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Sample records for start children families

  1. Arizona Head Start for Homeless Children and Families Project. 1994-95 Evaluation Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mulholland, Lori; Greene, Andrea

    Homeless families with children comprise the fastest growing segment of the United States homeless population. This study evaluated Year 1 of the Arizona Head Start for Homeless Children and Families Project, designed to meet educational and social needs of homeless children and families, and to assist Head Start agencies in developing effective…

  2. Arizona Head Start for Homeless Children and Families Project. 1995-96 Evaluation Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mulholland, Lori

    Homeless families with children constitute the fastest growing segment of the United States homeless population. This study evaluated Year 2 of the Arizona Head Start for Homeless Children and Families Project, designed to meet educational and social needs of homeless children and families, and to assist Head Start agencies in developing effective…

  3. Moneyball for Head Start: Using Data, Evidence, and Evaluation to Improve Outcomes for Children and Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mead, Sara; Mitchel, Ashley LiBetti

    2016-01-01

    Head Start is a valuable federal program that improves the lives of our nation's most vulnerable children and their families. Research shows that Head Start programs improve children's learning at school entry and have a positive impact on long-term life outcomes. Research also suggests that Head Start could have a stronger impact on children's…

  4. Families & the North Carolina Smart Start Initiative.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lowman, Betsy; Bryant, Donna; Zolotor, Adam

    Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under 6 years and their families. This study examined characteristics of families participating in Smart Start, their child care arrangements and family activities, and their need for and use of community…

  5. Head Start Participants, Programs, Families and Staff in 2013

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Christina

    2014-01-01

    Head Start programs provide poor children and their families with comprehensive early education and support services. Each year, programs are required to submit a Program Information Report (PIR) to the Office of Head Start on participating children, pregnant women, and families, as well as the staff serving the Head Start population. In 2013, the…

  6. The Impact of Head Start on Children, Families and Communities. Final Report of the Head Start Evaluation, Synthesis and Utilization Project. Executive Summary.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKey, Ruth Hubbell; And Others

    This report summarizes the results of a study on the impact of Head Start on children's cognitive and socioemotional development, on child health and health institutions in the community, on enrollees' families, and on communities where Head Start programs operate. After discussing the background and methodology of the study, the report concludes…

  7. Realizing a desired family size: when should couples start?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Habbema, J Dik F; Eijkemans, Marinus J C; Leridon, Henri; te Velde, Egbert R

    2015-09-01

    Until what age can couples wait to start a family without compromising their chances of realizing the desired number of children? The latest female age at which a couple should start trying to become pregnant strongly depends on the importance attached to achieving a desired family size and on whether or not IVF is an acceptable option in case no natural pregnancy occurs. It is well established that the treatment-independent and treatment-dependent chances of pregnancy decline with female age. However, research on the effect of age has focused on the chance of a first pregnancy and not on realizing more than one child. An established computer simulation model of fertility, updated with recent IVF success rates, was used to simulate a cohort of 10 000 couples in order to assess the chances of realizing a one-, two- or three-child family, for different female ages at which the couple starts trying to conceive. The model uses treatment-independent pregnancy chances and pregnancy chances after IVF/ICSI. In order to focus the discussion, we single out three levels of importance that couples could attach to realizing a desired family size: (i) Very important (equated with aiming for at least a 90% success chance). (ii) Important but not at all costs (equated with a 75% success chance) (iii) Good to have children, but a life without children is also fine (equated with a 50% success chance). In order to have a chance of at least 90% to realize a one-child family, couples should start trying to conceive when the female partner is 35 years of age or younger, in case IVF is an acceptable option. For two children, the latest starting age is 31 years, and for three children 28 years. Without IVF, couples should start no later than age 32 years for a one-child family, at 27 years for a two-child family, and at 23 years for three children. When couples accept 75% or lower chances of family completion, they can start 4-11 years later. The results appeared to be robust for

  8. 45 CFR 1308.21 - Parent participation and transition of children into Head Start and from Head Start to public...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... into Head Start and from Head Start to public school. 1308.21 Section 1308.21 Public Welfare... AND HUMAN SERVICES THE ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES, HEAD START PROGRAM HEAD START... Standards § 1308.21 Parent participation and transition of children into Head Start and from Head Start to...

