Date of Award
2020
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Psychology (Ph.D.)
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Mark D Terjesen
Second Advisor
Lauren Moskowitz
Third Advisor
Angela Mouzakitis
Abstract
The influence of familial factors (e.g., child-related, parental, and environmental characteristics) on child problem behaviors has regularly been studied. An under-researched area is how these variables work to predict how well parents understand their child’s problem behavior function. 338 parents, recruited through MTurk and Facebook, of children between 3 to 5 years old displaying early onset problem behavior participated in this research. Of the 338 children, 206 (61%) indicated significantly problematic behaviors. This research examines parent knowledge of behavior and their understanding of the function of their child’s problem behavior. Moreover, whether a parent’s understanding of the function of their child’s behavior is affected by certain variables (parent knowledge of behavior principles, knowledge of function, income level, education level, child birth order, and number of parenting years) was examined. Results indicate that knowledge of behavioral principles and general knowledge of function are significantly correlated and can be predicted by parent education and income level. Moreover, evidence has shown both knowledge of behavioral principles and general knowledge of function to be related to a parent’s ability to identify their child’s behavior function similarly to a functional behavior assessment questionnaire. Implications of these findings may highlight the importance of a specific training workshop for parents on knowledge of behavioral principles and function in order to increase their ability to intervene with their child’s behavior.
Recommended Citation
Nazarian, Ronnit, "Importance of Knowledge of Behavior in Predicting Parent Perception of Problem Behaviors" (2020). Theses and Dissertations. 42.
https://scholar.stjohns.edu/theses_dissertations/42