Maternal depressive symptoms and adolescent academic attainment: testing pathways via parenting and self-control

Ng-Knight, Terry, Shelton, Katherine H., Frederickson, Norah, McManus, I.C. and Rice, Frances 2018. Maternal depressive symptoms and adolescent academic attainment: testing pathways via parenting and self-control. Journal of Adolescence 62 , pp. 61-69. 10.1016/j.adolescence.2017.11.003

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Abstract

Maternal depression is associated with reduced academic attainment in children, however, it is not clear how this association comes about. Depressive symptoms are associated with impairment in social roles including parenting. Children's self-control is an important contributor to academic attainment and is influenced by parenting. We therefore hypothesised that impaired parenting and children's self-control may mediate links between maternal depression and children's academic attainment. Data were from a brief longitudinal study (3 waves) of UK children aged 11–12 years and their mothers. Higher maternal depressive symptoms at baseline were associated with lower academic attainment in children assessed one year later. There was evidence to support an indirect effect of maternal depressive symptoms on children's academic attainment through the mother-child and the father-child relationship which, in turn, reduced children's self-control. These influences were independent of socio-economic deprivation. A direct effect of maternal depression on children's academic attainment was also observed.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics (CNGG) Medicine Psychology
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	0140-1971
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	11 December 2017
Date of Acceptance:	9 November 2017
Last Modified:	17 Oct 2019 19:01
URI:	http://orca.cf.ac.uk/id/eprint/107504

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