of responsiveness were identified: Skill Use, Program Liking, and Perceived Group Environment. Positive parenting and child externalizing problems at baseline were found to predict caregiver Skill Use. Skill Use and Perceived Group Environment predicted changes in caregiver grief and reports of child behavior problems at posttest and 11-month follow-up. Caregivers with better Skill Use had better positive parenting outcomes. Skill use mediated the relation between baseline positive parenting and improvements in positive parenting at 11-month follow-up.
ContributorsSchoenfelder, Erin (Author) / Sandler, Irwin N. (Thesis advisor) / Wolchik, Sharlene (Committee member) / Millsap, Roger (Committee member) / Barrera, Manuel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Accumulating evidence implicates exposure to adverse childhood experiences in the development of hypocortisolism in the long-term, and researchers are increasingly examining individual-level mechanisms that may underlie, exacerbate or attenuate this relation among at-risk populations. The current study takes a developmentally and theoretically informed approach to examining episodic childhood stressors, inherent and voluntary self-regulation, and physiological reactivity among a longitudinal sample of youth who experienced parental divorce. Participants were drawn from a larger randomized controlled trial of a preventive intervention for children of divorce between the ages of 9 and 12. The current sample included 159 young adults (mean age = 25.5 years; 53% male; 94% Caucasian) who participated in six waves of data collection, including a 15-year follow-up study. Participants reported on exposure to negative life events (four times over a 9-month period) during childhood, and mothers rated child temperament. Six years later, youth reported on the use of active and avoidant coping strategies, and 15 years later, they participated in a standardized psychosocial stress task and provided salivary cortisol samples prior to and following the task. Path analyses within a structural equation framework revealed that a multiple mediation model best fit the data. It was found that children with better mother-rated self-regulation (i.e. low impulsivity, low negative emotionality, and high attentional focus) exhibited lower total cortisol output 15 years later. In addition, greater self-regulation in childhood predicted greater use of active coping in adolescence, whereas a greater number of negative life events predicted increased use of avoidant coping in adolescence. Finally, a greater number of negative events in childhood predicted marginally lower total cortisol output, and higher levels of active coping in adolescence were associated with greater total cortisol output in young adulthood. Findings suggest that children of divorce who exhibit better self-regulation evidence lower cortisol output during a standardized psychosocial stress task relative to those who have higher impulsivity, lower attentional focus, and/or higher negative emotionality. The conceptual significance of the current findings, including the lack of evidence for hypothesized relations, methodological issues that arose, and issues in need of future research are discussed.
ContributorsHagan, Melissa (Author) / Luecken, Linda (Thesis advisor) / MacKinnon, David (Committee member) / Wolchik, Sharlene (Committee member) / Doane, Leah (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Although it has been established that children raised by lesbian and gay (LG) parents are comparable in psychological adjustment to those raised by heterosexuals, there are unique stressors that these families must face as members of a social minority group. For example, chronic exposure to stigma and discrimination has been associated with several poor psychological and behavioral outcomes in children, as well as high levels of stress experienced by LG parents. Thus, the current study sought to examine LG parents' coping actions and parenting strategies as used during and after an act of antigay discrimination which also involved their children, or as these involved an act which their children witnessed. This study also sought to define the parenting needs of LG parents. The research plan utilized an integrative mixed methods approach to examine the qualitative text narratives of 43 LG parents (29 mothers and 14 fathers) ranging in age from 28-56 years old with school-aged children (6-12 years). Results revealed that LG parents' negative emotion-based coping actions predicted higher depressive symptoms (β= .41,t(33) = 3.17, p < .01), LG parents' avoidant/escape coping actions predicted lower parenting self-agency (β = -.34, t(33) = -2.23, p < .05), and LG parents' engagement in understanding and coping with discrimination parenting strategies predicted lower post-traumatic stress problems in their children (β = -.33, t(33) = -1.96, yp = .059). Last, a family needs assessment survey was used to determine the unique parenting needs of these LG parents. The results of this survey indicated that LG parents endorsed the following three topic areas as most important to them: (a) LG Family Community Services, (b) Information about Child Development, and (c) Explaining LG Family to Others. These findings reinforce existing knowledge in terms of the effects of discrimination on LG parents and their children. Indeed, results indicate the importance of providing LG parents with adaptive discrimination coping and parenting strategies, as well as offering valuable information concerning their specific needs.
ContributorsKellison, Joshua G (Author) / Gonzalez Castro, Felipe (Thesis advisor) / Crnic, Keith (Thesis advisor) / Barrera, Jr., Manuel (Committee member) / Marsiglia, Flavio (Committee member) / Wolchik, Sharlene (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2014
Description
In order to analyze data from an instrument administered at multiple time points it is a common practice to form composites of the items at each wave and to fit a longitudinal model to the composites. The advantage of using composites of items is that smaller sample sizes are required in contrast to second order models that include the measurement and the structural relationships among the variables. However, the use of composites assumes that longitudinal measurement invariance holds; that is, it is assumed that that the relationships among the items and the latent variables remain constant over time. Previous studies conducted on latent growth models (LGM) have shown that when longitudinal metric invariance is violated, the parameter estimates are biased and that mistaken conclusions about growth can be made. The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of non-invariant loadings and non-invariant intercepts on two longitudinal models: the LGM and the autoregressive quasi-simplex model (AR quasi-simplex). A second purpose was to determine if there are conditions in which researchers can reach adequate conclusions about stability and growth even in the presence of violations of invariance. A Monte Carlo simulation study was conducted to achieve the purposes. The method consisted of generating items under a linear curve of factors model (COFM) or under the AR quasi-simplex. Composites of the items were formed at each time point and analyzed with a linear LGM or an AR quasi-simplex model. The results showed that AR quasi-simplex model yielded biased path coefficients only in the conditions with large violations of invariance. The fit of the AR quasi-simplex was not affected by violations of invariance. In general, the growth parameter estimates of the LGM were biased under violations of invariance. Further, in the presence of non-invariant loadings the rejection rates of the hypothesis of linear growth increased as the proportion of non-invariant items and as the magnitude of violations of invariance increased. A discussion of the results and limitations of the study are provided as well as general recommendations.
ContributorsOlivera-Aguilar, Margarita (Author) / Millsap, Roger E. (Thesis advisor) / Levy, Roy (Committee member) / MacKinnon, David (Committee member) / West, Stephen G. (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Research shows that general parenting practices (e.g., support and discipline), influence adolescent substance use. However, socialization theory suggests that parental socialization occurs not only through general parenting practices, but also through parents' attempts to influence specific behaviors and values. A growing literature supports links between substance-specific parenting and adolescent substance use. For adolescent alcohol use, there are considerable limitations and gaps within this literature. To address these limitations, the present study examined the factor structure of alcohol-specific parenting, investigated the determinants of alcohol-specific parenting, and explored its association with nondrinking adolescents' attitudes about alcohol use. Using a high-risk sample of nondrinking adolescents and their parents, the current study found three dimensions of alcohol-specific parenting using both adolescent and parent reports, but also found evidence of non-invariance across reporters. Results also revealed complex roles of parental alcohol use disorder (AUD; including recovered and current AUD), family history of AUD, and current drinking as determinants of the three dimensions of anti-alcohol parenting behaviors. Moreover, the current study showed that the effects of these determinants varied by the reporter of the parenting behavior. Finally, the current study found the dimensions of alcohol-specific parenting to be unique and significant predictors of nondrinking adolescents' attitudes about alcohol, over and above general parenting practices, parent AUD, and parent current drinking. Given its demonstrated distinctness from general parenting practices, its link with adolescent alcohol attitudes, and its potential malleability, alcohol-specific parenting may be an important complement to interventions targeting parents of adolescents.
ContributorsHandley, Elizabeth D (Author) / Chassin, Laurie (Thesis advisor) / MacKinnon, David (Committee member) / Crnic, Keith (Committee member) / Sandler, Irwin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Adverse childhood family environments have been found to have long-term effects on a child's well-being. Although no prior studies have examined the direct effects of childhood family adversities on nighttime blood pressure (BP) dip, parental death and divorce in childhood, have been associated with a variety of related psychological problems in adulthood. The current study examined the direct effects of parental death and divorce in childhood and quality of early family relationships on adult nighttime BP dip as well as the mediating role of three psychosocial factors (depression, hostility and social stress). One hundred and forty-three young adults were asked to complete self-reported measures of the three psychosocial factors and quality of family relationships. Study participants wore an ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitor over a 24-hr period in order to assess nocturnal BP dip. Although neither childhood family adversity nor quality of childhood family relationships directly predicted nighttime BP dipping, quality of early family relationships predicted all three psychosocial factors, and hostility was found to mediate the relationship between quality of childhood family relationships and nighttime systolic BP dip. Early family experiences play an important role in influencing nighttime cardiovascular functioning by influencing an individual's psychological functioning in young adulthood. Because nighttime non-dipping has been associated with increased risk for cardiovascular disease and other serious health conditions, the results of the present study have important clinical implications and provide specific psychosocial pathways that may be targeted in future programs designed to prevent and treat cardiovascular disease.
ContributorsTanaka, Rika (Author) / Luecken, Linda J. (Thesis advisor) / Wolchik, Sharlene (Committee member) / Davis, Mary (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Children's coping efforts and coping efficacy: effects of parenting, surgency, and effortful control
Description
Stress responses play a central role in the development of psychopathology. Coping efforts, one subset of stress responses, have been shown to influence the relations between stress and adjustment. Although the relations between youths' coping and emotional and behavioral outcomes are well-documented, less is known about the factors that predict youths' coping. Given their importance for adaptation, understanding influences on youths' coping has important implications for developmental theories and preventive interventions. The current study examined the main and interactive effects of positive parenting and youths' temperament on youths' coping efforts and coping efficacy one year later in a sample of 192 youth aged 9-15 years when assessed initially. Data used were from the first and third waves of a four-wave, prospective, longitudinal study of families where one or both parents recently became unemployed. Positive parenting was measured with a combination of mother-report, child-report, and observational measures. Temperament was assessed with mother-report, child-report, and/or teacher-report measures. Children reported on their coping. It was hypothesized that positive parenting, effortful control, and surgency would be positively associated with active coping and coping efficacy, and negatively associated with avoidant coping. Further, it was hypothesized that the relations between positive parenting and youths' coping would be stronger for youths low in effortful control or surgency. Structural equation modeling with latent variables revealed no significant main effects of positive parenting, effortful control, or surgency on youths' coping efforts or coping efficacy. Path analyses revealed no significant positive parenting by temperament interactions in the prediction of youths' coping efforts or coping efficacy. Several significant correlations between measures of positive parenting or surgency and youths' coping emerged. The pattern of correlations provided some support for the hypothesized relations. For example, aspects of positive parenting (e.g., maternal acceptance) and youth surgency were associated with more adaptive coping both concurrently and longitudinally, whereas an aspect of negative parenting (i.e., maternal rejection) was associated with less adaptive coping both concurrently and over time. Potential explanations of the unexpected findings and future directions for understanding the role of parenting and youths' temperament in youths' coping efforts and coping efficacy are discussed.
