Effects of Economic Strain and Family Conflict on Children's Adjustment : Focused on Interaction Effects of Children's Stress and Coping Strategies

경제적 곤란과 가족갈등이 아동의 적응에 미치는 영향: 아동의 스트레스와 스트레스 대처방식의 상호작용을 중심으로

This study examined the effects of children's perceived stress of economic strain, resulting family conflict, and stress coping strategies on their adjustment. Dimensions of children's adjustment studied in this research were problem behaviors (aggression, delinquency, withdrawal and anxiety depression) and school adjustment. Interaction effects between children's stress variables and coping strategies on the adjustment were also explored. 1,115 fifth to eighth graders from Chungbuk regions participated in self-administered structured questionnaires. Data were processed with SPSS PC 10.0 statistical package. Results were: First, the level of children's problem behaviors and school adjustment indicated differences according to their academic achievement, gender, and their age. Middle schoolers with rather low grade average reported higher level of aggression, delinquency, withdrawal and that of depression/anxiety. Boys tended to be more prone to external problems while girls to internal problems. Second, stresses originated from children's perceived economic strain and family conflicts showed consistent meaningful explanatory power on adjustment. Boys' adjustment was influenced by stress from economic strain and family conflict while girls by family conflict and academic achievements. The support seeking coping strategy among others was the most popularly employed coping strategy of children followed by aggressive coping strategy. In boys' cases, interaction effects of stress and coping strategies were significant in all of the adjustment variables, the more frequent the use of support seeking coping strategies, the lower the problem behavior, while interaction effect of family conflict stress and support seeking coping strategies played the opposite significant role in girls' cases. Further research efforts are required. Research results suggest; when developing a program facilitating children's adjustment, training on stress coping strategies should be considered as a potent new arena of interest.

본 연구는 아동이 인지한 가정의 경제적 곤란과 가족갈등 스트레스가 문제행동과 학교적응에 미치는 영향을 아동의 스트레스와 대처방식 간의 상호작용에 관심을 두고 접근하였다. 자료는 C도에 거주하는 12세-15세의 아동 1,200명에 대한 설문조사를 통해 수집, 최종적으로 1,115부를 통계분석하였다. 자료분석결과, 아동의 문제행동과 학교적응에 차이를 가져오는 일반적 특성은 아동의 성, 학년과 성적이 대표적이었고, 가족유형에 따른 차이는 없었다. 경제적 곤란과 가족갈등 스트레스는 적응에 유의한 변수로 나타났으나 성에 따라 차이가 있어 남아는 내 외현화 문제행동에 경제적 곤란과 가족갈등이 영향을 미쳤으나 여아의 내재화 문제행동에는 경제적 곤란의 영향력은 유의하지 않았다. 상호작용에서도 남아의 경우 모든 적응문제에 스트레스 변인과 대처방식의 상호작용효과가 유의하였으며, 여아의 경우에는 공격성, 비행 및 불안 우울에서만 상호작용효과가 유의하게 나타났다. 아동의 스트레스 대처방식이 부적응 예방 프로그램의 한 영역으로서 연구 개발될 필요성이 논의되었다.