Supplemental Materials
Intergenerational Transmission of Self-Regulation: A Multidisciplinary Review and Integrative Conceptual Framework
by D. J. Bridgett et al., 2015, Psychological Bulletin
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0038662
Table S2
Studies Reporting Associations between Parent Self-Regulation and Parenting
First Author and Date
Caregiver SelfRegulation
Construct
Top-Down or
Bottom-Up
Regulation
Parenting Construct
General
Methodology
Key Findings
Support for
Model
(Yes,
Some, No)
1.
Rohrbeck, 1986
Maternal Impulsivity and
Inhibitory Control
Measured with the Walk
Slowly and Draw a Line
Slowly Tasks (Maccoby
et al., 1965), the
Matching Familiar
Figures Task (Cairns and
Cammock, 1978), Two
Delay of Gratification
Tasks, and the Stroop
Color-Word Test
(Golden, 1975)
Bottom-Up
Impulsivity
and TopDown
Behavioral
Regulation
Maternal Child Abuse Status
(Physically Abusing,
Neglecting, or NonAbusing/Neglecting)
Mothers of Children
Aged 48-70
Months; CrossSectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Quasi-Experimental
Design; N = 36 (n =
12 Physically
Abusing, n = 12
Neglecting, n = 12
Non-Abusing/
Neglecting
Controls)
Non-Abusing/Neglecting
Mothers Demonstrated
Better Inhibition of Motor
Activity (Walk and Draw
Slowly Tasks) and Fewer
Errors on the Matching
Familiar Figures Task than
Abusing and Neglecting
Mothers. Non-Abusing/
Neglecting Mothers
Demonstrated Better
Inhibitory Control (Stroop
Task Performance) than
Abusing but not Neglectful
Mothers
Some
2.
Cumberland-Li,
2003
Maternal Self-Reported
Regulation, Created by
Averaging Inhibitory
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Warmth
Mothers and
Children Aged 4-8
Years; Cross-
Better Maternal Behavioral
Self-Regulation Associated
with More Maternal
Yes
Control, Attention
Shifting, and Attention
Focusing Subscales of
Adult Temperament
Questionnaire
(Derryberry and
Rothbart, 1988)
Sectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Mixed Methods; N
= 214; Mixed Risk
(Some Low, Some
High)
Warmth
3.
Martini, 2004
Maternal Self-Reported
Suppression of Hostile
Emotions (Anger) in
Response to Hypothetical
Situations of Child
Anger, Sadness, and
Fear; Maternal
Suppression of NonHostile Emotions
(Anxiety, Sadness) in
Response to
Hypothetical Situations
of Child Anger, Sadness,
and Fear
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Maternal Self-Reported
Authoritarian Beliefs About
Parenting
Mothers of Children
Aged 3-6 Years;
Cross-Sectional;
Maternal Report
Only; N = 94;
Mixed Risk
Canadian Sample
Maternal Suppression of
Hostile Emotion in
Response to Child Sadness
and Fear (but not Anger)
Negatively Correlated with
Authoritarian Parenting
Beliefs. Maternal
Suppression of Non-Hostile
Emotion in Response to
Child Fear (but not Anger
or Sadness) Negatively
Correlated with
Authoritarian Parenting
Beliefs
Some+
4.
Lorber, 2005
Maternal Respiratory
Sinus Arrhythmia
Reactivity and Objective
Ratings of Maternal
Negative Appraisal Bias,
Defined as Mothers’
Negative Classification
of Observer-Coded
Positive or Neutral Child
Behavior
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observation of Maternal
Overreactive Discipline
Mothers and
Children Aged 2-3
Years; CrossSectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Mixed Methods; N
= 93; Low Risk
Primarily Caucasian
Sample
More Maternal RSA
Reactivity Related to Less
Overreactive Discipline;
Maternal Negative
Appraisal Bias Positively
Correlated with
Overreactive Discipline
Yes
5.
