The adult who is an only child: achieving separation or individuation.

60 women and 60 men between the ages of 18 and 45 years (M = 30.5, SD = 9.6) were categorized by sex, age, and birth order (only child, firstborn, lastborn) to assess the differences among the adult only-child, the youngest child, and the oldest child in autonomous characteristics and cohesiveness in family interaction. Analysis of the responses on a biographical data sheet, the California Psychological Inventory, and the Family Adaptability Cohesion Scales III showed that main effects for birth order and sex are significant in the process of separation-individuation and that the only child is less autonomous than the oldest child.

Bereavement support groups for school-age children: theory, intervention, and case example.

Children's bereavement support groups can provide useful surrogate support for families when a parent dies, and may contribute new social meaning for this traumatic event. Theories and techniques for intervention in such groups are presented and their application illustrated via a clinical case history. Results indicate that categorization of children's bereavement should be abandoned in favor of conceptualization in terms of prior adaptation processes.

Self-concepts of adolescent siblings of children with mental retardation.

Self-concepts of 70 adolescent siblings of children with profound levels of mental retardation were investigated. Their mean self-concept was compared with a matched group of 70 adolescent siblings of children without profound levels of retardation. Using the Tennessee Self-concept Scale, two variables (maternal self-concept and siblings' self-concept) were assessed for differences between siblings and mothers (the target group) of mentally retarded children and siblings and mothers (the comparison group) of children without mental retardation. No significant mean difference between the two groups suggests no special difficulties in psychosocial adjustment for siblings of the mentally retarded.