Psycho-Social Roles of Mennonite Children in a Changing Society*
M I N A K O K U R O K A W A / YorkUniversity
Les enfants mennonites, ClevCs dans un monde is016 qui est en voie de transfor- mations constantes pour relever les dC& de la sociCtC globale, doivent assumer des r8les qui sont psychologiquement et sociologiquement complexes.
Des observations effectuCes sur des enfants appartenant B trois groupes menno- nites d86rents - traditionnel, transitoire, progressif - indiquent clairement que l’influence sur les enfants varie en fonction de la grandeur des diffkrences qui existent entre chaque groupe mennonite et la sociCtC plus large.
L‘impact d’un conflit culture1 est le plus nettement visible dans le groupe en transition. Les parents dans ce groupe Ctaient plus susceptibles d’utiliser des mC- thodes autoritaires vis-his leurs enfants et de manquer de continuit6 dam l’exer- cice de la discipline. En retour, leurs enfants avaient tendance B manifester une inconsistance ldans les valeurs, un sentiment d‘insuffisance, et des sympt6mes implicites de mksadaptation.
Mennonite children, reared in an isolated world which constantly changes to meet challenges from the outside society, must assume roles which are extremely com- plex psychologically and sociologically.
Observations of children belonging to three different Mennonite groups - tra- ditional, transitional, and progressive - show that the consequences for children varied according to the breadth of difference existing between each Mennonite group and the outside society.
The effect of cultural conflict was most clearly seen in the transitional group. Parents of this group were likely to be authoritarian to their children and incon- sistent in disciplining. Their children, in turn, tended to show value inconsistency, a sense of inadequacy, and covert symptoms of maladjustment.
As Mennonite children are brought up in a social world which constantly changes to meet challenges from the outside society, they play extremely complex roles. How do they adjust to the demands of their own group, which are by no means stable, and the contlicting norms being introduced from out- side? What roles do they play in relation to their parents, teachers, and peers? In the face of pressures arising from conflicting or changing norms and role expectations, do they maintain stability and integration of personality, or do they show symptoms of mental disturbance? To answer such questions, re- search was undertaken among children of three Mennonite groups represent- ing different stages of orthodoxy - traditional, transitional, and progressive - residing in Waterloo County, Ontario.
* A part of the comparative study on acculturation and mental health, supported by the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health (NH 12600-01) and by the Ontario Mental Health Foundation (OMHF 210).
Rev. canad. Soc. & Anth./Canad. Rev. Soc. & Anth. 6(1)1969 15
B A C K G R O U N D
Mennonite Value System Although Mennonites are a religious group distinguished from others by their dominant value orientation (Kohorgen, 1942; Hostetler, 1963) and their isolationism (Yoder, 1941; Murdie, 1965:211-233; Freed, 195755- 681, they are not a single religio-cultural group with a common set of beliefs and social practices. While Mennonites share some beliefs, activities, and traditions, they range from being extremely conservative in belief and non- conformist in behaviour to being completely assimilated to the society around them (Fretz, 1967:12). Among Ontario Mennonites there are 17 distinct groups. Waterloo County, with an estimated Mennonite population of 14,000 in 1967, has at least twelve groups (Fretz, 1967:8) (Chartr).
CHART I MENNONITE A N D AhfISH MENNONITE ORDERS IN WAlTRLOO COUNTY*
Amish Mennonite Conference of Ontario
Amish Mennonite Cedar Grove Amish Non-tractor group [ Tractor group
i Old Order Amish
Russian Mennonite h Reformed Mennonites
Mennonites Mennonite Conference General Conference Mennonite 1 Cressman-Grove Group4960 of Ontario
Old Order
Conference
Conservative Mennonites
*From Murdie (1961: 24, Figure 5).
In the present study, the Mennonites of Waterloo County are classified as traditional, transitional, or progressive. The traditionalists are the Old Order Mennonites who interpret the Bible literally and have developed institutional norms. They consider themselves peculiar and lead a peculiar life, for the Bible says that God’s people are peculiar and do not conform to this world. Deviations from the prescribed Mennonite behaviour are censured as the sin of pride. They do not participate in commercial entertain- ment; neither do they own radios, telephones, automobiles, or electric appli- ances. Money is valued only for the purpose of acquiring land and the neces- sities of life. A primary objective of the agriculture of Old Order Mennonites is to accumulate enough money to keep all their offspring on farms. Prestige 16
depends on competence and success in farming. A person who is successful as both a church leader and farmer is ranked high.
The transitional group, exemplified by Waterloo-Markham Conference Mennonites? has modified certain institutional norms to adapt to modem society. Its members retain the basic Mennonite belief system, and do not consider material success as a goal, but they accept the idea of technological efficiency. Instead of horses and buggies, they use cars with the chrome painted black. They use tractors, telephones, and electricity. Women do not wear shawls. However, they do not allow education beyond the age of 14, since education dects ways of thinking as well as ways of behaving.
The progressive group, seen in the Mennonite Conference of Ontario, has adapted itself further to the values and norms of the larger society. Its members accept the cultural goals of success and efficiency, and conform to the behaviour patterns of the larger society by using cars, tractors, telephones, and electricity, and by encouraging higher education. They do not try to be separate from the world, and interpret Mennonite principles in a contem- porary framework.
