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Exposure to Interparental Conflict and Children's Adjustment and Physical Health: The Moderating Role of Vagal Tone
Author(s) -
ElSheikh Mona,
Harger JoAnn,
Whitson Stephanie M.
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/1467-8624.00369
Subject(s) - moderation , vagal tone , psychology , developmental psychology , tone (literature) , longitudinal study , audiology , social psychology , heart rate , heart rate variability , medicine , blood pressure , art , literature , pathology
Physiological regulation, as indexed by baseline vagal tone and delta vagal tone (the change in vagal tone during an attention‐demanding or challenging task), was examined as a moderator in the relations between exposure to verbal and physical parental marital conflict and children's adjustment and physical health. Higher vagal tone was posited to serve a protective function (i.e., buffer) for children exposed to higher levels of marital conflict. Seventy‐five 8‐ to 12‐year‐olds and their mothers completed measures of parental conflict, and children's adjustment and physical health. Children's vagal tone was assessed during baseline conditions and during exposure to an audiotaped interadult argument. Results indicate that higher vagal tone buffered children against increased externalizing, internalizing, and health problems related to exposure to more frequent marital conflict, especially verbal conflict. Further, higher levels of delta vagal tone protected boys against externalizing problems associated with verbal conflict, and health problems associated with physical conflict.