Longitudinal prediction of early childhood discipline styles among heavy drinking parents

This study sought to examine predictors of parenting trajectories in a sample of heavy drinking and abstaining/light drinking parents. Mixture modeling was used to estimate trajectories of parental discipline styles over time. Two dimensions of parenting were examined: laxness and overreactivity. Changes in these dimensions were examined for each parent. Trajectories for mothers and fathers were very similar and were generally stable from 18 months to 5-6 years child age. Fathers' binge drinking was associated with high levels of both paternal and maternal overreactivity. Mothers with depressed affect had the highest levels of overreactivity, whereas fathers reporting depressed affect were more likely to have moderate levels of laxness. Mothers with high levels of marital satisfaction were more likely to have partners in the stable low overreactivity group. Findings begin to elucidate the nature of early family processes that may contribute to maladaptive child outcomes in heavy drinking families.