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Young Children's Sibling Relationship Quality: Distal and Proximal Correlates

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Title: Young Children's Sibling Relationship Quality: Distal and Proximal Correlates
Language: English
Authors: Kretschmer, Tina, Pike, Alison
Source: Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. May 2009 50(5):581-589.
Availability: Blackwell Publishing. 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148. Tel: 800-835-6770; Tel: 781-388-8599; Fax: 781-388-8232; e-mail: customerservices@blackwellpublishing.com; Web site: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/jnl_default.asp
Peer Reviewed: Y
Physical Description: PDF
Page Count: 9
Publication Date: 2009
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Descriptors: Siblings, Gender Differences, Family Life, Young Children, Sibling Relationship, Questionnaires, Family Environment, Socioeconomic Status, Low Income Groups, Correlation, Quality of Life, Interviews, Parent Attitudes, Discipline, Parenting Styles, Parent Child Relationship, Parent Influence, Educational Attainment, Family Structure, Structural Equation Models
DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.2008.02016.x
ISSN: 0021-9630
Abstract: Background: Relationships within families are interdependent and related to distal environmental factors. Low socioeconomic status (SES) and high household chaos (distal factors) have been linked to less positive marital and parent-child relationships, but have not yet been examined with regard to young children's sibling relationships. The present study tested direct associations between these distal factors and sibling relationship quality, as well as examining parenting as a potential mediator and/or moderator. Method: One hundred and eighteen families with children aged 4 to 8 years were interviewed and completed questionnaires during home visits. Children provided reports about the quality of their sibling relationships via a puppet interview, and mothers and fathers reported on household chaos and their exertion of harsh discipline. Researchers rated parental warmth towards the children. Finally, parental education and household density were assessed as indicators of SES. Results: Using structural equation modelling (SEM), we found that lower levels of household chaos were related to better quality sibling relationships, and that this link was mediated by maternal warmth and paternal harsh discipline, as well as moderated by maternal harsh discipline. Conclusion: Household chaos was more strongly linked to relationship quality between family members than SES, warranting further research and practical application. The study of children's sibling relationships should take into account inter-relations between proximal and distal environmental factors to fully reveal the complexity of family life.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2009
Accession Number: EJ836889
Database: ERIC
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  Value: <anid>AN0037841446;jyy01may.09;2024Jun04.07:35;v2.2.500</anid> <title id="AN0037841446-1">Young children’s sibling relationship quality: distal and proximal correlates. </title> <p>Background:  Relationships within families are interdependent and related to distal environmental factors. Low socioeconomic status (SES) and high household chaos (distal factors) have been linked to less positive marital and parent–child relationships, but have not yet been examined with regard to young children's sibling relationships. The present study tested direct associations between these distal factors and sibling relationship quality, as well as examining parenting as a potential mediator and/or moderator. Method:  One hundred and eighteen families with children aged 4 to 8 years were interviewed and completed questionnaires during home visits. Children provided reports about the quality of their sibling relationships via a puppet interview, and mothers and fathers reported on household chaos and their exertion of harsh discipline. Researchers rated parental warmth towards the children. Finally, parental education and household density were assessed as indicators of SES. Results:  Using structural equation modelling (SEM), we found that lower levels of household chaos were related to better quality sibling relationships, and that this link was mediated by maternal warmth and paternal harsh discipline, as well as moderated by maternal harsh discipline. Conclusion:  Household chaos was more strongly linked to relationship quality between family members than SES, warranting further research and practical application. The study of children's sibling relationships should take into account inter‐relations between proximal and distal environmental factors to fully reveal the complexity of family life.</p> <p>Keywords: household chaos; parenting; mediation; moderation; Sibling relationship quality</p> <p></p> <ulist> <item> Abbreviations:</item> <p></p> <item> SES socio‐economic status</item> <p></p> <item> SEM structural equation modelling</item> <p></p> <item> SRQ sibling relationship quality</item> </ulist> <p>The unique features of the sibling relationship – long‐lasting, emotionally uninhibited, and residing between the vertical nature of parent–child relationships and the horizontal nature of friendships – render this dyad important in and of itself, as well as because of the window brothers and sisters yield to children's general psychological development and well‐being. The purpose of the current study was to identify contexts that put children at risk of experiencing poor quality relationships with their siblings. Siblings play an important role in children's day‐to‐day well‐being, simply by virtue of the vast quantity of time brothers and sisters spend with one another. Beyond this, sibling conflict is not harmless; children experiencing high levels of sibling negativity are at much greater risk of behaviour problems ([<reflink idref="bib4" id="ref1">4</reflink>]), and Patterson and colleagues have shown that escalating cycles of sibling conflict effectively 'teach' children to behave in antisocial ways (e.g., [<reflink idref="bib26" id="ref2">26</reflink>]).