Levels Of Maladjustment Research Articles

Mother vs. Father Custody Effects for Taiwanese Preschoolers

This study examined the effects of divorce and custody arrangements on preschool children's emotional adjustment and gender role development two years post divorce. The sample consisted of 90 children: 30 in father custody matched with 30 in mother custody and 30 in two‐parent families. Teachers, blind to study purposes and well acquainted with the children, rated the children on the Preschool Behavior Questionnaire [PBQ] which rates degree of maladjustment. Each child had an individual Gender Constancy Interview [GCI] and each parent provided demographic and family information. No differences in level of maladjustment were found for children of divorced vs. two parent families. Regardless of family status, boys were rated as significantly more aggressive than girls. Regardless of custody arrangement, boys in divorced families were rated higher than girls as hostile‐aggressive and hyperactive‐distractible. Children with same sex custodial parent were rated as better adjusted emotionally than children in custody with the opposite sex parent. Older preschool boys in mother custody had more advanced gender role development than children in other custody arrangements. Father custody families in Taiwan received more income and more grandparent childrearing support than single mothers. Single mothers expressed more childrearing worry than single fathers.

Effects of neuroticism and avoidant coping style on maladjustment during early adolescence

This study examined the association of neuroticism, avoidant coping style and maladjustment. Initially two hundred and sixteen 12 and 13 year old adolescents completed questionnaires covering neuroticism, avoidant coping and maladjustment. Their maladjustment levels were also rated by their parents. Results for a sub-sample ( N=101), who indicated some degree of maladjustment, showed that neuroticism predicted avoidant coping and parent-rated maladjustment positively. Avoidant coping showed a positive non-significant trend in the prediction of parent-rated maladjustment, and it also moderated, by exacerbating, the effect of neuroticism on maladjustment. Results did not indicate mediation by avoidant coping on the relation between neuroticism and parent-rated maladjustment. These findings are discussed in terms of direct, moderational, mediational and differential choice-effectiveness models for the relation between neuroticism, avoidant coping style and maladjustment during early adolescence.

Computer-administered testing with the Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank

Despite studies finding relatively small differences between computer and traditional methods of administering objective personality and cognitive measures, no similar format equivalence research has been done for projective personality measures. The present study compares two groups of college students' responses to either a traditional administration or a computer administration of the Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank (ISB). No differences were found for subject characteristics of age or gender. The groups receiving different forms of administration differed on the ISB maladjustment score, a global index of psychological difficulties, with the computer administration group exhibiting fewer test signs of maladjustment than the traditional administration group. However, differences between the two forms were small and nonsignificant after adjusting for attitudes towards computers. The findings suggested that computer ISB administration was likely to yield a similar level of disclosure as the traditional ISB administration when nonclinical levels of maladjustment are present. Suggestions are made for further research, including the use of contrasting samples and additional projective instruments.

Behavioural Responses of Children to Stress: A Polish-American Cross-cultural Study

The behaviour a child adopts in response to stress may be viewed on a continuum ranging from adaptive, effective coping behaviours to extreme maladaptive efforts to meet stressful demands. In order to assess children's behavioural responses to stress, a behaviour rating scale was developed-the Stress Response Scale (SRS). The purpose of this study was to gather SRS data on a population of Polish children, so that we might examine differences between them and their US counterparts, in terms of their overall rated adjustment, and the typical behavioural responses to stress they might manifest. The results showed that, in general, Polish children tend to be rated by their teachers as somewhat higher than their US counterparts, in terms of the overall magnitude of their behavioural maladjustment. This is especially true for children aged 7 to 12 years. However, although the overall level of maladjustment was higher among the Polish children, the samples were similar in terms of the specific stress response patterns with relatively similar distributions of Acting-out, Passive-Aggressive, Overactive, Repressed, and Dependent patterns being found in both samples.

Communality and specificity of dysfunctional cognitions, and the prediction of four different forms of psychological maladjustment

