IQ test performance of Black children adopted by White families.

The poor performance of Black children on IQ tests and in school has been hypothesized to arise from (a) genetic racial differences or (b) cultural/environmental disadvantages. To separate genetic factors from rearing conditions, 130 Black and interracial children adopted by advantaged White families were studied. The socially classified Black adoptees, whose natural parents were educationally average, scored above the IQ and the school achievement mean of the White population. Biological children of the adoptive parents scored even higher. Genetic and environmental determinants of differences among the Black and interracial adoptees were largely confounded. The high IQ scores of the socially classified Black adoptees indicate malleability for IQ under rearing conditions that are relevant to the tests and the schools. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cultural socialization in families with internationally adopted children.

Cultural socialization attitudes, beliefs, and parenting behaviors were examined in families with internationally adopted children. The authors hypothesized that parents with lower color-blind racial attitudes would be more likely to engage in enculturation and racialization parenting behaviors because they hold stronger beliefs in the value and importance of cultural socialization. Using data from the Minnesota International Adoption Project, the results support this mediation model of cultural socialization. Individual variations in cultural socialization also are discussed in terms of child development and shifting adoption attitudes and practices. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Black children adopted by White families.

Discusses the confounding of biological and social variables in S. Scarr and R. A. Weinberg's (see record 1977-07996-001) article on Black children adopted by Whites. It is suggested that an above-average group of children may have been selected either by the parents or the adoption agencies attempting to promote interracial adoption. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The adopted child's IQ: A critical review.

Summarizes all reliable published data about the nature and nurture of adopted children's IQs, and draws conclusions about the relative importance of heredity and environment on children's mental development. Any study that compares the central tendency of adopted children's IQs with a group mean of 100 IQ points for a normal population cannot be taken seriously until several methodological criteria have been met: (a) representative sampling, (b) no differential loss of Ss over time, (c) accurate, age-corrected information on biological and adoptive parents, (d) careful attention to early separation and placement of children, and (e) elimination of practice effects and regression to the mean artifacts. Analysis of the resemblance between individual adopted children's IQ scores and their adoptive and biological parents' mental abilities shows that the adoptive parents' home environment has only a modest effect on their adopted children's intellectual growth, while heredity and environment of the biological parents have a strong effect on their own children's intellectual growth. At present there is disagreement about the precise values of genetic and environmental effects on IQ, and several assumptions must be made before accurate statistics can be derived. But, the available data strongly suggest that under existing circumstances, heredity is much more important than environment in producing individual differences in IQ. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family cigarette smoking and test performance by adolescents.

Studied test performance by adolescents as a correlate of cigarette smoking by their families. Scores obtained by 973 adolescents on the California Achievement Test decreased as the amount of cigarette smoking by other members of their families increased. The relationship was not accounted for by active cigarette smoking of the adolescent or by 20 other social and psychological variables. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of being a model on scores on a performance IQ test.

Studied 30 male and 30 female upper-middle-class kindergartners to determine whether scores on a performance IQ test (Object Assembly subscale of the WISC) of a model in a modeling situation would differ from an actor's score in a social facilitation situation. Results support R. B. Zajonc and G. B. Markus's findings (see record 1975-09290-001) which showed that an older sibling's learning was facilitated when he or she taught younger siblings (the teacher effect). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of programmed instruction related to motivation, anxiety, and test wiseness on Group IQ test performance.

To investigate the efficacy of a cognitive approach to problems of motivation, anxiety, and test wiseness, programed texts were used to condition verbal repertoires relevant to each of these problems. Five 6th-grade classes (118 Ss) were administered the Otis-Lennon Mental Ability Test in a pretest–posttest design. Each class received one of the following conditions: control condition, motivation program, test wiseness program, or a combination of all 3 programs. There was a significant effect only on raw scores. Comparing the combination group with the control group, both IQ and raw score gains were significant. Lower IQ level Ss made greater raw score gains than did upper IQ level Ss. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

White examiners generally do not impede the intelligence test performance of Black children: To debunk a myth.

A view held by some psychologists is that White examiners impair the intelligence-test performance of Black children. Despite the absence of objective supporting evidence, this view has become one of the leading myths in psychology. The present report clarifies the known facts and encourages additional research on race-of-examiner effects by evaluating the research literature and detailing flaws in 2 studies by B. Pasamanick and H. Knobloch (see record 1956-02723-001) and H. G. Canady (see record 1936-04136-001) often summoned to support the myth. The available research literature clearly refutes the existence of race-of-examiner effects and indicates that Black children's performance is not enhanced by examinations administered in Black dialect. Possible reasons for the persistence of the race-of-examiner myth are discussed. (60 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Work, parenting, and the socialization of children.

