A configurational analysis of children's reports of parent behavior.

Reports of discrete components of parent behavior were collected on the 26 scales of the Children's Reports of Parental Behavior Inventory. 3 replicated factors—Acceptance vs. Rejection, Psychological Autonomy vs. Psychological Control, and Firm Control vs. Lax Control—were identified from 4 correlation matrices of reports of maternal and of paternal behavior by children and by adults. Conceptual planes generated by pairs of factors differentiated Acceptance of Individuation from Loving Involvement and Hostile Involvement from Hostile Detachment. This configurational analysis facilitated the comparison of these results with other analyses of the structure of parent behavior. A spherical conceptual model for parent behavior is proposed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Structural differences in parent and child reports of children's symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Two cohorts of public elementary school children and their parents (assessed 3 years apart) completed child and parent forms of the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS). Assessments were conducted twice, once during the fall (N?=?562) and again during the spring (N?=?630) of the 6th grade. Factor analyses revealed 3 factors for each measure. Two of the 3 parent CDI factors manifested some degree of congruence with their counterparts from the child CDI. Similarly, 2 of the 3 RCMAS factors were somewhat congruent across informant types. Differences between parent and child factor structures suggest that parents' and children's reports focus on somewhat different aspects of child psychopathology, and they can make qualitatively different contributions to the multiaxial assessment of children. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perspectives on child behavior problems: Comparisons of children's self-reports with parent and teacher reports.

Associations among parents', teachers', and children's self-reports of internalizing and externalizing child behavior problems were examined in two studies. In the first, both teachers' and parents' reports were modestly and independently associated with children's self-reported behavior problems. In the second, mothers' and fathers' reports of their children's behavior problems were moderately associated with parents' self-reports of their own psychological symptoms as well as with their children's self-reports of their behavior problems. Implications of these studies for the use of multiple perspectives in the assessment of children's behavior problems are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A Guttman scale of children's coercive behaviors.

Hypothesized that there are consistencies in child-rearing practices such that a regular progression would exist in children's performances of coercive responses. Family interaction data from 27 problem and 28 nonproblem boys show that schedules of parental punishment covaried with performance rates for children's coercive behaviors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictors of parent involvement in children's schooling.

The authors combined a multilevel model of parental context with a multidimensional conceptualization of parent involvement to examine the factors influencing parents' involvement in their children's schooling. Three sets of factors were identified: parent and child characteristics, family context, and teacher behavior and attitudes. A diverse sample of 209 mothers, their 3rd–5th grade children, and 28 teachers participated. Parents, teachers, and children reported on 3 types of involvement: school, cognitive, and personal. Mothers who felt efficacious, who saw their roles as that of teacher, and who viewed their children as less difficult were more involved in cognitive activities. A difficult context, social support, and teacher attitudes and practices were associated with both school and personal involvement, though some of these relations were moderated by gender with contextual factors affecting involvement of mothers of boys and classroom factors affecting those of girls. The importance of a multilevel approach to increasing parent involvement is discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The child-abusing parent: A psychological review.

Review of professional opinions in the literature reveals that (a) the abusing parent was himself raised with some degree of deprivation, (b) the abusing parent brings to his role as parent mistaken notions of child rearing, (c) there is present in the parent a general defect in character structure allowing aggressive impulses to be expressed too freely, and (d) while socioeconomic factors might place added stresses on basic personality weakness, these stresses are not of themselves sufficient or necessary causes of abuse. A recent demographic survey is criticized in light of the foregoing data. (88 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Peer-model attributes and children's achievement behaviors.

In two experiments, we investigated how attributes of peer models influenced achievement behaviors among children who had experienced difficulties learning mathematical skills in school. In Experiment 1, children (M?=?10.6 years) observed either a same- or opposite-sex peer model demonstrating rapid (mastery model) or gradual (coping model) acquisition of fraction skills. Observing a coping model led to higher self-efficacy, skill, and training performance. In Experiment 2, children (M?=?10.9 years) observed either one or three same-sex peer models demonstrating mastery or coping behaviors while solving fractions. Children in the single-coping-model, multiple-coping-model, and multiple-mastery-model conditions demonstrated higher self-efficacy, skill, and training performance, compared with subjects who observed a single mastery model. In both studies, children who observed coping models judged themselves more similar in competence to the models than did subjects who observed mastery models. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The development of children's intentions to use alcohol: Direct and indirect effects of parent alcohol use and parenting behaviors.

