Abstract
Relationships among life events, prosocial skills, and behavior problems for 91 first through fourth grade children were examined. The data were based on mothers' reports of their children's lifetime life events, current prosocial skills, and current behavior problems. Higher prosocial skills scores significantly predicted lower Externalizing behavior problem scores. Higher weighted life events scores significantly predicted higher Internalizing behavior problem scores. The weighted life event scores×prosocial skills scores interaction did not significantly predict either Externalizing or Internalizing behavior problem scores. The more parsimonious main effects conceptualization suggests that life events and prosocial skills are orthogonal in young, elementary school children.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Achenbach, T. M. (1988).1988 status of the CBCL and related materials. Unpublished manuscript.
Achenbach, T. M., & Edelbrock, C. (1981). Behavioral problems and competencies reported by parents of normal and disturbed children aged four through sixteen.Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 46 (1, Serial No. 188).
Achenbach, T. M., & Edelbrock, C. (1983).Manual for the Child Behavior Checklist and Revised Child Behavior Profile. VT: University of Vermont.
Altmann, E. O., & Gotlib, I. H. (1988). The social behavior of depressed children: An observational study.Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 16 29–44.
Barrera, M. (1981). Social support's role in the adjustment of pregnant adolescents: Assessment issues and findings. In B. H. Gottleib (Ed.),Social networks and social support in community mental health (pp. 69–96). CA: Sage Publishing.
Beck, S., & Rosenberg, R. (1986). Frequency, quality, and impact of life events in self-rated depressed, behavioral-problem, and normal children.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 54 863–864.
Chandler, L., Million, M., & Shermis, M. (1985). The incidence of stressful life events of elementary school-aged children.American Journal of Community Psychology, 13, 743–744.
Coddington, R. D. (1971). The significance of life events as etiologic factors in the diseases of children.Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 16 7–18.
Coddington, R. D. (1972). The significance of life events as etiologic factors in the diseases of children: II. A study of a normal population.Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 16 205–213.
Coddington, R.D. (1981).Life event scale for children and adolescents. Unpublished manuscript.
Coddington, R. D. (1984). Measuring the stressfulness of a child's environment. In J. H. Humphrey (Ed.),Stress in childhood (pp. 97–127). New York: AMS Press.
Cohen, L. H., Burt, C. E., & Bjorck, J. P. (1987). Effects of life events experienced by young adolescents and their parents.Developmental Psychology, 23 583–592.
Compas, B. E., Slavin, L. A., Wagner, B. M., & Vannatta, K. (1986). Relationship of life events and social support with psychological dysfunction among adolescents.Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 15 205–221.
Dohrenwend, B. S., & Dohrenwend, B. P. (1978). Some issues in research on stressful life events.Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 166 7–15.
Eaton, W. W. (1978). Life events, social supports, and psychiatric symptoms: A reanalysis of the new Haven data.Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 19 230–234.
Emery, R. E. (1982). Interparental conflict and the children of discord and divorce.Psychological Bulletin, 92 310–330.
Felner, R. D., Farber, S. S., & Primavera, J. (1980). Children of divorce, stressful life events, and transitions: A framework for preventive efforts. In R. H. Price, R. F. Ketterer, B. C. Bader, & J. Monahan (Eds.),Prevention in mental health: Research. policy, and practice (pp. 81–108). CA: Sage Publications.
Forehand, R., Middleton, K., & Long, N. (1987). Adolescent functioning as a consequence of recent parental divorce and the parent-adolescent relationship.Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 8 305–315.
Freedman, B. J., Rosenthal, L., Donahoe, C. P., Schlundt, D. G., & McFall, R. M. (1978). A social analysis of skill deficits in delinquent and nondelinquent adolescent boys.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 46 1448–1462.
Goldstein, A. P. (1981).Psychological skill training. New York: Pergamon Press.
Goldstein, A. P., & Glick, B. (1987).Aggression replacement training: A comprehensive intervention for aggressive youth. IL: Research Press.
Goldstein, A. P., & Pentz, M. (1984). Psychological skill training and the aggressive adolescent.School Psychology Review, 13 311–323.
Heisel, J. S., Ream, S., Raitz, R., Rappaport, M., & Coddington, R. D. (1973). The significance of life events as contributing factors in the diseases of children.Behavioral Pediatrics, 83 119–123.
Helsel, W., & Matson, J. L. (1984). The assessment of depression in children: The internal structure of the Child Depression Inventory (CDI).Behavior Research and Therapy, 22 289–298.
Henderson, S. (1977). The social network support, and neurosis: The function of attachment in adult life.The British Journal of Psychiatry, 131 185–191.
