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This research examined correlates of political efficacy in children of different national and ethnic backgrounds. It was hypothesized that children who participate in family and school decision-making which affects them would be more efficacious than children with little or no participation in family and school decision-making. It was also hypothesized that participation in family and school decision-making would vary with social status and ethnic background. The children studied were mostly sixth graders, and of 11-12 years of age. Children of Anglo, Mexican-American, and Mexican backgrounds were administered written questionnaires in their classrooms. The classes tested were drawn from nine schools which were a mixture of public and private in each country. Five schools in El Paso, Texas, and four in Juarez, Mexico, were selected, by reputation, to represent lower, middle, and upper middle classes in each country. An attempt was also made to obtain a sample which would adequately represent each national and ethnic group within each category of socioeconomic status. Family decision-making patterns did, in fact, correlate with differences in socioeconomic status and ethnic background in both the U.S. and Mexico. Middle and upper status children were more likely to participate in family decision-making than were low status children. Of the middle and upper status children, however, middle status children were somewhat more likely to participate in family decision-making than upper status children and this was true both in the U.S. and Mexico. Anglos were more likely to participate than were Mexican-Americans and Mexicans. Regression suggests, however, that when socioeconomic status is controlled for, that ethnic background is no longer relevant to this question in the U.S. In Mexico, some Mexican children also responded to the categories Anglo or Mexican-American, instead of Mexican, and it was determined that these responses, in the border environment, indicated an acculturation to "mainstream" U.S. patterns. Significant differences exist in Mexico between children who call themselves Anglo, for example, and those who call themselves Mexican in regard to participation in family decision-making. The children tested in the U.S. report widely different patterns of school participation, which correlate with socioeconomic status. In Mexico, however, children uniformly report moderately participant school environments. Regression indicates that school decision-making patterns vary directly with family decision-making patterns. In each country, the only significant predictor of school decision-making is family decision-making patterns. School decision-making, in turn, correlates at a moderate level with efficacy in each country. Regression indicates, however, that school decision-making has a somewhat different role in the two countries. In the U.S., regression shows family decision-making as the primary, significant predictor of efficacy whereas regression for Mexico shows school decision-making as the primary, significant predictor of efficacy. The basic hypotheses are thus confirmed, with some modifications for each country. In the U.S., family decision-making correlates most strongly with social status. In Mexico, ethnic background responses seem to reflect acculturation to "mainstream" U.S. patterns just across the border and are the strongest correlate of family decision-making patterns. In both countries, the only significant predictor of school decision-making patterns are family decision-making patterns. School decision-making patterns, in turn, correlate with efficacy. Regression, however, indicates that in the U.S., it is the family decision-making patterns which are significant in predicting efficacy whereas in Mexico it is the school decision-making patterns which are most significant in predicting efficacy.

M.Comm. / The research study has endeavoured to explore adolescent perceived influence on parent purchase decisions more comprehensively, with unique and pioneering research being conducted on the degree to which this influence varies cross-culturally. Several findings were similar to previous research conducted, with adolescents still perceiving to have greater influence than their parents attribute to them. The cross-cultural findings, however, provide a basis for future research due to the significant value of these findings to marketers and researchers alike. The value of researching this cross-cultural impact should therefore not be discarded, as the researcher is of the opinion that knowledge regarding this aspect will dramatically influence the manner in which products are marketed and the ultimate success of long-term customer relationships. Conclusions,

The relationship between marital negotiation strategies and various context and outcome factors are examined using responses from 249 women and men. Multiple regression analysis confirmed significant links between context factors and negotiation strategies. Self-esteem was important in explaining degree of reliance on some types of negotiation, as was emotional interdependence and perceived past cooperativeness of the marital partner. Training in communication skills did not affect women's style of negotiation but was significant for men. The strategy of simply telling the spouse what is wanted or needed was more important to reaching agreement and having a sense of fairness about the outcome than were strategies like bargaining, reasoning or threatening. These findings are discussed within a theoretical framework that gives consideration to negotiation as a process important to understanding marital power. / Ph. D.

The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate how and why children’s influence in purchase decisions might vary under different types of families. It was conceptualized that children in different types of families are socialized into different status roles and that these differences in socialization, in turn, would have varied implications for children’s influence. Specifically, it was hypothesized that peerness in parent-child relations and children’s household responsibility would be greatest in single-parent families, less in reconstituted families, and least in intact families. In addition, parental coalition formation, parental restrictiveness, and parental nurturance were expected to be greatest in intact families, less in reconstituted families, and least in single-parent families. Children’s influence was hypothesized to be positively related to peerness, household responsibility, and nurturance, and negatively related to parental coalitions and restrictiveness. Hypotheses were tested using convenience samples of adolescents and one of their parents. Results generally failed to support the model: however, a number of methodological limitations that may have affected the study's outcomes were also present. / Ph. D.

D.Cur.( Psychiatric Nursing Science) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This study was done to determine whether the recently employed program of Family Group Decision Making (FGDM) is working in the San Bernardino County Department of Children Services (DCS) in the way it was intended to by reunifying children with their parents and reducing children's time in foster care.