Parental Emotional Socialization and Child Mental Health After a Military Parenting Program: A Baseline Target Moderated Mediation Model

Parental emotional socialization (PES) has been recognized as a critical mechanism in parenting programs to enhance children's well-being, especially following adversity. However, few studies have examined the potential moderating effect of baseline PES levels. This study aimed to examine whether supportive and unsupportive PES can mediate the intervention effects of a parenting program on child adjustment (Aim 1), and whether baseline PES can moderate the effect (Aim 2). This study utilized data from two randomized controlled trials for post-deployed military families (N = 335, Mage = 8.25, 54% girls). Families were either assigned to in-person intervention condition (n = 226) or a treatment-as-usual condition (n = 109). Baseline-targeted moderation mediation (BTMM) models were conducted for mothers and fathers separately, with child age, child sex, child minority status, family household income, and deployment length included as covariates. The parenting program had an indirect effect on child internalizing and externalizing problems 1-year post-baseline through reduced maternal unsupportive PES at post-intervention, while no indirect effect was found through supportive PES. Additionally, baseline PES moderated the impact of the ADAPT program on maternal supportive and unsupportive PES post-intervention, such that mothers who reported less supportive PES or more unsupportive PES at baseline benefited more. No intervention effect was found through fathers' PES. The findings underscore the crucial role of baseline PES in shaping behavioral parenting intervention effectiveness. The study highlights that one size does not fit all and future research and practice should consider the diverse needs and responses of families, emphasizing the delivery of personalized interventions to best meet parents' needs and maximize support.