CHAOS AT HOME AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH COGNITIVE ABILITY AND SOCIOEMOTIONAL ADJUSTMENT OF SCHOOL CHILDREN

Abstract

The present research was designed to examine the relationship between home chaos and cognitive ability, socio-emotional adjustment, study skills and academic achievement of school children. The study relied on a sample of 203 children and their mothers. Primary school children (Boys =91, Girls = 112) with an age range of 8-11 years (4th _6th grade) were recruited from Federal Government schools. The teachers were also contacted to give their ratings of children's adjustment. The data was collected from three cities of Pakistan including Rawalpindi (N = 101), Lahore (N = 49), and Karachi (N = 53). Confusion, Hubbub, and Order Scale (CHAOS)Urdu was administered to mothers to assess home chaos. Mothers were also interviewed to get detailed information of their home environment. It was hypothesized that home chaos will be positively associated with behavioral and study problems and will be negatively associated with cognitive ability and adaptive skills of children. To measure children 's socio-emotional adjustment, study skills and cognitive ability Behavioral Assessment System for Children (Parent and Teachers Rating Forms)-BASC-2 and Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices were used respectively. Academic achievement of children was assessed by taking the average of their two consecutive examinations from the archival records of school examination branch. Results demonstrated CHAOS scale-Urdu as a reliable measure of home chaos in Pakistani culture. Behavioral Assessment System for Children (Parent and Teachers Rating Forms)-BASC-2 and Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices were also found reliable. Results indicated significant positive relationship between home chaos and externalizing and internalizing problems of children as reported by their parents and teachers. Significant negative relationship was found between home x chaos, adaptive and study skills of children as perceived by their parents and teachers. Children from chaotic families exhibited significantly low academic achievement. Regression analysis revealed home chaos as a significant predictor of children's socio-emotional adjustment and study skills in both home and school settings. However home chaos was not significantly related to children's cognitive ability. Moreover home chaos was not found as a significant predictor of cognitive ability among children. In line with previous findings boys were found to be more affected by home chaos as compared to girls. It is concluded that a) CHAOS ScaleUrdu version is an economical and reliable measure of home chaos in Pakistani culture b) home chaos is associated with multiple behavioral and adaptive problems among children as perceived by their parents and teachers c) home chaos is significantly associated with low academic achievement among children d) home chaos is not associated with cognitive ability of children, and e) boys from chaotic families exhibited more behavioral and adaptive problems as compared to the girls from similar families.