Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Santa Cruz, 1989. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 143-160).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Delaware, 2007. / Principal faculty advisor: Carroll E. Izard, Dept. of Psychology. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Cerebral Palsy is a complex, non-progressive condition that manifests in various forms of motor impairments. This life-long condition holds numerous challenges for the entire family throughout the family life-cycle. While the challenges that these families have to face are many, families seem to have the ability to "bounce back" and to be resilient. Research on the construct of resilience and more specifically family resilience has increased in recent times. South African family resilience research is relatively limited. This study aimed to identify, explore and describe the resiliency factors that facilitate adjustment and adaptation in families that include a child living with Cerebral Palsy. The Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation was used to conceptualise the level of family adaptation. The study was triangular in nature, with an exploratory, descriptive approach. Non-probability purposive and snowball sampling techniques were employed. The sample consisted of 30 female caregivers. Biographical questionnaires with two open-ended questions, in conjunction with seven structured questionnaires were used to gather the data. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the biographical information. Correlation and regression analysis was used to analyse the quantitative data, while content analysis was used to analyse the qualitative data. The results of the quantitative component of the study indicated five significant positive correlations with the FACI8. These variables were family hardiness (measured by the FHI), family time together and routines (measured by the FTRI), social support (measured by the SSI), relative and friends support (measure by the RFS), and spiritual support (measured by the F-COPES). The results of the qualitative analysis revealed that social support, the caregivers' acceptance of the condition, and spirituality and religion were the most important strength factors that contributed to the families' adjustment and adaptation. Although the sample was small and the study has limitations, it could be used as a stepping-stone for future research on resilience in families living with a child with a physical disability and will contribute to the broader context of family resilience research in South Africa.

In understanding the importance of career adaptability in an individual‟s career development, career counsellors require a valid assessment technique for measuring career adaptability. The Career Adapt-Abilities Inventory (CAI) was originally developed by Mark Savickas (2008) as a measure of career adapt-abilities. The present study forms part of an international collaboration investigating the psychometric properties and construct validity of the CAI. The aims of the present study involved the following: conducting exploratory factor analysis in order to determine whether interrelationships within the items of the CAI can be explained by the presence of unobserved variables; conducting confirmatory factor analysis in an attempt to confirm the hypothesised factor structures of the CAI; and to explore and describe South African university students‟ perceptions of the underlying constructs of the CAI in terms of the language usage and comprehension of the inventory‟s item content. A sample of South African first-year university students were employed in this current study. In an exploratory factor analysis of the CAI, preference was given to the a priori criterion forcing the extraction of five factors. The oblique rotation method was employed using the OBLIMIN method provided by the statistical package in order to derive the simplest and most interpretable factor structure. Exploratory factor analysis supported a five factor solution after the fourth iteration, reflecting the underlying dimensions of Curiosity, Concern, Confidence, Cooperation and Control. These factors support the five scales presented by Savickas (2008). Confirmatory factor analyses were subsequently performed in order to test both the original CAI factor model as well as the factor model that emerged through exploratory factor analysis. After using several goodness-of-fit indices, it can be concluded that the inventory items adequately represent the five CAI scales based on the value obtained using the Root Mean Square Error of Approximation index. The factor model derived through EFA demonstrated a slightly better fit when compared to the original CAI factor model using other fit indices. In terms of the qualitative findings of this current study, participants indicated that the meaning of several items were unclear to them causing comprehension difficulty. Items 8 and 50 were marked by participants several times and can be viewed as the items causing most difficulty with regard to comprehension, with participants pointing out the words „keeping upbeat‟ (item 8) and „conscientious‟ (item 50). Participants were also asked to provide additional comments with regard to the readability, comprehension and applicability of the CAI. On investigation of these comments, three main themes were generated relating to: the comprehension and clarity of the CAI; the CAI enhancing participants‟ understanding of themselves; and the structure, length and general layout of the CAI. In essence, the current study provided useful information regarding the psychometric properties of the CAI using a sample of South African first-year university students. Factor analyses provided some support for the validity of the CAI while the qualitative results provided aspects for consideration in making the CAI more applicable for South African usage. Moreover, a foundation has been laid for further research to be conducted in South Africa regarding the validity and applicability of the CAI for South African populations.

No description available.

