Tricia Neppl

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Papers by Tricia Neppl

An examination of genetic and environmental factors related to negative personality traits, educational attainment, and economic success

Developmental Psychology, 2021

Personality variables are associated with educational attainment and socioeconomic outcomes. In t... more Personality variables are associated with educational attainment and socioeconomic outcomes. In this study we incorporated a polygenic score derived from the largest GWAS of educational attainment to date (Lee et al., 2018) into the Interactionist Model of R. Conger and colleagues (2020) that describes the influence of socioeconomic factors on individual development. The inclusion of a polygenic score predictive of educational attainment (PS-Edu) into this model, and the use of the multi-generation, longitudinal Family Transitions Project (FTP) provides a unique opportunity to investigate genetic and environmental influences on the development of negative personality traits, and educational and economic outcomes. The FTP is a three-generation sample. This study utilized data from the first generation (G1; mean age 40 at initiation of the FTP) and second generation (G2; assessed at mean ages 18 and 30). Participants are approximately 50% female, 99% of European ancestry, primarily from lower to middle class SES. PS-Edu was significantly correlated with educational attainment in both generations of the FTP, accounting for 4.1% to 6.7% of the variance. Findings confirm that PS-Edu is a complex genetic index that is correlated with all of the socioeconomic constructs in the model. Results suggest potential geneenvironment correlation or common genetic influences underlie associations among parenting investments, negative personality traits and educational attainment. Genetic variance captured by PS-Edu was mediated substantially through G1 parental investments. Although study limitations warrant cautious interpretation, we demonstrate the promise of including polygenic scores in developmental models to better understand genetic and environmental influences on human development.

format_quoteGenetic variance captured by PS-Edu was mediated through G1 parental investments, indicating gene-environment interactions.format_quote

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Special section on personality development: Testing environmental and genetic associations across generations

Developmental psychology, 2021

This special section focuses on the life-course development of positive and negative personality ... more This special section focuses on the life-course development of positive and negative personality traits and their consequences. Specifically, we pose four research questions inspired by the special section in Developmental Psychology on Conscientiousness (Reiss, Eccles, & Nielsen, 2014). The current set of articles extends the examination of the positive effects of Conscientiousness on individual well-being by also considering the potentially disruptive effects of specific negative personality traits (alienation and low sense of well-being). Our four questions are as follows. Question 1: what are the correlates of Conscientiousness and negative personality traits in terms of family processes? Question 2: to what degree do Conscientiousness and negative traits operate in a transactional process with the social and economic environment to amplify or suppress these characteristics? Question 3: how do individual personality characteristics affect specific behaviors and interactions with...

Economic pressure and depressive symptoms: Testing the family stress model from adolescence to adulthood

Journal of Family Psychology, 2018

The Family Stress Model (FSM) was utilized to examine the effects of economic pressure on materna... more The Family Stress Model (FSM) was utilized to examine the effects of economic pressure on maternal depressive symptoms, couple conflict, and mother harsh parenting during adolescence, on offspring depressive symptoms in adulthood. Prospective longitudinal data was analyzed across three developmental time points which included 451 mothers and their adolescent. Economic pressure and mother depressive symptoms were assessed during early adolescence, couple conflict and mother harsh parenting were assessed during middle to late adolescence, and offspring depressive symptoms were assessed in adulthood. Findings were in support of pathways in the FSM in that economic pressure was related to maternal depressive symptoms, which were associated with couple conflict, that in turn predicted mother harsh parenting during adolescence, and mother harsh parenting was associated with offspring depressive symptoms in adulthood.

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Couple interaction and child social competence: The role of parenting and attachment

Social Development, 2018

The current study examined the association between positive couple interaction and child social c... more The current study examined the association between positive couple interaction and child social competence as mediated through positive parenting and parent-child attachment security. Prospective, longitudinal data came from 209 mothers, fathers, and their biological child. Information regarding observed positive couple interaction, observed positive parenting, and parent-child attachment security were assessed when the child was 2 to 4 years old, and child social competence was assessed at 5 years old. Mothers and fathers were analyzed separately in the model. Results indicated that for both mothers and fathers, positive couple interaction was indirectly associated with child social competence through positive parenting and parent-child attachment. These pathways remained statistically significant even after child social competence at age 2 to 4 was taken into account. Results suggest that couple interaction spills over into parenting which impacts parent-child attachment, which is associated with positive child developmental outcomes.

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Economic Pressure, Parent Positivity, Positive Parenting, and Child Social Competence

Journal of Child and Family Studies, 2019

Objectives The current study examined how economic pressure impacts parental positivity and posit... more Objectives The current study examined how economic pressure impacts parental positivity and positive parenting separately for mothers and fathers, as well as how positivity and parenting impact child social competence. Methods This study included 207 mothers, fathers, and their first-born child from toddlerhood through the preschool years. This study employed an Actor-Partner Interdependence Model which was developed to handle dyadic relationships to investigate the association between economic pressure, parental positivity, and positive parenting, separately for mother and father and the interdependent associations between them. Results Results showed that economic pressure when the child was age 2 (Time 1) was negatively associated with maternal and paternal positivity and father positive parenting when the child was 3-4 years old (Time 2). Maternal positivity was associated with paternal positivity and mother positive parenting was associated with father positive parenting. In addition, maternal positivity was associated with mother positive parenting while paternal positivity was not significantly related to father positive parenting at Time 2. Parental positivity and positive parenting at Time 2 were both associated with child social competence at age 5 (Time 3), even after controlling for child social competence at age 2 (Time 1). Conclusions The current results suggest that both maternal and paternal positivity and positive parenting are important protective factors for young children's social competence even under times of economic adversity.

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The Influence of Parental Alcoholism on Parent–Adolescent Relationships From Adolescence Into Emerging Adulthood: A Qualitative Inquiry

Emerging Adulthood, 2019

Exposure to parental alcoholism can inhibit a child’s ability to become a successfully functionin... more Exposure to parental alcoholism can inhibit a child’s ability to become a successfully functioning young adult. Based on qualitative interviews, this study provides a deeper understanding of how those parent–adolescent relationships are associated with risky internalizing and externalizing behaviors. This qualitative study explores the lives of 13 young adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs) and provides a unique perspective through an adaptive developmental approach by evaluating emerging adults who were ACOAs and successfully functioning. Compelling findings emerged with respect to how young adults define alcoholism and being a child of alcoholism and how the parent–adolescent relationship adapts in the unstable environment associated with family alcoholism. Salient findings revealed that when emotional and physical detachment from a parent’s alcoholic behaviors in addition to an acceptance that those behaviors are not the adolescent’s responsibility, individuals gained better contr...

format_quoteAdolescents from alcoholic homes are 30-50% more likely to experience depression compared to 3% of peers with non-drinking parents.format_quote

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Harsh Parenting and Food Insecurity in Adolescence: The Association With Emerging Adult Obesity

Journal of Adolescent Health, 2016

format_quoteHigher levels of harsh parenting in adolescence increased the odds of overweight/obesity in adulthood by 31% for each increment.format_quote