  9. Early Head Start Participants, Programs, Families, and Staff in 2014

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohan, Anitha; Walker, Christina

    2016-01-01

    In 1994, the federal Early Head Start (EHS) program was created to address the comprehensive needs of low-income pregnant women and children under age 3. EHS was launched almost 30 years after Head Start was established in 1965 to serve low-income 3- and 4-year-old children and their families with comprehensive early education and support…

  10. Impact of Child Life Services on Children and Families Admitted to Start the Ketogenic Diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kossoff, Eric H; Sutter, Lindsay; Doerrer, Sarah C; Haney, Courtney A; Turner, Zahava

    2017-08-01

    Traditionally the ketogenic diet is started as an inpatient admission to the hospital. Starting in January 2015, child life services were made formally available during ketogenic diet admissions to help families cope. One-page surveys were then provided to 15 parents on the day of discharge and again after 3 months. Every family believed that the child life services were helpful. Children who were developmentally appropriate/mildly delayed had higher parent-reported anxiety scores than those who were moderate to severely delayed (4.4 vs 1.0, P = .02). At 3 months, child life services were deemed very helpful for the parents (mean score: 8.9, range: 5-10), and were more helpful for the parent than the child (mean 6.2, range 1-10, P = .047). One of the most helpful services was a prior phone call to parents 1 week prior. In this small pilot study, child life involvement during the start of the ketogenic diet was highly useful.

  11. Barriers and Motivators to Reducing Secondhand Smoke Exposure in African American Families of Head Start Children: A Qualitative Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoehn, Jessica L.; Riekert, Kristin A.; Borrelli, Belinda; Rand, Cynthia S.; Eakin, Michelle N.

    2016-01-01

    Objective: To identify barriers and motivators for reducing secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe) for families of African-American, low-income, urban children. Method: Audiotaped intervention sessions of 52 African-American caregivers of Head Start children who reported being a smoker and/or had at least one smoker in the home were randomly sampled…

  12. Parental Book Reading and Social-Emotional Outcomes for Head Start Children in Foster Care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kyunghee; Lee, Jung-Sook

    2016-01-01

    This study examines the associations between parental book reading and social-emotional outcomes for Head Start children in foster care. Despite no main Head Start impact on parental book reading, subgroup effects were found. Foster parents in Head Start provided more book reading for children with disabilities but less for children with low preacademic scores. Head Start enhanced social-emotional outcomes for children in foster care. The positive impacts of Head Start on children's social-emotional outcomes were greater when parents read books frequently. Head Start should include more foster families and provided parenting skills to enhance social-emotional outcomes for children in foster care.

  13. Head Start Participants, Programs, Families and Staff in 2012

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmit, Stephanie

    2013-01-01

    Since 1965, the Head Start program has served low-income 3- and 4-year-old children and their families with comprehensive early education and support services. Programs provide services focused on the "whole child," including early education addressing cognitive, developmental, and socio-emotional needs; medical and dental screenings and…

  14. Head Start Participants, Programs, Families, and Staff in 2014

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohan, Anitha; Walker, Christina

    2016-01-01

    Since 1965, the Head Start program has served low-income 3- and 4-year-old children and their families with comprehensive early education and support services. Programs provide services focused on the "whole child," including early education addressing cognitive, developmental, and socio-emotional needs; medical and dental screenings and…

  15. Center-Based Early Head Start and Children Exposed to Family Conflict

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whiteside-Mansell, Leanne; Bradley, Robert; McKelvey, Lorraine; Lopez, Maya

    2009-01-01

    Research Findings: Family conflict is known to be associated with poor development for young children, but many children appear resilient. This study examined the extent to which high-quality center care during early childhood protects children from these negative consequences. Children participating in center-based sites of the Early Head Start…

  16. Long-term changes in parenting and child behavior after the Home-Start family support program

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hermanns, J.M.A.; Asscher, J.J.; Zijlstra, B.J.H.; Hoffenaar, P.J.; Deković, M.

    2013-01-01

    Background: The intervention Home-Start is a wide spread program in a number of countries, among which the Netherlands. In Home-Start, trained volunteers visit families with young children in need of support once or twice a week to help them to deal with problems in family life and parenting. Little

  17. The Effects of Smart Start on Young Children with Disabilities & Their Families. Final Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Porter, Patricia; Munn, Duncan; Buysse, Virginia; Tyndall, Sabrina

    Smart Start, North Carolina's early childhood initiative, seeks to improve early childhood programs and ensure that all North Carolina children enter school healthy and ready to learn. This study evaluated outcomes related to Smart Start program inclusion of young children with disabilities: (1) access to inclusive programming; (2) quality of…

  18. School Readiness in Children Living in Non-Parental Care: Impacts of Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lipscomb, Shannon T.; Pratt, Megan E.; Schmitt, Sara A.; Pears, Katherine C.; Kim, Hyoun K.

