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Knowledge about the concordance of parent- and child-reported child physical abuse is scarce, leaving researchers and practitioners with little guidance on the implications of selecting either informant. Drawing from a 2008–2009 sample of 11- to 17-year-olds ( N = 636) from Wave 1 of the second National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being, this study first examined parent–child concordance in physical abuse reporting (Parent–Child Conflict Tactic Scale). Second, it applied multivariate regression analysis to relate parent–child agreement in physical abuse to parent-reported (Child Behavior Checklist) and child-reported (Youth Self Report) child behavioral problems. Results indicate low parent–child concordance of physical abuse (κ = .145). Coreporting of physical abuse was related to clinical-level parent-reported externalizing problems ([Formula: see text] = 64.57), whereas child-only reports of physical abuse were the only agreement category related to child-reported internalizing problems ( B = 4.17, p < .001). Attribution bias theory may further understanding of reporting concordance and its implications.

AbstractWhile negative cascades have been well studied, little has been written on the promotion of upward spirals. We propose a conceptual model that situates parenting interventions as a leverage point in promoting positive cascades. We integrate broaden‐and‐build theory and social capital theory into the model to explain micro‐ and macro‐level patterns of change in longitudinal prevention studies, acknowledging that when socioeconomic resources are scarce, investment in parenting may be challenging. Parenting prevention programs provide evidence of improvements in effective parenting behaviors, promote increased confidence and a belief in parenting abilities, and over time may activate positive cascades that affect other domains in parents' lives, such as health and peer support. Resulting positive emotions are hypothesized to broaden coping and build long‐term resources that promote resilience. Social resources may then spill over to benefit individual, family, and community systems. Research methods for testing developmental cascades and practical applications are also considered.

Attribution theory (e.g., Gotlib & Abramson, 1999) was used to inform this process-based research on the spontaneous attributions children and parents make to explain children's appropriate and inappropriate behaviors. Attribution patterns from 29 transcribed 1st sessions of solution-focused therapy were found to relate to treatment dropout and good and poor outcome. In addition, children made many more attributions for positive behavior than did parents, who made many more attributions for children's negative behavior. Implications of this study for social work practice are explored.

Drawing on expectancy-value theory, this study examines children's motivational attributes and parental influences on how children spend their leisure time in middle childhood and adolescence. Specifically, the study examined if parent encouragement and beliefs (i.e., perceived importance of sports and perceived child ability) and child motivation (expectancy and value for sports) are predictive of sports participation over the course of middle childhood and adolescence. Parent and child reports are compared using data from the Childhood and Beyond (CAB) longitudinal study. Findings reveal that parent beliefs and encouragement and child motivation were positively associated with sports participation in middle childhood. Both parental influences and children's motivation measured in middle childhood were predictive of time spent participating in adolescence. However, only parent influences were predictive of whether the child continued to participate in sports in adolescence.

Objectives: The study reported the pilot evaluation of the Healthy Start Home Visit Program for disadvantaged Chinese parents with preschool children, delivered by trained parent assistants. Home visiting was used to make services more accessible to disadvantaged families. Method: The participants included 21 parent–child dyads. Outcome measures included parent report, teacher report, and direct assessment of children. Results: Paired samples t-test results indicated significant increase in child cognitive measures, child school readiness, child oral health practices; decreases in child sedentary activities, child home injury, and hospital visits; decreases in parenting stress and child behavior problems and increases in social support. The parent assistants delivering the program reported significant decreases in child behavior problems and parenting stress from pretraining to posttraining and completion of home visits. Conclusion: There was promising evidence that the Healthy Start Home Visit Program was effective in addressing the needs of disadvantaged families with preschool children.

Objective: This study examined the efficacy of the Parent and Child Enhancement (PACE) program on child learning, child behavior problems, and parental stress, using randomized controlled trial design, in social services centers. Methods: Eligibility criteria were (1) children aged 2 years at program commencement, (2) low-income, new immigrant, or single-parent families, and (3) parent–child dyads being Hong Kong residents. Intervention group dyads were offered the PACE program (40 two-hour sessions on child learning and parenting). Primary outcomes included child preschool concepts, child behavior problems, and parental stress. Participants were randomly assigned to intervention (76 dyads) and control group (73 dyads) using a random number table, without blinding. Results: Intention-to-treat analysis with 149 dyads indicated improvement in child preschool concepts, decrease in child behavior problems and parental stress in the intervention group, compared with the control group ( d = 0.12–0.73). Conclusions: The results provided evidence for the efficacy of the PACE program.

