In an attempt to demonstrate that abusing parents differ from nonabusing parents in personality variables, the Michigan Screening Profile of Parenting was administered to six groups of mothers: (a) adjudicated abusers, (b) spouses of adjudicated abusers, (c) mothers convicted of child neglect, (d) nonabusing mothers from a college student population, (e) nonabusing mothers from a middle socioeconomic level, and (f) nonabusing mothers from a lower socioeconomic level. Major differences occurred when comparison was made of one or more of the first three groups with one of the latter three groups. The groups differed significantly on six factor-analyzed cluster categories: (a) relationship to one's own parents, (b) tendency to becoming upset and angry, (c) tendency toward isolation and loneliness, (d) expectations of one's own children, (e) inability to separate parental and child feelings, and (f) fear of external threat and control. In all of the cases, the first three groups scored at levels of higher risk than did the latter three groups, whereas the abusers scored at the highest risk levels throughout. It is suggested that a therapist who helps a parent develop the ability to maintain equanimity under stress, by helping reduce deviations from the norm in characteristi cs related to abuse potential, is ultimately helping to reduce actual abusive behavior. With the growing emphasis in the literature on the fact that the causes of child abuse are multiple and interactive, many therapists who deal with parental personality and attitudinal variables are made to feel as if they are engaging in a futile effort (D'Agostino, 1975; Smith, 197S). Although many new and exciting identification and treatment programs for child abuse abound throughout the country (National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, 1975, 1976), very little encouragement has been given to the therapist who does not have easy access to the new interdisciplinary treatment programs and who, in many instances, remains the