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Poster #153 - Moderators of Parent-Child Agreement: Measuring Parenting Behaviors

Thu, March 21, 12:30 to 1:45pm, Baltimore Convention Center, Floor: Level 1, Exhibit Hall B

Integrative Statement

Although parents and children spend much of their time together, and parenting experiences inherently involve both the parent's and children’s presence, significant discrepancy between parent and child reports of parenting behavior is often present (Korelitz & Garber, 2016). These discrepancies may reflect both methodological errors and meaningful differences in experience. The goal of the current study was to examine parent-child agreement regarding parenting behaviors utilizing a measure revised to potentially increase agreement and characteristics that may moderate this agreement.



Participants were 128 children age 8-15 years (mean age = 11 years, SD = 1.92; 47% female) and their parents. Both parents and children completed items from the Children’s Report of Parent Behavior Inventory (CRPBI; Schaefer, 1965) that measure parent behaviors reflecting acceptance, such as displays of emotional warmth and connectedness toward the child. Half of the dyads (47%) were randomized to complete the measure as published (general condition) and the remaining dyads were instructed to complete the measure regarding a mutually-agreed upon topic (specific condition), rather than responding regarding general parenting behaviors.



There was a significant three-way interaction between child age, study condition, and child reports of parental acceptance in predicting parent reported levels of acceptance behaviors (R2 = .472, β = -.930, p = .007; see Figure 1). Consistent with the extant literature, we found that child age accounted for some variance (R2 = .112). However, this study adds to the existing literature by demonstrating that for younger children, when parents and children are directed more precisely on which behaviors they are reporting, agreement increases. Future studies examining why discrepancies occur and how reporting agreement can inform treatment work are needed to further understand the relation between parent and child reports of parenting behaviors.

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