The Family us a Socializing Agent To understand how the individual comes to abide by such value orientations and ensuing ~iorms regulating behaviour, it is necessary to look at the role of the family in socialization and social control. The family is extremely strong among the Mennonites (Augsburger, 1965: 192-203; Houghton, 1932; Gutkind, 1952) and its success as a socializing agent is primarily due to the sacred quality attributed to it. Strict obedience to parents is a religious duty, and if religious authority is not enough, Mennonite children soon learn that a sound thrashing is the reward for rebellion.
Social control presupposes self-control. Sociologically, self-control means the capacity of an individual to abide by the norms of his society without direct coercion. It means that the individual has internalized the norms so that they now constitute a part of his personality. The constraining force is guilt or shame experienced whenever one violates or tends to violate a norm.
Adjustment of Mennonite Children Within a stable, well-integrated, and highly structured social system, indi- viduals are sificiently sheltered and guided to make generalized anxiety re- actions rare. Nevertheless, sectarian social systems are not always free from tensions and strain. Although free-floating anxiety and severe and extreme overt manifestations of psychopathology are rare among Hutterites, mental disturbances are not absent (Eaton and Wed, 1955). Hutterites tend to internalize rather than project or act out their difficulties. In individuals who have acquired a strong super-ego and who participate in a well-integrated
1 The Markham Conference group belongs to the Old Order and Wider affiliation. For details of their boundaries, see John C. Wenger (1959a:108-131; 1959b:215-240). 17
social system which gives them considerable economic, psychic, affectional, and social support, psychological problems can exist without being expressed through anti-social acts. Neurotic Hutterites are reported to react to most stresses with signs of depression rather than with anxiety symptoms such as obsessive or paranoid tendencies. Eaton and Weill noticed children with habit disturbances, such as nail-biting, enuresis, and thumb-sucking. There are also conduct problems such as temper tantrums, quarrelsomeness, dis- obedience, untruthfulness, and cruelty to animals. These behavioural devia- tions were not, however, regarded as major problems by Hutterite adults.
Gutkind (1952) observed that apparently well-behaved, obedient, quiet, and joyful Amish children became aggressive as he developed rapport with them. In play, the children soon manifested a roughness and viciousness hardly equalled by city children. They also showed aggression by treating animals with cruelty, by having dreams about killing family members, and so on.
The discussion so far has dealt with individuals within a social system as- sumed to be stable and integrated. However, any society constantly adapts to its environment and to the needs of its members. Where value conflict results from social change, its consequences may take the form of increased incidence of mental disorder (Opler, 1959; Leighton, et al., 1957. Studies of folk society and mental disorder seem to support Freud’s hypothesis that civilization is ac- companied by increased neurosis, although Freud’s explanation that prelite- rates have less repression of original drives is unacceptable, since they frequently seem to have more. The crucial factor is their cultural consensus on types and modes of control. With little room for alternatives, a tribal member can accept and internalize controls and feel comfortable about it; if he suffers, all suffer alike. Karen Homey and Reed Bain advanced the analysis further by asserting that it is the incompatibility rather than the number of demands made on the individual in society that increases emotional disturbances (Schermerhom, 1955 :42-60).
Schroeder and Beegle (1955:408-419) suggested that the high suicide rate of rural males is derived from the frustration and personal disorganiza- tion resulting from the conflict between rural and urban values. Their data indicate that rural males have experienced a conflict in values and that many rural residents who commit suicide in Michigan are actually urban-oriented in terms of occupational pursuits. Fringe-dwellers swell the rural suicide rate. The decision to commit suicide may have its origin in an incomplete recon- ciliation of rural and urban values.
Thiessen ( 1966:48-61) observed that mentally disturbed Mennonites are usually characterized by strong guilt feelings and ambivalence toward parental and religious values. An extensive study of Hutterites (Eaton and Weill, 1955) has also pointed out that religious conflicts are important fac- tors in the manifestation of mental disorders.
It can be expected, therefore, that Mennonite children who suffer from value conflict are likely to show symptoms of mental disturbance. 18
RESEARCH M E T H O D
The study population comprised all the Mennonite children around age ten residing in the County of Waterloo. Names were obtained from the list pre- pared by the county property assessment bureau which identified property owners, their religion, occupation, and family composition by age and sex.
As the random sample drawn from the assessment list would have included only a small number of traditional Mennonites, since progressive Mennonites were far more numerous than traditional Mennonites in this county, a strati- fied sample was necessary. In the absence of a comprehensive listing of Men- nonites by church order, the sample had to be selected by other means. For the rural area. where traditional Mennonites are concentrated, a geographical mapping of Mennonite farms by church order was the basis of a random sample of traditional (Old Order) , transitional (Markham) , and progressive (Mennonite Conference of Ontario) group^.^ For the urban area, a random sample from church members with children belonging to the three most pro- gressive churches, as rated by ministers, in the cities of Kitchener and Water- loo, was drawn (Table I ) . An initial contact with traditional Mennonites was
TABLE I SAMPLING DISTRIBUTION
Desired sample
Male Female Total
Old Order 80 80 160 Markham 8 0 80 160 Rural progressive 80 80 160 Urban progressive 80 80 160
320 320 640 - - -
-
No. of Response successful rate
cases ( %) 107 67 100 62 117 13 136 85
460 12 - -
made through ministers. A total of 460 children and their mothers were suc- cessfully approached, which was 72 per cent of the desired sample. The re- sponse rate ?was highest in the urban progressive group and lowest in the transitional group.
As parents and school board among Old Order and Markham Conference Mennonites were reluctant to have their children interviewed either at home or at school, .the child was instructed to fill in the questionnaire3 by himself in a separate room, while the mother was being interviewed at home. Parents did not object to their children’s taking a simple test.