Examined how adults' investments in work and parenting impinge on socialization practices and perceptions of children's behavior. One hundred ninety-four employed mothers and 104 employed fathers, each with an employed spouse and a 3- to 4-year-old child, completed questionnaires about work and parenting, socialization practices, and perceptions of their children's behavior. Among the findings of particular interest: (a) Parental investment was a stronger predictor of fathers' and mothers' demands for mature behavior than was work investment; (b) women with high commitments to both work and parenting were more likely than others to engage in authoritative parenting; (c) parenting styles were related to mothers' ratings of their children's behavior; and (d) differences in involvement in parenting were associated with differences in how favorably fathers and mothers described their children. Taken together, the results suggest that men's and women's degree of investment in parenting is more consequential for their socialization practices and views of their children than is their degree of investment in work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological and academic adjustment in adopted children.

Evaluated psychological and academic adjustment of 130 6–11 yr old adopted children and 130 age-matched nonadopted children using the Hahnemann Elementary School Behavior Rating Scale and a child behavior profile. Results show that adopted Ss were rated higher in psychological and school-related behavior problems and lower in social competence and school achievement than were nonadopted Ss. It is suggested that although the results support the position that the risk is greater for adopted children to develop emotional and school-related problems, the data should not be overinterpreted because the majority of adopted Ss were within the normal range of behavior. (50 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family socialization of emotional expression and nonverbal communication styles and skills.

Describes the development of the Family Expressiveness Questionnaire, which measures family styles of emotional expression and discusses its use in a study assessing the effects of family socialization of emotional expression on the Ss' own expression, nonverbal behavior, and skill. Questionnaire development indicated accuracy in tapping emotional expression levels in the home. In the study, 64 college students and confederates filled out several questionnaires, were videotaped while discussing topics of emotional significance and while encoding scenes of affective content, and participated in a nonverbal judging task. The socialization hypothesis, that family expressiveness has a differential effect on individuals' nonverbal behavior and skill, was supported and refined. It is concluded that style of expression and skill in communication are influenced by the emotional expressiveness of the family environment. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Black and White girls' racial preferences in media and peer choices and the role of socialization for Black girls.

This exploratory research compared Black and White girls' racial preferences as exhibited through their media (music and television) and peer choices. The sample included 140 8-and 9-year-old Black and White girls of various socioeconomic levels. Findings suggested that both Black and White girls have more Black music preferences than White or no-race music preferences. Also, both Black and White girls made more White television program choices than Black or no-race choices. In their peer selections, all girls preferred same-race peers. Black mothers who engaged in racial socialization practices had girls who were more likely to prefer Black music and television to the other categories. Further, Black mothers who promoted more cultural distance and mothers who were poor had girls with more same-race peer preferences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Responses of phenylketonuric children on a continuous performance test.

Administered a task which required continuous attending to 11 phenylketonuric children and 11 nonphenylketonuric controls (matched for age, IQ, sex, and race). The phenylketonuric Ss made significantly fewer correct responses and more late responses than their matched controls. The performance of the phenylketonuric Ss also changed significantly over the sequence of stimulus presentations, with fewer correct responses toward the end. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Deterioration of intellect among children surviving leukemia: IQ test changes modify estimates of treatment toxicity.

Assessed the association of young age at treatment, cranial irradiation, and time since treatment with intellectual deterioration among 49 long-term survivors of childhood leukemia. Ss had been randomized to receive low-dose cranial radiation therapy or high-dose chemotherapy. Longitudinal assessments of intellect were conducted. No significant effects of treatment group or age at treatment were detected. A small but statistically significant decline in mean full-scale IQ was noted over time (M?=?–3.6). Reanalysis with IQ test version included as a covariate eliminated IQ declines found initially. Results suggest that there has been reduced toxicity of these methods of treatment and that the magnitude and direction of error introduced by changing tests may approximate the magnitude of adverse effects on IQ expected from treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

IQ and delinquency: A direct test of the differential detection hypothesis.

