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Parental Hostility and Depression asPredictors of Young Children's Aggressionand Conduct ProblemsMichele Knox a , Kimberly Burkhart b & Sadik A. Khuder ca Department of Psychiatry , University of Toledo College ofMedicine , Toledo, Ohio, USAb Department of Psychology , University of Toledo College ofMedicine , Toledo, Ohio, USAc Department of Medicine and Public Health , University of ToledoCollege of Medicine , Toledo, Ohio, USAPublished online: 19 Oct 2011.

To cite this article: Michele Knox , Kimberly Burkhart & Sadik A. Khuder (2011) Parental Hostility andDepression as Predictors of Young Children's Aggression and Conduct Problems, Journal of Aggression,Maltreatment & Trauma, 20:7, 800-811, DOI: 10.1080/10926771.2011.610772

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Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 20:800–811, 2011Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLCISSN: 1092-6771 print/1545-083X onlineDOI: 10.1080/10926771.2011.610772

Parental Hostility and Depressionas Predictors of Young Children’s Aggression

and Conduct Problems

MICHELE KNOXDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, Ohio, USA

KIMBERLY BURKHARTDepartment of Psychology, University of Toledo College of Medicine, Toledo, Ohio, USA

SADIK A. KHUDERDepartment of Medicine and Public Health, University of Toledo College of Medicine,

Toledo, Ohio, USA

Parental hostility and parental depression are associated withchildhood behavior problems, but these have been studied inde-pendently in the literature. This study examined the relationshipsbetween parental hostility and depression and childhood aggres-sion and conduct problems. Parental hostility was hypothesized topredict children’s current and future (two months later) aggres-sion and conduct problems. Participants were primary caregiversof children 0 to 10 years of age. Results indicate that hostilityis a better predictor of present and future childhood aggressionand conduct problems than depression. Implications of this find-ing for preventing and treating childhood aggression and conductproblems are discussed.

KEYWORDS aggression, children, emotional abuse, family

Submitted 26 February 2010; revised 25 June 2010, 2 September 2010, 12 October 2010;accepted 30 November 2010.

Address correspondence to Michele Knox, University of Toledo College of Medicine,Kobacker Center, 3130 Glendale Ave., Mail Stop 1161, Toledo, OH 43614. E-mail: michele.knox@utoledo.edu

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Hostility is linked to numerous negative health outcomes (Tindle et al., 2009)such as exaggerated cardiovascular reactivity to interpersonal provocation(Davis, Matthews, & McGrath, 2000) and increased level or frequency ofinterpersonal and social conflicts (Berkman & Orth-Gomér, 1996). High lev-els of hostility in parents correlates with externalizing behaviors in children(Dodge, Pettit, & Bates, 1994; McKee, Colletti, Rakow, Jones, & Forehand,2008; Patterson, Reid, & Dishion, 1992; Williams, Conger, & Blozis, 2007)as well as interpersonal aggression in children and youths (Williams et al.,2007). Patterson et al. (1992) identified a “coercive family process” that per-petuated and maintained childhood externalizing problems. In this process,changes in the parent’s hostile and coercive behavior negatively reinforcednegative child behaviors. The parent’s hostility and coercion were also neg-atively reinforced by shifts in the child’s behaviors. Through this process,childhood aggression and maladaptive behaviors were inadvertently pro-moted and maintained (Conger, Ge, Glder, Lorenz, & Simons, 1994; Pattersonet al., 1992).

Hostile parental attitudes promote hostility and related problems in chil-dren and youths (Houston & Vavak, 1991; Matthews, Woodall, Kenyon,& Jacob, 1996; McGonigle, Smith, Benjamin, & Turner, 1993; Woodall &Matthews, 1989). Similarly, parents’ heightened accessibility of hostility-related schemata causes them to interpret children’s behaviors as hostile(Farc, Crouch, Skowronski, & Milner, 2008). Such parents tended to see hos-tile exchanges as caused by the child (Farc et al., 2008), and they believethat the children are the problem in the parent–child relationship. Such par-ents tend to see themselves as victims of their children’s misbehavior andhave “threat-sensitive caregiving schema” (Bradley & Peters, 1991; Bugental,Blue, & Cruzcosa, 1989; Martorell & Bugental, 2006). These parents mightover-react to their children, which leads to negative and maladaptive parent-ing, which in turn leads to the development and maintenance of childhoodbehavior problems.

