title: Adrenocortical underpinnings of children's psychological reactivity to interparental conflict.
abstract: This study examined interrelationships among children's cortisol reactivity and their psychological reactivity to interparental conflict in a sample of 208 first graders (mean age = 6.6 years). Assessments of children's psychological reactivity to conflict distinguished among their distress, hostile, and involvement responses across multiple methods (i.e., observation, questionnaire) and informants (i.e., observer, parent). Relative to other forms of conflict reactivity, children's distress responses to interparental conflict were consistent, unique predictors of their elevated cortisol reactivity to interparental conflict even after inclusion of demographic factors as moderators and covariates. Moderator analyses further revealed that associations between distress and elevated cortisol levels in response to interparental conflict were particularly pronounced when children exhibited high levels of involvement in conflicts.
authors.affiliation: of Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627, USA. patrick.davies@rochester.edu
authors.forename: Patrick T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Davies
authors.forename: Melissa L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Sturge-Apple
authors.forename: Dante
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cicchetti
authors.forename: E Mark
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Cummings
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D002648:Child; D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000032:analysis*; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D012463:Saliva / Q000737:chemistry; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone