Testing the Adaptation to Poverty-Related Stress Model: Predicting Psychopathology Symptoms in Families Facing Economic Hardship

Abstract

This study tested the Adaptation to Poverty-related Stress Model and its proposed relations between poverty-related stress, effortful and involuntary stress responses, and symptoms of psychopathology in an ethnically diverse sample of low-income children and their parents. Prospective Hierarchical Linear Modeling analyses conducted with 98 families (300 family members: 136 adults, 82 adolescents and preadolescents, 82 school-age children) revealed that, consistent with the model, primary and secondary control coping were protective against poverty-related stress primarily for internalizing symptoms. Conversely, disengagement coping exacerbated externalizing symptoms over time. In addition, involuntary engagement stress responses exacerbated the effects of poverty-related stress for internalizing symptoms, whereas involuntary disengagement responses exacerbated externalizing symptoms. Age and gender effects were found in most models, reflecting more symptoms of both types for parents than children and higher levels of internalizing symptoms for girls.

Poverty and Mental Health Outcomes in Mexican Adolescents

“…This coincides with previous data regarding stressors and internalizing an externalizing problem [22,50,52]. The difference between youth risk, for instance, with or without suicidal ideation [53], drug consumers or nonconsumers [54] and adolescents with or without psychopathology [55] is the number, type, and source of stressors, generally related to family, in which, even normative life events, can be perceived negatively by adolescents [46].…”

“…Economic pressure represents a chronic stressor associated to mental health problems including anxiety and depression. Therefore, it supports the notion of relationship between economic hardship, family conflict, and emotional disorder [17,22].…”

“…In this sense, poverty is a distal multidimensional factor considered a risk factor due to its link with other adversities and sources of stress such as economic constraints [17], child maltreatment, [18], alcohol abuse [19], and negative parenting [20] which can be operating cumulatively or as a risk cascade [21]. There is evidence that economic distress may cause daily hassles and family conflicts which either directly or indirectly negatively influence the adolescent's health [22].…”

The Interactive Effects of Stressful Family Life Events and Cortisol Reactivity on Adolescent Externalizing and Internalizing Behaviors

“…For example, several studies have highlighted the deleterious effects of poverty-related stress [11, 12], marital conflict [13, 14], family aggression [15], and child maltreatment [16] on child and adolescent emotional and behavioral outcomes. Specific to the family context, research has shown that measures of chronic family stress and cumulative stressful family life events (sometimes referred to as adversity or adverse life events ) are also related to child and adolescent problem behaviors.…”

A Longitudinal Study of Family Socioeconomic Status (SES) Variables as Predictors of Socio-Emotional Resilience Among Mentored Youth

“…This disadvantage may stem broadly from lack of parent involvement and availability (Cooper & Crosnoe, 2007;Harris & Marmer, 1996;Olsson, 2009;Pittman & Chase-Lansdale, 2001;Ryan, Miller-Loessi, & Nieri, 2007). More specifically, difficult or tenuous parentchild relationships among low SES youth are often linked to parental stress, distress, and depression (Prelow, Weaver, Bowman, & Swenson, 2010;Wadsworth, Raviv, Santiago, & Etter, 2011). Relational problems also arise from parents' perceived isolation and lack of support (Middlemiss, 2003;Raikes & Thompson, 2005).…”