RESEARCH FINDINGS
Parental Integration into Mennonite Social System Parental integration is measured by (1) the degree of acceptance of the
2 Prepared b!y Robert A. Murdie, University of Waterloo. 3 This questionnaire prepared for children consisted of questions largely derived from
the Mooney Problem Check List and the California Test of Personality. 19
dominant value orientation and (2) the degree of isolation from the non- Mennonite world.
Acceptance of Dominant Value System The honesty of responses concerning acceptance or rejection of dominant Mennonite values is hard to assess, since deviance is not tolerated in this closed society. Two scales were developed to measure the degree to which the individual conforms to the prescribed ways of Mennonite life, labelled “Mennonitism” and the degree to which he lives in a religious manner, called “religiosity” (Bardis, 1961). The former consists of such items as the use of electricity, special clothes, acceptance of social security, participation in war, whereas the latter is concerned with the frequency of church attendance, prayer, scripture reading, and so on.
By definition, there is a high correlation between Mennonitism and Men- nonite groups of traditional, transitional, and progressive orders (Table 11) , since the adaptive change by church orders has mainly taken the form of adopting the exterior ways of life of the outside world. The scores on the religiosity scale, on the other hand, did not differentiate church orders. Pro- gressives as well as traditional Mennonites read the Bible, prayed, attended church frequently, and were deeply involved in religious practices.
Isolationism SOCIAL DISTANCE.‘ Mennonites conceive themselves as peculiar people; their norm is not to be yoked to non-believers. Traditional Mennonites, therefore, are likely to feel greater social distance, as measured by the Bogar- dus scale, from non-Mennonites than from progressive Mennonites. The findings provide some support for the hypothesis (Table n) , although mem- bers of the transitional group rather than the traditional group express the greatest distance from non-Mennonites.
As the transitional Mennonites were the least co-operative with interviewers and were reluctant to make contact with outsiders, they are consistent in seeing great social distance separating them from non-Mennonites. Transi- tional Mennonites, who have begun an adaptive change by using electricity and the automobile, may feel more threatened than traditional Mennonites by outside forces and so they respond by adopting a more isolationist orientation.
ALIENATION. Three dimensions of alienation as conceptualized by Dean (1961:753-757), Nettler (1957:670-677), and Keedy (1958:34-37) are used in this study: isolation, powerlessness, and normlessness (Table 11).
4 Imgard Thiessen (1966:48-61) reports that the attitudes toward non-Mennonites by 202 college students were neutral (8 per cent), feeling freer with non-Mennonite (9 per cent), marked difference (39 per cent), and inferior feeling (13 per cent). See also Just (1952) who reports that “Orthodox Mennonites have attitudes of farness from others more than progressive Mennonites”; “Mennonite students show most social farness to non-Mennonite religious groups, less to ethnic groups, and least to Mennonite groups”; and “Mennonite college students do not reveal more social farness than do non-Mennonite college students.” See also Frank C. Peters (1959). 20
~~
~~~~
~
TA
BL
E I1
PA
RE
NT
AL
IN
TE
GR
AT
ION
INT
O M
EN
NO
NIT
E S
OC
IAL
SY
STEM
BY
SEX
OF
TH
E C
HIL
D A
ND
CH
UR
CH
OR
DE
R
Mal
e F
emal
e
(Chu
rch
orde
r')
(Chu
rch
orde
r)
0.0
. M
arkh
am
Rur
al
Urb
an
0.0
. M
arkh
am
Rura
l U
rban
A
ttrib
ute
(53)
(5
0)
(57)
(6
0)
(54)
(5
0)
(60)
(76)
Men
noni
tism
6.
68'
6.60
3.
96
3.38
6.
70
6.62
3.
72
3.26
R
elig
iosi
ty
6.30
5.
98
5.89
6.
52
6.46
6.
12
6.35
6.
33
Soci
al d
ista
nce
5.26
6.
56
4.44
5.
30
5.39
6.
24
4.77
4.
34
Alie
natio
n Is
olat
ion
6.70
6.
94
5.14
4.
78
6.74
6.
22
5.47
4.
70
Pow
erle
ssne
ss
4.08
6.
54
4.61
5.
75
4.28
6.
28
4.43
5.
62
Nor
mle
ssne
ss
5.49
5.
98
4.53
6.
13
5.04
5.
96
4.38
5.
61
1 C
hurc
h or
der:
0.0
.:
Mar
kham
: R
ural
: U
rban
:
Whe
re th
e di
ffer
ence
in m
ean
scor
es c
ompa
red
with
in th
e se
x gr
oup
is g
reat
er th
an th
e fo
llow
ing
valu
es, t
hat d
iffer
ence
is si
gnifi
cant
at
or
beyo
nd th
e 0.
05 le
vel b
y Sc
heffd
's m
ulti-
com
paris
on m
etho
d (1
953:
87-
104)
.
Old
Ord
er M
enno
nite
s (tr
aditi
onal
gro
up)
Mar
kham
Con
fere
nce
Men
noni
tes
(tran
sitio
nal
grou
p)
Men
noni
te C
onfe
renc
e of
Ont
ario
(pro
gres
sive
gro
up in
rura
l are
a)
Men
noni
te C
onfe
renc
e of
Ont
ario
(pro
gres
sive
gro
up in
urb
an a
rea)
2
Inde
x: A
hig
her s
core
indi
cate
s a
grea
ter
amou
nt o
f th
e at
trib
ute.
Mal
e Fe
mal
e
Men
noni
tism
1 .oo
1 .oo
Soci
al d
ista
nce
1.03
1.
17
Isol
atio
n 1.
20
1.18
Po
wer
less
ness
1.
21
1.18
N
orm
less
ness
1.
20
1.18
Although Mennonites as a group are isolated and therefore alienated from the larger society, to the extent that a Mennonite feels integrated into his own subgroup he will not feel anomic or powerless.
Old Order and Markham Conference Mennonites are more likely to feel isolated than progressive Mennonites. Either because of their religious doc- trine of isolation from the secular world or because of frustration at being excluded from the larger society, orthodox Mennonites tend to feel isolated.
The score on isolation alone does not tell whether it connotes positive or negative meaning to the individual. However, powerlessness has a definitely negative implication as it refers to the individual's sense of his inability to control social forces. The data indicate that Markham Conference Mennonites are most likely to feel powerless. Old Order Mennonites, on the other hand, are least likely to feel powerless. That they feel isolated but not powerless seems to indicate stability and integration within their own social system, which is isolated from the larger society.
Progressive Mennonites in rural areas are least likely to feel normless. Urban progressives and Markhams are relatively high on the scale of norm- lessness.
According to Merton's theory of anomie, lower-class people who accept cultural goals but do not have institutionalized means of achieving the goals are likely to suffer from a sense of alienation. Among Old Order and Mark- ham Conference Mennonites, those of higher socio-economic status are more likely to feel normless but less likely to feel powerless than members of the lower class, Among the progressive Mennonites, working-class people are likely to feel powerless and middle-class ones to feel isolated.
Pasental Attitudes toward Children Researchers (Schder, 1961 : 124-126) in the field of parental attitudes and child behaviour have developed a two-dimensional model: autonomy vs con- trol and love vs hatred. The literature also indicates that a combination of love and autonomy is better fitted to child development than other combina- tions. Given autonomy, a child must learn to cope with life situations but under the guidance of loving parent^.^ In the case of Mennonite children, who develop a sense of security from being closely supervised and directed, the integration and stability of personality seems to depend on the combina- tion of love and control.
The two dimensions are translated in this study as the degree of authorita- rianism and of sympathetic understanding of the child. It is hypothesized that traditional Mennonite parents are more likely to take authoritarian atti- tudes toward their children than progressive Mennonites. Authoritarianism (Kalhorn, 1941; Augsburger, 1965) is measured by (1) the amount of free- dom and responsibility parents give to the child, with regard to such matters as evenings out, social events, and friends, and (2) the amount of respect
5 Robert W. White (1959:297-333) sees life as a continuous process of learning to cop with environment. The sense of competence in mastering surroundings gives the child satisfaction and is in itself a motivating factor for further learning. 22
paid to the child’s opinion by his parents with regard to decision-making, disciplining, and so on. In general, the data (Table III) support the hypo- thesis that Old Order and Markham parents are significantly more authorita- rian than progressive ones. Although sex differences are not significant as a whole, Markham parents are significantly more authoritarian to boys than to girls.
The scale of sympathetic understanding measures the extent to which the mother seems to know or understand her child -her level of awareness of him as a person. A highly understanding mother is not only aware of her child’s traits and interests, but also tries to understand the motivation underlying them, and can probably predict fairly accurately how her child would react to a given situation. Scores on this scale did not differentiate mothers by church orders except for Old Order mothers scoring higher than the rest.
If parents who experience value conflicts are likely to be inconsistent in their relation to the child, transitional Mennonites are more likely to show inconsistency in child disciplining than parents who belong to either the traditional or the progressive group. Consistency in disciplining is primarily measured by the child’s observations - whether or not the child feels that parents are fair in disciplining him, consistent from time to time, consistent with regard to severity, and consistent among siblings. As hypothesized, the data show that Markham parents are more likely to be reported as incon- sistent in disciplining than parents of other groups.
Markham parents are revealed as authoritarian toward children and in- consistent in disciplining. Moreover, the correlation between authoritarian- ism and inconsistency in disciplining is high among Markham (Male, r = 0.517; Female, t = 0.446) but low in other groups, suggesting that there is a concentration of parents among Markhams who are authoritarian and incon- sistant in disciplining.
Child Behaviour Patterns
Mental Adjustment The concept of mental health is multi-dimensional and difficult to define (Savage, 1965:21-63; Srole et al., 1962; Gurin et al., 1960; Hallowell, 1950:732-743; Siegel, 1955:42-48). It involves self-perception such as a feeling of adequacy in social roles and acceptance of self, ease of social interaction, and adaptability to stress. If an individual human being is re- garded as a functional unit, with adaptation to life’s circumstances as an important theme in his existence, mental health can be defined as the extent to which the individual is able to maintain integration and stability in his personality system through adaptive changes to his life situation. Operation- ally, mental health is defined as the freedom from psychiatric symptomato- logy and the optimal functioning of the individual in his social setting. Based on this definition, children are divided into well-adjusted and maladjusted groups. Symptoms of maladjustment are classified as overt or covert types. Overt symptoms include such acting out as juvenile delinquency (stealing, 23
drinking, smoking, sex offence), trouble with police, school, or neighbours, temper outbursts, negative, hostile, aggressive behaviour and pathological lying. Covert symptoms are divided into ( 1 ) physical disturbances (such as hay fever, asthma, allergy, stomach upset, headaches, aches and pains, cold, and shortness of breath) ; (2) habit disturbances (such as thumb-sucking, nail-biting, rocking, twitching, trembling, and soiling); and (3) nervous symptoms (nervousness, depression, fear, worry, nightmare, trouble in getting to sleep, and loss of appetite.