    2013-01-01

    The current study examines the effects of Head Start on the development of school readiness outcomes for children living in non-parental care. Data were obtained from the Head Start Impact Study, a randomized controlled trial of Head Start conducted with a nationally representative sample of Head Start programs and families. The sample included…

  19. Caregiver Emotional Expressiveness, Child Emotion Regulation, and Child Behavior Problems among Head Start Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCoy, Dana Charles; Raver, C. Cybele

    2011-01-01

    The present study examined the relationships between caregivers' self-reported positive and negative emotional expressiveness, observer assessments of children's emotion regulation, and teachers' reports of children's internalizing and externalizing behaviors in a sample of 97 primarily African American and Hispanic Head Start families. Results…

  20. Changes in parents' spanking and reading as mechanisms for Head Start impacts on children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gershoff, Elizabeth T; Ansari, Arya; Purtell, Kelly M; Sexton, Holly R

    2016-06-01

    This study examined whether Head Start, the nation's main two-generation program for low-income families, benefits children in part through positive changes in parents' use of spanking and reading to children. Data were drawn from the 3-year-old cohort of the national evaluation of the Head Start program known as the Head Start Impact Study (N = 2,063). Results indicated that Head Start had small, indirect effects on children's spelling ability at Age 4 and their aggression at Age 4 through an increase in parents' reading to their children. Taken together, the results suggest that parents play a role in sustaining positive benefits of the Head Start program for children's behavior and literacy skills, one that could be enhanced with a greater emphasis on parent involvement and education. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

  1. Barriers and motivators to reducing secondhand smoke exposure in African American families of head start children: a qualitative study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoehn, Jessica L; Riekert, Kristin A; Borrelli, Belinda; Rand, Cynthia S; Eakin, Michelle N

    2016-08-01

    To identify barriers and motivators for reducing secondhand smoke exposure (SHSe) for families of African-American, low-income, urban children. Audiotaped intervention sessions of 52 African-American caregivers of Head Start children who reported being a smoker and/or had at least one smoker in the home were randomly sampled from a larger trial examining the effectiveness of a motivational-interviewing intervention in reducing child's SHSe. Counseling sessions were qualitatively coded to identify barriers and motivators to implementing a home smoking ban or quitting smoking. African-American families identified several themes that were either or both barriers and motivators for SHSe reduction, including: asking others not to smoke, other family living in the home, neighborhood safety, absence of childcare, cost/availability of cessation tools, physician support and prevention of health problems. Urban, low-income African-American families face numerous barriers to reducing SHSe. Families were able to identify many motivators for reducing SHSe, suggesting an awareness of the importance for SHSe reduction but uncertainty in their confidence to change behaviors. Counseling should include tailoring to be most effective in supporting health behavior change. Greater emphasis on motivators is needed, such as low-cost/free cessation tools, engagement from physicians and greater involvement of extended family members. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  2. The Impact of Head Start on Children, Families and Communities. Final Report of the Head Start Evaluation, Synthesis and Utilization Project.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKey, Ruth Hubbell; And Others

    Including all Head Start research (both published and unpublished) and using, when possible, the statistical technique of meta-analysis, this final report of the Head Start Evaluation, Synthesis, and Utilization Project presents findings on the impact of Head Start on children's cognitive and socioemotional development, on child health and health…

  3. Understanding Head Start Children's Problem Behaviors in the Context of Arrest or Incarceration of Household Members

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ziv, Yair; Alva, Soumya; Zill, Nicholas

    2010-01-01

    Using data from the nationally representative Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES), the relationships between living in a household where a household member had been arrested or incarcerated and conduct problems of preschool children enrolled in Head Start were examined. Children who lived in such households showed more…

  4. Absenteeism in Head Start and Children's Academic Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ansari, Arya; Purtell, Kelly

    2016-01-01

    Using nationally representative data from the Family and Child Experiences Survey 2009 Cohort (n = 2,842), this study examined the implications of 3- and 4-year-old's absences from Head Start for their early academic learning. The findings from this study revealed that children who missed more days of school, and especially those who were…

  5. Head Start Service Guide for Children and Families with HIV or AIDS = Guia de Servicios para Ninos con V.I.H. Positivo y con Sindrome de Inmunodeficiencia Adquirida (S.I.D.A.) y sus Familias.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Puerto Rico Commonwealth Office of Children's Services and Community Development, Old San Juan.

