Abstract
<title>Abstract</title> <p>Exposure to war and armed conflict is associated with increased emotional and behavioral difficulties among children. Although both parenting and children's individual characteristics contribute to children's adjustment during adversity, little is known about how they jointly shape children's outcomes. Theoretical accounts suggest that empathic abilities may also increase children’s vulnerability in highly stressed environments, particularly when exposed to parents’ distress. Although parental burnout is known to predict child maladjustment, little is known about whether children’s empathy moderates this association. The present study addressed this gap by examining whether affective and cognitive empathy moderate the association between parental burnout and children’s internalizing, externalizing, and trauma-related symptoms. Participants were 104 mother-child dyads (MeanAgeT1 = 3.68 ± 0.36 years, MeanAgeT2 = 4.68 ± 0.25 years, 52.8% male) assessed at two time points, with the latter conducted during wartime. The sample consisted primarily of middle- to high-SES Israeli families. Mothers reported on children’s empathy, emotional and behavioral adjustment, and parental burnout. Results indicated that parental burnout was associated with higher emotional and behavioral difficulties. Importantly, higher child's affective, but not cognitive, empathy, exacerbated the association between parental burnout and children’s internalizing symptoms (β = .22, p = .012). Cognitive empathy was positively associated with greater war related acting out symptoms (β = .19, p = .028). These findings highlight the complex role of children’s empathy in shaping their emotional and behavioral adjustment under parental and contextual stress.</p>