Risk, Vulnerability, and Protective Processes of Parental Expressed Emotion for Children's Peer Relationships in Contexts of Parental Violence

Abstract

Objective This study examined risk, vulnerability, and protective processes of parental expressed emotion for children's peer relationships in families living in emergency shelters with high rates of exposure to parental violence (EPV). Parental criticism and negativity were hypothesized to exacerbate the association between EPV and poorer peer relations, while parental warmth was expected to buffer this association. Method Participants included 138 homeless parents (M = 30.77 years, SD = 6.33, range = 20.51-57.32 years; 64% African-American, 12% Caucasian, 24% other) and their 4-6-year-old children (43.5% male; M = 4.83, SD = .58, range = 4.83-6.92 years; 67% African-American, 2% Caucasian, 31% other). Families were assessed during the summer at three urban shelters, with parents completing the Five-Minute Speech Sample (FMSS), later scored for criticism, negativity, and warmth, and interview items about EPV. Teachers were subsequently contacted in the fall about children's classroom behavior, and they provided ratings of peer relations. Demographic factors, parental internalizing symptoms, and observed parental harshness were examined as covariates. Results Regression analyses indicated an interaction of EPV and warmth, consistent with a moderating effect of expressed emotion for EPV and peer relations, although no interactions were found for criticism or negativity. Observed harshness also directly predicted worse peer relations. Conclusions Parental warmth may be protective for positive peer relations among impoverished families with high levels of EPV. The FMSS is discussed as an efficient tool with potential for both basic clinical research and preventative interventions designed to target or assess change in parental expressed emotion.

Risk of Psychosocial Problems in Children Whose Parents Receive Outpatient Substance Abuse Treatment

“…Economically disadvantaged families often show higher rates of marital problems, parental conflict, and domestic violence (Conger et al, 2010); such factors could mediate the relationship between educational level of the parent and peer relationship problems. Narayan, Sapienza, Monn, Lingras, and Masten (2015), in a sample of homeless, impoverished families, confirmed that domestic violence was related to peer relationship problems, mediated by the extent of parental warmth and of parental criticism and negativity.…”

Interrelations of Maternal Expressed Emotion, Maltreatment, and Separation/Divorce and Links to Family Conflict and Children’s Externalizing Behavior

“…This study extends the use of the FMSS as a brief, effective tool in disadvantaged, impoverished and ethnically-diverse families (Narayan et al, 2012, 2014, Sher-Censor et al, 2013) to families where maltreatment and separation/divorce also are present in addition to poverty. Future studies should continue to make use of this efficient approach in samples where participants may have limited time to participate in lengthy measures of parent-child or family functioning.…”

“…Environments with maltreatment, separation/divorce, or both co-occurring circumstances in addition to EE-Crit would reflect an accumulation of family risk (Cicchetti & Lynch, 1993; Sameroff, Guttman, & Peck, 2003). Although EE-Crit has been extensively studied in clinically-referred, low-income, culturally diverse families (Frye & Garber, 2005; McCarty & Weisz, 2002; Peris & Hinshaw, 2003), some recent studies on EE have indicated that the predictive effects of EE-Crit may be less clear and potentially, more complex in families with very high cumulative risk (Narayan et al, 2012; Narayan, Sapienza, Monn, Lingras, & Masten, 2014). More research is needed to understand the associations between EE-Crit and family and child functioning in home environments with high cumulative risk.…”

“…The brevity and efficiency of the FMSS have been found to be particularly useful in high-risk, impoverished populations (Narayan et al, 2012, 2014; Sher-Censor, Grey, & Yates, 2013). Such families are in need of methodologically efficient empirical and clinical tools to promote positive child adjustment and family harmony as they tend to have limited time to allocate to basic research or intervention studies (Cicchetti & Manly, 1990; Narayan et al, 2012, 2014).…”

“…Such families are in need of methodologically efficient empirical and clinical tools to promote positive child adjustment and family harmony as they tend to have limited time to allocate to basic research or intervention studies (Cicchetti & Manly, 1990; Narayan et al, 2012, 2014). In place of lengthier assessments or interviews, multiple aspects of EE from the FMSS are effective in capturing emotional aspects of the parent-child relationship in low-income and severely impoverished families (Narayan et al, 2012; 2014; Sher-Censor et al, 2013). …”