Social information-processing patterns as predictors of social adaptation and behavior problems among maltreated children in foster care.
OBJECTIVE
The goal of this investigation was to determine if social information-processing patterns were predictive of later social adaptation and behavior problems within a group of maltreated children in foster care.


METHODS
A longitudinal design was used to address the study hypotheses. The sample consisted of 124 maltreated children ages 5 to 10 who had been placed into foster care. Twelve months following entrance into foster care, children were presented with age-relevant hypothetical vignettes to assess the quality of the way in which they process social information. Six to 8 months following this assessment, caregivers completed the Vineland Adaptive Scales and the Child Behavior Checklist.


RESULTS
Measures reflecting unbiased and competent processing were predictive of social adaptation, whereas measures reflecting biased and incompetent processing were predictive of behavior problems. In aggregate, processing measures accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in the outcome measures.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings suggest that the manner in which maltreated children process social information has a bearing on their later social adaptation and behavioral adjustment. Therefore, maltreated children in foster care may benefit from interventions that target the manner in which they process social information.
Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, CA 92120, USA.
J M
JM
Price
J
J
Landsverk
D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005581:Foster Home Care; D006801:Humans; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012938:Social Perception