title: The Influence of Parental Self-Efficacy and Perceived Control on the Home Learning Environment of Young Children.
abstract: To: 1) examine sociodemographic factors associated with high parental self-efficacy and perceived control, and 2) determine how self-efficacy and control relate to the home learning environment (HLE), including whether they mediate the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and HLE, among low-income parents of young children.
  
  
  
  Cross-sectional survey of English- and Spanish-speaking parents, 18 years of age and older, with children 15 to 36 months old, to assess parental self-efficacy, perceived control, HLE, and sociodemographic characteristics. Bivariate analysis identified sociodemographic predictors of high self-efficacy and control. Separate multivariate linear regression models were used to examine associations between self-efficacy, control, and the HLE. Formal path analysis was used to assess whether self-efficacy and control mediate the relationship between sociodemographic characteristics and HLE.
  
  
  
  Of 144 participants, 25% were white, 65% were immigrants, and 35% completed the survey in Spanish. US-born subjects, those who completed English surveys, or who had higher educational levels had significantly higher mean self-efficacy and perceived control scores (P < .05). Higher self-efficacy and perceived control were associated with a positive change in HLE score in separate multivariate models (self-efficacy β = .7 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.5-0.9]; control β = .5 [95% CI, 0.2-0.8]). Self-efficacy acted as a mediator such that low self-efficacy explained part of the association between parental depressive symptoms, immigrant status, and less optimal HLE (P = .04 and < .001, respectively).
  
  
  
  High parental self-efficacy and perceived control positively influence HLEs of young children. Self-efficacy alone mediates the relationship between parental depressive symptoms, immigrant status, and less optimal early home learning.
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center, Boston, Mass. Electronic address: epc@bu.edu.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Peacock-Chambers
authors.affiliation: Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Mass.
authors.forename: Justin T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health Sciences, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Mass.
authors.forename: Kelly A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Necastro
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Mass.
authors.forename: Howard J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Cabral
authors.affiliation: Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center, Boston, Mass.
authors.forename: Megan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bair-Merritt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology*; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D010465:Perception; D011203:Poverty; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012931:Social Environment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: early childhood development; home learning; parenting; poverty; self-efficacy