ABSTRACT
A number of factors are believed to confer risk for anxiety development in children; however, cultural variation of purported risk factors remains unclear. We examined relations between controlling and rejecting parenting styles, parental modeling of anxious behaviors, child interpretive biases, and child anxiety in a mixed clinically anxious (n=27) and non-clinical (n=20) sample of Latino children and at least one of their parents. Families completed discussion-based tasks and questionnaires in a lab setting. Results indicated that child anxiety was: linked with parental control and child interpretative biases, associated with parental modeling of anxious behaviors at a trend level, and not associated with low parental acceptance. Findings that controlling parenting and child interpretive biases were associated with anxiety extend current theories of anxiety development to the Latino population. We speculate that strong family ties may buffer Latino children from detrimental effects of perceived low parental acceptance.
Subject(s)
Anxiety/psychology , Hispanic or Latino/psychology , Parenting/psychology , Adolescent , Anxiety/ethnology , Child , Cultural Characteristics , Emigrants and Immigrants , Father-Child Relations/ethnology , Female , Hispanic or Latino/ethnology , Humans , Internal-External Control , Male , Mother-Child Relations/ethnology , Mother-Child Relations/psychology , Parent-Child Relations , Parenting/ethnology , Parents/psychology , Surveys and Questionnaires , White PeopleABSTRACT
The present study examined the roles of loss and disruption, major life events, and social support in the relationship between exposure and PTSD symptoms in a group of children 33 months after Hurricane Katrina. One hundred fifty-six 4th, 5th, and 6th graders were surveyed in the New Orleans area. Results indicated that 46% of the children reported moderate to very severe levels of PTSD symptoms. Lower levels of classmate support and more negative life events after the hurricane were uniquely related to PTSD symptoms. Analyses did not reveal any moderating relationships among the variables. The results of this study have implications for the prevention and treatment of PTSD symptoms long after exposure to trauma.
Subject(s)
Life Change Events , Social Support , Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/epidemiology , Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/psychology , Stress, Psychological/complications , Adaptation, Psychological , Adolescent , Child , Cyclonic Storms , Female , Humans , Male , New Orleans/epidemiology , Severity of Illness Index , Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/etiology , Stress, Psychological/psychology , Surveys and Questionnaires , Time FactorsABSTRACT
Parenting practices reflecting over-control and lack of warmth and acceptance are associated with childhood anxiety in white non-Latino populations. In this study, we examined whether these parenting practices were related to childhood anxiety in Mexican-descent children. Mexican (M: n=46), Mexican American (MA: n=48), and European American (EA: n=47) families discussed three ambiguous, potentially anxiety provoking situations. Transcribed discussions were coded for parenting practices reflecting control and lack of warmth and acceptance. Controlling practices were associated with more anxiety for the M and EA groups and with less anxiety for the MA group. The MA parents generated more verbalizations indicative of control than the M parents and more verbalizations indicative of lack of warmth and acceptance than the EA parents. Implications for our understanding of anxiety development in Latino children are discussed.
