ERIC Number: ED266342
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1985-Aug
Pages: 17
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Mothers' Attributions Regarding the Behavior of Chronically Ill Children.
Walker, Lynn S.
Parents of chronically ill children are faced with the difficult task of being vigilant and yet not overprotective of their children. The literature suggests that parents hold a positive bias toward their ill children. Attribution theory gives a framework in which to study parents' ideas about their children's behavior. A study was conducted to test the hypothesis that if parents are particularly tolerant of the behavior of chronically ill children, then parents would be expected to make attributions that minimize negative child behavior and accentuate positive child behavior. Participants included 24 mothers of children with insulin-dependent diabetes, 24 mothers of children with cystic fibrosis, and 24 mothers of healthy children. Ages of children ranged from 8 to 18. Mothers described two compliant interactions with the child and two noncompliant interactions and then rated the causes as internal to the child, stable or unstable, controllable or uncontrollable by the child, and specific or global. Mothers in general attributed their children's positive behavior to be more internal and stable than current research suggests. Mothers of the chronically ill children exhibited even greater positive bias, finding global implications for positive behavior and specific causes for negative behavior. (ABL)
Descriptors: Attribution Theory, Behavior, Bias, Children, Diseases, Locus of Control, Mother Attitudes, Parent Child Relationship
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A