Family, Life Course, and Society Commons^™

A Qualitative Study Of Coping In Mothers Of Children With An Autism Spectrum Disorder, Heather Miller Kuhaneck, Tajhma Burroughs, Jamie Wright, Theresa Lemanczyk, Amy Rowntree Darragh

Occupational Therapy Faculty Publications

A significant body of research exists that explores the stressors of raising a child with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There are fewer studies, however, that examine specific effective coping strategies of mothers of children with an ASD. This qualitative study explored mothers’ perceptions of effective coping strategies for their parenting stressors. In-depth interviews were conducted with 11 mothers to inquire about their personal coping methods. Interviews were coded and emergent themes identified which included coping strategies such as “me time,” “planning,” “knowledge is power,” “sharing the load,” “lifting the restraints of labels,” and “recognizing the joys.” The information from …

Emotional Intimacy, Coparenting, And Family Work: A Latent Class Growth Analysis, Adam Michael Galovan

Theses and Dissertations

From a family systems theoretical view, this paper uses both variable-oriented and person-oriented research approaches to examine parental marriage as a dynamic, interdependent system, and extends the literature by examining parental marriage across a 15 year time span. Employing latent growth curve analysis of 490 mother-father dyads from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development, this study considers multiple aspects of the relationship husbands and wives have together as spouses (emotional intimacy), parents (ideas about discipline and a child-centered vs. adult-centered orientation to childrearing), coparents (agreement regarding parenting beliefs and discipline), and household managers (agreement on the …

Early Adolescents' Forgiveness Of Parents: An Analysis Of Determinants, Katherine Janet Christensen

Theses and Dissertations

The current study examined forgiveness within the parent-adolescent relationship. Theoretical foundations and definitions of forgiveness were examined, after which a relational approach to forgiveness was explored. The direct influences of the quality of mother- and father-child relationships (parent and observed reports) and modeled marital forgiveness on early adolescents' forgiveness toward both mothers and fathers (child report) were examined; the mediating roles of parent forgiveness of child and adolescent social-cognitive skills (empathy and emotional regulation) were also analyzed. Mother, father, and child self-reported questionnaires and in-home observational data were taken from Time 1 and Time 3 (two years later) of the …

Parental Factors As A Moderator Of The Co-Occurrence Of Substance Use And Depression In Hispanic Adolescents, Rebecca Shoff

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between parenting factors and Hispanic adolescent substance use and depression. Specifically, the study examined the relationship between parental support, parental knowledge, and parental psychological control among Hispanic adolescents' use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, hard drugs and depressive symptoms. The sample included 839 Hispanic (primarily Mexican) 9th – 12th graders from west Texas area school districts who were given a self-reported survey to assess parental behaviors, substance use, and adolescent depression. Using structural equation modeling (SEM), findings indicated that higher levels of maternal support were related to lower levels of depressive …

Parenting Self-Efficacy And Parenting Practices Over Time In Mexican American Families, Larry E. Dumka, Nancy A. Gonzales, Lorey A. Wheeler, Roger E. Millsap

Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools: Faculty Publications

Drawing on social cognitive theory, this study used a longitudinal cross-lagged panel design and a structural equation modeling approach to evaluate parenting self-efficacy's reciprocal and causal associations with parents' positive control practices over time to predict adolescents' conduct problems. Data were obtained from teachers, mothers, and adolescents in 189 Mexican American families living in the southwest U.S. After accounting for contemporaneous reciprocal relationships between parenting self-efficacy (PSE) and positive control, results indicated that parenting self-efficacy predicted future positive control practices rather than the reverse. PSE also showed direct effects on decreased adolescent conduct problems. PSE functioned in an antecedent causal …

Six Ways To Keep The "Little" In Your Girl: Guiding Your Daughter From Her Tweens To Her Teens, Dannah (Barker) Gresh

Alumni Book Gallery

Bestselling author, speaker, and founder of the Secret Keeper Girl conferences, Dannah Gresh shares with moms the secret to helping today's girls grow up confident, grace-filled, and strong in their faith. Studies show that the foundation for an emotionally healthy teen girl is built between the ages of 8-12 and that a good relationship with mom is one of the most important factors. So when the world wants girls to grow up too fast, how does a mother help her young daughter navigate the stormy waters of boy-craziness, modesty and body image, media, Internet safety, and more? With a warm, …

