Trajectories of Maternal Behavior, Infant's Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia, and Emotional Recovery Following the Still Face Paradigm.

The development of emotion regulation is integral to children's socioemotional adjustment. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) reflects parasympathetic regulation of cardiac arousal and is thought to be an indicator of emotion regulation. However, it is unclear how RSA is associated with positive maternal behaviors and infant emotional recovery in real time over the course of a recovery period following a social stressor.

Preliminary Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Perinatal Mindfulness-Based Well-Being and Parenting Programs for Low-Income New Mothers.

Objectives: This study examined specificity in the effects of three perinatal mindfulness-based prevention programs that differed in their timing (prenatal, postpartum) and target (maternal well-being, parenting). Effects on maternal mental health (depression, anxiety, resilience), mindfulness, and observed parenting, as well as observed, physiological, and mother-report indicators of infant self-regulation, were examined.

Methods: The programs were evaluated in a racially and ethnically diverse sample of first-time mothers ( = 188) living in low-income contexts using intention-to-treat analysis.

Caregiver emotion regulation predicts trajectories of psychopathology during pediatric cancer treatment.

Elevated child and caregiver psychopathology are observed in families of children with cancer, with a subset developing clinically significant symptoms. This study examines whether caregivers' resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and observed emotion regulation (ER) are protective against caregiver and child psychopathology during the first year of pediatric cancer treatment. Primary caregivers of children recently diagnosed with cancer ( = 159; child = 5.

Caregiver perceived financial strain during pediatric cancer treatment: Longitudinal predictors and outcomes.

Objective: Previous work has examined family income and material hardship in pediatric cancer. However, few studies have focused on perceived financial strain (PFS), or the extent to which caregivers perceive financial stress and worry related to their child's cancer. The current study addresses this gap by a) describing the trajectory of perceived financial strain over the first year of pediatric cancer treatment; b) examining sociodemographic predictors of that trajectory; and c) examining associations between PFS and caregiver and child psychological adjustment.

The role of parental emotion reactivity and regulation in child maltreatment and maltreatment risk: A meta-analytic review.

The prevalence and impact of child maltreatment make the scientific investigation of this phenomenon a matter of vital importance. Prior research has examined associations between problematic patterns of parents' emotion reactivity and regulation and child maltreatment and maltreatment risk. However, the strength and specificity of these relationships is not yet clear.

Stress and psychological adjustment in caregivers of children with cancer.

Objective: To examine effects of stress on caregiver psychological adjustment during the first year of pediatric cancer.

Method: Caregivers (N = 159) of children with cancer completed monthly questionnaires assessing domains of caregiver psychological adjustment (depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress symptoms) and stress (general life stress, treatment-related stress, caregiver perceptions of treatment intensity and life threat). Effects of stress were assessed at two levels to examine whether within-person changes in stress predicted concurrent changes in caregiver adjustment and whether average stress was associated with between-person differences in caregiver adjustment trajectories.

Primary and secondary caregiver depressive symptoms and family functioning following a pediatric cancer diagnosis: an exploration of the buffering hypothesis.

Objective: After diagnosis, caregivers of children with cancer, particularly mothers or primary caregivers (PCs), often show elevated depressive symptoms which may negatively impact family functioning. We tested PC and secondary caregiver (SC) depressive symptoms as predictors of family, co-parenting, and marital functioning and whether having a non-depressed SC buffers against potential negative effects of PC depressive symptoms.

Methods: Families (N = 137) were recruited from two major children's hospitals following a diagnosis of pediatric cancer.

Creating a Pathway for Psychosocial Support in Siblings of Youth with a Chronic Illness: Findings from an International Summit.

Objective: Serious childhood illnesses such as cancer affect all family members. Siblings experience strong emotions and disruptions to their routines as families reorganize to confront the disease and manage treatment. Addressing siblings' psychosocial needs is a standard of care in pediatric oncology, but siblings' needs are rarely met because of systematic barriers in our health care system.

Relationships Between Adolescents with Cancer and Healthy Peers: A Qualitative Study.

Despite the developmental relevance and role in social support, research on relationships between adolescents with cancer and healthy peers is limited. To address this gap, we aimed to describe adolescents' perceptions of their friendships during the 1st year following a cancer diagnosis, including relationship changes, factors that promote/inhibit relationships, and definitions and experiences of peer support. Eligible adolescents were 12-20 years old, <1 year of a new cancer diagnosis, and English speaking.

An emotion coaching parenting intervention for families exposed to intimate partner violence.

The current study describes a promising new emotion coaching (EC) parenting intervention for survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) targeting emotion regulation (ER) and parent-child relationships. We discuss the development of an EC parenting intervention, outline its key elements, and use preliminary pilot data to illustrate how such a behavioral intervention can yield improvements in behavioral and physiological indices of ER (i.e.

Broken bonds: A meta-analysis of emotion reactivity and regulation in emotionally maltreating parents.

Background: Emotional maltreatment is the most pervasive but least studied form of abuse.

Objective: In the present study, we examined the role of emotion reactivity and emotion regulation in emotional child maltreatment.

Methods: We identified nine studies that compared levels of parental emotion reactivity and regulation in emotionally maltreating families with levels in non-maltreating families.

An intervention that increases parental sensitivity in families referred to Child Protective Services also changes toddlers' parasympathetic regulation.

Experiencing maltreatment in early childhood predicts poor parasympathetic regulation, characterized by low baseline parasympathetic activity and strong withdrawal of parasympathetic influence in response to tasks. The Promoting First Relationships (PFR) program improves parental sensitivity toward young children in families identified as maltreating. Using a subsample from a randomized control trial, we examined whether parental participation in PFR had lasting effects on toddlers' parasympathetic regulation, as measured by respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), relative to a resource and referral control condition.

