Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study
Executive functioning (EF) is one of the building blocks in parental caregiving behavior, and contextual variables have been reported to moderate the link between EF and caregiving behavior. Although psychological distress due to various factors is prevalent during early parenthood and is negatively...
Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-10-01
|
Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.735734/full |
id |
doaj-5883afffb67541999a5c1f0349dbfdc5 |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Elisabeth Nordenswan Elisabeth Nordenswan Kirby Deater-Deckard Mira Karrasch Matti Laine Eeva-Leena Kataja Eeva Holmberg Eeva Eskola Hetti Hakanen Hasse Karlsson Hasse Karlsson Hasse Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Riikka Korja Riikka Korja |
spellingShingle |
Elisabeth Nordenswan Elisabeth Nordenswan Kirby Deater-Deckard Mira Karrasch Matti Laine Eeva-Leena Kataja Eeva Holmberg Eeva Eskola Hetti Hakanen Hasse Karlsson Hasse Karlsson Hasse Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Riikka Korja Riikka Korja Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study Frontiers in Psychology executive functioning emotional availability psychological distress caregiving behavior toddlerhood |
author_facet |
Elisabeth Nordenswan Elisabeth Nordenswan Kirby Deater-Deckard Mira Karrasch Matti Laine Eeva-Leena Kataja Eeva Holmberg Eeva Eskola Hetti Hakanen Hasse Karlsson Hasse Karlsson Hasse Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Linnea Karlsson Riikka Korja Riikka Korja |
author_sort |
Elisabeth Nordenswan |
title |
Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study |
title_short |
Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study |
title_full |
Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study |
title_fullStr |
Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study |
title_full_unstemmed |
Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study |
title_sort |
maternal executive functioning, emotional availability and psychological distress during toddlerhood: a finnbrain birth cohort study |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
series |
Frontiers in Psychology |
issn |
1664-1078 |
publishDate |
2021-10-01 |
description |
Executive functioning (EF) is one of the building blocks in parental caregiving behavior, and contextual variables have been reported to moderate the link between EF and caregiving behavior. Although psychological distress due to various factors is prevalent during early parenthood and is negatively associated with adult EF, it is not known whether psychological distress influences the maternal EF/caregiving link. This study explored the association between maternal EF and caregiving behavior (more specifically, Emotional Availability/EA), and whether single and cumulative maternal psychological distress domains moderated the EF/EA association in a general population sample of 137 Finnish birth cohort mothers with 2.5-year-old children. EF was measured with a composite of five computerized Cogstate tasks, EA with the Emotional Availability Scales, and three psychological distress domains with self-report questionnaires (depression: EPDS, anxiety: SCL-90, insomnia: AIS). Better EF was significantly associated with more positive, sensitive caregiving, but this association was no longer significant when controlling for education level. Neither individual nor cumulative distress domains moderated the EF/EA association significantly, although the observed moderation effects were in the expected direction. These findings suggest that EF should be recognized alongside socioemotional factors as variables that are associated with parental caregiving behavior during toddlerhood. Furthermore, if the non-significant moderation results are replicated, they indicate that mothers in community samples are not at great risk for psychological distress that would compromise their capacity to utilize their EF while caring for their child. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings, as well as to examine these associations among fathers and in samples that have higher levels of chronic stressors. Studies with more diverse samples in terms of distress levels and EF performance would provide further insight into early childhood parenting and its risk factors. |
topic |
executive functioning emotional availability psychological distress caregiving behavior toddlerhood |
url |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.735734/full |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT elisabethnordenswan maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT elisabethnordenswan maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT kirbydeaterdeckard maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT mirakarrasch maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT mattilaine maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT eevaleenakataja maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT eevaholmberg maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT eevaeskola maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT hettihakanen maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT hassekarlsson maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT hassekarlsson maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT hassekarlsson maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT linneakarlsson maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT linneakarlsson maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT linneakarlsson maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT riikkakorja maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy AT riikkakorja maternalexecutivefunctioningemotionalavailabilityandpsychologicaldistressduringtoddlerhoodafinnbrainbirthcohortstudy |
_version_ |
1716838191963570176 |
spelling |
doaj-5883afffb67541999a5c1f0349dbfdc52021-10-08T15:27:57ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782021-10-011210.3389/fpsyg.2021.735734735734Maternal Executive Functioning, Emotional Availability and Psychological Distress During Toddlerhood: A FinnBrain Birth Cohort StudyElisabeth Nordenswan0Elisabeth Nordenswan1Kirby Deater-Deckard2Mira Karrasch3Matti Laine4Eeva-Leena Kataja5Eeva Holmberg6Eeva Eskola7Hetti Hakanen8Hasse Karlsson9Hasse Karlsson10Hasse Karlsson11Linnea Karlsson12Linnea Karlsson13Linnea Karlsson14Riikka Korja15Riikka Korja16The FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, United StatesDepartment of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Psychology, Åbo Akademi University, Turku, FinlandThe FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandThe FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandThe FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandThe FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandThe FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Psychiatry, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, FinlandThe FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Psychiatry, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Clinical Medicine, Turku University Hospital and University of Turku, Turku, FinlandThe FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandDepartment of Psychology, University of Turku, Turku, FinlandExecutive functioning (EF) is one of the building blocks in parental caregiving behavior, and contextual variables have been reported to moderate the link between EF and caregiving behavior. Although psychological distress due to various factors is prevalent during early parenthood and is negatively associated with adult EF, it is not known whether psychological distress influences the maternal EF/caregiving link. This study explored the association between maternal EF and caregiving behavior (more specifically, Emotional Availability/EA), and whether single and cumulative maternal psychological distress domains moderated the EF/EA association in a general population sample of 137 Finnish birth cohort mothers with 2.5-year-old children. EF was measured with a composite of five computerized Cogstate tasks, EA with the Emotional Availability Scales, and three psychological distress domains with self-report questionnaires (depression: EPDS, anxiety: SCL-90, insomnia: AIS). Better EF was significantly associated with more positive, sensitive caregiving, but this association was no longer significant when controlling for education level. Neither individual nor cumulative distress domains moderated the EF/EA association significantly, although the observed moderation effects were in the expected direction. These findings suggest that EF should be recognized alongside socioemotional factors as variables that are associated with parental caregiving behavior during toddlerhood. Furthermore, if the non-significant moderation results are replicated, they indicate that mothers in community samples are not at great risk for psychological distress that would compromise their capacity to utilize their EF while caring for their child. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings, as well as to examine these associations among fathers and in samples that have higher levels of chronic stressors. Studies with more diverse samples in terms of distress levels and EF performance would provide further insight into early childhood parenting and its risk factors.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.735734/fullexecutive functioningemotional availabilitypsychological distresscaregiving behaviortoddlerhood |