A number of studies have reported that juvenile delinquency is negatively related to IQ scores. The IQ/delinquency relation has been questioned on the basis of the differential detection confound, which attributes the apparent relaton to biased likelihood of detection, and thus inclusion in research, of low-IQ delinquents. A direct test of the differential detection hypothesis was conducted by comparing the mean IQ scores of two groups of delinquent subjects from the same birth cohort. Group 1 had been detected in delinquent acts by police. Group 2 was not known to police, but was equivalent to Group 1 on amount and seriousness of self-reported delinquency. The two groups did not differ significantly on IQ, but both groups scored significantly below nondelinquent cohort members. Results were inconsistent with the prediction of group differences posed by the differential detection hypothesis. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of type of social reinforcement on the intelligence performance of lower-class Black children.

Examined the effects of different types of reinforcement on the performance of 80 Black 2nd grade males on the WISC-R. Ss given candy or culturally relevant social reinforcement obtained significantly higher scores than Ss given either no reinforcement or traditional social reinforcement. (2 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The relationship between multisensory integration and IQ in children.

It is well accepted that multisensory integration has a facilitative effect on perceptual and motor processes, evolutionarily enhancing the chance of survival of many species, including humans. Yet, there is limited understanding of the relationship between multisensory processes, environmental noise, and children's cognitive abilities. Thus, this study investigated the relationship between multisensory integration, auditory background noise, and the general intellectual abilities of school-age children (N = 88, mean age = 9 years, 7 months) using a simple audiovisual detection paradigm. We provide evidence that children with enhanced multisensory integration in quiet and noisy conditions are likely to score above average on the Full-Scale IQ of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Edition (WISC–IV). Conversely, approximately 45% of tested children, with relatively low verbal and nonverbal intellectual abilities, showed reduced multisensory integration in either quiet or noise. Interestingly, approximately 20% of children showed improved multisensory integration abilities in the presence of auditory background noise. The findings of the present study suggest that stable and consistent multisensory integration in quiet and noisy environments is associated with the development of optimal general intellectual abilities. Further theoretical implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Racial identity, racial attitudes, and race socialization among Black Canadian parents.

The primary aim of this study was to examine the influence of racial identity on the socialization strategies used by Black parents to deal with issues of racism and discrimination. The Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity (MMRI) was used to capture the complexity of Black identity and to provide a framework for the study of the socialization process. Ninety-one Black Canadian parents responded to measures of racial identity (e.g., identity centrality, racial ideologies), racial appraisals (e.g., concern for stereotyping), and socialization practices (e.g., preparation for bias). Racial identity measures were hypothesised to predict racial appraisals and socialization behaviours, while racial appraisals were expected to predict socialization behaviours. Furthermore, racial salience was expected to moderate the relationship between racial ideologies (e.g., nationalist ideology) and socialization behaviours. Although this latter hypothesis was not supported, the Sellers model did provide a useful theoretical framework for understanding the socialization practices of Black Canadian parents. Parents were more likely to socialize their children when they endorsed a humanist ideology and when they perceived their children as being likely targets of stereotyping and discrimination. These findings underscore the need for multidimensional measures of identity to obtain a more complete picture of the socialization process. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychosocial functioning of learning-disabled children: Relations between WISC Verbal IQ Performance IQ discrepancies and personality subtypes.

A total of 132 children with learning disabilities (LD) between the ages of 6 and 12 years were divided equally into 3 groups on the basis of the difference between Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) VIQ-PIQ scores (viz., VIQ?>?PIQ, VIQ?=?PIQ, and VIQ??PIQ group showed pathological evaluations on some PIC scales. Group average linkage cluster analysis using 10 PIC scales revealed 6 psychosocial subtypes. Within these subtypes, children with VIQ?>?PIQ were found at lower than expected frequencies in normal and mildly disturbed subtypes, but at higher than expected frequencies in seriously disturbed subtypes. These results support the notion that patterns of cognitive performance are related to patterns of psychosocial functioning in children with LD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bicultural identification: Experiences of internationally adopted children and their parents.

Little is known about bicultural identity development, a process that is particularly complicated for internationally adopted children. The authors interviewed 8 adoptive families about their cognitive, emotional, and familial experiences. Qualitative analyses showed consistency in the parent and child interviews (conducted independently) and ratings of the children's kinetic family drawings. Themes included parents identifying the family multiculturally, promoting ethnic pride, and worrying about bigotry. Their ways of educating their children about race differed considerably, however. Results also indicated a developmental progression in the children's understanding of ethnicity in relation to adoption. Although the data indicated good psychosocial adjustment and strong family attachments, most of these children struggle with a sense of "being different," and some experience feelings of sadness and loss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)