Loney, 2007
Maternal Impulsivity and
Related Behaviors
Assessed with the
Bottom-Up
Impulsivity
Maternal Self-Reported
Parenting Dysfunction,
Including Ratings of
Mothers of Children
in 1st – 6th Grade,
Average Age 10.4
Maternal Impulsivity
Positively Related to
Parenting Dysfunction,
Yes
Levenson SRP,
Secondary
Psychopathology Scale
(Levenson et al., 1995)
Positive Parenting, Poor
Monitoring/ Supervision,
Inconsistent Discipline, and
Corporal Punishment
(SD = 1.8); CrossSectional;
Laboratory Setting;
N = 83; Primarily
Caucasian Sample
Including Lower Positive
Parenting, Poor
Monitoring/Supervision,
and More Inconsistent
Discipline and Corporal
Punishment
6. Pears, 2007
Inhibitory Control
Reported by Parents and
Teachers of Future
Fathers at Ages 14-15
and 15-16 Using Items
from the CBCL
(Achenback &
Edelbrock, 1983)
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Father Self-Reported and
Spouse-Reported Poor
Discipline Composite,
Composed of Poor
Implementation, Poor
Results, and Harsh
Discipline Indicators
Mothers and Fathers
Participated;
Children Aged 21
Months;
Longitudinal;
Parent, Teacher,
Father, and Spouse
Report Only; N =
206; Primarily EuroAmerican, Lower
and Working-Class
Sample
Better Parental Inhibitory
Control Related to Less
Frequent Use of Poor
Discipline Practices
Yes
7. Valiente, 2007
Maternal and Paternal
Self-Reported Effortful
Control, Created by
Averaging Attention
Shifting, Activation
Control, and Inhibition
Control Subscales of
Adult Temperament
Questionnaire
(Derryberry & Rothbart,
1988)
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Maternal and Paternal SelfReported Reactions to
Children’s Negative
Emotions
Mothers (87%) and
Fathers Participated;
Children Aged 7-12
Years; CrossSectional; Parental
Report Only; N =
188; Mixed Risk
Majority Hispanic
Sample
Better Parental Effortful
Control Related to More
Positive and Less Negative
Reactions to Children’s
Negative Affectivity
Yes
8. Verhoeven, 2007
Maternal and Paternal
Self-Reported SelfControl (Self-Control
Scale; Grasmick et al.,
1993)
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation,
Emotional
Regulation,
Parent Self-Reported
Parental Support, Lack of
Structure, Positive
Discipline, Psychological
Control, and Physical
Mothers and Fathers
of Male Children
Aged 17 Months;
Cross-Sectional;
Parent Report; N =
Maternal and Paternal SelfControl Positively Related
to Support and Negatively
Related to Lack of
Structure and Psychological
Some+
and BottomUp
Impulsivity
Punishment
111; Mixed Risk
Sample of Families
with Sons from
Netherlands
Control. Maternal, but not
Paternal, Self-Control
Negatively Related to
Physical Punishment.
Neither Mother nor Father
Self-Control Related to
Positive Discipline
9. Kim, 2009
Maternal and Paternal
Self-Reported
Dysregulation, Assessed
with Items from the
Saprara Irritability Scale
(Caprara et al., 1985),
State-Trait Anxiety Scale
(Spielberger, 1983), the
MMPI (Hathaway &
McKinley, 1951) and the
Activity Survey (Jenkins,
1972); Son Rated
Parental Dysregulation
Assessed by Phone
Interview; Observer
Rated Parental
Dysregulation Using
Behavioral Coding and
Interviews when
Children were 11-12.
Top-Down
Emotional and
Behavioral
Regulation
Poor Discipline
Implementation and Results
Self-Reported by Mothers
and Fathers and Objectively
Coded from Behavioral
Observations and from
Parental Interviews by
Independent Observers
when Children were 15-16.
Mothers and Fathers
of Children Aged
11-12 and 15-16;
Longitudinal; Mixed
Methods; N= 206;
High Risk Sample
Parental Dysregulation
Prospectively Associated
with Poor Discipline
Implementation and Results
with Adolescent Boys
Yes
10. Latzman, 2009
Maternal Self-Reported
Impulsivity, Assessed
with the Impulsivity Trait
Scale of the Disinhibition
Subscale of the Schedule
for Nonadaptive and
Adaptive Personality-2nd
Edition (Clark, 1993;
Bottom-Up
Impulsivity
Mother Self-Reported and
Adolescent Reported
Parenting Involvement,
Positive Parenting, Poor
Monitoring/Supervision,
Inconsistent Discipline, and
Corporal Punishment
Mothers and Sons
Aged 11-16 Years;
Cross-Sectional;
Mother and Child
Report; N= 174;
High SES Primarily
Caucasian Sample
More Impulsive Mothers
Exhibited Significantly
More Inconsistent
Discipline and Poor
Monitoring/Supervision.