A separate body of literature linked parental depression to children’sexternalizing behavior problems. Although much of this research was con-ducted on maternal depression (Downey & Coyne, 1990; Foster et al., 2008),recent studies established associations between parental depression and chil-dren’s externalizing symptoms (Cummings, Keller, & Davies, 2005; Kane &Garber, 2009). Depressed mothers, in comparison to mothers who werenot depressed, displayed lower levels of parental warmth, engaged in lesspositive parenting behaviors (reading, cuddling, playing, establishing rules,and routines), engaged in more negative parenting behaviors (physical andverbal aggression, criticism; Cummings & Davies, 1999; Foster et al.; Lyons-Ruth, Lyubchik, Wolfe, & Bronfman, 2002), and showed greater use ofpsychological control methods (Cummings et al., 2005). In a study of moth-ers with preschool-aged children, Trapolini, McMahon, and Ungerer (2007)found that chronic maternal depression was related to child externalizing

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behaviors, which were not accounted for by low levels of marital adjust-ment. Weissman and Paykel (1974) found that depressed mothers often hada hostile home environment and displayed resentment toward their children.Rutter (1966) and Kinard (1982) found that maternal depression related tohostility toward the child. Field, Healy, Goldstein, and Guthertz (1990) stud-ied parent–infant interactions and found that depressed mothers spent moretime in an “anger/poke state” (i.e., speaking to or handling the infant angrily,or roughly poking or pulling at the infant) than mothers in a control group.Following a meta-analysis of maternal depression and parenting behavior,Lovejoy, Graczyk, O’Hare, and Neuman (2000) concluded that “depressionappeared to be associated most strongly with irritability and hostility towardthe child” (p. 583).

The negativity that characterizes some of the interactions betweendepressed parents and their children might be an important variable of inter-est. In a review of maternal depression and parenting behavior, Zuravin,Bliss, and Cohen-Callow (2005) concluded that maternal depression relatedto adverse parenting behaviors, especially with parents of younger children.In a recent study, Leckman-Westin, Cohen, and Stueve (2009) found thatmaternal negativity toward young children related to children’s externalizingproblems regardless of maternal depressive symptoms. Thus, problematicparent–child interactions that exist in situations in which parental depres-sion is present might account for the association between depression andchildhood externalizing problems (Lovejoy et al., 2000).

In particular, negative interactions and parenting styles marked byhostility could lead to childhood behavior problems. Lyons-Ruth et al.(2002) detailed two types of parent–child interactional patterns character-istic of depressed parents. These include a “hostile, self-referential pattern”(p. 113), which is characterized by negative and intrusive behaviors by thedepressed parent, and a “helpless, fearful pattern” (p. 113), which is char-acterized by reduced rates of positive parenting behaviors. Each patternrelated to different sets of infant behaviors; the former with disorganizedinsecure avoidant or ambivalent behavior, and the latter with disorganizedsecure approach behaviors. The negative, hostile interactions characteris-tic of the hostile, self-referential parenting style of some depressed parentslink parental depression to children’s aggressive and conduct behaviorproblems.