The present research provided a simultaneous, broad-based examination of how different types of dysfunctional cognitions may relate to several domains of psychological maladjustment, namely, depression, anxiety, Type A, and bulimia. Consistent evidence was obtained across two studies for the communality of certain types of dysfunctional cognitions. In particular, excessive concerns regarding performance evaluation were found to characterize several of these maladjustment domains. Strong empirical support was also obtained in both studies for the specificity of other types of dysfunctional cognitions. Exclusive to the depression domain, for example, were dysfunctional cognitions pertaining to failure and loss. Anxiety was marked by a specific focus on interpersonal evaluative concerns, whereas higher levels of Type A were specifically associated with self-oriented perfectionism. Finally, bulimia was characterized by content-specificity in terms of dysfunctional cognitions concerning weight-control and appearance. Additional evidence for the important role of content-specific dysfunctional cognitions was obtained in a series of longitudinal analyses reported in study 2. Using very stringent predictive criteria, it was found that the hypothesized content-specific dysfunctional cognitions for three of the four domains (i.e. depression, anxiety, and Type A) were significant predictors of future maladjustment in these domains, even after taking into account initial levels of maladjustment. These results were then discussed in terms of the links between various types of dysfunctional cognitions and the manifestation of both common and specific features of depression, anxiety, Type A, and bulimia.

Adjustment and coping in adults with sickle cell disease: An assessment of research evidence

This paper considers the findings from psychological studies of adults with sickle cell disease (SCD), an inherited haematological disorder which causes recurrent episodes of acute pain. Studies are reviewed that deal with aspects of the condition's clinical presentation in adulthood, the risk of maladjustment and psychopathology among affected groups, the role played by cognitive factors in mediating psychological distress and facilitating more effective coping, and the implications of the condition for family life and employment. Adults with SCD experience high levels of maladjustment by comparison with other illness groups, and differences in adjustment are predicted better by measures of social support and life stress than by illness variables. The use of coping strategies plays an important role in pain management and the mediation of psychosocial adjustment, with passive and negative responses to painful episodes associated with less favourable outcomes. Existing findings in this rapidly expanding area of research have implications for the management of SCD and the organization of support services, and point to a need for interventions to enhance patients' coping skills. Future research could evaluate specific cognitive and behavioural interventions to promote more effective coping, and look at the effects of SCD on reproductive behaviour, family life, performance in the workplace, and development and adjustment over the life‐span.

Psychosocial adjustment among women with breast cancer stages I and II: six-year follow-up of consecutive patients.

To evaluate, in a long-term follow-up study of consecutive patients (N = 99), the impact of surgery--breast-conserving treatment (BCT) versus mastectomy (MT)--on psychosocial adjustment among women with breast cancer, pTNM stage I/II. Semistructured interviews were conducted at a median of 6 years (range, 5.8 to 8.1) after primary surgery. Sixty-six women were available for the long-term follow-up study. Twenty-six women had been treated with BCT and 40 with MT. No statistically significant differences were found between the two groups concerning psychosocial adjustment, as measured by the Social adjustment Scale (SAS). In general, the levels of maladjustment were lower than at 13 months postoperatively, but 10% still showed maladjustment. Sixty percent of the women were unwilling to show themselves naked, and 22% felt that they had become less attractive because of the surgical treatment. In an explorative part of the interview, 68% of the women complained about how they had been informed of the diagnosis. A tendency toward a significant difference was found in the relation between previous maladjustment and a negative experience at the time of diagnosis (P = .07). Few data are available on long-term follow-up results with regard to psychosocial adjustment among women after breast cancer surgery. This study provides the important information that there are no differences in patient psychosocial adjustment that can be ascribed to the type of surgery at 6-year follow-up evaluation.

Psychological Adjustment of Adoptees: A Meta-Analysis

Conducted a meta-analysis of 66 published studies that compared the psychological adjustment of adoptees and nonadoptees. The mean within-study effect size was .72, indicating that adoptees had significantly higher levels of maladjustment. This was largely due to studies that found that adoptees are significantly overrepresented in clinic populations (mean effect size = 1.38). In addition, adoptees were found to have higher levels of externalizing disorders and academic problems than nonadoptees. Effect sizes tended to be larger for adolescents than for children and adults. These results are consistent with the conclusions of previous qualitative reviews of the research on the psychological adjustment of adoptees. The relationship of effect size to both methodological and subject variables is discussed, and suggestions for future research are provided.

SCREENING FOR BEHAVIORAL AND EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS WITH CONGENITAL OR ACQUIRED LIMB DEFICIENCIES

• Children with chronic physical handicaps have been found to be at risk for psychological and social adjustment problems. Accurately identifying in a timely manner those physically handicapped children who are functioning at clinically significant levels of maladjustment may aid in preventing further psychosocial morbidity. The parents of 111 children and adolescents with congenital/acquired limb deficiencies completed the Child Behavior Checklist as a screening instrument to facilitate the identification of behavioral and emotional problems and social incompetence. Based on normalized T scores, the children manifested significantly greater behavioral and emotional problems and lower social competence than the normative community sample. Twenty-three percent of the children were reported to function in the clinically significant maladjustment range for behavioral and emotional problems; 14% were reported in the social maladjustment range. Correlations between parent report and child, adolescent, and teacher reports of adjustment ranged from r values of .23 to .41. The findings are discussed in terms of the new hidden morbidity in pediatric practice. ( AJDC . 1992;146:103-107)

Screening for behavioral and emotional problems in children and adolescents with congenital or acquired limb deficiencies.

