Caregiver state of mind and child psychopathology: intergenerational effects in a low-income sample
Date
2006
Authors
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
This study examines the intergenerational effects of caregivers' experiences of loss and abuse on child and adolescent adjustment. Adult Attachment Interviews (AAIs) and lifetime trauma interviews were administered to 129 caregivers from a high-risk, economically disadvantaged sample. Child psychopathology was assessed using self and teacher-reported measures in middle childhood (ages 6, 8, and 10) and early adolescence (age 13). Caregivers' attachment security moderated intergenerational effects of Unresolved loss. The children of insecure caregivers with Unresolved loss showed a consistent pattern of psychopathology in childhood and early adolescence. Although caregivers' experiences of childhood abuse increased risk for adolescent psychopathology, these effects were largely accounted for by exposure to abuse and not Unresolved status. Caregivers with Cannot Classify (CC) and Fearfully Preoccupied with Trauma (E3) classifications had children with higher levels of teacher-reported problem beaviors in middle childhood. The results highlight the importance of examining different markers of disorganized attachment as independent risk factors for child and adult psychopathology.