The Relation between
Maternal Impulsivity and
Involvement was in the
Some+
Clark et al., in press)
Expected Direction, but not
Significant. Relations
between Maternal
Impulsivity and Other
Aspects of Parenting Not
Significantly Related.
11. Mills-Koonce,
2009
Maternal Respiratory
Sinus Arrhythmia
Reduction, Computed by
Subtracting Task (Face to
Face Still Face
Paradigm) RSA from
Baseline RSA
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observation of Intrusive
Parenting [Scale Composed
of Sensitivity (Reversed),
Intrusiveness, and Negative
Regard Ratings] and
Positive Engagement
[Composed of Detachment
(Reversed) and Positive
Regard Ratings]
Mothers and
Children Aged 6
Months; Cross
Sectional;
Laboratory and
Home Settings;
Mixed Methods;
N=175; Majority
African American
Urban Sample.
Interaction Between
Maternal Resting Cortisol
and RSA Reduction
Predicted Maternal
Negative Intrusiveness.
Correlations between RSA
Reduction and
Intrusiveness in Expected
Direction but NonSignificant; Correlations
between RSA Reduction
and Positive Engagement in
Expected Direction but
Non-Significant for Free
Play, but not Reunion
Some+
12. Moore, 2009
Maternal Respiratory
Sinus Arrhythmia, at
Rest and During Task
(Face to Face Still Face
Paradigm)
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of
Sensitivity/Responsiveness,
Positive Regard, Stimulation
of Cognitive Development,
Animation and Detachment/
Disengagement (Reversed),
Aggregated to Form Overall
Maternal Sensitivity
Composite Score
Mothers and their 6
Month Old Children
Participated; Cross
Sectional;
Laboratory and
Home Settings;
Mixed Methods;
N=152; Mixed-Risk
Caucasian and
African American
Sample
During the Still Face
Reunion Episode Sensitive
Mothers Exhibited Greater
RSA Suppression from
Baseline, suggesting that
Sensitive Mothers Employ
more Flexible Emotional
Self-Regulation to Cope
with and Help Regulate
Infant Distress
Some
13. Boutwell, 2010
Maternal and Paternal
Impulsivity, Assessed
Bottom-Up
Impulsivity
Maternal and Paternal SelfReported Parenting
Mothers and Fathers
of Children Aged 0-
Poor Maternal and Paternal
Self-Control Related to
Yes
with an Abbreviated
Version of Dickman’s
(1990) Impulsivity Scale.
Fathers Assessed when
Children were
Approximately 1 Year
Old; Mothers Assessed
when Children were
Approximately 4 Years
Old.
Involvement
4 Years;
Longitudinal;
Maternal and
Paternal Report; N =
Approx. 5,000 as
Reported by
Authors; Mixed
Risk, Nationally
Representative
Sample
Less Involvement with
Children
14. Deater-Deckard,
2010
Maternal Working
Memory Assessed with
the Wechsler Adult
Intelligence Scale—
Third Edition (Wechsler,
1997) Forward and
Backward Digit Span
Tasks.
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Negative Affect and
Negative Control Averaged
to Form Maternal Negativity
Composite Score
Mothers and
Children
Participated;
Average Age of
Children 6.12 (SD =
0.68); CrossSectional; Home
Setting; Mixed
Methods; N=216;
Mother-Twin
(same-sex) Triads;
Low-Risk Sample
Mothers with Poor
Working Memory Reacted
More Negatively to
Challenging Child Behavior
Yes
15. Bridgett, 2011
Maternal Self-Reported
Effortful Control (Adult
Temperament
Questionnaire, Evans &
Rothbart, 2007),
Measured when Children
were 4 Months of Age.
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Maternal Self-Reported
Time Spent in Caregiving
Activities when Children
were 6 Months of Age.
