NSF Award
8807721
The processes by which parents inculcate cultural values and behavioral norms has been the focus of scientific inquiry for decades. Consequently, the family literature is replete with comparisons between different families in order to identify those characteristics (e.g., ses, ethnicity, family composition, parenting style) which differentiate socialization outcomes in children. Critical examination suggests, however, that this "traditional" focus may be misplaced, since variation in outcome occurs largely within, rather than between, families. Put another way, children from the same family are as different from one another, in behavior. personality and intelligence, as are children from different families. One means by which we can understand differences within families is to consider the social constructions , (i.e., the meanings assigned to and interpretations made of interactions), that individual members bring to the socialization which takes place within the family context. In this research each member (i.e., individual parents and children) of 100, two.child nuclear families will participate in a series of questionnaires and individual interviews. The principal investigator will obtain information regarding individual perceptions or constructions of the family, its composite subsystems (i.e., the spousal relationships, the sibling relationship and parent.child relationships), and socialization. Multivariate analyses will be used to examine how individual perceptions of the family environment, including perceptions of within family subsystems (such as sibling and spousal relationships) differentiate the socialization outcomes for children in the same family. The investigation will extend the existing literature on family socialization to consider the reciprocal influence of multiple family subsystems (i.e., parent.child relationships, the sibling relationship, the spousal relationship), on individual perception and experience of the family environment and socialization. It will provide a complement to observational and sociological studies of the family, by focussing on the psychological level at which such processes occur.
