Maternal child-rearing practices and social problem-solving strategies among preschoolers.

Examined the relation of nurturant and restrictive maternal childrearing practices and maternal education to the types of social problem-solving strategies used by 72 preschoolers (mean age 4 yrs 7 mo). Children were administered the Preschool Interpersonal Problem Solving Test, and mothers completed the Child Rearing Practices Report. Maternal variables successfully predicted 5 out of 9 strategies identified. Restrictiveness was positively associated with the use of evasion and negatively with personal appeal and negotiation strategies. Maternal nurturance was the best discriminator for reliance on authority. An S's use of delay of gratification strategy was significantly predicted by the level of the mother's education. Education was also positively related to maternal nurturance and negatively to maternal restrictiveness. (5 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Internal-external locus of control: Parental antecedents.

Collected retrospective reports of parental behavior and a measure of internal-external locus of control from 192 male and 235 female undergraduates. Data were analyzed in a 2 * 2 analysis of variance design (sex * parent behavior). Relatively stronger internal control orientations held for ss who described their mothers as more nurturant, having more predictable standards for their children's behavior, and using more achievement pressure. Fathers were described as more nurturant, and as using more physical punishment (males only). Ss who reported that their mothers were (a) more protective, (b) more inclined to use deprivation of privileges, and (c) more inclined to use affective punishment (males only) were found to have stronger external control orientations. (21 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social competence as a process-reactive dimension with schizophrenics, alcoholics, and normals.

Investigated the effect of the level of social competence on the performance of a paired discrimination task involving social censure cues for groups of male hospitalized schizophrenics, alcoholics, and normals. Previous studies finding differences between process and reactive schizophrenics had not controlled for the social competence level of the normal controls. 24 Ss from each diagnostic category were divided equally among groups of low, middle, and high social competence levels. Low social competence Ss discriminated maternal censure stimuli more poorly than middle or high socially competent groups. Psychiatric diagnosis had no significant effect on performance. Results do not support the social censure theory of schizophrenia and suggest that there has been confounding between social competence level and diagnosis in previous process-reactive research. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived parental characteristics, locus of control orientation, and behavioral correlates of locus of control.

Attempted to ascertain perceived parental behavior associated with locus of control orientation. 112 high school seniors (58 males and 54 females) completed the Nowicki-Strickland Personal Reaction Survey and the Parent-Child Interaction Rating Scale. Generally, perceived paternal nurturance was associated with female internality, and perceived maternal nurturance was associated with male internality. All Ss perceived parents as having a similar locus of control orientation. In Phase 2 of the study, behavior associated with Ss' locus of control and perceived parental locus of control orientation was investigated. Ss' expressed internality was associated with higher achievement for males and with greater social involvement for females. Perceived paternal internality was significantly associated with greater female achievement. Results are discussed in terms of social learning and cultural role-expectancy theory. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceived maternal nurturance and control of process schizophrenics, reactive schizophrenics, and normals.

Attempted to compare the amount of maternal nurturance and control as measured by A. B. Heilbrun (see 38:5) in 3 S groups 33 male process schizophrenics, 33 male reactive schizophrenics, and 198 normal male undergraduates. Ss were administered the "Parent Attitude Research Instrument . . . measuring control and the Parent-Child Interaction Rating Scale . . . measuring nurturance." Results support the hypothesis "of nurturance differences being present between the mothers of process schizophrenics and mothers of reactive schizophrenics" and "the process-reactive distinction in regard to differences in prior family interaction." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Pregnancy problems, postpartum depression, and early mother–infant interactions.

24 women (mean age 24 yrs) who had received ultrasound examinations and psychological interviews during the 3rd trimester of pregnancy were subsequently divided into a group of 12 Ss who had reported pregnancy problems (marital difficulties and ambivalence about the child) and another group of 12 Ss who had not. Ss were then observed at 3–5 mo postpartum in interactions with their infants and were given the Beck Depression Inventory, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Nowicki-Strickland Internal–External Control Scale for Adults, measures of mothers' and infants' temperament, and a maternal developmental expectations and childrearing attitudes scale. The mothers who had experienced pregnancy problems were more depressed, anxious, and externalizing postpartum and expressed more punitive childrearing attitudes. These depressed mothers and their infants showed less optimal interaction behaviors. Results suggest that postpartum depression can be predicted from a simple set of questions regarding the mother's negative feelings about her marriage and her expectant child during the prenatal period. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Feminine self-esteem, self-ratings of competence, and maternal career commitment.

Conducted a study with 71 college females to examine the relationship between self-esteem (as measured by Coopersmith's Self-Esteem Inventory) and self-ratings of competence on Rosenkrantz's Sex-Role Stereotype Questionnaire. Comparisons were made of Ss whose mothers differed in work history and attitudes toward careers. Higher self-esteem was predicted for Ss who rated themselves highly on competence-related traits; this hypothesis was supported. Higher self-esteem and higher self-ratings on competence were expected for Ss whose mothers worked and Ss whose mothers desired a career. Findings were that maternal preference for a career had a positive effect upon Ss' self-esteem and evaluations of their own competence; maternal employment did not. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relations between maternal employment and development of nursery school children.

