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PRE-ADOLESCENTS' PERCEPTION OF
PARENTAL AUTHORITY IN THE LOWER
CLASS NEGRO FAMILY

MacMahon, B. Ellen (THESIS)

 

 

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PRE-ADOLEQCE“T§ PERCEPTION
OP PARENTAL AUTHORITY

IN THE LOWER-CLASS NEGRO FAMILY

By

B. Ellen Mao Mahon

«adv ’

A PROBLEM

Submitted to
Michizan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of

MAS'I'EH OF ARTS

Department of Home Management and Child Development

1967

171585:

CG

K.

'1;

I‘ll")

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My sincere appreciation to Dr. Eugene O.
Peisner for his interest, encouragement, and assistance
throughout the course of my studies. I should also like to
thank Dr. Marearet Jacobson, Mrs. Diane Levande, and Dr.
Jay w. Artis for their helpful criticism and advice as
members of my guidance committee, and Dr. Frances Magrabi,
consultant to the committee. A special word of thanks to

Dr. Robert L. Green for his assistance.

11

Chapter

I. THE PROBLEIVI

Importance of Study

Statement of Problem . . . . . .
Purpose 0 o o o o o o o o o o o
Hypotheses . . . . . . . . . . .
Assumptions . . . . . . . . .
Operational Definitions. . . .
Dummary o o o o o o o o o o o 0

TABLE OF CONTENTS

II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE . . . . . . .

Child's Perception of Parents .
Summary

III.

Sample
Instrumentation and Procedure

METHODOLOGY .

Analysis .

Limitations of the Study . . .

Summary

IV. ANALYSIS

TABLE

TABLE II .
TABLE III

TABLE IV .
TABLE V .
Discussion
Summary .

V. COHCLUS

Conclusions
Implications

BIBLIOGRAPHY . .

OTIS AND

OF DATA

I

IMPLICATIONS . . .

for Future Research

111

O O I O O O O

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Questionnaire Administered to Negro
'DI‘( II C O l O O O O O O O O I O O

Questionnaire Administered to white

iv

Students

Students

CHAPTER I
THE PROBLEM

A growing emphasis in research involving
parent-child relationships is concerned with the child's
perception of his parents as a basic source of data both in
analyzing familial characteristics and indicating
personality and behavioral aspects of the child. Some
recent study has been focused on the child's perception of
the relative power of each parent and its relationship to
the child.

One significant studyl dealt with religion,
social class, age and sex as variables in the child's
perception of family authority. A second research project2
was concerned with responses of pro-adolescent boys in five
social classes as they revealed parental competence,
security, acceptance and support. One variation suggested

in this study was that parent-daughter relations are not

 

1Robert D. Hess and Judith V. Torney, "Religion,
Age and Sex in Children's Perception of Family Authority,"
Child Development. 33 (1962), pp. 781-789.

2Bernard C. Rosen, ”Social Class and the Child's
Perception of the Parent,” Child DeveIOpment, 35 (196k),
pp. 11147-11530

identical to those between parent-son. A third study3
seeking information on perception of the parents with
respect to nurturance, punitiveness, source of fear and
competence identified sex differences in responses in that
girls seemed to perceive the father with more ambivalence
than the boys.

Although social class distinctions in the child's
perceptions of parents in relation to various aspects of
parent-child interaction have been studied, little attention
has been focused on the Negro family or the Negro child's
perceptions of the parent-child relationship. Most studies
of the Negro family have concentrated on the matriarchal—
patriarchal family structure - its variations according
to socioeconomic status and its effect on the child’s
personality and behavior. However, Hylan Lewis“ has
conducted a study of forty-one parental figures in thirty-
nine low-income households to determine power and support
provided children as perceived by the parents, but no
contrast in viewpoint on the part of the child was
indicated.

In 1957. Hill stated that "it is apparent

that research on the Negro family has been limited in

 

3Jerome Kagan and Judith Lemkin, "The Child's
Differential Perception of Parental Attitudes," Journal of

Abnormal and Social Psychology, 61 (November, 1960),
pp.'hh0-hh7.

“Hylan Lewis, Culture,_Class and the Behavior of
Low-Income Families, Unpublished paper, p. 182.

3

scope."5 And as recently as 1966, Bernard admits that
”there are serious gaps in our knowledge of marriage and
family among Negroes".6 In view of gradual sociological
advances in racial relations in the United States and
recognition of the deficits in the lower-class Negro family
and their effect on the child, research identifying
familial patterns and modes of interaction between parent

and child is most urgently needed.
PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to compare
responses of pre-adolescent male and female children in the
loweroclass Negro family in the perception of their parents
as providing power and support which are manifestations of
parental authority. The specific objectives were: 1) to
measure lower-class Negro boys' and girls' perception of
their parents as providing power and support, manifesta-
tions of parental authority, and (2) to appraise the
findings from the preceeding objective and to determine if

variations occur between the sexes in their perceptions.

 

5mozell C. Hill, "Research on the Negro Family,"
Marriage and FamilygLiying, 19 (February, 1957), p. 30.

6Jessie Bernard, ’Marriage and Family Among
Negroes (Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,
Inca, 1966), p. 110

1.

2.

1.

HYPOTHESES

In this study it was hypothesized that:
Both male and female pro-adolescent children in the
lower-class Negro family will perceive the mother as
the chief source of support. ‘T
Male pro-adolescent children in the lower-class Negro
family will perceive the father as the chief source of
power.
Female pre-adolescent children in the lower-class Negro
family will perceive the mother as the chief source of

power.
ASSUMPTIONS

It was assumed that:
Children are capable of perceiving parental behavior
and the parent-child relationship.
Children's perception of their parents as providing
power and support, which are manifestations of parental
authority, is measurable with the use of questions
develOped and utilized by Kagan.7
The questions deve10ped and utilized by Kagan in a
study of the child's perception of the parents are
reliable and valid for use with the lower-class Negro

pre-adolescent.

 

7Jerome Kagan, "The Child's Perception of the

Parent," Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology. 53
(September, 19567, pp. 257-258.

OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS

Terms used in this study were defined as follows:

1. MALE-FEMALE FEE-ADOLESCENTS: For the purpose of this
study all the boys and girls were ten_years of age or
in the pro-pubescent growth period. Pre-pubescence or
middle childhood generally terminates with an average

age of ten years.8

2. LOWER-CLASS NEGRO FAMILIES: A modified version of the
Hollingshead Index of Social Position,9 which uses the
occupation, education, and residential address of the
main wage earner as the principle criteria of status,
was utilized in identifying Negro families in Class IV
the lower or working class consisting primarily of
skilled and semi-skilled workers. Social class was
determined through the child's responses to questions
concerning parental occupation and the neighborhood in
which the child's school was located. Education of the
main wage earner was not considered as a measurement of
social position.