Parental Leadership: The Mary Poppins Metaphor, Brad Van Alstyne

Collected Faculty Scholarship

Existing theories on leadership are usually based on efforts we are familiar with in which leaders are easily defined (work, war, sports, etc). Little analysis to date has been placed on the role of parents as leaders outside of the social sciences where the focus of the research is usually an offshoot of psychology or childhood development. The parent as leader is a unique focus in that there are several qualities of the parent role that are quite different from that of the typical supervisory roles we normally discuss, while at the same time it would be foolish to think …

The Impact Of Therapeutic Alliance On Outcomes In Parent-Child Dyadic Interventions, Ryan M. Smith

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

An infant’s attachment relationship with primary caregivers has been demonstrated to have a long-term relationship to an individual’s social and emotional functioning throughout the lifespan. Recognizing the critical importance of this period, interventions to facilitate secure attachment are now being evaluated for treatment efficacy. Evaluation of these treatments has typically focused on the components of treatment, examining changes in maternal sensitivity, parental attachment representations, and concrete support to address basic needs, housing, or other contextual factors, and evidence has been found to support the inclusion of these factors. However, little is known regarding what elements of treatment impact the effectiveness …

The 'Good Mother Syndrome' And Playgroup: The Lived Experience Of A Group Of Mothers, Bronwyn Harman

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Using a qualitative approach, utilising a semi-structured narrative interviewing technique, I interviewed 21 participants through one-on-one interviews and focus groups to examine how participants experience parenting and playgroup. The good mother syndrome refers to the social, historical and cultural determination of how mothers are supposed to act. It defines what a good mother is supposed to be, subject to political, cultural and economic influences. Further, the good mother syndrome is inextricably linked to challenges to identity, support in the mothering role, and expectations of motherhood. Playgroups are communities of women bounded by internal and external demands, where they support each …

Economic Hardship And Children's Social Withdrawal In Romanian Families, Jennifer Denise Pearson

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the impact of perceived economic hardship on family processes and children's socially withdrawn (reticent) behaviors in Romania. The sample consisted of 121 Romanian mothers and fathers of 4-5 year old children, as well as children's kindergarten teachers. Drawing on Conger and colleagues' family stress model of economic hardship, the associations among mothers' and fathers' ratings of economic hardship, depression, marital conflict, psychologically controlling parenting, and teacher ratings of child social withdrawal were analyzed. Structural equation modeling using AMOS 7.0 was used to test the model. Findings generally support earlier studies with European American families, as well as …

On Being Acceptable: State Sanction, Race Privilege And Lesbian And Gay Parents, Damien W. Riggs

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

'Positive' representations of lesbian and gay parents within the media continue to draw parallels between the experiences of heterosexual parents and those of lesbian and gay parents. Such comparisons are typically aimed at 'proving' that lesbian and gay parents are acceptable parents. There is, however, most often a failure to examine how race mediates representations of the category 'parent', the result being that references to 'parents' typically refer to white parents. The category parent is thus built upon a series of exclusions, ones with which white lesbian and gay parents may unwittingly be complicit. Through an examination of both a …

Understanding Psychological Control Through Differences Between Shame And Disappointment: Implications For Childhood Agression, Sacha Leah Bikhazi

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the potentially unique roles that parental use of two psychological control dimensions, shame and disappointment, play in predicting children's relational and physical aggression. It was additionally of interest to investigate whether warm/involved parenting would moderate the effects of these forms of psychological control on both types of childhood aggression. Based on a review of literature, it was hypothesized that parental use of shame would positively predict aggression in children, whereas parental use of disappointment would not be significantly associated with childhood aggression. Additionally, it was hypothesized that warm, involved parenting would have …

Parenting, Home Environment, And Child Obesity: A Survey Of Parents And Children Attending A Pediatric Clinic., Amit Ravindra Bodhani