</p> <p>Previous research identifying risk factors for poor quality (and/or conflictual) sibling relationships has focused on child temperament ([<reflink idref="bib9" id="ref3">9</reflink>]) and parenting (see [<reflink idref="bib8" id="ref4">8</reflink>] for a review). The present study takes a step back to consider household characteristics that may put siblings at risk. Socioeconomic status (SES) and household organisation are considered, with an eye to informing parenting intervention strategies. In addition, what we already know about 'spill‐over' between the parent–child and sibling family subsystems is augmented by considering the gateway function played by parents in links between contextual factors and sibling relationship quality.</p> <p>The focus of the current investigation is sibling pairs in early to middle childhood. The youngest children in the study were 4 years old, an age at which younger siblings are becoming more active participants in sibling interactions ([<reflink idref="bib18" id="ref5">18</reflink>]). Middle childhood is thus a time when relations become more egalitarian (e.g., [<reflink idref="bib11" id="ref6">11</reflink>]). The older siblings in the sample were not yet 9 years old; we wished to capture sibling relationships still characterised by high intensity and emotionality before the pulls from outside the family that can serve to weaken the warmth and intimacy of the sibling bond have taken hold ([<reflink idref="bib17" id="ref7">17</reflink>]). An additional reason for focusing on this age range was purely practical. We sought to include children's own views of their brothers and sisters using a puppet technique specially designed for children aged four to eight years (see Method for details).</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-2">Theoretical context</hd> <p>[<reflink idref="bib10" id="ref8">10</reflink>] ecological model of development provides the theoretical framework for research on processes between an individual and different levels of his/her environment, and takes into account the interactions between different subsystems in which the individual is embedded. Although the model's traditional core is the individual child and his/her environment, Bronfenbrenner's assumptions about the interplay between subsystems are nonetheless applicable when the sibling dyad as a child's microsystem is the focus of attention. By focusing on young children's sibling relationships as the model's core, we examined the interaction between this dyad and micro‐ and exosystemic factors. The proximal processes of parenting thereby represent a micro‐system interacting with the sibling dyad, whereas exosystemic (distal) factors are indicated by a measure of household organisation versus chaos ('household chaos'; [<reflink idref="bib25" id="ref9">25</reflink>]) and the socioeconomic status (SES) of the family, which is reflected by housing density as well as parental education.</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-3">Links between environmental factors and family relationships</hd> <p>Given the neglected position of research on the link between distal factors and sibling relationship quality in childhood, our hypotheses were based on research examining the impact of SES and household chaos on other family subsystems, namely the marital and parent–child relationships. [<reflink idref="bib23" id="ref10">23</reflink>], for example, showed that the risk of divorce is increased in marriages of couples with low educational status and high housing density, i.e., fewer numbers of rooms than people. The link between crowded housing conditions and more problematic family relationships was also found by [<reflink idref="bib7" id="ref11">7</reflink>], [<reflink idref="bib20" id="ref12">20</reflink>], and [<reflink idref="bib22" id="ref13">22</reflink>], who concluded that parent–child relationships in crowded homes were more tense, and that less supportive behaviour and more negative discipline was exerted by parents living in such conditions. With regard to parental education, [<reflink idref="bib21" id="ref14">21</reflink>] reported that lower levels of maternal education were linked to authoritarian parenting and harsh punishment. In addition, [<reflink idref="bib31" id="ref15">31</reflink>] found links between residential instability in low‐income families and lower levels of warmth and harmony between siblings. We are aware of no study that has yet explicitly examined the direct link between families' socioeconomic status and sibling relationship quality. Based on the links between SES and marital as well as parent–child relationship quality, we hypothesised a positive association between the socioeconomic situation of the family and sibling relationship quality.</p> <p>The second distal variable in this study – household chaos – has been described as an environment that lacks routines and regularity, and is disorganised and high in confusion ([<reflink idref="bib25" id="ref16">25</reflink>]). Although household chaos is delimitable from other adverse environmental conditions ([<reflink idref="bib25" id="ref17">25</reflink>]), it is similarly linked to lower quality parenting ([<reflink idref="bib13" id="ref18">13</reflink>]) and negatively correlated with positive reactions of parents towards their children's behaviour ([<reflink idref="bib32" id="ref19">32</reflink>]). [<reflink idref="bib12" id="ref20">12</reflink>] found that household chaos was positively associated with parental negativity. On the basis of previous research, we hypothesised that a negative association between household chaos and relationship quality would be found for the sibling relationship.</p> <p>In addition, we hypothesised that these direct links would be mediated and moderated by parental warmth and harshness of discipline. For example, it is conceivable that parental mood and behaviour are negatively affected by distal factors like low SES and household chaos, and carried over into other family relationships. Likewise, it is possible that specific adverse environments only affect the sibling relationship if parenting is particularly harsh and cold. Therefore, in order to obtain a detailed picture of correlates of sibling relationship quality, mediation and moderation processes of parenting were examined as gateways between distal factors and the sibling relationship.