Table Of ContentTHE MENTAL GROWTH OF CHILDREN FROM THE,.LOW SOCIO-ECONOMIC
LEVELS IH RELATION-■TO; CEHTME .'EHi'FERSaTlALS
OF HOME INFLUENCE . .....
m . i a ^ &
w
Ramona Wallace
A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for th© degree of Doctor of Philosophy
in th© Department of Child Welfare, in the
Graduate College of the State
University of Iowa
May, 1942
ProQuest Number: 10592889
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ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Th© writer expresses her appreciation
to Dr* Harold M. Skeels, the director of this
stuciy, for his generous assistance and advice#
Grateful acknowledgment is made also of th© inter
est of Miss Laura L* Taft, Director* and Dr* Emma
McCloy Layman, Supervisor of the Section of Psycho
logical Services, of the Division of Child Welfare
Services in th© State Department of Social Welfare,
in making available for research purposes the case
records used In this study*
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter Page
I Purpose and Background of S t u d y * * 1
Statement" of Problem • * • • • • • • * 1
Background of Problem * • * • • • • * • 3
Age and Ordinal Position of Siblings as
Related to XQ« * » * ♦ # » » • * * 3
Environmental Change as It Affects IQ • • • 13
II Source and Collection of Data * # * . . * * 1 8
Child Welfare Service Program . . . . . . 18
Criteria for th© Selection of Subjects * . « 21
Procedure • * • • * • • • • • * • • 2 1
Hating of Homes as to Intelligence Level. • * 22
III Family Background * * * • * • • * • * * 2 8
Description of Homes 28
Economic Status . . . . . . . . . . 28
Occupations of Parents * * • * * • • * 2 9
National Background * * . * • • * • * 3 1
Age of Parents* • • • • • • • • • • 3 1
Educational Status of Parents* • * • * * 32
Intelligence Test Data on Parents • • * * 33
Status of Homes • • • • • • • • • • 3 4
Size of Slbshlp . . . • * * * • • • 3 6
Subjects Not in Own Homes When Examined * • * 38
IV Results of Initial Examination * • • * * . * 40
Description of Subjects • • • • • • • • 4 0
Intelligence Test Results . . . . . . . 42
Mean IQ and Age • • • • • « • • • • 45
Sibling Differences In IQ * * • • • * * 48
Description of Subjects in Terms of Home
Categories • • • * * . • • * • • • 5 0
Mean IQ by Age for Children from High and
Low Level Homes................♦ • * • * 5 1
Effect of Home Level on Differences Between
Sibling Pairs. ................... . 5 4
Summary • • • • * • * * • • * • 5 4
— ill •*
TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued)
Chapter Pag©
V T@st**R©test Comparisons • • * • • * . * • 5 6
Location of Subjects When Re-examined • • * • 59
Institutionalized Croup * * . * * • • * GO
Foster Home Group • • • • • • • • • • 6 2
Own Home Group * . • * . . . * . * # 6 8
Relation of Placement and Home Level to IQ
Change • • * « * * * • * 7 0
Summary • • * • • • • • • • • • • 8 1
Findings from Repeated Examination * • * * * 82
Sibships Showing Large Amounts of IQ Change • • 84
VI Summary* • • • • • • • • • • • • . • 8 8
Bibliography » * • • * • • • • • • • • 91
Appendix A. • • • • • « • « • • * • • • 9 6
Appendix B# • « * • • • • * • • • • • • 102
Appendix C# • • • « • « • • • • • * • 107
- iv -
TABLE OF FIGURES
Figure Page
1 Decline in I*Q* With Age,, Skeels and Fillmore
Study and Present Study • • • • • • • • 46
2 Decline in I.Q* With Age (2 Tear Intervals)
For Homes of Different Level • • • • • • 53
v -
TABLE OF TABLES
fables Page
1 Chronological Age at First Test* • « • • * * * 41
2 IQ Distribution for 1916 Revision and Form L
and Form M of stanf ord«*BInet •* • *• ♦ * • * « • 43
3 IQ at First Test (Form L, Form M, 1916 Stanford*
Binet * * * # • « * • • « « » • * 44
4 Mean IQ by GA at First Test * * * * * * * * * 47
5 Mean IQ by Age for Homes of Different Levels* 52
6 Initial Age and IQ of Children in Own Homes and
Foster Homes for Baoh Home Level* * * * * * * 71
7 Initial CA and Final XQ of Children Above 70 IQ
In Own Homes and Foster Homes for Bach Level
of Home • • « * • • * « « « » * • * • • • • • 74
© Initial and Final Mean IQ and IQ Change for All
Groups* • • « * • « • * * * * • • • • • • • • 76
9 Initial and Final Mean XQ for Slbships Showing
Large Amounts of Change • » * • • * # • • • • 86
~ vl «•
Chapter I
PURPOSE A m BACKGROUND OF STUDY
Statement of Problem
This study Is an Inquiry Into the Influence
upon measured Intelligence, over a period of time, of
certain characteristics of the home environment of the
child# Repeated investigations have established the
fact that school-age children from the low socio-economic
levels have a lower mean IQ than children from the higher
levels# Moreover, some evidence has been presented to
indicate that the mean IQ of children from homes of low
socio-economic status tends to decrease with ago* Th©
significance of these findings from the standpoint of
education and sociology, Justifies a more detailed study
of the whole problem in order to reveal, if possible,
something of th© conditions which may be related to this
difference In intelligence.
A fundamental assumption of this study can be
stated as follows. The low socio-economic levels of our
society may include not only individuals who have been
prevented by actual mental deficiency from competing
successfully in the economic world, but those who have
remained at or regressed to these levels because of
general personal Inadequacy, physical handicaps, lack
of specialised training, and th© like. Presumably
children from these two different types of parental
background— that is, the definitely inferior and the
more nearly average from the standpoint of Intelligence—
will show different mental growth trends, a fact which
may be obscured in the all-inclusive study on the basis
of socio-economic level alone. Furthermore, th© ques
tion follows whether children who have been removed from
these two types of home background situation may there
after show changes in mental growth pattern*
The three major questions raised are:
1* Are previous findings of a decline in
measured Intelligence with continued residence
in a culturally poor environment confirmed by
data from th© population of this study?
2* What differences In rat© of mental
growth exist at th© low socio-economic levels
between children whose parents are Inferior
according to qualitative criteria of Intel
lectual status and children whose parents are
more nearly average?
3. Does a change in environment, brought
about by removal from their own homes and place
ment In boarding homes, result in any change in
the rat© of mental growth of such children?
This study draws upon social and psychological
records of families for th© investigation of fches© problems.
** 3 **
Th© data used were taken from th.© files of th© Section
0f Psychological Services in the Division of Child Wel
fare Services of the State Department of Social Welfare.
On© hundred forty-five sibshipe composed of 436 children
ar© involved. The principal approaches to the problem
which are utilised are (a) the analysis of the data on
intelligence and IQ change by age for the whole group
and for certain subgroups, and (b) the rating of the
families as to Intelligence level and the analysis of
retest data on this basis for children in their own
homes and for children removed from their homes to
foster homes*
Background of Problem
Th© characteristics of the mental development
of children who have experienced relatively constant en
vironments throughout their lives have been described In
the succession of researches in this area published during
th© past twenty-five years* For purposes of the present
study, It will be sufficient to state the generalizations
these researches have yielded which have bearing here.
(Reviewed in 38, 33, 30)
1. Within a relatively small time Interval
Class than on© year), test and retest scores from
individual tests of intelligence on uns©lect©&