Parental hostility and depression as predictors of child behavior prob-lems have not been studied concurrently. In addition, it has not beenwell established if such factors relate only to short-term changes in chil-dren’s behavior, or if they might be related to more persistent, longer termbehavioral changes. Parental hostility might relate to temporary changesin children’s aggressive behavior as children react to isolated instances ofparental hostility. Children’s aggressive behavior might also persist overtime, suggesting more enduring problems. The purpose of this study was

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to examine whether parental depression and hostility account for aggressionand conduct problems in children, both concurrently and prospectively. Thehypotheses were that (a) parental hostility will contribute significantly to theprediction of children’s current aggressive behavior and conduct problems,(b) parental hostility will contribute significantly to the prediction of chil-dren’s future (two months later) aggressive behavior and conduct problems,and (c) parental hostility will be a better predictor of current and futurechildhood aggression and conduct problems than parental depression.

METHODS

Participants

Participants were parents (or primary caregivers serving in the role of par-ents) of children ages 0 to 10 years. Exclusion criteria were incapacitatingmental illness or mental retardation in the parent. All participants wereinvolved in some form of treatment or family services, including mentalhealth treatment for the child, family, or both; parent training programs; andcommunity support and outreach.

The total sample of 80 participants included 63 biological, adoptive,step, or foster mothers; 12 biological, step, or adoptive fathers; 3 grand-parents; and 2 aunts. Household income ranged from $8,000 to $300,000.On average, parents were high school graduates (M = 12.99, SD = 2.23),33 years of age (M = 33.31, SD = 8.41), with children 5 years of age (M =5.09, SD = 2.71). Other demographic variables are listed in Table 1.

TABLE 1 Frequencies and Percentages of DemographicVariables

Variables n %

Place of recruitmentCommon pleas court 15 18.8Community center 24 30.0Mental health facility 41 51.2

Parent ethnicityCaucasian 50 62.5African American 18 22.5Latino/a 9 11.2Biracial 3 3.8

Parent genderMale 67 83.8Female 13 16.2

Child genderMale 50 62.5Female 30 37.5

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Measures

PARENTAL DEPRESSION AND HOSTILITY

The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI; Derogatis, 1993) is a 53-item instrumentwith nine subscales: Interpersonal Sensitivity, Depression, Anxiety, Hostility,Phobic Anxiety, Paranoid Ideation, Somatization, Obsession-Compulsion,and Psychoticism. The scale assesses symptoms experienced in the pastseven days. Items are measured on a 5-point scale ranging from 0 (not atall) to 4 (extremely). In this study, the Cronbach’s coefficient alpha for eachof the nine subscales ranged from .71 to .85 at Time 1 and from .68 to .91 atTime 2. Two of the BSI subscales are reported in this article.

The Depression subscale contains six items: “Thoughts of ending yourlife,” “Feeling lonely,” “Feeling no interest in things,” “Feeling hopeless aboutthe future,” “Feelings of worthlessness,” and “Feeling blue.” The BSI man-ual states that “The Depression dimension reflects a representative rangeof the indications of clinical depression. Symptoms of dysphoric mood andaffect are represented as are lack of motivation and loss of interest in life”(Derogatis, 1993, p. 8). The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the Depressionsubscale was .85 at Time 1 and .84 at Time 2.

The Hostility subscale contains five items: “Feeling easily annoyed orirritated,” “Temper outbursts that you could not control,” “Having urges tobeat, injure, or harm someone,” “Have urges to break or smash things,” and“Getting into frequent arguments.” The BSI manual states that “The Hostilitydimension includes thoughts, feelings, or actions that are characteristic of thenegative affect state of anger” (Derogatis, 1993, p. 8). The Cronbach’s alphacoefficient for the Hostility subscale was .78 at Time 1 and .81 at Time 2.

CHILDHOOD CONDUCT PROBLEMS AND AGGRESSION

The Conduct Problems subscale of the Strengths and DifficultiesQuestionnaire (SDQ; Goodman, 2001) measured children’s conduct prob-lems. The SDQ has good internal consistency, test–retest reliability, andpredictive validity (Goodman, 2001). In a study of 3- to 16-year-olds,Cronbach’s alpha was .63 for the SDQ Conduct Problems parent-report scale(Goodman, 2001). The Aggressive Behavior subscale of the Child BehaviorChecklist (CBCL; Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1983) measured children’s aggres-sive behavior. The CBCL has high test–retest reliability (Cronbach’s alpharanging from .78 to .97), internal consistency, and discriminant validity(Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1983).