</p> <p>This 'gateway' function of parenting between the distal environment and the sibling relationship has been reported in reference to the link between the marital and sibling relationships ([<reflink idref="bib30" id="ref21">30</reflink>]). In addition, parenting mediated the link between low SES and child health problems ([<reflink idref="bib6" id="ref22">6</reflink>]) as well as social status and academic outcomes in primary school boys ([<reflink idref="bib15" id="ref23">15</reflink>]). However, parenting not only serves as a mediator; studies have also demonstrated moderation effects. That is, parenting can alter the association between distal factors and child outcome. [<reflink idref="bib27" id="ref24">27</reflink>], for example, found that high levels of supportive parenting buffered the effects of socioeconomic disadvantage, single parenthood, and family stress on children's school adjustment.</p> <p>In sum, we aimed to extend the literature on correlates of children's sibling relationships in three ways. Firstly, we hypothesised direct links between distal environmental factors (SES and household chaos) and sibling relationship quality. Secondly, parenting practices were hypothesised to mediate these links. In particular, we hypothesised that parental warmth and harsh discipline would significantly mediate associations between the distal factors and sibling relationship quality. The final set of exploratory analyses was conducted to test whether parenting would alter the links between distal factors and sibling relationship quality. Moderation would be evident if the interplay between distal factors and specific parenting significantly predicts sibling relationship quality, and would indicate that the association between the distal environment and sibling relationship quality is dependent upon the intensity of parental warmth and harsh discipline, respectively.</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-4">Method</hd> <p></p> <hd id="AN0037841446-5">Sample, recruitment, and procedure</hd> <p>The study was conducted in compliance with the ethical standards of research with human subjects of the University of Sussex. Over 100 schools in southern England were approached and asked to send letters to parents of children in reception and year 1 classes (four‐ to six‐year olds) who had an older sibling aged eight years or under. Approximately half of the schools approached agreed to participate; however, many were unable to target specific children and sent letters to all children in these classes. In addition, letters were sent home via the children, therefore there was no guarantee that parents received our letters. Because of this opt‐in procedure it was not possible to estimate refusal rates accurately. One hundred and eighteen two‐parent families with children in the selected age range agreed to take part and are included in the current study. Of the older children in our study, 83% were the oldest child in their family, and 79% of the younger children in the study were also the youngest in their family. For clarity, the older child taking part in the study is referred to as the older sibling (OS) and the younger child as the younger sibling (YS). Approximately equal numbers of the four sibling sex constellations (boy–boy, boy–girl, girl–boy, girl–girl) were recruited. The average age of the older siblings was 7.5 years (<emph>SD</emph> = 7.49 months), and the average age of the younger sibling was 5.3 years (<emph>SD</emph> = 7.20 months). Families came from a mix of working‐class and middle‐class backgrounds and there was a wide range of educational attainment amongst them. Finally, the families were almost exclusively Caucasian (92% of mothers, 97% of fathers), reflecting the population from which the sample was drawn. Two testers visited families at home where parents and children were interviewed and parents completed questionnaires.</p> <p> <bold>Children's reports of the sibling relationship. </bold> The Berkeley Puppet Interview (BPI; [<reflink idref="bib1" id="ref25">1</reflink>]) is a technique that obtains questionnaire‐type data from young children. During the audiotaped interview, two identical puppets make opposing statements about the sibling (e.g., 'my sister is nice to me''my sister is not nice to me') and then ask the child about themselves (e.g., 'how about your sister?'). Children's responses were coded on a 7‐point scale where 1 is the most negative score and 7 the most positive. When a child chooses a response option as expressed by the puppet, a code 2 (for a negative response –'my sister is not nice to me') or a code 6 (for a positive response –'my sister is nice to me') is used. When a child amplifies a statement (e.g., 'my sister is horrible to me' or 'my sister is really nice to me') a code 1 (negative) or 7 (positive) is used. A code 3 or 5 indicates a response that is qualified in some way (e.g., 'my sister isn't nice to me most of the time' or 'my sister is nice to me most of the time'). Finally, a code 4 is used when a child indicates that both response options apply to them. According to [<reflink idref="bib1" id="ref26">1</reflink>], the Positive affect/Enjoyment subscale contains six items such as 'my brother/sister is fun to play with' versus 'my brother/sister is not fun to play with' and the Rivalry/Hostility subscale contains eight items, including 'I like to tease my brother/sister' versus 'I don't like to tease my brother/sister'.</p> <p>However, as first explained by [<reflink idref="bib28" id="ref27">28</reflink>], factor analysis of the sibling relationship items indicated that a one‐factor solution represented the data most effectively. Thus, overall sibling relationship quality scales were created from the siblings' reports, with higher scores indicating more Positive Affect/Enjoyment and less Rivalry/Hostility within the sibling relationship (<emph>α</emph>s = .88 and.84 for older and younger siblings, respectively). The abbreviation SRQ will be used for sibling relationship quality.</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-6">Parenting</hd> <p> <bold>Harsh discipline. </bold> A modified version of the parental discipline interview ([<reflink idref="bib14" id="ref28">14</reflink>]) was used to assess parental discipline practices. Mothers and fathers rated three items (e.g. 'give a smack or slap') on a 5‐point scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (usually) separately for each child. Internal consistency was satisfactory given the small number of items in this scale, with Cronbach's α ranging from.58 to.68. Mothers and fathers showed considerable overlap in their responses (<emph>r </emph>= .51 for older siblings and <emph>r </emph>= .53 for younger siblings, all <emph>p </emph>< .001).