Abstract
Mothers with a history of institutional care in adolescence are often involved in high-conflict partner relationships, which may undermine relationships with children and confidence in oneself as a parent. Not all mothers think of themselves as bad parents under these circumstances. We turned to psychological resources as an explanation, focusing on mothers’ trait self-control. The negative association between family conflict and parenting self-efficacy was tested for moderation by self-control among 104 mothers with a history of institutionalization for behavioral problems and delinquency during adolescence. We found a negative association between current family conflict and parenting self-efficacy among mothers with low self-control, and no significant association among mothers with high self-control. This study draws attention to the needs of high-risk mothers in their parenting role and demonstrates that self-control is a potential resource for mothers to balance the load presented by conflict in their families. The findings suggest new avenues for intervention.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1008-1029 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| Journal | Journal of Interpersonal Violence |
| Volume | 33 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Mar 2018 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This research was supported by funding from the Netherlands Institute for the Study of Crime and Law Enforcement (NSCR) and a grant from the foundation Stichting tot Steun Nederland.
Keywords
- anything related to domestic violence
- intergenerational transmission of trauma
- mental health and violence
- violence exposure
