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The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vgnt20
Illegitimacy, Child Abuse and Neglect, and Cognitive Development Anthony Walsh
a
a
Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice , Boise State University Published online: 06 Jul 2010.
To cite this article: Anthony Walsh (1990) Illegitimacy, Child Abuse and Neglect, and Cognitive Development, The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development, 151:3, 279-285, DOI: 10.1080/00221325.1990.9914617 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00221325.1990.9914617
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden.
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The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 151(3), 279-285
Downloaded by [University of Glasgow] at 05:00 30 December 2014
Illegitimacy, Child Abuse and Neglect, and Cognitive Development ANTHONY WALSH Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice Boise State University
ABSTRACT. This study explored the relationship between illegitimate birth and cognitive development among 513 boys on probation. Prior research has shown that being part of a single-parent household leads to diminished verbal capacities and often puts a child in greater danger of abuse and neglect. Frequent abuse is thought to lead to the enhancement of visual and spatial skills relative to verbal skills through a process of “frozen watchfulness”. I hypothesized that illegitimate boys from oneparent homes would have greater verbal-performance discrepancy scores than would boys from other combinations of birth status and family structure. These boys had the lowest verbal IQ and highest performance IQ scores and, hence, the largest discrepancy. These boys also suffered the highest degree of abuse and neglect of all four birth statudfamily structure combinations studied.
APPROXIMATELY 800,000 ILLEGITIMATECHILDREN are born to teenage mothers in the United States each year (Wallis, 1987). Although illegitimate birth does not carry the social stigma that it once did, it still presents many practical diiliculties that are inimical to good parenting and child socialization. Mothers of illegitimate children often lack the wide network of social support enjoyed by mothers of legitimate children (Cmic, Greenberg, Robinson, & Ragozin, 1984). Social support has the potential for mediating everyday stresses associated with maternity and serves as a preventative against child abuse (Cmic, et al., p. 225). It has frequently been shown that abusive parents, regardless of their child’s birth status, tend to be socially isolated and less responsive and attached to their children (Crockenberg, 1981). Sack, Mason, and Higgins (1985) found the rate of child abuse in Requests for reprints should be sent to Anthony Walsh, Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice, Boise State University, I910 University Drive, Boise, Idaho 83725. 279
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single-parent homes to be almost twice as high as that found in two-parent homes, although their study did not differentiate between legitimate and illegitimate birth, focusing instead on homes broken by death, separation, or divorce. Growing up in a numerically truncated and possibly abusive home can retard a child’s cognitive skills (Sroufe, 1979). Shinn’s (1978) review of 54 studies relevant to this issue led her to conclude, “low levels of parent-child interaction are important causes of poor [intellectual] performance among children in single-parent families” (p. 3 16). Although the studies reviewed by Shinn were of families either intact or broken by divorce or death, there is no reason to assume that father absence would not have similar effects on the intellectual performance of illegitimate children. In fact, any deficit in performance attributable to father absence would be exacerbated in such a home, because there was never a father present from the start. Growing up in a home atmosphere deficient in verbal stimulation, more likely in a single-parent home, can lead to poor development of the left hemisphere of the brain (Flor-Henry, 1978; Jutai and Hare, 1983), as manifested by low verbal IQ (VIQ). However, an illegitimate child who subsequently becomes part of a two-parent family may not significantly differ in intellectual performance from legitimate children from intact homes. If, in addition to being verbally deficient, a home is also abusive, it might favor development of the visual-spatial capacities of the right hemisphere. In Wolman’s (1985) review of the literature on intelligence and mental health, he stated that intelligence and mental health are most closely related to early childhood emotional deprivation (p. 865). It has been suggested that abused children become sensitive to environmental cues in order to avoid abuse: DeLozier (1982) calls such behavior “frozen watchfulness” (p. 98). A child sensitized to the need to avoid abuse may manifest this sensitization in the form of an elevated performance IQ (PIQ). The discrepancy between the two subtest scores (PN) on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) is thus more theoretically interesting than separate analyses of the tests. This is especially so because Andrew (1977) found that a high PIQ rather than a low VIQ was the active ingredient in the significant P > VIQ discrepancy. Kaufman (1 976) generated a normative distribution of discrepancy scores on the verbal and performance scales of the WISC-R. Among his sample of 1,100 boys, he found that a discrepancy score of 12 points in either direction (V > P or P > VIQ) was required for a significant difference between the subtest scores at the .05 level. I compared the percentage of boys in the delinquent sample with Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample in each of three categories (V > P, V = P, and P > VIQ). Based on the literature relevant to the processes involved in the development of the intellectual skills measured by the two subtests of the WISC-R, I hypothesized that the delin-
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quent boys would be underrepresented in the V > PIQ category and overrepresented in the P > VIQ category. This study intends to examine the cognitive development of delinquent boys, legitimate and illegitimate, from one- and two-parent homes, who have suffered various levels of “love deprivation” (Walsh & Petee, 1987). I hypothesized that boys who lack a large supportive network (e.g., illegitimate boys or boys from broken homes) and who suffer abuse and neglect would have more significant P > VIQ discrepancy than would boys more benignly situated.
Method The sample consisted of 513 delinquent boys on probation. Data were obtained from closed files, hence age was unknown in this study. IQs on the WISC-R ranged from 57 to 135 (M = 91.8, SD = 14.3); PIQ scores ranged between 49 and 126 (M = 97.8, SD = 15.5), and P/VIQ discrepancy scores ranged between -27 and 37 (M = 7.2, SD = 13.3). By using Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample 12-point discrepancy criteria for significance at PIQ discrepancy, 294 (57.3%) showed no discrepancy, P = VIQ, and 182 (35.5%) showed significant P > VIQ discrepancy. The birth statudfamily status groups were as follows: legitimate/two-parent (N = 170), illegitimate/twoparent (N = 3 9 , legitimate/one-parent (N = 258), and illegitimate/oneparent (N = 50). Abuse and neglect was measured by using Walsh and Petee’s (1987) Love Deprivation Scale. This scale scores various indicators of abuse and neglect (physical abuse, psychological abuse, parental substance abuse, etc.). according to how serious 26 juvenile probation officers and child welfare workers considered those indicators to be. Walsh and Petee reported an interrater reliability coefficient of .73 for this scale. A truncated version of the scale was used here. Because a broken home and illegitimacy are part of the original scale, and I use these variables separately, I eliminated them from the Love Deprivation Scale. Incidences of love deprivation indicated in the juveniles’ family files were noted and scored. Scores on this scale ranged from 0 to 59 (M = 25.2, SD = 13.7).
Results Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample of boys found that 18% had a V > PIQ profile, 66% had a V = PIQ profile, and 16% had a P > VIQ profile; in our sample, the respective percentages were 7.2,57.3, and 35.5. The Pearsonian chi-square assessing the goodness-of-fit between the normative and delinquent samples was highly significant, ~ ~ (N2 = , 513) = 160.8, p < .O001.
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In comparison to the normative sample, the delinquent boys were underrepresented by a factor of 2.5 in the V > PIQ category and overrepresentedby a factor of 2.2 in the P > VIQ category. The cognitive development of delinquent boys appears to be quite different from that of the boys in the normative sample. My first research hypothesis was supported. Of the boys in the illegitimate/one-parentfamily group, none showed V > PIQ discrepancy, 12 (24%) showed no discrepancy, V = PIQ, and 38 (76%) showed P > VIQ discrepancy. The corresponding percentages of boys in the other three groups who showed P > VIQ discrepancies were as follows: legitimate/two-parent family sample, 24.1%; illegitimate/two-parent family sample, 28.6%; and legitimatelone-parent family sample, 36%; xz = (6, N = 513) = 5 1 . 9 2 , ~ < .001. Illegitimate boys from one-parent homes had VIQ scores significantly lower (M = 83.02) than those of all but the illegitimate boys from two-parent homes, (M = 86.2), as determined by the Scheff6 multiple comparison test; overall, F(3, 509) = 8.74, p VIQ discrepancy (M = 19.22) than did all other groups, none of which differed significantly among themselves; overall, F(3, 509) = 19.38, p < .001. Following Andrew (1977), I decided to explore the question of whether a low VIQ or high PIQ score was the active ingredient in the P > VIQ discrepancy. Dividing the sample at the median of P > V (Md = 6), I performed t tests on VIQ and PIQ scores. The boys with low P > VIQ discrepancy had a significantly higher mean VIQ score than did the boys with high P > VIQ discrepancy (A492.5 and 88.6, respectively, t = 3.28, p < .01). The boys with low P > VIQ discrepancy had a significantly lower PIQ mean than did the boys with high P > VIQ discrepancy (M 89.1 and 106.4, respectively, t = - 14.39, p < .001). Computing eta squared from both t tests showed that PIQ was the primary ingredient in the P > VIQ discrepancy. Eta squared for VIQ was .02, and for PIQ it was .29. Thus, the P > VIQ category (low/high) accounted for 14.5 times more of the variance in PIQ than it does in VIQ. In terms of love deprivation, the illegitimate boys from one-parent homes were significantly more love deprived (M = 33.42) than were all other
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groups. The legitimate boys from one-parent homes were significantly more love deprived (M = 26.00) than were the legitimate boys from two-parent homes (M = 19.88) but not the illegitimate boys from two-parent homes (M = 21.69). The overall F ratio was 16.87, p < .001. These findings lend support to the contention that a broken home is more likely to be abusive than an intact home. Love deprivation was significantly correlated with P > VIQ discrepancy over all groups (t = .263, p < .001). Correcting this correlation for attenuation, I obtained a correlation of .308 between these two variables. These findings support my second hypothesis in terms of the effect of birth status, family structure, and love deprivation on the P > VIQ discrepancy.
Discussion Illegitimate birth was found to be associated with negative consequences for cognitive development among this sample of delinquent boys. This was particularly true for illegitimate boys whose mothers remained unmarried. These boys had both the lowest mean VIQ (83.02) and the highest mean PIQ (102.24). Their mean P M Q discrepancy was significantly greater than those of the other three groups and greatly exceeded the 12-point discrepancy required for statistical significance. The love deprivation mean for this group was also significantly greater than those of the other three groups. These findings support the proposition that growing up in a numerically truncated family, one that lacks broad social support and intellectual stimulation, may result in retarded verbal skills. It appears that growing up in such a home is also conducive to higher levels of abuse and neglect than is found in more traditional families. My finding that the illegitimate boys from oneparent homes also had the highest mean PIQ score supports the contention that perhaps an elevated PIQ is partially a function of DeLozier’s (1982) “frozen watchfulness.” That is, abused children may develop acute VisuaYspatial skills that alert them to imminent punishment and thus they take steps to avoid it. Results also showed that high PIQ is more important than low VIQ in producing the P > VIQ profile, a finding that demands explanation. It has been suggested that hyporeactive autonomic nervous system ( A N S ) functioning is the mechanism by which abuse and neglect translates into significant P > VIQ discrepancy (Walsh, Beyer, & Petee, 1987). Many of the subtests (e.g., digit span and the timed subtests) of the performance scale produce more anxiety than do the verbal subtests (Frank,1983, p. 74). These subtests are also more dependent on short-term memory, which is more subject to anxiety-produced distortion than long-term memory. Keiser (1975, p. 306) indicated that an underreactive A N S results in less distortion of shortterm memory traces within brain structures (e.g., the hippocampal circuits) that are thought to play a role in both afFective processes and short-term memory.
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If significant P > VIQ discrepancy is, to some extent, a function of ANS hyporeactivity, it is also possible that ANS functioning may be influenced by childhood abuse and neglect. Wadsworth (1976) found among 5,000 British boys that A N S hyporeactivity was associated with broken, abusive, and neglectful families and was also predictive of later delinquency. He speculated, “Children who in early life lived in surroundings of stress and emotional disturbances are more likely to develop some sort of mechanism for handling the effects of stress, and this may be reflected in later autonomic reactions” (1976, p. 245). Supportive of Wadsworth’s assertion is the consistently found association between affectionless psychopathy and ANS hyporeactivity (Mednick & Finello, 1983). The combination of low VIQ and normal-to-high PIQ appears to be conducive to becoming involved with delinquent behavior. The comparison between our sample and Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample indicates that P > VIQ discrepancy is a marker of delinquent behavior and that V > PIQ discrepancy is a marker of good behavior. In light of the spiraling rates of illegitimacy in the United States (Hanson, Myers, & Ginsburg, 1987), the apparent consequences of illegitimate birth on children’s subsequent cognitive development, and the subsequent actions by parents and others associated with it, indicate the need for more research in this area. Because our sample was composed of delinquents, which may indicate atypical levels of isolation from prosocial others as well as higher rates of abuse and neglect, it would be particularly useful to conduct similar studies among nondelinquent juvenile populations.
