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Family Stress Processes and Children's Self‐Regulation
Author(s) -
Duran Chelsea A.K.,
Cottone Elizabeth,
Ruzek Erik A.,
Mashburn Andrew J.,
Grissmer David W.
Publication year - 2018
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/cdev.13202
Subject(s) - psychology , developmental psychology , psychological intervention , gratification , child development , stress (linguistics) , affect (linguistics) , self control , clinical psychology , social psychology , psychiatry , communication , linguistics , philosophy
Economic hardship can affect children's development through child–caregiver interactions, which may mediate cascading effects of other family stress processes. This study examined, simultaneously, the relations of financial strain, caregiver general stress, and child–caregiver conflict—each measured at two time points—with child self‐regulatory outcomes in a high‐poverty sample (age 5–7 years; n = 343). Increase in child–caregiver conflict mediated negative relations between other processes and development of executive function. In contrast, only increase in financial strain had direct, negative association with development of delay of gratification and did not significantly mediate relations between any other process and children's outcomes. Results have implications for understanding effects of family stress on self‐regulatory outcomes and for interventions with low‐income families.