ORCID Profile
0000-0001-9451-2709
Current Organisation
Deakin University
Does something not look right? The information on this page has been harvested from data sources that may not be up to date. We continue to work with information providers to improve coverage and quality. To report an issue, use the Feedback Form.
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Psychology | Developmental Psychology and Ageing | Social and Community Psychology
Expanding Knowledge in the Biological Sciences | Expanding Knowledge in Psychology and Cognitive Sciences |
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 13-05-2022
Abstract: Purpose: The Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Cohort (ATPG3) was established to examine the extent to which offspring social and emotional development is shaped in the decades prior to conception, in parent and grandparent histories of psychosocial adjustment (e.g., emotional regulation, relationship quality and prosociality) and maladjustment (e.g., depressive symptoms, substance use and antisociality). Participants: The Australian Temperament Project (ATP) commenced in 1983 as a population representative survey of the social and emotional health of 2443 young Australians (Generation 2: 4-8 months) and their parents (Generation 1). Since then, families have been followed from infancy to young adulthood (15 waves). Between 2012 and 2018, the cohort was screened biannually for pregnancies and infants (Generation 3). Assessments were conducted in the third trimester of pregnancy, and at 8 weeks and 1 year postpartum. Findings to date: 1167 offspring (607 female) born to 703 ATP G2 parents (400 mothers) were recruited into the ATPG3 Cohort. Findings to date highlight: (1) strong continuities in depressive symptoms and substance use from adolescence through to becoming a parent (2) a role for persistent preconception mental health problems in risk for parent-child bonding difficulties, as well as infant emotional reactivity and behaviour problems (3) the importance of secure attachments in adolescence in reducing long term risk for postpartum mental health problems and (4) the protective nature of perceived social support, both preconception and postpartum, in strengthening relationship quality and social support during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future Plans: Assessments of the ATPG3 cohort in preschool and middle childhood are currently funded and underway. We intend to maintain the offspring cohort through childhood, adolescence, young adulthood and into parenthood. Data will be used to map preconception determinants of emotional health, and enhance approaches to population monitoring and targeted intervention over the life course and across generations.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2016
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-07-2023
DOI: 10.1111/FAMP.12912
Abstract: Trait anger reflects a tendency to feel irritation, annoyance, and rage, and involves a narrowing of cognition and attention. This narrowed scope may impact the capacity to understand the mental states of oneself and others (mentalizing), which for fathers of infants may compromise bonding and caregiving involvement. Here, we investigated the extent to which mentalizing mediated the relationship between father trait anger and both father–infant bonding and father involvement in infant caregiving. Data were from 168 fathers ( M = 30.04 years of age, SD = 1.36) of 190 infants ( M = 7.58 months of age, SD = 5.06) in the longitudinal Men and Parenting Pathways (MAPP) study. We assessed fathers' preconception trait anger at Wave 1 and their mentalizing 2 years later at Wave 3. At Waves 3, 4, and/or 5, we assessed father–infant bonding and father involvement in infant caregiving when men had an infant younger than 18 months of age. Associations were examined using path analysis. Poorer mentalizing fully mediated the relationship between preconception trait anger and father–infant bonding (total score), but not involvement in infant caregiving. Further, poorer mentalizing fully mediated the relationships between trait anger and each component of the father–infant bond (i.e., patience and tolerance, affection and pride, and pleasure in interactions). Findings suggest that for men high on trait anger, targeted interventions that facilitate mentalizing capacities may help to develop a foundation for a strong father–infant bond. Interventions may be offered on becoming a father (perinatal), or prior to becoming a father (preconception) to prevent future bonding problems.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 13-09-2019
DOI: 10.1186/S40359-019-0338-4
Abstract: There is growing evidence for the value of technology-based programs to support fathers to make positive transitions across the perinatal period. However, past research has focused on program outcomes with little attention to the mechanisms of impact. Knowledge of why a program works increases potential for replication across contexts. Participants were 40 Australian fathers enrolled in the SMS4dads text-based perinatal support program (Mean age 35.11 (5.87). From a starting point between 16 weeks gestation and 12 weeks postpartum, they were sent a maximum of 184 text messages. An inductive approach was used to analyse post-program semi-structured interviews. The aim was to identify mechanisms of impact aligned to previously identified program outcomes, which were that SMS4dads: 1) is helpful/useful 2) lessens a sense of isolation 3) promotes the father-infant relationship and 4) supports the father-partner relationship. We identified two types of mechanisms: four were structural within the program messages and five were psychological within the participant. The structural mechanisms included: syncing information to needs normalisation prompts to interact and, the provision of a safety net. The psychological mechanisms were: increase in knowledge feelings of confidence ability to cope role orientation and, the feeling of being connected. These mechanisms interacted with each other to produce the pre-identified program outcomes. If the current findings are generalisable then, future mobile health program design and evaluation would benefit from explicit consideration to how both program components and in idual cognitive and behavioural processes combine to elicit targeted outcomes.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 06-08-2020
Abstract: Aims: To explore the process of applying counterfactual thinking in examining causal predictors of substance use trajectories in observational cohort data. Specifically, we examine the extent to which quality of the parent-adolescent relationship and affiliations with deviant peers are causally related to trajectories of alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use across adolescence and into young adulthood. Methods: Data were drawn from the Australian Temperament Project, a population-based cohort study that has followed a s le of young Australians from infancy to adulthood since 1983. Parent-adolescent relationship quality and deviant peer affiliations were assessed at age 13-14 years. Latent curve models were fitted for past month alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use (n = 1,590) from age 15-16 to 27-28 years (5 waves). Confounding factors were selected in line with the counterfactual framework. Results: Following confounder adjustment, higher quality parent-adolescent relationships were associated with lower baseline cannabis use, but not alcohol or tobacco use trajectories. In contrast, affiliations with deviant peers were associated with higher baseline binge drinking, tobacco, and cannabis use, and an earlier peak in the cannabis use trajectory. Conclusions: Confounding adjustments weakened several estimated associations and the interpretation of such associations as causal is not without limitations. Nevertheless, findings suggested causal effects of both parent-adolescent relationships and deviant peer affiliations on the trajectory of substance use. Causal effects were however more pervasive (i.e., more substance types) and protracted for deviant peer affiliations. The current study encourages the exploration of causal relationships in observational cohort data, when relevant limitations are transparently acknowledged.
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 09-2022
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2022-061854
Abstract: The Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Study (ATPG3) was established to examine the extent to which offspring social and emotional development is shaped in the decades prior to conception, in parent and grandparent histories of psychosocial adjustment (eg, emotional regulation, relationship quality and prosociality) and maladjustment (eg, depressive symptoms, substance use and antisociality). The Australian Temperament Project (ATP) commenced in 1983 as a population representative survey of the social and emotional health of 2443 young Australians (Generation 2: 4–8 months old) and their parents (Generation 1). Since then, families have been followed from infancy to young adulthood (16 waves). Between 2012 and 2018, the cohort was screened biannually for pregnancies (Generation 3), with assessments conducted in the third trimester of pregnancy, and at 8 weeks and 1 year postpartum. A total of 1167 offspring (607 female) born to 703 Generation 2 parents (400 mothers) were recruited into the ATPG3 Study. Findings to date highlight: (1) strong continuities in depressive symptoms and substance use from adolescence through to becoming a parent (2) a role for persistent preconception mental health problems in risk for parent–child bonding difficulties, as well as infant emotional reactivity and behaviour problems (3) the importance of secure attachments in adolescence in reducing long-term risk for postpartum mental health problems and (4) the protective nature of perceived social support, both preconception and postpartum, in strengthening relationship quality and social support during the COVID-19 pandemic. Assessments of ATPG3 families in preschool and middle childhood are currently funded and underway. We intend to maintain the offspring cohort through childhood, adolescence, young adulthood and into parenthood. Data will be used to map preconception determinants of emotional health, and enhance approaches to population monitoring and targeted intervention over the life course and across generations.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 21-12-2021
DOI: 10.1177/00048674211065365
Abstract: To control a second-wave COVID-19 outbreak, the state of Victoria in Australia experienced one of the world’s first long and strict lockdowns over July–October 2020, while the rest of Australia experienced ‘COVID-normal’ with minimal restrictions. We (1) investigate trajectories of parent/child mental health outcomes in Victoria vs non-Victoria and (2) identify baseline demographic, in idual and COVID-19-related factors associated with mental health trajectories. Online community s le of 2004 Australian parents with rapid repeated assessment over 14 time-points over April 2020 to May 2021. Measures assessed parent mental health (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales-21), child depression symptoms (13-item Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire) and child anxiety symptoms (four items from Brief Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale). Mental health trajectories shadowed COVID-19 infection rates. Victorians reported a peak in mental health symptoms at the time of the second-wave lockdown compared to other states. Key baseline predictors, including parent and child loneliness (standardized regression coefficient [β] = 0.09–0.46), parent/child diagnoses (β = 0.07–0.21), couple conflict (β = 0.07–0.18) and COVID-19 stressors, such as worry/concern about COVID-19, illness and loss of job (β = 0.12–0.15), predicted elevated trajectories. Effects of predictors on parent and child mental health trajectories are illustrated in an online interactive app for readers ( lingtax.shinyapps.io/CPAS_trend/ ). Our findings provide evidence of worse trajectories of parent and child mental health symptoms at a time coinciding with a second COVID-19 outbreak involving strict lockdown in Victoria, compared to non-locked states in Australia. We identified several baseline factors that may be useful in detecting high-risk families who are likely to require additional support early on in future lockdowns.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-12-2021
DOI: 10.1016/J.ADOLESCENCE.2020.12.005
Abstract: In extending work on early life antecedents of parenting, we investigate associations between childhood family history of disadvantage, adolescent socioemotional wellbeing, and age at first parenthood and subsequent parenting behaviour. Parent‐child interactions were recorded when participants in the longitudinal Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study (New Zealand) had a three‐year‐old child. Data were available for 358 mothers and 321 fathers, aged between 17.7 and 41.5 at the time of their child's birth. Associations between parenting and antecedent data on socioeconomic disadvantage, adolescent wellbeing and mental health, as well as current adult mental health and age at parenting, were tested for using structural equation modelling. Family disadvantage in childhood and lower adolescent wellbeing was associated with less positive future parenting, but only adult (not adolescent) anxiety/depression symptoms were directly associated with parenting behaviour. Childhood family disadvantage was associated with further disadvantage across the life course that included less positive parenting of the next generation. In contrast, socioemotional wellbeing during adolescence and later age of onset of parenting were associated with more positive parenting. Reducing childhood disadvantage and improving socioemotional wellbeing during childhood and adolescence is likely to have intergenerational benefits through better parenting of the next generation.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 04-2023
DOI: 10.1037/PSPP0000451
Abstract: Most but not all adults become parents, yet it remains unclear which characteristics indicate an orientation toward parenting. The aims of this study were to (a) distinguish profiles of in idual and interpersonal resources in young adults that may orient them toward parenthood and (b) investigate whether profiles predicted timing of entering parenthood, postpartum parenting behavior, and parent-infant bonding. Participants were 1,429 young people (53% female) enrolled in an Australian 39-year longitudinal study. Predictor data for latent profile analysis were collected at 23-24 and 27-28 years. Parenthood timing was designated as "early" ≤ 25 years, "on-time" > 25 years, and "not a parent" by age 37 years. Parenting outcomes were assessed at 12 months postpartum in 684 parents of 1,144 children. Four-profile classes were identified: "connected" (
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-11-2018
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 23-09-2021
DOI: 10.1177/03057356211042079
Abstract: Music is a valuable aid for hospitalized adolescents as they navigate normative and non-normative stressors. Music-based interventions link these adolescents with composers who write music designed to facilitate emotional well-being yet little is known about how each engage and find meaning in these interventions. This study examines the motivations and musical choices of composers of music for mental health, as well as how hospitalized adolescents engage in and benefit from the creative process. Ten adolescents with extensive hospital experiences, six composers, two hospital staff, and one program coordinator were observed and/or interviewed in a music-based intervention. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) of interviews with composers, coordinators, and hospital staff was performed to gain deep understanding of psychosocial benefits for all groups. This was supplemented by ethnographic observation of the program. Qualitative themes of Composer Reasoning, Listener Influence, and Adolescent Engagement revealed interplay of challenges and rewards for composers and adolescents. Composers reported positive change in adolescent mood and engagement and reflected on this within the context of meaning-making and social connection. This study demonstrates the potential value of music as a tool to promote positive identity and contributes to the body of research forging a connection between the arts and health care.