Procedure

After institutional review board approval, agency staff members wereinformed about the study and agreed to recruit participants. Families were

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recruited from a mental health agency, an urban community center, anda community-based parenting program. All parents participated in thestudy voluntarily after informed written consent. Participants received giftcertificates to a local grocery store after completing the measures at Time1 and again 2 months later after completing measures at Time 2. A periodof two months between Time 1 and Time 2 minimized attrition, as familieswere recruited from programs and services that typically ended in less thanthree months.

Data Analysis

Bivariate Pearson correlations between demographic variables (parent age,child age, income, and parent years of education) and outcome variables(SDQ scores, CBCL Aggression Scale scores) were examined. Demographicvariables with nonsignificant correlations with outcome variables wereexcluded from subsequent analyses. Multiple linear regression was usedto predict children’s current and future aggressive behavior and conductproblems. To examine the joint effect of parental depression and parentalhostility on children’s aggression and conduct problems, an interactionterm (BSI Hostility × BSI Depression) was entered simultaneously withBSI Depression and BSI Hostility scores in four different multiple linearregression analyses. Each of the four analyses was conducted separatelywith the following outcome variables: Time 1 CBCL Aggression scores, Time1 SDQ scores, Time 2 CBCL Aggression scores, and Time 2 SDQ scores.Lastly, analyses of variance (ANOVAs) were used to examine whether therelationships between parent variables related to child behavior at Time2 independently of child behavior at Time 1. In these analyses, Time 2 CBCLand SDQ scores were used as dependent variables, Time 1 CBCL and SDQscores were covariates, and BSI Depression and BSI Hostility scores werefactors. For these analyses, BSI Depression and BSI Hostility scores weredichotomized to identify parents low and high in each of these domains.BSI T scores of 65 or higher were categorized as “high” and T scores ofless than 65 were categorized as “low.”

RESULTS

Correlations between the variables of interest in the study are listed inTable 2. The demographic variables were not correlated significantly withthe outcome variables, and therefore were not included in the subsequentregression analyses. In the regression analysis with Time 1 CBCL AggressiveBehavior subscale scores as the dependent variable, the multiple R wasstatistically significant, F(3, 77) = 9.68, p < .001, R2 adj. = .25. Table 3shows that BSI Hostility and the interaction variable were the only significantpredictors. A second linear regression analysis was conducted with Time

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TABLE 2 Correlations among Predictor Variables and Time 1 and Time 2 Criterion Variables

Variable 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

1. BSI Hostility .62∗∗ .84∗∗ .48∗∗ .40∗∗ .47∗∗ .46∗∗

2. BSI Depression .89∗∗ .29∗∗ .16 .26∗ .27∗

3. Interaction variable .31∗∗ .24∗ .33∗∗ .34∗∗

4. Time 1 CBCL Aggressive Behavior raw scores .75∗∗ .72∗∗ .61∗∗

5. Time 1 SDQ Conduct Problems scores .66∗∗ .62∗∗

6. Time 2 CBCL Aggressive Behavior raw scores .72∗∗

7. Time 2 SDQ Conduct Problems scores

Note. BSI = Brief Symptom Inventory; CBCL = Child Behavior Checklist; SDQ = Strengths and DifficultiesQuestionnaire.∗p < .05. ∗∗p < .01.

TABLE 3 Regression Analysis for the Prediction of Time 1 Child Behavior Checklist AggressiveBehavior Raw Scores and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Conduct Problems Scores

Criterion Predictor �R2 B SE B ß

Time 1 CBCL AggressiveBehavior raw scores

BSI Hostility 10.90 2.52 .82∗∗

BSI Depression 3.10 1.80 .32Interaction variable .28 −3.61 1.50 −.65∗

Time 1 SDQ ConductProblems

BSI Hostility 2.62 .77 .70∗∗

BSI Depression .09 .56 .03Interaction variable .20 −.60 .46 −.37

Note. CBCL = Child Behavior Checklist; BSI = Brief Symptom Inventory; SDQ = Strengths and DifficultiesQuestionnaire.∗p < .05. ∗∗p < .01.

