Family Process最新文献

Practitioners are recognized as one of the key components that make parenting interventions meaningful and helpful to families, and the impact of practitioners' skills on the outcomes of parenting interventions has been consistently recognized in research. However, the mechanisms and ongoing processes through which the practitioners' actions and skills may impact parental engagement and other outcomes remain unknown. This qualitative study explored parents' perceptions about the processes through which specific practitioners' skills contribute to the outcomes of the Incredible Years Basic Parent Program (IYPP). Twenty-four Portuguese parents who had completed the IYPP were interviewed in four focus groups, and the data were analyzed through thematic analysis. Practitioners' skills were perceived by parents as having an impact on their engagement in the program, their process of change, and their interpersonal relationships. Practitioners were perceived to demonstrate their influence in the intervention process through six different roles: the roles of a confidant, a positive coach, a partner, a maestro, a tailor, and a congruent person. This study reinforces the prominent role of practitioners in enabling parental outcomes of an evidence-based parenting program and suggests that more attention should be paid to continuing supervision and other professional development processes.

Parent-child co-sleeping is a common practice in many cultures, although in Western countries, families who engage in parent-child co-sleeping can encounter attitudes about co-sleeping that feel critical from the people around them, as it is not commonly accepted and often stigmatized. This systematic scoping review examined and synthesized the available literature on the attitudes about parent-child co-sleeping that people encounter, their origins, and their effect on parents' own attitudes and behaviors. A total of 9796 abstracts were screened, and 33 studies were included. While the scope of the literature on this topic was narrow, this review demonstrated that parents/caregivers mostly encounter encouraging attitudes about co-sleeping from their extended family members and within their culture and discouraging attitudes from healthcare professionals. Findings suggest that encouraging attitudes enhance the likelihood of parents engaging and continuing with co-sleeping behavior, while discouraging attitudes can lead to the avoidance of parents discussing sleep with their healthcare professionals and can cause conflicts with other family members, including partners. Based on these findings, we conclude that further research is needed in several areas related to co-sleeping in Western culture, most specifically in how external attitudes influence the decision to co-sleep, as well as other behaviors and cognitions such as engagement with healthcare professionals, family satisfaction, parental self-efficacy, and overall mental health.

Study of fathers has gained significant traction over recent decades. However, the experience for men over the transition to parenthood remains focused on high-socioeconomic and socially advantaged fathers. Researchers have yet to thoroughly investigate how fathers may uniquely experience this transition period with a history of childhood maltreatment, given that childhood abuse is known to impact several components of development and relationship functioning into adulthood. The current study endeavored to fill this gap by evaluating the associations between fathers' childhood experiences of physical and emotional abuse and their relationship functioning over the transition to parenthood in terms of both the couple relationship and social adjustment in relationships with others. Using data from 399 fathers who participated in a randomized control trial during pregnancy, the results from stepwise regressions indicate fathers with a history of emotional abuse experience particular declines in their external relationships (reductions in social support and increases in social stress) from prenatal (Wave 1) to postpartum (Wave 2) reports. However, no significant association emerged between fathers' history of maltreatment and their relationship functioning with their partners. These results underscore the importance of investigating the impact of different types of abuse on men in fatherhood. Moreover, we emphasize the need to study further fathers' social adjustment over the transition to parenthood beyond the couple relationship and broad social support to address the needs of men with a history of maltreatment in their new role as fathers.

Limited research has been conducted to examine the factors during early childhood that may contribute to conduct problems in later stages of life. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between family and school environments during early childhood and conduct problems in adolescence. In Wave 1 (W1), the study recruited 502 participants, aged 5-6 years, from Hong Kong local kindergartens, with 51.4% boys. One of their parents provided information about family socioeconomic status (SES), parent-child recreational activities, and child screen time, whereas the class teacher rated their school readiness using the Chinese version of the Early Development Instrument. Data on the number of special facilities were obtained from the kindergartens. In Wave 2 (W2), the same parents of 395 participants were asked about their involvement in their children's education. Finally, in Wave 3 (W3), the parents of 206 participants completed the Conduct Problem scale of the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire to evaluate the level of conduct problems in the participants. The results of the path analysis revealed that higher W1 family SES was associated with fewer W3 conduct problems through an increase in W1 and W2 parental involvement in children's learning and play activities. Findings have implications for understanding the impact of early-life family and school environments on adolescent conduct problems. Early childhood interventions that promote family resources and positive parent-child interactions have the potential to reduce adolescent conduct problems.

