Challenging Circumstances Moderate the Links Between Mothers' Personality Traits and Their Parenting in Low-Income Families With Young Children

Grazyna Kochanska; Sanghag Kim; JAMIE KOENIG Nordling

doi:10.1037/a0030386

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Challenging Circumstances Moderate the Links Between Mothers' Personality Traits and Their Parenting in Low-Income Families With Young Children

Journal article

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Challenging Circumstances Moderate the Links Between Mothers' Personality Traits and Their Parenting in Low-Income Families With Young Children

Grazyna Kochanska, Sanghag Kim and JAMIE KOENIG Nordling

Journal of personality and social psychology, Vol.103(6), pp.1040-1049

2012

DOI: 10.1037/a0030386

PMCID: PMC3737588

PMID: 23066882

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https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/3737588View

Open Access

Abstract

The need for research on potential moderators of personality–parenting links has been repeatedly emphasized, yet few studies have examined how varying stressful or challenging circumstances may influence such links. We studied 186 diverse, low-income mother–toddler dyads. Mothers described themselves in terms of Big Five traits, were observed in lengthy interactions with their children, and provided parenting reports. Ecological adversity, assessed as a cumulative index of known risk factors, and the child's difficulty observed as negative affect and defiance in interactions with mothers were posited as sources of parenting challenge. Mothers high in Neuroticism reported more power assertion. Some personality–parenting relations emerged only under challenging conditions. For mothers raising difficult children, higher Extraversion was linked to increased observed power assertion, but higher Conscientiousness was linked to decreased reported power assertion. There were no such relations for mothers of easy children. By contrast, some relations emerged only in the absence of challenge. Agreeableness was associated with more positive parenting for mothers who lived under conditions of low ecological adversity, and with less reported power for those who had easy children, and Openness was linked to more positive parenting for mothers of easy children. Those traits were unrelated to parenting under challenging conditions.

Social Psychology

Biological and medical sciences

Couple and family

Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology

Personality traits

Personality. Affectivity

Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry

Psychology. Psychophysiology

Details

Title: Subtitle: Challenging Circumstances Moderate the Links Between Mothers' Personality Traits and Their Parenting in Low-Income Families With Young Children
Creators: Grazyna Kochanska - University of Iowa, United States
Sanghag Kim - University of Iowa, United States
JAMIE KOENIG Nordling - University of Iowa, United States
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Journal of personality and social psychology, Vol.103(6), pp.1040-1049
DOI: 10.1037/a0030386
PMID: 23066882
PMCID: PMC3737588
NLM abbreviation: J Pers Soc Psychol
ISSN: 0022-3514
eISSN: 1939-1315
Publisher: American Psychological Association
Grant note: DOI: 10.13039/100000025, name: National Institute of Mental Health, award: R01 MH63096; K02 MH01446; name: National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, award: R01 HD069171; name: Sponsor name not included
Language: English
Date published: 2012
Academic Unit: Psychological and Brain Sciences
Record Identifier: 9984213424402771

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