Abstract
This study examined the relation of low income and poverty to cortisol levels, and tested potential pathways from low income
to disruptions in cortisol through cumulative family risk and parenting. The sample of 306 mothers and their preschool children
included 29 % families at or near poverty, 27 % families below the median income, and the remaining families at middle and
upper income. Lower income was related to lower morning cortisol levels, and cumulative risk predicted a flatter diurnal slope,
with a significant indirect effect through maternal negativity, suggesting that parenting practices might mediate an allostatic
effect on stress physiology.
to disruptions in cortisol through cumulative family risk and parenting. The sample of 306 mothers and their preschool children
included 29 % families at or near poverty, 27 % families below the median income, and the remaining families at middle and
upper income. Lower income was related to lower morning cortisol levels, and cumulative risk predicted a flatter diurnal slope,
with a significant indirect effect through maternal negativity, suggesting that parenting practices might mediate an allostatic
effect on stress physiology.
- Content Type Journal Article
- Category Original Article
- Pages 1-19
- DOI 10.1007/s10578-012-0304-3
- Authors
- Maureen Zalewski, Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Box 351525, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Liliana J. Lengua, Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Box 351525, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Cara J. Kiff, Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Box 351525, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Philip A. Fisher, Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1227, USA
- Journal Child Psychiatry & Human Development
- Online ISSN 1573-3327
- Print ISSN 0009-398X