Investigating Parental Reflective Functioning Measurement with Mothers and Fathers

Infant & Early Childhood Social & Emo4onal Wellbeing Conference November 2013

Dawson Cooke 1

Mother and Father Parental Reflective Functioning

Dawson Cooke

Infant and Early Childhood Social & Emotional Wellbeing Conference 2013

Parental Reflective Functioning

Two people communicating.

Not realising they are worlds apart.


Reflective Functioning / Mentalizing Attending to states of mind in oneself and others

Empathy + Mindfullness • Theory of Mind • Emotional Intelligence


Foundations of social development

self-regulation • sense of agency • psychological security


Dawson Cooke 2


Overview

•  Measurement of Parental Reflective Functioning (PRF)

- PDI-RF Parent Development Interview scored for PRF

- PRFQ Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire Luyten, Mayes & Colleagues

•  The study & Three Research Questions

•  Results


Peel Child Health Project

•  120 couples (mothers & fathers) with a one-year-old –  Selected from 420 couples

–  40 couples interviewed – PDI

•  Managers or professionals: –  Mothers 46%

–  Fathers 28%

•  One third – first child

•  All English speaking at home

•  75% born in Australia


Research Question

1  Does the PRFQ provide a meaningful measurement of PRF with mothers and fathers according to data fit to the Rasch Measurement Model?


PRFQ – 39 items

Three Subscales: 1. Positive Mentalizing

E.g. I am often curious to find out how my child feels.

2. Non-Mentalizing (e.g. defense, denial) E.g. When my child is fussy he or she does that just to annoy me.

3. Pseudo-Mentalizing or socially desirable response patterns E.g. I always know what my child wants.


Dawson Cooke 3


Items that performed best from Rasch Analysis:

Positive Mentalizing PRFQ-PM Scale: 7 items

Example items:

•  I try to see situations through the eyes of my child.

•  I pay attention to what my child is feeling.


PRFQ-PM Questionnaire:

Mothers generally scored higher than Fathers

Level of PRF

Pare

nts


Mother and Father PDI-RF

3 = Definite / Ordinary 5 = Questionable / Low

Interview: Mothers also

generally scored higher than

Fathers

But are we measuring the same thing for

both?


Mother-Father PRF Correlations

PDI-RF ρ =.27 (p=.09)

!-‐2

-‐1

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

-‐2 -‐1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6

PRFQ-PM r = -.06

Fathers

Mo

the

rs


Dawson Cooke 4


Research Question


2  Do mother and father PRFQ-PM scores show a strong relationship with PDI-RF scores and therefore appear to measure the same PRF construct?


No

PRFQ-PM scores have a weak and non-significant association with PDI-RF scores

Fathers ρ = .15 Mothers ρ = .16


Research Question


2  Do mother and father PRFQ-PM scores exhibit a strong relationship with their PDI-RF scores and therefore appear to measure the same PRF construct?

3  Is mother and father PRF associated with other parent and child characteristics?


Measures

•  Depression (BDI-II) •  Anxiety (STAI) •  Family Adjustment (FAD) •  Parent Self-Efficacy •  Parenting Warmth •  Role of the Father (attitudes) •  Maternal Separation Anxiety •  Measure of Parenting Style (MOPS)

–  Indifference, Abuse, Overcontrol •  Child Development / Characteristics

–  Mother report: ASQ & Toddler Temperament Scale


Dawson Cooke 5


PDI-RF

Parental Reflective Functioning from Interviews with 40 couples


Father PDI-RF Associations

Father PDI-‐RF

Role of the Father

Depression

Paren4ng Self-‐Efficacy

Family Adjustment

Anxiety

Paren4ng Warmth

.42

.44

No associations for mothers


PRFQ-PM

Parental Positive Mentalizing Curiosity in Mental States


Father PRFQ-PM Associations

Father PRFQ-‐PM Posi4ve Mentalizing

Role of the Father

Depression


Family Adjustment

Anxiety

Paren4ng Warmth

.37

.43

.42

.41


Dawson Cooke 6


Mother PRFQ-PM Associations

Mother PRFQ-‐PM Posi4ve Mentalizing

Maternal Separa4on Anxiety

Depression


Family Adjustment

Anxiety

Paren4ng Warmth

.26

.34

.37

.43

.42

.41

Role of the Father

Fathers correlations


Summary / Discussion

•  Differences between PDI-RF and PRFQ-PM •  Differences between mothers’ and fathers’

individual and average PRF scores. •  Also differences in how mothers’ and

fathers’ scores relate to other parent characteristics. –  Especially family adjustment & parenting role


Conclusion

•  Parental Reflective Functioning is a clinically insightful and useful way to understand both mother-child and father-child relationships.

•  The measurement of PRF is at an exciting frontier of research and only in its infancy.


Dawson Cooke: [email protected]

I know you think you understand what you thought I said,

But I'm not sure you realise that what you heard is not what I meant.

Alan Greenspan Long serving ex Chairman of the US Federal Reserve

Documents

Investigating Parental Reflective Functioning Measurement with Mothers and Fathers