Young Children's Development and Behavior: Associations with Timing of Household Food Insecurity in a Racially and Ethnically Diverse Early Head Start Sample.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to assess the impact of household food insecurity (HFI) over time on behavioral and developmental health in early childhood while considering the impact of timing/persistence of HFI and potential differences among racially or ethnically minoritized children. METHODS: Families from the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Study (N = 760) were followed longitudinally until age 3 years. Caregiver interview data were collected on HFI, problem behaviors (PBs), delays in development (DD), and sociodemographic information. Analysis of Covariances examined differences between persistent vs transient HFI. Multiple regressions examined the impact of HFI on PB and DD and whether this relation was stronger in racially or ethnically minoritized children. RESULTS: The timing of HFI differentially affected PB, such that those with persistent HFI demonstrated greater PB than those with only early or only late HFI. A different pattern was identified for DD, in which those with late HFI had more DD than those with persistent HFI. Over and above other sociodemographics, including maternal risk factors and an income-to-needs ratio, HFI was associated with greater PB for children of all races and ethnicities. HFI was associated with more DD in non-Latino/a/e/x White families compared with non-Latino/a/e/x Black and Latino/a/e/x families. CONCLUSION: Meaningful differences were found in how the persistence/timing of HFI is differentially associated with PB and DD. In addition, while controlling for socioeconomic risk, a cumulative risk effect was not observed in how HFI affected racially or ethnically minoritized children.

Latinx dual language learners in the U.S.: Examining family context during early social emotional development.

Latinx dual language learners (DLLs) make up a large, growing population in the United States, yet little is known about their early childhood experiences, particularly regarding parenting, socioeconomic risk, and social emotional development (SED). This prospective, longitudinal study examined whether parental intrusiveness, parental stress, and parental warmth function differently in Latinx DLL families as compared to White monolingual (ML) families while controlling for relevant sociodemographic factors. Data were drawn from the Early Head Start (EHS) family and child experiences study, where White ML (n = 143) and Latinx DLL (n = 247) children and families were assessed at ages 2 and 3. Results indicated a significant interaction between Latinx DLL status and parental intrusiveness on behavior problems. Simple slopes indicated that greater intrusiveness was related to increased behavior problems for White ML families but was not related in Latinx DLL families. There was no significant interaction, however, between parental stress and Latinx DLL status on children's SED. Further, parental warmth did not further moderate the relationship between parental intrusiveness and Latinx DLL status. Overall, there were both similarities and differences between Latinx DLLs and White MLs in both the prevalence of these characteristics and how they relate to child behavior. These results highlight the importance of considering contextual factors, such as ethnic culture and language status, when examining parenting in both clinical and research settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Contextualizing the role of intrusive parenting in toddler behavior problems and emotion regulation: Is more always worse?

Intrusive parenting has been traditionally considered a negative parenting style and includes actions that are overly directive and controlling of children's behavior. However, current research aims to contextualize this parenting behavior. This study examined the relation between intrusive parenting and early childhood behavior problems or emotion regulation, as well as the moderating role of race/ethnicity and developmental delay. Participants (n = 511; 47.4% male) were part of a larger, longitudinal Early Head Start study, entitled Baby FACES, with a racially and ethnically diverse sample (40.1% White, 18.7% Black, and 41.2% Hispanic). Behavior problems and developmental delay were assessed via parent report, while parent intrusiveness and emotion regulation were rated by observers. More use of intrusive parenting at age 2 was associated with greater behavior problems and less emotion regulation at age 3. However, this relation was moderated by race/ethnicity and developmental level. Greater intrusiveness was related to increased behavior problems and poorer emotion regulation for White and Hispanic/Latino families; they were unrelated in Black families. Similarly, although intrusive parenting and behavior problems were positively associated at all developmental levels, the relation was strongest for children with typical development. Further, fewer maternal risk factors, being female, and being Hispanic/Latino were associated with higher emotion regulation, and more risk factors were associated with more behavior problems. These findings highlight the importance of considering how a child's context and development interact with parenting style. Children may benefit from clinical assessment and intervention that considers this intersectionality. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).