Hetherington, E. M. (1984). Stress and coping in children and families. In A. B. Doyle, D. Gold, & D. Moskowitz (Eds.),Children and families under stress (pp. 7–35). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Holmes, T., & Rahe, R. (1967). The social readjustment scale.Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 11 213–218.
Johnson, J. H. (1982). Life events as stressors in childhood and adolescence. In B. B. Lahey & A. E. Kazdin (Eds.),Advances in clinical child psychology (Vol. 5, pp. 219–253). New York: Plenum Press.
Johnson, J. H., & Sarason, I. G. (1978). Life stress, depression, and anxiety: Internal-external control as a moderator variable.Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 22 205–208.
Johnson, J. H., & Sarason, I. G. (1979a). Moderator variables in life stress research. In I. G. Sarason & C. D. Spielberger (Eds.),Stress and anxiety (Vol. 6, pp. 151–163). Washington, D.C.: Hemisphere Publishing.
Johnson, J. H., & Sarason, I. G. (1979b). Recent developments in research on life stress. In V. Hamilton, & D. M. Warburton (Eds.),Human stress and cognition: An information processing approach (pp. 205–233) London: Wiley.
Kazdin, A., Matson, J. L., & Esveldt-Dawson, K. (1984). The relationship of role-play assessment of children's social skills to multiple measures of social skills.Behavior Research and Therapy, 22 129–139.
Lochman, J. E., & Lampron, L. B. (1986). Situational social problem-solving skills and self-esteem in aggressive and nonaggressive boys.Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 14 605–617.
Matson, J. L., Esveldt-Dawson, K., & Kazdin, A. (1983). Validation of methods for assessing social skills in children.Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 12 174–180.
Matson, J. L., Macklin, G., & Helsel, W. (1985). Psychometric properties of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY) with emotional problems and self-concept in deaf children.Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 16 117–123.
Matson, J. L., & Ollendick, T. (1988).Enhancing children's social skills: Assessment and training. New York: Pergamon Press.
Matson, J. L., Rotatori, A., & Helsel, W. (1983). Development of a rating scale to measure social skills in children: The Matson Evaluation of Social Skills with Youngsters (MESSY).Behavior Research and Therapy, 21 335–340.
McGinnis, E., & Goldstein, A. P. (1984).Skill streaming the elementary school child: A guide for teaching prosocial skills. IL: Research Press.
Nolen-Hoeksema, S., Girgus, J. S., & Seligman, M. E. (1989).Predicting increases and decreases in depressive symptoms. Unpublished manuscript.
Patterson, G. R., & Reid, J. B. (1984). Interactional processes within the family: The study of the moment-by-moment family transactions in which human social development is embedded.Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 5 237–262.
Rabkin, J. G., & Struening, E. L. (1976). Life events, stress, and illness.Science, 194 1013–1020.
Sterling, S., Cowen, E. L., Weissberg, R. P., Lotyczewski, B. S., & Boike, M. (1985). Recent stressful life events and young children's school adjustment.American Journal of Community Psychology, 13 87–98.
Strauss, C. C., Frame, C. L., & Forehand, R. (1987). Psychosocial impairment associated with anxiety in children.Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 16 235–239.
Strauss, C. C., Forehand, R., Smith, K., & Frame, C. L. (1986). The association between social withdrawal and internalizing problems in children.Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 14 525–535.
Thoits, P. A. (1983). Dimensions of life events that influence psychological distress: An evaluation and synthesis of the literature. In H. B. Kaplan (Ed.),Psychological stress: Trends in theory and research (pp. 33–103). New York: Academic Press.
Wallander, J. L., Varni, J. W., Babani, L., & Banis, H. T. (1988). Children with chronic physical disorders: Maternal reports of their psychological adjustment.Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 13 197–212.
Wallerstein, J. S., & Kelly, J. B. (1980).Surviving the breakup: How children and parents cope with divorce. New York: Basic Books.
Wertlieb, D., Weigel, C., & Feldstein, M. (1987). Stress, social support, and behavior symptoms in middle childhood.Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 16 204–211.
Wertlieb, D., Weigel, C., Springer, T., & Feldstein, M. (1987). Temperament as a moderator of children's stressful experiences.American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 57 234–245.
Wierzbicki, M., & McCabe, M. (1988). Social skills and subsequent depressive symptomology in children.Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 17 203–208.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Vinnick, L.A., Erickson, M.T. Relationships among accumulated lifetime life events, prosocial skills, and behavior problems in elementary school children. J Child Fam Stud 1, 141–154 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01321282
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01321282