About this poster

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Panel information
Panel 4. Families, Parenting, and Relationships

Abstract

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Background. Experiencing poverty and associated risk factors can be detrimental to families’ mental health and well-being. However, it is unclear whether experiencing specific types or patterns of adversity leads to distinct outcomes. Guided by the Family Stress Model, the objective of this study was to (a) identify unique family risk classes based on exposure to various combinations of poverty-related adversity and (b) examine whether the family risk classes differed in their levels of psychological functioning, couple relationship quality, and parenting practices.

Methods. The sample included 301 mother-father-child triads with a combined income ≤ 200% of the federal poverty level from diverse racial backgrounds: 35% White, 27% Black, 23% Latinx, 5% American Indian, 10% Multiracial/Other. Measures were based on a combination of both mother and father reports and were assessed at multiple time points.

Results. Using an innovative combination of latent class analysis and the BCH approach for testing distal outcomes (Bolck et al., 2004), we identified four unique family risk classes: Job Instability Only (low on all risk factors except job instability; 14%), Economic Stress, Depressed Parents (high on economic stressors and parental depression; 41%), Extreme Family Dysfunction (high on all risk factors; 33%), and Mothers At Risk (high mother victimization; 12%). Classes did not differ in terms of demographic characteristics (e.g., number of children living in the household, education level, parent age, and relationship status). BCH analyses revealed that the Job Instability Only class reported more advantageous outcomes in comparison to the Extreme Family Dysfunction and the Economic Strain, Depressed Parents classes. Specifically, the Job Instability Only class showed higher levels of psychological functioning and couple relationship quality. However, there were no differences in the level of parent-reported positive parenting practices (i.e., parental warmth) between the four risk classes. Overall, results indicated that increases in exposure to poverty-related adversity were associated with detriments in parents’ psychological functioning and relationship quality, but not parenting practices. Results will be discussed in the context of existing theory and literature within marginalized populations.

Implications. The results of this study can help increase the understanding of which risk groups are most vulnerable to the negative effects of poverty-related adversity and can inform the development of preventive interventions tailored to each family’s risk exposure patterns.

Author information

Author	Role
Daniel K Cooper, University of South Carolina	Presenting author
Martha Wadsworth, Pennsylvania State University, United States	Non-presenting author
Benjamin Bayly, Pennsylvania State University, United States	Non-presenting author

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