PARENTAL REPORTS OF EARLY SOCIOEMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL PROBLEMS: DOES THE FATHER'S VIEW MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

Although both mothers and fathers are essential sources of information to address early socioemotional/behavioral (SEB) problems, there continues to be a dearth of studies considering both parental views. A sample of 208 toddlers (Mage = 19.3 months) was recruited through public child health centers. Both parents of 172 toddlers (76 boys, 96 girls) completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) 1-5 (T.M. Achenbach & L.A. Rescorla, 2000; Finnish translation by F. Almqvist, ). Correspondence (intraclass correlation coefficients; ICCs) between the maternal and paternal CBCL ratings was good (.64) for the Internalizing and excellent (.76) for the Externalizing and Total Problems scores whereas ICCs varied from .45 for the Withdrawn to .76 for the Sleep Problems and Aggressive Behavior syndrome scores. Regarding discrepancies, mothers consistently reported higher CBCL scale scores than did fathers. Most significant differences between the parental ratings were found on the Aggressive Behavior syndrome, Externalizing, and Total Problems scales. Interparental rating discrepancies increased with elevations in the corresponding CBCL scale scores. Positive correlations were found between maternal, but not paternal, parenting stress and interparental rating discrepancies on the CBCL. The observed differences between maternal and paternal ratings highlight the importance of gathering reports from both parents when assessing early SEB problems. The findings are more profoundly discussed in the article.

Finnish mothers' and fathers' reports of their boys and girls by using the Brief Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA).

This study investigated maternal and paternal reports about their very young boys and girls on the Brief Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA). Two samples were recruited through child health centers in Northern Finland. The infant sample consisted of 227 children (112 boys and 115 girls) (mean age 13.0±1.1 months) and the toddler sample consisted of 208 children (94 boys and 114 girls) (mean age 19.3±1.4 months). Among the infants, girls obtained higher paternal competence total scores than boys, whereas among the toddlers, both maternal and paternal competence total scores were higher for girls compared to boys. In the problem total scale, boys were scored higher than girls by mothers, but not by fathers, in both age groups. In the externalizing problem domain, maternal scores were higher for boys compared to girls among both samples, whereas paternal scores were significantly higher for boys than for girls only among the infants. Also maternal internalizing problem scores were higher for boys than for girls among the toddlers. Compared to fathers, mothers perceived more social-emotional competencies in toddler boys and girls, as well as more total, externalizing and dysregulation problems in toddler boys. However, significant differences between the maternal and paternal BITSEA ratings were not found among the infants of either sex. The results suggest that sex differences in the social-emotional/behavior domain may be observed by the parents among children as young as 11 to 24 months of age. Our findings highlight the importance of paying attention to probable sex differences when assessing and treating early social-emotional/behavior problems.