Relationship Between Maternal and Paternal Psychological Symptoms and Ratings of Adolescent Functioning

• NCJ Number: 219006
• Journal: Journal of Adolescence Volume: 30 Issue: 3 Dated: June 2007 Pages: 467-485
• Author(s): Kimberly Renk; Arazais Oliveros; Angela Roddenberry; Jenny Klein; Karin Sieger; Rex Roberts; Vicky Phares
• Date Published: June 2007
• Length: 19 pages
• Grant Number(s): R29 49601-05
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Mental Health
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Families with an adolescent between 11 and 18 years old participated in a study that examined the relationship between parental depressive and anxiety symptoms and parental ratings of adolescents' functioning.

Abstract

The findings indicate that parents who have elevated symptoms of depression may show a negative bias when asked to provide ratings of the emotional and behavioral functioning of their adolescent children. For mothers' ratings of their adolescents' emotional and behavioral functioning, their depressive symptoms constituted a significant predictor after adolescents' self-ratings and fathers' ratings of adolescents were taken into account. This was also the case for fathers' ratings of their adolescents' emotional problems and competence. Fathers' depressive and anxiety symptoms significantly predicted their ratings of adolescents' behavior problems. Participants in the study were 272 adolescents, 272 mothers, and 267 fathers from 272 biologically related families living in a southeastern suburban area. The families were primarily White (74.6 percent). In order to be eligible for the study, mothers and fathers had to be the biological parents of an adolescent between the ages of 11 and 18 years old. If both parents were not currently living in the same house, participating adolescents were required to have at least monthly face-to-face contact with the noncustodial parent. As a measure of their depressive symptoms, mothers and fathers completed the Beck Depression Inventory, Second Edition. As a measure of their anxiety symptoms, mothers and fathers completed the Beck Anxiety Inventory. As a measure of adolescent emotional and behavioral functioning, mothers and fathers completed the Child Behavior Checklist independently. Adolescents completed a measure of their own emotional and behavioral problems as well as their own competence. 3 tables and 32 references