AbstractJuvenile delinquency has a negative effect on victims, communities and the individual who commits a delinquent act. However, exposure to the juvenile justice system can be a traumatic event that results in further delinquency—highlighting a need to develop community-based interventions to prevent delinquency. Collective efficacy theory is a commonly used framework to prevent juvenile delinquency. Although community-level interventions have been developed based on collective efficacy, research suggests that they are limited in their effectiveness. This may be due to limitations in our conceptualisation of collective efficacy, and our limited understanding of how perceptions of collective efficacy differ between youths and parents. The present study utilises data from the Fragile Families Child Wellbeing Study to test parent and youth perceptions of collective efficacy as predictors of self-reported juvenile delinquency. The results indicate that—although collective efficacy is typically associated with lower levels of juvenile delinquency in neighbourhoods—neither parents' nor youths' perceptions of collective efficacy are strong predictors of self-reported juvenile delinquency. The findings suggest that focusing on youth, family and neighbourhood characteristics may maximise the effectiveness of interventions aimed at preventing juvenile delinquency.

AbstractLesbians and gay men, whether seeking child custody or adoption, continue to be marginalized by the general public and legal system. This article explores the large body of research documenting that same‐sex couples are as effective as parents as straight couples. However, the judiciary system still disapproves of same‐sex couples in relation to adoption and custody of children. An alternative approach to avoid the courts and uphold the dignity of the family is mediation. The author analyzes how mediation is used in the gay community and, from a personal perspective, discusses his upbringing by a gay couple and how, as a teenager, he was caught in a custody dispute.

This study aimed to understand the strategies families used to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, and their effects on family, parent, child, and couple functioning and well-being. In April and May 2020, and again one month later, 277 parents from 174 families who previously participated in a trial of a family preventive intervention were invited to participate in an online survey regarding the pandemic. Parents completed measures regarding family cohesion, couple coparenting and relationship quality, parenting quality, and parent and child mental health and well-being. Parents were asked to share the coping strategies they found most effective, and responses were coded into four groups: Family Unity, Healthy Habits, Adaptability, and Child-Focused. Adaptability was associated with increases in couple relationship quality but also in child internalizing and externalizing behaviors from Month 1 to Month 2. The results suggest that the strategies parents use may have differing effects on parents and children.

This study aimed to examine: (1) the relationship between parental psychopathology and child psychopathology in military families and (2) parenting sense of competence as a mediator of the relationship between veteran psychopathology and child psychopathology. As part of their standard clinical evaluations, 215 treatment-seeking veterans who reported having a child between the ages of 4 and 17 were assessed for psychopathology (posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and stress), their sense of competence as a parent, and their child's psychopathology (internalizing, externalizing, and attentional symptoms). A path analysis model examining parenting sense of competence as a mediator of the relationship between veteran psychopathology and child psychopathology showed significant indirect effects of veteran depression on all child psychopathology outcomes via parenting sense of competence. Parental sense of competence may be a critical mechanism linking veteran depression and child psychopathology, and may therefore be an important target for intervention.

Abstract The current study examines the relations among parent and child social information processing components and their links to children's social competence. Ninety‐seven kindergarten children and their mothers and fathers responded to open‐ended vignettes that involved conflict with a peer. Goals and strategies for both parents and children were assessed. Results show that there is some consistency between parents and children in the types of goals and strategies that are provided. Further, fathers' and children's goals and strategies were related to children's social competence but only limited support for children's cognitions as a mediator between parental cognitions and peer competence was found. The implications for the role of social information processing in the development of children's social competence are noted.

The Children Act 1989 recognises and encourages continuing contact between children and their birth families. But are contact arrangements being used as a covert means of assessment rather than to support parents and children in maintaining their emotional bonds? Nick Banks examines the social and psychological implications of contact between children and their birth parents, focusing particularly on the needs of black children in contact planning considerations.