Axis I and Axis II psychopathology among at-risk mothers: Correlates of parenting quality and child adjustment

This study of 361 low-income mothers, with and without histories of substance abuse and/or other forms of psychopathology, and their children aged 8--17, focuses on two core questions: (a) among at risk mothers, what predicts the quality of parenting, and (b) considering multiple aspects of mother- and child-functioning along with parenting and child IQ---ostensibly the two prongs of children's "fundamental adaptive system"---what are the relative contributions of each to children's outcomes?;Variable-based analyses of patterns of Axis I and Axis II psychopathology among socioeconomically disadvantaged mothers with histories of drug abuse, affective disorder, both of these, or neither disorder indicated that the greatest impairment was in the two groups of mothers with lifetime diagnoses of affective disturbance. Person-based cluster-analysis was conducted on Axis I and Axis II dimensions of the MCMI-III in preparation for multiple regressions to parenting and child outcomes. Three current maternal psychopathology groups were found: (1) High Psychopathology with elevations on several Axis I dimensions (including Drug Abuse) and a majority of Axis II dimensions, (2) Drug Abuse with elevations on Drug Abuse and Narcissism, and (3) Low Psychopathology.;Findings from multiple regressions to positive and negative dimensions of parenting suggest that the confluence of multiple forms of psychopathology has the strongest effect on parenting. However, mothers' support from family can modify these damaging effects and may even affect boys' perceptions of parenting more so than current maternal mental health problems. In multiple regressions to indices of child adjustment, the relative contributions of child IQ and parenting quality were examined, while controlling for maternal psychopathology and other exosystemic factors. Findings point to parenting quality as the most critical factor in conferring vulnerability and protection in relation to multiple dimensions of child adjustment and also suggest the importance of social support to parenting and child adjustment, with differential findings according to child gender. Implications for future research and interventions are discussed.