The purpose of the study was to advance the understanding of human behavior. In order to do so, a theory emphasizing the importance of family interactions with regard to both their effects on individuals and their centricity in understanding social systems was developed.There exists no current theory which affords clear cognitive schemata for understanding human behavior, and perhaps there never will. Certainly the present theory does not purport to have achieved that end. More realistically, the value of the study is believed to lie in it's potential to stimulate interested Individuals who have chosen to devote their thinking and their efforts toward discovering closer approximations to the truths off human existance.Extensive, though by no means comprehensive, perusal of various fields of literature preceeded this writing. Concepts and references were ultimately drawn from the fields of anthropology, biology, communications, philosophy, psychiatry, semantics, sociology, and of course, psychology.The lack of concepts that were both comprehensive and integritive regarding interpersonal interactions; and the paucity of language to describe those same interactions, led to the presentation of the theory in three sections, centering on the three major topics of personality, family, and larger social institutions. Each section attempted to indicate that all three are interactive, to keep that concept at least in the background, if not in the foreground, of the reader's attention, to indicate how they are interactive by presenting theorized parallels whenever possible, and to emphasize the central importance of the developmental family to human behavior. The theory was intended to be both interpersonal and social, in the broadest sense. A fourth section, relating the theory to the practice of therapy, was included. Finally, conclusions were presented.Following the introduction, which contained the assumption that the primary nature of the human individual is good, the section on personality focused upon the concept of the creation of the secondary nature of the human being through the process of socialization. The theory proposed that this process parallels the development of the self system, that part of the person generally accepted by the individual and admissable to awareness. The concepts of identification, alienation, and denial were heavily utilized in the description of the formation of the person within the interactions of the family.In the second section, families were viewed in terms of their functions, structures, processes, and systems. The concepts of homeostasis, role stabilization, differentiation and communications were emphasized and examined in some depth. The relationship between some of our language limitations and unhealthy human living was broached. The central importanceof family interactions was again stressed.The third major section was based on the premise that all social Institutions, as well as social interactions beyond the family, are based on extensions and/or modifications of family patterns which have either evolved from lesser to greater complexity or been reduced from complexity to simplicity. A single extended example, the power hierarchy was developed to illustrate the position. The therapy section assumed that resistance to therapeutic change is based upon denial and defense of the self system. Functions of therapy, rationale, and indicated approaches were presented. The major conclusion was that man has become alienated from his nature and the nature of his environment because he has developed self validating personal and social systems upon his conceptions and eliminated corrective feedback. Man's return to integrity is conceived to depend upon his ability to charge his social systems and learn to live in harmony with nature.

This cross-cultural study investigates identity and wisdom in people with Asperger syndrome (AS). The diagnostic characteristics of Asperger syndrome are universal, as they are manifest in particular outward behaviours (DSM-4). One of the aims of this study is to explore whether or not identity and wisdom are also universal in people with AS. Interviews were conducted that asked participants about their own lives, as well as about the acquaintances and historical figures to whom they look to for wisdom. Some self-report measures of identity, values, wisdom, and well-being were also administered to the participants. Forty-six male participants (half diagnosed with Asperger syndrome) were recruited from Karachi, Pakistan, and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Canada. People with AS were matched with non-autistics according to age. The results of this study showed that the Canadian Asperger group was significantly higher in social identity, and lower in personal integrity, as compared to the Pakistani Asperger group. The value of conservation was significantly higher in the Asperger groups than in the control groups. Mean scores on the 3-dimensional wisdom scale differed significantly between the Asperger and control groups, but remained the same between the two Asperger groups. People with AS were equally satisfied with their lives as compared to non-autistics. There was a greater emphasis on the theme of communion for the Pakistani Asperger group than for the Canadian Asperger group. Results also found a greater emphasis on the theme of personal agency in both the Asperger groups, as compared to the control groups. The Pakistani Asperger group mainly considered religious figures to be the wisest in history, whereas the Canadian Asperger group primarily nominated scientists as the wisest figures in history. Both the Asperger groups considered family members to be the wisest among their acquaintances. The concept of wisdom centered on the theme of cognition for both Asperger groups. The study was limited to male participants only, and future research should study both genders.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-07, Section: B, page: 4870. Adviser: Arthur F. Kramer. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 58-62) Available on microfilm from Pro Quest Information and Learning.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2008. / Directed by Esther Leerkes; submitted to the Dept. of Human Development and Family Studies. Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Aug. 12, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 67-79).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Syracuse University, 2008. / "Publication number: AAT 3333582."

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Santa Cruz. / Typescript. Bibliography: leaves 198-203.