REFERENCES Andrew, J. (1977). Delinquency: Intellectual imbalance? Criminal Justice and Behavior, 4 , 99-104.
Crnic, K., Greenberg, M., Robinson, N., & Ragozin, A. (1984). Maternal stress and social support: Effects on the mother-infant relationship from birth to eighteen months. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 54, 224-235. Crockenberg, S. B. (1981). Infant imtability, mother responsiveness, and social support influences on the security of mother-infant attachment. Child Development, 52, 857-865.
DeLozier, P. (1982). Attachment theory and child abuse. In C. Parks & J. StevensonHinde (Eds.), The place of attachment in human behavior (pp. 95-117). New York: Basic Books. Frank, G. (1983). The Wechsler enterprise: An assessment of the development, structure, and use of the Wechsler tests of intelligence. New York: Pergamon. Flor-Henry, P. ( 1978). Gender, hemispheric specialization and psychopathology. Social Science and Medicine, 12, 155-162.
Hanson, S . , Myers, D., & Ginsburg, Alan. (1987). The role of responsibility and knowledge in reducing teenage out-of-wedlock childbearing. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 49, 241-256.
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Jutai, J., & Hare, R. (1983). Psychopathy and selective attention during performance of a complex perceptual-motor task. Psychophysiology, 20, 146-151. Kaufman, A. (1976). Verbal-performance discrepancies on the WISC-R. Journal of Counseling and Clinical Psychology, 31, 739-744. Keiser, T. (1975). Schizotype and the Wechsler digit span test. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 31, 303-306. Mednick, S . , & Finello, K. (1983). Biological factors and crime: Implications for forensic psychiatry. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 6, 1-15. Sack, W., Mason, R., & Higgins, J. (1985). The single-parent family and abusive child punishment. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 55, 252-259. S h i ~M. , (1978). Father absence and children’s cognitive development. Psychological Bulletin, 55, 295-324. Sroufe, A. (1979). The coherence of individual development: Early care, attachment, and subsequent developmental issues. American Psychologist, 34, 835841.
Wadsworth, M. (1976). Delinquency, pulse rates, and early emotional deprivation. British Journal of Criminology, 16, 245-256. Wallis, C. (1987). Children having children. In L. Barnes (Ed.), Social problems (pp. 10-16). Guilford, CT:Dushkin. Walsh, A., Beyer, J., & Petee, T. (1987). Love deprivation, Wechsler performance > verbal discrepancy, and violent delinquency. The Journal of Psychology, 121, 177-184.
Walsh, A., & Petee, T. (1987). Love deprivation and violent delinquency. Journal of Crime and Justice, 10, 45-61. Wolman, B. (1985). Intelligence and mental health. In B. Wolman (Ed.),Handbook of intelligence: Theories, measurements, and applications (pp. 849-87 1). New York: Wiley.
Received October 5, 1989
The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vgnt20
Illegitimacy, Child Abuse and Neglect, and Cognitive Development Anthony Walsh
a
a
Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice , Boise State University Published online: 06 Jul 2010.
To cite this article: Anthony Walsh (1990) Illegitimacy, Child Abuse and Neglect, and Cognitive Development, The Journal of Genetic Psychology: Research and Theory on Human Development, 151:3, 279-285, DOI: 10.1080/00221325.1990.9914617 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00221325.1990.9914617
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden.