Examined the relations between maternal employment status and nursery school children's sex role concepts, cognitive development, and adjustment. 110 children formed 4 groups according to their sex and their mothers' employment status. It was predicted that maternal employment would be associated with a broadening of Ss' sex role concepts and differential cognitive development depending on the sex of the S. Results show that Ss' sex role concepts were broader if their mothers were employed. Ss' perceptions of their mothers were not related to their employment status, but fathers were perceived more negatively by their sons if the mother was employed. Sons of employed mothers had lower IQ scores than either daughters of employed mothers or Ss with nonemployed mothers. Ss with employed mothers received better adjustment ratings from their teachers. (French summary) (31 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effects of social and nonsocial censure on stimulus generalization in neurotics and schizophrenics.

36 schizophrenic and 36 neurotic depressive Ss were given a visual-spatial generalization task under either social or nonsocial (impersonal) censure conditions. The following hypotheses derived from previous investigations were tested: (1) schizophrenics would show higher gradients of generalization than neurotic depressives, and (2) generalization gradients would be higher under conditions of social as opposed to nonsocial censure, especially in schizophrenics. The data supported Hypothesis 1 but not Hypothesis 2. There was no evidence for differential responding between these 2 groups with respect to either stimulus generalization or response to censure. It was suggested that hypotheses concerning the schizophrenic's performance in these 2 situations have been biased and oversimplified by use of normal, rather than patient, control groups in previous investigations. (22 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parental investment theory and gender differences in the evolution of inhibition mechanisms.

Based on the tenets of parental investment theory, the authors postulate that there was greater pressure to inhibit potentially maladaptive emotional, social, and sexual responses on prehistoric women than men in some contexts, resulting in enhanced inhibitory abilities in women in some domains. They reviewed studies whose researchers examined gender differences on social, behavioral, and cognitive tasks involving inhibition and found gender differences favoring female humans most consistent for social tasks (e.g., control of emotions), somewhat less pronounced for behavioral tasks (e.g., delay of gratification), and weak and inconsistent for cognitive tasks (e.g., conceptual tempo). This pattern was interpreted as being consistent with the position that gender differences in inhibition are relatively domain specific in nature, with women demonstrating greater abilities on tasks related to reproduction and childrearing, which is consistent with parental investment theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differences in mothers' and fathers' behaviors toward children: A cross-cultural comparison.

Systematic observations of 78 parent–child dyads in Mexican families revealed a number of differences between maternal and paternal behaviors. Some of the patterns observed run counter to the traditionally held views of Mexican parental roles—for example, that fathers are more aloof and authoritarian, whereas mothers are more warm and nurturant. Fathers, in fact, were found to be more playful and companionable with their children than mothers were, and mothers were more nurturant only in terms of providing immediate physical needs. In addition, fathers, but not mothers, differed significantly in their behavior toward girls and boys: on reprimanding-restrictive and instrumental-directive behaviors they were substantially lower toward girls, whereas they directed more attention and cognitive involvement toward boys. The findings, when compared cross-culturally, proved to be similar to findings obtained in observational studies of parents' interactions with infants and young children in this country. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Boys' and girls' reports of maternal and paternal behavior.

Reports of parent behavior on a number of scales, measuring various aspects of nurturance and control, were analyzed on 2 samples. Differences between maternal and paternal behavior were highly consistent between the 2 samples, suggesting that these roles may be stable across samples differing in age and social class. Mothers appear to be consistently perceived as more nurturant and as more controlling through indirect, covert methods by both boys and girls. Differences between boys' and girls' reports of mother and of father were different for all comparisons in both samples, suggesting that there may be an interaction between 2 or more of the following variables: sex of parent, sex of child, age of child, social class, and religious affiliation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Rejection and depression: Prospective and contemporaneous analyses.

Explored the relationship of parental rejection during childhood and manifestations of depression both then and in young adulthood in 3 studies. In Study 1, 427 Ss were seen in 2 waves at the ages of 8 and 19 yrs. In the 1st wave, the parents of these Ss were also interviewed with a childrearing questionnaire that included a measure of rejection. In the 2nd wave, the Ss, then 19 yrs old, were administered the MMPI—D subscale. In the 2nd study, the contemporaneous relationship between maternal rejection and childhood depression was investigated. The identical measure of rejection used in the prospective study was administered to 245 mothers, and 4 measures of depression—peer ratings, self-ratings, teacher's ratings, and mother's ratings—were obtained for their children (mean age 10.11 yrs). The 3rd study, conducted with 508 mothers and their children (mean age 9.78 yrs) replicated the significant findings of the contemporaneous study. Findings support the hypothesis that deprivation in the generic sense ranging from the death of 1 or both parents to rejection or even parental disharmony is an etiological factor in adult depression. (47 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Influence of the parents and verbal reinforcement on the performance of schizophrenic patients.