1 SDQ Conduct Problems scores as the dependent variable. Multiple R forthe regression was statistically significant, F(3, 73) = 5.68, p = .002, R2 adj.= .16. Only BSI Hostility scores contributed significantly to the prediction ofSDQ Conduct Problems scores.

The next analyses employed Time 2 CBCL Aggressive Behavior scoresas the dependent variable. Multiple R for the regression was statisticallysignificant, F(3, 79) = 7.73, p < .001, R2 adj. = .20. Table 4 shows that onlyBSI Hostility contributed significantly to the prediction of Time 2 AggressiveBehavior scores. Lastly, linear multiple regression was used with Time 2 SDQConduct Problems as the dependent variable. Multiple R for the regressionwas statistically significant, F(3, 74) = 7.16, p < .001, R2 adj. = .20. Only BSIHostility scores contributed significantly to the prediction of SDQ ConductProblems scores (Table 4).

Univariate ANOVA was conducted with Time 2 CBCL AggressiveBehavior scores as the dependent variable, and Time 1 CBCL AggressiveBehavior scores as the covariate. There were no significant effects of hostil-ity or depression in these analyses. Univariate ANOVA was conducted withTime 2 SDQ scores as the dependent variable, and Time 1 SDQ scores asthe covariate. There was no significant effect of depression. However, asignificant effect of hostility was identified, F(73) = 4.80, p = .03, η2 = .06.

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TABLE 4 Regression Analysis for the Prediction of Time 2 Child Behavior Checklist AggressiveBehavior Raw Scores and Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire Conduct Problems Scores

Criterion Predictor �R2 B SE B ß

Time 2 CBCL AggressiveBehavior raw scores

BSI Hostility 7.78 2.25 .66∗

BSI Depression .82 1.61 .10Interaction variable .23 −1.50 1.34 −.31

Time 2 SDQ ConductProblems

BSI Hostility 2.10 .62 .67∗

BSI Depression .32 .45 .14Interaction variable .23 −.44 .37 −.34

Note. CBCL = Child Behavior Checklist; BSI = Brief Symptom Inventory; SDQ = Strengths and DifficultiesQuestionnaire.∗p < .01

DISCUSSION

The purpose of this study was to examine whether parental depressionand hostility account for aggression and conduct problems in children,both concurrently and prospectively. As hypothesized, results indicated thatparental hostility contributed significantly to the prediction of children’s cur-rent aggressive behavior and conduct problems. This finding was true forboth present and future child aggression and conduct problems, as assessedby two different measures. Results suggest that parental hostility relates tocurrent childhood aggression and conduct problems, a finding that mightreflect children’s time-limited reactions to recent hostile parental behav-ior. However, results indicate that parental hostility also predicted futurechildhood behavior problems, suggesting that the behavioral changes thatrelate to parental hostility might be enduring rather than simply transitoryin nature. Consistent with hypotheses, depression scores failed to contributesignificantly to the prediction of present and future (two months later) CBCLAggressive Behavior scores and SDQ Conduct Problems scores.

Parental hostility was related to future child behavior problems inde-pendent of the child’s prior behavior problems. This finding was true for thebroad construct of conduct problems, but not for the more narrowly definedconstruct of aggressive behavior. This indicates that parental hostility mightrelate to a broader array of future rule-breaking and oppositional behaviorsand not simply to aggression per se.