Publisher: Future Medicine Ltd
Date: 31-10-2023
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 30-01-2023
DOI: 10.1177/00048674221151000
Abstract: Mental health disorders are ranked globally as the single largest contributor to non-fatal ill-health. Social support can be a means of reducing and managing depression. However, depression can also impact on a person’s level of social support. As men typically have fewer sources of social support than females, this study investigated the bi-directional associations between depressive symptoms and perceived levels of social support among Australian males, aged 18–63. Three waves of panel data from Ten to Men: The Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health collected over 7 years (2013–2020) were used. A random intercept cross-lagged panel analysis with 5112 participants was undertaken. Mediating effects and indirect and total effects for lagged and cross-lagged pathways were also examined. Over time, greater social support was found to be associated with lower depression levels, and simultaneously greater levels of depression was found to be associated with lower levels of social support. Standardised cross-lagged effects between waves were mostly similar (β = 0.10). However, mediation analyses identified that only the total effect size of the association for depression at wave 1 predicting social support at wave 3 (β = −0.29) was significant. Mediated effects of social support at wave 1 predicting depression at wave 3 were not significant. These include the number of years between each wave, and data were collected during the COVID pandemic. The study provides robust longitudinal evidence supporting the notion that social support and depression are both a cause and consequence of the other. However, the long-term effects of depression reducing social support were longer lasting than the effects of social support reducing depression.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 26-08-2021
Abstract: ackground: Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) is a tool for rapidly synthesising meaning from ‘big data’, but outputs can be sensitive to decisions made during the analytic pipeline. This review will focus on the complex analytical practices specific to LDA, which existing practical guides for conducting LDA have not addressed. bjectives: This scoping review will use key analytical steps (data selection, data pre-processing, and data analysis) as a framework to understand the methodological approaches being used in psychology research utilising LDA. ethods: Four psychology and health databases were searched. Studies were included if they used LDA to analyse written words and focussed on a psychological construct/issue. The data charting processes was constructed and employed based on common data selection, pre-processing, and data analysis steps. esults: Forty-seven studies were included. These explored a range of research areas and most sourced their data from social media platforms. While some studies reported on pre-processing and data analytic steps taken, most studies did not provide sufficient detail for reproducibility. Furthermore, debate surrounding the necessity of certain pre-processing and data analysis steps is revealed. onclusions: Findings highlight the growing use of LDA in psychological science. However, there is a need to improve analytical reporting standards, and identify comprehensive and evidence based best practice recommendations. To work towards this, we have developed an LDA Preferred Reporting Checklist which will allow for consistent documentation of LDA analytic decisions, and reproducible research outcomes.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 06-11-2020
Abstract: Maternal internalizing symptoms during pregnancy, specifically depression and/or anxiety, are commonly linked to negative affectivity (NA) in infant offspring. These links are commonly attributed to biological effects of the in utero environment on fetal development. However, research suggests that internalizing symptoms before and after pregnancy, as well as in fathers, may also be associated with NA in infant offspring. Such findings suggest greater complexity in transmission than can be explained by biological in utero programming alone. Further, infant NA is often treated as an homogenous construct, yet it covers a range of facets including fear, frustration, sadness, and slow recovery from distress that may each be differentially associated with parent internalizing distress. Here we aimed to (1) meta-analytically quantify associations between maternal and paternal internalizing symptoms and infant offspring NA, (2) examine how associations varied as a function of distinct phenotypic facets of NA, and (3) examine how associations varied by timing of parental symptoms (preconception, antenatal, postnatal) and infant age. Using random-effects meta-analysis, we found that maternal internalizing symptoms were positively associated with infant NA (r = 0.17 [95% CI 0.14, 0.21], 42 studies, 149 estimates). Preliminary evidence from studies of fathers likewise suggested a positive association with infant NA (r = 0.13 [95% CI 0.04, 0.22], 6 studies, 40 estimates). We observed associations with the global infant NA construct, as well as effect modification by infant NA facet (maternal r range .12 to .22 paternal r range .03 to.21). In mothers, there was no evidence of effect modification by timing of internalizing symptoms or infant age in fathers, preliminary associations were larger for postnatal than antenatal symptoms. Further studies of preconception and paternal symptoms are now needed, and we suggest avenues for research to advance understanding of the relations between parent internalizing symptoms and infant NA.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 10-2023
Publisher: Bristol University Press
Date: 04-2020
DOI: 10.1332/175795920X15792720930280
Abstract: The Australian New Zealand Intergenerational Cohort Consortium (ANZ-ICC) brings together three of the longest running intergenerational cohort studies in Australia and New Zealand to examine the extent to which preconception parental life histories (from infancy to parenthood) predict next generation early health and development. The aims are threefold: (1) to describe pathways of advantage that strengthen emotional health and well-being from one generation to the next, (2) to describe pathways of disadvantage that perpetuate cycles of emotional and behavioural problems across generations, and (3) to identify modifiable factors capable of breaking intergenerational cycles. The Victorian Intergenerational Health Cohort Study has followed 1,943 young Australians from adolescence to adulthood across ten waves since 1992, and 1,030 offspring from pregnancy to early childhood since 2006. The Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Study has followed 2,443 young Australians from infancy to adulthood across 15 waves since 1983, and 1170 offspring from pregnancy to early childhood since 2012. The Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study Parenting Study has followed 1,037 young New Zealanders across 15 waves since 1972, and 730 offspring in early childhood since 1994. Cross-cohort replication analyses will be conducted for common preconception exposures and next generation offspring outcomes, while integrated data analysis of pooled data will be used for rare exposures and outcomes. The ANZ-ICC represents a unique collaboration that bridges the disciplines of lifecourse epidemiology, biostatistics, developmental psychology and psychiatry, to study the role of parental preconception exposures on next generation health and development.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 29-09-2020
Abstract: MAPP Study Cohort Profile - Tables
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 28-04-2020
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291720000902
Abstract: Rates of common mental health problems (depression/anxiety) rise sharply in adolescence and peak in young adulthood, often coinciding with the transition to parenthood. Little is known regarding the persistence of common mental health problems from adolescence to the perinatal period in both mothers and fathers. A total of 393 mothers (686 pregnancies) and 257 fathers (357 pregnancies) from the intergenerational Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Study completed self-report assessments of depression and anxiety in adolescence (ages 13–14, 15–16, 17–18 years) and young adulthood (ages 19–20, 23–24, 27–28 years). The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale was used to assess depressive symptoms at 32 weeks pregnancy and 12 months postpartum in mothers, and at 12 months postpartum in fathers. Most pregnancies (81%) in which mothers reported perinatal depression were preceded by a history of mental health problems in adolescence or young adulthood. Similarly, most pregnancies (83%) in which fathers reported postnatal depression were preceded by a preconception history of mental health problems. After adjustment for potential confounders, the odds of self-reporting perinatal depression in both women and men were consistently higher in those with a history of persistent mental health problems across adolescence and young adulthood than those without (OR women 5.7, 95% CI 2.9–10.9 OR men 5.5, 95% CI 1.03–29.70). Perinatal depression, for the majority of parents, is a continuation of mental health problems with onsets well before pregnancy. Strategies to promote good perinatal mental health should start before parenthood and include both men and women.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 03-08-2020
Abstract: The interrelationships between maternal bonding, negative affect, and infant social-emotional development were examined using multi-wave perinatal data from an Australian cohort study (N = 1,579). Self-reported bonding and negative affect were assessed at each trimester, and 8 weeks and 12 months postpartum. The Bayley-III social-emotional scale was administered at age 12 months. Results revealed strong continuities in bonding and negative affect across pregnancy and postpartum. Small associations (β = -.10 to -.20) existed between maternal negative affect during pregnancy and poor early bonding. Higher postnatal maternal bonding predicted infant social-emotional development (β = .17). Maternal bonding and negative affect are interrelated yet unique constructs, with suggested developmental interplay between mother-to-infant bonding and infant social-affective development.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 02-08-2014
DOI: 10.1080/09297049.2013.822060
Abstract: The transition to school is associated with a greater requirement to inhibit irrelevant or inappropriate thought and behavior in order to concentrate on effective learning and to interact successfully with peers. Current knowledge of inhibitory control development in the early school years is limited due to a lack of normative data from age-appropriate, sensitive measures. In this study, three pictorial versions of the Stroop task were administered to investigate inhibitory control development in early school-aged children. Age-related trajectories of inhibition and effects of gender were examined in 80 children (42 boys) aged 5 to 8 years. All children were assessed with the Cognitive Assessment System Expressive Attention subtest (Big-Small Stroop), Fruit Stroop, and Boy-Girl Stroop. The Big-Small Stroop revealed substantial age-related improvement in inhibition from 5 to 7 years with a levelling of performance at 8 years of age, while the Fruit Stroop and Boy-Girl Stroop demonstrated clear but nonsignificant age trends. In particular, older children committed fewer errors and corrected their errors more frequently than younger children. Performance on all Stroop tasks correlated significantly, providing evidence that they tap similar cognitive abilities. Some gender differences were found. This study indicates that inhibitory skills develop rapidly in the early school years and suggests that error awareness may be a useful indicator of the development of cognitive inhibition for this age group.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 21-07-2014
DOI: 10.1002/EAT.22331
Abstract: This study capitalizes on developmental data from an Australian population-based birth cohort to identify developmental markers of abnormal eating attitudes and behaviors in adolescence. The aims were twofold: (1) to develop a comprehensive path model identifying infant and childhood developmental correlates of Abnormal Eating Attitudes and Behaviors in adolescence, and (2) to explore potential gender differences. Data were drawn from a 30-year longitudinal study that has followed the health and development of a population based cohort across 15 waves of data collection from infancy since 1983: The Australian Temperament Project. Participants in this analysis were the 1,300 youth who completed the 11th survey at 15-16 years (1998) and who completed the eating disorder inventory at this time point. Developmental correlates of Abnormal Eating Attitudes and Behaviors in mid-adolescence were temperamental persistence, early gestational age, persistent high weight, teen depression, stronger peer relationships, maternal dieting behavior, and pubertal timing. Overall, these factors accounted for 28% of the variance in Abnormal Eating Attitudes and Behaviors at 15-16 years of age. Depressive symptoms, maternal dieting behavior, and early puberty were more important factors for girls. Late puberty was a more important factor for boys. Findings address an important gap in our understanding of the etiology of Abnormal Eating Attitudes and Behaviors in adolescence and suggest multiple targets for preventive intervention.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 19-07-2019
