Poster #26 - The Impact of Early Childhood and Maternal Factors on Later Childhood Conduct Problems and Anxiety Problems

• In Event: Poster Session 01

Abstract

Childhood conduct problems (CP) and anxiety problems (AP) can precipitate maladaptive psychosocial outcomes in adolescence (Frick, 2004; Grover et al., 2007). Child and maternal factors impact children’s internalizing and externalizing behaviors (Eisenberg et al., 2009; Reid et al., 2004). High levels of temperamental negative affectivity (NA) characterize anxiety in children (Viana et al., 2017). Additionally, child and maternal reports respectively show that child NA predicts children’s CP (Lengua et al., 1998). Effortful control (EC) is a self-regulatory trait that aids individuals in the modulation of their attentional and emotional reactivity (Rothbart & Ahadi, 1994). Lower levels of EC are associated with CP (Atherton et al., 2019) and anxiety (Viana et al., 2021) in children. Frontal EEG asymmetry (FA) indicates asymmetrical frontal brain electrical activity. Greater left FA is linked with CP (Rybak et al., 2006) while greater right FA is linked with anxiety (Mathersul et al., 2008). In addition to early childhood factors, maternal regulatory behaviors, such as EC, can impact child emotional outcomes (Zeytinoglu et al., 2017).
Our study assessed the collective impact of child NA, child EC, child FA, and maternal EC at age 4 on children’s anxiety and CP at age 6. This study included 117 children. Children’s NA and EC were maternally reported via CBQ-SF (Putnam & Rothbart, 2006). EEG was recorded during a 2-minute video baseline. Maternal EC was self-reported via ATQ (Derryberry & Rothbart, 1988). Children’s CP and AP were maternally reported via CBCL 6-18 (Achenbach and Rescorla, 2001).
Two-step hierarchical regression models were conducted via SPSS 28 for children’s CP and AP individually. For both models, step 1 included children’s NA, EC, FA, and maternal EC with step 2 adding the interactions between child NA with child EC, child FA, and maternal EC.
Step 1 of the regression model for CP was significant, accounting for 16 percent of the variance in CP (see Table 1). Both NA and EC were significant as main effects, with beta weights indicating that greater levels of NA and lower levels of EC predicted greater CP. Step 2 of the model with interactions was not significant.
Step 1 of the regression model for AP was significant, accounting for 16 percent of the variance in AP. NA was significant as a positive main effect. Step 2 with interactions was also significant, accounting for an additional 8 percent of variance in AP. In addition to NA, FA was a significant main effect, but with a negative beta weight, indicating lower (or right) FA predicted AP. The interaction between NA and FA was significant (b= -.186, p=.045). Simple slots testing (PROCESS 3.5, Hayes 2017) showed that NA positively predicted AP only when children showed right FA. The interaction between NA and maternal EC was significant (b= -.253, p=.007), with simple slopes showing NA positively predicted AP only for children of mothers with low EC.
Results suggest the same factors can differentially impact developmental outcomes.

Authors

• Mohamed G. Zerrouk, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
  Presenting Author

• Trisha Ravigopal, Virginia Tech

• Martha Ann Bell, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University