Socioeconomic status, mothers’ parental stress and reflective functioning, and school-aged children’s psychosocial functioning: A moderated mediation model

This study explores possible explanations for the association between a family’s socioeconomic status and children’s psychosocial functioning. Based on the Family Stress model, we examined this relationship, mediated by the mother’s parental stress and moderated by her reflective functioning. Two hundred and nine Israeli mothers of school-aged children completed online questionnaires regarding the family’s socioeconomic status, their parental stress and reflective functioning, and their children’s psychosocial functioning. Findings showed that the mothers’ parental stress mediated the link between the family’s socioeconomic status and the children’s difficulties and prosocial behavior. Moreover, the mother’s reflective functioning moderated the indirect link between socioeconomic status and the children’s difficulties via the mother’s parental stress. Specifically, when the mothers showed more reflective functioning, the indirect negative link between socioeconomic status and the children’s difficulties via the mother’s parental stress was stronger than when the mothers showed less reflective functioning. We discuss the implications of these findings for interventions designed to reduce maternal stress, while considering the family’s socioeconomic status and the role of the mother’s reflective functioning in school-aged children’s behavior.