Conducted 2 studies concerned with the psychological deficits displayed by schizophrenic patients. The 1st study evaluated the role of the parents and the 2nd measured the effects of praise and censure. For each study, Ss were 2 groups of male schizophrenic patients, 1 rated as good and the other as poor by means of the Phillips Scale, and a group of nonschizophrenic psychiatric patients. Large differences were found between Ss whose parents displayed high and those whose parents displayed low degrees of conflict toward them just prior to the task performance. Verbal rewards and punishments did not appear to affect the Ss behavior and for neither study were the 3 types of S's differentially influenced by the manipulations. The main conclusions are that the phenomenon of psychological deficits is extremely complex and that schizophrenics are less readily influenced by affective experiences than prior researchers have suggested. (30 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perceptions of parenting as predictors of boys' sibling and peer relations

This study included 71 target boys (8 to 10 years), their siblings, and mothers to examine the relations among mothering, fathering, sibling aggression, and peer outcomes. Siblings whose mothers were known to be more rejecting were observed and reported to be more aggressive with one another than siblings whose mothers were less rejecting. Moreover, boys who experienced more aggressive sibling interactions were more likely to be nominated by their peers as being aggressive and were less accepted by their peers. Although fathering failed to evince a direct influence on sibling aggression, an indirect effect was evidenced in that less accepting fathering related to more rejecting mothering. It appeared that boys' aggressive experiences with their siblings mediated, in part, the association between maternal rejection and their peer aggression and that peer aggression was a mediating link between sibling aggression and boys' acceptance by their peers.     

Maternal personality correlates of sons' creativity.

Compared CPI scores of 33 mothers of creative high school males, as identified by both teachers' nominations and test scores, with scores of a control group. Mothers of creative Ss exhibit greater self-assurance, initiative, and interpersonal competence; they prefer change and unstructured demands; they are more insightful about others, more tolerant, and value autonomy and independent endeavor. They are, however, less sociable, less conscientious, less dependable, less inhibited, less concerned about creating a favorable impression, and less nurturant and obliging towards others. (15 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of social modeling, cognitive structuring, and self-management strategies on affective self-disclosure.

Assessed immediate and delayed effects of social modeling, cognitive structuring, and 2 self-management strategies for increasing affective self-disclosure in 48 undergraduate males. Ss were randomly assigned to (a) social modeling, (b) cognitive structuring, (c) attention placebo, or (d) no-training control groups. Following training, Ss took a performance test and 2 pencil-and-paper measures. With this treatment used as a blocking variable, Ss were then randomly assigned to (a) goal-directed behavior, (b) self-reinforcement, or (c) no-training control groups. A delayed posttest was administered 3 wks later. Results indicate that social modeling and cognitive structuring had immediate effects on affective self-disclosure. Also, a combination of social learning and self-management strategies was more effective over time than any single treatment or no treatment at all. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Children's consensual knowledge about the experiential determinants of emotion.

Gave 3 groups (kindergartners, 3rd graders, and 6th graders) of 32 Ss each vignettes describing experiences that were likely to produce emotional states, and determined their consensus about the probable affective reaction. A sample of 8 social and personal (private) experiences was used in the vignettes: success, failure, dishonesty (caught or not caught), experiencing nurturance or aggression, and experiencing justified or unjustified punishment. The potential affective reactions that Ss were asked to choose among included happiness, sadness, anger, fear, and neutral affect. There were no sex differences. Ss of all ages agreed that relatively simple experiences such as success and nurturance would elicit a happy reaction. For other categories of experience, multiple consensus appeared for more than one affective reaction. There were developmental differences in the affective reactions anticipated to 5 of the 8 experience categories. Results are discussed in terms of cognitive and social learning determinants of knowledge about the experiential antecedents of emotion for oneself and others. (17 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting boys' early-onset substance abuse from father's alcoholism, son's disruptiveness, and mother's parenting behavior.

Sons of male alcoholics (SOMAs) are said to be at risk for alcoholism. The present study examined 4 groups of 13-year-old boys: SOMAs with and without disruptive behaviors, disruptive boys who were not SOMAs, and control participants. The classification of disruptive was based on 7-year longitudinal data, and father's alcoholism was determined by standardized tests. Mothers' nurturance and promotion of autonomy were assessed in a laboratory setting; boys' substance abuse was measured by self-report methods in the same year as the observation. Boys with disruptive behaviors showed the most substance abuse; no effect of father's alcoholism was found. Disruptive boys' mothers were significantly less nurturant and demanded obedience rather than promoted autonomy. A multiple regression analysis revealed that the boys' disruptive behavior and the mother's lack of nurturance predicted early-onset substance abuse. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

English- and French-Canadian children's views of parents.

A total of 160 lower- and middle-class, English- and French-Canadian children from 1st and 3rd grades in the Montreal area were interviewed about their perceptions of parental roles. When parental differences in nurturance, power, and discipline were compared, lower-class Ss perceived a greater division of parental roles than middle-class Ss. When 2 subtypes of nurturance (supportive and companionship) were contrasted, and 3 subtypes of discipline (physical, affective, and deprivational) were examined, it was found that there were important differences related to the children's ethnicity and sex, as well as social class. The importance of further exploration of subdivided discipline and nurturance scales is emphasized. (French summary) (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)