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Data were collected from 60 parents of children 5-11 years of age to describe the parental and family factors and explore the associations of these factors with children's Body Mass Index (BMI) percentiles. Mother's made up 81.7% of the sample. Whites/Caucasians comprised 88.3% of the sample. Males comprised 51.6% of the child participants while females comprised 48.3%. Among the child participants, 38.3% had BMI equal to or greater than the 95th percentile, and 6.7% had BMI 85th to less than 95th percentile. Concerns about child weight (r_s = 0.582), pressure to eat (r_s = -0.433), and monitoring (r …

Japanese Mothers' Parenting Styles With Preschool-Age Children, Ai Shibazaki Lau

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine whether Western typologies of parenting (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, and psychological control) and their dimensions (e.g., connection, regulation, physical punishment, verbal hostility) can be measured in the context of Japanese parenting. Based on the literature review, it was hypothesized that these parenting constructs are measurable in Japan. The participants were 214 Japanese mothers of preschool-age children (101 boys and 113 girls) from several preschools in Kushiro-city, Japan. A series of two-group (boys and girls) Confirmatory Factor Analysis was carried out with Mplus statistical software to test the measurement models of authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, …

How Parents And Their Adolescent Children "Talk The Talk" In Religious Conversations, Jennifer Yorgason Thatcher

Theses and Dissertations

This study builds on previous research regarding parent-child religious conversations to explore the elements and bidirectional processes of parent-adolescent religious conversations. It employs qualitative analyses of interviews with highly religious parents and adolescents representing the major Abrahamic faiths (Christianity, Judaism, Islam) from New England and Northern California. Variations in content, structure, conversational processes, and bidirectional influence are summarized in a conceptual model. Findings suggest that the quality of conversations is greater for parents and adolescents when they are youth-centered than when they are parent-centered.

Role Satisfaction: Grandparents Raising Grandchildren, Noreen Orman Ayres

Theses Digitization Project

Three psychosocial dynamics were assessed for their effect on role satisfaction among grandchildren: (1) the impact of expanding a household on a limited fixed income, (2) health issues of the grandparent as they apply to stamina, and (3) the interaction with their existing social structure to include grandchildren (adjustments, prioritizing, and social isolation). Sampling included a population of 33 custodial grandparents (age=55 and older; male and female; various ethnicities) and selected from a Grandparents Raising Grandchildren support group in Idyllwild, California. The instrument of this quantitative and qualitative study was an adaptation from the County of Riverside, Department of Mental …

Does Culture Matter? : Exploring The Relationships Among Parenting A Child With Disabilities, Cultural Identification, And Stress In A Group Of European American And Immigrant Latino Families, Ximena P. Suarez-Sousa

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this correlational exploratory study was to delve into the experience of raising a child with disabilities by investigating the parents' level of stress and the role played by culture, acculturation, and various demographic variables suggested by the literature to influence stress were included. A purposive sample composed of 38 primarily undocumented immigrant Latino parents and 32 European American parents of children with disabilities was recruited from community agencies in a Midwest state. The most frequent disabilities were orthopedic impairments, pervasive developmental disorders, and mental retardation.

Data were collected with the Parent Survey, comprised of the Questionnaire on …

The Relationship Between Parenting Stress And Family Cohesion In Non-Abusing Parents Of Sexually Traumatized Children, Danielle Marie Bronk

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Stepparents: Social Support Systems And Factors That Contribute To Role Fulfillment, Lydia Guerrero, Sonia Marlene Valadez

Theses Digitization Project

Forty-five stepparents responded to four scales: Perceived Social Support Friend Scale, Perceived Social Support Family Scale, Kansas Family Life Satisfaction Scale and the Kansas Parental Satisfaction Scale. The study found a significant positive correlation between family and friend support and stepparents' role fulfillment.

Parenting Adolescents, Sandra L. D'Angelo, Hatim A. Omar

Pediatrics Faculty Publications

The period of adolescence is often thought to be one of intense stress and turmoil. Yet many parents and teens negotiate this developmental stage without extreme family conflict and without sacrificing close relationships. This review summarizes a portion of the literature on parent-adolescent relationships, focusing on monitoring and control of adolescent behavior and parenting style. Basic principles to emphasize when working with adolescents and parents are also included.

