The use of AAP-recommended disciplinary practice guidelines among African American caregivers of children in Head Start programs.
OBJECTIVE
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that parents not use harsh disciplinary practices. Previous studies have characterized the disciplinary practices of African American parents as harsh, with reliance on more aggressive techniques not currently recommended by the AAP. However, recent research has indicated more disciplinary practice diversity among African Americans. This study describes factors associated with the use of AAP-recommended disciplinary practices among lower-income African American caregivers of children in Head Start.


METHODS
Subjects were caregivers of children at three Head Start sites. Participants were eligible for inclusion if the biological mother, biological father, or target child was identified as African American. Using consensus methods, responses to the Parental Discipline Methods Interview (PDMI) were described as consistent or inconsistent with AAP guidelines regarding use of negative disciplinary practices (e.g., spanking, yelling). Caregivers avoiding any of these inconsistent methods were referred to as "adherent."


RESULTS
"Adherent" caregivers were older (32.5 years vs. 30.4 years) and had more education (86.0% vs. 75.4% high school graduates). They were also less likely to report that their child had behavioral problems (12.9% vs. 25.2%) or deficient social skills (1.7% vs. 8.0%).


CONCLUSIONS
Lower-income African American caregivers were more likely to use disciplinary practices consistent with AAP guidelines if they had higher levels of education and were living in an urban setting. Caregivers describing their child as having fewer behavior problems, better social skills, or themselves as less stressed were also more likely to be "adherent."
Horn
Ivor B
IB
Department of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Children's National Medical Center, 2501 Good Hope Rd. SE, Washington, DC 20020, USA. ihorn@cnmc.org
Lewin
Amy
A
Turner-Musa
Jocelyn
J
Edwards
Mark C
MC
Joseph
Jill G
JG
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D017028:Caregivers; D002652:Child Behavior; D002675:Child, Preschool; D018479:Early Intervention, Educational; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D010372:Pediatrics; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011678:Punishment; D012955:Societies, Medical; D014481:United States