Cognitive-mediational models of behavior suggest that cognitive content and internal dialogue have the functional capability of influencing arousal, appraisal, adaptation to stress, and problem-solving behavior. This study examined the relationship between the divorce-related cognitive content reported by school-age children of divorce and the severity of their observed postdivorce adjustment difficulty. / Sixty-four 8- to 11-year-old children of divorce were identified within public and private schools, and the behavioral adjustment of each subject was evaluated via independent parent Louisville Behavior Checklist and teacher School Behavior Checklist ratings. On the basis of these behavioral judgements, the following subject classifications were formed: 16 males and 16 females with high adjustment difficulty (HAD), and 16 males and 16 females with low adjustment difficulty (LAD). / All subjects completed the following measures of divorce-specific cognitive content: (1) the Divorce Inventory of Self-Statements for Children (DISSC), which revealed the frequency, valence, and content of reported inner speech; and (2) the Children's Attitudes toward Parental Separation Inventory (CAPSI), assessing the frequency and content of reported problematical attitudes. / Multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVA's) with the factors of adjustment difficulty and gender were performed using the DISSC and CAPSI scores as dependent measures. The MANOVA's revealed that the HAD and LAD groups could not be differentiated on the basis of their DISSC positive and negative self-statement scores. All the groups reported greater frequencies of positive or adaptive self-statements regarding divorce than negative or maladaptive self-statements. / An adjustment difficulty by gender interaction was uncovered for the CAPSI problem attitude measure. The male HAD children admitted having more frequent attitudinal problems regarding separation and divorce than the remaining HAD and LAD groups, while the HAD females failed to show this elevation. / Secondary analyses of the DISSC and CAPSI content areas culminated in generally nonsignificant findings. Methodological issues which may have precluded the demonstration of a significant relationship between adjustment difficulty and divorce-specific cognitive content were discussed. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-06, Section: B, page: 2547. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_74548 |
| Contributors | RUSHBROOK, JOHN CHARLES., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 255 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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