L'une des influences les mieux documentées dans la prédiction des problèmes de comportements externalisés et internalisés des enfants est la qualité de la relation mère-enfant, souvent opérationnalisée par la sécurité d’attachement et la qualité des comportements maternels. Cependant, bien que ces deux variables soient reliées empiriquement et théoriquement, elles n’ont pas été examinées simultanément dans la prédiction des problèmes de comportements des enfants. Ce mémoire visait à examiner les contributions uniques de deux mesures de sécurité d’attachement ainsi que des comportements maternels (mesurés par la sensibilité maternelle et le soutien maternel à l’autonomie) dans la prédiction des problèmes de comportements des enfants. L’échantillon comprenait 73 dyades mère-enfant. Les comportements maternels ont été mesurés lorsque les enfants étaient âgés entre 15 mois et 2 ans. Les problèmes de comportements internalisés et externalisés des enfants ont été rapportés par leurs professeurs en maternelle et en première année d’école. Les résultats montrent que les deux mesures d’attachement ainsi que les comportements maternels expliquent une portion comparable de la variance des problèmes de comportements anxieux/dépressifs des enfants. Ensemble, ils prédisent trois fois plus de variance que les variables considérées séparément. Les recherches futures devraient considérer une approche multi-méthodes pour mesurer la qualité de la relation mère-enfant, du moins lorsqu’elles tentent d’expliquer le développement des comportements internalisés des enfants. / One of the best-documented predictors of young children’s externalizing and internalizing behavior problems is the quality of mother-child relationships, often operationalized through attachment security and the quality of maternal behaviors. However, although empirically and theoretically interrelated, these aspects of mother-child relationships have not been considered simultaneously in the prediction of children's behavior problems. In addition, attachment is often measured once only, despite its modest stability. This paper aimed to examine the contributions of two assessments of attachment security along with assessments of maternal behaviors (sensitivity and autonomy support) to the prediction of children’s behavior problems. The sample included 73 mother-child dyads. Maternal behaviors and mother-child attachment were assessed when children were between 15 months and 2 years old. Children's internalizing and externalizing problems were reported by their teachers in kindergarten and first grade. The results indicated that each assessment of attachment security and maternal behaviors explained a comparable portion of the variance in children’s anxious/depressed behaviors, together predicting more than three times the variance that would have been explained by either measure of attachment alone. Researchers should consider a multidimensional approach to the assessment of the quality of mother-child relationships, at least when attempting to explain the development of child internalizing problems.