    This document provides guidelines and procedures, in Spanish and English, for Head Start teachers in taking care of children with AIDS, or children who are HIV positive, and their families. The goal of the guide is to maximize participation of infected children in the Head Start program. The guide presents activities in three main stages:…

  6. Parent Involvement in Head Start and Children's Development: Indirect Effects Through Parenting.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ansari, Arya; Gershoff, Elizabeth

    2016-04-01

    The authors examined the extent to which parent involvement in Head Start programs predicted changes in both parent and child outcomes over time, using a nationally representative sample of 1,020 three-year-old children over 3 waves of the Family and Child Experiences Survey. Center policies that promote involvement predicted greater parent involvement, and parents who were more involved in Head Start centers demonstrated increased cognitive stimulation and decreased spanking and controlling behaviors. In turn, these changes in parenting behaviors were associated with gains in children's academic and behavioral skills. These findings suggest that Head Start programs should do even more to facilitate parent involvement because it can serve as an important means for promoting both parent and child outcomes.

  7. The use of child-centered play therapy and filial therapy with Head Start families: a brief report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, L; Bruhn, R; Winek, J; Krepps, J; Wiley, K

    1999-04-01

    Play therapy and filial therapy show promise as effective ways to provide direct services to Head Start, addressing the needs of the children, the families, and the Head Start teachers and staff. This paper examines the utility of play and filial therapies for the Head Start population, presents a systemic explanation for the benefit of filial therapy, and provides a case example for illustration.

  8. Effectiveness of differing levels of support for family meals on obesity prevention among head start preschoolers: the simply dinner study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brophy-Herb, Holly E; Horodynski, Mildred; Contreras, Dawn; Kerver, Jean; Kaciroti, Niko; Stein, Mara; Lee, Hannah Jong; Motz, Brittany; Hebert, Sheilah; Prine, Erika; Gardiner, Candace; Van Egeren, Laurie A; Lumeng, Julie C

    2017-02-10

    Despite slight decreases in obesity prevalence in children, nearly 25% of preschool-aged children are overweight or obese. Most interventions focused on promoting family meals as an obesity-prevention strategy target meal planning skills, knowledge and modeling of healthy eating without addressing the practical resources that enable implementation of family meals. There is a striking lack of evidence about what level of resources low-income parents need to implement family meals. This study will identify resources most effective in promoting family meals and, subsequently, test associations among the frequency of family meals, dietary quality and children's adiposity indices among children enrolled in Head Start. The Multiphase Optimization Strategy, employed in this study, is a cutting-edge approach to maximizing resources in behavioral interventions by identifying the most effective intervention components. We are currently testing the main, additive and interactive effects of 6 intervention components, thought to support family meals, on family meal frequency and dietary quality (Primary Outcomes) as compared to Usual Head Start Exposure in a Screening Phase (N = 512 low-income families). Components yielding the most robust effects will be bundled and evaluated in a two-group randomized controlled trial (intervention and Usual Head Start Exposure) in the Confirming Phase (N = 250), testing the effects of the bundled intervention on children's adiposity indices (Primary Outcomes; body mass index and skinfolds). The current intervention components include: (1) home delivery of pre-made healthy family meals; (2) home delivery of healthy meal ingredients; (3) community kitchens in which parents make healthy meals to cook at home; (4) healthy eating classes; (5) cooking demonstrations; and (6) cookware/flatware delivery. Secondary outcomes include cooking self-efficacy and family mealtime barriers. Moderators of the intervention include family functioning and

  9. Arterial intima-media thickness in children heterozygous for familial hypercholesterolaemia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wiegman, Albert; de Groot, Eric; Hutten, Barbara A.; Rodenburg, Jessica; Gort, Johan; Bakker, Henk D.; Sijbrands, Eric J. G.; Kastelein, John J. P.