Children with chronic physical handicaps have been found to be at risk for psychological and social adjustment problems. Accurately identifying in a timely manner those physically handicapped children who are functioning at clinically significant levels of maladjustment may aid in preventing further psychosocial morbidity. The parents of 111 children and adolescents with congenital/acquired limb deficiencies completed the Child Behavior Checklist as a screening instrument to facilitate the identification of behavioral and emotional problems and social incompetence. Based on normalized T scores, the children manifested significantly greater behavioral and emotional problems and lower social competence than the normative community sample. Twenty-three percent of the children were reported to function in the clinically significant maladjustment range for behavioral and emotional problems; 14% were reported in the social maladjustment range. Correlations between parent report and child, adolescent, and teacher reports of adjustment ranged from r values of .23 to .41. The findings are discussed in terms of the "new hidden morbidity" in pediatric practice.

The social and emotional adjustment of hearing‐impaired children integrated in primary schools

Summary The Bristol Social Adjustment Guide and the Rutter Children's Behaviour Questionnaire were administered to 23 hearing‐impaired children, with a mean loss of 66.7 dB and aged between 4.3 and 10.9 years, integrated into ordinary schools, and 23 hearing controls. They comprised the entire norvadditionally handicapped, hearing‐impaired primary‐age population of Stockport. High levels of maladjustment were found among the hearing‐impaired (43.5 per cent) on the Bristol and also among the hearing controls (30.4 per cent). No child was found to be maladjusted on the Rutter. The difference in the two tests’ scores suggests that they measure different behaviours, and that the problems are broadly ‘social’ rather than ‘emotional’. There were no significant differences in adjustment between the two groups.

MMPI Characteristics of Drug Abusers With and Without Histories of Suicide Attempts

Compared to drug addicts without histories of suicidal attempt (n = 50), drug addicts who have attempted suicide (n = 50) were characterized by higher levels of maladjustment--particularly in the areas of depression, feelings of alienation, and use of projection and externalization--and were more emotionally withdrawn. Certain Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) codetypes appeared in the attempt group that were not present in the no history group. Drug addicts with suicidal ideation but no history of attempt (n = 13) were not significantly different from the other two groups, and their inclusion as a comparison group masked the real differences between the other two groups. The MMPI results suggest it may be possible to identify a suicide attempt group in substance abusers but not when contrasted with a suicidal ideation group. Treatment implications are considered.

Clinical meaning of the Keane PTSD Scale.

A correlational study that included 82 male inpatient alcoholics was conducted to determine the clinical meaning of the Keane PTSD Scale of the MMPI. The PTSD Scale was correlated with the variables of the Shipley Institute of Living Scale, the Life Purpose Questionnaire, the Existential Depression Test, and the standard MMPI measures, plus the A, R, Es and MacAndrew Scales. The pattern of correlations suggested that the PTSD scale measures general psychological maladjustment and dysphoric feelings rather than any specifiable syndrome. The strong correlation with the Welch A, which measures a general level of maladjustment, suggests that the PTSD and Welch A scales are measuring the same factor. The PTSD scale, therefore, appears to provide very little information about this population beyond that available from the overall clinical profile and the Welch A scale.

Hydroxyzine hydrochloride and methylphenidate hydrochloride in the management of enuresis

This research focuses on the use of two new psychopharmacologic agents of widely separated structure and activity as part of a psychologically oriented program management of enuresis. After evaluation, 150 enuretic children, aged 5 to 14 years, were placed in three groups, one receiving hydroxyzine hydrochloride (a tranquilizer); another, methylphenidate hydrochloride (a stimulant); and the third, a placebo. All children received supportive and suggestive management over a 3 month period. There was a statistically significant difference in improvement between those children receiving active medication and those receiving a placebo. The total treatment plan effected cure or great improvement in 36 per cent of the children. An “abormal” history as defined in the text significantly impeded therapeutic response. The children over 10 years of age responded particularly poorly to this therapy. Improvement was not related to the child's sex, level of maladjustment and anxiety, or family history of enuresis.