Les mauvais traitements représentent un facteur de risque pouvant entraver le développement normal des enfants qui en sont victimes. L’objectif général de cette thèse est de mieux comprendre le concept d’état de stress post-traumatique-complexe (ÉSPT-C) et ce, en permettant l’évaluation rigoureuse de ses symptômes et en documentant sa relation avec d’autres variables. La présente thèse est composée de deux articles empiriques. L’objectif du premier article est d’obtenir une mesure de l’ÉSPT-C pour une population francophone. Pour ce faire, les qualités psychométriques de la traduction francophone du Structured Interview of Disorders of Extreme Stress-Self-Report (SIDES-SR) ont été testées par le biais d’analyses préliminaires auprès de 438 adultes canadiens-français provenant de la population générale et de l’Université de Montréal. Les résultats démontrent que l’instrument possède une structure factorielle de 5 facteurs comparable à celle obtenue pour l’instrument en anglais dans sa version originale. Les facteurs obtenus sont : 1) les croyances pessimistes par rapport aux autres et au futur, 2) la gestion des affects, 3) l’évitement des contacts physiques et sexuels, 4) la somatisation et 5) la prise de risques. La cohérence interne de 4 facteurs sur 5 varie d’acceptable à très satisfaisante alors que leur stabilité temporelle et leur validité convergente, divergente et concurrente ressortent comme étant assez satisfaisantes. Le but du deuxième article de cette thèse est d’examiner l’apport des symptômes d’ÉSPT-C retrouvés chez les mères et de leurs pratiques parentales (supervision et utilisation abusive de la punition) pour expliquer les symptômes d’ordre psychologique chez leurs enfants victimes d’agression sexuelle (AS). Les symptômes d’ÉSPT-C des mères et leurs pratiques éducatives ont été évalués auprès de 96 mères à l’aide de mesures auto-rapportées alors que les symptômes de leur enfant ont été mesurés à partir d’un instrument qui leur était destiné. Les résultats suggèrent qu’en contrôlant les variables sociodémographiques et les caractéristiques de l’AS de l’enfant, les symptômes d’ÉSPT-C des mères sont liés à plusieurs symptômes retrouvés chez les enfants après le dévoilement de l’AS qu’ils ont subie. Le rôle modérateur de la supervision maternelle dans la relation entre l’ÉSPT-C des mères et les symptômes de dépression et d’opposition des enfants a également été démontré. Les implications théoriques et cliniques concernant les résultats obtenus dans le cadre de ce projet doctoral sont finalement abordées. / Maltreatment is a risk factor that may hinder the normal development of children. The principal objective of this thesis is to better understand complex posttraumatic stress disorder, by evaluating it and documenting its relationship with other variables. This thesis includes two empirical articles. The objective of the first article is to develop a measure of complex posttraumatic stress disorder for French-speaking adults. The psychometric properties of the translated version of the Structured Interview for Disorders of Extreme Stress-Self-Report (SIDES-SR) were tested through preliminary analyses with 438 French-speaking adults from the general population and the University of Montreal. Results demonstrate that the instrument has a factor structure of five factors similar to the English version of the instrument. The factors obtained are: 1) pessimistic beliefs about others and future, 2) managing emotions, 3) avoidance of physical and sexual contact, 4) somatization, and 5) risk-taking behaviours. The internal consistency of 4 of the 5 factors varies from acceptable to very satisfactory, while their temporal stability and convergent, divergent and concurrent validity are acceptable. The purpose of the second article is to examine the contribution of complex posttraumatic stress disorder found in mothers and parenting practices (monitoring and abusive punishment) on psychological symptoms reported by children victims of sexual abuse. Symptoms of 96 mothers and their rearing practices were assessed using self-report measures, while children’s symptoms were measured with an instrument designed for children. Results demonstrate that, after controlling for sociodemographic variables and characteristics of the child sexual abuse, complex posttraumatic stress disorder is associated with several symptoms in children. The moderating role of maternal monitoring in the relationship between complex posttraumatic stress disorder of mothers and symptoms of depression and opposition of children is also demonstrated. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed concerning the results obtained in this doctoral project.

La teoria della mente (toM) è la capacità di attribuire stati mentali a se' e agli altri e di prevedere il comportamento sulla base di essi. recentemente gli studiosi della tom hanno adottato un'ottica life-span (che ha portato alla costruzione di nuovi strumenti per valutare la tom) e iniziato a studiare le differenze individuali in questa capacità (includendo la comprensione delle emozioni e i legami tra tom e funzionamento socio-emotivo). Il presente lavoro ha lo scopo di approfondire lo studio dello sviluppo della comprensione di stati mentali (epistemici ed emotivi) e i suoi legami con le difficoltà emotive nei bambini. Affronta così alcune nuove tematiche nell'ambito degli studi sulla tom, relative alla valutazione della tom in bambini con sviluppo tipico frequentanti la scuola primaria e la relazione tra tom e problemi internalizzanti. Viene presentato un nuovo compito avanzato di ToM e la sua validazione e standardizzazione su un campione italiano di bambini di 6.5-11.4 anni: il voice test. esso valuta l'abilità di comprendere stati mentali complessi da indici vocali. Infine, viene studiata la relazione tra tom e rischio psicologico e, in particolare, analizzato il legame tra la scarsa tom e le frequenti lamentele somatiche nei bambini in eta' scolare. / Theory of Mind (ToM) is the ability to impute mental states to the self e to the others as a way of making sense and predicting behaviour. Recently ToM researchers has been adopted a life span perspective, that leads to the construction of new instruments to assess ToM, and studied individual differences in ToM, including emotion understanding and the relationship between ToM and socio-emotional functioning. The present work is aimed to analyze deeper the development of mental states (both epistemic and emotional) understanding and its link with emotional difficulties, dealing with some novel topics within ToM studies, regarding ToM assessment in school age children and the relationship between ToM and internalizing problems. After reviewing ToM studies, it presents the Voice Test, a new advanced ToM instrument, and its validation and standardization on an Italian school age children sample aged 6,5-11,4 years; the test assesses the ability to understand a wide range of complex mental states from vocal cues. finally, it is studied the relationship between ToM and psychological risk and, in particular, it points out the link between poor ToM and frequent somatic complaints in a normal school age children population.