Evaluations of interventions to promote fathers' involvement in family life typically focus on whether or not the intervention has a positive impact. Some evaluations also attempt to describe mediators that explain how the intervention is linked to specific outcomes. An evaluation of TRUE Dads, a Randomized Clinical Trial of a couples-based fatherhood intervention for low-income families, reported results that addressed these two issues. Reporting new analyses, the present study addresses a question asked in only a very few fatherhood intervention studies: Are there moderator variables that define characteristics of participants who benefit most or least from the intervention? A total of 46 potential moderators of 2 significant intervention outcomes - reductions in personal distress and in negative evaluations of the parents' relationship with each other - were selected from a 5-domain risk/protective model of family functioning (Cowan & Cowan, 2018. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 92, 111) and from a set of demographic variables associated with these outcomes. An additional 24 potential moderators were tested on 4 outcomes that did not have direct intervention effects. Only 6 of the 70 moderator tests were statistically significant. The intervention provided greater reductions in parents' personal distress when fathers had more economic resources, co-parents had higher levels of education, and the parents were living in the same household on entering the study. There were greater reductions in negative aspects of their couple or co-parenting relationship when the parents at enrollment described more difficulties in the parent-child relationship, fathers were more involved in the children's daily care and were living in the household with their child. No other moderators were found. The results support the conclusion that TRUE Dads was equally effective for a relatively wide range of participants. This search for potential moderators of TRUE Dads outcomes is presented as an example of a needed direction in the evaluation of fatherhood interventions.

Despite a half-century of scholarship devoted to explicating and disrupting the intergenerational transmission of family violence, it remains a prominent and destructive social force in the United States. Theoretical models have posited a variety of historical and concurrent risk and protective factors implicated in the trajectory from childhood violence exposure to adult perpetration. Using a second-generation model of intimate partner violence (IPV), we integrated social learning and attachment conceptualizations to examine pathways from family-of-origin violence to IPV perpetration among adult men. A sample of mixed-sex couples (N = 233) completed self-report measures related to social learning and attachment-based factors (e.g., violence in past relationships, child exposure, IPV attitudes, adult attachment) and participated in a 10-min conversation about a desired area for change in their relationship. Following, each partner participated in a video-mediated-recall procedure assessing their anger volatility and eliciting attributions of their partners' behavior. We tested mediation pathways (consistent with social learning and attachment theories) between violence in men's families of origin and their adult IPV perpetration as a function of relationship satisfaction. The proposed model fit the data well (CFI = 0.95) but had notable modifications from the hypothesized model. Generally, social-learning pathways were more consistent with the data. Relationship satisfaction interacted with some parameters. Results support theoretical advances in understanding IPV. Although exposure to violence in men's family of origin confers risk for later IPV, and a social learning developmental pathway is consistent with results, some of these effects are altered by relationship context.

Experiencing prejudice and discrimination from family has been found to be positively associated with mental health problems among sexual minorities. Emerging evidence also shows the value of contextualizing the internalization of minority stress by considering individual cultural factors, such as filial piety. We examined whether authoritarian filial piety (AFP) and reciprocal filial piety (RFP) moderated the link between distal stressors in one's family and mental health outcomes. A total of 362 (56.9% male; age: M = 24.55, SD = 6.60) Chinese lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer/questioning, and other non-heterosexual (LGBQ+) individuals participated in this study. They provided demographic information and completed a battery of measures for AFP and RFP, sexual orientation-based prejudice and discrimination in family of origin (SOPDF), depressive symptoms, and life satisfaction. Structural equation modeling results showed that SOPDF had a positive and negative link with depressive symptoms and life satisfaction, respectively. In addition, we identified AFP and RFP as significant moderators for the association between SOPDF and depressive symptoms, and the association between SOPDF and life satisfaction, respectively. Specifically, the positive effect of SOPDF on depressive symptoms was greater for participants with higher levels of AFP; the negative effect of SOPDF on life satisfaction was greater for participants who endorsed higher levels of RFP. Our findings corroborated past studies' conclusion about the detrimental impact of familial sexual stigma on LGBQ+ people's mental health. Furthermore, such impact on negative and positive mental health outcomes are respectively conditioned by the degree to which LGBQ+ individuals endorse AFP and RFP. These findings underscore the importance for therapists who endorse family therapy to help LGBQ+ clients navigate familial sexual stigma and consider the role of filial piety beliefs in shaping the impact of familial sexual stigma on these clients' mental health.

