OBJECTIVE: Parental burnout is a significant problem that negatively effects parent-child interaction, parenting skills, and child well-being. Research has identified parenting stress as one of the leading factors in parent burnout. Although crucial connections have been explained between parenting stress and parental burnout, not much is known about how parenting self-efficacy operates in these relationships. This study aims to investigate the roles of parenting self-efficacy and number of children in the relationship between parenting stress and parental burnout.
METHODS: The participants consist of a total of 456 parents (Mage = 35.64 ± 9.28, Range = 25-65 years). The data were collected using a personal information form, the Parenting Stress Scale, the Parental Burnout Scale and the Parenting Self-Efficacy Scale. Relationships among variables were examined using Pearson\'s correlation, while moderated mediation analysis was carried out using Hayes\'s bootstrapping.
RESULTS: The correlation analyses reveal a negative relationship between parenting self-efficacy and parenting stress, between parenting self-efficacy and parental burnout, and between parenting self-efficacy and number of children, while a positive significant relationship was found between parenting stress and parental burnout. The mediation analyses show parenting self-efficacy to mediate the correlation between parenting stress and parental burnout. The mediating effect of parenting self-efficacy is also moderated by number of children.
CONCLUSIONS: This study provides empirical evidence for the effect of parenting stress and parenting self-efficacy on parental burnout, with fewer children in the household alleviating parental burnout.

Research has long emphasized the adverse effects of poverty on children; however, within-family processes of how safety nets offset the effects of poverty differ by race and ethnicity are unclear. Guided by the context-sensitive family stress model, the current study investigated within-family processes among safety nets, maternal parenting stress, and child behavioral problems among low-income families and revealed differences in these processes among Hispanic, Black, and White mothers. Using The Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS), participants included 2251 low-income mothers and their children, repeatedly surveyed when children were 1, 3, 5, and 9 years old. Mothers reported their public and private safety nets, their parenting stress levels, and children\'s behavioral problems at each time point. Multilevel models revealed within-family mediation pathways from mothers\' perceived private safety net supports, maternal parenting stress, and child externalizing and internalizing problems, but only for Black, not for White or Hispanic mothers. Prospective within-family associations were found between receiving a high number of public safety net programs and higher child externalizing problems, as well as between receiving private safety nets and higher maternal parenting stress and higher child behavioral problems. Findings were discussed in light of the context-sensitive family stress model, with implications for theory and intervention practices.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the online delivery model became the primary mode of education. With multiple pressures on society and families, mental health issues for parents have become particularly pronounced. Most of the current research has focused on the psychological state of education practitioners and children, with little attention to parents\' mental health issues. Therefore, this study explored the attitudes and coping styles of parents who experienced the process of their children being taught online over a long period and the factors influencing their mental health. This cross-sectional study was conducted between November 2021 and January 2022, using an anonymous online questionnaire to survey 1500 parents with children aged 6-13 years. The Chinese versions of the Patient Health Questionnaire Depression Scale (PHQ-9), the Parenting Stress Scale (PSS), the General Mental Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), and the Brief Coping Style Scale (SCSQ), and a related factors questionnaire were used to survey the subjects. The normal distribution of the data was examined using the Shapiro-Wilk method. A multivariate regression analysis was conducted to identify factors significantly associated with parental mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Only 30.24% of parents agreed with online classes during the pandemic, and 52.28% used positive coping methods during stressful situations. Multivariate regression models identified significant factors associated with parental mental health: parent\'s gender, child\'s grade level, perceived stress about online classes, whether the child has ADHD, positive or negative coping styles, and subjective attitudes of support for online classes or not. The results of the study suggest that as online classes become more socially acceptable, it is necessary to be concerned about the risk of mental illness for parents and develop policies and interventions, especially for parents who adopt negative coping styles and endorse online classes. The focus should be on the stress of online classes on parents, improving the acceptance of online classes and psychological well-being, regulating the way parents deal with their children, and targeting subgroups of children with ADHD symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Maternal parenting stress during childhood may have important influences on offspring internalizing and externalizing behaviors during adolescence in unmarried households, but it is unclear whether effects differ across different trajectory patterns of maternal parenting stress and for native-born vs. immigrant families.
METHODS: Using data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, we identified trajectory patterns of maternal parenting stress from ages 1-9 years using semi-parametric group-based trajectory modeling. We used negative binomial regression models to estimate associations between maternal parenting stress trajectories and adolescent behavioral symptoms at age fifteen.
RESULTS: Five maternal parenting stress trajectory groups were identified among the 1982 unmarried families included in this study, representing consistently low (9.2 %), consistently mild (54.2 %), moderate and decreasing (14.4 %), moderate and increasing (16.0 %) and consistently high (6.2 %) levels of maternal parenting stress. For adolescent internalizing symptoms, all maternal parenting stress trajectory groups exhibited higher symptoms compared to the consistently low group: IRR for consistently mild: 1.21 (95 % CI: 0.98-1.56); IRR for moderate/decreasing: 1.34 (95 % CI: 1.04-1.74); IRR for moderate/increasing: 1.62 (95 % CI: 1.28-2.13); and IRR for consistently high: 1.74 (95 % CI = 1.29-2.41). Similar results were observed for adolescent externalizing symptoms. Stronger effects of maternal parenting stress trajectories on adolescent externalizing symptoms were observed among native-born vs. immigrant families.
CONCLUSIONS: Differential attrition and same-source bias may lead to under- or over-estimation of the associations of interest.
CONCLUSIONS: Interventions targeting unmarried families with elevated maternal parenting stress during childhood may reduce behavioral symptoms in adolescence.