Background: Effective interventions for maltreated children are impeded by gaps in our knowledge of the etiopathogenic mechanisms leading from maltreatment to mental disorders. Although some studies have already identified individual risk factors, there is a lack of large-scale multilevel research on how psychosocial, neurobiological, and genetic factors act in concert to modulate risk of internalizing psychopathology in childhood following maltreatment. To help close this gap, we aim to delineate gender-specific pathways from maltreatment to psychological disorder/resilience. To this end, we examine the interplay of specific maltreatment characteristics and psychological, endocrine, metabolomic, and (epi-)genomic stress response patterns as well as cognitive-emotional/social processes as determinants of developmental outcome. Specifically, we will explore endocrine, metabolomic, and epigenetic mechanisms leading from maltreatment to a higher risk of depression and anxiety disorders.

In order to establish a working understanding of borders, the critical conversation must be conscious of how the border is being used politically, theoretically, and socially. This thesis focuses on the border as forcibly ensuring the performance of identity as individuals, within the context of borderlands, become embodiments of the border, and their performance of identity is created by the influence of external borders that become internalized. The internalized border can be read both as infection, a problematic divide needing to be removed, as well as an opportunity for bridging, crossing that divide. I bring together Charles Bowden (Blue Desert), Monique Mojica (Princess Pocahontas and the Blue Spots), Leslie Marmon Silko (Ceremony, Almanac of the Dead), and Guillermo Verdecchia (Fronteras Americanas) in order to develop a comprehensive analysis of the border and border identity development. In these texts, individuals are forced to negotiate their sense of self according to pre-existing cultural and social expectations on either side of the border, performing identity according to how they want to be socially perceived. The result can often be read as a fragmentation of identity, a discrepancy between how the individual feels and how they are read. I examine how identity performance occurs within the context of the border, brought on by violence and exemplified through the division between the spirit world and the material world, the manipulation of costuming and uniforms, and the body. / Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship Master’s Award).

Les mauvais traitements représentent un facteur de risque pouvant entraver le développement normal des enfants qui en sont victimes. L’objectif général de cette thèse est de mieux comprendre le concept d’état de stress post-traumatique-complexe (ÉSPT-C) et ce, en permettant l’évaluation rigoureuse de ses symptômes et en documentant sa relation avec d’autres variables. La présente thèse est composée de deux articles empiriques. L’objectif du premier article est d’obtenir une mesure de l’ÉSPT-C pour une population francophone. Pour ce faire, les qualités psychométriques de la traduction francophone du Structured Interview of Disorders of Extreme Stress-Self-Report (SIDES-SR) ont été testées par le biais d’analyses préliminaires auprès de 438 adultes canadiens-français provenant de la population générale et de l’Université de Montréal. Les résultats démontrent que l’instrument possède une structure factorielle de 5 facteurs comparable à celle obtenue pour l’instrument en anglais dans sa version originale. Les facteurs obtenus sont : 1) les croyances pessimistes par rapport aux autres et au futur, 2) la gestion des affects, 3) l’évitement des contacts physiques et sexuels, 4) la somatisation et 5) la prise de risques. La cohérence interne de 4 facteurs sur 5 varie d’acceptable à très satisfaisante alors que leur stabilité temporelle et leur validité convergente, divergente et concurrente ressortent comme étant assez satisfaisantes. Le but du deuxième article de cette thèse est d’examiner l’apport des symptômes d’ÉSPT-C retrouvés chez les mères et de leurs pratiques parentales (supervision et utilisation abusive de la punition) pour expliquer les symptômes d’ordre psychologique chez leurs enfants victimes d’agression sexuelle (AS). Les symptômes d’ÉSPT-C des mères et leurs pratiques éducatives ont été évalués auprès de 96 mères à l’aide de mesures auto-rapportées alors que les symptômes de leur enfant ont été mesurés à partir d’un instrument qui leur était destiné. Les résultats suggèrent qu’en contrôlant les variables sociodémographiques et les caractéristiques de l’AS de l’enfant, les symptômes d’ÉSPT-C des mères sont liés à plusieurs symptômes retrouvés chez les enfants après le dévoilement de l’AS qu’ils ont subie. Le rôle modérateur de la supervision maternelle dans la relation entre l’ÉSPT-C des mères et les symptômes de dépression et d’opposition des enfants a également été démontré. Les implications théoriques et cliniques concernant les résultats obtenus dans le cadre de ce projet doctoral sont finalement abordées. / Maltreatment is a risk factor that may hinder the normal development of children. The principal objective of this thesis is to better understand complex posttraumatic stress disorder, by evaluating it and documenting its relationship with other variables. This thesis includes two empirical articles. The objective of the first article is to develop a measure of complex posttraumatic stress disorder for French-speaking adults. The psychometric properties of the translated version of the Structured Interview for Disorders of Extreme Stress-Self-Report (SIDES-SR) were tested through preliminary analyses with 438 French-speaking adults from the general population and the University of Montreal. Results demonstrate that the instrument has a factor structure of five factors similar to the English version of the instrument. The factors obtained are: 1) pessimistic beliefs about others and future, 2) managing emotions, 3) avoidance of physical and sexual contact, 4) somatization, and 5) risk-taking behaviours. The internal consistency of 4 of the 5 factors varies from acceptable to very satisfactory, while their temporal stability and convergent, divergent and concurrent validity are acceptable. The purpose of the second article is to examine the contribution of complex posttraumatic stress disorder found in mothers and parenting practices (monitoring and abusive punishment) on psychological symptoms reported by children victims of sexual abuse. Symptoms of 96 mothers and their rearing practices were assessed using self-report measures, while children’s symptoms were measured with an instrument designed for children. Results demonstrate that, after controlling for sociodemographic variables and characteristics of the child sexual abuse, complex posttraumatic stress disorder is associated with several symptoms in children. The moderating role of maternal monitoring in the relationship between complex posttraumatic stress disorder of mothers and symptoms of depression and opposition of children is also demonstrated. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed concerning the results obtained in this doctoral project.