</p> <p> <bold>General parental warmth. </bold> After the home visit, the two testers completed four items of the post visit inventory ([<reflink idref="bib14" id="ref29">14</reflink>]), in which they jointly rated the warmth of parent–child interactions (e.g., 'How warm were the observed mother‐child interactions'; 1 = cold, hostile to 5 = warm, positive, affectionate). This procedure was done for mothers' and fathers' relationships with older and younger siblings separately. Internal consistencies of these were good, ranging from α = .79 to.81. Mothers' and fathers' warmth towards their children moderately correlated (<emph>r </emph>= .43 for older siblings and <emph>r </emph>= .40 for younger siblings, all <emph>p </emph>< .001).</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-7">Distal factors</hd> <p> <bold>Household chaos. </bold> The degree of chaos in the home was assessed using the short version of the Confusion, Hubbub, and Order Scale (CHAOS; [<reflink idref="bib25" id="ref30">25</reflink>]). The scale consists of 6 items rated on a 5‐point scale (where 1 = definitely untrue and 5 = definitely true) about levels of chaos in the home, including items such as 'You can't hear yourself think in our home' and 'We are usually able to stay on top of things'. A total chaos score was created by averaging across the items (alpha = .57 and.56 for mothers and fathers respectively). The scale has been found to correlate well with observed environmental conditions ([<reflink idref="bib25" id="ref31">25</reflink>]). The alpha in our sample is lower than typically reported for the longer version of the scale but is in line with previous reports using the short version ([<reflink idref="bib29" id="ref32">29</reflink>]).</p> <p> <bold>Family socioeconomic status. </bold> SES was assessed using three indicators, including housing density (people : room ratio) and mothers' and fathers' educational attainment, which was reported by parents during the interview and ranged from 1 (no qualification) to 6 (postgraduate qualification). About half of all parents had a level of education that exceeded compulsory schooling, and around 20% of mothers and fathers were university graduates. The three indicators were significantly correlated with <emph>r </emph>= .59 (<emph>p </emph>< .001) for maternal and paternal education, and <emph>r </emph>= −.16 (<emph>p </emph>< .10) and −.20 (<emph>p </emph>< .05) for household density and maternal and paternal education, respectively.</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-8">Analyses</hd> <p>The analyses included three nested models: a baseline model, a mediation model, and a moderation model. Figure 1 shows the baseline model (solid lines) and the hypothesised mediation paths (dashed lines). The baseline model depicts a direct prediction of SRQ by household chaos and SES without considering parenting practices as mediators. The mediation model estimated the effects of the distal factors on parenting measures and SRQ as well as the effects of parenting on SRQ. The moderation model tested whether the distal factors interact with parenting to predict SRQ. The size of our sample falls short of most suggestions regarding testing moderation ([<reflink idref="bib2" id="ref33">2</reflink>]), therefore the moderation analyses are considered exploratory.</p> <p>Graph: 1 Baseline model with mediation paths
Note: Solid paths represent direct effects from distal factors to SRQ and dashed paths represent hypothesized mediation through parenting. SES Socioeconomic Status, SRQ Sibling Relationship Quality</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-9">Results</hd> <p>Table 1 contains means and standard deviations of all study measures. We also computed 2 × 2 repeated measures ANOVA's (older versus younger sibling and mothers versus fathers), which revealed a main effect for parental discipline (fathers reporting less harsh discipline practices towards both children than did mothers, <emph>F</emph>(<reflink idref="bib1" id="ref34">1</reflink>,<reflink idref="bib100" id="ref35">100</reflink>) = 4.70, <emph>p </emph>< .01) but no significant interaction effects.</p> <p>1  Descriptive statistics of all study measures</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><th valign="bottom"> </th><th>Mothers</th><th>Fathers</th></tr><tr><th><italic>M</italic></th><th><italic>SD</italic></th><th><italic>M</italic></th><th><italic>SD</italic></th></tr></thead><tbody valign="top"><tr><td>Household chaos</td><td>2.48</td><td>.60</td><td>2.39</td><td>.58</td></tr><tr><td>Household density</td><td>.84</td><td>.19</td><td>.84</td><td>.19</td></tr><tr><td>Parental education</td><td>3.48</td><td>1.61</td><td>3.17</td><td>1.71</td></tr><tr><td>Parental warmth</td></tr><tr><td> OS</td><td>3.30</td><td>.66</td><td>3.38</td><td>.70</td></tr><tr><td> YS</td><td>3.28</td><td>.64</td><td>3.37</td><td>.73</td></tr><tr><td>Harsh discipline</td></tr><tr><td> OS</td><td>3.11</td><td>.67</td><td>2.90</td><td>.68</td></tr><tr><td> YS</td><td>3.10</td><td>.66</td><td>2.88</td><td>.68</td></tr><tr><td>Sibling relationship quality<sup>1</sup></td></tr><tr><td> OS</td><td>4.25</td><td>1.13</td><td> </td><td> </td></tr><tr><td> YS</td><td>4.36</td><td>1.05</td><td> </td><td> </td></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <p>1 <emph>Note</emph>: *<emph>p </emph>< .05; <sups>1</sups>reported by older and younger siblings.</p> <p>Correlations among distal factors and all relationship measures are provided in Table 2. Higher levels of household chaos were related to lower levels of sibling relationship quality, as well as to lower warmth between parents and children, and higher levels of harsh discipline. Further, higher levels of parental education were linked to less harsh discipline as reported by mothers. In addition, correlations between parenting measures and sibling relationship quality were computed, revealing moderate links for parental warmth (<emph>r </emph>= .35, <emph>p < .01</emph> (maternal) and.26, <emph>p </emph>< .001 (paternal) for older siblings and.20, <emph>p </emph>< .01 (maternal) and.19, <emph>p </emph>< .<emph>10</emph> (paternal) for younger siblings) as well as harsh discipline (−.18, <emph>p </emph>< .10 (maternal) and −.31, <emph>p </emph>< .01 (paternal) for older siblings and −.21, <emph>p </emph>< .05 (maternal) and −.26, <emph>p </emph>< .05 (paternal) for younger siblings). In sum, warmth between parents and children was related to higher levels of sibling relationship quality whereas harsh parenting was related to lower levels of sibling relationship quality.