Abstract: Background: There is growing evidence for the value of technology-based programs to support fathers to make positive transitions across the perinatal period. However, past research has focused on program outcomes with little attention to the mechanisms of impact. Knowledge of why a program works increases potential for replication across contexts.Methods: Participants were 40 Australian fathers enrolled in the SMS4dads text-based perinatal support program (Mean age 35.11 (5.87). From a starting point between 16 weeks gestation and 12 weeks postpartum, they were sent a maximum of 184 text messages. An inductive approach was used to analyse post-program semi-structured interviews. The aim was to identify mechanisms of impact aligned to previously identified program outcomes, which were that SMS4dads: 1) is helpful/useful 2) lessens a sense of isolation 3) promotes the father-infant relationship and 4) supports the father-partner relationship.Results: We identified two types of mechanisms: four were structural within the program messages and five were psychological within the participant. The structural mechanisms included: syncing information to needs normalisation prompts to interact and, the provision of a safety net. The psychological mechanisms were: increase in knowledge feelings of confidence ability to cope role orientation and, the feeling of being connected. These mechanisms interacted with each other to produce the pre-identified program outcomes.Conclusions: If the current findings are generalisable then, future mobile health program design and evaluation would benefit from explicit consideration to how both program components and in idual cognitive and behavioural processes combine to elicit targeted outcomes.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 28-05-2021
DOI: 10.3389/FPSYG.2021.672174
Abstract: Background: When adolescent boys experience close, secure relationships with their parents and peers, the implications are potentially far reaching, including lower levels of mental health problems in adolescence and young adulthood. Here we use rare prospective intergenerational data to extend our understanding of the impact of adolescent attachments on subsequent postpartum mental health problems in early fatherhood. Methods: At age 17–18 years, we used an abbreviated Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment to assess trust, communication, and alienation reported by 270 male participants in their relationships with mothers, fathers, and peers. More than a decade later, we assessed the adult males, now fathers, at 12 months postpartum ( N = 409 infant offspring) for symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Logistic regression was used to examine the extent to which attachment dimensions predicted paternal postpartum mental health, adjusting for potential confounding, and with assessment for interactions between parent and peer attachments. Results: Trust in mothers and peers, and good communication with fathers during adolescence, were associated with 5 to 7 percentage point reductions in postpartum mental health symptoms in early fatherhood. Weak evidence of parent-peer interactions suggested secure attachments with either parent or peer may compensate for an insecure attachment with the other. Conclusions: Our results suggest that fostering trust and communication in relationships that adolescent boys have with parents and peers may have substantial effects on rates of paternal postpartum mental health problems. The protective benefits may be preventative in intergenerational cycles of risk for mental health problems.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 08-03-2023
Abstract: Early nurturing relationships are crucial for adaptive child development. The objectives of the study were to investigate whether the availability of natural environments was associated with nurturing parenting practices, mother-infant bonding, and infant socioemotional function at one year of age. Data were from the Australian Temperament Project (n = 809 infants to 515 parents residing in Victoria, Australia) and were linked cross-sectionally to residential greenness (i.e., Normalized Difference in Vegetation Index). There were no observable associations between residential greenness within a 1600m network radius and parenting practices (using items from the parenting scales from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children), mother-infant bonding (Maternal Postnatal Attachment Scale (MPAS)), or infant socioemotional function (Brief Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment (BITSEA)). The findings were largely corroborated by sensitivity analyses (i.e., NDVI within 100m, 250m, 500m, and 1000m and distance to park). Shorter distances to a park were associated with less hostile parenting. More residential greenness (1000m and 1600m) was associated with stronger father-infant bonding (Paternal Postnatal Attachment Scale (PPAS)) and more hostile parenting amongst the most stressed parents in exploratory analyses. Residential greenness might be a socioecological precursor for father-infant bonding.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-08-2018
DOI: 10.1111/INFA.12247
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2020
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-2022
DOI: 10.1007/S00127-020-01965-Y
Abstract: To examine associations between anxiety and depressive symptoms across adolescence and young adulthood with subsequent maternal- and paternal-infant bonding at 1 year postpartum. The data were from a prospective, intergenerational cohort study. Participants (381 mothers of 648 infants 277 fathers of 421 infants) self-reported depression and anxiety at three adolescent waves (ages 13, 15 and 17 years) and three young adult waves (ages 19, 23 and 27 years). Subsequent parent-infant bonds with infants were reported at 1 year postpartum (parent age 29-35 years). Generalised estimating equations (GEE) separately assessed associations for mothers and fathers. Mean postpartum bonding scores were approximately half a standard deviation lower in parents with a history of persistent adolescent and young adult depressive symptoms (maternal β Persistent symptoms of depression or anxiety spanning adolescence and young adulthood predict poorer emotional bonding with infants 1-year postbirth for both mothers and fathers.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 26-03-2021
Abstract: Objective: To control a second-wave COVID-19 outbreak, the state of Victoria in Australia experienced one of the world’s first long and strict lockdowns over July-October 2020, while the rest of Australia experienced ‘COVID-normal’ with minimal restrictions. We (1) investigate trajectories of parent/child mental health outcomes and (2) identify baseline demographic, in idual, and COVID-19-related factors associated with mental health trajectories. Method: Online community s le of 1,877 Australian parents with rapid repeated assessment over 10 time-points over April-October, 2020. Measures assessed parent mental health (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales-21) child depression symptoms (13-item Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire) and child anxiety symptoms (four-items from Brief Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale).Results: Mental health trajectories shadowed COVID-19 infection rates. Victorians reported a large peak in mental health symptoms at the time of the second-wave lockdown compared to other states. Key baseline predictors, including parent and child loneliness (standardized regression coefficient [β]=·09-·39), parent/child diagnoses (β=·11-·22), couple conflict (β=·09-·19), and COVID-19 stressors, such as worry/concern about COVID-19, illness, and loss of job (β=·07-·22), predicted elevated trajectories. Effects of predictors on parent and child mental health trajectories are illustrated in an online interactive app for readers (lingtax.shinyapps.io/CPAS_trend/).Conclusion: Our findings provide evidence of worse trajectories of parent and child mental health symptoms associated with strict, sustained, COVID-19 lockdown in Victoria, compared to non-locked states in the rest of Australia. We identified several baseline factors that may be useful in detecting high risk families who are likely to require additional support early on in future lockdowns.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 27-06-2020
Abstract: BackgroundSleep disturbance among adults has consequences for their health and functioning. Among mothers of infants, there is evidence that fatigue and sleep disturbance are significantly associated with depression, anxiety and impaired relationships with partners and infants. It is not known whether consistent evidence of such associations exists for fathers. The aim of this review was to describe what is known about fathers’ sleep and its associations with mental health and wellbeing, in the first 12 months postpartum. Methods A scoping review was conducted, searching MEDLINE complete, Scopus, PsycINFO and CINAHL complete, from 1990 to 13 May 2019. Reference lists of relevant reviews were also searched. Articles were included if they were published in English, and reported on sleep among men cohabiting with their infants from birth to 12 months. ResultsThirty-six papers reporting on 31 separate studies met inclusion criteria. Sleep constructs and assessment of these varied greatly. While some measures of fathers’ sleep improved, fathers’ fatigue increased significantly with increasing infant age. In adjusted analyses, fathers’ sleep problems were associated with poorer mental health, relationships with infants and partners, and safety compliance at work. ConclusionsFurther research on fathers’ sleep in the first postnatal year is recommended, including: validation of brief self-report measures to assess sleep disturbance and fatigue well-designed longitudinal studies to clarify the causal direction of associations between infant sleep, fathers’ sleep and fathers’ wellbeing and development of interventions to improve fathers’ sleep, for ex le by supporting parents to address infant sleep problems.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 28-07-2023
DOI: 10.1111/APHW.12475
Abstract: Internationally, there is growing attention on links between social isolation and mental health problems. Here, we use unique Australian longitudinal data to investigate associations between adult men's ( n = 507 age M = 29.90, SD = 1.31) social network investments and their concurrent and subsequent mental health problems. In linear regressions, using generalised estimating equations (GEEs), we examined associations between social network investment (time with friends, network size and various activities with friends) and mental health symptoms (depression, anxiety and stress) across five timepoints. Models were adjusted for waves of outcome and potential confounders. Cross‐sectionally, each social network investment variable, except for drinking with friends, was negatively associated with depressive symptoms. Men's extended friendship network size and sharing a meal with friends were negatively associated with concurrent anxiety and stress. Time spent and physical activity with friends was also negatively associated with concurrent stress. In longitudinal analyses, after adjusting for prior depressive symptoms, only the number of friends in close and extended networks remained protective against depressive symptoms 1 year later. Results did not differ by fatherhood or relationship status. Programs designed to strengthen men's investment in social networks are recommended to reduce men's depressive symptoms.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.JADOHEALTH.2018.07.024
Abstract: This study examined the extent to which care-oriented attitudes and behaviours in adolescence (e.g., volunteering) predict positive development (PD e.g., life satisfaction and meaning urpose) in young adulthood (19-28 years). The analytic s le comprised 1,359 participants participating from a 35-year (16 wave) population-based cohort study (The Australian Temperament Project). Adolescent care-oriented attitudes and behaviours were defined in mid-adolescence (15-16 years). Young adult PD was defined by latent growth curve modelling across three waves (19-20, 23-24, and 27-28 years). There was considerable variation in PD at the beginning of young adulthood (19-20 years) (variance of intercept = 40.22, SE = 4.53, p < .001). Once baseline PD levels were established in young adulthood, there was evidence of increasing PD over time (mean slope = .34, SE = .04, 95%CI = [.26, .41], p < .001, β = .65), with little variation in this rate of change between participants (variance of slope = .27, SE = .15, p = .087). After controlling for sex, parental education, and personality factors (b = 3.49, SE(b) = .67, 95%CI = [2.17, 4.80], p < .001, β = .22) care orientations in adolescence predicted PD at age 19-20 years, establishing the starting point of PD trajectories across young adulthood. Results suggest that promotion of care-oriented attitudes and behaviours in adolescence may enhance adult development by increasing PD levels at the start of the twenties. Intervening earlier in life is indicated as PD tends to remain stable throughout young adulthood once established.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2020
