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Results for “Child Behavior”

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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1988

Maternal depression and its relationship to life stress, perceptions of child behavior problems, parenting behaviors, and child conduct problems.

This study examined the relationship of reported maternal depression to prior and current life stressors, and to mother perceptions of child adjustment, parenting behaviors, and child conduct problems. Forty-six depressed mothers and 49 nondepressed mothers and their clinic-referred children (aged 3-8 years) participated. Depressed mothers were more critical than nondepressed mothers, but the behavior of children of depressed and nondepressed mothers showed no significant differences. Depressed mothers were more likely to have experience child abuse, spouse abuse, or more negative life events than nondepressed mothers. Maternal reports of stress related to mother characteristics and to negative life events were the most potent variables discriminating depressed from nondepressed mother families.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Maternal characteristics, ratings of child behavior, and mother-child interactions in families of children with externalizing disorders.

Relationships among maternal characteristics, ratings of child behavior, and observed mother-child interactions were examined in a sample of 40 4- to 12-year-old children with externalizing disorders. Mothers and children were observed in a task interaction and mothers provided self-reports of depressed mood, parenting self-esteem, marital satisfaction, social support, and life stress. Child behavior was rated by both mothers and teachers. Several significant correlations were found among observed mother and child behaviors and among maternal self-report measures. However, few significant relationships were found between maternal characteristics and observed mother or child behavior. Although life stress predicted increased child negativity, maternal depressed mood was related to more appropriate child behavior. Mother and teacher ratings of child behavior demonstrated few significant relationships with other measures. These results suggest that, in samples comprised primarily of children with attention deficit disorder from socially advantaged families, few relationships exist between maternal characteristics, parenting behavior, and child behavior.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

Linking extreme marital discord, child rearing, and child behavior problems: evidence from battered women.

Relations between marital discord, parental behavior, and child behavior were investigated in a sample of 37 battered women and 37 comparison mothers and their children, aged 2-8 years. It was hypothesized that violent fathers would be more irritable but less involved, battered women more stressed and inconsistent in discipline, and both parents would reportedly use fewer positive and more negative child-rearing responses than comparison families. Based on maternal self-reports and mother-child observations, the only robust self-report difference between the groups of mothers were the level of stress and reports of inconsistency in parenting; in contrast, all of the expected differences were found between the mothers' reports of the 2 groups of fathers. Group effects on child behavior problems were also found. Children from violent families were reported to have more internalizing behavior problems, more difficult temperaments, and to be more aggressive than the comparison children. In the violent families, maternal stress and paternal irritability were the 2 significant predictors of child behavior problems, whereas in the comparison families only maternal stress was a reliable predictor.

Adult↗

PubMed1991

The use of a computer-assisted interview to administer the Child Behavior Checklist in a child psychiatry service.

This study describes the use of a computer-assisted interview to administer the Child Behavior Checklist to the parents of children referred to a child psychiatry service. The scores from the computer-assisted interview varied little from the scores obtained using the standard written checklist. Information collected by means of computer-assisted interviews with parents and children has the potential to facilitate the diagnostic assessment of individual children with emotional and behavioral problems, to provide a more comprehensive description of the work of child psychiatry services, and to encourage new clinical research by mental health professionals working in child psychiatry services.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1987

Risk factors and the Child Behavior Checklist in a child mental health center setting.

The relationship between risk factors and the severity and type of childhood disorder, as measured by parent-completed Child Behavior Checklists, was examined for 768 children, ages 4-16, seen at a child mental health center. Regression analyses revealed no significant relationships between any combination of risk factors and the total number of behavior problems, internalizing, or externalizing scores for the entire group, males and females separately, or for the age and sex groupings of 6- to 11- and 12- to 16-year-olds. Chi-square tests revealed no relationship of profile type with any risk factor or with total number of risk factors. Implications for broad-based child assessment and risk factor research within a clinical population are discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

The internal consistency and concurrent validity of a Spanish translation of the Child Behavior Checklist.

The Child Behavior Checklist's applicability to a Hispanic sample was assessed by an examination of the instrument's internal consistency and concurrent validity. The CBCL and TRF were administered to a community sample representative of children of Puerto Rico aged 4 to 16. Cronbach's alpha was used to assess the internal consistency of empirically derived scales. The relation of CBCL and TRF scores to clinical diagnosis, adaptive functioning, and need for services served as indicators of the concurrent validity of the instrument's Spanish version. The results indicate that the total behavior problem scores on the instruments are good continuous measures of maladjustment for children in Puerto Rico. A child with high values on the scales has a high probability of being classified as a case by a psychiatrist. High levels of internal consistency were found in most subscales. Only scales comprising low prevalence problems showed poor internal consistency.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1992

Cluster analysis of child behavior checklists of 6 to 11-year-old males with varying degrees of behavior disorders.

Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist ratings were collected on boys aged 6 to 11 years screened as not having significant behavior problems, as clinic-referred boys, and as boys diagnosed as having Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder alone or together with Oppositional-Defiant Disorder or Conduct Disorder. Cluster analysis resulted in a classification system related to DSM-III-R classification of the boys and parent self-report of mildly antisocial acts. Clusters also enhanced the ability of the instrument to detect Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and disruptive behavior disorders.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗

PubMed1991

Differences and similarities between children, mothers, and teachers as informants on disruptive child behavior.

Prevalence rates of disruptive child behaviors, based on structured psychiatric interviews, are presented for samples of clinic-referred prepubertal boys at two sites to investigate differences and similarities among reports of the behaviors from children, parents, and teachers. Children reported significantly less hyperactive/inattentive and oppositional behaviors than either parents or teachers. In contrast, children did not differ from parents or teachers in their report on the prevalence of more serious conduct problems. These results were well replicated across two sites, despite the fact that there were significant differences between the sites in the level of hyperactive/inattentive child behaviors and conduct problems. The ranking of parents' and teachers' reported prevalence of specific child behavior problems in each of the three domains of disruptive behavior was strikingly similar. With one exception, the concordance between the prevalence ranking based on the children's reports was lower than that based on adults' reports, Children's reports on their own behavior did not predict various child handicaps 1 year later as well as did adults' reports. The results are discussed in relation to the usefulness of certain child behaviors in symptom lists for diagnostic purposes; the reliability of children's reports on their own behavior; and the possible reasons why prevalence rankings, as perceived by adults, are so similar.

Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity↗

PubMed1978

Comparison of hyperactive and emotionally-behaviorally disturbed children on the Devereux Child Behavior Rating Scale: a potential aid in diagnosis.

Comparison was made between Devereux Child Behavior Rating Scale (DCB) ratings of matched groups of hyperactive and emotionally-behaviorally disturbed children. The emotionally behaviorally disturbed group was chosen to represent a population with presenting symptoms similar to hyperactivity. Ratings of the two groups exceeded the normative population on all DCB factors. The hyperactive group received higher scores on 16 factors and was significantly higher than the emotionally-behaviorally disturbed group on 8 factors. The hyperactive group received the most extreme scores on behavioral dimensions generally described as characteristic of the hyperactive syndrome. The results suggested that the DCB can assist in differentiating hyperactive children from children with presenting symptoms similar to those of hyperactivity.

Child↗

PubMed1989

The effects of parental psychopathology and maltreatment on child behavior: a test of the diathesis-stress model.

Past research on risk factors in child development has tended to focus on 1 risk factor rather than examining the effects of multiple factors simultaneously. The present research examines the main and interactive effects of parental psychopathology (schizophrenia, psychiatric control, and normal control) and maltreatment on child behavior. Child aggression, delinquency, and social withdrawal were assessed at 2 times so that the effects of risk factors on behavioral change could also be examined. The results indicate significant relations between the risk factors and child behavior. Most notably, parental psychiatric status and maltreatment interacted significantly, such that offspring of schizophrenic parents from maltreating families showed increases in externalized behavior problems over time. These results support a diathesis-stress model of psychopathology.

Aggression↗

PubMed1992

Lead exposure and child behavior.

OBJECTIVES: Unlike cognitive impairments associated with lead exposure, lead-associated child behavior problems have been difficult to specify, particularly in young children. METHODS: The Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale were used as the outcome and confounding variables, respectively, of major interest. These measures were examined with respect to blood lead levels of 201 African-American children aged 2 through 5 years. RESULTS: In comparison with the low exposed group, the high exposed group (two consecutive blood lead levels greater than or equal to 15 micrograms/dL) had a significantly higher mean CBCL Total Behavior Problem Score (TBPS) and Internalizing and Externalizing scores; when other factors, including maternal depressive symptomatology, were controlled for, regression procedures indicated a .18-point TBPS increase for each unit increase in lead and a 5.1-point higher TBPS in the high exposed group; children in this group were 2.7 times more likely to have a TBPS in the clinical range. CONCLUSIONS: Through its use of a standardized parent-report measure of behavior and its consideration of maternal morale in multiple linear and logistic regression procedures, this study provides further evidence of lead's detrimental effect on child behavior at levels typical of present-day exposure.

Academies and Institutes↗

PubMed1979

The utility of tracking child behavior.

To assess the impact of observation training and tracking of child behavior, each of 20 elementary school teachers participating in a behavior modification practicum was assigned to either an experimental or a control group. For each teacher, a disruptive, distractible child was identified as appropriate for behavioral intervention. All teachers were taught identical intervention strategies, but the two groups differed in the degree to which teachers were initially trained and subsequently required to observe and record discrete child behaviors. Multiple measures were used to assess the influence of monitoring child behaviors. These included observed child behavior, observed teacher behavior, teacher ratings, and correspondence between teacher perception and child behavior. Results showed that tracking the behavior of children had little or no effect on any measure.

Acting Out↗

PubMed1992

Relation between maternal characteristics and child behavior ratings. Implications for interpreting behavior checklists.

