Single Mothers' Self-Efficacy, Parenting inthe Home Environment, and Children's

Development in a Two-Wave StudyAurora P. fackson and Richard Scheines

Using data from a sample of 178 single black mothers and their young children who were agesthree to five at time 1 and ages five to eight at time 2, this study examined the links betweenand among low-wage employment, mothers' self-efficacy beliefs, depressive symptoms, and a

constellation of parenting behaviors in the preschool years to children's cognitive andbehavioral functioning in early elementary school years. In general, the results supported amodel in which the influence of mothers' employment on maternal parenting and childoutcomes was largely indirect and mediated by perceived self-efficacy. Employment was

related directly to higher self-efficacy, which in turn was associated with decreased depressivesymptoms. Depressive symptoms were associated with the quality of the mother-nonresident

father relationship and the latter with the frequency of nonresident fathers' contacts with theirchildren. More contact between nonresident fathers and their children predicted moreadequate maternal parenting, which in turn was associated directly with the children's

subsequent behavioral and cognitive functioning in early elementary school. The results arediscussed in the context of social cognitive theory and the Personal Responsibility and Work

Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.

KEYWORDS: children's development; employment; mothers; parenting; psychological well-being; welfare reform

Social cognitive theory posits that people areself-organizing, proactive, and self-regulatoryagents in the production of their desired out-

comes {Bandura, 1999, 2001). Perceived self-effi-cacy—the belief that one has the power to produceeffects by one's actions—influences aspirations andthe strength of commitments to them, level of per-severance in the face of difficulties and setbacks,and vulnerability to stress and depression (bandura,1997).

Although there is a rapidly growing body of re-search on the role of perceived self-efTicacy inparenting and on the negative influence of eco-nomic hardship on efficacious parenting (Ardelt &Eccles, 2U01; Elder, Eccles, Ardelt, & Lord, 1995;Gross, Conrach, Fogg, & Wothke, 1994; Jackson,2000;Jackson & Huang,2000),little is known aboutthe niediational roles that maternal self-efficacybeliefs and parenting in the home environment play

in linking low-wage employment among singleblack mothers with preschoolers to their children'sbehavioral and cognitive development.

WORK, INCOME, AND WELL-BEINGWith the passage of the Personal Responsibilityand Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996(PRWORA) (PL. 104-193),which places strict timelimits on welfare receipt and mandates that low-income recipients work (even mothers with veryyoung children, low skills, and low wages), manysingle mothers have left welfare for work but stilldo not earn enough to raise their families out ofpoverty (EUwood,2000).

Income plays an especially important role in fam-ily life, because the resources necessary for sustain-ing the health and well-being of family membersand furthering the development of children aredependent on the family's fmancial resources

CCCCode: 1070-5309/OS $3.00 O200S National Association of Social Workers

(Bronfenbrenner, 19S8). In the study discussed here,we focused on single black mothers because theyare disproportionately represented among the verypoor and the welfare-dependent population{Duncan, 1991;Wilson. 1987,1996).

Some argue that children develop more opti-mally when there is both a primary caregivcr (mostoften the mother) who i.s committed to the well-being of the children and another adult (most oftenthe father) who gives support to the primarycaregivcr (see, for example, Iironfenbrenner, 1986).Little is known about how single black mothersand nonresident black fathers co-parent in poorand near-poor black families and how their sepa-rate (but often conjoint) parenting behaviors influ-ence the development of young black children,because most of the research on nonresident fa-thers' contacts with tbeir children is based on samplesof mostly middle-class, divorced, white fathers(Amato & Gilbrcth, 1999;Seltzer, 199!;Shapiro &Lambert, 1999).

THE PRESENT STUDYThe present study vras part of a larger research pro-gram that focused on the associations among low-wage maternal employment, fmancial strain, psy-chological well-being, parenting, and children'sdevelopment over a three-year period (Jackson,1998. 1999, 2000, 2003; Jackson, Brooks-Gunn.Huang, &Giassman,2000;Jackson,Gyamfi,Brooks-Gunn,& Blake, 1998;Jackson ik Huang, 2000).

In the present study we examined the determi-native impact on preschool children's behavioraland cognitive development of mothers' perceivedself-efficacy, parenting practices involving the rela-tionship between single mothers and nonresidentfathers, and the level of contact between these fa-thers and their children.

The present study involved a sample of singleblack mothers—all of whom were current andformer (before passage of PRWORA) welfare re-cipients—with a child who was three to five yearsold at time 1 (1996-1997) and five to eight yearsold at time 2 (1998-1999). The mothers lived inthree low-income communities in New York City.

CONCEPTUAL MODELBecause the mechanisms that mediate the relationsdiscussed earlier are unclear, we used the results toinform our conceptual model (Figure 1) that linkslow-wage maternal employment, mothers'self-ef-

ficacy beliefs, depressive symptoms, and a constel-lation of parenting behaviors (including maternalparenting in tbe home environment, the quality ofthe mother-nonresident father relationship,and theintensity of the nonresident father's contact withthe child) in the preschool years (time 1) to children'scognitive and behavioral functioning in early el-ementary school years (time 2).

Self-EfftcacyIn the conceptual model, the influence of mothers'employment status on maternal parenting and childoutcomes is largely indirect and mediated by per-ceived self-efficacy. In social cognitive theory, per-ceived self-efficacy is a focal mechanism in humanagency (Bandura, 1999, 2001).Thus, unless peoplebelieve that they can produce desired outcomesthrough their actions, they have little incentive toact or to persevere in the face of difficulties. Per-ceived self-efTicacy is theorized to be a pivotal fac-tor in successful parenting; research lends supportto this view (Ardelt &: Eccles, 2001; Elder et al,,1995; Gross et al., I994;Jackson, 2000; Jackson &Huang, 2000).The higher mothers' perceived effi-cacy, the less stress and depression they experienceand the more they tend to engage in family strate-gies that promote their children's developmentalopportunities.

Mother's Employment and Self-EfficacyThe first pliase in the conceptual model concernsthe association between maternal employment andperceived self-efficacy in the children's preschoolyears. In social cognitive theory, socioeconomicfactors affect children's development through theirimpact on famihal and self-processes (Bandura, 1997,2001).

Earlier research has shown that unemploymentand welfare receipt can weaken mothers' self-as-surance; this feeling of vulnerability has been shownto influence parenting, undermining mothers' be-liefs that they can influence their children's devel-opment (Brody, Flor, & Gibson, 1999;Luster & Kain,1987; Mirowsky & Ross, 1989).

Elder and his colleagues (1995) have demon-strated that economic hardship affects children'sdevelopment indirectly as it influences family pro-cesses by undermining parents' perception of theirability to promote competence in their childrenand to protect them from environments that com-promise successful development.