3. PERCEPTION: Awareness of external objects, conditions,

 

8Mollie 8. Smart and Russell C. Smart, Children:
Develogment and Relationships (New York: The Macmillan
Company. 195?). p- 305.

9August 8. Hollingshead and Frederick C. Redlich,

Social Class and Mental Illness: Communit Stud , (New
York: John Niley and Sons, Inc., 1958

       

relationships as a result of sensory stimulation.10

h. PARENT: Any adult male and female living in the home
at that time who was perceived by the child in the role
of the parent.
5. PARENTAL AUTHORITY:11
a. PONER: Actions which control, initiate, change or
modify the behavior of another member of the
family.

b. SUPPORT: Actions which establish, maintain, or
restore, as an end in itself, a positive affective

relationship with another family member.
SUMMARY

The purpose of the study was to compare the
responses of pro-adolescent male and female children in the
lower-class Negro family in the perception of their parents
as providing power and support.

It was hypothesized that both male and female
pre-adolescents would perceive mother as the source of
support. /It was further hypothesized that male pre-adol-
ascents would perceive fathers to be the chief source of
power:(whereas girls would perceive mother to be the major

source of power.

 

1°Carter v. Good, Dictionary of Education (2nd
ed. rev.: New York: NcGraw Hill Book Company, Inc., 1959),
p. 3890

11Murray A. Straus, "Power and Support Structure
of the Family in Relation to Socialization," Journal of
figrriaae and the Family. 26 (August, 196A), pp. 318-325.

The next chapter involves a review of research
dealing with the child's perception of his parents, the
variables which affect his perception, and the reasons for
studying family patterns and the parent-child relationship

from the child's frame of reference.

CHAPTER II
REVIEJ 0? LITERATURE

The exercise of authority and the bestowal of
love are two fundamental sepects of the parent-child
relationship which are basic in the family's responsibility
for the socialization of the child. The manifestations of
parental authority and love (in this study, power and
support) vary with sex of the parent, sex of the child,
age of the child, social class, and religious affiliation.
Parental position in the class structure is one distinguish-
ing factor in identifying the allocation of power and
support within a family.

Haas12 has observed that the parent—child
relationship in the lower-class family is psychologically
closed, hierarchal, and quite rigid and that children quite
frequently fear their parents intensely. Parents in lower-

class families have an authoritarian rather than democratic

 

12Henry S. Haas, "Some Social Class Differences
in the Family System and Group Relations of Pre- and
Early Adolescents,” hild Development, 22 (1951),
pp. 1“,]-1’4‘80

9

attitude toward child rearing.13 Kohnlu proposes that
class differences in the parent-child relationship are a
product of differences in parental values. Lower-class
parents' values center around extrafamilial statuses and
rewards.15

The probability of the wife's employment and the
father‘s feelings of familial and social inadequacy further
Operate to reduce the father's involvement in the family and
his exercise of authority.16 As a result, maternal dominance
is more common in lower-class families.17 Social class
membership is associated not only with differences in
childrearing practices, but also with differential behavior
toward sons and daughters.18 Particularly with respect to

daughters, fathers assume little responsibility in

 

13Catherine S. Chilman, "Child-Rearing and Family
Life Patterns of the Very Poor: Implications for Home
Leonomists," workinz with Low-Income Families (Washington,
D. 0.: American dome Economics Association, 1965), p. 50.

1”Melvin L. Kohn, "Social Class and Parent-Child
Relationships: An Interpretation," American Journal of
Sociology, 68 (January, 1963), pp. h71-h80.

15Donald Gilbert McKinley, Social Class and
Family Life, (New York: The Free Press of Glencoe, 196a),
p. 102.

 

lélbid.

17Charles E. Bowerman and Glen 5. Elder, Jr.,
"Variations in Adolescent Perception of Family Power
Structure," American Sociological Review, 29 (196k), p. 55%

18Jerome Kagan and Marion Freeman, "Relation of
Childhood Intelligence, Maternal Behaviors, and Social
Class to Behavior During Adolescence," Child DevelOpment,

3“ (1963): P0 905-

10

administering punishment.19 Bronfenbrenner20 warns of the
danger of overprotection of girls in the lower-class
family, with more punishment, but less adequate discipline
accorded to boys.

Until recently it was assumed that knowledge
concerning intrafamilial role relationships must necessarily
be obtained only from the parents. Because of his lack of
cultural biases, a child's perception is oftentimes less
affected by societal patterns and expectations. Perception
of family power structure naturally is not the same as the
actual power structure of the family; but the child's view
of parental distribution of authroity and love is usually
considered an unpretentious appraisal of parental power
distribution. Information based on the child's perception
of his parents may be used to clarify problems associated
with proper sex-role identification and subsequent
personality development: or it may be used to test Parsons'
dichotomy of parental roles (instrumental and expressive)21

which identifies family power structure.

 

19Melvin L. Kohn and Eleanor P. Carroll, "Social
Class and the Allocation of Parental Responsibilities,"
Sociometry, 23 (1960), pp. 372-392.

20Urie Bronfenbrenner, "The Changing American
Child - A Speculative Analysis," Merrill-Palmer Quarterly,
7 (April. 1961). pp. 73-8“-

 

21Talcott Parsons and Robert F. Bales, family,
Socialization and Interaction Process (New York: Free
Press of Glencoe, Inc., 1955), pp. 317-318.

11

In research dealing with the child's perception
of parental roles, Hartley22 found that pre-adolescents in
two socioeconomic classes consider homemaking duties to be
the woman's role and the moneyegetting role still
primarily the man's, even though the mother may work
outside the home and the father occasionally assists with
indoor tasks. Differences between the responses of boys
and girls, particularly with respect to the father's role,

2h and Piwowar.25

have been indicated by Finch,23 James,
Piwowar, in testing Negro pre-schoolers, found
that both boys and girls responded to mother's role
positively, but that boys had a larger percentage of
negative responses to the father's role than did the girls.

26

Heider suggests that a powerful person is perceived as

positive if he is seen to be benevolent and as negative if

 

22Ruth E. Hartley, "Children's Concepts of male
and Female Boles," Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 6 (1959),
pp. 83‘910

23Helen M. Finch, "Young Children's Concepts of
Parent Roles,” Journal of Home Economics, 47 (February,

1955), pp. 99'103.

2hJeannie H. James, "The Young Child's Perception
of the Father Role as Related to the Father's Perception of
his Own Hole.” Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation,
Pennsylvania State University, 1965.

25Elaine h. Piwowar, "Preschoolers' Responses to
Questions Concerning Parental Roles While Enrolled in a
1965 Headstart PrOgram of a Settlement House," Child Study
Center Bulletin (Buffalo: State University College, 1966),
2, pp. 110‘1150

26Fritz Raider, The Psychology of Interpersonal
helations, (New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1958).