The interaction between depression and hostility contributed to theprediction of present child aggression, but not to future aggression. Thissample was involved in services and social support that might have allevi-ated depression over time in some parents, causing depression to be lessof a factor at Time 2. However, the services they received were not likelyto address or alleviate parental hostility. Individuals typically do not secureservices for hostility per se, in part because it is not a clinical diagnosis withan evidence-based treatment. More information about services received by

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the families in the study, as well as repeated measurement of depressionand hostility at Time 2, are needed to address this question.

The depression and hostility interaction also did not predict present orfuture conduct problems. The way the BSI measures depression emphasizeshopelessness, lack of initiative, and loss of interest, which are symptoms thatcould cause a parent to be less involved in efforts related to discipline. Theparent who is both hostile and depressed could be highly inconsistent—passive and withdrawn at times, and punitive and volatile at other times—thus creating an atmosphere of inconsistent parenting. This context mightbe specifically conducive to aggression in young children (Linfoot, Martin,& Stephenson, 1999). Future research identifying the parenting behaviorsof hostile, depressed parents is needed to explain the implication of thisfinding.

Overall, the results indicate that when parental hostility and depressionare entered simultaneously as independent variables, hostility is the betterpredictor of children’s aggression and conduct problems. These findings arein keeping with those of McKee et al. (2008), who reviewed the parentaldepression literature and identified parental hostility as a vital construct.Characteristics of hostility such as irritability, anger, and resentment towardchildren might be more important predictors of conduct problems and futureaggression than depression. Although it can be present in both hostile anddepressed parents at times, it might specifically be negativity toward thechild that leads to the most negative outcomes for children. This is in keep-ing with the findings of Leckman-Westin et al. (2009), who demonstratedthat maternal negativity toward young children was more important thandepression. In addition, parents’ tendency to be physiologically or behav-iorally overreactive to children’s perceived misbehavior could contribute tonegative parenting practices and maladaptive parent–child interactions, andlead to conduct problems in children.

Findings from this study can be used to bolster prevention and interven-tion efforts related to childhood aggression and related conduct problems.Children of hostile parents should be considered to be at risk for theseproblems, and parenting programs should expressly address parental hostil-ity. As McKee et al. (2008) stated of parental hostility, “this type of parentingbehavior should be specifically targeted in parenting programs” (p. 212).This could be achieved in several ways. For example, as suggested byGordis, Margolin, and John (2001), it is possible that educating parents aboutthe impact of hostility on children and helping parents to identify and reducehostility could be advantageous. Hostile parents might have limited aware-ness of their tendencies to misattribute blame to their children. In this case,programming could focus on increasing awareness and targeting and replac-ing misattributions. Similar to the “enhanced home visitation” suggested byBugental et al. (1989), child misbehavior and family problems could beframed as common challenges rather than as threats to the parent. Children’s

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misbehavior can be framed as “mistakes” that call for help and guidanceby the parents. Parents also could be taught to identify and reduce child-blaming cognitions. Education about child development might help themto more accurately interpret children’s annoying or troublesome behavior.Furthermore, programming could focus on helping parents to feel capableand powerful when faced with negative events. As suggested by Leckman-Westin et al. (2009), interventions should help parents to increase demon-strations of affection and responsiveness to young children, which mightoffset the negative effects of hostile or otherwise negative parental behavior.

Limitations of this study should be mentioned. First, both parent symp-toms and children’s problems were based on self-report, and the relationshipbetween parent psychopathology and children’s behavior problems mightbe inflated due to shared informant and method variance. Future researchwould benefit from the use of other reports such as observation or teacherreport of child behavior. In addition, the sample was recruited from family-serving agencies and might not be applicable to parents who are notreceiving such support. Lastly, the sample was largely Caucasian (62.5%),so findings might be most applicable to this ethnic group. Future researchwould benefit from gathering more diverse community samples.

Conclusion

This study is the first to concurrently evaluate the relative contributionsof parental hostility and depression to children’s conduct and aggressivebehavior problems. Findings suggest that parent hostility could play animportant role in the development or maintenance of these problems, andthat prevention and intervention efforts should expressly address hostility.

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