Social Work Research VOLUME 29, NUMBER 1 MARCH 2005

Other researchers have found that economicstresses and unemployment were associated with adiminished sense of childrearing efficacy amongwhite families who experienced the 1980s farmcrisis in Iowa and Michigan single-parent blackfamilies who experienced unemployment and workinterruption in the 1980s (McLoyd, Jayaratne,Ceballo,& Borquez, 1994;Simons,Whitbeck,Con-ger, & Melby, 1990).

Depression and Mother-FatherRelationshipsAlthough a substantial body of research has relatedmaternal depressive symptoms and the quality ofthe mother-father relationship to the quality ofmaternal parenting, less is known about the mecha-nisms that mediate these relations. For example,studies have demonstrated that maternal depres-sion is associated with diminished nurturance, lesssensitivity, and increased negativity toward children(CoUetta & Lee, 1983; Crnic & Greenberg, 1987);that mothers with poor relations with their child'sfather behave less optimally in the parenting role(Belsky, 1990; Cox, Owen, Lewis, & Henderson,1989; Simons,Beaman, Conger, & Chao, 1993); andthat fathers can have a positive effect on children'sdevelopment (King, 1994a, 1994b; Parke, 1981;Patterson, Kupersmidt, &Vaden, 1990; Rudin, 1981}.Concerning the latter, however, much of the theoryon nonresident black fathers and their relationshipwith their children has centered on fmancial childsupport (McLanahan, 1997;Teachman, 1990; for anexception, see Jackson, 1999).

The second phase in the proposed conceptualmodel concerns the associations among perceivedself-efficacy, depressive symptoms, a constellationof parenting behaviors at time 1 (in the child's pre-school years), and the influence of these on childoutcomes at time 2 (in early elementary schoolyears).Theoretically, people with high self-efficacyare likely to experience less stress and depressionbecause they act in ways that make the environ-ment more manageable and less threatening(Bandura, 1997).Thus, the paths from self-efficacyto depressive symptoms to the quality of themother-father relationship to the frequency of thefathers'contact with their children to the mothers'parenting adequacy lead to the hypothesis thatmothers with higher perceptions of self-efEcacywould pursue family strategies that promote theirchildren's developmental opportunities,such as pro-

viding more warmth, support, and cognitive stimu-lation in the home. These mothers would be ex-pected to expend greater effort in the face of rever-sals or setbacks,and these efforts would be associatedwith fewer depressive symptoms.

The model further hypothesizes that elevatedlevels of mothers' depressive symptoms would in-terfere with the quality of the mother-nonresidentfather relationship that, in turn, would influencethe amount of contact between nonresident fathersand their children.

The literature provides considerable support forthese hypothesized processes. In addition to studiescited demonstrating a positive link between self-efficacy and more adequate parenting, a number ofstudies have shown that depressed mood is associ-ated positively with hostile, conflictual, uncommu-nicative relations with significant others (Berkowitz,1989; Brody et al., 1994; Conger et al., 1992;Downey & Coyne, 1990). Although much of thisevidence comes from studies involving two-parentfamilies and the effects of marital conflict onparenting behaviors and the consequent child out-comes, it is not known whether similar relation-ships would emerge among other groups. None ofthese investigations have documented the linksbetween maternal depressive symptoms and thecoparenting relationship between single black moth-ers and nonresident black fathers.

McLoyd (1990) has shown, on the basis of herreview of the evidence on family processes thataffect the functioning of children living in poorfamilies, that the frequency ot contact betweennonresident fathers and their children dependsmore on the fathers' relationships with the moth-ers of the children than on their relationships withthe children. The proposed conceptual modelspecifies the paths through which maternal depres-sive symptoms, the quality of the mother-nonresi-dent father relationship, and the nonresident father'scontacts with the child in the preschool years arelinked with poor and near-poor black children'sbehavioral and cognitive functioning in early el-ementary school years through their mothers'parenting in the home environment in the pre-school years.

Our study focused on individual differences byexamining the mediational pathways through whichlow-wage employment and mothers' efficacy be-Iie6 were associated with parenting;and how mothers'depressive symptoms, and the respective relations

JACKSON AND SCHEINES / Single Mothen'Self-Efficacy, Parenting in the Home Environment, and Children's Development

between and among single mothers, nonresidentfathers, and their children served as links to varia-tion in young black children's development overtime.

METHOD

Participants and ProcedureFirst interviewed between February 1996 and Janu-ary 1997, participants in this study were 188 cur-rent and former single-mother welfare recipients(93 employed, 95 nonemployed) and their preschoolchildren at time 1 The mothers resided in Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn, Harlem in Manhattan, andJamaica in Queens—New York communities withlarge numbers of low-income black families.

Recruited through the Office of EmploymentServices of the New York City Human ResourcesAdministration (HRA), the sample consisted of 266randomly selected mothers with a three- or four-year-old child. For the initial interviev^, a 71% re-sponse rate was achieved (see Jackson, 1998,2000;Jackson et al, 1998; Jackson et al., 2000). For thefinal interview (between July 1998 and December1999), the sample consisted of 178 mothers (130employed, 48 nonemployed) and their early school-age children, 95% of those first interviewed. Onechild died before the second interview.

For each of the two interviews, mothers and thefocal children were visited in their homes for oneto two hours. During each visit, mothers completeda questionnaire focusing on individual and familycharacteristics. At time 2,158 teachers (89% of thosesent a mailed questionnaire) completed an assess-ment of the children's adaptive language abilities inearly elementary school. Mothers received $50 intotal for their time; teachers received $25.

MeasuresCorresponding to the model delineated in Figure1, description of the measures proceeds across con-structs from left to right. Except for single-itemmeasures, all variables included in the analyses arescales the values of which represent the mean. Whencalculating the mean value on scales, items werereversed as necessary so that a higher score indi-cates more of the attribute named in the label.Coefficient alphas were obtained for scales withmultiple items.

Emptoyment Status. At each interview, motherswere asked whether they were employed and, if so,the average number of hours they worked each

week. In the present analyses, employment status isa dichotomous variable indicating whether themother was currently employed 10 hours or morea week at time 1 (coded: 0 = no, 1 - yes).

Perceived Self-Efficacy .The M^iKTy Scale {Pezthn& Schooler, 1978) (seven items, a - .70) was usedto measure perceived self-efficacy. This four-pointscale (ranging fi-om 1 = strongly agree to 4 - stronglydisagree) measures the degree to which people feelthiit they have control over the things that happento them.Sample items include"! have little controlover the things that happen to me," "There is littleI can do to change many of the important things inmy life," and "1 can do just about anything I reallyset my mind to do."

