A practical, quantitative method for assessing the psychological environment of children

Quantitative differences in the reported behavior of mothers of 93 disturbed and 299 healthy boys were identified by a statistical comparison of the responses made by these parents to items contained in a self-administered, multiple-choice questionnaire. The controlling, disapproving pattern which characterized the behavior of the disturbed boys' mothers remained constant throughout the 6 through 14 years of age range of the sample. The finding of a significant, positive relationship between the intensity of control and disapproval, reported by the mother, and the likelihood of behavioral abnormalities in her child, raises the question as to the presence of critical limits of tolerance for these psychologic factors.