UCLA

Youth mental health problems are increasingly prevalent and impairing, constituting what has been deemed an epidemic of public health concern. Although it is well-known that parents feature centrally in children’s socioemotional development, especially during salient periods such as preschool and preadolescence, there is limited research on the individual differences among parents that give rise to their parenting behaviors and their implications for child outcomes. The current series of studies addressed this gap by integrating multiple levels of analysis to improve knowledge on key psychological and neurocognitive correlates of parenting behavior and their interactions with child characteristics. Study I of this dissertation employed person-centered latent profile analyses to identify subgroups of mothers of preschoolers who share similar risk factors. We then evaluated the predictive utility of these profiles with respect to sensitive parenting and child behavior problems. Based on maternal report of exposure to negative life events, general perceived stress, parenting-specific stress, and depressive symptoms, three distinct parent profiles emerged: Normative, Stressed, and Distressed. Mothers in the Distressed profile – characterized by high levels of stress and depression – not only engaged in less sensitive parenting but also had children with more behavior problems one year later, suggesting that high levels of stress combined with a depressed mood may compromise both responsive parenting and child outcomes. Study II evaluated executive functioning skills and deficits among parents of preadolescent girls to elucidate their associations with parenting behaviors and interactions with child negative emotionality. Results revealed that 1) parents’ self-reported emotion regulation deficits were inversely associated with positive parenting and 2) performance-based cognitive flexibility predicted more positive parenting. These findings offer initial evidence that parents with stronger executive functioning and self-regulatory skills are better equipped to engage in adaptive parenting practices. Taken together, this dissertation highlights the need for improved understanding of individual differences among parents to accelerate innovations in how parenting can be modified effectively. In sum, earlier screening and more personalized prevention and intervention efforts may help to foster better goodness-of-fit among parents and children, ultimately promoting resilient parenting and healthier family functioning overall.