No abstract

Interactional behavior of mothers and preschool children was studied in light of mothers' internal models of relationships and select child characteristics. Children with behavior problems who were developmentally intact (n = 20) and developmentally delayed (n = 20), and a matched nonclinic group (n = 24), were studied in a problem-solving session. Mothers' help and support, and children's approach to tasks, relationship to mother, and overall experience were scored. Mothers' internal models of relationships, based on descriptions of childhood relationships, were characterized as detached, preoccupied, or secure (attachment classifications). Results showed children's behavioral and developmental status, as well as mothers' internal models, to be associated with dyadic behavior. Children's behavior corresponded to mothers' internal models and to behavioral and developmental status even with the effects of mothers' behavior removed. Discriminant analysis correctly classified 93% of the sample into clinic and nonclinic groups and into the 3 attachment classifications.

No abstract

In this study, 229 high school students and 261 college students evaluated the acceptability of lying to parents under 19 different circumstances where a person's motive for lying differed. Students also indicated the frequency with which they had lied to their parents about diverse issue such as friends, dates, and money. Results indicated that adolescents and emerging adults quite commonly lied to their parents, and that in part they framed lying to parents as a way to assert the right to autonomy. Emerging adults were less accepting of lying and reported less frequent lying, compared to adolescents. Results also showed the association of sex, personality (self-restraint and tolerance of deviance), and family environment (control and cohesion) upon adolescents' and emerging adults' acceptance of lying to parents and lying behavior.

The relationship of daily uplifts and hassles to adaptational outcomes has gained increasing attention in recent years. However, investigators have focused considerably more on hassles than uplifts. In an attempt to rectify this trend, the present study examines the relationship of uplifts and hassles to anxiety, depression, distress, self-restraint, perceived sup-port from friends, perceived social competence, and general self-worth in a sample of 23 sixth graders (141 girls). Results indicate that both hassles and uplifts are substantially related to these outcomes in the expected direction, with the exception of a modest positive association between uplift and anxiety for girls. Moreover, in most cases uplifts add significantly to the relationship between hassles and outcomes, thus high-lighting the importance of uplifts. Other findings idicate that uplifts/hassles patterns vary as a function of gender and the particular outcome being considered. Similarities to and differences from adult findings are discussed in regard to gender-role and general development.

No abstract

Few societal guidelines exist to help parents or adolescents make decisions about the pacing of autonomy, yet parents and adolescents exhibit well-defined expectations as to what constitutes age-appropriate behavior. Little is known about the specific content of age-related expectations, or about the factors that influence the "timetabling" of these expectations. To explore these issues, the present study sampled 200 early adolescents and 170 parents of early adolescent sons. Subjects differed in gender, ethnicity, and the personality dimension of restraint. Subjects completed a 21-item questionnaire asking at what age they expected adolescents to engage in specific autonomy-related behaviors associated with adolescence. Results revealed that parents held significantly later age expectations than adolescents; Asians, substantially later than those of non-Asians; and those with highly restrained personalities markedly later than their low-restraint counterparts. Gender effects were absent. Results were discussed in terms of both the content of differentiating items and of group characteristics underlying differential expectations.

Interactional behavior of mothers and preschool children was studied in light of mothers' internal models of relationships and select child characteristics. Children with behavior problems who were developmentally intact (n = 20) and developmentally delayed (n = 20), and a matched nonclinic group (n = 24), were studied in a problem-solving session. Mothers' help and support, and children's approach to tasks, relationship to mother, and overall experience were scored. Mothers' internal models of relationships, based on descriptions of childhood relationships, were characterized as detached, preoccupied, or secure (attachment classifications). Results showed children's behavioral and developmental status, as well as mothers' internal models, to be associated with dyadic behavior. Children's behavior corresponded to mothers' internal models and to behavioral and developmental status even with the effects of mothers' behavior removed. Discriminant analysis correctly classified 93% of the sample into clinic and nonclinic groups and into the 3 attachment classifications.