Families of 54 behaviorally disturbed preschool-aged children (3 to 5 years) were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 treatment conditions: standard parent–child interaction therapy (PCIT; STD); modified PCIT that used didactic videotapes, telephone consultations, and face-to-face sessions to abbreviate treatment; and a no-treatment waitlist control group (WL). Twenty-one nondisturbed preschoolers were recruited as a social validation comparison condition. Posttreatment assessment indicated significant differences in parent-reported externalizing behavior in children, and parental stress and discipline practices from both treatment groups on most measures compared with the WL group. Clinical significance testing suggested a superior effect for the STD immediately after intervention, but by 6-month follow-up, the two groups were comparable. The findings indicate that abbreviated PCIT may be of benefit for families with young conduct problem children. The majority of intervention studies for children with conduct problems have focused on children ages 7 or older, when it is likely that the problems have become increasingly entrenched, especially by late adolescence (e.g., Coie & Koeppl, 1990; Dumas,

Day-care centers provide an ideal, underused setting for studying the developmental processes of child psychopathology. The influence of day-care teachers ' lax and overreactive discipline on chil-dren's behavior problems was examined, as was the influence of children's behavior problems on teachers ' discipline. Participants were 145 children and 16 day-care teachers from 8 classrooms in a day-care center for children from low-income families. Two techniques are presented for estimating causal relations based on correlational data gathered from day-care centers: 2-stage least squares and simultaneous structural equation modeling. Across techniques, teachers ' laxness trongly influ-enced child misbehavior, and child misbehavior influenced both teachers ' overreactivity and laxness. Teachers ' overreactivity did not influence child misbehavior. Disruptive behavior problems are characterized byhigh rates of noncompliance, aggression, and disruptive behavior and af-fect approximately 10 % of grade school children (Kazdin, 1987). These problems predict later academic failure, substance abuse, violence, crime, and psychiatric disorders (Caspi, El-der, & Bem, 1987; Farrington, 1983; Loeber, 1990). Behavior problems typically emerge and become stable at an early age, and intervention has been more successful with younger children than with older ones (Dishion & Patterson, 1992; Kazdin, 1987, 1993). Consequently, eaders in this field have called for preven-tion programs to address these problems earlier (Hinshaw, 1992; Kazdin, 1987; Loeber, 1990). Day-care centers are a potential vehicle for studying and ad-dressing behavior problems in their early stages. The term "day care " is used broadly to apply to all centers that provide care to children prior to formal grade school, including programs that would typically be called "preschool. " Enrollment in day care is rapidly increasing; by 1994, 61 % of all 3- to 5-year-olds were enrolled in such programs, compared to 27 % in 1965

Objective. Parents who attribute child misbehavior to children’s intentions and dismiss sit-uational factors tend to show more hostility and less warmth in their parenting behavior, and are at greater risk for maltreatment. We extended this literature by investigating the role of household chaos as a moderator of the link between maternal attribution biases and parenting behaviors. Design. The current sample included 160 mothers of 3- to 7-year-old children. Mothers provided reports on their attribution biases and household chaos levels. Maternal negativity and positivity were measured using self-reports and observers ’ ratings. Results. The links between attribution bias and parenting behavior were stronger in more chaotic environments, with the moderating effect of chaos being particularly strong for inter-nal attribution bias. Conclusions. The findings point to the importance of social cognitive biases in the etiology of maternal behavior in family contexts that lack order and predictability.

Recent studies of the relationship between parenting and child development have included a focus on the parent’s capacity to treat the child as a psychological agent. Several constructs have been developed to refer to this capacity, for example maternal mind-mindedness, reflective functioning, and parental mentalizing. In this review article, we compare and contrast different constructs from diverse theoretical back-grounds that have been developed to operationalize parental mentalizing. We examine the empirical evidence to date in support of each of the constructs and review the relevant measures associated with each construct. Next, we discuss the possibility that these apparently diverse constructs may tap into the same underlying neurobiological socio-cognitive system. We conclude by proposing a testable model for describing the links between parental mentalization, the development of mentalizing in children, and child psychopathology.

Relations between maternal sensitivity and physiological reactivity to infant crying were examined using measures of heart rate (HR) and respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) in 49 mothers of second-born infants. Using the Ainsworth Sensitivity Scale, an independent assessment of maternal sensitiv-Correspondence should be sent to Judi Mesman, Centre for Child and Family Studies,

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ii Little is known about why parents encourage children to respond to stressors in particular ways. To address this gap, this research examined whether maternal emotional awareness predicted mothers ’ socialization of coping (i.e., coping suggestions and responses) in the context of peer victimization. As part of a longitudinal study, 425 2 nd graders (M age = 7.95, SD =.32; 197 boys, 228 girls) and their maternal caregivers completed questionnaires, and caregivers completed questionnaires one year later. A series of hierachical multiple regression analyses revealed that maternal emotional awareness predicted more primary control engagement suggestions (suggestions to address the source of stress or the accompanying emotional response) concurrently and over time, and predicted more distress responses concurrently. Emotional awareness predicted fewer secondary control engagement suggestions (suggestions to think positively or focus on growth) and punitive/minimizing responses concurrently and over