Parenting Stress and Children's Problem Behavior in China: The Mediating Role of Parental Psychological Aggression

This study examined the mediating effect of parents' psychological aggression in the relationship between parenting stress and children's internalizing (anxiety/depression, withdrawal) and externalizing (aggression, delinquency) problem behaviors 1 year later. Using a sample of 311 intact 2-parent Chinese families with preschoolers, findings revealed that maternal parenting stress had direct effects on children's internalizing and externalizing problem behavior and indirect effects through maternal psychological aggression. However, neither direct nor indirect effects of fathers' parenting stress on children's internalizing and externalizing problem behavior were found. The findings highlight the importance of simultaneously studying the effects of both mothers' and fathers' parenting on their children within a family systems framework.