Depressive Symptoms.The Cemer for Ep'idemio-logical Studies Depression (CES-D) scale (RadlofT,1977) (20 items, a = .88) was used to measure de-pressive symptoms. Mothers were asked to indicateon a four-point scale (ranging from 0 — less thanonce a day to 3 - most or aD of the time) how oftenduring the past week they felt depressed, lonely,sad, unusually bothered by things, or could not getgoing.The CES-D is not intended as a measure ofclinical depression, hut grotips with scores of 16 orabove are considered to be at risk ot depression.

Parenting. The quality of the mother-father re-lationship (10 items, a = .90) was assessed by ask-ing mothers to indicate on a five-point scale (rang-ing from 1 = positive emotion to 5 = negativeemotion) the extent to which words such as thefollowing described their relationship with the fo-cal child's father over the past two to three months:"enjoyable" to "miserable,""hopeful" to "discour-aging," "rewarding" to "disappointing." The fre-quency of the nonresident fathers' contact with thefocal children was indicated by mothers' responsesto a single-item eight-point scale (ranging from 1= child has never seen father to 8 = sees fatheralmost every day) that asked how often the childsaw the father.

The Home Observation for Measurement of theEnvironment (HOME) (Bradley, 1989; Bradley &Caldwell, 1984; Caldwell & Bradley, 1984) mea-sured maternal parenting. Designed to assesswhether the child's home is an environment thatenhances intellectual and emotional developmentand helps to prepare him or her for the challengesof school, the HOME is a well-validated and widelyused instrument The version used in this study (18items, a = -67) included maternal report items and

10 Social Work Research VOLUME 19, NUMBER I MARCH 2005

interviewer observations that tapped the regularityand structure of the family's daily routine, theamount of intellectual stimulation available to thechild, and the degree of emotional support andwarmth provided by the parents.

Child Outcomes. Child behavior problems attime 2 (30 items, a = .94) were assessed by askingmothers to indicate on a three-point scale (rang-ing from 1 = very much like my child to 3 = notat all like my child) the extent to which statementssuch as the following described their child's be-havior during the past three months; "has suddenchanges in mood or feeling,""is rather high strung,tense, and nervous," "feels others are out to gethim/her," "hangs around with kids who get intotrouble" (Peterson & Zill, 1986). Although answersreflect mothers' reports of their child's behavior,studies have found that mothers' reports reflectchildren's behaviors reported by teachers and as-sessed by observation (Conrad & Hammen, 1989;Rjchters & Pellegrini, 1989; Schaughency & Lahey,1985).

To measure cognitive development at time 2, thefocal children's elementary school teachers com-pleted the Adaptive Language Inventory (eightitems, alpha = .95) (Hogan, Scott, & Bauer, 1992).This five-point scale (ranging from 1 = well belowaverage to 5 = well above average) asked teachersto indicate the extent to which statements such asthe following described the child's verbal ability:"recalls and communicates personal experiences topeers in a logical way," "recalls and communicatesthe essence of a story or other sequential materialwhich has been heard or read in school,""respondsto questions asked in a thoughtful and logical way,""is easily understood when talking to teachers."

AnalysisFirst, we conducted bivariate correlations involv-ing relations among the study variables.Then, testsof the theoretical model were carried out usinghnear structural relations modeling (LISREL andEQS).This was followed by a computer search us-ing procedures available inTETlVAD 4 to examinewhether alternative path models existed that fit thedata well.

RESULTSSample CharacteristicsThe final sample consisted of 178 mothers andchildren (99 boys, 79 girls). On average, the moth-

ers were 31.7 years of age at time 2; the focal chil-dren were 6.6 years old (range: ages five to eight).Nearly one-third of the mothers (31.5%) had com-pleted high school and about one-half (52.8%) hadsome education beyond high school. Although weconsidered any education or training after highschool education, only 4 % of the mothers had abachelor's degree. At time 1, the average employedmother (H = 90) worked 34.8 hours a week {SD =12.8) and earned S4.34 an hour {SD = 4.83).

Nonresident fathers had a mean age of 32.9years. According to the mothers, 41 % of these menhad completed high school and 24% had some edu-cation beyond high school. We have no data onthe fathers' employment status at time l,but if wecan make assumptions based on the time 2 data,almost one-half (47.2) were employed full-time.The rest were employed either part time (8.4%),not at all (22.5%), or the mothers did not knowthe status (20.8%).

Descriptive AnalysisBeing employed was significantly positively corre-lated with perceived self-efficacy, which is corre-lated negatively with depressive symptoms (Tablel).The associations between mothers' depressivesymptoms and the nonresident—father-mother-child variables were negative, as was that betweendepressive symptoms and parenting in the homeenvironment.The latter, in turn, was associated witheach child outcome in the expected direction.Theserelationships suggest promise for the test of thetheoretical model. It is worthy of note that the av-erage mother in this study was at some risk of de-pression at time 1 with a mean score on the CES-D of 15.51 (16 being the cutoff score for depressivesymptoms).

Model EstimationPath analytic models were constructed to test thehypothesized mode! (Bollen, 1989). Maximumlikelihood estimates of the model parameters werecomputed using LISREL and EQS (Bender &Wu,1995; Joreskog & Sorbom. 1996). In a path ana-lytic model, the total effect of one variable on an-other is the sum of the effects produced througheach separate mechanism, or path, in the model.For example, the total effect of mothers' depres-sive symptoms on maternal parenting (HOMEscore) is posited to be the sum of two paths, onedirect (depressive symptoms —> parenting) and the

JACKSON AND SCHEINES / Single Mothers'Self Efficacji Parenting in the Home Environment, and Children's Development

Variable

Table 1: Means, Standard Deviations, and Correlations betweenVariables Influencing Self-Efficacy in Single Black Mothers

Mean SD

l.Empiaymeni status

2. Self-efficacy 3.22

3. Depressive symptoms 15.51

4. Mother-father relationship 2.7'*

5. Father-chiid coniaci 5.00

6. Parenting (HOME) 13.90

7- Behavior problems 1.45

8. Cognitive develop. 3.06

.49

10.31

1.00

2.36

2.48

.34

.77

.22*-.16*

.03

.n

.10

.07

.04

—

-.47**

.12

.08

.20**

-.17*

-.04

_

-.18*

-.16*

-.19**

.21 '*

-.04

—

.41**

.12

-.08

.03

—

.18*

^.05

-.06

—

-.29**

.17*

—

-.15

Notes. Dummy codes for employment status: 1 • employed, 0 = nonemployed; HOME = Home Observation for the Measufemert ot the Environment (Bradley. 1989)."(3 < .05. • • p < .01.

Other indirect (depressive symptoms —> mother-father relationship —> father-child contact —>parenting) (Figure 1).