Mothers of Children
Aged 4-6 Months;
Longitudinal;
Maternal Report
Only; N = 158;
Mixed-Risk Sample
Higher Maternal Effortful
Control at 4 Months
Postpartum Predicted More
Time Spent in Interactive
Caregiving Activities (e.g.,
Play) at 6 Months
Postpartum
Yes
16. Connell, 2011
Maternal Respiratory
Sinus Arrhythmia,
Resting
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observation of Maternal and
Adolescent Positive and
Negative Affect During
Interaction
Mothers and
Children Aged 1117 Years; CrossSectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Higher Maternal Resting
RSA Associated with More
Mutual Positive Affect but
Not Less Negative Affect
During Interactions with
Some
Mixed Methods; N
= 59; Moderate Risk
Sample
Adolescent Offspring
17. Davenport, 2011
Maternal Self-Reported
Effortful Control (Adult
Temperament
Questionnaire; Evans &
Rothbart, 2007)
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observation of Maternal
Displays of Dysphoric,
Aggressive, and Positive
Behavior while Interacting
with Adolescent Offspring
Mothers and
Children Aged 1113 Years; CrossSectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Mixed Methods; N
= 151; Low Risk
Sample
Better Maternal Effortful
Control Associated with
Fewer Maternal Displays of
Dysphoric, but not
Aggressive or Positive
Behavior, when Interacting
with Adolescent Offspring
Some+
18. Kim, 2011
Maternal Neural
Activation (Right
Superior Frontal Gyrus,
Amygdala) in Response
to Own vs. Control
Infant’s Cry
Top-Down
and Bottomup Regulation
via Activation
of Neural
Correlates of
These
Regulatory
Processes
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Sensitivity
Mothers
Participated; fMRI
Scanning Conducted
1 Month
Postpartum, Dyadic
Interactions
Conducted at 3-4
Months Postpartum
in Home; Mixed
Methods; N = 17;
Caucasian Sample
Greater Activation in the
Mothers’ Right Superior
Frontal Gyrus and
Amygdala at 1 Month
Postpartum Related to
More Sensitive Interactions
with Infants at 3-4 Months
Postpartum
Some
19. Deater-Deckard,
2012
Maternal Executive
Function (Attention
Shifting, Inhibition, and
Working Memory),
Measured with a
Backward Digit Span
Task and Computerized
Versions of the Stroop
Color-Word Task
(Stroop, 1935),
Wisconsin Card Sorting
Task (WCST; Heaton &
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Maternal Self-Reported
Harsh Parenting, Including
General Negativity, Harsh
Verbal Parenting, and
Verbal Shaming
Mothers of Children
Aged 3-7 Years;
Cross-Sectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Mixed Methods; N
= 147; Mixed Risk
Rural & Urban
Sample
Mothers with Poor
Executive Function More
Likely to Respond to Child
Conduct Problems with
Harsh Parenting
Yes
PAR Staff, 2003) and
Tower of Hanoi (Davis
& Keller, 1998)
20. Gonzalez, 2012
Maternal Cognitive
Flexibility, Assessed via
a Visual Discrimination
Task Derived from
Wisconsin Card Sorting
Task, and Spatial
Working Memory,
Assessed via a SelfOrdered Visual-Spatial
Search Task
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Sensitivity
Mothers and
Children Aged 2-6
Months; Two Time
Points Assessed in
Home (~1 week
apart); Mixed
Methods; N = 89;
Low Risk Sample
Poorer Maternal Cognitive
Flexibility and Spatial
Working Memory
Associated with Less
Maternal Sensitivity
Yes
21. Kim, 2012
Maternal Self-Reported
Affect Dysregulation,
Assessed with the
Inventory of Altered
Self-Capacities (Briere &
Runtz, 2002), Affect
Dysregulation and
Tension Reduction
Activities Subscales
Top-Down
Emotional and
Behavioral
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Emotional
Availability, Including
Ratings of Sensitivity,
Structuring, NonIntrusiveness, and NonHostility
Mothers and
Children Aged 4-5
Months; Two Time
Points (1 Week
Apart) Assessed in
Home; Mixed
Methods; N = 46;
Low Risk Primarily
Caucasian Sample
Maternal Affect
Dysregulation Negatively
Related to Emotional
Availability During
Interactions with Infants
Some+
22. Kuo, 2012
Paternal Neural
Activation in Response
to Video Images of Own
vs. Not Own Child
(Matched for Sex, Age,
and Ethnicity) vs. Doll
Top-Down
and Bottomup Regulation
via Activation
of Neural
Correlates of
These
Regulatory
Processes
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Paternal
Sensitivity and Reciprocity
Fathers and
Children Aged 2-4
Months; Single
Time Point
Assessed in Lab;
Mixed Methods; N
= 10; Low Risk
Racially Diverse
Sample
Fathers With Greater
Sensitivity and Reciprocity
Show Less Own vs. Other
Infant Cry Activation in the
Right Orbitofrontal Cortex,
Possibly Indicating Greater
Interest in Infants in
General. Other Top-Down
and Bottom-Up Regulatory
Areas not Significantly
Related to Paternal
Sensitivity.
