Longitudinal Effects of Caregiving Environment Profiles on Preschoolers’ Problem Behavior: The Role of Mothers’ Responsivity

• In Event: Poster Session 05
  In Poster Session: PS 05 Topic - Family Context & Processes

Abstract

Early caregiving environments characterized by contextual risk factors (e.g., low socioeconomic status) and low maternal psychosocial resources are well documented to have negative cascading effects on children’s adjustment across development. The extensive literature has shown that poor caregiving environments impair parents’ ability to effectively parent children, which then contributes to children’s maladjustment. However, little is known about characteristics of subgroups that show resilience and related mechanisms. If we are to develop programs to promote resilience in families with at-risk backgrounds, it is crucial to have clear understandings of the mechanisms that underlie positive cascading processes involved in early caregiving environments. As one of the first steps to this end, this study aimed to (1) characterize distinctive latent profiles of caregiving environment during infancy focusing on various contextual risk factors(i.e., low SES) and maternal psychosocial resources (i.e., marital conflict, parenting stress, depression, low social support, and low paternal involvement), (2) examine differences in maternal responsivity and preschoolers’ problem behavior across different caregiving environment profiles, and (3) examine the extent to which early caregiving environment profiles differentially influenced children’s problem behavior through maternal responsivity.
The present study used the Panel Study on Korea Children, a nationally representative survey conducted annually between 2008 and 2017 in Korea. We focused on 1,384 children (735 girls) and their mothers across ages 1 to 4 (waves 2 to 5). Mothers reported on various dimensions of caregiving environments at age 1, maternal responsivity at age 3, and children’s problem behaviors at age 4. Data were analyzed using latent profile analysis (LPA) and mediation analyses in Mplus.
LPA revealed four distinctive profiles of caregiving environments: low SES/low maternal resources (27.60%), low SES/high maternal resources (41.11%), high SES/ low maternal resources (11.56%), and high SES/high maternal resources (19.73%). Preschoolers’ problem behaviors were highest in the low SES/low maternal resources profile and the lowest in the high SES/low maternal resources profile (Figure 1), with no significant difference between the low SES/high maternal resources and high SES/low maternal resources profile. However, the low SES/high maternal resource profile showed higher maternal responsivity than the high SES/low maternal resources profile. Being in the low SES/low maternal resources profile was directly and positively associated with internalizing and externalizing problems. Being in the high SES/high maternal resources profiles was negatively associated with externalizing problems. Additionally, maternal responsivity was found significant as a mediator.
Findings indicated that higher socioeconomic status alone does not necessarily constitute an optimal caregiving environment when mothers experience psychological problems or low maternal support. At the same time, the lack of significant direct effects of being the high SES/low maternal resources profile on preschoolers’ problems suggest that high SES may work as a buffer negative effects of low maternal psychosocial resources. Our findings also indicate that promoting maternal responsivity during infancy via prevention programs can be an effective way to reduce vulnerabilities among children whose mothers experienced poor psychosocial adjustment. Further implications regarding additive and compensatory roles of caregiving environment profiles and their associations with preschoolers’ adjustment will be discussed.

Authors

• JiHye Lee, Yonsei University
  Presenting Author

• Jiwon Lee, Yonsei University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Miyeon Park, None
  Non-Presenting Author

• Yunhee Kim, Yonsei University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Dan bee Han, Yonsei University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Hyoun K. Kim, Yonsei University
  Non-Presenting Author