12

he is seen to be malevolent. hmmerich27 feels that the
assessment of children's perceptions of role concepts is
prerequisite to the analysis of identification patterns
acquired through a process of role modeling. In one of his
studies dealing with the six-to-ten-year~old child's
concept of paternal roles, it was found that girls perceive
the mother more positively than the father whereas boys
perceive the father more positively than the mother.
It has been suggested by Breznitz and Kugelmass28
that adolescent girls encounter more difficulty in the
development of sex-role differentiation, because they view
the same-sex parent as more expressive; whereas boys
perceive the opposite-sex parent to be more expressive.
Grinder and Spector29 further corroborated this pattern
when they found that adolescent boys and girls attribute
more resource control to the same-sex parent.

In other words, girls view their mothers as both
the source of power and the source of support, whereas boys
view mothers as supportive and fathers as more powerful.

This may, however, be due to differences in the age of the

 

27Ualter Emmerich, "Family Role Concepts of
Children Ages Six to Ten,“ Child Development, 32 (1961).
pp. 609-62“.

28Shlomo Breznitz and Sol Kugelmass, "The Per-
ception of Parents by Adolescents," Human Relations, 18
(1965). pp- 103-113-

29Robert E. Grinder and Judith C. Specter, "Sex
Differences in Adolescents' Perception of Parental Resource

Control,“ Journal of Genetic Psychology, 106 (1965),
pp- 337-3“ -

13

child. For instance, Kagan, Hosken and Watson30 found that
girls from six to eight years of age view the father as
more hostile and punitive than do boys of the same age.
However, in an earlier study of pre-schoolers, Emmerich31
found that girls assign the more powerful role to the
mother. Emmerich32 later found age changes in children's
role perception. Kagan and Lemkin33 suggested that the
girl's ambivalence in her perception of the father may
exist because the girl sees the father as a more distant
figure (because of lack of identification with him) and as
a potential love object and source of affection.

Three commonly held views of parent role differen-
tiation in our society are that mothers are generally more
supportive and nurturant toward their children than are
fathers; that parents exert more power toward their child
of the same sex: and that parental nurturance-restriction
varies with the age of the child, especially with respect

to the son. In a studth which investigated variations in

 

30Jerome Kagan, Barbara Hosken and Sara watson,
"Child's Symbolic Conceptualization of Parents," Child
De elo ment, 32 (1961). DP. 625-636.

31Halter Emmerich, “Young Children's Discrimina-
tion of Parent and Child holes," Child DeveIOpment, 30
(1959). PP- “03-919.

32Emmerich, ”Family Role Concepts of Children
Ages Six to Ten.“

33Kagan and Lemkin, on. cit., p. “#5.
31‘Walter Emmerich, "Variations in the Parental

Roles as a Function of the Parent's Sex and the Child's Sex
and Age." herrill-Palmer Quarterly, 8 (1962), pp. 3-11.

1n

the parent roles associated with the parent's sex, child's
sex, and child's age, these three expectations were
supported.

A number of studies further confirm the theory
that parents exert more power toward their same-sex child.
In one of the earliest studies dealing with the child's
perception of parents, Gardner35 found that there was a
tendency for the parents to punish the child of the same
sex. Bowerman and Elder36 state that boys tend to report
father rather than mother as the principal authority
figure, and the reverse is true for girls. Hoffman37
reported that boys attributed more discipline, positive
affect, and instruction to fathers than girls did. Urie
Bronfenbrenner38 submits that each parent tends to be more
active, unyielding, and demanding with a child of the same
sex, and more lenient and indulgent toward a child of the
Opposite sex. The punitive parent, therefore, is more

likely to be seen as more powerful.

 

35L. Pearl Gardner, "An Analysis of Children's
Attitudes Toward Fathers," Journal of Genetic Psychology,
70 (1997). p- 17.

36Bowerman and Elder, op. cit., p. 559.

37Lois sladis Hoffman, ”The Father's Role in the
Family and the Child's Peer-Group Adjustment," herrill-
Palmer Quarterly, 7 (1961), pp. 97-105.

38Urie Bronfenbrenner, "Some Familial Antecedents
of Responsibility and leadership in Adolescents." 89- L9151
Petrullo and Bernard M. Sass, Leadership in Interpersonal
Behavior (New York: Holt, Rinehart and winston, 1961).
pp. 239’2710

15

Droppleman and Schaefer,39 in a study of the
differences between boys' and girls' perception of the two
parents, revealed that both parents are seen as more
nurturant and as less rejecting and controlling by girls
than by boys. Bronson, Katten, and LivsonL”O unearthed a
difference between boys' and girls' perceptions in that
there was a slight tendency for more sons than daughters to
perceive their fathers in a strong authority role.

Research conducted by Hess and Torney’"1 dealing
with the child's perception of parents included such
variables as age of child, sex of child, social class, and
religious affiliation. Differences in the child's perception
relating to these variables were supported with the exception
of social class, although there was a tendency for girls
from working-class families to see mother as boss more
frequently than did girls from middle-class families. with
regard to family authority and religious affiliation, the
difference between religious groups was as marked as the
effect of either sex or age in that the tendency for
Catholic children to perceive one parent as dominant rather

than both parents as equal in power was true for both boys

 

39Leo F. Droppleman and Earl S. Schaefer, ”soys'
and Girls' Reports of Faternal and Paternal Behavior,"
Journal of Abnormal and Social Payphology, 67 (1963),
pp 0 648-6 SL“ 0

“Owanda C. Bronson, et a1., ”Patterns of Authority
and Affection in Two Generations," Journal of Abnormal and
Social Psychology, 58 (1959), p. 1&8.

uldess, and Torney, on. cit.

16

and girls.

The child's perception of his parents has
significance for identifying intrafamilial role patterns
and for clarifying problems associated with proper sex-role
identification. In addition, studies of parent-child
interaction, as viewed from the child‘s frame of
reference, can provide insights into the child's personality
development and subsequent interpersonal relationships.

Serot and Teevanuz Obtained results which
indicated that the child's adjustment is related to his
perception of his relationship within the family; that his
perception of the relationship is unrelated to his parents'
perception of the same; and that the parents' perception of
the relationship is unrelated to his offspring's adjustment.

Parental behavior, as described by the child, can
offer clues for interpreting various personality character-
istics observable in the child. Baumrindu3 submits that a
pattern of parental behavior high in control and nurturance
produces self-assertive, self-confident, and self-controlled
behavior in young children. Bronfenbrenneruh contends that

boys tend to be more responsible when the father is the

 

uzNaomi M. Serot and Richard C. Teevan,
"Perception of the Parent-Child Relationship and Its
Relation to Child Adjustment," Child Development, 32 (June,

1961). pp. 373-378.

h3Diana Baumrind, "Parental Control and Parental
Love," Children, 12 (November-December, 1965), p. 23“.

thronfenbrenner, "The Changing American Child."