Background: Effective interventions for maltreated children are impeded by gaps in our knowledge of the etiopathogenic mechanisms leading from maltreatment to mental disorders. Although some studies have already identified individual risk factors, there is a lack of large-scale multilevel research on how psychosocial, neurobiological, and genetic factors act in concert to modulate risk of internalizing psychopathology in childhood following maltreatment. To help close this gap, we aim to delineate gender-specific pathways from maltreatment to psychological disorder/resilience. To this end, we examine the interplay of specific maltreatment characteristics and psychological, endocrine, metabolomic, and (epi-)genomic stress response patterns as well as cognitive-emotional/social processes as determinants of developmental outcome. Specifically, we will explore endocrine, metabolomic, and epigenetic mechanisms leading from maltreatment to a higher risk of depression and anxiety disorders.

Syskonrelationen är den längsta relationen i livet. Därtill utgör syskonrelationen en viktig arena för barns utveckling. Trots detta finns det få studier där syskonrelationen undersöks i relation till barnmisshandel. I följande studie undersöktes skillnader i den självskattade stöd- och konfliktnivån i syskonrelationen, mellan barn som rapporterade svår barnmisshandel och barn i en kontrollgrupp, samt om kön förändrade dessa skillnader. Vidare undersöktes om stöd- och konfliktnivån påverkade den upplevda nivån av psykosomatiska problem hos barn som rapporterade svår barnmisshandel. Studien genomfördes på ett urval av 1 392 pojkar och flickor mellan 15-16 år, med data från projektet Longitudinal Research on Development in Adolescence (LoRDIA). Barn som rapporterade svår barnmisshandel upplevde signifikant lägre stödnivå och signifikant högre konfliktnivå i sin syskonrelation, än barnen i kontrollgruppen. Skillnaderna var signifikanta både för pojkar och flickor, men pojkar upplevde ett signifikant lägre stöd i sin syskonrelation än flickor. Nivån av syskonstöd och syskonkonflikt påverkade emellertid inte nivån av psykosomatiska problem hos barn som rapporterade svår barnmisshandel. Effektstorlekarna var små i majoriteten av resultaten, vilket tyder på att syskonrelationer är komplexa fenomen som vid sidan av barnmisshandel och kön, även påverkas av en rad andra faktorer. Resultaten diskuteras i ljuset av tidigare forskning och i relation till anknytningsteori, kompensationshypotesen, kongruenshypotesen och könssocialisation. / The relation between siblings is one of the longest throughout the life span. Moreover, the sibling relationship constitutes an important context for children’s development. Nevertheless, in the context of child maltreatment, it remains largely understudied. In this study, we examined the differences in self-reported sibling support and sibling conflict, between children who reported severe child maltreatment and children in a control group, as well as if these differences were affected by gender. Furthermore, we examined whether the level of sibling support and sibling conflict affected the extent of psychosomatic problems experienced by children who reported severe child maltreatment. The study was conducted on a sample of 1 392 boys and girls between the ages of 15-16, using data from the research project Longitudinal Research on Development in Adolescence (LoRDIA). Children who reported severe child maltreatment experienced significantly less sibling support and significantly higher sibling conflict than the control group. These differences were significant for both boys and girls, although boys experienced significantly less sibling support than girls. The level of sibling support and sibling conflict, however, did not affect the extent of psychosomatic problems in children who reported severe child maltreatment. Effect sizes were small in the majority of the results, suggesting that sibling relationships is a complex phenomenon that, besides child maltreatment and gender, may be affected by a number of other factors as well. The results are discussed in light of previous research, and in relation to attachment theory, the compensation hypothesis, the congruence hypothesis, and gender socialization.