Marriage of convenience is a unique phenomenon in China where a gay man and a lesbian get married to fulfill social expectations while retaining their homosexual identities. Men who have sex with men (MSM) are at increased risk of HIV infection and intimate partner violence (IPV) following HIV disclosure. A sample of 232 HIV-infected MSM in the marriage of convenience was recruited online and completed questionnaires about experiences of IPV, HIV disclosure, and their sociodemographic, clinical, and psychosocial characteristics. Our results showed that over half (57.3%) of HIV-infected MSM had disclosed their HIV status to their lesbian spouses. Bisexual men, having children with their lesbian spouse, HIV diagnosis time >24 months, having a current fixed gay partner, having disclosed HIV to their current fixed gay partners, higher levels of social support, lower levels of self-stigma related to HIV infection, no depression, and no suicidal ideation were all independently associated with an increased likelihood of disclosing to lesbian spouses. Approximately 61.6% of participants experienced at least one type of IPV from either a gay partner, a lesbian spouse, or both in the past 12 months. HIV disclosure to lesbian spouses was associated with an increased risk of IPV. Our findings reveal the high prevalence of IPV among HIV-infected MSM in the marriage of convenience and its association with HIV disclosure, which warrants policy, clinical, and research efforts to design targeted and comprehensive interventions to improve HIV disclosure while preventing IPV among this population.

Child abuse is prevalent worldwide, with most of the burden in developing countries. To reduce and prevent child abuse occurrence, many efforts are directed toward reducing maladaptive parental behaviors (MPBs), a predictor of parents' risk of engaging in child abusive behaviors. MPBs have been associated with child (e.g., behavioral difficulties) and parent characteristics (e.g., parenting stress and parental cognitions), although little research tested for mediational pathways. This study aimed to test the pathways through which child and parent characteristics are linked to MPB. Consistent with the social information processing model of parenting, we hypothesized that child behavioral difficulties would exert an indirect influence on MPB through parenting stress and that parenting stress will exert a direct and indirect effect on MPB through parental cognitions (i.e., expectations, attitudes, and attributions). This study used data from 243 mothers of children aged between 2 and 9 years in Romania. Two-stage structural equation modeling was employed to test the hypothesized model. Results support the role of child behavior, parenting stress, and parental cognitions in predicting MPB (R² = 0.69). Significant indirect effects were found from child behavior to MPB via parenting stress and parental cognitions. Direct effects from parenting stress and parental cognitions to MPB were significant. Findings show that parenting stress and parental cognitions are important mechanisms through which child behavioral difficulties influence maladaptive parental behavior, underscoring the need to focus on these mechanisms when assessing or intervening with families at risk for child abuse.

Family functioning plays a critical role in childhood disruptive behavior disorders (The Family Journal, 2003, 11(1), 33-41; Research in Nursing and Health, 2016, 39(4), 229-243). Yet, there is limited research on the impact of evidence-based family strengthening interventions on improving family cohesion as a protective factor among children experiencing behavioral challenges. To address this gap, we analyzed data (N = 636) from the SMART Africa-Uganda study (2016-2022), a cluster randomized clinical trial testing an evidence-based family-strengthening intervention called Amaka Amasanyufu (translated as "Happy Families" in the local language). Children aged 8-13 and their caregivers were recruited from 26 public primary schools that were randomized to: (1) control condition receiving generalized psychosocial literature (10 schools), (2) intervention delivered via parent peers (eight schools), and (3) intervention delivered via community healthcare workers (eight schools). Children completed the family cohesion questionnaire at baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 6 months post-intervention completion. The intervention effectiveness was evaluated via a three-level logistic mixed effects model with pairwise comparisons across study conditions within each time point. Participants in the parent-peer intervention group had greater odds of being in the higher family cohesion group than participants in the control group at 8 weeks (OR = 3.24), 16 weeks (OR = 1.88) and 6 months (OR = 2.07). At 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 6 months, participants in the community health worker group had 3.98, 2.08, and 1.79 times greater odds of being in the higher family cohesion group than participants in the control group, respectively. Our findings strengthen the evidence base for Amaka Amansayufu as an effective intervention that can be utilized in SSA to improve family cohesion in families with children experiencing behavioral challenges.