17

principal disciplinarian, whereas the opposite is true for
girls. Hoffman argues that unqualified power assertion on
the part of either or both parents (which is exemplified by
direct commands, threats, deprivations, and physical force)
contributes to the development of hostility, power needs,
and heightened autonomy strivings in the child.“5 Siegel-
man,“6 in a study of the child's perception of parental
power assertion, related introversion in children to
punishing and unaffectionate parental behavior.

One of the first studies!“7 using the child's
perceptions of parent attitudes and behavior as the
independent variable in an attempt to study personality and
ego development revealed that girls perceived themselves as
significantly more accepted and intrinsically valued by
parents than did boys. Ausubel believes that the social
sex roles of boys and girls are culturally determined in
that a girl's status is ascribed, whereas a boy must
achieve a social sex role. Therefore, parents tend to
behave toward their children in response to expected

societal patterns.

 

“5Mart1n L. Hoffman, "Power Assertion by the
Parent and Its Impact on the Child," Child Development,
31 (1960). p. 1H2.

”sharvin Siegelman. "Loving and Punishing Parent-
al Behavior and Introversion Tendencies in Sons," Child
Development, 37 (1966), pp. 985-992.

“7David P. Ausubel, et al., "Perceived Parent
Attitudes as Determinants of Children's Ego Structure,"
Child Development, 25 (195A), p. 179.

18

Research involving the Negro child is limited;
that specifically related to the Negro child's perception
of his parents is particularly scarce. In a test of Negro
pre-schoolers for verbal responses to the questions "what
does a father do?" and "What does a mother do?” Piwowarl‘8
encountered differences in the replies of boys and girls,
with girls showing a greater variety in their responses.

In a test of the relationship between mobility aspirations,
race, and family experience, Smith and Abramsonl‘9 compared
white and Negro adolescents in their reaction to parental
discipline and evaluation of parental attitudes and found
no racial differences. Neither of these studies, however,
was directly concerned with the child's perception of the
family' 3 power structure .

Strauss0 has concluded that knowledge of the
interrelationships between conjugal structure and the
socializing process is especially tentative among Negroes.
With regard to sex-role identification as a factor in the
child's socialization, the Negro child is placed in a
particularly ambivalent position in attempting to identify

with a member of a I‘despised and discriminated-against

 

“aPiwowar, Op. 9; .

ugdoward P. Smith and Marcia Abramson, "Racial
and Family Experience Correlates of Mobility Aspiration,"
Journal of Negro Education, 31 (1962), p. 120.

5°3traus, op. cit.

19
group."51
SUMMARY

This review of the literature has indicated that
much research has been conducted involving the child's
perception of the parent. Those variables which have effect
on this perception include the sex of the parent, the sex
of the child, the age of the child, the social class posi-
tion, and the family's religious affiliation.

L.Generally, it has been found that girls of
various ages and social classes perceive the mother as both
the source of nurturance and restriction and that boys of
various ages and social classes consider the mother to be
nurturant and the father to be restrictive. Some studies
have not shown a distinct differentiation in the girl's
perception of the father's role.

One study which included religious affiliation as
a variable noted a tendency for one of the Catholic parents
to be perceived by both boys and girls as more dominant
than the other rather than equal in power as was true from
the Protestant child's point of view.

The child's conception of intrafamilial relation-
ships is studied because it clarifies the child's sex-role

identification and personality development. In addition,

 

51Joseph H. Douglas, "The Urban Negro Family,”
ed. John P. Davis, The American Nearo Reference Book (Engle-
wood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-hall, Inc., 1966),
pp- 349-350-

20

the child's perceptions provide insights into familial role
patterns, power structure, parental behavior and its effect

on the child's development.

inch of the research dealing with the child's
perception of the parent and the parent-child relationship
involves only white, and most notably, middle-class
families. Therefore, the present study attempts to
identify sex differences in perception of parental

authority and love in the lower-class Negro family.

CdAPTER III
METHODOLOGY

The conceptual framework on which this research
is based supports the assumption that the child is capable
of perceiving parental behavior and the parent-child
relationship. This perception is one indication of
parent-child interaction and its effect on the child's

personality deve10pment.
SAMPLE

The student sample which provided data for this
research project was selected from one fourth—grade and
five fifth-grade classrooms of three elementary schools in
predominantly lower-class neighborhoods in Lansing,
Michigan. From a total sample of 1&6 students tested, 55
were eligible, 30 boys and 25 girls. The sample was not
chosen as a random or a representative one, but included
all eligible students present in the classrooms on the days
in which the questionnaire was administered.

To keep the project within manageable limits, it
was decided to confine this inquiry to one racial group,
one social class, and one age group. The pre-adolescent
child was chosen so that responses would be free of complex

21

22

pubertal implications. The age of ten is considered a time
in which the child, although not completely independent of
parents, exhibits a certain amount of self-reliance.

For a child to be eligible for this sample, he
had to be a member of the Negro race; in the pre-adolescent
age group, Specifically ten years of age: and living with
two parent figures (male and female), at least one of whom
was gainfully employed in a semi-skilled or skilled
occupation as defined through use of Hollingshead's Index.

Of the 1&6 students tested, 136 students were
Negro, 10 were white. Seventy-two of the Negro students
were disqualified because of age. There were 12 twelve-
year-olds, 52 eleven-year-olds, 8 nine-year-clds, and 6h
ten-year-olds tested. Of the 6b ten-year-olds, 3 were
ineligible because of father's occupation, and 6 were
ineligible because they indicated no male figure living in

the home.
INSTRUMENTATION AND PROCEDURE

Data were collected for this research with a
structured questionnaire52 which was comprised of seven
introductory questions to determine the child's eligibility
for inclusion in the sample and four questions which Kagan53

develOped and utilized in a study of the child's perception

 

523cc Appendixes I and II.
53Kagan, ”The Child's Perception of the Parents."

23

of his parents. These four questions were used to elicit
the child's responses regarding his perception of parental
authority. The first question dealt Specifically with
support, the next three questions with power.

A pilot study of the questionnaire was adminis-
tered to a fifth-grade Protestant Sunday School group in
East Lansing, Michigan. The group of children tested was
identified through parental occupation as being members of
middle-class families. This preliminary testing alerted
the researcher to the possibility that a third response of
"both,” in addition to the responses "mother" and "father,"
might be needed. However, in the formal testing with the
lower-class sample, the issue was not encountered.

