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Understanding the Relation of Low Income to HPA-Axis Functioning in Preschool Children: Cumulative Family Risk and Parenting As Pathways to Disruptions in Cortisol

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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.

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Notes

  1. Analyses also were conducted with 1.5 SD cutoffs and the pattern was identical. Thus, the variables based on 1 SD cutoffs are presented.

  2. A latent approach to modeling multiple observations of morning level and diurnal slope cortisol variables was attempted. In this approach, a latent morning level factor was specified with the 3 morning values as indicators, and the daily latency to collection variables as error covariates; and a latent diurnal slope factor was specified with the 3 morning–evening values as indicators and daily latency to collection variables as error covariates. This model was not identified. Thus, to estimate this model the latent factor indicator loadings were set equal to each other as were the error-covariate loadings. Although this model was identified, there were negative residuals that resulted in the Theta-Eps matrix not being positive definite. Two residuals were set to zero, resulting in a model that produced parameter estimates and standard errors for significance tests. The pattern of findings in this model was nearly identical to the findings resulting from the multiple regression analyses. However, given the instability of the models including the latent factors, we presented the results from the regression analyses using observed variables.

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Acknowledgments

Support for this research was provided by NICHD grant R01HD054465 awarded to Liliana Lengua, NIMH Grant #F31MH085420 awarded to Maureen Zalewski and NIMH grant #F31MH086171 awarded to Cara Kiff. The authors thank the families who participated in this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Box 351525, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA

    Maureen Zalewski, Liliana J. Lengua & Cara J. Kiff

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, 97403-1227, USA

    Philip A. Fisher

  3. Oregon Social Learning Center, 10 Shelton McMurphey Blvd, Eugene, OR, 97401, USA

    Philip A. Fisher

Authors
  1. Maureen Zalewski
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  2. Liliana J. Lengua
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  3. Cara J. Kiff
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  4. Philip A. Fisher
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Correspondence to Maureen Zalewski.

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Zalewski, M., Lengua, L.J., Kiff, C.J. et al. Understanding the Relation of Low Income to HPA-Axis Functioning in Preschool Children: Cumulative Family Risk and Parenting As Pathways to Disruptions in Cortisol. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 43, 924–942 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-012-0304-3

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