Individual Differences in Children’s Coping: The Independent and Interactive Roles of Coping Socialization and Parenting Behaviors in Families With and Without a History of Maternal Depression

Abstract

This study examined concurrent maternal and child correlates of maternal coping socialization messages using a cross-informant, multi-method design. Maternal responsive/warm parenting behaviors were also examined as a moderator of the relation between maternal socialization behaviors and children’s coping. Questionnaires and direct observations were obtained from mothers with and without a history of depression (N = 100) and their children (9 to 15 years). The study tested a new observational paradigm and developed a novel coding system to measure maternal socialization of coping messages from a discussion-based task. Cross-sectional analyses revealed a number of significant correlations between observed maternal coping socialization messages and both mother and child coping responses. Using multiple linear regression analysis, evidence was mixed in regard to the role of maternal depressive symptoms and coping socialization messages for children’s coping strategies. There was partial support for responsive/warm parenting as moderator of the association between maternal coping socialization and child coping strategies. The present findings are discussed, limitations and strengths are noted, and implications for future research are outlined.