Downloaded by [University of Glasgow] at 05:00 30 December 2014
Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/ page/terms-and-conditions
The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 151(3), 279-285
Downloaded by [University of Glasgow] at 05:00 30 December 2014
Illegitimacy, Child Abuse and Neglect, and Cognitive Development ANTHONY WALSH Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice Boise State University
ABSTRACT. This study explored the relationship between illegitimate birth and cognitive development among 513 boys on probation. Prior research has shown that being part of a single-parent household leads to diminished verbal capacities and often puts a child in greater danger of abuse and neglect. Frequent abuse is thought to lead to the enhancement of visual and spatial skills relative to verbal skills through a process of “frozen watchfulness”. I hypothesized that illegitimate boys from oneparent homes would have greater verbal-performance discrepancy scores than would boys from other combinations of birth status and family structure. These boys had the lowest verbal IQ and highest performance IQ scores and, hence, the largest discrepancy. These boys also suffered the highest degree of abuse and neglect of all four birth statudfamily structure combinations studied.
APPROXIMATELY 800,000 ILLEGITIMATECHILDREN are born to teenage mothers in the United States each year (Wallis, 1987). Although illegitimate birth does not carry the social stigma that it once did, it still presents many practical diiliculties that are inimical to good parenting and child socialization. Mothers of illegitimate children often lack the wide network of social support enjoyed by mothers of legitimate children (Cmic, Greenberg, Robinson, & Ragozin, 1984). Social support has the potential for mediating everyday stresses associated with maternity and serves as a preventative against child abuse (Cmic, et al., p. 225). It has frequently been shown that abusive parents, regardless of their child’s birth status, tend to be socially isolated and less responsive and attached to their children (Crockenberg, 1981). Sack, Mason, and Higgins (1985) found the rate of child abuse in Requests for reprints should be sent to Anthony Walsh, Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice, Boise State University, I910 University Drive, Boise, Idaho 83725. 279
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single-parent homes to be almost twice as high as that found in two-parent homes, although their study did not differentiate between legitimate and illegitimate birth, focusing instead on homes broken by death, separation, or divorce. Growing up in a numerically truncated and possibly abusive home can retard a child’s cognitive skills (Sroufe, 1979). Shinn’s (1978) review of 54 studies relevant to this issue led her to conclude, “low levels of parent-child interaction are important causes of poor [intellectual] performance among children in single-parent families” (p. 3 16). Although the studies reviewed by Shinn were of families either intact or broken by divorce or death, there is no reason to assume that father absence would not have similar effects on the intellectual performance of illegitimate children. In fact, any deficit in performance attributable to father absence would be exacerbated in such a home, because there was never a father present from the start. Growing up in a home atmosphere deficient in verbal stimulation, more likely in a single-parent home, can lead to poor development of the left hemisphere of the brain (Flor-Henry, 1978; Jutai and Hare, 1983), as manifested by low verbal IQ (VIQ). However, an illegitimate child who subsequently becomes part of a two-parent family may not significantly differ in intellectual performance from legitimate children from intact homes. If, in addition to being verbally deficient, a home is also abusive, it might favor development of the visual-spatial capacities of the right hemisphere. In Wolman’s (1985) review of the literature on intelligence and mental health, he stated that intelligence and mental health are most closely related to early childhood emotional deprivation (p. 865). It has been suggested that abused children become sensitive to environmental cues in order to avoid abuse: DeLozier (1982) calls such behavior “frozen watchfulness” (p. 98). A child sensitized to the need to avoid abuse may manifest this sensitization in the form of an elevated performance IQ (PIQ). The discrepancy between the two subtest scores (PN) on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) is thus more theoretically interesting than separate analyses of the tests. This is especially so because Andrew (1977) found that a high PIQ rather than a low VIQ was the active ingredient in the significant P > VIQ discrepancy. Kaufman (1 976) generated a normative distribution of discrepancy scores on the verbal and performance scales of the WISC-R. Among his sample of 1,100 boys, he found that a discrepancy score of 12 points in either direction (V > P or P > VIQ) was required for a significant difference between the subtest scores at the .05 level. I compared the percentage of boys in the delinquent sample with Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample in each of three categories (V > P, V = P, and P > VIQ). Based on the literature relevant to the processes involved in the development of the intellectual skills measured by the two subtests of the WISC-R, I hypothesized that the delin-
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quent boys would be underrepresented in the V > PIQ category and overrepresented in the P > VIQ category. This study intends to examine the cognitive development of delinquent boys, legitimate and illegitimate, from one- and two-parent homes, who have suffered various levels of “love deprivation” (Walsh & Petee, 1987). I hypothesized that boys who lack a large supportive network (e.g., illegitimate boys or boys from broken homes) and who suffer abuse and neglect would have more significant P > VIQ discrepancy than would boys more benignly situated.
