Identifier

etd-06142012-165933

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Human Ecology

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

The current study examined middle childhood aged Romanian children’s representations of parenting behaviors, basic negative emotions, and negative self-conscious emotions in the Narrative Story Stem Technique (NSST; Bretherton, Ridgeway, & Cassidy, 1990). More specifically, the research objectives of the study were a) to identify the frequency of the representations that were reflected in children’s narratives, b) to identify the specific stories that elicited the greatest number of representations, c) to identify possible relationships among children’s representations, their age, and amount of time that parents spend with their children, d) to identify gender differences in representations, and e) to evaluate the usefulness of the NSST to assess children's representations. Data were collected from 52 Romanian children aged between 6 and 11-years old. Assessments were made using the NSST, a parent consent form,and a general questionnaire. The findings showed that the frequency of representations was identified. The stories varied widely in their power to elicit children’s representations. Correlations among the variables of interest showed some statistically significant relationships in the expected directions. Gender differences in representations of parenting behaviors and narrative coherence were identified. At last, the findings showed that the NSST could be a useful instrument to identify and assess children’s representations.

Date

2012

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Marks, Loren D.

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_dissertations.754

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Human Ecology Commons

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