No
23. Lorber, 2012
Maternal Self-Reported
Global Reappraisal and
Suppression (Emotion
Regulation
Questionnaire; Gross &
John, 2003) and
Parenting-Related
Emotion Regulation
(Parental Emotion
Regulation Inventory)
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Maternal Self-Reported
Overreactive and Lax
Discipline and Negative
Emotion Experience and
Expression in Discipline
Situations
Mothers of Children
(Age of Children M
= 29 Months; SD =
7.43); CrossSectional; Maternal
Report Only; N =
82; Low Risk
Racially Diverse
Sample
Higher Maternal Global
Reappraisal had Significant
Inverse Relations with
Overreactive and Lax
Discipline and with
Negative Emotional
Experiences and Expression
During Discipline
Situations; Global
Suppressioin had
Significant Inverse
Association with Maternal
Negative Emotional
Expressions During
Discipline Situations, but
not Significantly Related to
Other Aspects of
Discipline; Discipline
Specific Reappraisal had a
Significant, Negative
Relation with Overreactive
Discipline, but not
Significantly Related to
other Aspects of Maternal
Discipline; Maternal
Discipline Specific
Suppression had Significant
Inverse Relations with
Negative Emotion
Expression during
Discipline Encounters and
Overreactive Discipline, but
not Negative Emotional
Experience in Discipline
Encounters.
Some+
24. Musser, Ablow
2012
Maternal Respiratory
Sinus Arrhythmia,
Resting
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Sensitivity
Mothers and
Children Aged 5
Months; CrossSectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Mixed Methods; N
= 95; Mixed Risk
Sample
Lower Maternal Resting
RSA Related to Lower
Sensitivity during
Interaction with Infants
Yes
25. Musser, KaiserLaurent 2012
Maternal Neural
Activation in Response
to Own vs. Control
Child’s Cry
Top-Down
and Bottomup Regulation
via Activation
of Neural
Correlates of
These
Regulatory
Processes
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Sensitivity, IntrusiveCoercive Control, and
Overall Dyadic Harmony
Mothers and
Children Aged 18
Months; CrossSectional;
Laboratory Setting;
Mixed Methods; N
= 22; High Risk
Sample Recruited
from Women Infant
Children (WIC)
Program
More Maternal Activation
in the Inferior Frontal
Gyrus and Right Frontal
Pole when Listening to
Child’s Own Cry vs.
Control Infant’s Cry
Related to Greater Maternal
Sensitivity; Greater
Maternal Activation of Left
Hippocampus Related to
More Harmonious
Interactions with Children
Some
26. Samuelson, 2012
Maternal Self-Reported
Emotion Regulation
Using the Negative
Mood Regulation Scale
(Catanzaro & Mearns,
1990)
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Child-Reported Positive
Parenting Behaviors,
Created by Subtracting
Negative (Criticism,
Physical Punishment,
Yelling, Threatening, and
Ignoring) from Positive
(Positive Reinforcement,
Comfort, Allowing
Independence, Assistance,
and Nonverbal Affection)
Behavior Ratings
Mothers and
Children Aged 7-16
Years; CrossSectional; Mother
and Child Report; N
= 47; High Risk IPV
Experiencing
Sample
Better Maternal Emotion
Regulation Positively but
Not Significantly Related to
Positive Parenting
Behaviors
No+
27. Crouch, 2012
Maternal and Paternal
Self-Reported
Top-Down
Behavioral
Maternal & Paternal SelfReported Negative Parenting
138 “General
Population”
Better Parent Attentional
Control was Related to Less
Yes
Attentional Control
(Derryberry & Reed,
2002)
Regulation
(aggressive, abusive, hostile
parenting practices; Child
Abuse Potential Inventory;
Milner, 1986); Maternal &
Paternal History of
Experiencing Harsh
Discipline was also assessed
via Self-Report (Childhood
History Questionnaire;
Milner et al., 1990)
Mothers (69.6%)
and Fathers
(30.4%); Single
Time Point; All
Self-Report
Measures
use of
Aggressive/Abusive/Hostile
Parenting; Attentional
Control Partially Mediated
the Effect of Parents’ own
History of Experiencing
Harsh and their Use of
Aggressive/Abusive/Hostile
Parenting Practices with
Their own Children.
