Poster #184 - Parents of Boys Report Reduced Reflective Functioning Relative to Parents of Girls

• In Event: 3-053 - Poster Session 10
  In Poster Session: PS 10 Section - Sex, Gender

Integrative Statement

Differences in children’s emotions based on biological sex and gender socialization have been well documented, and may be due in part to enculturation (Brody & Hall, 2008). The degree to which a parent believes their child is capable of experiencing emotion influences parental reflective functioning (PRF), or a parent’s ability to think about their child’s mental state (Slade, 2005). PRF has been linked to factors which promote positive socioemotional development, including more responsive and sensitive caregiving, the development of secure attachment, and better emotion regulation in children (Rutherford et al., 2013). Given that PRF may underlie differences in parenting practices based on sex of their child, we sought to examine a specific aspect of PRF (i.e., interest and curiosity in one’s child’s mental state) in parents of boys and girls. Further, we tested the hypothesis that gender differences in mental state interest explains harsher caregiving practices in the parents of boys relative to parents of girls.

Participants were 64 parents (36 male; 26 female) with children ages 12 to 36 months. Parents ranged in age from 22 to 52 years (M age=33.75, SD=6.75). Over half (55%) identified as White, 25% Asian, 9% American Indian/Alaskan Native, 8% Black/African-American, with 13% identifying as Hispanic. Data was collected via survey using Amazon Mechanical Turk. Reflective functioning was assessed using the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (PRFQ) subscale for Interest and Curiosity in the Child’s Mental State (Luyten et al., 2017). Parenting was assessed using the punitive discipline and positive parenting subscales of the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire – Preschool Revision (Shelton, Frick, & Wootton, 1996). These scores were z-scored and summed (following the reverse scoring of the positive parenting subscale) to create a total “negative parenting” score.

Using an independent samples t-test, we found that parents of boys reported significantly lower levels of interest and curiosity in their child’s mental state compared to parents of girls (M=24.34, SE=1.14 vs. 29.55, SE=0.82; t(59.15)=3.71, p<.001; see Figure 1). Further, given that we identified a negative bivariate association between interest and curiosity in the child’s mental state and negative parenting (r(62)=-.62, p<.001), we examined whether boys experienced more negative parenting in part due to reduced interest and curiosity in their mental state. Results from a single step mediation analysis indicated that there was a significant indirect effect (95% CI: 0.22, 0.53) (see Figure 2).

Not only do parents of boys engage in reduced levels of mentalizing in regards to their children compared to parents of girls, but such differences in mentalizing may explain the association between child’s sex and negative parenting practices. This has important implications for interventions which target early life parent-child interactions, especially as they pertain to secure attachment development which is paramount to positive psychological, socioemotional, and behavioral outcomes in children. Evidence shows that PRF is correlated to both parent and infant attachment style (Slade et al., 2005). Thus reflective functioning, especially interest and curiosity in children’s mental state, may relate to gender differences in how parents think about and act towards their children.

Authors

• Sara J Schunck, Vanderbilt University
  Presenting Author

• Mia C Letterie, Vanderbilt University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Hannah A Piersiak, Vanderbilt University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Austin K Darling, Vanderbilt University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Kathryn Humphreys, Vanderbilt University
  Non-Presenting Author