</p> <p>2  Correlations between distal factors and parent–child and sibling relationship measures</p> <p> <ephtml> <table><thead valign="bottom"><tr><th /><th>Mother report chaos</th><th>Father report chaos</th><th>Housing density</th><th>Mother edu‐cation</th><th>Father edu‐cation</th></tr></thead><tbody valign="top"><tr><td>Parenting measures</td></tr><tr><td> Mother</td></tr><tr><td>  Warmth OS</td><td>−.30**</td><td>−.14</td><td>−.15</td><td>−.11</td><td>.02</td></tr><tr><td>  Warmth YS</td><td>−.29**</td><td>−.13</td><td>−.15</td><td>−.10</td><td>.01</td></tr><tr><td>  Discipline OS</td><td>.31**</td><td>.38***</td><td>.11</td><td>−.28**</td><td>−.30**</td></tr><tr><td>  Discipline YS</td><td>.29**</td><td>.36***</td><td>.04</td><td>−.26**</td><td>−.32**</td></tr><tr><td> Father</td></tr><tr><td>  Warmth OS</td><td>−.36***</td><td>−.33***</td><td>−.21*</td><td>−.07</td><td>−.05</td></tr><tr><td>  Warmth YS</td><td>−.29**</td><td>−.28**</td><td>−.23*</td><td>.01</td><td>.08</td></tr><tr><td>  Discipline OS</td><td>.33**</td><td>.41***</td><td>.18<sup>+</sup></td><td>.05</td><td>.11</td></tr><tr><td>  Discipline YS</td><td>.34**</td><td>.37***</td><td>.12</td><td>.02</td><td>.15</td></tr><tr><td>Sibling relationship measures</td></tr><tr><td> OS</td><td>−.06</td><td>−.28**</td><td>−.08</td><td>−.07</td><td>−.05</td></tr><tr><td> YS</td><td>−.17<sup>+</sup></td><td>−.25*</td><td>−.07</td><td>.01</td><td>.08</td></tr></tbody></table> </ephtml> </p> <p>2 <emph>Note</emph>: ***<emph>p </emph>< .001, **<emph>p </emph>< .01, *<emph>p </emph>< .05, <sups>+</sups><emph>p </emph>< .10. OS: Older sibling, YS: Younger sibling.</p> <p>To obtain a clearer picture of processes within families, we next conducted SEM analyses, as described above. In doing so, both parents' education levels and household density formed the indicators of the latent variable SES. Mothers' and fathers' reports of household chaos were indicators of the latent factor chaos. All four observed parental warmth measures (mother–OS, mother–YS, father–OS, father–YS) served as indicators of the latent variable parental warmth, and similarly all four measures of parental harsh discipline formed the indicators of the latent variable harsh discipline. In addition, we tested separate models for mothers and fathers using multi‐group comparison to explore possible differences in effects of parenting on the links between distal factors and SRQ in which only mothers' parenting and fathers' parenting measures, respectively, were used as indicators of parental warmth and harsh discipline. Finally, both siblings' relationship reports were used as indicators of the latent factor sibling relationship quality.</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-10">Measurement model</hd> <p>The validation of our measurement model through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was conducted before fitting the structural models (as recommended by [<reflink idref="bib24" id="ref36">24</reflink>]) with loadings for one indicator per factor fixed to 1.0. All indicator loadings were significant as suggested by <emph>t</emph>‐values well over 1.96. Significant links between the residuals of the four indicators of parental warmth indicated that the inclusion of covariance paths between these residuals improved the fit of the model. The full measurement model with both mothers' and fathers' parenting measures included fit the data reasonably well with <emph>χ</emph><sups><emph>2</emph></sups> (<reflink idref="bib74" id="ref37">74</reflink>) = 93.01, <emph>p </emph>> .05, <emph>RMSEA</emph> = .047, <emph>CFI</emph> = .98. Apart from this, measurement models for both mothers and fathers fit the data well with <emph>χ</emph><sups><emph>2</emph></sups> (<reflink idref="bib34" id="ref38">34</reflink>) = 29.07, <emph>p </emph>> .05, <emph>RMSEA</emph> = .000, <emph>CFI</emph> = 1.00 for mothers and <emph>χ</emph><sups><emph>2</emph></sups> (<reflink idref="bib34" id="ref39">34</reflink>) = 44.18, <emph>p </emph>> .05, <emph>RMSEA</emph> = .051, <emph>CFI</emph> = .981 for fathers.</p> <p> <bold>Model 1: Distal factors as predictors of SRQ. </bold> The first model in which the hypothesised prediction of SRQ by household chaos and SES was tested resulted in a good model fit with <emph>χ</emph><sups><emph>2</emph></sups> (<reflink idref="bib11" id="ref40">11</reflink>) = 13.22, <emph>p </emph>> .05, <emph>RMSEA</emph> = .042, <emph>CFI</emph> = .981. Household chaos was significantly related to SRQ (<emph>r </emph>= −.48, <emph>p </emph>< .001). SES, however, did not predict SRQ to a statistically significant degree (<emph>r </emph>= −.22). Both distal factors were significantly correlated, <emph>r </emph>= −.46, <emph>p </emph>< .001).</p> <p> <bold>Model 2: Mediation via parenting. </bold> Our second model included parental warmth and harsh discipline as outcome variables of household chaos and SES and, at the same time, predictors of SRQ. We first fit the models with direct paths from distal factors to SRQ still included and compared them to models in which these paths were constrained to be zero. Figure 2 depicts the mediation model with path estimates for the non‐constrained model presented first and estimates for the constrained model presented second. The dashed lines represent direct effects that were constrained to be zero in the mediation model. As suggested by [<reflink idref="bib24" id="ref41">24</reflink>], mediation is evident if the overall fit of a constrained (i.e., more parsimonious) model is not significantly worse than the fit of a non‐constrained model. This was the case for the models presented in Figure 2, which supports the hypothesis that the link between distal factors and SRQ is mediated by parenting. The mediation of the link between household chaos and sibling relationship quality is further evident through path estimates; the significant direct link became nonsignificant when parenting measures were included into the model. It should be noted that we also tested mediation models in which only parental warmth and harsh discipline, respectively, were included which revealed the same effect, namely significant links from distal factors to SRQ only through parenting. This indicates that both parental warmth and harsh discipline mediated the link between household chaos and sibling relationship quality. Given that SES was not found to be a significant predictor of SRQ, prerequisites for mediation were not met ([<reflink idref="bib5" id="ref42">5</reflink>]). No differences between mothers and fathers were found as indicated by multi‐group comparisons with all path estimates constrained to be equal for both parents.</p> <p>Graph: 2 Mediation model
