Family relationships and the psychosocial adjustment of school-aged children in intact families.
The authors investigated whether the quality of three family relationships (i.e., marital, parent-child, sibling) in intact families are associated with each other and with children's psychosocial adjustment. Data were collected by means of maternal and child reports (N = 88) using standardized instruments (i.e., Marital Satisfaction Scale, Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire). The findings confirm associations between the marital and the parent-child relationship, and between the parent-child and the sibling relationship, Further, both father-child relationships and sibling relationships predict children's adjustment. Father-child conflicts contribute to children's problem behavior, while father-child acceptance and sibling affection contribute significantly to children's general self-esteem. However, contrary to previous studies no support was found for the association between marital relationship and sibling relationship, or for that between marital relationship quality and children's adjustment.
Hakvoort
Esther M
EM
Department of Education, Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Nieuwe Prinsengracht 130, 1090 GE Amsterdam, The Netherlands. E.M.Hakvoort@uva.nl
Bos
Henny M W
HM
van Balen
Frank
F
Hermanns
Jo M A
JM
D000339:Affect; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D054541:Family Conflict / Q000523:psychology; D005195:Family Relations; D005219:Father-Child Relations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012649:Self Concept; D012801:Sibling Relations; D012917:Social Adjustment; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires