The objectives of the study were to examine the sex-specific associations between prenatal maternal stress and child internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and to assess the moderating effects of parenting behaviors on these associations.
The study is based on 15 963 mother–child dyads from the Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study (MoBa).
Prenatal maternal stress was associated with child internalizing and externalizing symptoms at age 8; associations with externalizing symptoms differed by sex. Associations between prenatal maternal stress and child depression, and conduct disorder and oppositional-defiant disorder in males, became stronger as levels of inconsistent discipline increased. Associations between prenatal maternal stress and symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in females were attenuated as levels of parental involvement increased.