28. Bridgett, 2013
Maternal Self-Reported
Effortful Control (Adult
Temperament
Questionnaire; Evans &
Rothbart, 2007) at 4
Months Postpartum
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Maternal Self-Reported
Negative Parenting
Behaviors, Derived From
Ratings on Laxness,
Overreactivity, and
Verbosity Scales (Arnold et
al., 1993), Assessed at 18
Months Postpartum
Mothers of Children
Aged 18 Months;
Longitudinal;
Maternal Report
Only; N = 159; Low
Risk sample
Better Maternal Effortful
Control Related to Less
Negative Parenting
Behavior
Yes
29. Buckholdt, 2013
Parent Self-Reported
Emotion Regulation
Difficulties (Difficulties
in Emotion Regulation
Scale; Gratz & Roemer,
2004)
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Adolescent-Reported
Parental Invalidation of
Emotions
Mothers (93%) and
Fathers, and
Children Aged 1218 Years; CrossSectional; Parental
and Adolescent
Report; N = 80;
Mixed Risk
Primarily AfricanAmerican Sample
More Parent Emotional
Dysregulation Associated
with More Invalidation of
Adolescent Emotions
Yes
30. Joosen, Mesman,
BakermansKranenburg,
Pieper, 2013
Maternal Heart Rate and
Respiratory Sinus
Arrhythmia at Baseline
and During Infant Cry
Task
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Sensitivity
Mothers and
Children Aged 3
Months; CrossSectional; Home
Setting; Mixed
Methods; N = 49;
Lower Heart Rate and
Higher RSA at Baseline
and During Infant Cry Task
Related to Higher Maternal
Sensitivity
Yes
Mixed Risk Sample;
Two-Child
Caucasian Dutch
Families
31. Joosen, Mesman,
BakermansKranenburg, &
van IJzendoorn,
2013
Maternal Respiratory
Sinus Arrhythmia
Reactivity During Infant
Cry Task at 3 Months
Postpartum
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Risk for
Harsh Physical Discipline
(e.g., Use of Unnecessary
Physical Force) at 12
Months Postpartum
Mothers of Children
Aged 3-12 Months;
Longitudinal; Home
Setting; N= 48;
Low-Income, TwoParent, Caucasian
Dutch Sample
Selected for High
and Low Child
Externalizing
Behavior
Maternal RSA Reactivity to
Infant Cry Not Significantly
Different for Mothers
Showing vs. Not Showing
Risk for Harsh Discipline
No+
32. Sarıtaş, 2013
Maternal Self-Reported
Emotion Regulation
Difficulties (Difficulties
in Emotion Regulation
Scale, Gratz & Roemer,
2004)
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Maternal and Adolescent
Reported Emotional
Warmth and Rejection
Mothers and
Children with Mean
Age of 15.2 Years
(SD = .49); CrossSectional; Mother
and Adolescent
Report; N = 365;
Turkish Sample
Maternal Emotion
Regulation Difficulties
Negatively Related to
Maternal and Adolescent
Reported Warmth and
Positively Related to
Maternal and Adolescent
Reported Rejection
Yes
33. Skowron, 2013
Maternal Respiratory
Sinus Arrhythmia,
Resting and in Response
to Challenging Child
Interaction Task
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Maternal
Positive Parenting and
Strict/Hostile Control in
Child Maltreating and NonChild Maltreating Mothers
Mothers and
Children Aged 3-5
Years; QuasiExperimental;
Laboratory Setting;
N = 141; Mixed
Risk Sample
including
Documented Child
Abuse/Neglect
Perpetrators and
Abusing and Non-Abusing
Mothers Displayed RSA
Reductions from Baseline
during Challenging Task
and Engaged in Positive
Parenting Behaviors during
First Epoch of Observation.
During Second Epoch,
Abusing Mothers Engaged
in More Hostile Control
than Non-Abusive Mothers.
Some
Matched NonMaltreating Mothers
Significant RSA Baseline
Differences between
Abusing and Non-Abusing
Mothers Not Observed;
Findings Indicated that
Parent-Child Interactions
were Regulation Taxing for
Abusive Mothers, which
was Related to
Subsequently More Hostile
Control.