The contribution from each path is the productof the edge coefficients on that path. Each edgecoefficient in the estimated model quantifies thesize of the direct effect of one variable on anotheras the change in the expectation of the effect, giventhat we intervened to produce a one-unit changein the causal variable while holding all other vari-ables constant.

Mediated effects are understood in the follow-ing sense: Does a variable serving as an interveningvariable transmit some of the causal effects of priorvariables onto subsequent ones? For example, aneffect constitutes mediation in our analyses if the

product of the paths from A io B and B to C issignificantly different from 0. If so, then B is con-sidered to be a mediator of the effect of A on C (seeJackson et al.,200()). In addition, if all of the pathsfrom one variable (A) to another variable (Q gothrough a third variable (B). and their product issignificantly different from 0, then the associationbetween A and C is considered to be totally medi-ated by B.

In addition to computing the chi square for thedifference between estimated and achieved values,we evaluated the fit between the structural modeland the data by means of two standard indices: thegoodness-of-fit index (GFl) and the adjusted good-ness-of-fit index (AGFl).The GIF estimates theamount of variance explained by the model, and

Figure 1: Path Diagram of Theoretical Model Showing Interactionof Variables Influencing Self-Efficacy in Single Black Mothers

Employmentstatus

(Time 1)

Mothers' depressivesymptoms —(Time 1)

Mother-father->• relationship

(Time 1)

Mothers"self-efficacy

(Time 1)

Mothers" parenting{Time 1)

Behaviorproblems(Time 2)

Cognitivedevelopment

(Time 2)

12 Social Work Research VOLUME 29. NUMBER 1 MARCH l o o j

the AGFI adjusts this estimate by taking into ac-count the degrees of freedom (Bollen, 1989).Themodel produced a nonsignificant chi square {p =.32), a goodncss-of-fit coefBcient of .97, and anadjusted goodness-of-fit coefficient of .95 (Figure2). In light of these criteria, the fit for the proposedmodel was excellent.

Inspection of the structural parameters showedthat the path between mothers' employment statusand perceived self-efficacy was consistent with thehypothesized effect, indicating that being employedwas associated with higher perceived self-efficacy(P = .22, p < .01), which in turn exhibited theexpected negative relationship to depressive symp-toms (P =-.47, p < .05).

Depressive symptoms had the expected negativerelationship to the quality of the mother-fatherrelationship (P = -.18, p < .05), indicating thatmothers with fewer depressive symptoms had abetter relationship with the nonresident fathers oftheir children, which in turn showed the expectedpositive relationship to the frequency of nonresi-dent fathers' contact with their preschool children(P = .41, p < .01) (Figure 2). The path betweenfather—child contact and mothers' parenting in thehome environment was consistent with the hypoth-esized effect, indicating that contact between non-resident fathers and their children was associatedwith more adequate maternal parenting (p = A5,p< .05). It should be noted that depressive symp-

toms also had a direct and negative relationship tomothers'parenting (p = -.17,p < .05). Hence, ashypothesized, depressive symptoms were relatednegatively to mothers' parenting in the home envi-ronment through two mechanisms: the quality ofthe mother—father relationship (direct) and the fre-quency of the nonresident fathers' contact with thechildren (indirect).

Outcomes at Time 2Recall that all variables in the model antecedent tothe child outcomes at time 2 (in early elementaryschool) were measured at time 1 (when the chil-dren were preschoolers).The association betweenmaternal parenting in the preschool years and thechildren's cognitive development in early elemen-tary school (time 2) (P = .17, p < .05) and thatbetween maternal parenting and behavior prob-lems in early elementary school (P = -.29,p < .01)were as predicted. Children whose mothers pro-vided more warmth, support, and cognitive stimu-lation in the home environment during the pre-school years appeared to have significantly betteradaptive language abilities and fewer behavior prob-lems in early elementary school.

In addition, the significant paths fkim maternaldepressive symptoms to the mother-father-child-reiationship variables, to mothers" parenting in thehome environment and, in turn, from the latter toboth child developmental outcomes suggests that

Figure 2: Path Results of Theoretically Derived Model Showing Interactionof Variables on Self-Efficacy in Single Black Mothers

Employmenc

SldLUS(Time 1)

.215**

X'(20) =

•p < -OS. " p < .D1.

Mothers'self-efFicacy

(Time 1)

22.3.;' = .32; GFI

Mothers' depressive

(Timel) ^-'^

.472«

= .97; AGFI = .95

Mother-father

^ (Time 1),407** Father-child^ ^ ~ ~ ~ - ^ contact

(Time 1)

.150*/

Mothers' parenting

-.291**

Behaviorproblems(Time 2)

{Time 1)

/ \/ \

\.166*\

\Gognicive

development(Time 2)

JACKSON AND SCHEINES / Single Mothers'Self-Efficacy, Parenting in the Home Environment, and Children's Development

the influence of the antecedent variables in themodel on the children's behavioral and cognitivedevelopment were mediated totally by the qualityof the child's home environment (that is. the moth-ers' parenting practices) as expected.

Turning to indirect effects, perceived self-effi-cacy was related significantly and indirectly to alt ofthe parenting variables—mother-father relation-ship {indirect effect = .09,;? < .05), father-childcontacts (indirect effect = .04,p < .05), and moth-ers' parenting in the home environment (indirecteffect - .08,;) < .05)—and the directions of theseassociations were consistent with the theoreticalexpectation; that is, in all three cases, the relationsto self-efficacy were positive (Table 2). It should benoted that perceived self-efficacy also displayed a

statistically significant indirect association with be-havior problems (indirect effect = -.02,;; < .05)transmitted through parenting. Although thechildren's cognitive development was related indi-rectly neither to self-efficacy nor depressive symp-toms at/j < .05, the directions of these associations(both marginally significant at/) < .10) were con-sistent with the theoretical expectation; that is, posi-tive in the case of self-efficacy and negative in thatof depressive symptoms.

