Neighborhood Disorder, Home Disorganization, and Parenting Stress: Implications for Young Children’s Behavior

• In Event: 2-121 - Parenting Stress in At-Risk Families: Mechanisms for Family Functioning

Integrative Statement

Background: Low-income families are more likely to live in unsafe and disordered neighborhoods (Evans, 2004) and experience higher levels of disorganization within the household (e.g., lack of structure and stability) (Coldwell et al. 2006). These environmental aspects can be harmful to child outcomes through the negative effects on parental well-being (Conger et al., 2010). Specifically, environmental disorder may increase parent distress, which can influence parents’ abilities to effectively manage their children (Evans et al. 2005), may also be associated with child behavior problems (Coley et al. 2013). Although researchers have begun exploring the impact of environmental disorder and disorganization on adolescent adjustment and development (Jocson & McLoyd, 2015; Leventhal & Newman, 2010) less is understood about these effects on parents’ functioning or on younger children. The current study examined disorganization within the home and disorganization within the neighborhood as aspects that increase parenting stress and contribute to an increased risk of behavioral problems among young children of low-income families.

Methods: The sample included 778 families with children aged 2 to 3 years old, taken from the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Study. To limit bias due to attrition, a longitudinal sampling weight was used in the analyses (Baby FACES; Vogel & Boller, 2015). Interviewer observations were used to measure disorder within the neighborhood and parent report was used to measure disorganization within the home (Matheny et al. 1995). Parenting stress was measured using the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (Abidin, 1995). Parents also rated children’s behavior problems (Zill & Peterson, 1986) during an annual follow-up at age 3.

Results: Preliminary analyses suggested positive correlations among disorganization within the home, parenting stress, and behavior problems (see Table 1). Path analysis was conducted in Mplus (Version 8) using maximum likelihood (ML) estimation. See Figure 1. Model results indicated that greater disorganization within the home was directly associated with higher parenting stress; however, greater disorder within the neighborhood was not directly associated with parenting stress. Further, parenting stress was directly associated with behavior problems 1 year later (see Fig. 1). There was a significant direct association between disorganization within the home and youth behavior problems. Additionally, disorganization within the home was indirectly associated with behavior problems, through parenting stress (IE = .09, 95% CI = .031, .159). Similarly, there was a significant indirect relation between disorder within the neighborhood and behavior problems through parenting stress (IE = .16, 95% CI = .002, .47).

Conclusion: Findings underscore the importance of parenting stress as a link through which disorder within the neighborhood and disorganization within the home impact early childhood outcomes. Although both the home and neighborhood environments were important for parenting stress, only the home environment had direct implications for child behavior. This finding is likely explained by the developmental level of the child and the low degree of interaction with the neighborhood environment. Neighborhood disorder still had a role in child behavior through its effect on parenting stress. Implications for prevention programs targeting parenting stress and home disorganization will be discussed.

Authors

• Samantha Addante, Oklahoma State University
  Presenting Author

• Mira Armans, Oklahoma State University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Lucia Ciciolla, Oklahoma State University
  Non-Presenting Author