Alexander Thomas

Goodness of Fit : Clinical Applications, From Infancy through Adult Life

Part I. Evolution of the Goodness of Fit Concept. Goodness of Fit: A Special Development Concept and its Clinical Application. The Origins of the Goodness of Fit Concept. Critique of other Major Developmental Concepts and Clinical Applications. Review of the Literature: Clarification and Evolution of the Goodness of Fit Concept. Part II. Goodness of Fit: Clinical Applications. Infancy. Toddler and Preschool Periods. School Age and Middle Childhood. Adolescence. Adulthood. Personality Development: Continuity and Change. Part III. The Importance of the Biopsychosocial Model. Intertwining Goodness of Fit and the Biopsychosocial Model. Ethnic-Social Issues. Educational Issues. Sexual Issues. Marital Problems. Physical and Mental Handicaps. Part IV. Clinical Application. Prevention and Early Intervention of Childhood Behavior Problems. Poorness of Fit: Normalcy and Vulnerability vs. Pathology. Part V. Conclusion: Basic Structure of Goodness of Fit. The Clinicians Guidelines for the Applications of the Goodness of Fit Concept. Overview and a Look to the Future. Appendix A: Temperament Definitions, Categories, and Ratings. Bibliography.

Temperament and the Concept of Goodness of Fit

Research centers in various countries have formulated different theoretical viewpoints and methodological approaches to the diagnosis of temperament, to the definition of categories of temperament, and the rating schemes used to identify the categories. But no matter what the conceptual scheme and methodological techniques may be, a crucial question arises. How do we formulate the mechanism or mechanisms through which temperament exerts its influence on the psychological development of the individual from early childhood into adult life? In other words, given any diagnostic system of temperament, how do we examine its functional importance and its relationship to the values, demands, and expectations of the culture in which the person lives? A conceptual framework that serves as a basis for analyzing the dynamics of the influence of specific temperamental characteristics on any individual’s life course gives us the ability to use our diagnosis of temperament in a number of important ways. We can counsel parents and teachers as to the best approach to children, which will vary according to the child’s temperament. We can identify high-risk patterns of parent-child interaction, and intervene to prevent or treat more effectively the behavior disorders of children. Older children and adults can use their knowledge of their own temperaments to channel their behavior to achieve more effectively their personal and career goals.

Temperamental Individuality from Childhood to Adolescence

Abstract Continuties and discontinuities in the expression of temperamental characteristics from early infancy to adolescence of the subjects in the New York Longitudinal Study are reported. The findings are interpreted in terms of a model in which organism-environment interaction is considered to produce new behavioral patterns of succeeding age periods. As these new patterns interact with recurrent and new features of environment, in some instances the same temperamental factors continue influential as in the past, in other instances different aspects of temperament become ascendant, or the influential temperamental attributes may be distorted, or temperamental issues may dwindle in significance.

Early Parental Attitudes, Divorce and Separation, and Young Adult Outcome: Findings of a Longitudinal Study

Effects of early parental attitudes, divorce and separation on adult adaptation are reported in 132 young adults followed anterospectively and longitudinally from early infancy (the New York Longitudinal Study). Ratings of child adjustment at home at age 3 and 5 and at school at age 5 derived from repeated interviews. A separate parent interview at age 3 provided 8 clusters of parental attitudes and environmental features. Early adult adaptation ratings were derived from direct subject interviews. Parent conflict, especially regarding child management but including other issues, predicted poor adult adaptation, but separation-divorce without this conflict did not.

DISTORTIONS IN DEVELOPMENTAL REPORTING MADE BY PARENTS OF BEHAVIORALLY DISTURBED CHILDREN

In a previous report we have presented data on the accuracy with which parents can report significant aspects of their childs development after a lapse of time (Robbins, 1963). The same question has also been studied by a number of other investigators (Goddard, Broder, and Wenar, 1961; Haggard, Brekstad, and Skard, 1960; MacFarlane, 1938; Wenar and Coulter, 19(2). The consistent finding in these reports of significant degrees of distortion uf memory as characteristic of the parental recall of developmental facts in normal children led us to wonder whether equally great or greater distortions of memory exist in the parental reports of development of behaviorally disturbed children. The present paper reports our findings on the types of distortion in recall made by parents of children referred for psychiatric evaluation because of parental concern that significant degrees of behavioral abnormality existed in their children. This study takes place against a background of work in developmental psychology and child psychiatry that indicates an increasing recognition that the fuller understanding of the origins, development, and course of behavioral disturbances in children requires

The New York longitudinal study (NYLS) : the young adult periods

This paper focuses on the findings and analyses, both qualitative and quantitative, of the young adult periods; early adult life (EAL) or ages 18 to 24, and young adult life (YAL) or ages 25 to 30. A summary is given of the sample and methods used in the study. Complexities of the life paths of the 133 subjects are traced, and the adolescent findings are discussed. In this middle class sample, the YAL period was found qualitatively to demand greater resolution of goals, life patterns and self-sufficiency than earlier periods.

The importance of cultural evaluation in psychiatric diagnosis and treatment

SummaryExperience at a child guidance center with patients drawn from varying national and racial backgrounds shows the necessity for evaluating cultural factors for accurate diagnosis and optimum treatment. A number of case histories are reported in which there were significant cultural differences between the patient and the examiner or therapist, and where appreciable errors of diagnosis and evaluation of treatment occurred, or were under consideration, because the examiner or therapist was not sufficiently aware of these cultural differences and their manifestations.A number of psychiatric reports are also cited from World War II which noted difficulties when standard psychiatric criteria from civilian life were applied without taking into account the radically different cultural setting in the war-time army. A similar development is reported in the field of psychological testing, where leading workers have become increasingly aware of the decisive importance played by cultural factors in determining test results. The theoretical implications of these findings regarding the significance of the cultural factors in psychiatric evaluation are discussed.

A Temperament Questionnaire for Early Adult Life

The construction of a temperament questionnaire for early adult life is described, utilizing the nine categories of the New York Longitudinal Study. A correlation matrix of the nine categories, as generated from the 140 item questionnaire, and a factor analysis are reported, and the significance of the factor is discussed. The questionnaire was administered to 70 young adult subjects of the NYLS, and independent temperament ratings were also obtained by interviews with the same subject. The correlations between the interview and questionnaire ratings are reported, and their bearing on the issue of validity is discussed.

Sexual Attitudes and Behavior Patterns in a Middle-Class Adolescent Population.

Sexual activities and attitudes of a group of adolescents, who have been followed from early infancy as a part of the New York Longitudinal Study, are reported. Adolescents in the study evince a more matter-of-fact, less fearful attitude than that of previous generations, but do not seem more prone to casual sexual encounters. Sexual conflicts are seen to occur only in relation to overall psychological conflict.

Chapter 6: Affective Response Tendency

The definition and conceptualization of the psychological phenomena we term affect are still subject to much disagreement. Definitions for affect, emotion, and mood show much confusion and considerable overlap (Owens & Maxmen, 1979). In general, the terms affect and emotion are used interchangeably for responses of relatively short duration, whereas mood is viewed as disposition persisting over time (Owens & Maxmen, 1979). Definitions of affect do emphasize its multiphasic components, such as