The present study examined the extent to which mothers' ratings of their psychological distress, marital adjustment, and negative life events were related to maternal ratings of child behavior problems. Data were collected from mothers of 110 children (ages 2 to 12 years) who were referred to a pediatric clinic for a variety of common behavioral concerns. Maternal psychological distress and marital adjustment were significantly correlated with mothers' ratings on a child behavior checklist. Maternal psychological distress also accounted for a significant amount of the variance in maternal child behavior ratings over and above that accounted for by fathers' ratings of the same behaviors. Given that maternal characteristics co-vary significantly with reports of child behavior problems, pediatricians should interpret findings derived from child behavior rating scales within the overall family context.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Maternal perceptions of child behavior: handicapped versus nonhandicapped.

This study compares the ratings of child behavior in short stories by mothers of children with handicapping conditions versus those whose children had no handicapping conditions. Each of the mothers rated 12 short stories or vignettes and indicated their self-perceived level of stress. The results showed that the mothers of children with handicapping conditions expressed significantly greater stress levels and rated inappropriate child behavior in a more tolerant fashion than the mothers of children without handicapping conditions. This information may be of value to the dentist who treats patients with handicapping conditions, and it provides a greater understanding of the mothers' concerns and daily life stresses.

Adult↗

PubMed1989

Child behavior ratings: the influence of maternal characteristics and child temperament.

This study investigated the extent to which maternal characteristics, such as psychological health problems, marital adjustment and confidence in mother/wife roles, influenced how mothers rated the behavior of their first-born children (n = 100) on the Pre-school Behavior Questionnaire. Results showed that these characteristics were powerful predictors of behavior ratings. In contrast, the independent contribution of child temperament ratings was relatively small. It was concluded that child behavior problem and temperament measures may be confounded. Maternal ratings constitute a valuable source of information concerning parent-child interaction which deserve further investigation, especially of their influence on generally accepted measures of child behavioral adjustment.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1986

Differences in abusive, at-risk for abuse, and control mothers' descriptions of normal child behavior.

Differences in the descriptions of normal child behavior were assessed for mothers at-risk for abuse (N = 18) and control (N = 20) mothers, and compared to a criterion group of currently abusive mothers (N = 5). Three segments of each of nine videotaped scenes were rated by the mothers. At-risk mothers rated more segments as negative (M = 11.1) than did control mothers (M = 7.0), and were more like the abusive mothers who were the most negative of all (M = 16.4). When type of scene (e.g., noncompliant, mildly aversive, daily activities, child unattended) was analyzed, the at-risk mothers rated more of the mildly aversive (p less than .05) and child unattended (p less than .05) scenes as negative than did the controls. Abusing mothers rated significantly more segments as negative (p less than .05) than the other groups on all but noncompliant scenes. When specific risk factors were examined, insularity and directly observed negative interactions between mothers and their own child were significantly related to total segments rated as negative (p less than .02; p less than .05, respectively). The study was conceptualized and results discussed in terms of faulty stimulus discrimination; specifically, overgeneralizing from negative stimuli on the part of troubled mothers.

Adult↗

PubMed1986

Child behavior, maternal depression, and social coercion as factors in the quality of child care.

Observational and self-report data were obtained in the homes of 33 mother-child dyads. These volunteer, normal subjects were monitored with respect to their affectionate and aversive interactions, and the mothers were asked to provide three categories of self-report data. Mothers made observational judgements of their children, their own feelings of depression, and the valences of their interactions with adults. Multiple regression analyses were then employed to predict the mothers' child care behaviors, which were composed of observed mother responses and mother observational judgements. In addition, conditional probability analyses were conducted to examine the directionality of correlations between observed mother-child interchanges. Results showed child behavior to be the best single predictor of how the mothers responded to their children, followed by maternal depression and mother coercive interactions with adults. Child behavior was shown to be a significant antecedent "cue" for the maternal responses. However, the findings also showed that mother observational judgements about their children had little to do with how the children behaved. Rather, the maternal judgements were best predicted by mother depression, mother coercive interchanges with adults, and the mothers' observed aversive responses to their children. Results were interpreted within a systems framework in which maternal care is viewed as a response that is "triangulated" by adult- and child-produced stimuli.

Child Behavior↗

PubMed1975

Parental use of "positive contact" in child-rearing: its relationship to child behavior patterns and other variables.

In an investigation of child-rearing styles maternal use of "positive contact" was measured by asking the mother how often she played with the child, praised the child, and the like, and combining the responses into a score. Home observations on a sample of families revealed that mothers scoring above the mean used fewer communications in the form of directives and "unmodified power" and more communication in the form of praise and social conversation than mothers scoring below the mean. The mother's use of positive contact was related to her educational level, the birth order of the child and number of children in the family, the father's use of positive contact, and to a friendly outgoing pattern of child behavior. There was no relation to the mother's use of physical punishment, her protectiveness, her tendency to comply with the child's demands, or her child-rearing ideology and other attitudes. Child care workers are in a strategic position to educate parents about the importance of this kind of contact, especially with later-born children in large families.

Child Behavior↗