Changes in social environmental factors within the family can adversely affect child health and well-being, impacting not only cognitive and socioemotional development, but precipitating the risk to depression, early onset alcohol and licit/illicit drug use, and sexual experimentation in adolescence. The purpose of this study is to examine the dynamics of parent-adolescent relationship using both parent as well as child ratings of parent-child interaction, family composition and the quality of the home environment and its impact on adolescent depression. This project drawing upon the 1994 and 1996 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth ten-to-fourteen-year old data will consider the relationship of marital stability and living arrangements in the home environment, parent-child interaction, as well as the quality of the home as measured by the HOME score for their effect on childhood depression and health risk decisionmaking. In studies examining the relationship between depressive behaviors, domains of social role functioning such as peer involvement and school-based performance, well-being of children does not improve in remarriage, despite reduced parental conflict in the home. However, this project will provide separate ratings of child's and mother's rating of parent-child interaction in conjunction with sociodemographic variables in determining depressive behaviors evaluated by both mother and adolescent distinguished by household living arrangements. Parental perception versus child perception of these child depression ratings will be discussed in relation to the qualities of parent-child interaction and amount of parental conflict as assessed by the child, as well as existing maternal depressive symptoms and maternal appraisal of the home environment.
Learning Objectives: 1. Participants will examine the influence of parent-child interaction, household composition and emotional and cognitive quality of the home on child depression. 2. Participants will compare separate ratings of maternal perception of adolescent's depression versus child's own scoring of adolescents's depression. 3. Recommendations for interventions advocating equal emphasis on child physical, mental and social health will be discussed in relation to parenting practices and family environment
Keywords: Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Family Involvement
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.