Open AccessEconomic Status, Community Danger and Psychological Problems Among South African Children
Author(s) -
Oscar A. Barbarin,
Linda Richter
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
childhood
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.966
H-Index - 60
eISSN - 1461-7013
pISSN - 0907-5682
DOI - 10.1177/0907568201008001007
Subject(s) - poverty , socioeconomic status , psychology , aggression , anxiety , generalizability theory , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , demography , psychiatry , population , sociology , political science , law
An extensive literature links community violence and poverty in the US to psychological difficulties in children. To test the cross-national generalizability of these relationships, 625 young, South African mothers residing in black townships with different levels of community danger and material hardship rated their 6-year-olds on emotional functioning and behavioral problems. Most mothers were African, employed and of low educational attainment. Community danger was confirmed as a risk factor for anxiety, depression, aggression, opposition and low affability in children. A composite measure of socioeconomic status as indexed by education and job status was unrelated to behavioral and emotional adjustment. However, children experiencing material hardship had fewer problems related to behavioral self-control than children in families with greater access to material resources.