Role of maternal childhood trauma on parenting among depressed mothers of psychiatrically ill children

“Mothers were deemed eligible if they had a current diagnosis of major depressive disorder according to DSM-IV criteria, received a score ≥ 15 on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D 25-item version)[33] and were the custodial parent”

“mothers’ parenting, and completed the schedule for affective disorders and schizophrenia for school aged children (K-SADS-PL).[35] Baseline (pretreatment) data obtained from the first 95 mother-child dyads enrolled in the study were utilized for analyses.”

“Mothers completed the child trauma questionnaire-short form,[38] which is a 28-item self-report inventory, using a 5-point Likert scale from “never true” to “very often true.”

“Maternal depression was assessed using the self-report quick inventory of depressive symptomatology16.[36,37] The scale yields scores of 0–27 with higher scores indicating greater depressive symptoms.”

“Robust evidence demonstrates that maternal depression compromises parenting across a range of behaviors, with particular emphasis on affective components of parenting.[5] Compared with both nondepressed psychiatric and nonpsychiatric controls, depressed mothers display differences in affection and behavioral control t…”

“INTRODUCTION Independently, maternal depression and maternal histories of childhood trauma are known to negatively impact parenting.[1, 2] Therefore, being a depressed mother”

“The original CRPBI was a 260-item version,[40] with factor analysis yielding three scales, (1) acceptance versus rejection,”

“Maternal depression was assessed using the self-report quick inventory of depressive symptomatology16.[36,37] The scale yields scores of 0–27 with higher scores indicating greater depressive symptoms.”

“Unfortunately, diminished levels of parental acceptance and elevated use of psychological control exacerbate problems in vulnerable children.[46, 47] Thus, improving parenting in these domains may represent crucial treatment targets for depressed mothers and their psychiatrically ill children.”

“(2) psychological autonomy versus psychological control, and (3) firm control versus lax control,[41] with several other factor analyses producing similar factors.”

“Previously established moderate to severe cut-points (≥10 for emotional abuse; ≥ eight for physical abuse, physical neglect, and sexual abuse; and ≥15 for emotional neglect) were used to describe the prevalence of abuse in this sample.[39]”

“Given that many depressed mothers have also experienced childhood trauma, it stands to reason that many children and adolescents are being raised by mothers with two potent parenting risk factors.[16] Two studies have attempted to disentangle the differential impact that maternal depression and maternal cumulative tra…”

“[2] Another study found that maternal cumulative trauma predicted abuse potential, punitiveness, psychological aggression, and physical discipline beyond other maternal psychiatric disorders.[22] However, no study has tested whether mothers’ own childhood trauma history, with a focus on maternal emotional abuse and ne…”

“Developmentally, parents tend to use less physical discipline as children enter mid-childhood and early adolescence.[12] As the parent–child relationship changes, children begin to have more input into decisions and are able to understand and be shaped by nonphysical discipline or other behavioral control strategies.”

“[24, 25] However, only a few studies have actually examined what kind of parenting behaviors are elicited by psychiatrically ill children.[4, 26] In one such study, parents of depressed children ages 9–16, reported more parenting stress and found their child to be more difficult compared to parents of nondepressed chi…”

“Correlational analyses revealed that maternal history of emotional neglect and physical abuse were also related to child reports of maternal psychological control, but maternal history of sexual abuse was not associated with any of the parenting variables—a finding that is inconsistent with other studies demonstrating…”

“These results remained even after controlling for maternal depression severity and additional parenting risk factors—including maternal income, education, minority race, and single parent status.[10] Taken together, these findings suggest that depressed mothers may respond to their children with behaviors similar to h…”

“Unfortunately, diminished levels of parental acceptance and elevated use of psychological control exacerbate problems in vulnerable children.[46, 47] Thus, improving parenting in these domains may represent crucial treatment targets for depressed mothers and their psychiatrically ill children.”

“For example, they engage in more angry, intrusive, hostile, and conflictual behavior[6] and alternate between harsh discipline and permissive under-control.”

“Social learning models and attachment theory would suggest that exposure to childhood emotional abuse and neglect may lead some mothers to replay similar behaviors within their own parenting, even if to a lesser extent than would qualify as abuse.[18, 19] Although the use of parental psychological control is not neces…”

“In addition, we tested whether maternal histories of emotional abuse and neglect would be associated with child-reported parental acceptance and psychological control after controlling for well-known parenting risk factors, including maternal depression severity,[5] low family income, and maternal education,[27, 28] s…”

“Parental acceptance and psychological control are not commonly examined in the maternal sexual trauma literature where mothers who have been sexually abused in childhood have been shown to demonstrate more permissive parenting behaviors.[9, 45] While it is possible that maternal history of sexual abuse would have been…”

“Depressed mothers with a history of trauma are more difficult to treat,[21] and so it is likely that additional or novel approaches may be required to optimally address the needs of depressed mothers with early emotional abuse histories, especially when she is parenting a child with mental health challenges.”

“[12] As the parent–child relationship changes, children begin to have more input into decisions and are able to understand and be shaped by nonphysical discipline or other behavioral control strategies.[13] One salient, yet relatively unexplored parenting behavior is the use of psychological control.”

