Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Sandra Stith and Jared Durtschi / Controversy still exists in whether parents should or should not use corporal punishment to discipline their young children. The aim of this study was to investigate whether corporal punishment when the child was two years old predicted child externalizing behaviors a year later, and whether or not this association was moderated by parents’ observed positivity and harshness towards their child. A total of 218 couples and their first born child were selected for this study from the Family Transition Project (FTP) data set. Findings indicated that frequency of fathers’ corporal punishment when the child was two years old predicted child externalizing behaviors a year later, while controlling for initial levels of child externalizing behavior. Also, it was found that observed positive parenting and observed harsh parenting moderated the relationship between corporal punishment and child externalizing behaviors. These results highlight the importance of continuing to examine the efficacy of a commonly used form of discipline (i.e., corporal punishment). Furthermore, this study suggests that the parental climate in which corporal punishment is used may also be important to consider because parental positivity and harshness attenuate and amplify, respectively, the association of corporal punishment with child externalizing. Implications for family therapy are offered.

Family structure is a widely used independent variable. However, in recent years researchers have questioned its predicting power. They also strive to improve its use. This study drew on Holman's (2001) theoretical model and examined the association between the family structure independent variables (Family Structure, Family Instability, and Parental Romantic Partners) and the outcome variables (Coming to Terms, Self-esteem, Maturity, and Depression). The analysis was conducted with a sample of 3,705 individuals (2,316 females and 1,389 males) randomly selected from the entire population that completed the Relationship Evaluation Questionnaire (RELATE). Results showed that Family Instability was a stronger predictor than Family Structure and Parental Romantic Partners. Among all of the outcome variables, Coming to Terms had the strongest association with each of the independent variables. Implications of the results are discussed.

This thesis deals with rituals connected with childbirth in Bohemia and Moravia since the 17th century to the present. The first chapter describes the word ritual, especially the transition ritual, which is understood as a necessary assumption enabling the transition from one stage of life to the other. The next chapter presents the family and its development across the centuries from the traditional conception until the modern one. The family also plays an important role in education and in the child's integration into society - this is discussed in the third chapter. The fourth chapter maps the rituals connected with childbirth adhered to in the past. The fifth chapter continues analyzing the situation about current rituals. The last chapter compares the situation about the implementation of rituals in the past with the situation nowadays. It is concluded with the authors own research, which was based on real data collection.