Childrearing Antecedents of Early School Child Personality Factors.

The parents of 156 children six to eight years of age were tested on a childrearing questionnaire adapted from the Sears et at (1957, 1965) interview schedule; and the children were tested on the 13-factor Early School Personality Questionnaire (ESPQ}. Separate oblique factor analyses were carried out for the mothers' questionnaire, the fathers' questionnaire, and the ESPQ. Factor scores were then computed for each child, seven scores being fathers' childrearing scores, eight mothers' childrearing scores, and the thirteen ESPQ scores. A series of thirteen stepwise multiple regression analyses were conducted with the fifteen childrearing factor scores serving as predictors in each case, and the thirteen ESPQ factor scores entered separately as criteria. The combination of fathers' "strictness of discipline" and mothers' "high annoyability" was related to ESPQ "affected by feelings" and "apprehensive" factor scores, while the combination of fathers' "strictness of discipline" and "dissatisfaction with home life" was related to ESPQ "outgoing" and "happy-go-lucky "factor scores. The fathers' "strictness of discipline" factor was further related to ESPQ scores of "phlegmatic," "vigorous, " and "tense. " The fathers' "dissatisfaction with home life" was additionally related to ESPQ "tough mindedness. " The fathers' factor "dislike of intrusive child behavior" was related to the children 's "expediency "factor.