It was hypothesized that traditional Mennonite children are likely to show covert symptoms of maladjustment while progressive Mennonites are likely to show overt symptoms and that because of cultural conflict the transitional Mennonite children are most likely to show symptoms of maladjustment. As shown in Table N, the data support the hypothesis that Old Order and
Markham children are more likely than progressive Mennonite children to show covert symptoms. Markham children are most likely, and rural progres- sives least likely, to show covert symptoms.
In each church order, girls are sigdicantly more likely to show covert symptoms of maladjustment than boys. This finding is consistent with those reported by other researchers (Srole et al., 1962; Gurin et al., 1960).
Ego-Strength vs Ego-Weakness The children in this study were characterized in terms of a model of person- ality drawn from the literature (Schaffer, 1961) consisting of the dimensions of ego strength vs ego weakness and extraversion vs introversion, the latter dimension being interpreted as active vs passive interpersonal relations.
SENSE OF ADEQUACY. The child’s sense of adequacy and sense of personal freedom are used to assess the dimension of ego strength vs ego weakness. An individual possesses a sense of being worthy when he feels that he is well regarded by others, that others have faith in his future success, and that he has average or above-average ability. To feel worthy means to feel capable and reasonably attractive. Self-esteem is also determined by acceptance or rejection of one’s being different from others. Particularly for Mennonite children, the sense of being different can give feelings of pride or self-hatred. Some children are troubled by “being talked about, being made fun of,” or “being different,” and as a result feel inadequate.
Although previous research findings (Engle, 1945:543-560; 1943 :206- 214; Stuffle, 1955; Kalhorn, 1941) suggest the hypothesis that progressive Mennonite children are more likely to have a sense of adequacy than tradi- tional Mennonites, our data indicate that rural progressive Mennonite chil- dren scored significantly higher than any other group on the scale of adequacy. Although Old Order and Markham children have slightly lower scores than urban progressives, it was surprising that urban progressives did not score higher than they did. Possibly progressive Mennonite children on the farm do not find non-Mennonite rural children too different, while in the city where the population is heterogeneous, Mennonite children, even if 24
TABL
E I1
1 PA
RENT
AL A
'IT
ITU
DE
S TOWARD C
HIL
DR
EN
BY
SEX O
F T
HE
CH
ILD
AN
D C
HU
RC
H O
RD
ER
Attr
ibut
e
Aut
horit
aria
nism
Sy
mpa
thet
ic
unde
rsta
ndin
g In
cons
iste
ncy i
n di
scip
linin
g A
chie
vem
ent
exue
ctat
ion
Mal
e Fe
mal
e
(Chu
rch
orde
rj
0.0
. M
arkh
am
Rur
al
Urb
an
(53)
(5
0)
(57)
(60)
5.92
' 6.
28
4.49
4.
38
5.68
4.
84
4.61
4.
52
5.49
6.
64
5.18
5.
42
3.74
3.
96
5.30
6.
12
(Chu
rch
orde
rj
0.0
. M
arkh
am
Rura
l U
rban
(5
4)
(50)
(60)
(76)
5.38
5.
40
4.70
4.
51
5.41
5.
18
4.53
4.
36
5.43
6.
56
5.13
5.
66
4.20
3.
92
5.32
6.
20
1 In
dex:
A h
ighe
r sco
re in
dica
tes
a gr
eate
r am
ount
of
the
attri
bute
. Score
rang
e: 1
-9.
Whe
re th
e di
ffer
ence
in m
ean scores c
ompa
red
with
in th
e se
x gr
oup
is g
reat
er th
an th
e fo
llow
ing v
alue
s, th
at d
iffer
ence
is s
igni
fican
t at
or b
eyon
d th
e 0.
05 le
vel b
y Sc
heff
gs m
ulti-
com
paris
on m
etho
d (1
953:
87-1
04).
Mal
e Fe
mal
e
Aut
horit
aria
nism
1.
17
Inco
nsis
tenc
y in
di
scip
linin
g 1.
17
Ach
ieve
men
t ex
pect
atio
n 1.
14
1.09
*No
sign
ifica
nt d
iffer
ence
s be
twee
n m
ean
scor
es.
TAB
LE IV
MEN
TAL
STA
TE A
ND
BE
HA
VIO
R O
F C
HIL
DR
EN
BY
SE
X O
F T
HE
CHILD A
ND
CH
UR
CH
OR
DE
R
Mal
e Fe
mal
e
(Chu
rch
orde
r)
(Chu
rch
orde
r)
0.0
. M
arkh
am
Rur
al
Urb
an
0.0
. M
arkh
am
Rur
al
Urb
an
Attr
ibut
e (5
3)
(501
(5
7)
(60)
(5
4)
(50)
(60)
(76)
Men
tal m
alad
just
men
t O
vert
sym
ptom
s 3.
85'
4.08
4.
33
4.62
3.
13
3.40
3.
60
3.42
C
over
t sym
ptom
s 4.
32
4.76
3.
61
3.87
5.
63
6.08
5.
05
5.26
Pers
onal
free
dom
4.
83
4.78
5.
46
5.45
4.
08
3.98
4.
82
5.41
A
scen
danc
e (a
gain
st su
bmission)
4.51
4.
14
5.39
5.
85
4.94
4.
66
5.05
5.
22
Extra
vers
ion
4.70
4.
72
5.44
5.
01
4.91
4.
02
5.32
5.
86
Val
ue c
onsi
sten
cy
4.43
3.
80
4.96
4.
