Abuse and Parental Characteristics,Attributions of Blame,and Psychological Adjustment in Adult Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of abuse and parental characteristics on attributional content and determine the relative contribution of different attributions of blame in predicting psychological symptomatology among adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. One hundred eighty-three female undergraduates with a history of childhood sexual abuse completed self-report questionnaires. Abuse characteristics were significantly related to attributions. Family- and perpetrator-blame accounted for significant variability in psychological symptomatology, beyond the contributions of abuse characteristics, family environment, and self-blame. Implications for research and treatment are discussed.     

Women's Schooling and Other Ecocultural Shifts: A Longitudinal Study of Historical Change Among the Zinacantec Maya

Women's schooling has been lauded as having a large, important impact on child socialization. Although there may be positive effects of schooling, there may also be effects from concomitant cultural changes that come with modernization. In this article we examine the findings that changes in textile production among the Zinacantec Maya over the past several decades have been coordinated with several cultural changes, including increased schooling for women, involvement in a growing commercial economy, and television. Understanding these various changes leads to a more nuanced picture of the effects of cultural change on women's activities. Our findings indicate that research on globalization and social change should consider multiple possible effects on cultural practices.     

Readiness to change, partner violence subtypes, and treatment outcomes among men in treatment for partner assault

Men court-mandated to attend a batterer's intervention program (BIP) were evaluated to determine whether pre-BIP readiness to change and the presence of partner violence subtypes predicted BIP completion, criminal recidivism, and postadjudication partner violence 6 months post-BIP. Of the 199 subject sample, 40% did not complete BIP. Four readiness-to-change clusters were found, with most men (76%) reporting change-resistant stages-of-change profiles. The partner violence typology reported by Holtzworth-Munroe et al. (2000) was supported with clustering into four subtypes: family only (FO), low-level antisocial (LLA), borderline/dysphoric (BD), and generally violent/antisocial (GVA). BIP completion was predicted by violence subtype (with BD and GVA more likely to drop out) but not by pre-BIP readiness to change. Men rearrested scored higher on the precontemplative stage of change and were more likely to be in the BD and GVA subtypes. Implications for counseling strategies are discussed.     

Measuring trends in child well-being: an evidence-based approach

This paper first reviews the goals of the founding documents of the social indicators and quality-of-life movements of the 1960s and 1970s. It next describes the current state of knowledge with respect to the founding goals of this field. The focus then turns to the topic of measuring changes in child and youth well-being in the United States over the past few decades. In particular, the evidence-based approach used in the construction of the recently developed composite Child and Youth Well-Being Index (CWI) is described. Some findings from the CWI regarding changes in child and youth well-being in the period 1975–2004 are reported. Trends in the CWI then are compared with data on trends in subjective well-being of high school seniors – similarities of trends in these two series provide validating support for the interpretation of the CWI as an index of changes in the quality-of-life of children and youth. Using data on some additional indicator series, most of which were initiated in the 1990s, an Expanded CWI is then described. The qualitative pattern of change in the expanded CWI is shown to be similar to that of the basic CWI, except that the expanded CWI shows a more pronounced decline in the early-1990s and a slower rate of improvement into the early-2000s. The paper concludes with some possible directions for future work. Revision of a paper presented at the Measuring Child Well-Being: The Pros and Cons of Composite Indices Session, American Statistical Association Annual Meeting, Minneapolis, MN, August 7–11, 2005. We thank Kristin Moore for useful comments. The research on the Child and Youth Well-Being Index reported herein was supported by a grant from the Foundation for Child Development.     

A National Survey on Depression,Internalized Homophobia,College Religiosity,and Climate of Acceptance on College Campuses for Sexual Minority Adults

ABSTRACT

Sexual minority persons have an increased risk for negative mental health outcomes in adulthood. This seems to largely be due to experiences of stigma in social settings. This study sought to understand the relationship between attending a religiously conservative college, internalized homophobia (a measure of sexual stigma), and depressive symptoms for sexual minority adults. Sexual minority adult participants (n = 384) from across the U.S. were recruited and completed a Web-based, anonymous survey. A mediation model predicting depression through college religious conservatism, college acceptance of sexual minority identities, and internalized homophobia was tested using path analysis. Results revealed an indirect effect of increased religious conservatism of a college predicted higher depression through lower college acceptance and higher internalized homophobia. Implications for the mental health of sexual minority adults and future research are examined.     

Contents of Volume 70

Volume contents

Contents of Volume 70     

An expanded typology of conflict at work: Task,relationship and non-task organizational conflict as social stressors

This study investigated the roles of three types of conflict at work – task, relationship and non-task organizational – in predicting employee strain. These conflict types refer to disputes over issues that are, respectively, work-task specific, driven by emotionally charged interpersonal animosity or rooted in more broad organizationally relevant issues. Findings from a sample of 260 working adults from various organizations in the United States supported the notion that the three types of conflict function as social stressors and are related to a variety of psychological, behavioural and physical strains. They extend previous research based primarily on relationship conflict. Non-task organizational conflict emerged as a key predictor across strain criteria, thus highlighting the importance of including a more complete conceptualization of the conflict construct in social stress research. The results for task conflict are at variance with findings that it can be beneficial, and suggest that its negative relationship with well-being may be due to its co-occurrence with the other forms of conflict. These findings provide support for an expanded typology of conflict.     

The Role of Maternal Behavior in the Relation between Shyness and Social Reticence in Early Childhood and Social Withdrawal in Middle Childhood

The moderating effect of maternal behavior in the relations between social reticence and shyness in preschool and subsequent social withdrawal was investigated. Eighty children (47 females) were judged for degree of social reticence during play with unfamiliar peers at the age of four and mothers completed the Colorado child temperament inventory (CCTI). At the age of seven, the children were coded for degree of social withdrawal during peer play and mothers and children were observed during structured and unstructured activities. Two significant interaction effects indicated that maternal report of shyness was a positive predictor of age‐seven social withdrawal when mothers lacked positivity; whereas observed social reticence was associated with higher degrees of social withdrawal when mothers were highly negative. Maternal positivity and negativity differentially influenced the development of social withdrawal in childhood, such that maternal negativity is associated with poor social functioning in children who have an established history of social withdrawal; whereas maternal positivity is associated with better social outcome for preschoolers who are viewed as temperamentally shy.