ContributorsVélez, Clorinda Eileen (Author) / Wolchik, Sharlene (Thesis advisor) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Thesis advisor) / Ayers, Tim (Committee member) / Millsap, Roger (Committee member) / Sandler, Irwin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010
Description
The nature and correlates of emerging internalizing symptoms in young children are largely unknown. Maternal factors such as psychological symptoms and detached parenting style have been found to be present in children with anxiety and depression. Further, child attentional control in task completion has been associated with difficulty related to internalizing problems. This study tested hypotheses that child anxiety and depression at age five could be predicted by a combination of maternal distress and maternal detached behavior recorded at age three. An additional hypothesis was tested to determine if child attentional control at age four may be a partial mediator of the relation between maternal symptoms and parenting to child internalizing symptoms. Using structural equation modeling, no hypotheses were supported; child internalizing problems were not significantly predicted by maternal distress nor detached parenting. Further, child attentional control was not predicted by maternal distress or detached behavior, nor did attentional control predict internalizing problems. Findings indicate that over a two-year interval, childhood internalizing problems at age five are likely best predicted by early internalizing problems at age three. There was no support that the mother or child factors tested were predictive of child outcomes.
ContributorsSkelley, Shayna (Author) / Crnic, Keith A (Thesis advisor) / Eisenberg, Nancy (Committee member) / MacKinnon, David (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010
Description
Dysregulated cortisol has been linked to a variety of adverse physical and psychological consequences. Stressors in the childhood family environment can influence cortisol activity throughout development. For example, research has shown that both infants and children of depressed mothers exhibit altered levels of cortisol compared to infants and children of non-depressed mothers. It is unclear, however, whether exposure to maternal depression in childhood and adolescence is related to cortisol activity at later stages of development. The current study examined the longitudinal relation between maternal depressive symptoms during late childhood (9-12 years old) and adolescence (15-19 years old) and cortisol activity in offspring in young adulthood (24- 28 years old) in a sample of 40 young adults and their mothers. Maternal depressive symptoms were prospectively assessed at four time points across the 15 year study. Cortisol samples were collected from young adult offspring at the final time point. Findings revealed that higher levels of maternal depressive symptoms during late childhood were associated with lower total cortisol output in young adulthood. Results suggest that attenuated cortisol levels, which put these young adults at risk for a variety of stress-related physical and psychological illnesses, may be a long-term consequence of exposure to maternal depression,. Depressive symptoms in mothers during their child's adolescence, however, did not relate to cortisol output. These findings suggest a sensitive period in late childhood during which the development of HPA activity may be susceptible to the environmental stressor of maternal depression.
ContributorsMahrer, Nicole Eva (Author) / Wolchik, Sharlene (Thesis advisor) / Luecken, Linda (Thesis advisor) / Tein, Jenn-Yun (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Lonsdaleite, also called hexagonal diamond, has been widely used as a marker of asteroidal impacts. It is thought to play a central role during the graphite-to-diamond transformation, and calculations suggest that it possesses mechanical properties superior to diamond. However, despite extensive efforts, lonsdaleite has never been produced or described as a separate, pure material. Here we show that defects in cubic diamond provide an explanation for the characteristic d-spacings and reflections reported for lonsdaleite. Ultrahigh-resolution electron microscope images demonstrate that samples displaying features attributed to lonsdaleite consist of cubic diamond dominated by extensive {113} twins and {111} stacking faults. These defects give rise to nanometre-scale structural complexity. Our findings question the existence of lonsdaleite and point to the need for re-evaluating the interpretations of many lonsdaleite-related fundamental and applied studies.
ContributorsNemeth, Peter (Author) / Garvie, Laurence (Author) / Aoki, Toshihiro (Author) / Dubrovinskaia, Natalia (Author) / Dubrovinsky, Leonid (Author) / Buseck, Peter (Author) / Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry (Contributor) / College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (Contributor) / School of Earth and Space Exploration (Contributor) / Center for Meteorite Studies (Contributor) / Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering (Contributor) / LeRoy Eyring Center for Solid State Science (Contributor) / School of Molecular Sciences (Contributor)
Created2014-11-01