Method The sample consisted of 513 delinquent boys on probation. Data were obtained from closed files, hence age was unknown in this study. IQs on the WISC-R ranged from 57 to 135 (M = 91.8, SD = 14.3); PIQ scores ranged between 49 and 126 (M = 97.8, SD = 15.5), and P/VIQ discrepancy scores ranged between -27 and 37 (M = 7.2, SD = 13.3). By using Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample 12-point discrepancy criteria for significance at PIQ discrepancy, 294 (57.3%) showed no discrepancy, P = VIQ, and 182 (35.5%) showed significant P > VIQ discrepancy. The birth statudfamily status groups were as follows: legitimate/two-parent (N = 170), illegitimate/twoparent (N = 3 9 , legitimate/one-parent (N = 258), and illegitimate/oneparent (N = 50). Abuse and neglect was measured by using Walsh and Petee’s (1987) Love Deprivation Scale. This scale scores various indicators of abuse and neglect (physical abuse, psychological abuse, parental substance abuse, etc.). according to how serious 26 juvenile probation officers and child welfare workers considered those indicators to be. Walsh and Petee reported an interrater reliability coefficient of .73 for this scale. A truncated version of the scale was used here. Because a broken home and illegitimacy are part of the original scale, and I use these variables separately, I eliminated them from the Love Deprivation Scale. Incidences of love deprivation indicated in the juveniles’ family files were noted and scored. Scores on this scale ranged from 0 to 59 (M = 25.2, SD = 13.7).
Results Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample of boys found that 18% had a V > PIQ profile, 66% had a V = PIQ profile, and 16% had a P > VIQ profile; in our sample, the respective percentages were 7.2,57.3, and 35.5. The Pearsonian chi-square assessing the goodness-of-fit between the normative and delinquent samples was highly significant, ~ ~ (N2 = , 513) = 160.8, p < .O001.
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In comparison to the normative sample, the delinquent boys were underrepresented by a factor of 2.5 in the V > PIQ category and overrepresentedby a factor of 2.2 in the P > VIQ category. The cognitive development of delinquent boys appears to be quite different from that of the boys in the normative sample. My first research hypothesis was supported. Of the boys in the illegitimate/one-parentfamily group, none showed V > PIQ discrepancy, 12 (24%) showed no discrepancy, V = PIQ, and 38 (76%) showed P > VIQ discrepancy. The corresponding percentages of boys in the other three groups who showed P > VIQ discrepancies were as follows: legitimate/two-parent family sample, 24.1%; illegitimate/two-parent family sample, 28.6%; and legitimatelone-parent family sample, 36%; xz = (6, N = 513) = 5 1 . 9 2 , ~ < .001. Illegitimate boys from one-parent homes had VIQ scores significantly lower (M = 83.02) than those of all but the illegitimate boys from two-parent homes, (M = 86.2), as determined by the Scheff6 multiple comparison test; overall, F(3, 509) = 8.74, p VIQ discrepancy (M = 19.22) than did all other groups, none of which differed significantly among themselves; overall, F(3, 509) = 19.38, p < .001. Following Andrew (1977), I decided to explore the question of whether a low VIQ or high PIQ score was the active ingredient in the P > VIQ discrepancy. Dividing the sample at the median of P > V (Md = 6), I performed t tests on VIQ and PIQ scores. The boys with low P > VIQ discrepancy had a significantly higher mean VIQ score than did the boys with high P > VIQ discrepancy (A492.5 and 88.6, respectively, t = 3.28, p < .01). The boys with low P > VIQ discrepancy had a significantly lower PIQ mean than did the boys with high P > VIQ discrepancy (M 89.1 and 106.4, respectively, t = - 14.39, p < .001). Computing eta squared from both t tests showed that PIQ was the primary ingredient in the P > VIQ discrepancy. Eta squared for VIQ was .02, and for PIQ it was .29. Thus, the P > VIQ category (low/high) accounted for 14.5 times more of the variance in PIQ than it does in VIQ. In terms of love deprivation, the illegitimate boys from one-parent homes were significantly more love deprived (M = 33.42) than were all other
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groups. The legitimate boys from one-parent homes were significantly more love deprived (M = 26.00) than were the legitimate boys from two-parent homes (M = 19.88) but not the illegitimate boys from two-parent homes (M = 21.69). The overall F ratio was 16.87, p < .001. These findings lend support to the contention that a broken home is more likely to be abusive than an intact home. Love deprivation was significantly correlated with P > VIQ discrepancy over all groups (t = .263, p < .001). Correcting this correlation for attenuation, I obtained a correlation of .308 between these two variables. These findings support my second hypothesis in terms of the effect of birth status, family structure, and love deprivation on the P > VIQ discrepancy.