55
4.81
3.
82
5.07
4.
72
Gui
lt fe
elin
g 5.
85
6.64
5.
02
4.68
6.
24
6.40
5.
58
5.18
Sc
hool
ach
ieve
men
t 4.
98
5.46
5.
04
4.47
4.
89
4.58
4.
58
4.88
Sc
hool
pro
blem
5.
34
5.82
5.
25
6.12
5.
15
4.72
5.
05
5.01
1 In
dex:
A h
ighe
r sc
ore
indi
cate
s a
grea
ter
amou
nt o
f at
trib
ute
inde
xed.
Sco
re r
ange
: 1-
9.
Sens
e of
adeq
uacy
3.
74
3.68
5.
67
4.08
3.
26
3.32
4.
80
3.74
Whe
re th
e di
ffer
ence
in m
ean scores c
ompa
red
with
in th
e se
x gr
oup
is g
reat
er th
an th
e fo
llow
ing
valu
es, t
hat d
iffer
ence
is si
gnifi
cant
at o
r be
yond
the
0.0
5 le
vel b
y Sc
heffk
's m
ulti-
com
paris
on m
etho
d (1
953 :
87-1
04).
Mal
e Fe
mal
e
Sense
of a
dequ
acy
1.03
1.
03
1.04
Pe
rson
al fr
eedo
m
1.02
Ex
trave
rsio
n V
alue
con
sist
ency
1.
17
1.23
G
uilt
feel
ing
1.10
1.
03
*No
sign
ifica
nt d
iffer
ence
s bet
wee
n m
ean
scor
es.
belonging to the progressive order, find it difficult to associate with diverse groups of people (Table IV) . PERSONAL FREEDOM. An individual enjoys a sense of freedom when he is permitted to have a reasonable share in the determination of his conduct and in setting the general policies that shall govern his life, including permission to choose one’s own friends and to have at least a little spending money. A self-reliant individual can do things independently of others, depend upon himself in various situations, and direct his own activities.
It was hypothesized that progressive Mennonites are more likely to have a sense of personal freedom than traditional or transitional Mennonites. Among boys the differences in scores among church orders are not significant, al- though the relationship is in the hypothesized direction. Among girls, urban progressive Mennonites score significantly higher than any other group. It is noteworthy that in Old Order and Markham groups, boys are more likely to score high on the scale of personal freedom than girls.
ASCENDANCE vs SUBMISSION. Previous research (Engle, 1945; Stuffle, 1955; Kalhorn, 1941) indicates that Mennonite children are more likely than non- Mennonite children to be submissive to authority, to be submissive in peer group relations, and to report that other children are mean to them, unfair to them, and boss them. Mennonite children are more likely to be followers than leaders, and to find it difficult to influence other people.
While there are no significant differences by church order for girls, the data show that Old Order and Markham boys are more likely to be submissive than progressive Mennonites, providing support for the hypothesis that tra- ditional Mennonite children are more likely to be submissive than progressive ones. It may be that boys, who, unlike girls are expected to play a dominant role, feel themselves or appear to be particularly submissive when they have to play the role of a minority group member. However, the unexpected ab- sence of any significant or consistent differences in scores between boys and girls, suggest that the jinding may result from mothers using different criteria for submissiveness for boys and girls.
Extraversion vs Introversion Mennonite children who are conscious of, and embarrassed by, their daer- ences are likely to be withdrawn from non-Mennonite children and to be introverted. An introverted child is likely to find it difficult to meet or intro- duce people, or to talk to important people or a stranger, and is less likely to have many friends or to participate in planning social activities.
Among boys the difference in extraversion scores are not significant except between Old Order and rural progressives, although the results are in the expected direction, namely, traditional Mennonites are more likely to be introverted than progressive ones. Among girls, traditional and transitional Mennonites, especially Markham girls, are significantly more likely to be introverted than progressive girls. 27
Value Conflict A Mennonite child who is exposed to dBerent and conflicting sets of values iinds it difficult to preserve his personality integration and stability in a single-minded submissive role to God and parents (Engle, 1945; Stuffle, 1955; Kalhorn, 1941). Observing value inconsistencies and being unable to resolve the conflict, he experiences guilt feelings.
VALUE CONSISTENCY. This concept refers to a child‘s ability to integrate different sets of values into a stable system. A Mennonite child is faced with a contradiction between the values of the church, transmitted through the minister and parents, and the values of the larger society, enforced by teachers and peers. If he is able to rank these values according to importance, he does not feel confused, but if he is pulled by two contradictory sets of values of equal strength, his personality loses integration and stability.
Children were asked whether they are puzzled about the meaning of God, confused by some of their religious beliefs, in doubt about the value of wor- ship and prayer, confused on some moral questions, bothered by clash of opinions between themselves and their parents, conscious of contradictions between what they learn at school and at home, and envious of non-Menno- nite children.
As traditional Mennonite children are relatively sheltered from the larger society, they were expected to score higher on the scale of value consistency than others. The data indicate that the transitional group, Markham Confer- ence Mennonites, score lowest on the value consistency scale.
GUILT FEELINGS. When the individual has internalized the norms, he ex- periences a feeling of guilt whenever he violates or tends to violate a norm. Guilt feelings may be expressed in the form of (1) strong self-accusation, (“I believe my sins are unpardonable, I am a condemned person, deserve severe punishment”); (2) specifically localized guilt feelings (‘‘I am not religious enough, not going to church often, unable to feel close to God, am not as good a child as I should be, not living up to my ideal, feel guilty for resenting my father, unable to break out of a bad habit”); and (3) general worry, (“I frequently iind myself worrying about something I have done wrong, afraid that God is going to punish me”).
