Macarthur stem story battery: narrativas infantis como acesso às representações mentais

Abstract

MacArthur Stem Story Battery: Child Narratives as Access to Mental Representations The objective of this study was to identify and compare the mental representations of abused and non-abused children based on MSSB narratives, and to evaluate the initial psychometric properties of such instrument. Ninety school age children, from 6-10 years old (M=8.0), participated in the study, of which 30 were victims of mistreatment and 60 were non-victims. The instruments used were the SDQ and MSSB. Mental representations of abused children were portrayed as more negative when compared to non-abused ones, with more aggressive characteristics indicating low emotional regulation and impulsivity in the face of conflicting situations, and more insecure and ineffective care figures. Some items of the MSSB also evidenced an ability to discriminate the groups in a significant way, in addition to presenting good reliability indices. The narratives are shown as a useful resource for the evaluation and planning of therapeutic interventions with these children. Development of new national studies is recommended in order to improve valid techniques and to understand representations in the field of child violence.