Looking at the effect of the mother-father rela-tionship (that is, its direct and indirect effects takentogether), this variable did not exhibit a relation-ship to either child outcome at p < .05, but wasclearly associated with father—child contact (totaleffect = .41, p < .01) (Table 2) and with mothers'

Table 2: Decomposition of Effects in Theoretically Derived Path Model of theInteraction of Variables Influencing Self-Efficacy in Single Black Mothers

Employment status

Sdf-efFicacy

Depressive symptoms

Mother-father relationship

Father-child contact

Patenting (HOME)

)ependent Variable-Set t-eHicacy

Depressive symptoms

Mother-father relationship

Father-chiid contact

Parenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

Depressive symptoms

Mother-father relationship

Father-child contact

Patenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitivedevelopment

Mother-father relationship

Father-child contact

Parenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

Father-child contact

Parenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

Parenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

TotalEffect. 2 1 * *

- . 10 * *

.02^

.or

.or- .01

.01

_.47»*

.09*

.04*

.08*

- .02*

.or- .18*

-.07*- .18*

.05*

- .03 '

. 4 1 * *

.06*

-.02^

.02^

.15*

-.04*

.01

- .29**

.17*

DirectEffect

.21+*

—

—

—

—

—

—

- .47**

—

—

——

—

- .18*

—

- .17*

—

—

.41**—

—

—

.15*—

—

-.29**

.17*

IndirectEffect

—

- .10* *

.02*

.01*

.02*

- .01

.01

—

.09*

.04*

.08*

- . 02 *

. 01 '

—

- .07*

- .01

.05*

-.03*

—

.06*

- .02 '

.02*

—

-.04*

.01

—

Notes: — ~ parameter conitrained to be 0; HOME = Home Observation for Mpasutemeni of thi Environment (Bradley. 19S9).V * .10. •p< .05. ••»< .01,

Social Work Research VOLUME 2,9, NUMBER I MARCH 2005

parenting (indirect effect = .06 p < .05).The rela-tion of father-child contact to mothers'parenting,moreover, was as expected. That is, mothers cfchildren whose fathers maintained more frequentcontact provided more warmth and stimulation inthe home environment (direct effect = .15,/) <.05).

The standard approach to estimating the strengthof the relationships between variables like those inour model is first to specify a statistical model andthen to calculate;? values relevant to the existenceof particular relationships. This sort of statisticalinference, however, is conditional on the modelspecification, a fact that is appreciated in theory butwidely ignored in practice (Bollen, 1989; Spirtes,Glymour, & St heines, 2000). Put another way, giventhat coefficient estimates and standard errors canvary considerably with the model specification, evenif one has high confidence in the theoretical model,the statistics can be illusory. Furthermore, becausewe are dealing with complicated social relation-ships and a scientific setting in which the precisemeasurement of these relationships is difficult atbest, it is unlikely that the model that we concep-tualized and estimated (even though well fitting) isthe only plausible alternative.

To examine whether other models exist that alsofit the data well but lead to different scientific con-clusions, we used two procedures available in TET-RAD 4 (www.phil.cmu.edu/projects/tetrad/) tosearch for alternative well-fitting path models con-

sistent with our background knowledge: PC algo-rithm (Spirtes et al., 2000) and a more recent ge-netic-algorithm search (Harwood & Scheines,2002). We imposed background knowledge byspecifying three tiers of variables, such that no vari-able fiom a later tier could predict (that is, have apath to) a variable from an earlier tier, although allother relationships were possible: tier 1; employ-ment status (time 1); tier 2: mothers' self-efBcacyand depressive symptoms, mother-father relation-ship quality, frequency of father-child contact,mother's parenting in the home environment (all attime 1); and tier 3: child's behavior problems andadaptive language ability (both at time 2). Morethan 22 million models are consistent with thesetheoretical constraints. Even so, TETRAD foundonly a few models that fit the data well,and the bestfitting of these (Figure 3) matches our theoreticallyderived model closely. The best-fitting computer-searched model had a small chi square relative todegrees of freedom (p = .47), a goodness-of-fitcoefficient of .97, and an adjusted goodness-of-fitcoefficient of .95 (Figure 3).

In the theoretically derived model and the com-puter-searched (TETRAD) model, the effects ofemployment status on all of the other variables weremediated entirely by the mother's feelings of self-efficacy. In both models the influence of every vari-able measured at time I on the children's behav-ioral and cognitive development was mediatedentirely by the quality of the mothers' parenting in

Figure 3: Path Results of Model Found by TETRAD Showing Interactionof Variables Influencing Self-Efficacy in Single Black Mothers

Employmentstatus

(Timcl)

\.215**

•p<.05. •*p<.01.

Mothers' depressive. „ ^

(Time!) -•^^-

Mothers' \--If -Cc, ..

(Time 1)'

18.87. p = .46; GFI = .97; AGFI = .95

Mother—father

^ (Time 1).407*" Father^hild

^~~~~~-—^ contact(Time 1)

. 184* Mothers'parenting

\

N ^ -.261**

N» ^Behaviorproblems(Time 2)

(Timel)

/ \/ \

\.166*\\

Cognitivedevelopment

(Time 2)

JACKSON AND SCHEINES / Sing^ Mothers'Self-Efficacy. Parenting in the Home Environment, and Children's Development 15

the home. In addition, both models showed a sig-nificant (and positive) path from the amount ofcontact between nonresident fathers and their chil-dren to the quality of the home environment (thatis, maternal parenting).

Although the computer-searched model alsoshowed direct paths from mothers' depressive symp-toms to children's behavior problems ([3 = .I6,p <.05) (Table 3) and from mothers' perceived self-efFicacy to parenting in the home environment ((3= .18, p <. .05), the only important point of dis-agreement between our theoretically derived modeland the one discovered by computer search was thedirection of the relationships between mothers'depressive symptoms, the quality of the mother^father relationship, and the frequency of contactbetween nonresident fathers and their children. Inthe theoretically derived model, mothers' depres-sive symptoms predicted both parenting in the homeenvironment and the quality of the mother-fatherrelationship; the latter.in turn, predicted the amountof contact between fathers and their children (Fig-ure 2 and Table 2).

In the model discovered by TETRAD, it is theamount of contact between fathers and childrenthat predicted the quality of the mother-father re-lationship (Figure 3 and Table 3); that is, greaterfrequency of contact between nonresident fathersand their children predicted better relations betweenthese fathers and the children's mothers (P = .41,^< .01), which in turn predicted fewer maternaldepressive symptoms (P = -.13,/> < .05). Bothmechanisms are plausible, and from these analyseswe conclude that the data support neither to theexclusion of the other.

