published_or_final_version / abstract / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

No description available.

Despite a remarkable need and demand for services, little is known about the family relationships of children with social competency disorders (SCD), defined in this study as children with Asperger’s Disorder and nonverbal learning disabilities (NVLD). Both children with Asperger’s Disorder and children with NVLD exhibit social skill deficits essential to building and maintaining relationships. These social competency impairments are thought to be related to similarities in their neuropsychological profiles. The low prevalence rates of these conditions and the neuropsychological and behavioral similarities supports the combination of Asperger’s Disorder and NVLD as a “social competency disorders” group for purposes of research. Attention deficit-hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) have been found to be highly comorbid in children with SCD, and were included in this study as clinical control group. The purpose of this study was to examine the relational functioning in the families of children with social competency deficits across different parts of the family system. It was hypothesized that the social competency deficits in children with SCD would result in significantly lower levels of relational functioning across the parent-child subsystem, parenting subsystem and whole family level of the family. Sixty-one children between the ages of 8-12 and their mothers participated in this study. Children were assigned to the SCD, ADHD or typically developing group based on pre-determined criteria. Self-report measures of interpersonal functioning in the parent-child relationship, strength of parenting alliance in the parental relationship and social support in the whole family were collected and compared across the three groups. As predicted, mothers of children with SCD reported significantly higher levels of dysfunction in the parent-child subsystem as compared to mothers of typically developing children; however, no significant differences in parent-child dysfunction were found between the SCD and the ADHD group. Contrary to the hypotheses proposed in this study, the SCD group showed no significant group differences on measures of parenting alliance and social support in the whole family. This study reveals the importance of intervention in the parent-child relationship in these families, and the need for additional research using longitudinal, multi-modal and multiple informant designs. / text

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between kindergarten children's classroom behavior and family unit type. Three dimensions of classroom behavior were examined: temperament, socialization, and task-orientation. Family unit types were: nuclear, single-parent, and remarried.The sample consisted of ninety-eight subjects divided, according to family unit types, as follows: nuclear - forty, single-parent - thirty-one, and remarried - twenty-seven. There were fifty-three males and forty-five females. Subjects were enrolled in kindergarten classrooms of two public school corporations in Indiana.Null hypotheses were formulated to examine kindergarten children's classroom behavior, temperament, socialization, and task-orientation, as functions of family unit type. A multivariate and univariate analysis of variance, with statistical control for the sex factor, was used to test the null hypotheses.The dependent variables, classroom behavior, temperament, socialization, and task-orientation, were measured by the teacher-rated Classroom Behavior Inventory. Data identifying the independent variable, family unit type, and the control variable, sex, were collected on the Personal Data Form.An examination of the statistical analyses yielded the following results:No significant difference in kindergarten children's classroom behavior was found among children of nuclear, -single-parent, and remarried families (p<.4589).Due to an insignificant F-ratio on the multivariate analysis of variance, univariate analyses of variance could not be performed.Results of this study indicated that there was no significant difference in classroom behavior among kindergarten children of nuclear, single-parent, and remarried families. Results of the sex variance analysis suggested that sex differences existed relative to task-orientation.Although differences in classroom behavior existed they were not caused by family unit type. Concerns of educators that children of non-nuclear families deem special attention were not supported. Children in single-parent and remarried families evidenced classroom behavior similar to that of nuclear family children.

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.