The questionnaires were administered in approxi-
mately fifteen minutes by the researcher to an entire
fourth- or fifth-grade class. The questionnaires were
coded by the use of an asterisk or hyphen and were
distributed in such manner that the researcher could
classify completed forms with Negro or white students
without their having to indicate race. The research
project was introduced to the students as a joint venture
between their school and Michigan State University to
elicit attitudes toward parents of fourth- and fifth-grade
students. A poster, on which the question was printed in
large letters, was displayed by the researcher as each
question was read aloud so the students would know which

question was being discussed. To encourage honesty on the

2h

part of the students and to insure privacy, it was stressed
that no questionnaire could be identified in any way with

any particular student.
ANALYSIS

To determine the significance of difference
between the observed and expected frequency of boys and
girls perceiving their parents as supportive or powerful,
chi square tests were computed. This type of analysis was
chosen because of the method of selecting the sample and the
kind of data secured.5u The .05 probability level, or less,
was established as the level at which differences would be

considered statistically significant.
LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This study was conducted under the following
limiting factors:

1. Pre-pubescence was defined as middle childhood or the
period of pre-adolescence before the onset of puberty.
Pro-adolescence generally terminates by the age of ten
years. Although all children in the sample were ten
years of age, puberty may have been a factor in

influencing the responses made by some of the children.

 

SuWhile it is clearly the case that the sample of
students tested in this research is not a random sample, the
chi square test was used simply as a technique for ascer-
taining the probability of observing the set of internal
frequencies in the table given the marginal distribution
of the variables.

25

2. Social class, as defined through the use of Holling-
shead's Index, may not be applicable in classifying the
Negro family.

3. To limit the scape of this study, analysis was focused
solely on the variable of sex difference in children's
perceptions of parents. dad other variables such as
social class, age of the child, and race been studied,

other results may have been obtained.

SUMMARY

Fifty-five lower-class Negro boys and girls, ten
years of age, completed a questionnaire indicating their
perception of their parents as either supportive or
powerful. The four questions used to elicit their responses

were analyzed with the use of chi square tests.

CHAPTER IV

ANALYSIS OF DATA

The child's conception of his parents as either
supportive or powerful was elicited through the use of four
questions. Results from each question are presented in
tables below. The data have been analyzed through the use
of chi square tests.

Question 1 (Table I) indicated which parent the
child considered to be supportive. Both boys and girls
perceived mother as the support figure. The difference
between expected and observed frequencies was significant
at the .05 level.

Questions 2 and 3 (Tables II and III), which
indicated the child's concept of parental power, were not
statistically significant in establishing a difference
between the responses of boys and girls.

Question b (Table IV), which was most relevant in
determining which parent the child perceived as the power
figure, revealed a significant difference at the .01 level.

Table V, which is a combination of Questions 2,
3, and 4, illustrates which parent is perceived more

frequently to be the power figure.
26

27

TABLE I

Question 1: "If you were in an argument at home with your

mother and father, who would be on your side,
your mother or your father?"

PERCENTAGE 0? BOYS AND GIRLSa RESPONDING
"morass" cs "FATHER“ T0 QUESTION 1 - SUPPORT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Group N Mother Father
Boys 30 70% 30%
Girls 25 72% 28%

3Total: 55 X2 a h.8 p (.05

‘lBoth boys and girls perceived their mother to be
the major source of support.2 This result is in agreement
with a number of studies which have found that children of
either sex consider the mother to be more nurturant and
loving than the father and supports Hypothesis I of the

study.

28

TABLE II

guestion 2: "Let‘s make believe you were bad and your
mother and father were both at home. who
would punish you, your mother or your
father?"

PERCEWTAGE O? BOYQ AVD GIRLSa RESPONDING
"MOTHER” OB "FATHER" TO QUESTION 2 - POWER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Group N Mother Father

Boys 30 57g ' “33

Girls 25 56% hhé
“Total: 55 x2 a NS

The responses of girls did not show a statisti-
cally significant difference from those of the boys. It is
evident that more girls in this sample felt that their
mothers would be more punishing than their fathers. This
supports Hypothesis 3, but the difference was not statisti-
cally significant. Boys also indicated that, even though
both parents were present in the home, the mother would more
likely punish the child. This does not support Hypothesis
2. It is interesting to note that there was very little
difference between the responses of boys and girls for this

question.

29

TABLE III

Question 3: "Who is boss in your house?"

PERCENTAGE OF BOYS AND GIRLSa RESPONDING
"MOTHER" cs "FATHER" T0 QUESTION 3 - POMER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Group N Mother Father

Boys 30 37% 63%

Girls 25 52% h8g
aTotal: 55 x2 . N3

This question did not indicate a statistically
significant difference between the boys' and girls'
perception of one of their parents as being more dominant
than the other. However, more boys than girls considered
father to be the dominant figure in the home. This supports
Hypothesis 2. "It is noteworthy that only a slight majority
of girls considered mother to be the dominant parent. This

does not give much support to Hypothesis 3.

30

TABLE IV

Question U: "Aho are you scared of more, your mother or
your father?"

Psxcsuracs 0? BOYS AND GIRLSa ssspowplxc
"MOTHER” OB "FATHER" TO QUESTION u - Pousa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Group N Mother Father
Boys 30 27% 73%
Girls 25 6h% 36%

aTotal: 55 x2 a 7.h p (.01

This question indicated a significant difference
in the boy-girl perception of parents as sources of power.
rhore boys feared the father and more girls feared the

mother. This gives strong support to Hypothses 2 and 3.

31

TABLE V

Total of responses to Questions 2, 3, and b

PERCENTAGE OF BOY AND GIRL REePONSESa
"morass" cs "FATHER” TO QUESTIONSb RELATING TO Poems

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Group N Mother Father

Boys 90 nos 60%

Girls 75 57% “3%
8Total: 165 x2 a N3

bQuestions 2, 3, h

When the replies to the three questions relating
to power were combined a difference in the perception of
boys and girls was revealed, but it was not statistically
significant. More than half of the boys indicated that they
considered their father to be the authority figure, while
only slightly over half of the girls indicated their mother
to be the major source of power. These responses tend to

support Hypotheses 2 and 3.

32
DISC ussxcx

Table I appears to indicate that both boys and
girls perceive mother as the more supportive parent. This
result is substantially corroborated in a number of studies
based on the child's perception of his parents as sources
of authority and love.

As far back as 1933, Meltzer55 found that both
boys and girls average more acceptance reactions to mother
than father. And as recently as 1966 in a study of Indian
children, Ghosh and Sinha56 stated that the mother was
conceptualized as the major source of affection and
nurturance by both pre-adolescents and adolescents.

