Aug 2026· Journal of Affective Disorders· Vol 414, pp.
122419
· 0 citations· 61 references
Medicine
Abstract
Background
Parental depression is a well-established risk factor for child psychopathology, yet most studies focus on mothers. Whether nonlinear patterns with thresholds exist, especially for fathers, remains unclear. This study examines these associations and identified optimal thresholds comparing mothers and fathers.
Methods
This cross-sectional study included 21,366 parents (16,258 mothers and 5108 fathers) of children aged 3-6 years in western China. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD). Child internalizing and externalizing problems were measured with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Piecewise logistic regression with grid search identified thresholds, adjusting for demographic and socioeconomic covariates.
Results
Higher CES-D scores were associated with increased odds of child problems (all P < 0.001). The gender by CES-D interaction was significant for externalizing problems (P = 0.019), indicating a stronger association in fathers. For internalizing problems, the optimal threshold was a CES-D score of 17 for both mothers and fathers. For externalizing problems, the threshold was lower in fathers (16) than in mothers (21). Below these thresholds, each one-point increase in CES-D score was associated with 10-16% higher odds of child problems. Above the thresholds, the associations were attenuated. Piecewise models fitted significantly better than linear models (all P < 0.001).
Conclusions
Fathers' depressive symptoms were associated with child externalizing problems at a lower severity level compared with mothers, suggesting that screening for paternal depression even at subclinical levels may help identify families at elevated risk. The identified thresholds may help generate hypotheses for future longitudinal and clinical validation studies.
Objectives Guided by the Family Economic Stress Model, this study investigated the associations between parental employment status and emotional and behavioral problems among preschoolers in Western China. Methods This cross-sectional study included 21,968 children aged 3–6 years recruited from 189 kindergartens. Parental employment status was categorized into four family-level patterns and further analyzed separately for paternal and maternal employment. Children's outcomes were assessed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Results Father-only employment was associated with higher internalizing problems (aOR = 1.11) but lower externalizing problems (aOR = 0.90); dual non-employment was associated with increased internalizing problems (aOR = 1.31). Paternal unemployment was linked to externalizing problems (aOR = 1.25), while maternal non-employment was associated with internalizing problems (aOR = 1.11–1.27). No significant effect modification was observed after FDR correction. Conclusions Parental employment status is associated with preschoolers' emotional and behavioral problems in a gender-differentiated manner. Paternal unemployment is primarily linked to externalizing problems, whereas maternal non-employment is more strongly associated with internalizing problems.
Aims: This study examined the relationship between maternal containment function and depressive symptoms in children aged 3-6 years, with particular attention to the independent protective role of paternal involvement.Methods: The sample consisted of 386 mother–father dyads whose children were clinically referred to an outpatient child psychiatry clinic in İstanbul due to early emotional and behavioral distress. Child depressive symptoms were measured using the Child Depression Symptom Scale (CDSS), maternal containment was assessed using the Parental Containment Function Scale (PCFS), and paternal involvement was assessed using the Father Involvement Scale (FIS). Data were analyzed using non parametric tests, Spearman correlations (ρ), and bootstrapped mediation analyses. Results: Higher levels of maladaptive maternal containment (e.g., separation sensitivity, authoritarian–rigid parenting) demonstrated a significant positive association with increased depressive symptoms in children. In contrast, greater paternal involvement, particularly discretionary engagement and affection–closeness, was negatively associated with child depressive symptoms. Mediation analyses indicated that although paternal involvement contributed to lower depressive symptoms as an independent protective system, it did not significantly mediate the relationship between maternal containment and child depression. Conclusion: Maternal containment and paternal involvement operate as distinct, parallel family systems that contribute to early childhood emotional development. Interventions should address both the maternal containment function and the independent protective resource of father involvement.
Buse Onat Yıldırım, Ezgi Özkan, P. Algedik· Journal of Medicine and Pall...· 0 citations
Abstract Aims Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) shape children’s socioemotional development, yet longitudinal evidence from low- and middle-income countries remains limited. This study examined how ACEs relate to internalizing, externalizing and prosocial behaviours from childhood to adolescence in a rural Pakistani cohort. Methods Data were drawn from the Bachpan Cohort, a longitudinal study including 1,791 observations across three waves: ages 4–5, 8–9 and 12–15 years. ACEs were assessed using an adapted ACE-International Questionnaire. Outcomes were measured using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Network analysis, dose-response modelling and moderation analyses were employed. Results Emotional neglect was the most prevalent ACE (83.7%). Parental psychiatric issues, parental trauma exposure and emotional neglect were the most central ACE stressors. A dose-response relationship emerged: compared to children with no ACEs, those with four or more ACEs showed higher internalizing (incidence ratio [IR] = 4.24) and externalizing problems (IR = 3.42) and lower prosocial behaviour (IR = 0.90). Girls showed greater internalizing vulnerability; boys showed more externalizing problems. ACE effects on internalizing problems strengthened with age. Conclusions ACEs are strongly associated with internalizing, externalizing and prosocial outcomes from childhood to adolescence. Findings highlight the need for tiered, gender-sensitive and developmentally appropriate interventions in low-resource settings.
