Parental Mentalizing during Middle Childhood: How Is the Adoption of a Reflective Stance Associated with Child’s Psychological Outcomes?

Simone Charpentier Mora, Chiara Bastianoni, Nina Koren-Karie, Donatella Cavanna, Marta Tironi and Fabiola Bizzi
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Simone Charpentier Mora: Department of Educational Sciences, University of Genova, 16128 Genoa, Italy
Chiara Bastianoni: Department of Educational Sciences, University of Genova, 16128 Genoa, Italy
Nina Koren-Karie: The Center for the Study of Child Development, School of Social Work, University of Haifa, Haifa 3498838, Israel
Donatella Cavanna: Department of Educational Sciences, University of Genova, 16128 Genoa, Italy
Marta Tironi: Department of Educational Sciences, University of Genova, 16128 Genoa, Italy
Fabiola Bizzi: Department of Educational Sciences, University of Genova, 16128 Genoa, Italy

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 10, 1-18

Abstract: This exploratory cross-sectional study attempts to understand the mechanisms underlying the role of parental mentalizing in a child’s psychological functioning during middle childhood by using Parental Reflective Functioning (PRF) and Parental Insightfulness (PI) constructs. The main aims are to examine the role of PI and PRF as processes capable of influencing a child’s psychological functioning in terms of emotional–behavioral difficulties and social–emotional competencies. Eighty-six community parents (48 mothers, 38 fathers) and their 50 children in middle childhood (Mage = 10.10, SD = 1.13) participated in this study, recruited through a non-probabilistic sampling. The following measures were used to assess the aims of this study: Insightfulness Assessment, Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire, Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and Devereux Student Strengths Assessment (DESSA) questionnaires. Results showed that parental mentalizing was found to be significantly associated with both child’s internalizing and externalizing symptoms and social–emotional competencies as reported by parents through the CBCL and DESSA questionnaires. This study may offer a contribution to the study of parental mentalizing during middle childhood, supporting the hypothesis that both parents’ ability to understand their child’s mental states could affect the child’s psychological functioning. Clinical and theoretical implications are geared toward a family-based view with a specific focus on the importance of fostering in both parents a positive attitude toward mentalizing processes.

Keywords: parental mentalizing; parental insightfulness; Parental Reflective Functioning; psychological symptoms; social–emotional competencies; middle childhood (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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