What makes for responsive family interactions? Disentangling individual, family-level, and socioeconomic contributions

• In Event: Poster Session 07
  In Poster Session: PS 07 Topic - Family Context & Processes

Abstract

Families function best, and children benefit the most, when familial interactions are characterized by responsivity—an understanding and consideration of other people’s thoughts and feelings. How responsive people are during interactions with others is a product of individual propensities, observed family norms, and unique relationship patterns, though these influences are often hard to disentangle. In this study, we sought to unpack the processes that shape the level of responsivity family members display in their interactions with one another by asking the following research questions: (1) How consistent are individuals in the level of responsivity they display across interactions with various family members, and how does this differ as a function of family role and developmental stage? (2) How similar are family members in how responsively they interact with one another, and to what extent is this similarity explained by household income, parent education, or other household characteristics? (3) Does any one member of the family (i.e., mother, father, child) contribute disproportionately to setting the tone for all interactions in the family? The current study included 198 heterosexual two-parent families that agreed to observational data collection for six dyadic interactions in the family (i.e., all possible two-person combinations between mother, father, a younger and older sibling). Mothers, fathers, and two children each interacted with every other person in the family and each person’s behavior was coded for the level of responsivity they displayed toward their interactional partner. Data were modeled using a multilevel formulation of the SRM. Between 15% and 30% of the variance in individual’s responsivity was attributable to stable traits, with parents tending to be more consistent across all interactional partners than their children (see Figure 1). On average, 14% of the variance in responsivity was shared across all members of a given family. Household income explained 28% of this family-level variance, while other family characteristics, including parent education, parent mental health, interparental conflict, and household chaos, explained little to no variance. Furthermore, it was found that parents contributed more to the family tone of responsivity than did their children (see Figure 2). The present results shed light on the benefits of who to target, and when, in service of promoting more responsive family interactions. Since children’s interaction patterns are strongly influenced by family norms, especially at younger ages, programs that work with multiple family members (e.g., family support programs, family therapy) are likely to be important. Moreover, given that financial status contributes more to family responsivity than many other household factors, there does appear to be a strong added value to also addressing financial security as a way to support more positive family dynamics (e.g., universal basic income, cash transfers). Hence, building strong, resilient families is likely to be best achieved by providing supports across individual-, family-, and financial-levels

Group Authors

n/a

Authors

• Hazel Ngo, University of Toronto
  Presenting Author

• Nina Sokolovic, University of Toronto
  Non-Presenting Author

• Dillon T. Browne
  Non-Presenting Author

• George Leckie, University of Bristol
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jennifer Jenkins, University of Toronto
  Non-Presenting Author