Note: Grey colored path estimates represent direct effects from Chaos and SES in the non‐constrained model. Dashed paths were constrained to zero in the mediation model. Black colored path estimates represent the mediation model. M Mother, F Father, C Crowding OS Older sibling, YS Younger sibling, SRQ Sibling relationship quality 
***p < .001, **p < .01, *p < .05, +p < .10</p> <p> <bold>Model 3: Moderation effects of distal factors and parenting measures. </bold> As well as additive effects predicting variance in SRQ, interactions between the distal factors and parenting were also hypothesised to predict SRQ. The model underlying these moderation analyses is presented in Figure 3. We first tested for interactions using combined maternal and paternal parenting reports, followed by multi‐group analyses for mothers and fathers. A total of 12 models were tested. Product terms of household chaos and warmth and discipline (combined parental reports for the general model, maternal and paternal, respectively for the individual models for mothers and fathers) as well as SES and warmth and discipline (combined parental reports for the general model, maternal and paternal, respectively for the individual models for mothers and fathers) were included in the models. All variables were mean‐centered to avoid multicollinearity. Within each model, paths from the distal factor (household chaos or SES), the parenting measure, as well as the interaction term to SRQ were estimated. Significant moderation was determined if the link from the interaction term to SRQ was statistically significant. No significant interactions were found when combined parenting measures were used. However, when considering mothers and fathers separately, one interaction effect, namely household chaos and maternal harsh discipline, marginally significantly predicted SRQ (<emph>β </emph>= .18, <emph>p </emph>< .10), indicating that mothers' exertion of harsh discipline moderated the link between household chaos and SRQ. Simple slope analyses ([<reflink idref="bib2" id="ref43">2</reflink>]) were conducted to interpret this interaction further (Figure 4). These analyses revealed that sibling relationship quality was highest in families with low household chaos and low exertion of harsh discipline. In other words, the interaction of low household chaos and low harsh discipline represents a double buffer against low sibling relationship quality.</p> <p>Graph: 3 Moderation model with parenting as moderator on the link between the distal factor and SRQ
Note: Solid path indicates hypothesized significant prediction of SRQ by the interaction of distal factor and parenting. SRQ Sibling Relationship Quality</p> <p>Graph: 4 Interaction of household chaos and maternal harsh discipline as predictors of sibling relationship quality. SRQ = Sibling relationship quality, MD = Maternal harsh discipline</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-11">Discussion</hd> <p>This study examined the interplay between young children's sibling relationship quality, their proximal environment of parenting, and their distal environment of household chaos and SES. The hypothesised direct links between distal factors and SRQ were partially confirmed. High levels of household chaos predicted low sibling relationship quality, whereas SES was not significantly directly linked to sibling relationship quality. Furthermore, results indicated that both parental warmth and exertion of harsh discipline mediated the link between household chaos and sibling relationship quality. In other words, chaos in the household predicted lower sibling relationship quality via low parental warmth and high parental discipline. Our third analysis tested for interaction effects. This revealed that SRQ was particularly high in families characterised by low household chaos and low exertion of harsh discipline by mothers.</p> <p>The current study presents a first indication that sibling relationship quality and chaotic homes are interrelated. This result is in line with earlier studies documenting links between home chaos and interactions between family members ([<reflink idref="bib16" id="ref44">16</reflink>]; [<reflink idref="bib20" id="ref45">20</reflink>]). Although our results indicate a significant association between household chaos and sibling relationship quality, the cross‐sectional study design allows no clear interpretation of direction. On the one hand, children in chaotic homes may be tuning out environmental stimuli, which could include positive communication with their siblings. It is quite conceivable that an unsettled, chaotic home leads to children's behaviour problems that are also manifested within the sibling relationship. Also, confusion, constant noise and a lack of routine may elevate emotional tension in children leading to conflict between siblings in order to 'let off steam'. On the other hand, it is possible that the link between sibling relationship quality and household chaos is based upon parental perceptions of chaos caused by sibling conflict. In any case, we have clear findings indicating that poor sibling relationships are more prevalent in chaotic homes.</p> <p>SES was a nonsignificant predictor of relationship quality within the family. Given that the link between SES and family relationship quality has been shown in other studies ([<reflink idref="bib23" id="ref46">23</reflink>]), the most plausible explanation for the lack of statistical significance in the current study is the exclusion of family income as an indicator of SES. As an alternate explanation, we hypothesise that while SES is a context that may directly affect parental attitudes about child rearing, this contextual factor may be unlikely to affect the more naïve, emotionally uninhibited relationship that young brothers and sisters have with one another.</p> <p>The second main goal of this study pertained to the mediating and moderating role of parenting on the links between distal environmental factors and sibling relationship quality. The gateway function of parenting on the link between the distal environment and sibling relationship quality found in earlier studies ([<reflink idref="bib6" id="ref47">6</reflink>]; [<reflink idref="bib30" id="ref48">30</reflink>]) was confirmed in the current study. Parents in chaotic homes were less warm and exerted more harsh discipline. We therefore suggest that household chaos is transferred through parenting practices and parental feelings to their children. Several approaches come into play to interpret the link between parenting practices and sibling relationship quality. For example, observation learning theory ([<reflink idref="bib3" id="ref49">3</reflink>]) assumes that children observe interaction patterns of their parents and apply them to their own relationships. Another explanation is offered by the <emph>spillover</emph> hypothesis ([<reflink idref="bib19" id="ref50">19</reflink>]). That is to say, interaction patterns between parents and children may be transferred to the sibling relationship.