ROLE OF PARENTAL ANGER IN LOW-INCOME WOMEN - DISCIPLINE STRATEGY, PERCEPTIONS OF BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS, AND THE NEED FOR CONTROL

Examined anger and other variables known to be related to physical abu se by describing common child-rearing challenges to 199 low-income mot hers and observing relations among their responses. Maternal anger var ied extensively across the situations explored, and it was significant ly related to the use of physical discipline in one third of the situa tions sampled. Anger was also positively related to perceived frequenc y of child behavior problems, and tendency to use physical discipline increased with number of perceived behavior problems. Child behaviors that underlined a challenge to the mothers' control (e.g., defiance or disobedience of a direct command) provoked the most anger. The implic ations of these findings for abuse prevention and positive parenting i nterventions for low-income families are discussed.