    2004-01-01

    Patients with familial hypercholesterolaemia have severe coronary-artery disease early in adult life. Whether lipid-lowering treatment should be started in childhood remains to be established. We therefore assessed 201 children heterozygous for familial hypercholesterolaemia and 80 unaffected

  10. Togetherness and Play under the Same Roof: Children's Perceptions about Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oliveira-Formosinho, Julia

    2009-01-01

    The purpose of the research study presented in this article is to look at the ways that a specific group of children think about their families and to develop contextualized methods for listening to children's perspectives about their families. It starts with a brief presentation of the theoretical and pedagogical context where the study has been…

  11. Perceived Parental Barriers to and Strategies for Supporting Physical Activity and Healthy Eating among Head Start Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ling, Jiying; B Robbins, Lorraine; Hines-Martin, Vicki

    2016-06-01

    Despite the need for parents to support their children's healthy behaviors, knowledge of factors preventing parents from doing so is still rudimentary. This study primarily aimed to explore perceived parental barriers to and strategies for supporting physical activity and healthy eating among Head Start children. A semi-structured interview format was used with four focus groups conducted at two urban Head Start centers in the Midwestern U.S. A qualitative content analysis of audio-recorded sessions was facilitated using ATLAS.ti7. A convenience sample of 32 parents (Mage = 34.97 years) participated. Over half were female (78.1 %), African Americans (65.6 %), and single (65.6 %). About 61.3 % reported an annual family income parent): lack of time and cooking skills and a tight family budget; and (3) environmental: inaccessible programs, lack of age-appropriate education, electronic media use, and unsafe environment. Parents across all groups expressed high interest in enrolling in a program with their children. Recommendations included: parents' support team; family outings at parks; taking a walk or enrolling in a class with children; and planting a garden. Many parents showed their preference for face-to-face meetings and a support group, but repulsion of counseling. To promote parental support in future interventions with Head Start children, their perceived intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental barriers should be considered as intervention targets. Involving parents through a support group and face-to-face meetings is recommended.

  12. North Carolina's Smart Start Initiative: 1994-95 Annual Evaluation Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    North Carolina Univ., Chapel Hill. Frank Porter Graham Center.

    Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under six years and their families to ensure that all children start school healthy and prepared to succeed. Local Smart Start partnerships spent much of their first year formulating long-term plans,…

  13. EARLY HEAD START FAMILIES' EXPERIENCES WITH STRESS: UNDERSTANDING VARIATIONS WITHIN A HIGH-RISK, LOW-INCOME SAMPLE.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hustedt, Jason T; Vu, Jennifer A; Bargreen, Kaitlin N; Hallam, Rena A; Han, Myae

    2017-09-01

    The federal Early Head Start program provides a relevant context to examine families' experiences with stress since participants qualify on the basis of poverty and risk. Building on previous research that has shown variations in demographic and economic risks even among qualifying families, we examined possible variations in families' perceptions of stress. Family, parent, and child data were collected to measure stressors and risk across a variety of domains in families' everyday lives, primarily from self-report measures, but also including assay results from child cortisol samples. A cluster analysis was employed to examine potential differences among groups of Early Head Start families. Results showed that there were three distinct subgroups of families, with some families perceiving that they experienced very high levels of stress while others perceived much lower levels of stress despite also experiencing poverty and heightened risk. These findings have important implications in that they provide an initial step toward distinguishing differences in low-income families' experiences with stress, thereby informing interventions focused on promoting responsive caregiving as a possible mechanism to buffer the effects of family and social stressors on young children. © 2017 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

  14. Effectiveness of differing levels of support for family meals on obesity prevention among head start preschoolers: the simply dinner study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Holly E. Brophy-Herb

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Despite slight decreases in obesity prevalence in children, nearly 25% of preschool-aged children are overweight or obese. Most interventions focused on promoting family meals as an obesity-prevention strategy target meal planning skills, knowledge and modeling of healthy eating without addressing the practical resources that enable implementation of family meals. There is a striking lack of evidence about what level of resources low-income parents need to implement family meals. This study will identify resources most effective in promoting family meals and, subsequently, test associations among the frequency of family meals, dietary quality and children’s adiposity indices among children enrolled in Head Start. Methods The Multiphase Optimization Strategy, employed in this study, is a cutting-edge approach to maximizing resources in behavioral interventions by identifying the most effective intervention components. We are currently testing the main, additive and interactive effects of 6 intervention components, thought to support family meals, on family meal frequency and dietary quality (Primary Outcomes as compared to Usual Head Start Exposure in a Screening Phase (N = 512 low-income families. Components yielding the most robust effects will be bundled and evaluated in a two-group randomized controlled trial (intervention and Usual Head Start Exposure in the Confirming Phase (N = 250, testing the effects of the bundled intervention on children’s adiposity indices (Primary Outcomes; body mass index and skinfolds. The current intervention components include: (1 home delivery of pre-made healthy family meals; (2 home delivery of healthy meal ingredients; (3 community kitchens in which parents make healthy meals to cook at home; (4 healthy eating classes; (5 cooking demonstrations; and (6 cookware/flatware delivery. Secondary outcomes include cooking self-efficacy and family mealtime barriers. Moderators of the

