This article tests hypotheses about the relationship between how the general anticipations of pain in develop in children and the formal belief systems of a society. The authors posit that beliefs in malevolent supernatural beings reflect punitive child rearing practices and beliefs in benevolent supernatural being relfect nurturing child rearing practices. Results generally support this hypothesis.

This article investigates the relationships between culturally defined frustrating agents and various types of culturally defined targets of aggressive response. Findings indicate relationships between extrapunitive outlook and extrapunitive responsiveness and impunitive outlook and impunitive responsiveness.