title: Physically Abused Children's Adjustment at the Transition to School: Child, Parent, and Family Factors.
abstract: Childhood physical abuse predicts emotional/behavioral, self-regulatory, and social problems. Yet factors from multiple ecological levels contribute to children's adjustment. The purpose of this study was to examine the degree to which the social-emotional adjustment of physically abused children in first grade would be predicted by a set of child-, parent-, and family-level predictors in kindergarten. Drawing on a short-term longitudinal study of 92 physically abused children and their primary caregivers, the current study used linear regression to examine early childhood child (i.e., gender, IQ, child perceptions of maternal acceptance), parent (i.e., parental mental health), and family relationship (i.e., sensitive parenting, hostile parenting, family conflict) factors as predictors of first grade internalizing and externalizing symptomatology, emotion dysregulation, and negative peer interactions. We used a multi-method, multi-informant approach to measuring predictors and children's adjustment. Internalizing symptomatology was significantly predicted by child IQ, parental mental health, and family conflict. Externalizing symptomatology and emotion dysregulation were predicted by child IQ. Although a large proportion of variance in measures of adjustment was accounted for by the set of predictors, few individual variables were unique predictors of child adjustment. Variability in the predictors of adjustment for physically abused children underscores the need for individualized treatment approaches.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, Duke University School of Medicine; Center for Child & Family Health, 411 West Chapel Hill Street, Suite 908, Durham, NC 27701.
authors.forename: Karen Appleyard
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Carmody
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC.
authors.forename: Mary E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Haskett
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC.
authors.forename: Jessisca
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Loehman
authors.affiliation: School of Social Work, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC.
authors.forename: Roderick A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Rose
keywords: Physical abuse; children; emotion dysregulation; externalizing symptoms; internalizing symptoms