As traditional Mennonite children are more strongly indoctrinated toward conformity to religious norms and violations are more severely sanctioned, it was expected that traditional Mennonite children would be more likely to have guilt feelings than progressive ones. These children may not openly violate norms, but whenever they feel like violating, they will feel guilty about it. The data indicate that the transitional Markham children are most likely to feel guilty and the differences in scores between them and others are in gen- eral significant. Urban progressive Mennonites are least likely to feel guilty (Table N) .
These data indicate that the transitional Mennonites, whose churches have undertaken an adaptive change by adopting some of the material aspects of the larger society while trying to maintain isolationism, are not very suc- 28
cessful in coping with problems on the level of individual personality. Adults as well as children experience value inconsistency and guilt feelings.
Parental Attitudes and Child Behaviour
Value Conformity It has been hypothesized that traditional Mennonite parents provide the child with a sense of integration and stability by responding to the child with authoritarianism and sympathetic understanding. The combination of the two dimensions of attitudes and behaviour yields four types of maternal be- haviour : ( 1 ) non-authoritarian parents who have sympathetic understanding of the child can be described as democratic, co-operative, or accepting; (2) parents who are understanding of the child but are authoritarian are likely to be over-indulgent and possessive of the child; ( 3 ) authoritarian parents who do not understand the child tend to be dictatorial, demanding, and anta- gonistic; and finally (4) non-authoritarian but non-understanding parents are often indifferent to the child.
As shown in Table v, Old Order Mennonite parents are most likely to be authoritarian but understanding of the child; Markham parents are likely to be authoritarian to boys and may or may not be understanding. Progressive Mennonite parents tend to be non-authoritarian but lack sympathetic under- standing of boys, although among girls the relations are slight.
Whether authoritarian or not, parents who have sympathetic understand- ing of the child are likely to have a well-adjusted child. A child whose parents are authoritarian and lacking understanding is likely to show covert symp- toms of maladjustment.
Sons of non-authoritarian parents are more likely than sons of authorita- rian parents to have a greater sense of personal freedom. Girls generally score lower on sense of personal freedom than boys. Girls are more likely to feel a sense of personal freedom, if parents are non-authoritarian and lacking understanding, that is, possibly, indifferent and neglecting.
Children whose parents are authoritarian but show sympathetic under- standing are 'likely to be submissive and to experience guilt feelings. How- ever, whether understanding or not, the child of authoritarian parents tends to have guilt feelings. A child whose parents are authoritarian and lacking understanding of him is likely to feel inconsistency in the value system and tends to suffer from a sense of inadequacy.s
Value Conflict A most serious conflict for a child occurs if he encounters values and norms in the school which contradict religious doctrines to which he has been socialized. As traditional Mennonites consider higher education as unneces-
6 A. Don Augusburger (1965). These results are quite similar to research on the effects of authoritarianism and consistency in disciplining. While the over-all correlation between disciplining consistency and sympathetic understanding is not extremely high, authoritarian parents who lack sympathetic understanding of the child are likely to be inconsistent in disciplining. 29
s a r y for farming and rather harmful for their religious life, it seemed likely that they would expect low achievement from their children. Expectation of achievement was measured by parental response to questions regarding the amount of education necessary for their children, and whether they consider it important to have good grades or to work hard at school. The data shown in Table III support the hypothesis that Old Order and Markham mothers score significantly lower on the scale of achievement expectation than pro- gressive Mennonites. Within the progressive group, urban Mennonites scored significantly higher than rural Mennonites in the scores of achievement ex- pectation (Smucker, 1943:44-46).
The child's achievement was assessed by IQ scores and other general tests. Differences in scores by church order are in general non-significant. Presence of school problems, such as difEculties with school work or trouble with the teacher was examined by means of a Mooney Problem Check List (Marmlf and Larsen, 1945:285-294; Pflieger, 1947:265-278). Table IV indicates that boys, especially urban progressive and Markham boys, are more likely to have school problems than girls.?
Assuming that stress is a consequence of value conflict, it was expected that among Old Order and Markham Mennonites who have a low achieve- ment expectation for their children, children who are good at school work as compared to those who are poor at school work, are more likely to report problems with regard to school and more likely to be maladjusted. Although the data shown in Table VI, generally support the hypothesis, the results, be- cause they are based on a small number of cases, are not conclusive. Among progressive Mennonites who encourage higher education, it was
expected that a child who is poor at school work is more likely to have school problems and be generally maladjusted than a child who is good at school work. As seen in Table VI, independently of parental achievement expecta- tions, a child who is p r at school work is more likely to be maladjusted than a child who is good at school, although this relation is more pronounced among those whose parental expectations are high.
Occupational Marginality Although child behaviour may vary in relation to social class, a direct appli- cation of the class concept in the present study is not appropriate as there is a high correlation between father's occupation and church order member- ship, i.e., the degree of orthodoxy. Progressive Mennonites are likely to do white-collar work, whereas traditional and transitional Mennonites are mostly farmers.
Among Old Order, Markham, and rural progressive Mennonites, farmers are the normal, and blue collar or white collar workers are marginal people.