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2022
DOI: 10.1016/J.JAAC.2021.08.024
Abstract: The affectional bond experienced by a mother toward her developing fetus/infant has been theorized to be a critical factor in determining infant developmental outcomes yet there remains a paucity of research in this area, and a lack of high-quality longitudinal studies. This study aimed to examine the extent to which mother-to-infant bonding predicted infant development in a multi-wave longitudinal pregnancy cohort study (N = 1,347). Self-reported bonding was assessed using the Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale at each trimester, and the Maternal Postnatal Attachment Scale at 8 weeks and 12 months postpartum. Infant development was assessed using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition (Bayley-III) at 12 months. Bonding predicted indicators of infant social-affective development, including social-emotional, behavioral, and temperamental outcomes. Effect sizes ranged from small to moderate, increasing over the perinatal period (β = 0.11-0.27). Very small effects were also identified in the relationship between bonding and cognitive, language, and motor development (β = 0.06-0.08). Findings suggest that a mother's perceived emotional connection with her child plays a role in predicting social-affective outcomes prediction may not extend to other domains of infant development. Maternal bonding may therefore be a potentially modifiable predictor of infant social-affective outcomes, offering important considerations for preventive intervention.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 30-09-2020
Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic presents significant risks to the mental health and wellbeing of families. This study aimed to examine: (1) patterns of parent and child (0–18 years) mental health, parent substance use, couple conflict, parenting practices, and family functioning during COVID-19 compared to pre-pandemic data and (2) associations between parent, child, and family outcomes during the pandemic and both pre-existing risk factors and COVID-19 stressors. Participants were Australian mothers (81%) and fathers aged 18 years and over who were parents of a child 0–18 years (N=2,365). Parents completed an online self-report survey assessing mental health, substance use, couple conflict, parenting, and family functioning during ‘stage three’ COVID-19 restrictions in April 2020. Data were compared to pre-pandemic data from four Australian population-based cohorts. Compared to pre-pandemic estimates, during the pandemic period parents reported higher rates of parent mental health symptoms (Cohen’s d=0.26-.81, all p& .001), higher parenting irritability (d=0.17-.46, all p& .001), lower family positive expressiveness (d=-0.18, p& .001), and higher alcohol consumption (22% vs 12% drinking four or more days per week, p& .001). In multivariable analyses, pre-existing financial deprivation and COVID-19 stressors were associated with greater severity in parent and child mental health symptoms, parent emotion dysregulation, parenting irritability, couple conflict and family positive/negative expressiveness. Parents and children with pre-existing mental health conditions had elevated difficulties during the pandemic across most domains. Our data suggest wide-ranging, detrimental family impacts associated with the COVID-19 pandemic and support policy actions to assist families with financial supports, leave entitlements, and social housing.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2022
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 29-04-2016
DOI: 10.1111/OBR.12413
Abstract: Adolescence is a period of significant cognitive, social and physiological change, presenting unique risk factors for weight gain. Childhood obesity research has traditionally focused on the influence of parent-level factors on children's eating and weight status. Increasingly, emphasis is turning towards the reciprocal nature of the parent-child relationship and its influence on health behaviour. A systematic literature review was conducted to investigate the relationship between parent-child relationship quality (defined as the felt emotional bond between parent and child) and obesogenic risk (weight status, eating attitudes and behaviours, level of physical activity and sedentary behaviour) in adolescence 26 papers were included in the review. The results neither support nor challenge an association between parent-child relationship quality and weight, with study design flaws and limited measurement of the parent-child relationship precluding robust conclusions. The review does however suggests that several aspects of the parent-child relationship are important in understanding eating attitudes and behaviours, including the felt emotional bond between the parent and child, the child's perception of how much the parent cares for them and the mother's sensitivity towards the child. The need for further longitudinal research into the association between parent-child relationship quality and obesity risk across this developmental period is discussed.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 08-10-2021
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291721003925
Abstract: This study assessed the extent to which women's preconception binge drinking, tobacco use and cannabis use, reported prospectively in adolescence and young adulthood, predicted use of these substances during pregnancy and at 1 year postpartum. Data were pooled from two intergenerational cohort studies: the Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Study (395 mothers, 691 pregnancies) and the Victorian Intergenerational Health Cohort Study (398 mothers, 609 pregnancies). Alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use were assessed in adolescence (13–18 years), young adulthood (19–29 years) and at ages 29–35 years for those transitioning to parenthood. Exposures were weekly or more frequent preconception binge drinking (5 + drinks in one session), tobacco use and cannabis use. Outcomes were any alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use prior to awareness of the pregnancy, after awareness of pregnancy (up to and including the third trimester pregnancy) and at 1 year postpartum. Frequent preconception binge drinking, tobacco use and cannabis use across both adolescence and young adulthood were strong predictors of continued use post-conception, before and after awareness of the pregnancy and at 1 year postpartum. Substance use limited to young adulthood also predicted continued use post-conception. Persistent alcohol, tobacco use and cannabis use that starts in adolescence has a strong continuity into parenthood. Reducing substance use in the perinatal period requires action well before pregnancy, commencing in adolescence and continuing into the years before conception and throughout the perinatal period.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 04-08-2021
DOI: 10.3389/FPSYT.2021.717811
Abstract: Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has placed considerable pressure on families, testing the quality of relationships and the strength of social support within and beyond the family network. However, little is known about the pre-pandemic factors that predict family relational resilience and social functioning during times of natural disaster or global crisis. Here we use data from one of Australia's longest running studies of social and emotional development to examine the nature and timing of possible relational and social support intervention aimed at preparing families for future adversities. Methods: Data were from the Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 (ATPG3) Study, a population representative three generation cohort study of families established in 1983. A subset of Generation 2 parents completed a COVID-19 specific survey in May-September 2020 (502 parents of 871 children 60% mothers 37–38 years). These participants had completed the Quality of Relationships Inventory to assess social support during young adulthood, at 23–24 years (2006) and 27–28 years (2010), before next generation conception. Participants had also completed the Maternity Social Support Scale 1 year postpartum for each child born across the ATPG3 assessment period (2012–2019). In 2020, during the height of the Australian lockdowns, participants rated the quality of their relationships with their partners, children and broader family and friends, in addition to social support within and extended beyond their family. Results: Pre-pandemic partner support was associated with partner relationship quality during the pandemic (β = 0.22). Pre-pandemic support from friends was associated with relationship quality with other family and friends during the pandemic (β = 0.12 – 0.18). Pre-pandemic support (from partner, family and friends) was consistently associated with social support within families during the pandemic (β = 0.11 – 0.21). Pre-pandemic support from friends was also associated with family support extended to others within their local community during the pandemic (β = 0.12 – 0.13). Conclusions: Strengthening supportive relationships during major life transitions, prior to the start of family life and in early parenthood, may have long-term and intergenerational benefits years into the future for both families and communities. This may promote resilience during future crises and other more normative stressful life events.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 10-04-2019
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291719000709
Abstract: Maternal mental health during pregnancy and postpartum predicts later emotional and behavioural problems in children. Even though most perinatal mental health problems begin before pregnancy, the consequences of preconception maternal mental health for children's early emotional development have not been prospectively studied. We used data from two prospective Australian intergenerational cohorts, with 756 women assessed repeatedly for mental health problems before pregnancy between age 13 and 29 years, and during pregnancy and at 1 year postpartum for 1231 subsequent pregnancies. Offspring infant emotional reactivity, an early indicator of differential sensitivity denoting increased risk of emotional problems under adversity, was assessed at 1 year postpartum. Thirty-seven percent of infants born to mothers with persistent preconception mental health problems were categorised as high in emotional reactivity, compared to 23% born to mothers without preconception history (adjusted OR 2.1, 95% CI 1.4–3.1). Ante- and postnatal maternal depressive symptoms were similarly associated with infant emotional reactivity, but these perinatal associations reduced somewhat after adjustment for prior exposure. Causal mediation analysis further showed that 88% of the preconception risk was a direct effect, not mediated by perinatal exposure. Maternal preconception mental health problems predict infant emotional reactivity, independently of maternal perinatal mental health while associations between perinatal depressive symptoms and infant reactivity are partially explained by prior exposure. Findings suggest that processes shaping early vulnerability for later mental disorders arise well before conception. There is an emerging case for expanding developmental theories and trialling preventive interventions in the years before pregnancy.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2021
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 23-11-2020
DOI: 10.3389/FPSYT.2020.578114
Abstract: Background: Evidence suggests that men commonly experience depression as feelings of anger yet, research has not investigated what this means for the manifestation of depressive symptoms in the early years of fatherhood and for key indicators of family functioning. Methods: Using data from a longitudinal cohort study of men at the normative age for entering fatherhood (28–32 years), we conducted latent class analyses to identify patterns of depressive symptoms and 3 sub-types of state anger (feeling verbal physical). We then assessed whether class membership was associated with paternity status ( n = 535). In a subs le of fathers of infants aged up to 18 months ( n = 162), we prospectively assessed associations with paternal-infant bonding, co-parenting, perceived social support, paternal involvement in childcare and alcohol use up to 2 years later. Results: Five classes emerged that differentiated men by anger and depressive symptom severity and by the degree to which men endorsed the feeling of wanting to express anger physically. Compared to the reference class with minimal symptoms, fathers had a higher probability of being in either the mild or most severe symptom classes. Men in symptomatic classes were at higher risk of lower levels of social support, co-parenting problems, and paternal-infant bonds. Class membership was not associated with alcohol use or paternal involvement in childcare. Conclusions: Our results reveal patterns of co-existing symptoms of depression and anger in fathers of infants that will be relevant to men's own need for support, their family safety, partner mental health and child developmental outcomes.