Trajectories of child and caregiver psychological adjustment in families of children with cancer.

Objective: To describe the trajectory of patient and caregiver mental health from diagnosis through the first year of treatment for pediatric cancer and assess whether rates of clinically relevant symptoms were elevated compared with norms. We examined mean levels of internalizing and externalizing symptoms and posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in children with cancer, and depression, anxiety, and PTSS in caregivers during the first year of treatment; the proportion of patients and caregivers that scored in the clinical range at each time point; and the typical trajectory of symptoms in patients and caregivers and whether trajectories differed between individuals.

Method: Families (N = 159) of children newly diagnosed with cancer (Mage = 5.

Trajectories of marital, parent-child, and sibling conflict during pediatric cancer treatment.

Objective: The stress of having a child with cancer can impact the quality of relationships within the family. The current study describes the longitudinal trajectory of marital, parent-child, and sibling conflict beginning around the time of diagnosis through the first year of treatment. We examined the average level of marital, parent-child, and sibling conflict at each monthly time point in the first year of treatment; the proportion of families that fall into the distressed range of marital, parent-child, and sibling conflict at each time point; the typical trajectory of conflict during the first year of treatment and whether there are differences in trajectories across families.

Patterns of Spillover Between Marital Adjustment and Parent-Child Conflict During Pediatric Cancer Treatment.

Objective: When a child is diagnosed with cancer, problems may arise in family relationships and negatively affect child adjustment. The current study examined patterns of spillover between marital and parent-child relationships to identify targets for intervention aimed at ameliorating family conflict.

Method: Families (N = 117) were recruited from two US children's hospitals within 2-week postdiagnosis to participate in a short-term prospective longitudinal study.

Featured Article: Caregiver Perceptions of Stress and Sibling Conflict During Pediatric Cancer Treatment.

Objective: The current study examined the effect of stress on sibling conflict during the first year of pediatric cancer treatment.

Method: Families (N = 103) included a child with cancer (aged 2-17 years, Mage = 6.46, SD = 3.

Stress and marital adjustment in families of children with cancer.

Objective: Pediatric cancer is highly stressful for parents. The current prospective study examines the impact of several stressors (financial strain, life threat, treatment intensity, treatment-related events, and negative life events) on the trajectory of marital adjustment across the first year following diagnosis. We examined whether average level of stressors across the year was related to (1) levels of marital adjustment at the end of the first year of treatment and () the rate of change in marital adjustment.

Post-Traumatic Stress, Mother's Emotion Regulation, and Parenting in Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence.

Post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) are high among female survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV), and children of parents experiencing PTSS are at heightened risk for a wide range of emotional and behavioral problems. Parenting has significant influence on child adjustment, and although links have been found between parental psychopathology and maladaptive parenting, little is known about the factors that may explain this relation. The current study examines mother's emotion regulation (ER) as a factor influencing the relation between mother PTSS and parenting around children's emotions in a study sample of sixty-four female survivors of IPV and their 6- to 12-year-old children.

Emotion socialization in the context of risk and psychopathology: Mother and father socialization of anger and sadness in adolescents with depressive disorder.

This study examined parental emotion socialization processes associated with adolescent unipolar depressive disorder. Adolescent participants (N=107; 42 boys) were selected either to meet criteria for current unipolar depressive disorder or to be psychologically healthy as defined by no lifetime history of psychopathology or mental health treatment and low levels of current depressive symptomatology. A multisource/method measurement strategy was used to assess mothers' and fathers' responses to adolescent sad and angry emotion.

Posttraumatic stress and emotion regulation in survivors of intimate partner violence.

Rates of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) are high among female survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV), and children of parents experiencing PTSS are at increased risk for emotional and behavioral problems. However, little is known about the factors that may explain this relation. We examined child's emotion regulation as a moderator and mother's emotion regulation as a mediator of the relation between mother PTSS and child adjustment.

Emotion regulation, internalizing symptoms and somatic complaints in pediatric survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Objectives: This study aimed to examine whether respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA)-a physiological index of children's emotion regulation-moderates the relation between cancer diagnosis and internalizing problems in children.

Methods: Participants were twenty-two 7-12-year survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia and 20 age-matched controls. RSA was calculated from cardiac interbeat interval using spectral time-series analysis.

Maternal directiveness in childhood survivors of acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Parental intrusiveness is associated with internalizing problems in healthy children. Given the unique demands that childhood cancer places on parents, it is important to determine whether intrusiveness operates differently in survivors of childhood cancer. The current study tested whether cancer survivorship moderates the relation between maternal directiveness-one aspect of intrusiveness-and children's internalizing problems.

Parental emotion socialization in clinically depressed adolescents: enhancing and dampening positive affect.

This study compared parental socialization of adolescent positive affect in families of depressed and healthy adolescents. Participants were 107 adolescents (42 boys) aged 14 - 18 years and their parents. Half of the participants met criteria for major depressive disorder and the others were demographically matched adolescents without emotional or behavioral disorders.

Exploring the impact of parental psychopathology and emotion regulation on evidence-based parenting interventions: a transdiagnostic approach to improving treatment effectiveness.

Parenting interventions, particularly those categorized as parent management training (PMT), have a large evidence base supporting their effectiveness with most families who present for treatment of childhood behavior problems. However, data suggest that PMTs are not effective at treating all families who seek services. Parental psychopathology has been identified as one important factor moderating their effectiveness, yet few PMTs pay explicit attention to the role of parental psychopathology in treatment.