Elsevier

Journal of Affective Disorders

Volume 190, 15 January 2016, Pages 784-791
Journal of Affective Disorders

Research paper
The relationship between challenging parenting behaviour and childhood anxiety disorders

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2015.11.032Get rights and content
Under a Creative Commons license
open access

Highlights

  • A multi-method assessment of childhood anxiety was used.

  • Fathers engaged in challenging parenting behaviour more than mothers.

  • Fathers' challenging parenting behaviour was associated with lower child anxiety.

  • Mothers' challenging parenting behaviour was associated with lower child anxiety.

  • Only mothers' challenging parenting behaviour predicted child anxiety diagnosis.

Abstract

Background

This research investigates the relationship between challenging parenting behaviour and childhood anxiety disorders proposed by Bögels and Phares (2008). Challenging parenting behaviour involves the playful encouragement of children to go beyond their own limits, and may decrease children's risk for anxiety (Bögels and Phares, 2008).

Method

Parents (n=164 mothers and 144 fathers) of 164 children aged between 3.4 and 4.8 years participated in the current study. A multi-method, multi-informant assessment of anxiety was used, incorporating data from diagnostic interviews as well as questionnaire measures. Parents completed self-report measures of their parenting behaviour (n=147 mothers and 138 fathers) and anxiety (n=154 mothers and 143 fathers). Mothers reported on their child's anxiety via questionnaire as well as diagnostic interview (n=156 and 164 respectively). Of these children, 74 met criteria for an anxiety disorder and 90 did not.

Results

Fathers engaged in challenging parenting behaviour more often than mothers. Both mothers' and fathers' challenging parenting behaviour was associated with lower report of child anxiety symptoms. However, only mothers' challenging parenting behaviour was found to predict child clinical anxiety diagnosis.

Limitations

Shared method variance from mothers confined the interpretation of these results. Moreover, due to study design, it is not possible to delineate cause and effect.

Conclusions

The finding with respect to maternal challenging parenting behaviour was not anticipated, prompting replication of these results. Future research should investigate the role of challenging parenting behaviour by both caregivers as this may have implications for parenting interventions for anxious children.

Keywords

Anxiety disorders
Challenging parenting behaviour
Fathers
Mothers

Cited by (0)

This study was supported by the Australian Research Council Grant DP0878609. All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.