Other research previously discussed which found
that both male and female children of various age groups
consistently perceive the mother as more nurturant, “
eXpressive, and less restrictive than fathers, include

studies by Emmerich,57 DrOppleman and Schaefer,58 Breznitz

 

55H. heltzer, "Sex Differences in Children' s
Attitudes to Parents," Journal of Genetic Psychologv. 62
(1943), pp. 311- 326

56E. S. Ghosh and Durganand Sinha, "A Study of
Parental Role-Perception in Siblings," Journal of
Psychological Researches, 10 (1966), pp. 8-18.

57Bmmerich, "Parental Identification in Young
Children" and "variations in the Parental Role as a Function
of the Parent's Sex and the Child's Sex and Age."

58Dr0pp1eman and Schaefer, cp. cit.

33

and Kugelmass,59 Kagan and Lemkin.6o In a study of social
class differences in families, Ia‘cKinley61 found that
fmothers in the lower class are more often the source of
emotional support.

With the exception of the study conducted by
Ghosh and Sinha, all of these investigations were carried
out with white, middle-class children. It would seem,
however, that there are no racial differences in the
perception of mothers as more nurturant and supportive by
both male and female children.

Table II reveals no statistical difference in the
responses of boys and girls. »However, more girls chose
mother as the major disciplinarian than father.

This question produced an unexpected result from
boys. Although in later tables it was evident that more
boys considered the father to be the dominant and fearful
parent, Table II suggested that mother handled the disci~
pline.x It might be suggested from this that mothers are
more frequently at home than the father or that this
responsibility is delegated to the mother in the lower-

class home. Kohn and Carroll62 submit that lower-class

 

59Breznitz and Kugelmass, cp. cit.

6OKagan and Lemkin, Op. cit.

61McKinley, op. cit., pp. 108-109.

62Melvin L. Kohn and Eleanor E. Carroll, "Social

Class and the Allocation of Parental Responsibilities,"
acciometry. 23 (1960). pp- 372-392-

3h

fathers assume little responsibility toward their children
of either sex, considering this to be the mother‘s domain.

McKinley63 has prOposed that the father in the
lower-class family not only functions less when he is in
the home, but that he is there less frequently than the
father in upper classes. In a comparison of boys' attitudes
toward fathers in two social classes, Rosenéu found that
social class differences in the boys' perception of the
parent were greater with respect to father than with
mother. The mother in both social classes was considered
to be nurturant and expressive. Fathers in the lower class
were viewed as less competent, emotionally secure, accept~
ing, and interested in their child's performance than
fathers in the middle class.

Bronfenbrenner65 submits that boys tend to be
more responsible when the father rather than the mother is
the principal disciplinarian and that girls are more
dependable when the mother is considered to be the authority
figure.

~' Table III indicated that girls continue to
perceive their mothers as the more powerful parent, whereas
boys consider their fathers to be the dominant conjugal

figure. The results of this question are in agreement with

 

6McKinley, go. cit., p. 103.

6“Boson, 92. cit.

65Bronfenbrenner, "The Changing American Child -
A Speculative Analysis."

35

a study by Hess and Torney66 which found that boys are more
inclined than girls to see father in the ruling position
and girls more apt than boys to see mothers as boss.

The boys response to this question may have been
culturally influenced. Through mass media, classroom, or
neighborhood associations, the child may have become aware
of the prevailing societal pattern whereby fathers are
expected to be the dominant figure in the home.

t Table IV appears to indicate that boys perceive
their fathers and girls, their mothers, as the most fear-
provoking parent. These results are in accord with studies
previously discussed which found that parents exert more:'
power toward their same-sex child.

Table V combines the three questions used to
elicit the child's conception of a parental authority
figure. This table appears to indicate that boys perceive
their father to be the source of power, whereas girls
consider their mother as the source of authority. However,
there was not a statistically significant difference between

the responses of boys and girls.
SUMMARY

In this study it was hypothesized that:
1. Both male and female pre-adolescent children in the

lower-class Negro family would perceive the mother as

 

66Hess and Torney, op. cit.

36

the chief source of support. This hypothesis was
supported.

Male pre-adolescent children in the lower-class Negro
family would perceive the father as the chief source of
power. This hypothesis was supported by two out of
three questions asked to determine the boys' perception
of his parents as providing power.

Female pre-adolescent children in the lower-class Negro
family would perceive the mother as the chief source of
power. This hypothesis was supported by all three

questions dealing with power.

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

The purpose of this study was to compare responses
of pre-adolescent male and female children in the lower-
class Negro family in the perception of their parents as
providing power and support which are manifestations of
parental authority.

Fifty-five boys and girls (30 boys; 25 girls) in
fourth- and fifth-grade classrooms in Lansing, Michigan,
completed a questionnaire which revealed their sex, age,
parents' occupation, and perceptions of parental authority
and love.

It was hypothesized that both male and female
pre-adolescent lower-class Negro children would perceive
their mother as the chief source of support. This hypothe-
sis was substantiated. It was further hypothesized that
boys would consider their father to be the major source of
power. This hypothesis was supported by two out of three
questions used to elicit the child's perception of the
parental authority figure. The one question which failed
to identify father as the authority figure revealed that

the boy considered mother to be the disoiplinarian. The
37

38

third hypothesis, that the girl would perceive the mother
to be the chief source of power, was supported.

The specific objectives of this investigation
were to measure lower~c1ass Negro boys' and girls' percep-
tion of their parents as providing power and support and to
determine if variations would occur between the sexes in
their perception of parental authority and love. A
difference did result in that boys perceived the father and
girls, the mother, as the major source of power. The
findings of this study are in agreement with those of other
researchers who have attempted to identify the perceptions
children have of their parents.

Therefore, it can be concluded from this study
that both male and female pre-adolescents in the lower-
class Negro family will perceive their mother as the chief
source of support and love. It can be further concluded
(on the basis of two out of three responses) that the
father in the lower-class Negro family will be viewed as
the authority figure by the boy, whereas the mother will be

perceived as the major source of power by the girl.
IMPLICATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH

As Gorer67 has intimated, the attitudes a child

has toward his father and mother are the indicators of his

 

67Geoffrey Gorer, "Theoretical Approach - 1951,"
ed. Margaret Mead and Martha Nolfenstein, Childhood in
Contemporary Cultures (Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1955), p. 32.

39

attitudes toward all persons he will encounter throughout
his lifetime. Therefore, a study of the child's perception
of parental roles and the parent-child relationship provides
insights into the deveIOpment of the child's personality
and his patterns of interaction with others.

Studies of the Negro child's perception of
parents may be a means of identifying factors which con-
tribute to or hinder the deveIOpment of the self-concept.
As minority group members, these children tend to identify
with the dominant culture. In a comparison of northern and
southern Negro and white preschool children on race aware-
ness, Morland68 found that in both regions Negro subjects
preferred and identified with the white race. This may
have grave consequences on interpersonal relationships
within the Negro family and on the child's subsequent
interpersonal encounters.