Discussion Illegitimate birth was found to be associated with negative consequences for cognitive development among this sample of delinquent boys. This was particularly true for illegitimate boys whose mothers remained unmarried. These boys had both the lowest mean VIQ (83.02) and the highest mean PIQ (102.24). Their mean P M Q discrepancy was significantly greater than those of the other three groups and greatly exceeded the 12-point discrepancy required for statistical significance. The love deprivation mean for this group was also significantly greater than those of the other three groups. These findings support the proposition that growing up in a numerically truncated family, one that lacks broad social support and intellectual stimulation, may result in retarded verbal skills. It appears that growing up in such a home is also conducive to higher levels of abuse and neglect than is found in more traditional families. My finding that the illegitimate boys from oneparent homes also had the highest mean PIQ score supports the contention that perhaps an elevated PIQ is partially a function of DeLozier’s (1982) “frozen watchfulness.” That is, abused children may develop acute VisuaYspatial skills that alert them to imminent punishment and thus they take steps to avoid it. Results also showed that high PIQ is more important than low VIQ in producing the P > VIQ profile, a finding that demands explanation. It has been suggested that hyporeactive autonomic nervous system ( A N S ) functioning is the mechanism by which abuse and neglect translates into significant P > VIQ discrepancy (Walsh, Beyer, & Petee, 1987). Many of the subtests (e.g., digit span and the timed subtests) of the performance scale produce more anxiety than do the verbal subtests (Frank,1983, p. 74). These subtests are also more dependent on short-term memory, which is more subject to anxiety-produced distortion than long-term memory. Keiser (1975, p. 306) indicated that an underreactive A N S results in less distortion of shortterm memory traces within brain structures (e.g., the hippocampal circuits) that are thought to play a role in both afFective processes and short-term memory.
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If significant P > VIQ discrepancy is, to some extent, a function of ANS hyporeactivity, it is also possible that ANS functioning may be influenced by childhood abuse and neglect. Wadsworth (1976) found among 5,000 British boys that A N S hyporeactivity was associated with broken, abusive, and neglectful families and was also predictive of later delinquency. He speculated, “Children who in early life lived in surroundings of stress and emotional disturbances are more likely to develop some sort of mechanism for handling the effects of stress, and this may be reflected in later autonomic reactions” (1976, p. 245). Supportive of Wadsworth’s assertion is the consistently found association between affectionless psychopathy and ANS hyporeactivity (Mednick & Finello, 1983). The combination of low VIQ and normal-to-high PIQ appears to be conducive to becoming involved with delinquent behavior. The comparison between our sample and Kaufman’s (1976) normative sample indicates that P > VIQ discrepancy is a marker of delinquent behavior and that V > PIQ discrepancy is a marker of good behavior. In light of the spiraling rates of illegitimacy in the United States (Hanson, Myers, & Ginsburg, 1987), the apparent consequences of illegitimate birth on children’s subsequent cognitive development, and the subsequent actions by parents and others associated with it, indicate the need for more research in this area. Because our sample was composed of delinquents, which may indicate atypical levels of isolation from prosocial others as well as higher rates of abuse and neglect, it would be particularly useful to conduct similar studies among nondelinquent juvenile populations.
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Received October 5, 1989
