Role of child demographic, executive functions, and behavioral challenges on feelings about parenting among parents of youth with Down syndrome

Abstract

Background: Living with a child with Down syndrome (DS) influences the entire family, including caregivers.

Aims: This study examined positive and negative caregiver feelings about parenting youth with DS and to what extent children's demographic, cognitive, behavioral characteristics, and co-occurring medical conditions are associated with those parental feelings. Specifically, the mediatory role of child behavioral challenges on the relationship between child executive functioning (EF) and parent feelings about parenting a child with DS was examined in a mediation analysis model.

Methods and procedures: Parents of 113 youth with DS aged 6 to 17 year rated their positive and negative feelings about parenting, and their child's behavioral challenges and EF.

Outcomes and results: Externalizing and Internalizing behavioral challenges and emotional and behavioral regulations of EF were significantly associated with positive and negative parent feelings. Child behavioral challenges fully mediated the relationship between child EF and caregiver feelings about parenting, after controlling for identified covariates of child demographics.

Conclusions and implications: Findings have implications for understanding the role of EF, through its impact on behavioral challenges, on the feelings of caregivers about parenting a child with DS. These findings play a role in understanding outcomes of interventions targeted at EF and behavioral challenges, in the context of other child variables.

Keywords: Behavioral challenge; Down syndrome; Executive functioning; Family function; Medical conditions; Parent feelings.