</p> <p>Although causal paths can not be established in this cross‐sectional and non‐experimental study, we suggest that the distal environment has an impact on family life, and that especially household chaos, i.e., a lack of routines, steady exposure to television, and inability of residents to stay on top of things, plays a prominent role in the quality of all relationships within a family. This finding is of practical importance given that household chaos is malleable. That is, introducing mealtime and bedtime routines, switching off television sets, and keeping noise in a home to a minimum might have a positive impact on parent–child as well as sibling relationship quality, in turn fostering positive child development. Parenting education in many countries focuses on practical childcare and dealing with problematic child behaviour, but often neglects the environment in which child rearing takes place. Teaching parents how to maintain a home high in structure, routine, and calmness may be usefully introduced within parenting programs. In addition, family workers are well advised to note that chaos in homes is a factor in children's distal environment that may foster negative relationships.</p> <p>One limitation of this study was its concentration on two‐parent families and the consideration of only two children per family. Distinct results, especially when considering noise and crowding as indicators of chaos in the home, might arise in families with three or more children. In addition, the current sample included working‐ and middle‐class families; however, the population from which the sample was drawn is primarily Caucasian. Future research including ethnic minority groups and families across different cultures has the potential to increase the generalisability of current findings or to uncover cultural variations reflecting differing family processes. Also, a larger sample size would allow for greater confidence in generalisability, as well as providing more power for structural equation modelling analyses. Furthermore, longitudinal designs are needed to shed light on the direction of the linkages presented in the current study.</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-12">Conclusions</hd> <p>The current study notably benefited from having relationship reports from mothers, fathers, children, and researchers. We were able to show that sibling relationship quality is not only linked to the quality of other relationships within the family, but also to household chaos, an aspect of children's distal environment. Neither direct nor indirect links between the socioeconomic situation of a family and sibling relationship quality were found. Previous research has often shown how important the sibling relationship is for children's development. However, it is also crucial to assess possible antecedents of particularly warm or high‐conflict sibling relationships. While the parent–child relationship already received attention from sibling researchers, risk factors in the more distal environment have been neglected. The current study supported the hypothesised link between household chaos and sibling relationship quality but also showed that the socioeconomic status of a family was not reflected in the sibling relationship. These findings suggest that the everyday running of a household as indicated by household chaos is more important for children's developing relationships than demographic factors like parental education. We also demonstrated that parenting may act as a gateway, explaining the process by which household chaos is associated with young children's sibling relationships. In addition, sibling relationship quality was found to be highest in families with low household chaos and low maternal harsh discipline. These results highlight the importance of considering the multi‐layered contexts of children's lives holistically to better understand family relationships. Our findings imply that parenting interventions and/or education may usefully include strategies for effective household calm and organisation.</p> <hd id="AN0037841446-13">Acknowledgements</hd> <p>This research was supported by a grant from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. We would also like to thank Anna Harrison for coordinating the project, and Eva Syngelaki and Christopher Illingworth for their assistance in data collection. Finally, we are grateful to the schools and families that participated in this project.</p> <ref id="AN0037841446-14"> <title> Footnotes </title> <blist> <bibl id="bib1" idref="ref25" type="bt">1</bibl> <bibtext> Conflict of interest statement: No conflicts declared.</bibtext> </blist> </ref> <ref id="AN0037841446-15"> <title> References </title> <blist> <bibtext> Ablow, J.C., & Measelle, J.R. (1993). The Berkeley Puppet Interview (BPI): Interviewing and coding system manuals. Eugene, OR: University of Oregon, Department of Psychology.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib2" idref="ref33" type="bt">2</bibl> <bibtext> Aiken, L.S., & West, S.G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interaction effects. Thousand Oaks: Sage.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib3" idref="ref49" type="bt">3</bibl> <bibtext> Bandura, A. (1971). Social learning theory. 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Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: Young Children's Sibling Relationship Quality: Distal and Proximal Correlates
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  Data: English
– Name: Author
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Kretschmer%2C+Tina%22">Kretschmer, Tina</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Pike%2C+Alison%22">Pike, Alison</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Journal+of+Child+Psychology+and+Psychiatry%22"><i>Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry</i></searchLink>. May 2009 50(5):581-589.
