Rhiannon Rhodes
A study was done to test the effects of the kibbutz child-rearing system on the development of the child's personality. When compared to an ordinary family, there were fewer adults per child in the kibbutz setting. The researchers considered this "deprivation" and had questions regarding this "deprivation". There were five questions they looked at during this study. They were:
1. Was the kibbutz child competent?
2. Does the kibbutz child show less creativity?
3. Does the child show a capacity for impulse control?
4. Can the child form and maintain close interpersonal relationships?
5. What is the kibbutz child's capacity to feel guilt?
When selecting a group of children to compare the kibbutz children to, they selected children from the same boarder Israeli culture. They selected from a group called the moshavim, which had similar backgrounds, similar cultures and occupations. The difference was the child-rearing system. The final group of children interviewed and tested was 92 kibbutz and 79 nonkibbutz.
To study the infants, there were two stand assessments used. They were the Vineland Social Maturity Scale and the Griffith Mental Development Scale. The results were:
1. Kibbutz infants scored lower on both assessments.
2. A deficiency was noted on the "personal-social" subset of the Griffith test in the kibbutz infants.
For the 10-year-olds the results were:
1. "...the kibbutz children are at least as well developed as, and to some extent surpass, the nonkibbutz children" (Rabin and Beit-Hallahmi, 1982).
2. Ego strength, adjustment and emotional maturity favored the kibbutz children.
3. Kibbutz children showed lower oedipal intensity in their attachment to their parents. There was greater diffusion in their objects of identification. There was a greater unconscious hostility level towards their parents then the other group. There was less sibling rivalry.
When comparing the groups, there were more similarities than differences. There was no difference in intelligence in the adolescent groups. Both groups seemed to be competent and coping individuals.