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 05-01-2022
DOI: 10.3389/FPSYT.2021.772942
Abstract: In iduals cope with stress using multiple strategies, yet studies of coping profiles are rare. We draw data from a longitudinal study of Australian men ( n = 272 30–37 years), assessed before (T1) and during (T2) a nation-wide COVID-19 lockdown. We aimed to: (1) identify men's multi-strategy coping profiles before and during the pandemic (2) assess cross-sectional (T1-T1, T2-T2) and prospective (T1-T2) associations between profiles and symptoms of psychological distress (stress, anxiety, depression, and anger) and (3) examine relationships between coping profiles and appraisals of pandemic-related stressors and options for coping. In latent profile analyses of 14 coping strategies, three profiles emerged that were largely consistent across T1 and T2: (1) Relaxed Copers (low use of all strategies), (2) Approach Copers, and (3) Dual Copers (high avoidant and moderate-high approach-oriented strategies). Compared to Relaxed and Approach Copers, men who were Dual Copers had elevated psychological distress cross-sectionally before (T1) and during (T2) the pandemic, but not prospectively. Post hoc analyses suggested this was because many men changed coping profiles in the context of the pandemic. Men with stable (T1-T2) or new (T2 only) Dual Coping profiles experienced greater psychological distress and more negative appraisals of pandemic stressors and options for coping. In sum, at the s le level, the composition of men's coping profiles and associations with mental health risk were relatively stable over time and contexts however, many men appeared to respond to pandemic conditions by changing coping profile groups, with mostly positive mental health outcomes. Of concern were men who adopted more avoidant strategies (e.g., denial, self-distraction, disengagement, substance use, and self-blame) under pandemic conditions. These Dual Coper men also engaged in commonly observable approach-oriented behaviours (e.g., planning, active coping, humour, seeking practical social support) that may mask their vulnerability to mental health risk. Our findings highlight the clinical importance of enquiring about escalating or frequent avoidant coping even in the presence of more active and interactive approach-oriented behaviours.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 16-06-2020
Abstract: Background: Penalised regression methods are a useful atheoretical approach for identifying key predictive indicators when one’s initial list of indicators is substantial, a process which may aid in informing population health surveillance. The purpose of this study was to examine the predictive performance and feature (i.e., variable) selection capability of common penalised regression methods (LASSO, adaptive LASSO, and elastic-net), compared with traditional logistic regression and forward selection methods. Design: Data were drawn from the Australian Temperament Project, a longitudinal cohort study beginning in 1983. The analytic s le consisted of 1,292 (707 women) participants. A total of 102 adolescent psychosocial and contextual indicators were available to predict young adult daily smoking. Findings: Penalised regression methods showed small improvements in predictive performance over logistic regression and forward selection. However, no single penalised regression model outperformed the others. Elastic-net models selected more indicators than either LASSO or adaptive LASSO. Additionally, more regularised models included fewer indicators, yet had comparable predictive performance. Forward selection methods dismissed many indicators identified as important in the penalised regression models. Conclusions: Although overall predictive accuracy was only marginally better with penalised regression method, benefits were most clear in their capacity to select a manageable subset of indicators. Preference to competing penalised regression methods may therefore be guided by feature selection capability, and thus interpretative considerations, rather than predictive performance alone.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-08-2022
DOI: 10.1111/CDEV.13839
Abstract: This study examined whether positive development (PD) in adolescence and young adulthood predicts offspring behavior in two Australasian intergenerational cohorts. The Australian Temperament Project Generation 3 Study assessed PD at age 19–28 (years 2002–2010) and behavior in 1165 infants (12–18 months 608 girls) of 694 Australian‐born parents (age 29–35 2012–2019 399 mothers). The Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Parenting Study assessed PD at age 15–18 (years 1987–1991) and behavior in 695 preschoolers (3–5 years 349 girls) and their New Zealand born parents (age 21–46 1994–2018 363 mothers 89% European ethnicity). In both cohorts, PD before parenthood predicted more positive offspring behavior ( β range = .11–.16) and fewer behavior problems ( β range = −.09 to −.11). Promoting strengths may secure a healthy start to life.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 31-08-2023
DOI: 10.1177/02654075231198441
Abstract: Romantic and peer relationships both contribute to overall well-being however, each demand time and emotional investment that may give rise to competition. Little is known about how men, in particular, balance these relationships. We explored the extent to which men’s investments in peer relationships are associated with romantic relationship quality. We further examined differences between fathers and non-fathers. Data were from five annual waves of the Men and Parenting Pathways cohort study ( N = 608). Participants were men in committed relationships ( n = 526) aged 28-32 years at baseline ( M = 29.91, SD = 1.3). In cross-sectional, linear regressions, estimated using Generalised Estimating Equations (GEE to account for repeated waves), we investigated peer network investments, (1) time (hours) spent with peers, (2) close network size, and (3) extended network size, and their associations with romantic relationship quality, self-reported using the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Inverted U-shaped associations were found for time spent with peers and close network size, whereby increases in investment were associated with improved relationship quality up to a “tipping point”, following which declines in quality are observed. For extended social networks, the association was linear, such that larger networks were linked to higher romantic relationship quality however, this association was only evident in fathers. Investing too little or too much in peer relationships may adversely impact the quality of men’s relationships with romantic partners. Supporting men, and particularly fathers, to maintain appropriate investment in peer networks may have benefits for their romantic relationships.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 11-2023
DOI: 10.1177/10731911221126919
Abstract: The Coping with Children's Negative Emotions Scale (CCNES) is a widely used measure of parent emotion socialization however, it is a lengthy measure and it is unclear whether all items are appropriately aligned with, and fully capture, the underlying constructs. We aimed to examine content validity of the CCNES, evaluate the theoretical alignment between the CCNES and Gottman, Katz and Hooven's meta-emotion theory, and develop two short-forms. Participants were parents of children aged 4 to 10 years (
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.DRUGALCDEP.2019.05.001
Abstract: Modelling trajectories of substance use over time is complex and requires judicious choices from a number of modelling approaches. In this study we examine the relative strengths and weakness of latent curve models (LCM), growth mixture modelling (GMM), and latent class growth analysis (LCGA). Data were drawn from the Australian Temperament Project, a 36-year-old community-based longitudinal study that has followed a s le of young Australians from infancy to adulthood across 16 waves of follow-up since 1983. Models were fitted on past month alcohol use (n = 1468) and cannabis use (n = 549) across six waves of data collected from age 13-14 to 27-28 years. Of the three model types, GMMs were the best fit. However, these models were limited given the variance of numerous growth parameters had to be constrained to zero. Additionally, both the GMM and LCGA solutions had low entropy. The negative binomial LCMs provided a relatively well-fitting solution with fewer drawbacks in terms of growth parameter estimation and entropy issues. In all cases, model fit was enhanced when using a negative binomial distribution. Substance use researchers would benefit from adopting a complimentary framework by exploring both LCMs and mixture approaches, in light of the relative strengths and weaknesses as identified. Additionally, the distribution of data should inform modelling decisions.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-11-2014
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 10-2020
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2020-038124
Abstract: Parents shape child emotional competence and mental health via their beliefs about children’s emotions, emotion-related parenting, the emotional climate of the family and by modelling emotion regulation skills. However, much of the research evidence to date has been based on small s les with mothers of primary school-aged children. Further research is needed to elucidate the direction and timing of associations for mothers and fathers artners across different stages of child development. The Child and Parent Emotion Study (CAPES) aims to examine longitudinal associations between parent emotion socialisation, child emotion regulation and socioemotional adjustment at four time points from pregnancy to age 12 years. CAPES will investigate the moderating role of parent gender, child temperament and gender, and family background. CAPES recruited 2063 current parents from six English-speaking countries of a child 0–9 years and 273 prospective parents (ie, women/their partners pregnant with their first child) in 2018–2019. Participants will complete a 20–30 min online survey at four time points 12 months apart, to be completed in December 2022. Measures include validated parent-report tools assessing parent emotion socialisation (ie, parent beliefs, the family emotional climate, supportive parenting and parent emotion regulation) and age-sensitive measures of child outcomes (ie, emotion regulation and socioemotional adjustment). Analyses will use mixed-effects regression to simultaneously assess associations over three time-point transitions (ie, T1 to T2 T2 to T3 T3 to T4), with exposure variables lagged to estimate how past factors predict outcomes 12 months later. Ethics approval was granted by the Deakin University Human Research Ethics Committee and the Deakin University Faculty of Health Human Research Ethics Committee. We will disseminate results through conferences and open access publications. We will invite parent end users to co-develop our dissemination strategy, and discuss the interpretation of key findings prior to publication. Protocol pre-registration: DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/NGWUY.
Publisher: American Medical Association (AMA)
Date: 11-2020
Publisher: BMJ
Date: 07-2021
DOI: 10.1136/BMJOPEN-2020-047909
Abstract: The Men and Parenting Pathways (MAPP) Study is a prospective investigation of men’s mental health and well-being across the normative age for transitioning to fatherhood. This includes trajectories and outcomes for men who do and do not become fathers across five annual waves of the study. Australian resident, English-speaking men aged 28–32 years at baseline were eligible. Recruitment was over a 2-year period (2015–2017) via social and traditional media and through engagement with study partners. Eight hundred and eighteen eligible men consented to participate. Of these, 664 men completed the first online survey of whom 608 consented to ongoing participation. Of the ongoing s le, 83% have participated in at least two of the first three annual online surveys. Three waves of data collection are complete. The first longitudinal analysis of MAPP data, published in 2020, identified five profiles that characterise men’s patterns of depressive symptom severity and presentations of anger. Profiles indicating pronounced anger and depressive symptoms were associated with fathers’ lack of perceived social support, and problems with coparenting and bonding with infants. In a second study, MAPP data were combined with three other Australian cohorts in a meta-analysis of associations between fathers’ self-reported sleep problems up to 3 years postpartum and symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress. Adjusted meta-analytic associations between paternal sleep and mental health risk ranged from 0.25 to 0.37. MAPP is an ongoing cohort study. Waves 4 and 5 data will be ready for analyses at the end of 2021. Future investigations will include crossed-lagged and trajectory analyses that assess inter-relatedness and changing social networks, mental health, work and family life. A nested study of COVID-19 pandemic-related mental health and coping will add two further waves of data collection in a subs le of MAPP participants.