During the pilot study of the questionnaire
administered to a group of middle-class Sunday School
children, it was evident that a third response might be
needed whereby the child could indicate both parents
simultaneously as sources of love or power. However, when
the same questionnaire was administered to lower-class
Negro children, there were no requests for an alternative

response 0

 

68J. Kenneth Norland, "A Comparison of Race
Awareness in Northern and Southern Children," American
Journal of Orthopsychiatrxj 36 (1966), pp. 22-31.

#0

This may further substantiate the generally
accepted concept of lower-class conjugal role separation
as compared with the equalitarian family pattern which
prevails in middle-class families. Haas69 submits that
parents in the "core culture" are viewed by the child as
being relatively equal in power; whereas in the lower
class, familial relationships are hierarchal with the child
removed from direct communication with both parents.

It was suggested earlier that the boys' perception
of his father as the authority figure may have been
influenced by societal patterns encountered in mass
communication media or in school and neighborhood contacts.
why were the girls' perceptions not influenced by the same
factors so that she would choose father as the chief
source of power?
y,”The majority of responses from lower—class Negro
girls in this study established the mother as both the
source of power and support. This finding is in agreement
with other studies which have found that the girl is far
more ambivalent toward the father then toward the mother
and more often considers the mother to be both the authority
and love figures. What implications does this have for the
girl's proper sex-role identification? If the mother in
the lower-class family works outside the home, as is often

the case, what effect does the mother's employment have on

 

59saas, op. cit., p. 1&7.

#1

the girl's choice of a role model?

) It was rather interesting that although the
lower-class Negro male pre-adolescent considered the father
to be boss in the home and the more fear-arousing parent,
he chose mother as the disciplinarian. Perhaps mother is
home more often to administer punishment or perhaps
disciplining children is felt to be part of her role. Or
did this reveal that the mother may, in actuality, be
perceived as the source of authority? would the child have
been aware of any cultural patterns establishing father as
disciplinarian as well as the dominant, fear-provoking
figure?

This study has revealed family and child-rearing
patterns which may exist in the lower-class Negro family.
More research is needed to substantiate the findings of
this study. Research is also needed to dispel the myth
that the Negro family varies from the modal pattern in this
society. For it seems that within social classes Negro and
white family patterns appear to be similar. Through the
cooperation of the Lansing Public School District and this
Department, rapport may be established with the Negro
families in this community so that the Opportunity for

further research might become a reality.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books

Bernard, Jessie. Marriage and Family Among Negroes.
Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,
Inc., 1966.

Bronfenbrenner, Urie. ”Some Familial Antecedents of
fiesponsibility and Leadership in Adolescents“
ed. Luigi Petrullo and Bernard M. Bass,
Lgadership and Interpersonal dehavior. New York:
holt, hinehart and Winston, 1961, pp. 239—271.

Chilman, Catherine S. "Child-Rearing and Family Life
Patterns of the Very Poor: Implications for some
Economists," working With Low-Income Families.
Washington, D. C.: American Home hconomics
Association, 1965.

Douglas, Joseph H. "The Urban Negro Family,” ed. John P.
Davis, The American Negro Reference Book.
Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,
Inc., 1966, pp. 337-359.

Edwards, Allen L. Statistical Nethods for the Behavioral
Sciences. New York: Holt, Rinehart and
winston, 1959.

Good, Carter V. Dictionary of Education. 2nd ed. revised.
New York: hc-Graw hill Book Company, Inc., 1959.

Corer, Geoffrey. "Theoretical Approach - 19u1" ed.
Margaret mead and Martha dolfenstein, Childhood
in Contemporary Cultures. Chicago: University
of Chicago Press, 1955, pp. 31-33.

deider, Fritz. The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations.
New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1955.

Hollingshead, August a. and Redlich, Frederick C. Social
Class and Rental Illness: A Community Study,
New York: John wiley and Sons, Inc., 1953.

“2

“3

McKinley, Donald Gilbert. Social Class and Family Life.
New York: The Free Press of Glencoe, 196h.

Smart, Mollie S. and Smart, Russell C. Children:
Development and Relationships. New York: The
Macmillan Company, 1967.

Bulletins and Periodicals

Ausubel, David P., et al. "Perceived Parent Attitudes as
Determinants of Children's Ego Structure," Child
mvelonmentg 25 (195“), pp. 173-1830

Baumrind, Diana. "Parental Control and Parental Love,"
Children, 12 (November-December, 1965), pp. 230-
23 .

Bowerman, Charles E. and Elder, Jr., Glen H. "variations
in Adolescent Perception of Family Power
Structure,“ Agerican Sociological Qeview, 29
(196k). pp- 551-567-

Breznitz, Shlomo, and Kugelmass, 801. "The Perception of
Parents by Adolescents,” guman Relations, 18
(1965), pp. 103-113.

Bronfenbrenner, Urie. "The Changing American Child - A
Speculative Analysis," Merril;:Palmer Quarterly,
7 (April. 1961). pp. 73-85.

dronson, Wanda C., Katten, Edith 8., and Livson, Norman.
”Patterns of Authority and Affection in Two
Generations,“ Journal of Abnormal and 9ocia1
Psychology, 58 (19597, pp. 153-152.

Droppleman, Leo F. and Schaefer, Earl 8. "Boys' and Girls'
Reports of Maternal and Paternal Behavior,"
Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 67
T1953). pp. 6&8—659-

Emmerich, Nalter. “Parental Identification in Young
Children,“ Genetic Psychology Monographs, 60
(November 1959). pp. 257-308.

Emmerich, Walter. "Young Children’s Discrimination of
Parent and Child Roles," Child Developrent, 30
(1959). pp. “03*“19-

Emmerich, Halter. "Variations in the Parental Role as a
Function of the Parent‘s Sex and The Child's Sex
and Age," Nerrill-Palmer Quarterly, 8 (1962),

pp. 3-11.

an

Finch, Helen M. "Young Children's Concepts of Parent
Roles," Journal of Home Economics, #7 (February,

1955). pp. 99-103-

Gardner, L. Pearl. ”An Analysis of Children's Attitudes
Toward Fathers," Journal of Genetic Psychology,

70 (19“?). pp- 3-28-

Ghosh, E. S. and Sinha, Durganand. "A Study of Parental
Role-Perception in Siblings," gggrnal of
Payphological Researches, 10 (1966), pp. 8-18.

Grinder, Robert E. and Specter, Judith C. “sex Differences
in Adolescents' Perceptions of Parental Resource
Control," qurnal of Genetic Psychology, 106
(1965). pp. 337—3hh-

Hartley, Ruth E. ”Children's Concepts of Male and Female
Poles," Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 6 (1959),
pp. 83-91-

Hawkes, Glenn 8., Burchinal, Lee G., and Gardner, 3. "Pre-
Adolescents' Views of Some of Their Relations
with Their Parents,” Child Development, 28
(1957). pp- 393-399.

