History of abuse and its transmission to parenting: A comparison among adolescent and adult mothers

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Shannon Carothers Bert
Robin Gaines Lanzi

Abstract

Utilizing data collected in the Parenting for the First Time Project, this study's
major objective was to assess the associations among maternal exposure to
abuse, both past and more recent, and subsequent parenting practices and
behavior among teen and adult first-time mothers. Retrospective and crosssectional data were obtained using in-person interviews during the prenatal period and at six months postpartum. Teen mothers were found to report a higher frequency of exposure to and engagement in abuse than their adult counterparts, and history of abuse related to parenting. For the total sample of mothers; particularly higher education adult mothers, history of abuse was a significant predictor of parenting practices and behaviors. Taken together, these findings elucidate the urgent need to stop the cycle of violence and abuse.

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