Family income and appraisals of parental conflict as predictors of psychological adjustment and diurnal cortisol in emerging adulthood.

Abstract

The goal of the current study was to provide the first investigation of whether appraisals of parental marital conflict mediate associations of family income with emerging adult psychological adjustment and diurnal cortisol production. Participants were 178 college students who provided 3 saliva samples across the day and reported their family income, adjustment (depressive symptoms, perceived daily stress, internalizing problems, and externalizing problems), and appraisals of their parents' conflict (including perceptions of frequency, intensity, resolution, stability, as well as perceived threat and self-blame for conflict). Results indicated that emerging adults from low-income families reported more-negative conflict appraisals, which in turn predicted lower levels of adjustment; there was no association between income and patterns of cortisol production across the day. However, emerging adults who felt responsible for their parents' conflict displayed cortisol levels that were lower early in the day, with a tendency toward blunted cortisol slopes across the day; those who appraised their parents' conflict less negatively displayed a more normative pattern of cortisol production. These results suggest that effects of family income on psychological adjustment are explained, in part, by appraisals of parental conflict, particularly of appraisals of conflict as threatening, whereas self-blame conflict appraisals have main effects on cortisol, and predict a dysregulated and potentially maladaptive pattern of cortisol production across the day for emerging adults.

Associations Between Marital Conflict and Adolescent Conflict Appraisals, Stress Physiology, and Mental Health

“…In addition, in emerging adulthood, self-blame for parental conflict is related to flattened diurnal cortisol production patterns (Lucas-Thompson & Hostinar, 2013). The current study adds to our knowledge by demonstrating that similar patterns are evident in adolescence and provides evidence that these flattened patterns of cortisol production linked with self-blame appear to be driven by elevated evening levels of cortisol production.…”

“…Broadly, stressor appraisals are critical in determining physiological responses to stressful experiences (Kemeny, 2003). The only study to investigate the role of conflict appraisals in diurnal cortisol production indicated that emerging adults who felt more self-blame for parental conflict displayed lower levels early in the day and blunted decreases in levels across the day (Lucas-Thompson & Hostinar, 2013); other appraisal dimensions (of conflict properties and threat) were not related to diurnal cortisol. However, in this study, only appraisals (and not marital conflict per se) were considered.…”

“…These findings are mixed in that they provide support for cortisol reactivity as a mediator (Davies et al, 2007; Koss et al, 2013) and moderator (El-Sheikh, Keiley, Erath, & Dyer, 2013; Obradović et al, 2011) of the links between marital conflict and adjustment. Finally, the association between conflict appraisals and adjustment is not mediated by diurnal cortisol production in emerging adulthood (Lucas-Thompson & Hostinar, 2013), raising the question of whether these processes change during adolescence. Accordingly, the goal of this study was to investigate links of marital conflict, conflict appraisals, and stress physiology with internalizing and externalizing behaviors in a community sample of adolescents.…”

“…In addition, such negative interparental conflict predicts dysregulated patterns of cortisol production across the day (e.g., Lucas-Thompson & Hostinar, 2013), an important indicator of physiological regulation (Gunnar & Donzella, 2002) and an important predictor of physical and psychological health (Chrousos, 2009). Both dysregulated stress physiology (e.g., Luecken & Lemery, 2004) and the ways that children appraise and perceive their parents’ conflict (Grych, Seid, & Fincham, 1992) have been conceptualized as important mediators of the association between marital conflict and mental health.…”

Negative life events and school adjustment among Chinese nursing students: The mediating role of psychological capital

“…School adjustment is a broad and multidimensional concept that is not limited to students' school performance and academic success; it also includes their affect, attitude, relationships, and involvement or engagement with the school environment (Birch and Ladd, 1997). Several studies examining school adjustment have proved that internal factors, such as individual characteristics (e.g., intelligence and emotional quotients, personality) (Ahammed et al, 2011;Warbah et al, 2007), and external factors, such as perceived stress (e.g., academic stress) (Akgun and Ciarrochi, 2003), relationships (e.g., peers) (Iwata et al, 2014) and home environment (family income and parental conflicts) (Lucas- Thompson and Hostinar, 2013;Nelson et al, 1993) have contributed to the adjustment of college students. A meta-analysis by Mattanah et al (2011) indicated that parental attachment was associated with adjustment outcomes.…”