7 Old Order and Markham Mennonite children in the sample were attending either Mennonite school or public school in the rural area. Progressive Mennonite children were attending public school in the rural and urban areas. Thus there was no serious problem of Old Order Mennonite children being surrounded by non-Mennonite urban children at public school. 30
TAB
LE V
PAR
EN
TA
L A
UT
HO
RR
AR
IAN
ISM
AN
D S
YM
PATH
ETIC
UNDERWANDING OF THE C
HIL
D B
Y SEX OF
CH
ILD
, CH
UR
CH
OR
DER
, MENTAL HEALTH AND B
EHA
WO
UR
OF
CH
ILD
(I
N P
ERC
ENT)
Mal
e Fe
mal
e
Aut
hori
tari
an
Non
-aut
hori
tori
nn
Aut
hori
tari
an
Non
-aut
hori
tari
an
Not
und
er-
Und
er-
Not
und
er-
Und
er-
Not
und
er-
Und
er-
Not
und
er-
Und
er-
stan
ding
sta
ndin
g sta
ndin
g st
andi
ng
stand
ing
stand
ing
stand
ing
stand
ing
N:
38
63
51
68
39
61
50
90
Chu
rch
orde
r' O
ld O
rder
M
arkh
am
Rur
al
Urb
an
Men
tal h
ealth
2 W
ell a
djus
ted
Cov
ertly
mal
adju
sted
O
vertl
y m
alad
just
ed
Pers
onal
fre
edom
Ex
trave
rsio
n G
uilt
feel
ing
45
34
13
8 79
21 0
50
50
74
25
35
16
24
26
51
22
54
59
67
27
16
29
27
86 6 8 70
59
37
9 10
40
41
60
19
21
65
69
34
38
31
13
18
82
18 0 23
44
64
18
25
25
33
25
52
23
49
69
72
24
22
26
28
78
18 4 44
66
50
18
13
30
39
51
34
14
66
60
47
1 C
hurc
h or
der:
Old
Ord
er M
enno
nite
s, M
arkh
am C
onfe
renc
e M
enno
nite
s, M
enno
nite
Con
fere
nce
of O
ntar
io in
rura
l and
urb
an area.
2 In
dex
conc
erni
ng c
hild
beh
avio
ur:
Chi
ldre
n ar
e di
vide
d in
to d
icho
tom
ous
grou
ps, e
.g.,
sens
e of
ade
quac
y vs
. ina
dequ
acy,
per
sona
l fre
edom
VS.
lack
of
free
dom
.
u c
W
N
TA
BL
E V
I SC
HO
OL
PR
OB
LE
M A
ND
ADJUSTMENT
OF
ME
NN
ON
ITE
CH
ILD
RE
N (
IN P
ER
CE
NT
)
Mal
e Fe
mal
e
Old
Ord
er &
Mar
kham
Pr
ogre
ssiv
e O
ld O
rder
& M
arkh
am
Prog
ress
ive
Chur
ch O
rder
(1
03)
(117
) (1
04)
(136
)
Pare
ntal
ach
ieve
men
t ex
pect
atio
n*
Low
H
igh
Low
H
igh
Scho
ol a
chie
vem
ent
Poor
G
ood
Poor
G
ood
Poor
G
ood
Poor
G
ood
of t
he c
hild
N
: 26
43
37
48
29
34
46
55
Pr
esen
ce o
f sc
hool
pro
blem
46
72
70
71
31
74
54
33
W
ell-a
djus
ted
84
19
40
86
79
15
41
62
Mal
adju
sted
C
over
tly
4 65
30
4
21
68
26
31
* Si
nce
the
num
bers
of c
ases
of
Old
Ord
er a
nd M
arkh
am p
aren
ts w
ith high
expe
ctat
ion a
nd o
f Pro
gres
sives
with
low
exp
ecta
tion
are
smal
l, th
ey a
re e
xclu
ded
from
the
tabl
e.
Ove
rtly
12
16
30
10
0
18
33
7
Among urban progressive, farmers and blue collar workers belong to the marginal category. Instead of introducing social class as measured by occu- pation into the analysis, it seemed more appropriate to utilize the distinction between employment in normal and marginal occupations. It was hypothe- sized that marginal Mennonites are more likely to feel insecure, inconsistent in value orientations, alienated, and maladjusted. The data (Table VII),
however, do :not show any statistically significant or consistent relations.
TABLE VII
DEGREE OF ORTHODOXY AND OCCUPATION* PERCENTAGE OF THOSE LABELLED “NORMAL” ACCORDING TO THE
Male Female
Percentage Number Percentage Number ~~ ~~
Old order 85 53 81 54 Markham 70 50 64 50 Rural progressive 53 57 52 60 Urban progressive 42 60 46 76
*In Old Order, Markham, and Rural progressive, the farmer is normal, and the blue collar and white collar workers are marginal. In Urban progressive, the white collar worker (including professional, managerial, etc.) is normal, and the blue collar worker and farmer are marginal.
CONCLUSION
The study of the psycho-social roles of Mennonite children in relation to their parental value orientations in a changing world show that the effects of cul- tural conflict are most clearly evident among the transitional group of Mark- ham Conference Mennonites. As expected, traditional Mennonite parents are likely to perceive distance from the outside society but do not feel power- less. They take authoritarian attitudes toward their children, who, in turn, respond to parents submissively and with some guilt feelings. These children are relatively free from overt symptoms of maladjustment but not from covert ones.
Markham parents are likely to feel isolated and powerless against the larger society. They are authoritarian to their children and inconsistent in disciplining. Markham children tend to indicate value inconsistency and a sense of inadequacy, and they are inclined to covert maladjustment.
Progressive Mennonites are by no means without problems and they reveal overt symptoms of maladjustment. Progressives in the rural area seem to be better adjusted than any other group.
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35
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