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Parenting During a Pandemic

Webinar for Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center

Cynthia L. Smith, Ph.D.June 18th, 2020

Background

Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology

Professor of Human Development and Family Science at Virginia Tech

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Parenting Firsts

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Baumrind’s Parenting Styles

Responsiveness

PermissiveAuthoritative

UninvolvedAuthoritarian

DemandingnessHigh

High

Low

Low

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Authoritative Parenting

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High Warmth &

High Control Autonomous &  

Internalized Control

Types of Stressors

Parenting Stress Stress related to the

demands placed on the individual by their child

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‘Daily Hassles’ Stress Stress brought on by

navigating the daily obstacles of life

*** During our time at home during the CoVid-19 pandemic, both of these types of stress are high right now ***

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Stressors in a Pandemic

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WORKING FROM HOME

TEACHING YOUR CHILD AT HOME

EMOTIONS OF SOCIAL ISOLATION

Coercive Cycles in Parenting

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Child Non‐Compliance

Parent Response

Child Escalates

Parent Escalates

Parent Gives In

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Media and Families

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Active Media Monitoring

Taking Care of Ourselves

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Meditation for Families

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Resources for Family Stress Management

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The Child Mind Institute https://childmind.org/coping‐during‐covid‐19‐resources‐for‐parents/

National Head Start Association https://www.nhsa.org/covid‐19‐resources‐parents

American Psychological Association https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/managing‐stress

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Power of Positivity

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Parenting as an Emotional Context

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Love for Child, even when displaying non‐optimal behavior

Frustration with External Factors (i.e., CoVid‐19, working 

from home)

Desire to care for self and fulfill own needs

Healthychildren.org

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Children’s Coping Styles

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ACTIVE SUPPORT SEEKING

DISTRACTION  AVOIDANT

Children’s Emotions Lab

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Dealing with Children’s Emotions

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Emotion Coaching

vs. Emotion

Dismissing

Parents’ Own Emotion Regulation

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Thank you!

Questions?19

References

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Baumrind, D. (1966). Effects of authoritative parental control on child behavior. Child Development, 37(4), 887–907. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.2307/1126611

Baumrind, D. (1967). Child care practices anteceding three patterns of preschool behavior. Genetic Psychology Monographs, 75(1), 43–88.

Crescentini, C., Capurso, V., Furlan, S., & Fabbro, F. (2016). Mindfulness-oriented meditation for primary school children: Effects on attention and psychological well-being. Frontiers in Psychology, 7.

Falconier, M. K., Nussbeck, F., Bodenmann, G., Schneider, H., & Bradbury, T. (2015). Stress from daily hassles in couples: Its effects on intradyadic stress, relationship satisfaction, and physical and psychological well-being. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 41(2), 221–235. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1111/jmft.12073\

Gauvain, M., & Huard, R. D. (1999). Family interaction, parenting style, and the development of planning: A longitudinal analysis using archival data. Journal of Family Psychology, 13(1), 75–92. https://doi.org/10.1037/0893-3200.13.1.75

Gerhardt, M., Feng, X., Wu, Q., Hooper, E. G., Ku, S., & Chan, M. H. (2020). A naturalistic study of parental emotion socialization: Unique contributions of fathers. Journal of Family Psychology, 34(2), 204–214. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1037/fam0000602

Gross, J. J. (2002). Emotion regulation: Affective, cognitive, and social consequences. Psychophysiology, 39(3), 281–291. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1017/S0048577201393198

Gus, L., Rose, J., & Gilbert, L. (2015). Emotion Coaching: A universal strategy for supporting and promoting sustainable emotional and behavioural well-being. Educational and Child Psychology, 32(1), 31–41.

Lunkenheimer, E. S., Shields, A. M., & Cortina, K. S. (2007). Parental emotion coaching and dismissing in family interaction. Social Development, 16(2), 232–248. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1111/j.1467-9507.2007.00382.x

Magill-Evans, J., & Harrison, M. J. (2001). Parent–child interactions, parenting stress, and developmental outcomes at 4 years. Children’s Health Care, 30(2), 135–150. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1207/S15326888CHC3002_4

Östberg, M., & Hagekull, B. (2013). Parenting stress and external stressors as predictors of maternal ratings of child adjustment. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 54(3), 213–221. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1111/sjop.12045

Padilla-Walker, L. M., Coyne, S. M., Kroff, S. L., & Memmott-Elison, M. K. (2018). The protective role of parental media monitoring style from early to late adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47(2), 445–459. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1007/s10964-017-0722-4

Plante, C. N., Gentile, D. A., Groves, C. L., Modlin, A., & Blanco-Herrera, J. (2019). Video games as coping mechanisms in the etiology of video game addiction. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 8(4), 385–394. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1037/ppm0000186

vanOyen Witvliet, C., DeYoung, N., Hofelich, A. J., & DeYoung, P. (2011). Compassionate reappraisal and emotion suppression as alternatives to offense-focused rumination: Implications for forgiveness and psychophysiological well-being. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 6(4), 286–299. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.vt.edu/10.1080/17439760.2011.577091