Compared aid given by adult daughters to self-sufficient elderly mothers (n=43) with that given by adult daughters to elderly mothers who were dependent for aid (n=139). Results suggest caregiving is intensification of preexisting patterns of aid-giving that is evident in female intergenerational relationships. (Author/ABL)

Used data from 1988 National Survey of Families and Households to explore influences on parents' satisfaction with having coresident adult children; the nature of parent-child relations in coresident households; and impact of children's adult role status on parent-child relations and satisfaction with coresidence. Majority of parents were highly…

Infants participated in a nonsocial contingency task immediately after a social interaction with their mothers. The amount of time mothers and infants spent in a state of vocal turn-taking predicted individual differences in infants' subsequent performance on the contingency task. (PCB)

Developed Needs of Adolescent Runaways to assess needs of runaway adolescents housed in runaway shelter. Findings from 76 adolescent runaways revealed that greatest needs were concerned with living arrangements, family relationships, and communication with parents. Respondents perceived information about sex, drugs, and alcohol as least important.…

Study of 937 children, grades 3-8, showed that authoritative parenting (balancing responsiveness and control) increased child competence; low self-esteem, confidence, and achievement were associated with beginning and continuing smoking; authoritative parenting was inversely related to child smoking; and children were more likely to smoke if…

Examined extent to which global ratings of mother-child interaction assessed at 42 months and estimate of child intelligence assessed at 64 months were related to referrals for specialized help in first 3 years of school among 151 low-income children. Found significant differences between referred and nonreferred children on ratings of interaction…

Explores ways in which fairy tales, poetry, and stories can be utilized as a counseling intervention with women in healing the mother/daughter relationship. (SR)

Examined mothers' and children's reports of closeness to fathers using approach for reconciling discrepant survey responses. Findings suggest that closeness has entirely different meaning when fathers are resident than when they are nonresident. Meaning did not appear to vary when resident father was stepfather or whether focal child was son or…

Examines parricide, the killing of one's parents, and its relationship to a history of child abuse. Presents profiles of parricide, considers the secrecy of child abuse, describes the psychology of parricide, discusses psychological abuse and emotional death, and examines the "child's voice." Stresses need for effective programs to…

Examined effects of adult children's divorce on their relationships with parents, using local probability sample of 905 parents. In general, divorced daughters with child custody had more contact than married daughters and received more help from parents. Sons received more babysitting help when they were married than in other situations. Divorce…

Investigated relationship between family experiences and school adjustment in two-year longitudinal study of community sample of fourth- to sixth-grade students (n=159). Initial ratings of family organization and parent-child relationships were both related significantly to follow-up indices of school adjustment obtained two years later.…

Used data from 212 divorced fathers to investigate relationships between frequency of father-child contact, visitation quality, and child support payment. Found that fathers who saw their children frequently tended to live nearby, reported higher levels of father-child closeness before divorce, and were more likely to have joint custody. Found…

Examined patterns of father and lesbian partner involvement for two groups of children (total n=51): those born in context of previous heterosexual marriage and those born in context of lesbian relationship. Twenty-eight lesbian couples participated in structured interviews. Involvement for both fathers and partners varied by context of the…

Examined relationship between parental marital pattern (healthy, pathological, and mixed with respect to congruence between individuation and attachment) and completed adolescent suicide. Findings from 25 parental couples of completed adolescent suicides revealed that parental types showing incongruency between individuation and attachment were…

The relationship between attachment style and family dynamics was examined among undergraduate students (N=238). Three dimensions of family structure studied were cohesion, adaptability, and satisfaction. Securely attached participants reported significantly higher levels of adaptability, cohesion, and satisfaction in their family of origin than…