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 20-11-2020
DOI: 10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0242730
Abstract: Penalised regression methods are a useful atheoretical approach for both developing predictive models and selecting key indicators within an often substantially larger pool of available indicators. In comparison to traditional methods, penalised regression models improve prediction in new data by shrinking the size of coefficients and retaining those with coefficients greater than zero. However, the performance and selection of indicators depends on the specific algorithm implemented. The purpose of this study was to examine the predictive performance and feature (i.e., indicator) selection capability of common penalised logistic regression methods (LASSO, adaptive LASSO, and elastic-net), compared with traditional logistic regression and forward selection methods. Data were drawn from the Australian Temperament Project, a multigenerational longitudinal study established in 1983. The analytic s le consisted of 1,292 (707 women) participants. A total of 102 adolescent psychosocial and contextual indicators were available to predict young adult daily smoking. Penalised logistic regression methods showed small improvements in predictive performance over logistic regression and forward selection. However, no single penalised logistic regression model outperformed the others. Elastic-net models selected more indicators than either LASSO or adaptive LASSO. Additionally, more regularised models included fewer indicators, yet had comparable predictive performance. Forward selection methods dismissed many indicators identified as important in the penalised logistic regression models. Although overall predictive accuracy was only marginally better with penalised logistic regression methods, benefits were most clear in their capacity to select a manageable subset of indicators. Preference to competing penalised logistic regression methods may therefore be guided by feature selection capability, and thus interpretative considerations, rather than predictive performance alone.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 31-08-2018
Abstract: Background: Modelling trajectories of substance use over time is complex and requires judicious choices from a number of modelling approaches. In this study we examine the relative strengths and weakness of latent curve models (LCM), growth mixture modelling (GMM), and latent class growth analysis (LCGA). Design: Data were drawn from the Australian Temperament Project, a 36-year-old community-based longitudinal study that has followed a s le of young Australians from infancy to adulthood across 16 waves of follow-up since 1983. Models were fitted on past month alcohol use (n=1468) and cannabis use (n=549) across six waves of data collected from age 13-14 to 27-28 years. Findings: Of the three model types, GMMs were the best fit. However, these models were limited given the variance of numerous growth parameters had to be constrained to zero. Additionally, both the GMM and LCGA solutions had low entropy. The negative binomial LCMs provided a relatively well-fitting solution with fewer drawbacks in terms of growth parameter estimation and entropy issues. In all cases, model fit was enhanced when using a negative binomial distribution. Conclusions: Substance use researchers would benefit from adopting a complimentary framework by exploring both LCMs and mixture approaches, in light of the relative strengths and weaknesses as identified. Additionally, the distribution of data should inform modelling decisions.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-06-2023
DOI: 10.1007/S00737-023-01332-1
Abstract: Maternal psychological distress and mother-infant bonding problems each predict poorer offspring outcomes. They are also related to each other, yet the extensive literature reporting their association has not been meta-analysed. We searched MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Embase, ProQuest DTG, and OATD for English-language peer-reviewed and grey literature reporting an association between mother-infant bonding, and multiple indicators of maternal psychological distress. We included 133 studies representing 118 s les 99 s les (110,968 mothers) were eligible for meta-analysis. Results showed concurrent associations across a range of timepoints during the first year postpartum, between bonding problems and depression ( r = .27 [95% CI 0.20, 0.35] to r = .47 [95% CI 0.41, 0.53]), anxiety ( r = .27 [95% CI 0.24, 0.31] to r = .39 [95% CI 0.15, 0.59]), and stress ( r = .46 [95% CI 0.40, 0.52]). Associations between antenatal distress and subsequent postpartum bonding problems were mostly weaker and with wider confidence intervals: depression ( r = .20 [95% CI 0.14, 0.50] to r = .25 [95% CI 0.64, 0.85]), anxiety ( r = .16 [95% CI 0.10, 0.22]), and stress ( r = .15 [95% CI − 0.67, 0.80]). Pre-conception depression and anxiety were associated with postpartum bonding problems ( r = − 0.17 [95% CI − 0.22, − 0.11]). Maternal psychological distress is associated with postpartum mother-infant bonding problems. Co-occurrence of psychological distress and bonding problems is common, but should not be assumed. There may be benefit in augmenting existing perinatal screening programs with well-validated mother-infant bonding measures.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-11-2019
DOI: 10.1111/CDEV.12987
Abstract: In threatening environments, the short (S) allele of 5-HTTLPR is proposed to augment risk for depression. However, it is unknown whether 5-HTTLPR variation increases risk for depression in environments of deprivation, lacking positive or nurturant features. Two independent longitudinal studies (n = 681 and 176, respectively) examined whether 5-HTTLPR moderated associations between low levels of positive parenting at 11-13 years and subsequent depression at 17-19 years. In both studies only LL homozygous adolescents were at greater risk for depression with decreasing levels of positive parenting. Thus, while the S allele has previously been identified as a susceptible genotype, these findings suggest that the L allele may also confer sensitivity to depression in the face of specific environmental challenges.
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 06-2017
DOI: 10.1111/AJPY.12129
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 21-01-2015
DOI: 10.1111/BIRT.12148
Abstract: In studies investigating predictors of breastfeeding behaviors, it is not uncommon for researchers to adjust for participants' having been breastfed as an infant. This assumes an intergenerational effect of breastfeeding continuity. Our aim was to investigate the veracity of that assumption. Specifically, we sought to summarize and evaluate evidence of associations between breastfeeding in one generation and breastfeeding intentions and behaviors in the second generation. A systematic search of psychological, nursing, and medical databases was conducted for studies examining "having been breastfed" as a factor in breastfeeding intention, initiation, or duration. Quality indicators were assessed and limitations reported. Effects were explored according to outcomes of intention, initiation, and duration. Fifteen papers were found to be eligible for the review. Having been breastfed as an infant was consistently correlated with breastfeeding intention, initiation, and duration. Effect sizes differed depending on methodology. Men's infant-feeding status was also related to later intentions to support or encourage a partner to breastfeed. Robust evidence for intergenerational breastfeeding continuity is present however, mechanisms that explain this association were not considered in the studies reviewed and would best be explored within longitudinal cohort studies.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 28-12-2021
DOI: 10.1177/00048674211065985
Abstract: Nascent evidence indicates that the mental health of parents and children has markedly declined during the COVID-19 pandemic. Considering disruptions to traditional face-to-face mental health services resultant from stay-at-home orders, the potential value of digital mental health interventions has become extremely apparent. Despite this, uptake of digital interventions remains poor, indicating that a better understanding is needed of factors that determine a willingness to use digital platforms. The present multi-wave, longitudinal study of 2365 Australian parents explored between-person and within-person predictors of intentions to use digital interventions during the pandemic. More than one-third of parents reported likely use of a self-guided and therapist-guided digital intervention, with the most endorsed reason for use being to support their child’s mental health. Between-person baseline predictors of higher intention ratings were parent’s prior mental illness, not living with a partner and recent environmental stressors. Within-person predictors of higher intention ratings were endorsement of mindful parenting strategies, child access to the Internet, better perceived management of child’s education, lower social support and financial hardship. Findings demonstrate that willingness to engage in digital interventions fluctuates in response to changing circumstances. Identifying novel ways to increase acceptance and uptake of digital interventions based on modifiable predictors established here is needed to realize the full potential of these modes of care in times of need.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 21-07-2016
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291716001495
Abstract: The aims of the study were to describe the patterning and persistence of anxiety and depressive symptoms from adolescence to young adulthood and to examine long-term developmental relationships with earlier patterns of internalizing behaviours in childhood. We used parallel processes latent growth curve modelling to build trajectories of internalizing from adolescence to adulthood, using seven waves of follow-ups (ages 11–27 years) from 1406 participants of the Australian Temperament Project. We then used latent factors to capture the stability of maternal reported child internalizing symptoms across three waves of early childhood follow-ups (ages 5, 7 and 9 years), and examined relationships among these patterns of symptoms across the three developmental periods, adjusting for gender and socio-economic status. We observed strong continuity in depressive symptoms from adolescence to young adulthood. In contrast, adolescent anxiety was not persistent across the same period, nor was it related to later depressive symptoms. Anxiety was, however, related to non-specific stress in young adulthood, but only moderately so. Although childhood internalizing was related to adolescent and adult profiles, the associations were weak and indirect by adulthood, suggesting that other factors are important in the development of internalizing symptoms. Once established, adolescent depressive symptoms are not only strongly persistent, but also have the potential to differentiate into anxiety in young adulthood. Relationships with childhood internalizing symptoms are weak, suggesting that early adolescence may be an important period for targeted intervention, but also that further research into the childhood origins of internalizing behaviours is needed.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-08-2020
DOI: 10.1111/SODE.12392
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2018
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.JAD.2018.07.087
Abstract: When parents separate, on average, children are at greater risk for concurrent and subsequent depression however, mean outcomes mask substantial variation in depressive risk. This study aimed to (1) identify multivariate risk profiles (classes) in adolescents from separated families and (2) prospectively estimate class risk for depressive symptoms in emerging adulthood. The s le comprised 449 participants with separated parents from an Australian population based longitudinal cohort study established in 1983. Classes were explored using 17, theoretically germane, self- and parent-reported indicators of adolescent risk assessed at three points in adolescence (13-14, 15-16 and 17-18 years), spanning three domains of assessment: in idual, relational, contextual. Distinct profiles of adolescents were identified using Latent Class Analysis. Class differences on depressive symptoms in emerging adult (19-20 years) were then examined. Three multivariate profiles, differentiated by patterns of risk severity, were observed: Adjusted (n = 253), Moderate Risk (n = 156), and High Risk (n = 40). Compared to the Adjusted class, participants in the Moderate Risk, but not High Risk class had notably elevated depressive symptomatology in emerging adulthood (d = 0.35). In contrast, High Risk class membership in adolescence predicted antisocial behavior in emerging adulthood. Risk for depressive symptoms in emerging adulthood may be under-estimated due to a disproportionate loss of participants from low socio-economic backgrounds. We found most adolescents from dissolved families to be well-adjusted. Differences between Moderate Risk and High Risk adolescents signal differentiated pathways to subsequent mental health problems. Our findings are relevant for targeted therapeutic strategies for adolescents from dissolved families.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2020
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-08-2021
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2019
Publisher: Springer International Publishing
Date: 2020
Publisher: Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Date: 17-02-2017
Abstract: Background Mother-infant bonding provides the foundation for secure attachment through the lifespan and organizes many facets of infant social-emotional development, including later parenting. Aims To describe maternal bonding to offspring across the pregnancy and postnatal periods, and to examine a broad range of sociodemographic and psychosocial predictors of the maternal-offspring bond. Methods Data were drawn from a s le of 372 pregnant women participating in an Australian population-based longitudinal study of postnatal health and development. Participants completed maternal bonding questionnaires at each trimester and 8 weeks postnatal. Data were collected on a range of sociodemographic and psychosocial factors. Results Bonding increased significantly through pregnancy, in quality and intensity. Regression analyses indicated that stronger antenatal bonding at all time points (trimesters 1 through 3) predicted stronger postnatal bonding. Older maternal age, birth mother being born in a non-English speaking country, mother not working full time, being a first-time mother, breast-feeding problems, and baby's crying behavior all predicted poorer bonding at 8 weeks postpartum. Conclusion These novel findings have important implications for pregnant women and their infant offspring, and for health care professionals working in perinatal services. Importantly, interventions to strengthen maternal-fetal bonding would be beneficial during pregnancy to enhance postnatal bonding and infant health outcomes.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2021
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 27-04-2020
Abstract: Background: The COVID-19 pandemic presents significant risks to the mental health and wellbeing of Australian families. Employment and economic uncertainty, chronic stress, anxiety, and social isolation are likely to have negative impacts on parent mental health, couple and family relationships, as well as child health and development. Objective: This study aims to: (1) provide timely information on the mental health impacts of the emerging COVID-19 crisis in a close to representative s le of Australian parents and children (0-18 years) (2) identify adults and families most at risk of poor mental health outcomes and, (3) identify factors to target through clinical and public health intervention to reduce risk. Specifically, this study will investigate the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with increased risk for parents’ mental health, lower wellbeing, loneliness, and alcohol use parent-parent and parent-child relationships (both verbal and physical) and child and adolescent mental health problems. Methods: The study aims to recruit a close to representative s le of at least 2,000 adults aged 18 years and over living in Australia who are parents of a child 0-4 years (early childhood, N=400) 5-12 years (primary school N=800) and 13-18 years (secondary school, N=800). The design will be a longitudinal cohort study using an online recruitment methodology. Participants will be invited to complete an online baseline self-report survey (20 minutes) followed by a series of shorter online surveys (10 minutes) scheduled every two weeks for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e., estimated to be 14 surveys over 6 months). Results: The study will employ post stratification weights to address differences between the final s le and the national population in geographic communities across Australia. Associations will be analyzed using multilevel modeling with time-variant and time-invariant predictors of change in trajectory over the testing period. Conclusions: This study will provide timely information on the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on parents and children in Australia identify communities, parents, families, and children most at risk of poor outcomes and, identify potential factors to address in clinical and public health interventions to reduce risk.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 25-07-2020
Abstract: A growing number of in iduals expressly choose to remain childless, yet research exploring these intentions in men remains scarce. This study examines the experiences, subjective reasoning, and decision-making processes of voluntarily childless Australian men near the median age for first-time fatherhood. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 Australian-resident men (28–34 years M = 31 SD = 1.48). Participants were selected from the Men and Parenting Pathways longitudinal cohort study ( N = 609) based on having stated they did not want to have children “at all.” Data were collected and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Analysis identified a superordinate theme Fatherhood: The door is still ajar, which was marked by the men’s reluctance to unequivocally commit to a childless future. Subordinate themes were The Realization, The Talk (or lack of…), The Rationale, and The Pressure. At the normative age for transitioning to parenthood, role choices are salient. Overall, men’s decision-making process to not have children appears to be fluid and influenced by intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Despite changing social trends and acceptance of ergent life trajectories, these men are acutely aware that their intentions place them outside the norm. In policy and practice, it is important to recognize the changing norms around fatherhood timing and support voluntarily childless men and couples in constructing their identities, life course, incongruent decisions, and relationships.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 11-02-2016
DOI: 10.1007/S00737-016-0602-Z
Abstract: The emotional bond that a mother feels towards her baby is critical to social, emotional and cognitive development. Maternal health and wellbeing through pregnancy and antenatal bonding also play a key role in determining bonding postnatally, but the extent to which these relationships may be disrupted by poor mental health or substance use is unclear. This study aimed to examine the extent to which mother-fetal bonding, substance use and mental health through pregnancy predicted postnatal mother-infant bonding at 8 weeks. Participants were 372 women recruited from three metropolitan hospitals in Australia. Data was collected during trimesters one, two and three of pregnancy and 8 weeks postnatal using the Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale (MAAS), Maternal Postnatal Attachment Scale (MPAS), the Edinburgh Antenatal and Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), the Depression and Anxiety Scales (DASS-21), frequency and quantity of substance use (caffeine, alcohol and tobacco) as well as a range of demographic and postnatal information. Higher antenatal bonding predicted higher postnatal bonding at all pregnancy time-points in a fully adjusted regression model. Maternal depressive symptoms in trimesters two and three and stress in trimester two were inversely related to poorer mother-infant bonding 8 weeks postnatally. This study extends previous work on the mother's felt bond to her developing child by drawing on a large s le of women and documenting the pattern of this bond at three time points in pregnancy and at 8 weeks postnatally. Utilising multiple antenatal waves allowed precision in isolating the relationships in pregnancy and at key intervention points. Investigating methods to enhance bonding and intervene in pregnancy is needed. It is also important to assess maternal mental health through pregnancy.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-10-2015
DOI: 10.1111/DAR.12345
Abstract: Heavy episodic drinking (HED) has been associated with increased risk for short- and long-term injury and harms, such as violence and delinquent behaviour however, the temporal relationship between the two remains unclear, particularly on transition to young adulthood. This study investigates transactional pathways between HED and delinquent behaviour from adolescence to emerging adulthood. Data were drawn from the Australian Temperament Project a population-based longitudinal study that has followed the health and development of participants (and parents) across 30 years from birth in 1982. The analytic s le was 1650 participants and included five measurement waves spanning adolescence (3 waves: 13-18 years) and young adulthood (2 waves 19-24 years). There was strong continuity across waves of both HED and delinquency, as well as across-time associations between them. Delinquent behaviour in adolescence was associated with up to twofold increases in the odds of HED at each subsequent adolescent wave. HED in the late teens was associated with over fourfold increases in the odds of persistent (two waves) HED in young adulthood. HED in the late teens was associated with increases in the odds of delinquent behaviour in young adulthood (over twofold for male and one and a half-fold for female participants). While delinquent behaviour predicts both future HED and future delinquent behaviour in adolescence, once young people reach the legal drinking age of 18 years, HED becomes a predictor of current and future delinquent behaviour and future HED, suggesting that increased access to alcohol increases the likelihood of young people engaging in delinquent behaviour. [Miller PG, Butler E, Richardson B, Staiger PK, Youssef GJ, Macdonald JA, Sanson A, Edwards B, Olsson CA. Relationships between problematic alcohol consumption and delinquent behaviour from adolescence to young adulthood. Drug Alcohol Rev 2016 :317-325].
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-09-2018
DOI: 10.1007/S00737-017-0778-X
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which adolescent bonding problems with parents predict next-generation maternal-infant bonding problems at 2 and 12 months postpartum. Data were from a two-generation prospective cohort study of 1026 offspring (3 perinatal waves) born to participants of a two-decade (10-wave) study of 1943 adolescents. Dyads in this analysis were 395 mothers (29-36 years) of 606 offspring (305 female). At 16 years, we assessed adolescents' perceptions of their mother's and father's care and control, separately and in combination. Subsequently, when participants were adult mothers of infants 2 and 12 months postpartum, we assessed impaired maternal-infant bonding, infant-directed rejection-anger, and caregiving anxiety. Adolescent-parent bonding problems were strongly predictive of women's subsequent bonding problems with infants. In particular, impaired postpartum maternal bonding was predicted by adolescent reports of low paternal care (12 months: OR=3.1, 95% CI 1.1-8.6) and high maternal control (12 months: OR=3.7, 95% CI 1.4-9.7). In combination, high maternal control and low paternal control also predicted impaired postpartum bonding (2 months: OR=5.0, 95% CI 1.3-20 12 months: OR=12, 2.6-56), caregiving anxiety (2 months: OR=4, 95% CI 1.5-11 12 months: OR=8.8, 95% CI 1.8-43), and rejection/anger (12 months: OR=4.1, 95% CI 1.0-16). Further combinations of care and overprotection that significantly predicted postpartum bonding problems are presented. Our results indicate that adolescent girls who experience high maternal control and low paternal care are at higher risk for subsequent maternal-infant bonding problems. The strength of associations suggests that interventions should begin well before pregnancy.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 09-03-2020
Abstract: Introduction: Parents shape child emotional competence and mental health via their beliefs about children’s emotions, emotion-related parenting, the emotional climate of the family, and by modelling emotion regulation skills. However, research evidence to-date has been based on small s les with mothers of primary school-aged children. Further research is needed to elucidate the direction and timing of associations for mothers and fathers artners across different stages of child development. The Child and Parent Emotion Study (CAPES) aims to examine longitudinal associations between parent emotion socialisation, child emotion regulation, and socio-emotional adjustment at four time-points from pregnancy to age 12. CAPES will investigate the moderating role of parent gender, child temperament and gender, and family background. Methods and analysis: CAPES recruited 2,063 current parents from six English-speaking countries of a child 0-9 years and 273 prospective parents (i.e., women/their partners pregnant with their first child) in 2018-2019. Participants will complete a 20-30 minute online survey at four time-points 12 months apart, to be completed in December 2022. Measures include validated parent-report tools assessing parent emotion socialisation (i.e., parent beliefs, the family emotional climate, supportive parenting, and parent emotion regulation) and age-sensitive measures of child outcomes (i.e., emotion regulation and socio-emotional adjustment). Analyses will use mixed effects regression to simultaneously assess associations over three time-point transitions (i.e., T1 to T2 T2 to T3 T3 to T4), with exposure variables lagged to estimate how past factors predict outcomes 12 months later. Ethics and dissemination: Ethics approval was granted by the Deakin University Human Research Ethics Committee and the Deakin University Faculty of Health Human Research Ethics Committee. We will disseminate results through conferences and open access publications. We will invite parent end-users to co-develop our dissemination strategy, and discuss the interpretation of key findings prior to publication.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 13-01-2022
Abstract: The current study evaluated the theoretical alignment between the Coping with Children's Negative Emotion Scale (CCNES), a commonly used measure to asses parent emotion socialization, and Gottman, Katz and Hooven’s meta-emotion theory. Further, we created an 18-item short-form (3 emotion coaching subscales, 3 emotion dismissing subscales), and 6-item brief short-form (emotion coaching subscale and emotion dismissing subscale) with acceptable psychometric properties
Publisher: Royal College of Psychiatrists
Date: 03-2018
DOI: 10.1192/BJO.2017.10
Abstract: We examined prospective associations between men's common mental disorders in the decades prior to offspring conception and subsequent paternal antenatal mental health problems. Data came from a prospective intergenerational cohort study which assessed common mental disorder nine times from age 14 to 29 years, and in the third trimester of subsequent pregnancies to age 35 years ( N = 295 pregnancies to 214 men). Men with histories of adolescent and young adult common mental disorders were over four times more likely to experience antenatal mental health problems. Future research identifying modifiable perinatal factors that counteract preconception risk would provide further targets for intervention. None.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 20-11-2016
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.JAD.2015.08.017
Abstract: Parental separation is associated with increased risk for offspring depression however, depression outcomes are ergent. Knowledge of moderators could assist in understanding idiosyncratic outcomes and developing appropriately targeted prevention programs for those at heightened risk of depression following parental separation. Therefore, the objective of the review was to identify and evaluate studies that examined moderators of the relationship between parental separation and offspring depression A search of scientific, medical and psychological databases was conducted in April 2015 for longitudinal research that had evaluated any moderator/s of the relationship between parental separation or orce and offspring depression or depressive symptoms. Papers were assessed for quality by evaluating the study's s le, attrition rates, methodology and measurement characteristics. Fourteen quantitative studies from five countries assessed sixteen moderating factors of the relationship between parental separation and offspring depression or depressive symptoms. A number of factors were found to moderate this relationship, including offspring gender, age (at assessment and at depression onset), genotype, preadolescent temperament, IQ, emotional problems in childhood and maternal sensitivity. While robust longitudinal research was selected for inclusion, common issues with longitudinal studies such as low rates of participation and attrition were among the methodological concerns evident in some of the reviewed papers. The current review is the first to assess interaction effects of the relationship between parental separation and offspring depression or depressive symptoms. While further research is recommended, this assessment is critical in understanding variation in heterogeneous populations and can inform targeted policy and prevention.
