Abstract
The present study examines and compares associations between perceptions of parental acceptance/rejection in 191 Greek school age children (84 inclusion class students and 107 typical class students, age range 10–12), and their “Person Picking an Apple from a Tree” (PPAT) drawings. Perception of parental behavior was measured by the “Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire” (Rohner and Khaleque, 2005). Drawing content was analyzed quantitatively according to a reliable rating system called the Symbolic Content in PPAT drawings (SC-PPAT: Bat Or et al., 2014, 2017). We employed k-means cluster analysis and obtained three relatively discrete PPAT scripts. Drawing content elements and scripts were found to be associated with children’s perceptions of parental behavior; these associations were found mainly among children with special educational needs (SEN) and boys. Results are discussed in terms of children’s subjective experience, clinical implications, and future research directions.
Highlights
Children’s Perceptions of Parental Acceptance-RejectionResearch based on a range of different theories has shown consistent and reliable empirical associations between the quality of parental caregiving and child development and psychosocial functioning (Collins et al, 2002), including social competence (e.g., Attili et al, 2010), school performance (e.g., Véronneau and Dishion, 2010), and well-being
Parental acceptance is demonstrated through love, affection, care, comfort, support, or nurturance of children, while parental rejection is indicated by the absence or withdrawal of parental warmth, love, or affection
We examined children’s perceptions of parental acceptance-rejection by means of a neutral structural drawing, “Person Picking an Apple from a Tree” (PPAT, Gantt, 1990, Unpublished), which incorporates the theme of a person in the act of reaching a goal within a relational context of three objects
Summary
Research based on a range of different theories has shown consistent and reliable empirical associations between the quality of parental caregiving and child development and psychosocial functioning (Collins et al, 2002), including social competence (e.g., Attili et al, 2010), school performance (e.g., Véronneau and Dishion, 2010), and well-being (e.g., van der Kaap-Deeder et al, 2017). One of the cornerstones of the parent-child relationship is parental warmth and control (for an overview see Maccoby, 2015). The IPARTheory (Rohner, 2016) is an evidence-based theory of socialization and development that focuses mostly on the effects of perceived parental acceptance-rejection in childhood (Rohner, 1986, 2015). Numerous studies using diverse research methods have found that children’s perceptions of their family relationships are related to child adjustment (e.g., Grolnick et al, 1991; Cummings and Davies, 1994; Dunn et al, 2002; Ratelle et al, 2004)
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