The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of parent alcohol use and parenting behavior on the development of children's intentions to use alcohol in Grades 1 through 8. The authors hypothesized that the effect of parent alcohol use on children's intention to use alcohol would be mediated through parenting behavior, specifically monitoring/supervision, positive parenting, and inconsistent discipline. Using cohort-sequential latent growth modeling (LGM), the authors tested 3 models examining the effect of the development of parent alcohol use on the development of children's intentions to use alcohol, as mediated by the development of each of the 3 parenting behaviors. Multiple group analyses were used to explore gender differences. The effect of growth in parent alcohol use on growth in children's intentions was mediated only by parent monitoring/supervision and was significant only for girls. The effect of inconsistent discipline was directly related to growth in intentions for both boys and girls. Although parent alcohol use was related to less positive parenting, positive parenting was unrelated to children's intentions to use alcohol. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Basic models of parent counseling: A critical review.

Defines the structure of parent counseling procedures, which represent a new trend in therapeutic strategy for behavior problems in children. Research evidence on the effectiveness of 2 basic counseling models-the behavioral and the reflective-is evaluated. Included are analyses of design, methodology, and outcome derived from each method. Overall, both strategies have been reported as successful with a variety of problem behaviors and divergent populations. However, exploration of the relative effectiveness of these models through comparative cost efficiency studies with specific problems and specific types of children is needed to enhance optimal utilization of available mental health services. (51 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The validity of verbal reports in children's subtraction.

To assess the validity of verbal reports in children's subtraction, students in Grades 1, 3, and 5 were asked to solve a set of simple subtraction problems and were placed in the no-report, retrospective-report, or concurrent-report conditions. Two aspects of verbal report validity were assessed: reactivity, or whether providing a verbal report alters subsequent task performance, and veridicality, or whether the verbal reports are accurate reflections of solution strategies. Students in all grades and in both the retrospective-report and concurrent-report conditions were able to provide veridical strategy reports, and the instruction to verbally report had few effects on task performance. Informal findings indicate that students had less difficulty reporting retrospectively than concurrently. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral treatment of children's fears: A review.

Reviews behavioral literature on childhood fears, including conceptual models, normative research, and fear-reduction studies. The main conclusions are as follows: (a) The information value of nearly 60 yrs of normative studies is meager, and their continuation is of doubtful value. (b) Most research has been limited to laboratory studies of mildly to moderately fearful children, and few data exist on severe fears studied in the child's natural environment or on the clinical prevalence of fear. (c) Cognitive and developmental factors have been largely ignored. (d) Modeling is the most frequently used and reliably effective fear-reduction strategy. (e) A cognitive, verbal-mediation approach is promising but is not yet sufficiently researched. (f) There is little evidence that systematic desensitization or contingency management strategies are effective. Implications for large-scale fear reduction and prevention are discussed. The need for research that recognizes the complex paradigms of children's fears is suggested. (4 p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting parent–child interactions from children's activity level.

Examined the relationship between children's activity level and parent–child (P–C) interactions in 117 preschool children and their parents. Four P–C combinations (mother–daughter, father–daughter, mother–son, and father–son) were studied. Using R. Q. Bell's (see record 1968-08747-001) conceptualization of upper and lower limit parental control behavior, it was predicted that P–C interactions involving active children would be marked by more strife and conflict than P–C interactions involving more quiescent, less active children. Parents of highly active children tended to intrude physically and could be described as getting into power struggles and competition with their children. Impatience or hostility toward active children was observed in parents of all P–C pairings except the father–son combination. In contrast, interactions involving less active children were generally peaceful and harmonious. (28 ref)-008 6504 (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sequential attributional feedback and children's achievement behaviors.

