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Determinants of parenting attitudes in mothers with severe psychopathology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 October 2008

Fred A. Rogosch ,
Carol T. Mowbray  and
G. Anne Bogat
Fred A. Rogosch*
Affiliation:
Mt. Hope Family Center, University of Rochester
Carol T. Mowbray
Affiliation:
School of Social Work, Wayne State University
G. Anne Bogat
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Michigan State University
*
Address reprint requests to: Fred A. Rogosch, Mt. Hope Family Center, 187 Edinburgh Street, Rochester, NY 14608.
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Abstract

Determinants of individual differences in the sensitivity of parenting attitudes were investigated in mothers with schizophrenic or major mood disorders. Constructs from the major domains of the mother's childhood relational experiences, personality, social context, and child characteristics were evaluated in a developmental model to predict differences in parenting attitudes. Two pathways were identified. An index of the severity and chronicity of the mother's disorder was shown to predict less-adaptive parenting attitudes. A second pathway revealed that emotional support from network members influenced self-esteem, which predicted more adaptive parenting attitudes. However, perceptions of childhood relational experiences, particularly maternal uninvolvement, predicted parenting attitudes as well as accounted for relationships among emotional support, self-esteem, and parenting. The results were discussed from an attachment theory perspective. The implications of individual differences in maternal functioning for both the mother and the child's adaptation were discussed, and treatment issues were addressed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 4 , Issue 3 , July 1992 , pp. 469 - 487
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1992

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