OBJECTIVE: Advances in the management of congenital heart disease (CHD) have significantly decreased mortality rates, indicating a need for continuous care as a chronic condition throughout the child\'s lifespan. This study examined the association of nurse-mother partnerships with parenting stress and family resilience among South Korean mothers of children with CHD.
METHODS: This descriptive study involved 93 mothers of children aged six years or younger with CHD admitted to a hospital. Data were collected from September to November 2020 and analyzed using SPSS/WIN (version 29.0) for t-tests, analyses of variance, Pearson\'s correlation coefficient, and multiple regression analyses.
RESULTS: The means and standard deviations of the nurse-mother partnership, parenting stress, and family resilience were 4.13 ± 0.47, 76.98 ± 16.6, and 56.54 ± 7.86 points, respectively. Parenting stress increased as the number of hospitalizations and surgeries increased and with complex types of CHD. Nurse-mother partnerships were stronger with longer hospital stays. Family resilience was higher with younger children, fewer rehospitalizations, and shorter hospital stays. A positive correlation was found between nurse-mother partnerships and family resilience, and a negative correlation between parenting stress and family resilience. Factors influencing parenting stress included family resilience, rehospitalizations, and complex types of CHD, and those affecting family resilience were nurse-mother partnerships, parenting stress, and the child\'s age.
CONCLUSIONS: Nurse-mother partnerships significantly affect family resilience.
CONCLUSIONS: Enhancing nurse-mother partnerships can improve family resilience, which in turn can reduce parenting stress, thus offering guidance for future nursing interventions.

UNASSIGNED: Mother-infant attunement is fundamental to supporting infant socio-emotional development. Based on the assumption that we connect better with others if we are aware of and connected with our own experience, mindfulness could affect the maternal ability to attune to the infant. However, little is known about this topic in the first year of life. Study 1 aimed to investigate the role of maternal dispositional mindfulness and mindful parenting in mother-infant physiological and behavioral attunement at 3 months of age. Study 2 aimed to explore the effect of a mindfulness-based intervention not specific to parenting experience on mother-infant behavioral and physiological attunement and on maternal wellbeing at 9 months of age.
UNASSIGNED: In Study 1, mother-infant (n = 67) behavioral and physiological attunement (i.e., co-regulation and RSA) were collected simultaneously each 20 s during face-to-face interaction. Mothers completed questionnaires about their dispositional mindfulness and mindful parenting. In Study 2, mother-infant dyads were randomly divided into a control (n = 20) and an intervention group (n = 29). The intervention group attended a 5-week mindfulness-based intervention. At T1 and T2, the same procedure described in Study 1 was applied and mothers reported about their wellbeing.
UNASSIGNED: Results showed that maternal mindfulness was associated with high physiological and behavioral attunement at 3 months and with more positive maternal behaviors and less stress at 9 months. Analysis evidenced a slight improvement in the intervention group in maternal dispositional mindfulness and a reduction in parenting stress at T2.
UNASSIGNED: Findings from both studies suggested that maternal mindfulness could represent a protective factor that could support mothers in fostering better dyadic interactions with their infants. The implementation of mindfulness-based interventions for mothers could have preventive and clinical implications.

