RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN TRAUMATIC EVENTS, CHILDRENS GENDER, AND POLITICAL ACTIVITY, AND PERCEPTIONS OF PARENTING STYLES

The associations between traumatic events, children's gender and polit ical activity, and parenting styles were examined among 108 Palestinia ns of 11-12 years of age. The results showed that the more the childre n were exposed to traumatic events, the more they perceived both their parents as strictly disciplining, rejecting, and hostile, and their m others as more negatively evaluating. The boys perceived both their pa rents as treating them more negatively than the girls did. Affectionat e parenting, such as intimacy and love, for its part, was not associat ed with traumatic events, and did not vary according to the child's ge nder or political activity. The gender of the child affected the assoc iation between traumatic events, political activity, and perceived par enting. Traumatic events increased perceived parental rejection and ho stility only among the boys, and perceived strict disciplining only am ong the girls. Although politically active children perceived both of their parents as more negative in general, in the families exposed to a high level of traumatic events, passive boys perceived their fathers as more rejecting and hostile than active boys did. It is suggested t hat mothers and fathers rear girls restrictively and with greater atte ntion, and boys with rejection, when the family faces traumatic events . In exposed families, fathers also tend to discourage boys' political passivity and apparently encourage activity.