Thesis (Ph.D.) in Interdisciplinary--University of Maine, 2005. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 290-310).

<p> <i><b>Problem:</b></i> A range of developmental models have been applied in research on leader development. Such applications often advocate &ldquo;whole&rdquo; person approaches to leader growth. They seek to expand social, cognitive, and behavioral capacities, and often reference perspective taking. Many of these approaches define developmental levels in terms of specific content, ideas, and domain-specific capacities. In some models, people are said to be at a given level because they demonstrate a certain kind of perspective taking, and they are also expected to demonstrate that kind of perspective taking because they are at a given level. This circularity largely prevents the investigation of how different capacities change together (or not) over time. </p><p> <i><b>Purpose:</b></i> Using an approach that avoids this kind of circularity it was possible to examine perspectival skills and developmental level independently. I tested three hypotheses about the relationship between change in developmental level and change in perspective taking, seeking, and coordination. It was predicted that these constructs would exhibit patterns of synchronous and asynchronous change, with the former being most prominent. </p><p> <i><b>Method:</b></i> The sample consisted of 598 civil leaders who completed a developmental assessment called the Lectical&trade; Decision Making Assessment (LMDA) up to 4 times over a 9-month leadership development program. The LDMAs yielded separate scores for Lectical level&mdash;a domain-general index of hierarchical complexity&mdash;and perspective taking, seeking, and coordination. Perspective taking and seeking scores were disaggregated into component scores for <i>salience, accessibility,</i> and <i> sophistication.</i> Ten scores were analyzed with Latent growth modeling techniques. Four types of models were fit to these data: (a) Univariate latent growth curve models, (b) multivariate parallel process models, (c) univariate latent difference scores models, and (d) bivariate latent difference scores models. </p><p> <i><b>Results:</b></i> All hypotheses were partially confirmed. Change trajectories for most scores were non linear, characterized by dips and spurts. The rate of change in perspective scores was not related to rate of change for Lectical score or initial Lectical score. Initial Lectical score was positively related to initial perspective scores. Lectical score was a leading indicator of subsequent change in seeking and seeking salience. Lectical change positively impacted seeking change, whereas Lectical score positively impacted seeking salience change. </p><p> <i><b>Conclusions:</b></i> The relationship between change in these constructs is more complex than typically portrayed. Evidence suggests that these variables change more independently of each other than claimed in earlier research. Patterns of asynchronous change were three times more common than synchronous change, and Lectical score predicted change in only some aspects of perspectival capacity. Implications for theory, method, and pedagogy, along with study limitations and avenues for future research are discussed.</p>

abstract: Previous research has suggested that the social interactions parents engage in with their typically developing children are critical to the relationships children form with peers later in development. Fewer studies, however, have investigated the relation between parent and child interactions and peer relations in children with autism. The current study aimed to investigate the relation between parent-child joint attention skills, social competence and friendship quality in children with autism and in typically developing children. A matched sample of 20 preschool-aged children with autism and 20 preschool-aged typically developing children were observed interacting with their parents in a laboratory setting. Approximately one year later, parents filled out a questionnaire assessing their child's social competency and quality of friendships with peers. Results indicated significant group differences between children with autism and typically developing children in all study variables, with children with autism displaying less initiation of joint attention, lower social competence and low quality friendships. Additionally, child initiated joint attention was positively related to social competence for both groups; effects were not moderated by diagnosis status. It is concluded that parent and child interactions during the preschool years are important to the development of social competence with peers. Intervention and policy implications are discussed. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S. Family and Human Development 2010

<p> Children&rsquo;s picture books engage young readers with lessons of both literacy and socialization. They are discursive components of visual culture, with ideological origins that can be traced to European colonizers, whose policies fueled popular sentiment that devalued those who appeared different and, thus, encouraged systemic oppression and genocide. Utilizing Hall&rsquo;s definition of representations will provide perspective in discussions of social constructs (including constructed absences), developmental psychology, and research-evidenced processes of child perception and meaning. These phenomena often convey unearned hierarchical power that culminates in behaviors that include social exclusion and discrimination, and their far-reaching effects are discussed by MacDonald as European Structuralism, in which &ldquo;social and cultural life are governed by deep-seated structural polarities&rdquo; (1995, p. 35). European Structuralism, and related systems, disadvantaged groups that include females, non-European males, non-heterosexuals, those with a high body mass index (BMI), and non-Christians. Visual culture, including picture books, perpetuates these constructs that lead to oppression. To call attention to the origins of biased messages, I analyze the physical characteristics of best-selling picture book authors and illustrators. Few surprises exist, yet these data add another layer to the intricate systems of power dynamics. </p><p>