DISCUSSIONThis study examined the links between and amonglow-wage maternal employment, perceived self-efficacy beliefs,depressive symptoms,and a constel-lation of parenting behaviors (including parentingin the home environment, the quality of the mother-nonresident father relationship, and the intensity ofthe nonresident father's contact with the child) inthe preschool years to children's cognitive and be-havioral functioning in early elementary school years

Table 3: Decomposition of Effects in TETRAD Path Model on Relationshipsamong Variables Influencing Self-Efficacy of Single Black Mothers

PradictorK m p l o \ - n R ' I U ^E.l[^i^

Self-efficacy

Depressive symptoms

Mother—father relationship

Father-child contaa

Parentmg (HOME)

Dependent Variable ^V l t d i k . u v

Depressive symptoms

Parenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

Depressive symptoms

Parenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

Behavior problems

Depressive symptoms

Behavior probletns

Depressive symptoms

Mother-father telarionship

Parenting (HOME)

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

Behavior problems

Cognitive development

TtotalEffect.21**

-.10**

.04^

-.03*

.01

-.47**

.18*

-.12**

.03^

.16*

-.13*-.02^

-.05^

.41**

.16*

-.05*

.03

-.26**

.17*

DirectEffect

2 1 • •

—

—

—

—

_ 47**

.18*

—

—

.16*

-.13*

—

—.41**

.16*

—

-29**

.17*

IndirectEffect

-

-.10**

.04^

-.03*

.01

—

—

-.12**

.03'

—

—-.02^

-.05'

—

—

-.05*

.03

—

—

Notei: — = pafflmeter tonslrained to be 0, HOME = Home Obiefvation for Meaiuremenl of the EnvirorrtiEnl (Bradley, 19B9)' p * .10. 'P< .05. * 'p< .01.

Social Work Research VOLUME 29, NUMBER 1 MARCH 2005

among a sample of single-parent black families liv-ing in NewYork Cityjust before and subsequent tothe passing of PRWORA.

The findings are generally supportive of the theo-retical model {Figure 1). Mothers'employment wasrelated directly to higher self-efficacy, which in turnwas associated with decreased depressive symptoms.However, although employment was not relatedindirectly to mothers' parenting or the child out-comes, its indirect association with depressive symp-toms transmitted through self-efficacy was as pre-dicted and significant. Decreased depressivesymptomatology in mothers, moreover, was associ-ated directly with a more positive relationship be-tween mothers and nonresident fathers and indi-rectly through the latter with increased contactbetween nonresident fathers and their child, as ex-pected.The more contact nonresident fathers hadwith their child, the more adequate was the mother'sparenting in the home environment, which in turnpredicted better child outcomes in early elemen-tary school.

These findings confirm those of others (Congeret al., 1992; Elder, 1995; Elder et al.. 1995; McLoydet al., 1994) who have found that economic stressesand unemployment influence children's develop-ment through their effect on parents' sense of effi-cacy and psychological functioning. In addition, ourfindings linking mothers' relations with their child'sfather to fathers' relations with their children and tomothers' parenting in the home environment ex-tend the evidence on nonresident fathers' relationswith their children to poor and near-poor blackfamilies (see, for example. Amato & Gilbreth, 1999;Seltzer, 1991; Shapiro & Lambert, 1999). However,the computer-searched model (TETRAD) linkednonresident fathers' contact with their children tothe quality of the mother-father relationship andthrough the latter to mothers'depressive symptoms.

All the same, both models seem to suggest thatthe frequency of fathers' contacts with their chil-dren predicts better or more adequate maternalparenting tn the home environnient.This is consis-tent with the notion, stated earlier, that childrendevelop more optimally when there is both a pri-mary caregiver who is committed to the well-be-ing of the child and another adult who gives sup-port to the primary caregiver. When nonresidentfathers spend more time with their children, thiscertainly relieves the children's mothers in theirprimary caregiving role.

As social cognitive theory (Bandura, 1997) sug-gests, mothers who believed that they could pro-duce effects by their actions were more likely tohave a positive relationship with their child's father,who in turn spent more time with the child.

Consistent with the findings of others who re-ported a positive association between the quality ofthe mother-father relationship and maternalparenting (Belsky, 1990; Cox et al., 1989; Simons,Lorenz,Wu, & Conger, 1993), these same mothersalso provided more warmth, support, and cognitivestimulation in the home environment. Still, futureresearch should provide more information that canbe used to determine the processes whereby non-resident fathers' involvement with their children islinked with warm and supportive maternalparenting in the home environment in single-par-ent families headed by poor and near-poor blackmothers.

Although the results from the tests of the hy-pothesized model and the model found by com-puter search suggested differences in the directionof the associations between the father-mother-childconstructs and depressive symptoms, both modelsagreed that the effect of mothers' employment sta-tus on the other constructs in the model was medi-ated entirely by self-efficacy and that tbe effects oftbe other constructs in the model on the child de-velopmental outcomes were mediated totally bythe mothers' parenting in the home environment.

IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WORKWith respect to welfare reform and employment-first policies, these results suggest that tbe effect oflow-wage maternal employment on young chil-dren depends on the mothers'self-efficacy and tbequality of their parenting in the home.both of whichmight be responsive to policy and program inter-ventions that focus on economic pressure, mothers'psychological functioning, and parenting and in-clude tbe mvolvement of nonresident fathers andtheir relations both witb their children and tbemothers of their children (see. King, 1994a, 1994b;Seltzer, 1991;Teachman, 1990). For example, froma policy perspective, economic pressure representsa key psychological link between low-wage em-ployment and daily family experience (Conger etal., 1992).

Tbe present findings suggest that a way of re-ducing economic pressure and its adverse influ-ences on single mothers and their young children

JACKSON AND SCHEINES / Single Mothers'Self-Efficacy. Parenting in the Home Environment, and Children's Development

is to increase family economic well-being, possiblythrough pohcies improving access to educationalopportunities beyond high school, to increase botbemployability and income, and policies that increasethe minimum wage, so that mothers who workfull-time will not be poor (see Jackson et al., 2000;McLoyd, 1998).

We expect, as well, that psycboeducation pro-grams that "teach" self-efficacy skills (includingproblem solving in tbe face of difficulties) and re-lationship skills (that reduce hostile behaviors be-tween mothers and nonresident fathers when stressis high) can result in more warmth and stimulationfor children in the home and more support forsingle mothers who often are attempting to man-age job and family responsibilities while parentingessentially alone (see McLoyd, 1990; Patterson etal.,1990).

Finally, several limitations in tbe research shouldbe noted. First, despite our consideration ofchildren's development across time, a two-wavelongitudinal study of this type does not providebasis for inferences about causality with respect toemployment status and self-efficacy. It is possiblethat more efficacious mothers migbt be more likelyto be employed and, when employed, more likelyto earn higher wages.

!t also is plausible that the relations between self-efficacy, depressive symptoms, nonresident fathers'contacts with their children and their children'smothers, and parenting in the home are bidirec-tional. These are issues that future research sbouldexplore over a longer period of time.

Second, our measure of self-efficacy assessed thisconstruct generally rather than specifically, asBandura (1997) suggested. Because these data donot include a specific measure of parenting self-efficacy, we do not know whether such a measurewould cbange the present results. However, if thepresent findings prove robust on further examina-tion, they provide a basis for understanding andmaximizing tbe processes through which low-wagematernal employment in poor and near-poor single-parent families is associated with better develop-mental outcomes for young children.

REFERENCESAmato, P. R., & GilbrethJ. G. (1999). Nonresidential

fathers and children's well-being:A meta-analysis.Jaurnal ofMarriaj^e and the Family, 56, 555-573.

