3-061 - The Intergenerational Reach of Childhood Adversity: Exploring Transmission Mechanisms in Developmental and Ecological Contexts

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Childhood adversity heightens risk for physical and mental health problems in adulthood, and recent work suggests that harmful effects are transmitted across generations. This symposium extends prior work by examining effects of parents’ childhood adversities on their own children, independent of current ecological adversity, and possible mechanisms of this intergenerational transmission of risk.

The first paper explores the relative influences of mothers’ adverse childhood experiences and concurrent cumulative risk on their children’s behavioral health in a child welfare sample. The second paper compares the effects of childhood and adulthood adversity on parents’ emotion regulation, a potential mediator of the intergenerational transmission of risk. The final paper begins to synthesize these two sets of findings in a developmental framework by investigating whether effects of mothers’ childhood maltreatment on their children’s mental health, independent of cumulative risk, are mediated by parenting behaviors. It does so using a diverse, longitudinal sample of teen and adult mothers.

Together, these papers demonstrate that 1) childhood maltreatment has far-reaching, intergenerational effects that are often seen even in the context of more proximal risk factors and 2) every-day parent functioning is a likely mechanism of these effects.

The discussant, an expert in the etiology and outcomes of harsh parenting behavior, will highlight the implications of these papers for developmental science, prevention, and child welfare policy. Identifying malleable contributors to poor child outcomes has the potential to inform interventions and policies that are effective, economical, and improve wellbeing across multiple generations.

Sub Unit

• Family Context & Processes

Chair

• Alex Busuito, Pennsylvania State University

Discussant

• Michael J MacKenzie, McGill School of Social Work

Individual Presentations

• Exploring Influences of Maternal ACEs and Concurrent Cumulative Risk on Child Behavior - Presenting Author: Brett Greenfield, Rutgers; Non-Presenting Author: Kate Stepleton, Rutgers; Non-Presenting Author: Jacquelynn Duron, Rutgers; Non-Presenting Author: Kerrie Ocasio, West Chester University; Non-Presenting Author: Emily Adlin Bosk, Rutgers

• Parents’ Difficulties with Emotion Regulation: The Role of Childhood Versus Adulthood Adversity and Subjective Appraisals - Presenting Author: Stephanie Kaye Gusler, University of Kansas; Non-Presenting Author: Yo Jackson, Pennsylvania State University

• Parenting in Infancy: A Mechanism of the Intergenerational Transmission of Risk - Presenting Author: Alex Busuito, Pennsylvania State University