Hess, Robert D. and Torney, Judith V. "Religion, Age, and
Sex in Children's Perceptions of Family
Authority," Child Develppment, 33 (1962),
pp- 781-789.

H111, Mozell C. “Research on the Negro Family," Journal
of Marriage and Pam L vin , 19 (February,

1957). pp. 25-31-

Hoffman, Lois Wladis. "The Father's Role in the Family and
The Child's Peer-Group Adjustment," flerrill-
Palmer Quarterl . 7 (1961), pp. 97-105.

 

Johannis, Jr., Theodore B. and Rollins, James M. "Teenager
Perception of Family Decision Making," The
Coordinator. 7 (1959). ppo 70-7“.

Kagan, Jerome. "The Child's Perception of the Parent."
Journal of Abnormal and 9ocial Psycholosv, 53
(September, 1956), pp. 257-258.

 

Kagan, Jerome and Freeman, Marion. "Relation of Childhood
Intelligence, Maternal Behaviors, and Social
Class to Behavior During Adolescence," Child
Develooment, 3M (1963), pp. 899-911.

 

“S

Kagan, Jerome, Weaken, finrbara, and sateen, Sara. "Child's
Symbolic Conceptualizntion of Parents," Child
:eveloprent, 32 (1961). pp. 625-636.

fiagan, Jerome and Lemkin, Judith. "The Child's Differential
Perception of Parental Attitudes “ Jouynel of
Apnorggl_and denial Psycholosy, 61 (Sovenber,
1960), pp. 6&03567.

Kohn, Kelvin L. ”Social Class and Parent-Child Relation-
ships: An Interpretation," Aperigan_qurnal o:
Sogioloaz, 68 (January, 1963), pp. 371-550.

Kohn, Helvin L. “Social Class and the Exercise of Parental
Authority," American sociological sevien, 2“
(1959). pp- 352-305-

Kohn, Kelvin L. and Carroll, Eleanor E. "social Class and
the Allocation of Parental Responsibilities,"
3 ciometr , 23 (1960), pp. 372-392.

 

Landreth, Catherine. ”Pour-Year-Olds' notions About Sex
ApprOpriateness of Parental Care and Companionship
Activities,” Fe 1 -P leer Quarterly. 9 (1963),
pp. 175‘1820

Haas, Henry 5. ”some Social Class Differences in the
Family Systems and Group Deletions of Pre- and
Early Adolescents," Chi d Development, 22 (1951),
pp. 1h5‘1520

   

leissner, s. d. "Parental Interaction of the Adolescent
Boy,” Journal of Genettp Psycholony, 10? (1956),
PP- 225-233-

fieltzer, 5. "Sex Differences in Children's Attitudes to
Parents," Journal of Genetic Psycholosz. 52 (1993),
DP. 311'326.

horland, J. Kenneth. ”A Comparison of Race Awareness in
Northern and Southern Children,” ggerican Journal
of Crthopsychiatry, 36 (1966), pp. 22-31.

Piwowar, Elaine m. "Preschoolers' Responses to Questions
Concerning Parental Roles Jhile Enrolled in a
1965 Hendstart Prowram of n Settlement douse,”
suffalo: state University College, Child fituiy
genterwgulletin, 2 (1966), pp. 110-115.

Rosen, Bernard C. "Social Class and the Child's Perception

of the Parent,” Child Developnent, 35 (1969).
pp. 1197-1153.

, ,- I,
. . ' 3'9

#6

Serot, Naomi M. and Teevan, Richard C. ”Perception of the
Parent-Child Relationship and Its Relation to
Child Adjustment," Child Developnent, 32 (June,
1961). pp. 373-378-

Siegelman, Marvin. "Loving and Punishing Parental Behavior
and Introversion Tendencies in Sons," Child
DeveIOpment, 37 (1966), pp. 935-992.

Smith, Howard P. and Abramson, Marcia. "Racial and Family
Experience Correlates of Mobility aspiration,"
Journal of Negro_§ducation, 31 (1962), pp. 11?-
12h.

Straus, Murray A. “Power and Support Structure of the
Family in Relation to Socialization," Journal of
Farriafle and the Family, 26 (August, 1965),
pp. 318-326.

Unpublished Material

James, Jeannie H. "The Young Child's Perception of the
Father as Related to the Father's Perception of
His Own Role," Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation,
Pennsylvania State University, 1965.

Lewis, hylan. "Culture, Class, and the Behavior of Low-
Income Families," Unpublished paper, p. 182,
mimeographed. Paper presented at the Conference
on Lower Class Cultures, June 1963, Howard
University, Washington, D.C.

APPENDIX I

“7

l.

A.

9.

10.

11.

1+8

uIbHIGAN oTnTn UnIVsdoITY
mast Lansing, nichigsn

FIFTH-Gnnufi AlefUUn fnoT

 

BUY? GIRL?

hhat is your age? 9 10 ll 12

tho lives in your house?
fiother Stepmother Grandmother
Father stepfather Grandfather

Aunt Uncle Older Sister Older Brother

Is your father working now? YES NO

What kind of work does your father do?

 

Is your.mother working now? an n0
what kind of work does your mother do?

 

If you were in an argument at home with your mother and father,
who would be on your side, your mother or your father?

MOTHER FATHER
Let's make believe you were bad and your mother and father were
both home. Who would punish you, your mother or your father?

1.0THER FATHER

Who is the boss in your house, your mother or your father?

“OTHER FATHER

Who are you scared of more, your mother or your father?

nOTHER FATHER

APPENDIX II

“9

3.

h.

5.

9.

10.

50

HICHIGAN oTaTE UNIVmRoITY
Last Lansing, nichigan

FIFTH*GRADE ATTITUDE TEST

BOY? GIRL?

What is your age? 9 10 ll 12

Who lives in your house?

Mother Stepmother Grandmother
Father Stepfather Grandfather
Aunt Uncle Older Sister Older Brother

Is your father working now? YES NO

What kind of work does your father do?

 

Is your mother working now? YES NO

What kind of work does your mother do?

 

If you were in an argument at home with your mother and father,
who would be on your side, your mother or your father?

MOTHER FATHER
Let's make believe you were bad and your mother and father were
both home. who would punish you, your mother or your father?

“OTHER FATHER

Who is the boss in your house, your mother or your father?

rflTHblR F ATHER

Who are you scared of more, your mother or your father?

nOTHEfi FATHER

MEEMIH ”.3 T.

.na‘ .‘qu ‘il’b‘ll

 

 

    

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