Child behavior problems are commonly reported difficulties within the education
community and one of the largest referral reasons for parents seeking therapeutic
services for their child. These behaviors can escalate to deviant and harmful behaviors
that affect a child’s home life, academic success, and relations with family and peers.
Current research has identified several parenting variables related to child behavior
problems. This study considered the partial mediating role of parenting techniques on the
relation between maternal characteristics and child behavior problems as reported by the
parents and teachers of Head Start children. Participants in the study were 161 parents
with children enrolled in Head Start at one of three programs in Texas or Mississippi.
Results suggested that inconsistent discipline partially mediates the relation
between maternal distress and parent reported child hyperactivity and aggression.
Inconsistent discipline partially mediates the relation between maternal stress and
parent-reported child hyperactivity and aggression. Parental involvement was found to
be significantly related to childhood attention problems above and beyond maternal
distress or stress and relevant demographic characteristics; however, it did not partially mediate those relations. Analyses involving teacher reported child behaviors did not
show the same mediational effects. SEM analyses indicated that overall models of partial
mediation demonstrated good fit. A major advantage to this study is the collection of
data at three Head Start programs in two states that service small city / rural populations,
an often underrepresented sample in empirical research. Implications of this project
include: (a) a better understanding of the maternal variables most influential on child
behavior that can be used to enhance curricula for parent training; (b) more precise
screening of at-risk families by professionals that will continue to promote a focus on the
whole family and allow for multiple pathways of healthy development for the child (e.g.,
through direct work with child and through the parents); and (c) continued consideration
of the importance of ethnicity on these relations that will continue to foster a respectful
and informed therapeutic relationship between professionals and families of young, atrisk
children.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/ETD-TAMU-1368 |
| Date | 15 May 2009 |
| Creators | Garland, Beth Hackethorn |
| Contributors | Cepeda-Benito, Antonio, Heffer, Robert W. |
| Source Sets | Texas A and M University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Book, Thesis, Electronic Dissertation, text |
| Format | electronic, application/pdf, born digital |
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