“[24, 25] However, only a few studies have actually examined what kind of parenting behaviors are elicited by psychiatrically ill children.[4, 26] In one such study, parents of depressed children ages 9–16, reported more parenting stress and found their child to be more difficult compared to parents of nondepressed chi…”

“[13] Mothers with trauma history may utilize greater psychological control in an effort to prevent their children from asserting autonomy, because independent behaviors on the part of the child may elicit anxiety, protection[14] or be misinterpreted by mothers who have experienced abuse.[15] Depressed mothers who were…”

“[13] Mothers with trauma history may utilize greater psychological control in an effort to prevent their children from asserting autonomy, because independent behaviors on the part of the child may elicit anxiety, protection[14] or be misinterpreted by mothers who have experienced abuse.”

“Correlational analyses revealed that maternal history of emotional neglect and physical abuse were also related to child reports of maternal psychological control, but maternal history of sexual abuse was not associated with any of the parenting variables—a finding that is inconsistent with other studies demonstrating…”

“Social learning models and attachment theory would suggest that exposure to childhood emotional abuse and neglect may lead some mothers to replay similar behaviors within their own parenting, even if to a lesser extent than would qualify as abuse.[18, 19] Although the use of parental psychological control is not neces…”

“disclosure form, which include national grant support, royalties, with a history of childhood trauma may confer additive or even synergistic risk to parenting.[3] Depressed mothers with histories of childhood trauma may be particularly disadvantaged when faced with the challenge”

“In addition, we tested whether maternal histories of emotional abuse and neglect would be associated with child-reported parental acceptance and psychological control after controlling for well-known parenting risk factors, including maternal depression severity,[5] low family income, and maternal education,[27, 28] s…”

“In addition, we tested whether maternal histories of emotional abuse and neglect would be associated with child-reported parental acceptance and psychological control after controlling for well-known parenting risk factors, including maternal depression severity,[5] low family income, and maternal education,[27, 28] s…”

“In addition, we tested whether maternal histories of emotional abuse and neglect would be associated with child-reported parental acceptance and psychological control after controlling for well-known parenting risk factors, including maternal depression severity,[5] low family income, and maternal education,[27, 28] s…”

“In addition, we tested whether maternal histories of emotional abuse and neglect would be associated with child-reported parental acceptance and psychological control after controlling for well-known parenting risk factors, including maternal depression severity,[5] low family income, and maternal education,[27, 28] s…”

“Similarly, a study that conducted a factor analysis on the 108-item version of the CRPBI, revealed that nonenforcement and lax discipline were distinct factors, further suggesting these dimensions should not be combined.[43]”

“[10] Taken together, these findings suggest that depressed mothers may respond to their children with behaviors similar to how they were raised.[44] Moreover, we would speculate that the challenging behaviors observed in psychiatrically ill children may increase the risk that mothers revert to such learned, maladaptiv…”

“Broadly, families with depressed children report higher levels of conflict and less cohesion across all family members,[19] and families with children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct problems, and anxiety report more parenting stress.[24, 25] However, only a few studies have actually examined wh…”

“Mothers with histories of emotional abuse have more pronounced physiological indicators of emotional reactivity,[16] which has also been demonstrated within a child focused stress task.[17] In these parenting scenarios, a mother’s emotional or physiological reactivity may manifest in her exhibiting contradictory or co…”

“This comparison would have allowed replicating earlier studies that have identified the effect of childhood abuse (that exists independent of depression) and disentangled effects of childhood abuse and depression.[47, 49] Fifth, the age range of children has been relatively wide for studying mother–child interaction.”

“Pregnancy or childbirth can be a time when traumatic events occur due to a perceived threat to the health of mother and/or infant and memories of adverse childhood events during the perinatal period [8-10].”

“Parental experience of trauma could impact neurodevelopmental pathways that contribute to sleep disturbance and depression (39), as well as limited parenting ability to promote sleep hygiene and habits (40).”

“Children reported on their perceptions of their mother’s parenting behavior on a 56-item version of the Child Report of Parent Behavior Inventory (CRPBI) [55], scored to yield two subscales, Acceptance and Psychological Control, using methods described in an earlier report [20].”

“Altered responses to child affect and maladaptive relationship patterns may be especially apparent in depressed mothers with psychiatrically ill children (Zalewski et al., 2013).”

“Parents experiencing emotional and physical abuse are more likely to employ psychological control towards their children (Zalewski et al., 2013).”

“…and negative behavior toward children (Dixon et al., 2005), maternal history of maltreatment and parenting behavior (Bert et al., 2009), intergenerational transmission of maltreatment (Pears & Capaldi, 2001), as well as maternal childhood maltreatment and parenting (Zalewski et al., 2013).”

“A significant association between maternal CEA and child reports of greater psychological control and lower maternal acceptance was found among a sample of mothers diagnosed with major depressive disorder (Zalewski et al., 2013).”

“For example, mothers with a history of emotional abuse were rated lower in acceptance and higher in parenting tactics involving psychological control by their children (Zalewski et al., 2013).”

“Such insecurity drives these parents to seek psychological security through excessive control (Zalewski et al., 2013), such as restricting their children’s emotional and cognitive expression, hindering the development of an independent self-identity, and controlling their activities and behaviors…”

“Another study investigated the association between maternal childhood trauma and parenting style in mothers of youth receiving mental health services [24].”

“…with theoretical models of caregiving, the current fi ndings replicate and highlight the importance of parent, family and caregiving characteristics in relation to children ’ s social-emotional functioning (Chemtob et al., 2013; Darawshy et al., 2022; Lovejoy et al., 2000; Zalewski et al., 2013).”