Différents éléments peuvent influencer le fonctionnement socio-émotionnel des enfants et agir comme facteurs de protection ou facteurs de risque. Il est maintenant bien reconnu que ces facteurs proviennent d’éléments propres à l’enfant ainsi que d’aspects provenant de l’environnement dans lequel il grandit. Cette thèse se centre sur les facteurs intrinsèques et environnementaux les plus étudiés concernant le développement socio-émotionnel des enfants durant la petite enfance: le tempérament de l’enfant et la qualité des relations mère-enfant. Peu d’études se sont intéressées à l’interface entre le tempérament et la qualité des relations mère-enfant mesurés dans la petite enfance pour prédire le fonctionnement socio-émotionnel à l’âge scolaire. Pourtant, l’âge scolaire est marqué d’une étape de transition des plus saillantes du développement des enfants, c’est-à-dire l'entrée scolaire. L'ajustement socio-émotionnel des enfants au cours des premières années d’école est l'un des principaux facteurs influençant leur adaptation scolaire (Robson et al., 2020). Il est donc essentiel de comprendre pourquoi certains enfants fonctionnent mieux que d'autres sur ce plan durant l’âge scolaire. Le premier article explorait le rôle modérateur de la qualité des interactions mère-enfant, observée à 2 ans, dans la relation entre la tendance à la colère des enfants et leurs comportements intériorisés, extériorisés et prosociaux à l’entrée scolaire. Les résultats ont montré que la tendance à la colère des tout-petits prédisait des difficultés socio-émotionnelles chez ceux-ci, principalement dans le contexte d’une meilleure qualité d’interactions mère-enfant. Le deuxième article examinait les liens prédictifs entre le soutien maternel à l’autonomie (observé à 15 mois) et les trajectoires des comportements intériorisés et extériorisés des enfants mesurés de 2 à 7 ans, en contrôlant les dimensions négatives du tempérament des enfants. Les résultats du deuxième article ont montré que plus les mères soutenaient l’autonomie de leur enfant, plus les comportement intériorisés augmentaient lentement dans les années subséquentes et plus les comportements extériorisés diminuaient rapidement. / Different elements can act as protective or risk factors for child socioemotional functioning. It is now well recognized that these elements come from child-specific as well as environmental factors. This thesis focuses on the most studied intrinsic and environmental factors concerning child socioemotional development during toddlerhood: child temperament and mother-child relationship quality. Few studies have investigated the interplay between temperament and mother-child relationships in toddlerhood in the prediction of child socioemotional functioning in the early school years. Yet, this period includes a major developmental transition, namely school entry. Young children’s socioemotional adjustment during this period is one of the main factors influencing their school adaptation (Robson et al., 2020). It is therefore essential to understand why some children adapt better than others in early school years. The first article explored the moderating role of mother-child interactions quality, observed at 2 years old, in the association between child anger proneness and internalizing, externalizing and prosocial behaviors at school entry. The results showed that child anger proneness predicted socioemotional difficulties, primarily in the context of better mother-child interactions quality. The second article examines the predictive links between maternal autonomy support (observed at 15 months) and the trajectories of internalizing and externalizing behaviors measured from 2 to 7 years, while controlling for the negative dimensions of child temperament. The results showed that the more mothers supported their child's autonomy, the more internalizing behavior increased slowly and the more externalizing behavior decreased rapidly in later years.

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