Potential moderators of the association between parental psychological distress and perceived child externalizing behaviors

Parental psychological distress is a commonly examined risk factor for the emergence of child problem behaviors, but the factors that may influence that relationship—like parental social support satisfaction and coping skills—have not been adequately explored. The current longitudinal study examined the association between maternal and paternal psychological distress in relation to subsequent perceived child externalizing behaviors, considering these two parental resources as moderators. The sample included a racially and socioeconomically diverse group of first-time mothers and their partners. Mothers and fathers reported their current psychological distress, social support satisfaction, and problem-focused coping at child age 6 months, 18 months, and 4 years of age, as well as reporting on child externalizing behaviors in the last two waves. For mothers, both social support satisfaction and coping at 18 months moderated the relationship between their psychological distress and subsequent perceived child externalizing behaviors. Specifically, higher coping self-efficacy predicted lower perceived child externalizing behaviors at lower levels of maternal psychological distress but did not buffer at higher distress levels. Further, lower levels of social support satisfaction exacerbated the link between maternal psychological distress and child externalizing behaviors, whereas higher social support satisfaction buffered this association. No significant interactions were observed for fathers. Results of this study emphasize the distinct relations among these variables for mothers and fathers, while highlighting potentially interactive processes involved in understanding the emergence of parent-reported children's externalizing behaviors.