Ardelt, M., & Eccles,J. S. (2001). Effects of mothers'parental efficacy beliefs and promocive parenting

strategies on inner-city youth._/(iMrnii/ of Familyhiues, 22. 944-972.

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-efficacy: The exercise of control. NewYork: Freeman.

Bandura,A. (1999).A social cognitive theory of personal-ity. In L. Pervin & O.Johns (Eds.), Hatidhook ofpersonality (2nd ed.,pp. 154-196). NewYork:GuUford Press.

Bandura, A. (2001). Social cognitive theory: An agenticperspective. In Annual review of psychology (Vol. 52,pp. 1-26). Palo Alto, CA: Annual Reviews.

Betsky,J. (1990). Parental and nonparentaJ child care andchildren's socioeemotional development: A decadein Teview. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52, 885-903.

Bender, P.. & Wu,E. (1995). EQS far windows: User's guide.Encino, CA: Multivariate Software.

Berkowitz, L. (1989). Frustration-aggression hypothesis:Examination and reformation. Psychological Bulletin,;(?6, 59-73.

Bolien, K. (1989). Structural equations with latent variables.NewYork:John Wiley & Sons.

Bradley, R. H. (1989). HOME measurement of maternalresponsiveness. JWW Directions for Child Development,43, 63-74.

Bradley, R. H., & Caldwell, B. M. (1984).The relation ofinfants' home environments to achievement testperformance in first grade: A follow-up study. ChildDevelopment. 55, 803-809.

Brody, G. H. Aolinda, S., Flor, D., McCrary, C , Hastings,L.,& Conyers, O. (1994). Financial resources,parental psychological functioning, parent co-caregiving, and early adolescent competence in ruraltwo-parent Alrican-American families. ChildDevelopment, 65, 590-605.

Brody, G. H., Flor, D. L.. & Gibson, M. (1999). Linkingmaternal efficacy beliefs, developmental goals,parenting practices, and child competence in ruralsingle-parent African American famihes. ChildDevelopmeiii. 70, 1197-1208.

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1986). Ecology of the family as acontext for human development. DevelopmentalPsychology, 22. 723-742.

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1988). Interacting systems in humandevelopment. Research paradigms: Present andfuture. In N. Botger, A. Caspi, G. Downey, & M.Moorehouse (Eds.), Persons in context: Developmentalprocesses {pp. 25-49). NewYork: CambridgeUniversity Press.

CaldweU, B. M., & Bradley, R. H. (1984). Home Observa-tion for Measurement of ihe Environment. Little Rock:University of Arkansas Press.

CoUetta, N., & Lee, D. (1983).The impact of support forblack adolescent mothers.JoMrnai of Family bsues, 4,127-143.

Conger, R, D., Conger. KJ . . Elder. G. H., Lorenz. F O.,Simons, R, L., & Whitbeck, L. B. (1992). A familyprocess model of economic hardship and adjustmentof early adolescent boys. Child Development, 63,526-541.

Conrad, M.,& Hammen, C. (1989). Role of maternaldepression in perceptions of child maladjustment.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 57, 663—667.

Cox, M , Owen, M. R., Lewis,J. M.,& Henderson,V. K.(1989). Marriage, adult adjustment, and earlyparenting. Child Development, 60, 11)15—1024.

Crnic, K.. & Greenberg, M. (1987). Maternal stress, socialsupport, and coping: Influences on early mother-child relationship. In C. Boukydis (Ed.), Research onsupport for parents and injants in the postnatal period (pp.25-40). Norwood, NJ: Abiex.

Social Work Research VOLUME 29, NUMBER i MARCH 200s

Downey, G..& Coyne,}. C. (1990). C'hildren o! depressedparents: An iiuegracive review, Psychological Bulletin,J0S,5i}-76.

Duncan, G. (1991).The economic cnvironnicnt ofchildhood. In A. Huston (Ed.), Children in poivriy:Child di'i'clopvient and piihtii policy (pp. 2.V50). NewYork: Cambridge University Press.

Elder, G. H. (1995). Life trajectories in changing societies.In A. handuni (Ed.), Self-efficacy in changing societies(pp. 46—(•>8). NewYork: Cambridge University Press.

Elder, G. H.. Eccles. J. S., Ardelt, M.. & Lord, S. (199.S).Inner-city parents under economic pressure:Perspectives on the strategies of parenting, JoiirHn/ oJMarriage and the luimily. 57, 771-784.

Ellwood, D. (2000). Anti-poverty policy for families inthe next century: From welfare co work andworrici..Journal ol Economic Perspectives, 14. 187—19S.

Gross, D , Conrad, B.,>ogg, L., &• Wothko, W. (1994). Alongitudinal model of maternal sell-efBcacy,depression, jnd difTuult temperament duringtoddlerhood. Research in Nursing C~ Health, 17. 207-215.

Harwood, S,, & Scheines, R. (2()O2). Geneiii iilgorithiisearch oi-vr Ciiusal modeh (Technical Report No.CMU_PH!L-]3I). Pittsburgh: Carnegie MellonUniversity-.

Hogan, A. C , Scott, K. G., & Bauer, C. R. (1992),Theadaptive social behavior inventory (ASHI)./i'Hriiii/ oJPsychoeducationalAssessment, W, 2M^2y).

Jackson, A. P (1998). The role of social support inparenting for low-income, single, black mothers.Social Ser]'ice Review. 72, 36.5-378.

Jackson, A. P (1999).The effects of nonresident fatherinvolvement on single black mothers and theiryoung children. Social Work, 44. Ifif>-iri6.

Jackson, A. P (2(Kl(l). Maternal self-efficacy and children'sinfluence on stress and parenting among single blackmothers in poverty. Jivrf'a/ oJ h'limity Issues, 21, .V16.

Jackson. A. P. (2(1(13). Mothers' cmplo^'ment and poor andnear-poor African American children's development:A longitudinal study Social Service Review, 77, 93 -109.

Jackson, A. P., Brooks-Gunn, J., Huang, C.,& Glassman,M. (2000). Single mothers in low-wage jobs:Financial stram, parenting, .ind preschoolers'outcomes. Child Development, 71, 1409-1423.

Jackson.A. P., Gyamfi, P., Brooks-Gunn,J., & Blake, M.(1998). Employment status, psychological well-being, social support, and physical disciplinepractices of single bbck mothers, fourniit of .Marriageand the Family. 60, 894-9(i2.

Jackson, A. P., & Huang. C!. C:. (2000). Parentuig stress andbehavior among single mothers of preschoolers: Themediating role of self--efFicacy._/"Mnni/ of Social ServiceRwwrWi, 26, 301-311.