Determined how the sequence of ability and effort attributional feedback influenced task motivation, attributions for success, self-efficacy, and skillful performance in 80 elementary school Ss (aged 8 yrs 2 mo to 10 yrs 5 mo) in 2 experiments. In Exp I, 40 Ss lacking subtraction skills received training and problem-solved over 4 sessions. During the problem solving, Group 1 (ability-ability) periodically received ability feedback; Group 2 (effort-effort) received little effort feedback; Group 3 (ability-effort) was given ability feedback during the 1st 2 sessions and effort feedback during the last 2; Group 4 (effort-ability) had this sequence reversed. In Exp II, 40 Ss (chosen with the same criteria as in Exp I) followed the same procedures except they were asked about their perceptions of success or failure following training. Results for both experiments show that Ss in Groups 1 and 3 developed higher ability attributions, self-efficacy, and subtraction skills compared with Ss in Groups 2 and 4. The sequence of attributional feedback did not differentially affect motivation, effort attributions, or perceptions of training successes. (42 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of filial therapy on parent and child behaviors.

Notes that filial therapy is a unique form of parent training that incorporates training in play therapy skills, parent-child play sessions, and supervision experiences. The objective is to help parents become therapeutic agents in their children's lives. This article explores the extent to which experimental studies have verified the accomplishment of this objective, identifies specific research instruments that have been used in filial therapy research, and summarizes findings. Additional areas for research are suggested. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social reinforcement of children's motor behavior: A review.

This review highlights a number of methodological weaknesses and problems of measurement found in many studies which have attempted to evaluate the effectiveness of positive social reinforcement on repetitive motor behavior in children. The omission of control groups has frequently resulted in the confounding of reinforcer effects with regression-to-the-mean or warm-up effects. Problems relating to the use of difference scores, the effect of various schedules of reinforcement, the measurement of developmental changes, and the function of mediating response strategies are discussed. Recommendations for future research focus on the possible role of awareness of the reinforcement contingency and on the influence of other mediating responses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Distorting children's reports and interpretations of events through suggestion.

54 children (aged 4–6 yrs old) participated in an experiment examining the effects of leading interviews on their interpretations and factual recall of an interaction with a teaching assistant (TA). Children were either familiar or unfamiliar with the TA and were interviewed in either an incriminating or a neutral manner. In comparison with neutral-interview children, incriminating-interview children made more cued-recall errors and endorsed more biased interpretations of the TA's actions. Familiarity with the TA had limited effects on free recall and interpretations of the TA's actions and had no effect on cued recall. Results indicated that 4- to 6-yr-olds will produce misleading reports about their interactions with either familiar or unfamiliar adults when they are prompted to do so by an opinionated adult interviewer. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measurement and structural models for children's problem behaviors.

This article considers an analytic strategy for measuring and modeling child and adolescent problem behaviors. The strategy embeds an item response model within a hierarchical model to define an interval scale for the outcomes, to assess dimensionality, and to study how individual and contextual factors relate to multiple dimensions of problem behaviors. To illustrate, the authors analyze data from the primary caregiver ratings of 2,177 children aged 9-15 in 79 urban neighborhoods on externalizing behavior problems using the Child Behavior Checklist 4-18 (T. M. Achenbach, 1991a). Two subscales, Aggression and Delinquency, are highly correlated, and yet unidimensionality must be rejected because these subscales have different associations with key theoretically related covariates. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Time-out with children. Effects of an explanation and brief parent training on child and parent behaviors

The purpose of the present study was twofold: (a) to determine the effect of an explanation prior to or after time-out on child compliance and on child disruptive behavior during time-out and (b) to determine the effect of brief parent training in time-out on child and parent behaviors. Thirty-two mother-child pairs served as subjects and were assigned to one of the following four groups: control, time-out only, explanation prior to time-out, or explanation following time-out. Each mother-child pair was observed for one session under pretraining, training, and posttraining conditions. The results indicated that time-out significantly increased compliance but the addition of an explanation did not further alter the effectiveness of time-out. Training in the use of time-out decreased the incidence of maternal interruptions but did affect maternal responses that were not trained. Finally, following brief time-out training for noncompliance, the mothers used the procedure only 50% of the time following noncompliance.     

Cues and secrets: Influences on children's event reports.

88 6-yr-olds and 88 10-yr-olds took part, in pairs, in a contrived interaction with a "magician." The children were interviewed 10 days and 10 wks later in 1 of 4 conditions: no cues, context cues, relevant cues, and irrelevant cues. Older children recalled more accurate information than younger children, and both groups recalled more accurate information after the short than the long delay. Although relevant cues facilitated free recall, accuracy did not differ across cue conditions. Younger children were less likely to report an accident they had been asked to keep secret than were older children. Children's understanding of truth and lies did not predict errors in free recall or their reporting of the secret. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)