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  Label: Availability
  Group: Avail
  Data: Blackwell Publishing. 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148. Tel: 800-835-6770; Tel: 781-388-8599; Fax: 781-388-8232; e-mail: customerservices@blackwellpublishing.com; Web site: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/jnl_default.asp
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  Label: Peer Reviewed
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– Name: PhysDesc
  Label: Physical Description
  Group: PhysDesc
  Data: PDF
– Name: Pages
  Label: Page Count
  Group: Src
  Data: 9
– Name: DatePubCY
  Label: Publication Date
  Group: Date
  Data: 2009
– Name: TypeDocument
  Label: Document Type
  Group: TypDoc
  Data: Journal Articles<br />Reports - Research
– Name: Subject
  Label: Descriptors
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Siblings%22">Siblings</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Gender+Differences%22">Gender Differences</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Family+Life%22">Family Life</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Young+Children%22">Young Children</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Sibling+Relationship%22">Sibling Relationship</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Questionnaires%22">Questionnaires</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Family+Environment%22">Family Environment</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Socioeconomic+Status%22">Socioeconomic Status</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Low+Income+Groups%22">Low Income Groups</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Correlation%22">Correlation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Quality+of+Life%22">Quality of Life</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Interviews%22">Interviews</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Parent+Attitudes%22">Parent Attitudes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Discipline%22">Discipline</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Parenting+Styles%22">Parenting Styles</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Parent+Child+Relationship%22">Parent Child Relationship</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Parent+Influence%22">Parent Influence</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Attainment%22">Educational Attainment</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Family+Structure%22">Family Structure</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Structural+Equation+Models%22">Structural Equation Models</searchLink>
– Name: DOI
  Label: DOI
  Group: ID
  Data: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.2008.02016.x
– Name: ISSN
  Label: ISSN
  Group: ISSN
  Data: 0021-9630
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Background: Relationships within families are interdependent and related to distal environmental factors. Low socioeconomic status (SES) and high household chaos (distal factors) have been linked to less positive marital and parent-child relationships, but have not yet been examined with regard to young children's sibling relationships. The present study tested direct associations between these distal factors and sibling relationship quality, as well as examining parenting as a potential mediator and/or moderator. Method: One hundred and eighteen families with children aged 4 to 8 years were interviewed and completed questionnaires during home visits. Children provided reports about the quality of their sibling relationships via a puppet interview, and mothers and fathers reported on household chaos and their exertion of harsh discipline. Researchers rated parental warmth towards the children. Finally, parental education and household density were assessed as indicators of SES. Results: Using structural equation modelling (SEM), we found that lower levels of household chaos were related to better quality sibling relationships, and that this link was mediated by maternal warmth and paternal harsh discipline, as well as moderated by maternal harsh discipline. Conclusion: Household chaos was more strongly linked to relationship quality between family members than SES, warranting further research and practical application. The study of children's sibling relationships should take into account inter-relations between proximal and distal environmental factors to fully reveal the complexity of family life.
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  Data: 2009
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  Label: Accession Number
  Group: ID
  Data: EJ836889
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=eric&AN=EJ836889
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1111/j.1469-7610.2008.02016.x
    Languages:
      – Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 9
        StartPage: 581
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Siblings
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Gender Differences
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Family Life
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Young Children
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Sibling Relationship
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Questionnaires
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Family Environment
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Socioeconomic Status
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Low Income Groups
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Correlation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Quality of Life
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Interviews
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Parent Attitudes
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Discipline
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Parenting Styles
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Parent Child Relationship
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Parent Influence
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Educational Attainment
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Family Structure
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Structural Equation Models
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Young Children's Sibling Relationship Quality: Distal and Proximal Correlates
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Kretschmer, Tina
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Pike, Alison
    IsPartOfRelationships:
      – BibEntity:
          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 05
              Type: published
              Y: 2009
          Identifiers:
            – Type: issn-print
              Value: 0021-9630
          Numbering:
            – Type: volume
              Value: 50
            – Type: issue
              Value: 5
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry
              Type: main
ResultId 1