Negative Life Events, Negative Conditions, and Childrens Socioemotional Adjustment

1
http//www.unc.edu/depts/devpsych/posters.html
Negative Life Events, Negative Conditions, and
Childrens Socioemotional Adjustment Cecily R.
Hardaway, Rachel Kaplan, and Vonnie C. McLoyd The
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

• Frequencies of Negative Conditions and Negative
  Life Events
• N561 female primary caregivers
• Negative Conditions
• Without telephone service 33
• Didnt pay full rent/mortgage 24
• Needed to see doctor but did not 13
• Needed to see dentist but did not 21
• Hassled by bill collectors 31
• Arguments with present spouse/partner 19
• Problems with a former spouse/partner 23
• Unwanted people living with you 11
• Relative or someone close in jail 39
• Neighbors giving children problems 19
• Trouble finding a good place to live 29
• Someone close had an alcohol or drug problem 34
• Negative Life Events

Question 2 (cont.) The effect of negative
conditions on externalizing problems also varied
significantly by income (t-1.99, plt.05), with
negative conditions being more strongly related
to externalizing behaviors in children from
families with the lowest incomes.
Abstract Using multiple regression analysis,
this study examined factors that mediate and
moderate the relation of negative life events and
negative conditions to child socioemotional
adjustment. The findings uniquely contribute to
the literature by elucidating how negative life
events and negative conditions affect low-income
families and documenting the relative impact of
negative life events and conditions. The sample
consisted of 574 African American, 304 Latino,
and 126 European American low-income families.
Negative life events were not significantly
related to childrens socioemotional adjustment.
Negative conditions were associated with
heightened internalizing and externalizing
problems in children and this association was
mediated through inept child management. Negative
conditions were more strongly related to
internalizing and externalizing problems in lower
income children than higher income children.

• Research Questions
• (1) Which accounts for more of the variation in
  socioemotional adjustmentnegative life events
  or negative conditions?
• (2) Does income moderate the influence of
  negative life events and negative conditions on
  socioemotional adjustment, even within a sample
  of low-income families?
• (3) Do negative life events and negative
  conditions influence childrens internalizing and
  externalizing problems by fostering inept child
  management?

Question 3 Inept child management partially
mediated the relation of negative conditions to
internalizing (t2.57, plt.05) and externalizing
problems (t2.81, plt.01).
Inept Child Management
.40 (.13)
.03 (.01)
Negative Conditions
Internalizing Problems

.05 (.01) After mediator added .04
(.01)
Results

• Methods
• Data Source
• New Hope Child Family Study
• Sample (745 families and 913 children ages 3 to
  12)
• Time 1 variable Mean S.D.
• Parent Age 29.4 6.5
• Child Age 7.2 2.9
• Income/family size 2,086 2,091
• Procedure
• Mothers were interviewed in their homes
• Measures
• Negative life events
• Negative conditions

Inept Child Management
.40 (.13)
Question 1 As predicted, negative conditions
explained more variance in both internalizing and
externalizing problems than did negative life
events. Negative life events did not
significantly predict increases in internalizing
problems or externalizing problems.
.06 (.01)
Negative Conditions
Externalizing Problems
.05 (.01) After mediator added .03 (.01)

• Discussion
• The findings from this study supported our
  hypothesis that negative conditions at the family
  level are related to children's socioemotional
  adjustment.
• Contrary to our expectations, negative life
  events were not significantly related to
  childrens socioemotional adjustment independent
  of negative conditions. This suggests that
  negative conditions are more detrimental to
  children's socioemotional adjustment and more
  related to behavioral problems than acute
  negative life events.
• We found that negative conditions were more
  strongly related to internalizing and
  externalizing problems in children with the
  lowest incomes. This suggests that alleviating
  negative conditions could improve family life
  even amongst the poorest families. The findings
  also point to the importance of economic
  resources in dealing with negative conditions.
• The findings supported our hypothesis that
  negative conditions interfere with parents
  ability to manage their children effectively,
  which in turn affects socioemotional adjustment.
  One possible explanation is that mothers who are
  dealing with their own mental health issues as a
  result of negative conditions may parent less
  effectively.

Question 2 As predicted, negative conditions
were more strongly related to internalizing
problems in lower income children than higher
income children (t -2.02, plt .05).
We are deeply grateful to the staff of the New
Hope Project and to the generous cooperation of
the people in the study sample. The Child and
Family Study of the New Hope Project was
initially made possible by the MacArthur
Foundation Research Network on Successful
Pathways Through Middle Childhood.