Abstract
Exposure to socioeconomic risk factors is associated with heightened social and behavioral difficulties in children. Yet, little is known about how cumulative socioeconomic disadvantages affect the development of social-behavioral difficulties, that is, whether the differences in such difficulties between socioeconomic risk groups change over time. It is also empirically unexplored whether specific parenting behaviors mediate the associations between cumulative socioeconomic risk and the changes in social-behavioral difficulties. Drawing on a latent growth curve analysis of data from the German National Educational Panel Study-Starting Cohort 1 (<i>N</i> = 1,842/1,881), this study examined developmental trajectories and group differences in the development of various social-behavioral difficulties (peer problems, hyperactivity/inattention, and conduct problems) for 5- to 9-year-olds growing up with different numbers of socioeconomic disadvantages (i.e., parents' low education level, low income, and migration background). Furthermore, parents' early socioemotional sensitivity in parent-child interaction and their disciplinary parenting behaviors were modeled as mediators linking cumulative socioeconomic risk and the development of children's social-behavioral difficulties. Results showed that the significant gaps between different socioeconomic risk groups at age 5 remained consistent over time for peer problems and hyperactivity/inattention, but converged for conduct problems. Different parenting behaviors partially mediated the effect of cumulative socioeconomic risk on the initial levels, but not on the development of children's social-behavioral difficulties. Practical implications for early prevention programs are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).