Transactional processes among perceived parental warmth, positivity, and depressive symptoms from middle childhood to early adolescence: Disentangling between- and within-person associations

Rationale: Previous cross-sectional and unidirectional longitudinal studies have investigated the associations among perceived parental warmth, positivity, and depressive symptoms among children and adolescents without distinguishing between-person effects from within-person effects. Objective: The current study aimed to examine the dynamic longitudinal associations among perceived parental warmth, positivity, and depressive symptoms, including whether positivity functioned as a mediator of the reciprocal relations between perceived maternal/paternal warmth and depressive symptoms at the within-person level encompassing middle childhood to early adolescence. Methods: A sample of 3765 Chinese students (45.8% girls; Mage = 9.92 years, SD = 0.72; range = 9-12 years at Time 1) completed self-report measures on 4 occasions across 2 years, using 6-month intervals. Random-Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Models were employed to disentangle between-and within-person effects. Results: (a) Perceived maternal/paternal warmth and depressive symptoms reciprocally and negatively predicted each other; (b) positivity and depressive symptoms reciprocally and negatively predicted each other; (c) perceived maternal/paternal warmth and positivity reciprocally and positively predicted each other; (d) depressive symptoms indirectly predicted perceived maternal/paternal warmth via positivity; (e) perceived maternal warmth displayed earlier and more stable effects on positivity and depressive symptoms than perceived paternal warmth; and (f), no childhood sex differences existed in the observed associations. Conclusions: These findings highlight the longitudinal within-person transactions among perceived parental warmth, positivity, and depressive symptoms, and the differential roles of perceived maternal/paternal warmth. These findings may help provide a potential theoretical framework through which to precisely identify objectives for early intervention.

Automated summary

This study found longitudinal within-person transactions among perceived parental warmth, positivity, and depressive symptoms. Perceived maternal warmth had earlier and more stable effects on positivity and depressive symptoms than perceived paternal warmth, and gender did not affect these associations.