The COVID-19 lockdown has forced young children to spend more time on media and significantly impacted their mothers\' mental health. This study explored how mothers\' individual distress influences children\'s problematic media use during the Shanghai citywide lockdown caused by COVID-19. Data were collected from 1889 Chinese mothers (Mage = 34.69 years, SD = 3.94 years) with preschoolers aged 3-6 years (Mage = 4.38 years, SD = 1.06 years; 49.0% boys) via an online survey. The statistical analyses relied on SPSS Statistics version 26.0 and macro-program PROCESS 3.3. to investigate the associations and mediation analysis among all the study variables. The results indicated a positive association between maternal distress and children\'s problematic media use, mediated by parenting stress and maladaptive parenting. Specifically, the serial mediation analysis revealed that high levels of maternal distress exacerbate parenting stress, which in turn leads to maladaptive parenting practices. These maladaptive practices subsequently increase problematic media use in preschool children. The findings highlighted that parents need to enhance their ability to manage risk and promote mental health during periods of significant stress and routine disruption to reduce children\'s problematic media use.

Poor motor skills in children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) are associated with childcare stress. This study aimed to assess whether improving the motor skills of children with DCD could reduce parenting stress. The participants were five boys aged 7-10 years with probable DCD and their parents. The intervention comprised 1 hour per week of motor skills training for nine weeks. We measured improvements in the children\'s motor skills and reductions in parenting stress before and after the intervention. All five children showed improvements in motor skills. Parenting stress was reduced in two parents, whereas it worsened in three parents. Improving motor skills in children with probable DCD may not necessarily reduce parenting stress.

BACKGROUND: Parents raising children with Learning Disabilities (LDs) often face multiple challenges and high levels of parenting stress, especially in societies with intense academic competitions. Mindful parenting (MP) is an emerging approach that brings mindful awareness to parent-child interactions and is found effective in reducing parenting stress in various parent populations.
OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effectivenesss of an 8-week online MP program on Chinese parents of children with LDs.
METHODS: A MP program was adapted and implemented in an online format with 69 parents of children with LDs. A randomized controlled trial design was used to examine the efficacy of the mindful parenting group compared with a wait-list control group. Parenting stress, mindful parenting and self-compassion were assessed pre- and post-intervention.
RESULTS: Compared with the wait-list control group, the MP group participants showed decreased parenting stress (d = 0.62, p < 0.05), improved mindful parenting (d = 0.63, p < 0.05), and increased self-compassion (d = 0.61, p < 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS: These findings support the effectiveness of an online MP intervention in reducing parenting stress and increasing mindful parenting and self-compassion among Chinese parents of children with LDs. The behavioral and intrapersonal aspects of MP are more amenable to improvement, whereas the attitudinal and interpersonal aspects, particularly non-judgmental acceptance and compassion towards the child, are resistant to change. Future studies should explore strategies to enhance these attitudinal aspects and interpersonal processes of MP.

OBJECTIVE: To examine associations between prolonged early household food insecurity (FI) during pregnancy, infancy, and toddlerhood, and child feeding practices, and the mediating role of dysfunctional parent-child interactions.
METHODS: We conducted secondary longitudinal analyses of data from the Starting Early Program (StEP) randomized controlled trial, which studied a primary care-based child obesity prevention program for low-income Hispanic families. Our independent variable was FI, using the USDA Food Security Module, during the third trimester of pregnancy and at child ages 10- and 19-months. Frequency of reported FI was defined by the number of periods with FI (0, 1, 2, or 3). Our dependent variables were feeding practices at child age 28-months using the Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire. Our mediating variable was dysfunctional parent-child interactions using the Parenting Stress Index subscale at age 19-months. We used linear regression to determine associations between frequency of reported FI and feeding practices adjusting for covariates, and mediation analyses to determine if dysfunctional parent-child interactions mediate these associations.
RESULTS: Three hundred and forty four mothers completed assessments at child age 28-months. Of the 12 feeding practices examined, higher frequency of reported FI was positively associated with using food as a reward, restriction of food for weight control, and using food for emotional regulation, and was negatively associated with monitoring of less healthy foods. There was a significant indirect effect of frequency of reported FI on these practices through dysfunctional parent-child interactions.
CONCLUSIONS: Higher frequency of reported FI was associated with four feeding practices, through dysfunctional parent-child interactions. Understanding these pathways can inform preventive interventions.