Keith Barton

Changes in Psychological State Measures and Time of Day

Psychological state measures were obtained on over two thousand junior high school students. Half of the students were tested relatively early in the day and the other half late in the day. Results indicated that self-reported measures of anxiety, stress, regression and depression tended to be higher for the group tested near the end of the school day than for those tested early in the day. A major methodological implication is that we should have separate norms for ‘time of day’ when we are dealing with state measures.

The School Connection Scale: a factor analysis.

An individuals feeling of connection with a social system has been viewed by diverse traditions as an important predictor of social behavior. While some of these theoretical traditions have conceptualized and assessed a feeling of connection as a global phenomenon, more recent work has focused on the development of measures for separate contexts in which connection occurs. Using a diverse sample of 1,739 adolescents, this study examined an original scale designed specifically to assess youths feeling of connection with school. Intercorrelations among scales were factor analyzed to examine the structural validity of elements developed from the literature and focus groups of students. The results yield for the School Connection Scale three subscales on which scores were reliable and valid and account for 49.5% of the variance.

Stress reduction in child-abusing families : global and specific measures

This study compared in-home treatment to traditional county services for their ability to reduce stress in child-abusing families. 47 families who were at risk for having at least one child removed from the home for child abuse were referred to Families First for an intensive 6-wk., in-home therapy program. A comparison group of 29 families who were also at risk for having at least one child removed for abuse received traditional county services but no in-home therapy. Stress scores used were derived from a factor analysis of the Family Inventory of Life Events and Changes (FILE) that had identified 10 stress factors. The stress data were analyzed by a series of 2 × 2 analyses of variance, group and time being the independent variables and the stress factors the dependent variables. Total stress was significantly reduced over time for both groups, and several specific stress factors were also significantly reduced over time. In secondary analyses, 2 × 3 (group by time) analyses identified interactions for total stress and three of the individual stress factors. In-home treatment was effective in reducing stress, but traditional services were also effective. Some possible explanations were discussed. A major finding was that, by including analyses using the specific stress factors (rather than just the Total Stress score), a much richer understanding of the role stress plays in abusive families is provided. It was concluded that, although global stress may be reduced by different methods, some specific types of stress are more likely to be reduced than others.

What does "touch" mean to young children? An empirical study.

This study examined 40 preschool childrens understanding of the word touch. 24 drawings were presented one at a time to each child, and the children were instructed to describe each of the drawings and to classify them into drawings portraying touch or drawings showing no touch. 20 undergraduates were also interviewed. The same procedure was used, but in addition the undergraduates were asked to predict how preschool-age children would do on the same task. The results showed several ways in which the childrens understanding of the word touch differed from that of an adult.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MOTHERS AND FATHERS IN TEACHING STYLE AND CHILD-REARING PRACTICES

Parent-child interaction was recorded while 32 mothers and 32 fathers taught their children to play a simple game in a naturalistic environment. Steward and Stewards (1973, 1974) Parent Interaction Code was used to quantify the parent-child behaviors and analyses showed that mothers differed from fathers on several dimensions involving teaching style. Such differences were also found for the child-rearing practices of the parents.

DICHAPTIC TASK PERFORMANCE AS A FUNCTION OF ABILITY PATTERN, SEX, AND HAND PREFERENCE

It was hypothesized that, since verbal and spatial ability seem to be lateralized (left for verbal, right for spatial), in any dichaptic task individuals with high spatial ability will do best with their left hands and those with high verbal ability best with their right hands. Conversely, scorers with high spatial ability should make more errors with their right hands and highly verbal people more errors with their left hands. Some evidence was found to support these hypotheses for males, but for females the relationships seemed more complex. Possible explanations and implications of the findings are discussed.

Longitudinal Study of Achievement Related to Anxiety and Extraversion

The High School Personality Questionnaire was administered to over 300 sixth and seventh grade children and 3 mo. later these same children completed standardized achievement tests in social studies, science, mathematics, and reading. Treating the achievement scores as dependent variables and various personality scales as independent variables, analyses of variance were performed for each achievement area. Results indicated several significant main effects and interactions but perhaps most important was the finding that extreme scores on either end of the extraversion or anxiety dimensions were related to high achievement. Possible implications for teachers, counselors, or researchers are discussed.

PREDICTION OF MARITAL ROLES FROM NORMAL AND PATHOLOGICAL DIMENSIONS OF PERSONALITY: 16 PF AND MMPI

By means of stepwise multiple regression, 12 factors of the Marriage Role Questionnaire were regressed on factors of the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire and 25 scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. The regressions were run with the predictor instruments separately and combined. Individually, the MMPI proved superior to the 16 PF in predicting to the factors of the Marriage Role Questionnaire. However, in six cases out of the 12 predictability improved substantially when both instruments were utilized together. Some of the substantive results of this investigation match findings from previous research.