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• Home-visiting interventions have positive effects on child cognitive development, parenting beliefs and parenting practices of caregivers in rural China. • Home-visiting interventions have null effects on child social-emotional development in rural China. • Three mechanisms are identified through which interventions are able to raise child cognitive development. • Shifting parenting beliefs; increasing parenting practices; and shifting parenting beliefs thus fostering better parenting practices of primary caregivers are the three mechanisms that are driving our overall results of the impact of home-visiting interventions on early child development. To better understand the impacts of parenting interventions (e.g., parental training of psychosocial stimulating activities) on child developmental outcomes and design effective policies to benefit young children, it is essential to identify the mechanisms through which the interventions work. To this end, this paper presents the results of two randomized controlled trials that offered home visitation, parenting trainings to 435 households (with 527 households as the control group) in 174 villages across three provinces in China. The findings from the randomized controlled trials showed that the interventions significantly improved child cognitive development and had a positive effect on the primary caregivers' parenting practices and their parenting beliefs. The analysis suggests three possible mechanisms through which the parenting interventions affected child cognitive development: changing the parenting beliefs of the primary caregivers, shifting the parenting practices of the primary caregivers, and improving the primary caregivers' parenting beliefs, thus fostering better parenting practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We apply generalized propensity score matching method and instrumental variable method to explore the relationship between breastfeeding duration and child development. • The relationship is relatively stable and presents a U shape, with the optimal breastfeeding duration (6–10 months) promoting children's early behavior performance. • Breastfeeding longer than the optimal duration delays child development. • The optimal duration of breastfeeding had a greater positive effect on children from disadvantaged backgrounds. • The conclusions of this paper have obvious practical value for the policy of child development strategies and parenting practices. Based on a large-scale survey in China, we use the generalized propensity score matching method and instrumental variable method to explore the effect of breastfeeding duration on child development, and find that there is a relatively stable "U" relationship between breastfeeding duration and children's early behavioral performance, with the optimal breastfeeding duration (6–10 months) promoting children's early behavioral performance. However, more than the optimal breastfeeding duration will delay child development. We further find that the effect of breastfeeding duration on child development varies among different groups. There is evidence that the optimal breastfeeding duration has a greater positive effect on children from disadvantaged backgrounds. The conclusions of this paper have obvious practical value for the policy of child development strategies and parenting practices. Given the importance of early child development, there should be a reasonable breastfeeding duration, and the feeding interventions for disadvantaged children can bring higher returns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discursive insights into early childhood teacher views of parenting in a Chinese context is the focus of this paper. A critical discourse analysis was conducted on teachers' professional accounts captured on an online discussion forum uncovering how parenting and the role of parents in children's education were represented. Emphasized in the analysis is the importance of situating teacher discourse within the context of ‘glocalization’, acknowledging the influence of Confucian ideology on their professional stance, and recognizing the position of Western approaches in early childhood education. The findings reveal a tenuous place for teacher-parent partnerships in teachers' dialogic space and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Parental belief is associated with Child social-emotional development. • Parental investments mediate parental belief and child development. • The mediation effects vary across investments and developmental outcomes. • The varieties of play materials and activities are the strongest mediators. Parental investments are associated with early child outcomes, and some evidences outside China suggest that parental belief might affect parental investments. However, the interrelationships of parental belief, parental investments, and early child development has not been well documented in China. This paper aims to study the interrelationships between the caregiver's parental belief, the caregiver's parental investments, and the child's early developmental outcomes in rural China. A total of 1787 sample households in an undeveloped rural area of western China are enrolled in the cross-sectional study. A parental belief questionnaire, the Family Care Indicators (FCI), the Bayley Scales of Infant Development version III (BSID-III), and a socioeconomic questionnaire were used to measure the caregiver's parental belief on parenting practices, the caregiver's parental investments, the child's early developmental outcomes, and the socioeconomic characteristics of sample households, respectively. The mediation model was then applied to estimate the interrelationships. The results find that the caregiver's parental investments significantly mediate in the relationships between the caregiver's parental belief and the child's early developmental outcomes. Through parental investments, one standard deviation (SD) increase in the caregiver's parental belief is corresponding to 3% of one SD increase in the child's four developmental outcomes (cognition, language, motor, and social–emotion) respectively. For future studies aimed at designing targeted interventions on early child development in rural China, the key findings of this paper might be informative. Early interventions aimed at strengthening the caregiver's subjective belief on parenting practices and increasing the parental investments in the household might be effective to improve the development of rural children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A cross-sectional study of a large, middle-school student sample ( N = 966) was presented in this paper aiming to examine how parental behavior and self-control influence Internet addiction (IA) among Chinese adolescents. Fifty-one adolescents (the top 5% of IA score distribution) were categorized as at high risk. Males were more likely addicted to Internet than females. MANOVA demonstrated that, compared with non-IA group, adolescents with IA revealed lower mean score for parental positive support behavior and higher for parental negative control behavior and had lower capacity of self-control. SEM analyses revealed that low capacity of self-control had a negative correlation with parents’ positive support and a positive correlation with negative control. More importantly, Internet addiction was explained negatively by parents’ positive support and positively by parents’ negative control and individual low capacity of self-control. Further mediating analyses indicated that self-control accounted for an indirect role between parental behavior and adolescents’ Internet addiction. The findings of the present study are of significance in investigating adolescents’ problem behaviors and very helpful to provide educational advice for intervening in these behaviors. Moreover, the present finding’s potential relevance to Confucian styles of filial parenting was discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The study examines the relationship between parenting styles and creative thinking. • Parental emotional warmth was positively associated with students' creative thinking, while parental rejection and overprotection were negatively related to creative