J6reskog, K. G.,& Sorbom. D. (1996). LISREL 8: User'sreference guide. Chicago: Scientific SoftwareInternational.

King,V. (1994a). Nonresident father involvement andchild well-being: Can dads make a difference?

Journal i]f Family Issues. 15, 78-9f).King,V. (i9y4b).Variations in tbe consequences of

nonresident father involvement for children's well-being. JuKnid/ of Marriage iinil the Family, 56, 963-972.

Luster,T, & Kain, E. L. (1987).Tbe relation betweenfamily context and perceptions of parental efficacy.Early Child Development and Care, 29, 301-311,

McLanaban, S. S, (1997). Parent absence or poverty:Which niiitters more? In fi.J. Duncan & J. Brooks-Gunn (Eds.), Consequences of growing up poor (pp. 3.S-48). NewYork: Russell Sage Foundation.

McLoyd, V, C;. (1990).The impact cif economic hardshipon black families and children: Psychologicaldistress, parenting, and sot io emotional development.Child Development. 61. M 1-346,

McLoyd,V. C. (1998). Socioeconomic disadvantage andchild development. Americati Psychologist. 53, 185-204.

McLoyd,V. C.,Jayaratne,T. E., Ceballo, R.,&: Borquez.J,(1994). Unemployment and work interruptionamong African-American single niotbers: Effects onparenting and adolescent socioeinotional function-ing. Child Development. 65, 562-589.

MirowskyJ.. & Ross. C. E. (1989). Social causes ofpsychological distress. Hawthorne, NY: Aldine deGruyter.

Parke, R. D. (1981). Fathers. Cambridge, England:Cambridge University Press.

Patterson, C.J., Kupersmidt.J. B.,&:V;iden, N, A. (1990).Income levei, gender, ethnicity, and bouseholdcomposition as predictors of children's school-basedcompetence. Child Developinetil, 61, 48.S-494.

Pearlin, L. I., & Schooler, C:. (1978).The structure ofcopm^.Journal of Health and Social Behavior, If. 2-21.

Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconcilia-tion Act of 1996,'PL, ]I14'193, I lO Stat. ilO5.

Peterson,J. L.. & ZiU.N. (1986). Marital disruption,parent-cbild rehiti on ships, and behavior problems incbildren. Journal of MarriiW and ihe Family, 48, 295-

RadlofT. L. (1977).Tbe CES-D scale: A self-reportdepression scale for research in the generalpopulation, journal ofApptieJ P.<ychoL\^iiat Meafure-ment. /, .•^85'-4OI.

Richters, J., & Pellegrini, D. (1989). Depressed mothers'judgements about their children: An examination ofthe depression-distortion hypothesis. ChildDevelopment, 60, HI68-107.S,

Rudin, N. (1981),The role of the father in cognitive,academic, and intellectual development. In M. E.Lamb (Eci.), The rote oj ihe fiihiT in ihild development(pp. 379-428). New York:"|olin Wiley & Sons.

Schaugbency, E, A., & Labey. B, U, (l'J«5), Mothers' andfathers' perceptions of child deviance: Roles of childbehavior, parental depressii>n, and marital satisfac-tion ._/i'»r»i<i/ of Consulting and (Clinical Psydioti\<^y, 53,718-723,

Seltzer.J. (1991). Relationships between fathers andchildren wbo live ap<irt:Tbe tatber's role afterseparation.Ji'unhj/ of Marriage a)!d the Family, 53,79-101.

Shapiro, A., & Lambert, J. I). (1999). Longitudinal effectsof divorce on the quality of the father—childrelationship and on fathers' psychological we!l-beini>._/"»r»fl/ of Marriage ami the l-atuily, 61, 397-408.^

Simons, R. L., Beaman,J., Conger. R. D.,&- C'bao.W(1993). Stress, support, and antisocial behavior traitas determinants of emotional well-being andparenting practices among single mothers. JdiirMu/ of.Marriage and the Kmri/y, 55. 538-398,

Simons, R. L.. Lorenz, F, O.,Wu. C . & Conger, R. D.(1993). Marital and spouse support as mediator andmoderator of tbe impact of oconotnic strain uponparenting. Detvh'pmfnUii Psycholoi^y. 29, 36^-381.

Simons. R. L.,Wbitbeck, L. B,, C:onger, R, f l , & Melby,J.N, (199(1). Husband and wife differences indeterminants of parenting: A social learning/excbange model of parental behavior, JcHmn/c/"Marria^^c and the Family. 52. 373-392.

Spirtes, P., Cilymour, C., Scheines. R, (2000). Causation,prediction, and searih (2nd ed,), Cambridge MA: MITPress.

JACKSON AND SCHEINES / Single Mothers' Self-Efficacy, Parenting in the Home Environment, and Children's E>evetopment

Teachman.J. D. (1990). Socioeconomic resources ofparents and award of cbild support in the UnitedStates: Some explanatory modeh. Journal of Marriageand ihe Family, 52, 689-700.

Wilson,W J,(1987). The truly disadmntaged:The inner dty,the underclass, and public policy. Chicago: University ofChicago Press,

WUson, W, J, (1996), When work disappears: The world of thenew urban poor. NewYork: Alfred K, Knopf.

Aurora P. Jackson, PhD, is professor of social work, Schooloj Public Policy and Social Research, Unitvrsity ofCalifornia, Los Angeles, 3250 Public Policy Building, Box951656, Los Angeles, CA; e-mail: ajacks@ucla.edu.Richard Scheines, PhD, is professor of philosophy,Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA. Tliis researchwas assisted by grants to the first author from the William TGrant Foundation, the Russell Sage Foundation, and theNational Institute of Mental Health (grant no. 1 R03MH56063-01).

NASWJOBLNKTHE SOCIAL WORK CAREER CENTER

Make the mostof your job seorch

Find the job you're looking foron JobLink, NASW's online socialwork employment network.

Take control of your job searchand career today!" Personalize your job search and find

the right job for you," Get an extra edge over the competition,• Join NASW lo post your resumes and

attract top social work employers,• Quickly oppiy for your favorite jobs

online with just one click,• Set up job search ogents and have

new listings emailed directly lo you.

Go online today at www.socialworkers.orgto take advantage of the new NASWJobLink Career Center and utilize thesevaluable resources developed to assistyou in a successful job search.

If you ore not currently an NASW member,go online today and download a membershipapplication or simply call NASW MemberServices at 800-742-4089 to octivale yourmembership.

750 First Streei NE, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20002

vvnvw.socialworkers.org > 88S-491 -8833

*NASW INononalAsMCialioioi Sooal Wjfkers ,̂ ,

Social Work Research VOLUME 19, NUMBER I MARCH 2005