Publisher: JMIR Publications Inc.
Date: 08-11-2022
DOI: 10.2196/33166
Abstract: Topic modeling approaches allow researchers to analyze and represent written texts. One of the commonly used approaches in psychology is latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA), which is used for rapidly synthesizing patterns of text within “big data,” but outputs can be sensitive to decisions made during the analytic pipeline and may not be suitable for certain scenarios such as short texts, and we highlight resources for alternative approaches. This review focuses on the complex analytical practices specific to LDA, which existing practical guides for training LDA models have not addressed. This scoping review used key analytical steps (data selection, data preprocessing, and data analysis) as a framework to understand the methodological approaches being used in psychology research using LDA. A total of 4 psychology and health databases were searched. Studies were included if they used LDA to analyze written words and focused on a psychological construct or issue. The data charting processes were constructed and employed based on common data selection, preprocessing, and data analysis steps. A total of 68 studies were included. These studies explored a range of research areas and mostly sourced their data from social media platforms. Although some studies reported on preprocessing and data analysis steps taken, most studies did not provide sufficient detail for reproducibility. Furthermore, the debate surrounding the necessity of certain preprocessing and data analysis steps is revealed. Our findings highlight the growing use of LDA in psychological science. However, there is a need to improve analytical reporting standards and identify comprehensive and evidence-based best practice recommendations. To work toward this, we developed an LDA Preferred Reporting Checklist that will allow for consistent documentation of LDA analytic decisions and reproducible research outcomes.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-07-2021
DOI: 10.1002/EAT.23575
Abstract: There has been interest in the antecedents and mental health impacts of eating and body image disturbances in adolescence. Less is known about longer‐term mental health impacts into young adulthood, as longitudinal studies with data spanning this developmental period are rare. We capitalize on mental health data collected across adolescence and young adulthood from a population‐based cohort study that has been following Australian children and their families from infancy to young adulthood. This s le comprised 1,568 participants who completed the Eating Disorder Inventory drive for thinness and bulimic behavior (the severity of binge‐purge patterns) subscales, and a modified version of the body dissatisfaction subscale in mid‐adolescence (15–16 years), or the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales in young adulthood (19–20, 23–24, and 27–28 years). After adjusting for baseline demographic and prior mental health factors ( years of age), all three indices of eating and body image disturbances in adolescence predicted each mental health outcome in young adulthood. Mental health risks associated with adolescent body dissatisfaction and bulimic behavior scores remained stable across young adulthood, with men having more pronounced problems associated with bulimic behavior scores than women. In contrast, mental health risks associated with adolescent drive for thinness scores diminished across this period similarly for men and women. Findings suggest that adolescent eating and body image disturbances may have long‐term mental health impacts that extend into young adulthood. This underscores the need for early preventative intervention, and longer‐term monitoring and support for body image and eating disturbances.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 03-03-2023
Abstract: This is a preprint of the manuscript titled "Profiles of Parents’ Emotion Socialization Within a Multinational S le of Parents". This manuscript has been submitted for peer review at a journal, but not yet accepted (as of March 2023). Figures relevant to the manuscript are available in a zip file, in the supplementary materials.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2020
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 03-05-2021
Abstract: Postnatal depression (PND) is common and predicts a range of adverse maternal and offspring outcomes. PND rates are highest among women with persistent mental health problems before pregnancy, and antenatal healthcare provides ideal opportunity to intervene. We examined antenatal perceived social support as a potential intervention target in preventing PND symptoms among women with prior mental health problems. A total of 398 Australian women (600 pregnancies) were assessed repeatedly for mental health problems before pregnancy (ages 14–29 years, 1992–2006), and again during pregnancy, two months postpartum and one year postpartum (2006–2014). Causal mediation analysis found that intervention on perceived antenatal social support has the potential to reduce rates of PND symptoms by up to 3% (from 15 to 12%) in women with persistent preconception symptoms. Supplementary analyses found that the role of low antenatal social support was independent of concurrent antenatal depressive symptoms. Combined, these two factors mediated up to more than half of the association between preconception mental health problems and PND symptoms. Trialling dual interventions on antenatal depressive symptoms and perceived social support represents one promising strategy to prevent PND in women with persistent preconception symptoms. Interventions promoting mental health before pregnancy may yield an even greater reduction in PND symptoms by disrupting a developmental cascade of risks via these and other pathways. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Multidisciplinary perspectives on social support and maternal–child health’.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 11-05-2021
Abstract: Postnatal depression (PND) is common and predicts a range of adverse maternal and offspring outcomes. PND rates are highest amongst women with persistent mental health problems before pregnancy, and antenatal healthcare provides ideal opportunity to intervene. We examined antenatal perceived social support as a potential intervention target in preventing PND symptoms among women with prior mental health problems. A total of 398 Australian women (600 pregnancies) were assessed repeatedly for mental health problems before pregnancy (ages 14-29 years, 1992-2006), and again during pregnancy, 2 months postpartum, and 1 year postpartum (2006-2014). Causal mediation analysis found that intervention on perceived antenatal social support has the potential to reduce rates of PND symptoms by up to 3% (from 15% to 12%) in women with persistent preconception symptoms. Supplementary analyses found that the role of low antenatal social support was independent of concurrent antenatal depressive symptoms. Combined, these two factors mediated up to more than half of the association between preconception mental health problems and PND symptoms. Trialing dual interventions on antenatal depressive symptoms and perceived social support represents one promising strategy to prevent PND in women with persistent preconception symptoms. Interventions promoting mental health before parenthood may yield greater reduction in PND symptoms by disrupting a developmental cascade of risks via these and other pathways.
Publisher: Center for Open Science
Date: 03-2018
Abstract: Background: Participant retention strategies that minimise attrition in longitudinal cohort studies have evolved considerably in recent years. This study aimed to assess, via systematic review and meta-analysis, the effectiveness of both traditional strategies and contemporary innovations for retention adopted by longitudinal cohort studies in the past decade.Methods: Health research databases were searched for retention strategies used within longitudinal cohort studies published in the 10-years prior, with 142 eligible longitudinal cohort studies identified (140 articles s le size range: 30 to 61,895). Details on retention strategies and rates, research designs, and participant demographics were extracted. Meta-analyses of retained proportions were performed to examine the association between cohort retention rate and in idual and thematically grouped retention strategies.Results: Results identified 95 retention strategies, broadly classed as either: barrier-reduction, community-building, follow-up/reminder, or tracing strategies. Forty-four of these strategies had not been identified in previous reviews. Meta-regressions indicated that studies using barrier-reduction strategies retained 10% more of their s le (95%CI [0.13 to 1.09] p=.01) however, studies using follow-up/reminder strategies lost an additional 10% of their s le (95%CI [-1.19 to -0.21] p& .01). The overall number of strategies employed was not associated with retention.Conclusions: Employing a larger number of retention strategies may not be associated with improved retention in longitudinal cohort studies, contrary to earlier narrative reviews. Results suggest that strategies that aim to reduce participant burden (e.g., flexibility in data collection methods) might be most effective in maximising cohort retention.
Publisher: American Psychological Association (APA)
Date: 04-2017
DOI: 10.1037/MEN0000046
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 18-12-2019
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291718003689
Abstract: Self-harm in young people is associated with later problems in social and emotional development. However, it is unknown whether self-harm in young women continues to be a marker of vulnerability on becoming a parent. This study prospectively describes the associations between pre-conception self-harm, maternal depressive symptoms and mother–infant bonding problems. The Victorian Intergenerational Health Cohort Study (VIHCS) is a follow-up to the Victorian Adolescent Health Cohort Study (VAHCS) in Australia. Socio-demographic and health variables were assessed at 10 time-points (waves) from ages 14 to 35, including self-reported self-harm at waves 3–9. VIHCS enrolment began in 2006 (when participants were aged 28–29 years), by contacting VAHCS women every 6 months to identify pregnancies over a 7-year period. Perinatal depressive symptoms were assessed with the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale during the third trimester, and 2 and 12 months postpartum. Mother–infant bonding problems were assessed with the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire at 2 and 12 months postpartum. Five hundred sixty-four pregnancies from 384 women were included. One in 10 women (9.7%) reported pre-conception self-harm. Women who reported self-harming in young adulthood (ages 20–29) reported higher levels of perinatal depressive symptoms and mother–infant bonding problems at all perinatal time points [perinatal depressive symptoms adjusted β = 5.40, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.42–7.39 mother–infant bonding problems adjusted β = 7.51, 95% CI 3.09–11.92]. There was no evidence that self-harm in adolescence (ages 15–17) was associated with either perinatal outcome. Self-harm during young adulthood may be an indicator of future vulnerability to perinatal mental health and mother–infant bonding problems.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2022
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 27-10-2020
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 31-08-2020
Start Date: 2020
End Date: 2022
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityStart Date: 2016
End Date: 2018
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityStart Date: 06-2016
End Date: 06-2020
Amount: $453,000.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityStart Date: 06-2020
End Date: 12-2024
Amount: $469,871.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded Activity