Adaptability and cohesion were studied in a sample of thirty-nine remarried families, using the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales (FACES III). The purpose of the study was to add to the growing body of empirical research dealing with the remarried family as a unique family form. Comparisons were made between family members and between the remarried and norm group families. The results both support and fail to support existing literature. Age of children was a factor in levels of both family adaptability and cohesion with levels being lowest during adolescent years. When pre-adolescent children were involved, remarried family adaptability was higher than in the intact norm families. This was not true when adolescents were present. Also, stepparents with no natural children scored higher in adaptability than parents with natural-born children. Remarried family satisfaction was positively correlated with adaptability but negatively correlated with cohesion. Also, family adaptability varied according to the complexity of the family. / Ph. D. / incomplete_metadata

An analysis of how adaptive behavior information is obtained and used by school psychologists with secondary age students was the focus of this investigation. School psychologists are often considered to be important sources of information regarding the initial identification and programming of students placed in special education classes. Because the adaptive behavior instruments developed for public school use have emphasized the initial placement/ identification of elementary age students, it was not known how school psychologists approach the adaptive behavior issue with secondary age students. This question was critical in light of research indicating the poor post secondary transition of many handicapped students and the limited training of school psychologists in providing services for secondary age students. The study was undertaken to examine the dynamics of practicing school psychologists' current use of adaptive behavior information in the psychological assessment of secondary age students. To gather the data needed for the study, a questionnaire was mailed to a representative sample of the membership of the National Association of School Psychologists residing in the United States. An 81.4% return rate was obtained. One hundred eighty-seven school psychologists practicing primarily in the schools provided data used in the study. The results of this study indicate that if school psychologists are to adequately address the post secondary needs of secondary age students, they will need to become familiar with newer adaptive behavior instruments which address issues beyond the non-biased assessment of mild mentally retarded students. Reforms in current reevaluation practices are needed to facilitate the use of adaptive behavior instruments that can help facilitate the post secondary transition of secondary age students. Also, training programs need to place greater emphasis in skill development for optimal psychological services with secondary age students. More research is needed regarding the experience/continuing education factor mentioned earlier. Also, test publishers need to encourage the development and marketing of new adaptive behavior instruments which can better help to facilitate the post secondary transition of this population. / Ed. D.

Seventy-four women with either rheumatoid arthritis (RA). chronic pain syndrome or depression and 59 of their spouse reported on their family cohesion, adaptability, and conflict. From a review of the literature. these three-dimension of family functioning were identified as important in “psychosomatic" families in which an adult member is physiologically vulnerable (Flor & Turk, 1985). Data analysis consisted of cross tabular procedure and MANOVAs. Differences between the groups in terms of health status were explored using a MANOVA with group membership as the independent variable and the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scale (AIMS) as dependent variables. Overall the depression and chronic pain groups; were more similar than the PA group with the exception of the levels of Physical Activity and Pain. For these two dimensions, the RA and chronic pain group were similar while the depression group score indicated better health state. Crosstabular procedures were performed on the FACES III score on cohesion and adaptability both separately and then combined on the Circumplex Model. Higher than expected percentage of disengaged scores were reported by the women in the RA and chronic pain groups and this trend was more pronounced in the spouses' scores of all three groups. The women in all three groups reported fairly normal levels of adaptability as did the spouses of the depression group members, but the spouses of those women with RA and chronic pain reported higher than expected levels of rigidity. Results of MANOVAs to examine differences between the three groups in terms of the family characteristics were significant. The women in the depression group and their spouses reported higher levels of conflict than the members of the RA group. / Ph. D.

Thesis (MA (Psychology))--University of Stellenbosch, 2009. / Family resiliency refers to the ability of families to withstand and rebound from crises and adversity, and entails adequate or more than adequate adaptation in the face of adversity. The aim of this study was to identify those qualities or resources that young families have employed in their adaptation to the addition of a child to the couple/family relationship and which have deemed them resilient during this normative crisis. Grounded within family systems theory (Carter & McGoldrick, 2003), both the Resiliency Model of Family Stress, Adjustment and Adaptation (McCubbin & McCubbin, 1996) and the Key Family Processes as outlined by Walsh (2002) served as the theoretical frameworks that guided the execution of the research. Eighty-nine families, in which the eldest child was no older than four years of age, took part in this study. Seven quantitative questionnaires were used in the assessment of family adaptation, whilst the participating parents also completed a demographic questionnaire and answered an open-ended question. The qualitative dimension of this study revealed that families regarded the resources of social support, effective and caring communication, flexibility in family roles, rules and relationships and, lastly, commitment to the family as important resources in the process of adapting to the presence of a young child in the family. The quantitative results indicate that resilience may be bolstered by spending time together and managing a routine, as well as valuing the family unit highly.