When Stress Gets Into Your Head: Socioeconomic Risk Executive Functions and Maternal Sensitivity Across Childrearing Contexts

摘要

Socioeconomic adversity has been targeted as a key upstream mechanism with robust pathogenic effects on maternal caregiving. Although research has demonstrated the negative repercussions of socioeconomic difficulties, little research has documented potential mechanisms underlying this association. Towards increasing understanding, the present study examined how maternal working memory capacity and inhibitory control may mediate associations between socioeconomic risk and change in maternal sensitivity across free-play and discipline caregiving contexts. The present study employed a longitudinal design, and utilized a socio-economically diverse sample of 203 mothers and their 3.5 year old toddlers. Multi-informants and methods were used to assess constructs. Analyses revealed that lower levels of maternal inhibitory control mediated maternal use of harsh discipline. Results are interpreted within emerging models of inhibitory control and parenting constructs.