Parents' Homophobia And Childrearing Gender Role Beliefs: Correlates In A Local Populations, Angela Ackerman Brogle

Honors Capstones

Capstone submitted as a graduation requirement for the BSU Honors Program.

An Evaluation Of Parent Effectiveness Training Provided By A Faith-Based Organization, Kim Lynette Braxton

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of parent training seminars. The intention of this study is to find out if parents' knowledge increased in their understanding of 4 areas of parenting: Discipline, communication between parent-child, communication with teachers and effective parenting style.

Attitudes And Practices Of Corporal Punishment With Ethnicity And Religiosity As Predictive Variables, Denise Rodriguez, Allen Kay Sackett

Theses Digitization Project

This study explores the relationship between ethnicity and level of religiosity, and parental or caregiver practices of physical punishment as a discipline style.

Relationships Between Family Environment, Psychological Maltreatment, And Well-Being And Symptoms, Rhonda Kay Alvarez

Theses Digitization Project

An examination of the relationships between family environment, psychological maltreatment, subjective well-being and psychological distress. Certain family environments may be more at risk for engaging in psychological maltreatment than others.

Fathers' Self-Perceptions Of Their Parenting Role Identity And Its Impact On Levels Of Father-Child Involvement: A Comparison Of Married And Contact Fathers, Natasha M. Vawser

Theses : Honours

It has been extensively documented that contact fathers decrease involvement with their children after divorce (Amato & Booth, 1996). Role theory purports that this pattern of father involvement after divorce is a result or contact fathers experiencing parental role ambiguity. The constraints of visitation make it difficult to maintain parental roles previously performed in the marriage (Ihinger-Tallman, Pasley & Buchler, 1993). American research has provided support for role theory: however no known equivalent research has been conducted on Australian contact fathers. This study replicated Minton and Pasley's (1996) research with 46 contact and 64 married fathers. Participants completed the Self-Perceptions …

Proclamation-Based Principles Of Parenting And Supportive Scholarship, Craig H. Hart, Lloyd D. Newell, Lisa L. Sine

Faculty Publications

How parents view the nature of a child and their own role as parents has great influence over the life of that child. Many perspectives about the nature of children have arisen in the course of Western Civilization that have shaped childrearing practices for centuries, including the increasingly accepted scholarly view that parents matter relatively little in children’s lives. (2) This chapter emphasizes inspired, eternal principles that are supported by empirical and conceptual scholarship, which suggests that optimal parenting does indeed matter in children’s lives.

The Effect Of Home Environment On Adolescent Substance Use And Depressive Symptoms, S. Susan Su, John P. Hoffmann, Dean R. Gerstein, Robert A. Johnson

Faculty Publications

We used data from the screening phase and first two waves of a panel study to compare the home environments of families with a substance-abusing parent, families with a depressed parent, and families in a comparison group. We diagnosed substance use disorder and affective disorder by administering the Structural Clinical Interview for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (third edition, revised) to each participating parent. The data suggest that families in which parents display a substance use disorder are very similar to those in which parents suffer from affective disorder, in terms of negative life events and lower …

The Relationship Between Perception Of Child-Rearing And Self-Esteem And Its Effect On Perceived And Actual Scholastic Competence In Children, Christina Castro

Theses Digitization Project

Elementary-school children (4th-6th grades)--Perceived parenting methods and scholastic achievement--Harter's Self-Perception Profile--Parent-Child Relationship Questionnaire--Gender and ethnicity factors.

Hana ‘Ino: Child Maltreatment In A Hawaiian-American Community, Jill E. Korbin

Pacific Studies

No abstract provided.

Effects Of A Parent/Teen Workshop, Roberta Magarrell

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the short-term effect of a parent-teen structured family facilitation program (PAT). The study compared pre and post workshop scores on a number of dependent variables in a workshop, a replication of the workshop, and a comparison group.
Analysis of the data revealed no significant differences from pretest to post test in either of the groups. However when the groups were combined there were some statistically significant differences from pretest to post test. The fathers increased in their ability to transfer control while the mothers decreased in kindness. A few post hoc analyses …