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Adolescents With Craniofacial Anomalies: Psychosocial Adjustment as a Function of Self-Concept.

Bilboul MJ, Pope AW, Snyder HT

Dr. Bilboul is with the Psychology Department, and Dr. Pope is Associate Professor, Psychology Department, St. John's University, Jamaica, New York. Dr. Snyder is Assistant Professor, Psychology Department, Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, Edinboro, Pennsylvania.

Objective: To evaluate associations between self-concept and psychosocial adjustment among adolescents with craniofacial anomalies. Design: Retrospective chart review. Setting: Reconstructive plastic surgery department in urban medical center. Participants: Forty-nine adolescents with congenital craniofacial anomalies, aged 14 to 18 years, and their parents. Main Outcome Measures: Psychosocial adjustment (internalizing problems and social competence), assessed by self-report and parent-report forms of the Child Behavior Checklist; appearance self-concept and global self-worth, assessed by the Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents. Results: Both appearance self-concept and global self-worth were associated with psychosocial adjustment; however, global self-worth remained associated with adjustment when the effects of appearance self-concept were controlled, whereas appearance self-concept was no longer associated with adjustment when global self-worth was controlled. Demographic variables (ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and adolescent gender) largely failed to moderate the associations between self-concept and adjustment. Conclusions: Adolescent dissatisfaction with appearance is linked to psychosocial adjustment problems only when it is part of a negative overall view of the self.

Published 20 July 2006 in Cleft Palate Craniofac J, 43(4): 392-400.
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