I. A. Charan, Chongjin Wang, Shazia Soomro· Epidemiology and Psychiatric...· 0 citations
Background: Childbirth is a major transition for both parents. However, few studies have examined the pairwise role of family function in both parents simultaneously.
Objective: This study aimed to explore the interconnected effects of family function on maternal perinatal depressive symptoms (MPDS) and paternal perinatal depressive symptoms (PPDS) from the perspectives of both parents.
Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted in a large tertiary hospital. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) was applied for MPDS and PPDS screening, and the APGAR scale was adopted to evaluate family function. The actor and partner effects of maternal and paternal family function on the risk of MPDS and PPDS were examined using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM). Multivariate logistic regression was additionally performed to explore the associations between family function and parental perinatal depressive symptoms.
Results: In total, 715 couples were included in this study, and the prevalence of MPDS and PPDS were 24.90% and 14.55%, respectively. Significant actor effects were observed for both mothers (β=0.11, p=0.03) and fathers (β=0.19, p<0.001), and partner effects of maternal family function significantly predicted PPDS (β=0.10, p=0.048). Elevated risk of parental perinatal depressive symptoms was associated with poor or fair maternal family function (OR=2.41, 95% CI: 1.16–4.99) and paternal family function (OR=2.59, 95% CI: 1.41–4.77).
Conclusion: The high prevalence rates of MPDS and PPDS underscore the importance of parental depressive symptoms screening. Intervention strategies targeted at family function should be adopted for the management of MPDS and PPDS.
Yao Cheng, Min He, Wenting Huang et al.· Health Psychology Research· 0 citations
Parental childhood trauma exerts profound impacts on both their own and their offspring's psychopathological problems such as depressive symptoms. The underlying mechanisms of these effects, particularly from the perspective of parent-child interdependence, still need further exploration. This study adopted the actor-partner interdependence model to investigate the associations between parental childhood trauma and parental and adolescent depressive symptoms, and the mediating roles of parental and adolescent emotion regulation difficulties in the relations. This study included 125 eligible parent-adolescent dyads from Northwest China, with data collected at two time points across a 1-year interval. Parents aged 33-69 years (Mage = 41.19, SD = 7.19, 58% mothers) were invited to complete the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale at T1 and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale at T2, and adolescents aged 13-16 (Mage = 14.41, SD = 0.53, 50% girls) were asked to complete the face-word Stroop task assessing emotion regulation difficulties at T1 and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale at T2. Results showed that parental childhood trauma at T1 predicted both parental and adolescent depressive symptoms at T2. In addition, parental childhood trauma at T1 affected parental depressive symptoms at T2 only via parental emotion regulation difficulties at T1, and parental childhood trauma at T1 affected adolescent depressive symptoms at T2 via both adolescent and parental emotion regulation difficulties at T1. These findings suggest an actor-partner interdependence mechanism underlying the associations between parental childhood trauma and their own and offspring's depressive symptoms. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Xiaomin Wei, Wei Lü· Journal of family psychology· 0 citations
Objectives This study aimed to examine whether parental overreactivity is associated with the relationship between child gender and mental health in preschool children, exploring potential pathways that may underlie observed gender-related disparities. Methods A total of 21,366 children aged 3–6 years were recruited through stratified cluster sampling from 189 kindergartens across 13 districts in western China. Child gender (boy/girl) was treated as the exposure variable. Parental overreactivity was assessed using the Arnold–O’Leary Parenting Scale, and child mental health was measured with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), focusing on total difficulties and prosocial behavior. Multivariable logistic and linear regression models were applied, and mediation analysis was conducted to quantify indirect effects. Results Compared with boys, girls exhibited a 12% lower risk of total difficulties (OR = 0.88; 95% CI: 0.82–0.94; P = 0.0003) and a 21% higher likelihood of prosocial behavior (OR = 1.21; 95% CI: 1.14–1.28; P < 0.0001). Each one-point increase in parental overreactivity was associated with an 85% higher risk of total difficulties (OR = 1.85; 95% CI: 1.78–1.92; P < 0.0001) and a 34% reduction in prosocial behavior (OR = 0.66; 95% CI: 0.64–0.68; P < 0.0001). Girls experienced significantly lower levels of parental overreactivity (β = –0.04; 95% CI: –0.06 to –0.01; P = 0.0152). Mediation analysis showed that overreactivity statistically explained 16.22% of the gender effect on total difficulties and 7.49% on prosocial behavior. Subgroup analyses suggested stronger effects among families with lower socioeconomic status. Conclusions Parental overreactivity was identified as a statistically significant indirect factor in the association between child gender and early mental health. Girls showed lower parental overreactivity, which was statistically associated with more favorable psychological profiles. These findings suggest that parental overreactivity may represent a potential intervention target, and highlight the value of gender-sensitive parenting approaches for narrowing early mental health disparities.
Ziyi Wang, Jiahua Liu, Hongli Sun et al.· Frontiers in Psychiatry· 0 citations
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