thinking. • We explore the mediating roles of self-esteem and internal locus of control. • This paper provides the heterogeneity effects among different groups. • The effects of parenting styles play a more positive role in the creative thinking of girls, low-grade students, and those from disadvantaged backgrounds. Family plays an important role in students' creative thinking development. However, the effect of parenting styles on creative thinking remains unclear. Using a sample of 2,143 students from a high school in northern China (58.47% girls; Mage = 16.45), the study examined the relationship between parenting styles and creative thinking. We find that the dimension of parental emotional warmth is positively related to students' creative thinking, while parental rejection and overprotection are negatively associated with creative thinking. Father's emotional warmth has a larger positive effect on creative thinking than mother's, while maternal rejection and overprotection have a greater negative effect on creative thinking than father's. We provide some suggestive evidence that students' internal locus of control and self-esteem mediate the relationship between parenting styles and creative thinking. The results of heterogeneity analysis show that parenting styles play a greater role in the creative thinking of girls, lower grade students, and those with disadvantaged family background. In a sense, parenting interventions that target creative thinking among underprivileged students will yield higher returns. This study unraveled the effect of parenting styles on students' creative thinking, explored the mechanisms of the development of this relationship, and examined the heterogeneous effects of different groups. Implications, limitations and recommendations for further research were also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Parental investment and skill mediate caregiver mental health and child development. • Caregiver depression are more harmful to parenting practices and child development. • The variety of play material has significant mediation effect on child development. • Coercive parenting mediate caregiver mental health and child development. Parenting practices are associated with early childhood development (ECD), and some evidences suggest that mental health might affect parenting practices. However, the interrelationships of mental health, parenting practices, and ECD outcomes have not yet been well documented in developing contexts like rural China. This paper aims to investigate the interrelationships between the caregiver's mental health, parenting practices, and the child's ECD outcomes in rural China. A total of 1787 sample households in an undeveloped rural area of western China are enrolled in the study. A socioeconomic questionnaire, the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale, the Family Care Indicators, the Parent and Family Adjustment Scales, and the Bayley Scales of Infant Development version III were used to measure the socioeconomic characteristics of sample households, the caregiver's mental health, parental investments and parenting skills, and the child's development outcomes, respectively. Mediation model was then applied to estimate the interrelationships. The results showed that parental practices significantly mediated between the caregiver's mental health and the child's cognition, language, motor, and social–emotion development. Through parental investments, one standard deviation increases in the caregiver's mental health test score was associated with the decline in the child's four development scores by 0.6% standard deviation, respectively. Through parenting skills, one standard deviation increases in the caregiver's mental health test score was associated with the decline in the child's language and social-emotional score by 2% and 5% standard deviation, respectively. Different dimensions of caregiver mental health, parental investments and skills played heterogeneous roles in the interrelationships. Early interventions aimed at improving the caregiver's mental health, parental investments and skills are important and might be effective to improve early childhood development in rural China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Intergenerational transmission of parenting styles exists in rural China. • The transmissible parenting style emphasis the role of father in parenting. • There is intergenerational transmission of rejective, hostile parenting style. • The transmission of parenting style is mediated by caregiver's mental health. The quality of parenting is associated with both early childhood development and lifelong negative adult outcomes, and there is evidence to suggest that some aspects of parenting show patterns of intergenerational transmission. However, the mediating mechanisms of the intergenerational transmission of parenting style are not fully understood. This study aims to examine whether intergenerational transmission of parenting style occurs among caregivers in rural China, and whether the mental health of caregivers is a critical mediator in the transmission process across generations. The sample consists of 194 caregivers who were recruited from an investigation in rural Jiangxi Province, China. Parenting style of both father and mother of the caregiver were self-reported by the caregiver using the simplified version of Egna Minnen av Barndoms Uppfostran (s-EMBU) inventory. The current parenting style of the caregiver is assessed by using the Parenting Practice Questionnaire (PPQ). We use multivariate regression to predict the intergenerational transmission of parenting style and examine the potential mediation effects. We found that 'emotional warmth' and 'rejective' parenting style of caregiver's parents are positively and significantly associated with 'warm' and 'hostile' parenting style of the caregiver, respectively. The transmission of rejective, hostile parenting style across generation is fully mediated by the mental health status of the caregiver. Specifically, the mediation effect of caregiver's depression, anxiety, and stress are all statistically significant. Findings in this paper support the existence of intergenerational transmission of parenting styles in rural China. Caregiver's mental health mediate the transmission process of rejective, hostile parenting style. This raises the possibility that parenting services may benefits across generations, and provides empirical evidence for preventive services aimed at improving caregiver's mental health and parenting styles at the early stage of child development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Explore the effect of work-family conflict on parenting stress for ADHD families. • Identify work-family conflict as a potent contributor to parenting stress. • Non-working parents have higher parenting stress than employed parents do. • Chinese mothers experience higher parenting stress than fathers do. • More research is needed given the absence of work and parenting stress research. This paper reports the results of a one-time survey among Chinese families of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (n = 314) and families with typically developing (TD) children (n = 308) in mainland China, which aimed to examine the effects of the parenting role, work-family conflict, child ADHD symptoms, parental depression, anxiety, and somatization, parenting alliance, and social support on parenting stress. The results of the study have shown that (i) parents of children with ADHD experienced significantly higher levels of parenting stress than did parents of TD children; Chinese mothers experienced significantly higher parenting stress than fathers did; (ii) mothers of children with ADHD had more work-family conflict than mothers of TD children did; (iii) non-working parents had higher levels of parenting stress than the employed parents did; (iv) work-family conflict, depression, anxiety, and somatization, child ADHD symptoms, parenting role, and social support accounted for 40.9% of the variance in parenting stress; parenting alliances did not approach significance in the regression. Implications for social work practice and service development are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]