Externalizing behavior problems are highly prevalent in the preschool years. These behaviors are particularly common and problematic among children who are from low-income, minority backgrounds. There is evidence in the literature that describes parental health and parenting problems as risk factors for child externalizing behavior problems. The primary objective of this study was to better understand the relationship between parental health factors, parenting, and child behavior problems. Utilizing data from a low-income African American population, this study examined whether observed measures of parenting behaviors mediated the relationship between measures of parental health (e.g., depression, stress, and BMI) and child externalizing behavior problems. Observed measures of parenting behaviors were collected during three different parent-child interactions (i.e., snack, free play, and clean-up). Results revealed significant positive correlations between parental stress and depression and child externalizing behavior. However, path analyses showed that parental stress was the primary predictor of parental reports of child behavior problems. The current study did not find support for the hypothesis that observed parenting behaviors would mediate the relation between parental health and child behavior. These results, limitations of the present study, and future research directions are discussed.
","abstract_html":"<p>Externalizing behavior problems are highly prevalent in the preschool years. These behaviors are particularly common and problematic among children who are from low-income, minority backgrounds. There is evidence in the literature that describes parental health and parenting problems as risk factors for child externalizing behavior problems. The primary objective of this study was to better understand the relationship between parental health factors, parenting, and child behavior problems. Utilizing data from a low-income African American population, this study examined whether observed measures of parenting behaviors mediated the relationship between measures of parental health (e.g., depression, stress, and BMI) and child externalizing behavior problems. Observed measures of parenting behaviors were collected during three different parent-child interactions (i.e., snack, free play, and clean-up). Results revealed significant positive correlations between parental stress and depression and child externalizing behavior. However, path analyses showed that parental stress was the primary predictor of parental reports of child behavior problems. The current study did not find support for the hypothesis that observed parenting behaviors would mediate the relation between parental health and child behavior. These results, limitations of the present study, and future research directions are discussed.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Esposito, Cassandra Lynn"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)","degree_level":"Open Access Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Heather Janisse, Ph.D., Chair","Alissa Huth-Bocks, Ph.D.","Catherine Peterson, Ph.D."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:13Z","subjects":["Behavior Problems","Early Childhood","Head Start","Clinical Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/744","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Heather Janisse, Ph.D., Chair","Alissa Huth-Bocks, Ph.D.","Catherine Peterson, Ph.D."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Esposito, Cassandra Lynn"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-01-12T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Behavior Problems","Early Childhood","Head Start","Clinical Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/744"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Externalizing behavior problems are highly prevalent in the preschool years. These behaviors are particularly common and problematic among children who are from low-income, minority backgrounds. There is evidence in the literature that describes parental health and parenting problems as risk factors for child externalizing behavior problems. The primary objective of this study was to better understand the relationship between parental health factors, parenting, and child behavior problems. Utilizing data from a low-income African American population, this study examined whether observed measures of parenting behaviors mediated the relationship between measures of parental health (e.g., depression, stress, and BMI) and child externalizing behavior problems. Observed measures of parenting behaviors were collected during three different parent-child interactions (i.e., snack, free play, and clean-up). Results revealed significant positive correlations between parental stress and depression and child externalizing behavior. However, path analyses showed that parental stress was the primary predictor of parental reports of child behavior problems. The current study did not find support for the hypothesis that observed parenting behaviors would mediate the relation between parental health and child behavior. These results, limitations of the present study, and future research directions are discussed.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Parental health, parenting behavior and externalizing behavior problems among low-income African American preschool children"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Heather Janisse, Ph.D., Chair","Alissa Huth-Bocks, Ph.D.","Catherine Peterson, Ph.D."],"dc:creator":["Esposito, Cassandra Lynn"],"dc:date.available":["2018-01-12T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Externalizing behavior problems are highly prevalent in the preschool years. These behaviors are particularly common and problematic among children who are from low-income, minority backgrounds. There is evidence in the literature that describes parental health and parenting problems as risk factors for child externalizing behavior problems. The primary objective of this study was to better understand the relationship between parental health factors, parenting, and child behavior problems. Utilizing data from a low-income African American population, this study examined whether observed measures of parenting behaviors mediated the relationship between measures of parental health (e.g., depression, stress, and BMI) and child externalizing behavior problems. Observed measures of parenting behaviors were collected during three different parent-child interactions (i.e., snack, free play, and clean-up). Results revealed significant positive correlations between parental stress and depression and child externalizing behavior. However, path analyses showed that parental stress was the primary predictor of parental reports of child behavior problems. The current study did not find support for the hypothesis that observed parenting behaviors would mediate the relation between parental health and child behavior. These results, limitations of the present study, and future research directions are discussed.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/744"],"dc:subject":["Behavior Problems","Early Childhood","Head Start","Clinical Psychology"],"dc:title":["Parental health, parenting behavior and externalizing behavior problems among low-income African American preschool children"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:13Z"}