PURPOSE The aim of this study was to explore the relationship of being from low-income families on children's behavior problems and obesity. METHODS The research design was a descriptive survey study, and the participants were 197 children from low-income families who took part in activities at a local children's center. They were selected through convenience sampling. The participants completed a questionnaire, BASC-2 (Behavior Assessment System for Children). RESULTS The results are as follows: 22.3% had obesity, a rate higher than that of children in general. Further, 37.3% had attention deficit problems, 33.8% had problems adapting to school and 49% had other adaption problem. There was a gender-specific difference with respect to all of the behavior problems. CONCLUSION The results of this study indicate a lack of an identified child policy for behavior problems and health, and suggest a need for various programs and policies which could lead to development of behavior screening programs for children from low-income families.
PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to identify the factors of child behavioral problems and construct a descriptive model that explains child behavioral problems for school age children. METHOD The participants in the study were 586 4th, 5th, 6th graders and their mothers. The children attended 8 elementary schools located in Taejon city and their mothers.
The tools used in this study was the Mother's Child Raising Behavior Scale by Park, Seong-Yeon and Yi, Sook(1990). To measure child's self esteem, the Self Esteem Scale by Kim(1987) was used; child perceived social support was measured with the Social Support Evaluation Scale by Dubow and Ullman(1989), and childhood behavioral problems were measured with the Korean standardized of version of the Korean-Child Behavior Checklist(K-CBCL)(1997). Descriptive statistics and linear structural relationship(LISREL) modeling were used to analyze the data. SAS and LISREL 8.12a programs were used. RESULTS The overall fit of the hypothetical model to the data was good < chi-square=103.07(p=0.00), GFI=0.96, AGFI=0.94, RMSR=0.04, RMSEA= 0.07, NFI=0.94, NNFI=0.95 > Maternal child raising behaviors(T=2.21) and child perceived social support(T=10.29) had a significant, direct effect on a child's self esteem. Maternal child raising behaviors(T=-3.87), and child self esteem(T=-2.04) and had a significant total effect on child behavioral problems. These variables accounted for 63 % of the variance of the child behavioral problems in the school age children. CONCLUSION These finding have provided support for maternal child raising behaviors, child perceived social support, and child self esteem as predictive variables of behavioral problems in school age children.