Examining Parenting Profiles and Their Impact on Children's Mental Health and Learning Outcomes

• In Event: Parenting and children's mental health

Abstract

The quality of parenting children experience in early childhood predicts outcomes in all domains of development, including social, emotional, and cognitive function (Bornstein et al., 2018; Lomanowska et al., 2017). Parenting quality can be assessed by parents' beliefs and behaviours related to childrearing (Bornstein et al., 2018). While positive parenting beliefs and behaviours are linked to positive child outcomes, dysfunctional parenting (e.g., hostility and overprotection) contribute to negative child outcomes such as internalizing and externalizing problems (Knox et al., 2011; Pinquart, 2017).

Child development research has traditionally focused on specific parenting behaviours and beliefs (Albanese et al., 2019). There is evidence, however, that parenting behaviours and beliefs are interrelated and result in parenting styles (Baumrind, 1991). Exploratory, person-centred approaches (such as Latent Profile Analysis; LPA) are increasingly being used by researchers to identify patterns - or profiles - of parenting beliefs and behaviours and the relationship between them and children's development (Beato et al., 2016; Romm et al., 2021). Yet, no research has been done on the parenting profiles of low-income, diverse parents with young children.

The present study took place in the City of Toronto, Canada's largest and most diverse city (Statistics Canada, 2022). The aim of this study is to empirically investigate the different profiles of parenting beliefs and behaviours among our low-income sample and how these influence low-income children’s mental health and learning outcomes. We ask,
1. What are the latent profiles of parenting in low-income mothers?
2. How do the identified latent profiles of parenting predict children’s developmental outcomes at a later timepoint?

The present study used secondary data from a large, longitudinal study of 900 low-income families conducted in partnership with the City of Toronto. Only families who completed the Parental Cognitions and Conduct Towards Infant Scale (PACOTIS; Boivin, 2005), thus yielding a sample of 417 families. Study families are low-income (median $40,000-$49,999 vs. Toronto’s $104,378 median income; City of Toronto, 2018).

Exploratory LPA was conducted to identify and describe the latent profiles using the two parenting beliefs (i.e., self-efficacy and perceived parental impact) and behaviours (i.e., overprotection and hostility) subscales of PACOTIS. Indices recommended by Muthén and Muthén (2000) and Nylund (2007) were used to statistically evaluate the model fit for the different profile solutions generated by the LPA (see Table 1).

A four-class solution with the following classes (see Figure 1): Confident but Hostile (N=8), Healthy (N=187), Overprotective (N=190), and Confident but Not Cognizant (N=31) provided the best fit for our data. We will examine the predictive role of these parenting profiles on children’s mental health and learning outcomes.

Study findings provide us with a better understanding of the subtleties of parenting in low-income families. Evidence of the influential role parenting profiles play in child development will allow policymakers and practitioners to tailor parenting programs to the parents’ respective profiles.

Authors

• Calpanaa Jegatheeswaran, University of Toronto
  Presenting Author

• Samantha Caitlin Burns, University of Toronto

• Michal Perlman, University of Toronto