34. Henschel,
2014
Maternal and Paternal
Self-Reported SelfControl (Self-Control
Scale, Tangney et al.,
2004)
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation,
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation,
and BottomUp
Impulsivity
Maternal Self-Reported
Child Abuse Potential
Mothers and Fathers
of Children Aged
2.3-3.7 Years;
Maternal and
Paternal Report; N =
87; Mixed Risk
Sample, 46%
Mothers with Abuse
History
Maternal Self-Control
Negatively Correlated with
Child Abuse Potential
Yes
35. Chico, 2014
Maternal Cognitive
Flexibility, Measured the
Wisconsin Card Sorting
Task, and Spatial
Working Memory,
Measured Using SelfOrdered Visual-Spatial
Search Task, Included in
the Neuropsychological
Tests of Executive
Function Battery
(Robbins et al., 1994)
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Objective Coding of
Maternal Sensitivity,
Vocalizing, and Infant
Orienting
Adult (N= 27) and
Teenage (N = 30)
Mothers of Children
Aged 2-6 Months;
Two Time Points
Assessed (Approx. 2
Weeks Apart);
Objective Measures
Administered in
Home; Primarily
Caucasian MixedRisk Sample
Teen Mothers Performed
More Poorly on Executive
Function Tasks than Adult
Mothers and were Less
Sensitive, Vocal, and
Oriented Towards their
Infants. In Teen Mothers,
Lower Cognitive
Flexibility, but Not Spatial
Working Memory,
Predicted Lower Sensitivity
and Vocalizing Only. In
Adult Mothers, Poor Spatial
Working Memory, but not
Cognitive Flexibility,
Some
Predicted Less Time
Attending to Children and
More Time Engaging in
Instrumental Behaviors
36. Cuevas, 2014
Maternal Executive
Function (Attention,
Inhibition, and Working
Memory), Measured with
a Backward Digit Span
Task and Computerized
Versions of the Stroop
Color-Word Task
(Stroop, 1935),
Wisconsin Card Sorting
Task (Heaton & PAR
Staff, 2003) and
Attention Network Test
(Fan et al., 2002) When
Children were 3 or 4
Years Old
Top-Down
Behavioral
Regulation
Coded Behavioral
Observations of Negative
Caregiving Behaviors,
Including Poor Facilitation
of Child Attention, Physical
Stimulation, Negative
Affect, and Intrusiveness
When Children were 10, 24,
and 36 Months Old
Mothers and
Children Aged 1036 Months;
Longitudinal; Mixed
Methods;
Laboratory Setting;
N= 62; Low-Risk
Sample
Poorer Maternal Executive
Function Associated with
More Negative Caregiving
Behavior
Yes
37. Smith, 2014
Maternal Self-Reported
Emotional Dysregulation
Measured with the
Emotional Dysregulation
Scale (Bradley et al.,
2011)
Top-Down
Emotional
Regulation
Self-Reported Child Abuse
Potential Measured with the
Child Abuse Potential
Inventory (Milner, 1994)
Mothers of Children
Aged 6-13 Years;
Cross-Sectional;
Maternal SelfReport Only; N= 83;
Low-Income
Primarily African
American Sample
Maternal Emotion
Dysregulation Positively
Related to Child Abuse
Potential
Yes
38. Zalewski, 2014
Maternal Self-Reported
Affective/Behavioral
Dysregulation, Assessed
with the International
Personality Disorders
Examination (Loranger
Top Down
Behavioral
and Emotional
Regulation
Adolescent Daughter
Reported Maternal
Acceptance of Individuation,
Control through Guilt, and
Intrusiveness. Maternal SelfReported Harsh Punishment
Mothers and
Daughters Aged 1517 Years; CrossSectional; Mother
and Child Report; N
= 1,598; High-Risk
Maternal Dysregulation
Negatively Correlated with
Daughter-Reported
Acceptance of
Individuation, Positively
Correlated with Daughter-
Some
et al., 1994), Affective/
Behavioral Dysregulation
Factor (Trull et al., 2010)
+
Urban Community
Sample
Reported Control Through
Guilt, and Positively
Correlated with MotherReported Harsh
Punishment. Maternal
Dysregulation not
Significantly Correlated
with Daughter-Reported
Intrusiveness
Studies reported an effect that was not statistically significant, but was in the anticipated direction with a minimum effect size of .10.