  15. National Profiles of Classroom Quality and Family Involvement: A Multilevel Examination of Proximal Influences on Head Start Children's School Readiness

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bulotsky-Shearer, Rebecca J.; Wen, Xiaoli; Faria, Ann-Marie; Hahs-Vaughn, Debbie L.; Korfmacher, Jon

    2012-01-01

    Guided by a developmental and ecological model, the study employed latent profile analysis to identify a multilevel typology of family involvement and Head Start classroom quality. Using the nationally representative Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES 1997; N = 1870), six multilevel latent profiles were estimated, characterized…

  16. Health Coordination Manual. Head Start Health Services.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Administration for Children, Youth, and Families (DHHS), Washington, DC. Head Start Bureau.

    Part 1 of this manual on coordinating health care services for Head Start children provides an overview of what Head Start health staff should do to meet the medical, mental health, nutritional, and/or dental needs of Head Start children, staff, and family members. Offering examples, lists, action steps, and charts for clarification, part 2…

  17. Evaluating Two Oral Health Video Interventions with Early Head Start Families

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lynn B. Wilson

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Poor oral health in early childhood can have long-term consequences, and parents often are unaware of the importance of preventive measures for infants and toddlers. Children in rural, low-income families suffer disproportionately from the effects of poor oral health. Participants were 91 parents of infants and toddlers enrolled in Early Head Start (EHS living in rural Hawai'i, USA. In this quasi-experimental design, EHS home visitors were assigned to use either a didactic or family-centered video with parents they served. Home visitors reviewed short segments of the assigned videos with parents over an eight-week period. Both groups showed significant prepost gains on knowledge and attitudes/behaviors relating to early oral health as well as self-reported changes in family oral health routines at a six-week followup. Controlling for pretest levels, parents in the family-centered video group showed larger changes in attitudes/behaviors at posttest and a higher number of positive changes in family oral health routines at followup. Results suggest that family-centered educational videos are a promising method for providing anticipatory guidance to parents regarding early childhood oral health. Furthermore, establishing partnerships between dental care, early childhood education, and maternal health systems offers a model that broadens potential reach with minimal cost.

  18. Head Start Impact Study. Final Report. Executive Summary

    Science.gov (United States)

    Puma, Michael; Bell, Stephen; Cook, Ronna; Heid, Camilla; Shapiro, Gary; Broene, Pam; Jenkins, Frank; Fletcher, Philip; Quinn, Liz; Friedman, Janet; Ciarico, Janet; Rohacek, Monica; Adams, Gina; Spier, Elizabeth

    2010-01-01

    This report summarizes the findings from a study on the impacts of Head Start on children and families during the children's preschool, kindergarten, and 1st grade years. Its study goals were to: (1) Determine the impact of Head Start on children's school readiness, and on parental practices that support children's development; and to (2)…

  19. Giving Latino Children a Stronger Start. New Journalism on Latino Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rivera, Carla

    2009-01-01

    Early Head Start serves newborns through toddlers. It is an offshoot of Head Start, the 44-year-old federal program for low-income children ages 3 through 5. Social scientists studying brain development and emotional growth increasingly identify early education as critical to preparing children for kindergarten. As well, researchers have linked it…

  20. 76 FR 70009 - Head Start Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-11-09

    ... importance of the early years of a child's growth and development. On December 12, 2007, the Improving Head... education, serving nearly one million of our nation's most vulnerable young children and their families. It... Administration for Children and Families 45 CFR Part 1307 Head Start Program; Final Rule #0;#0;Federal Register...

  1. Cultural Capital Theory: A Study of Children Enrolled in Rural and Urban Head Start Programmes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bojczyk, Kathryn E.; Rogers-Haverback, Heather; Pae, Hye; Davis, Anna E.; Mason, Rihana S.

    2015-01-01

    Children from different backgrounds have disparate access to cultural capital, which may influence their academic success. The purpose of this study was to examine the links between family background, home literacy experiences, and emergent literacy skills among preschoolers enrolled in Head Start programmes. The background characteristics studied…

  2. Family environment patterns in families with bipolar children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belardinelli, Cecilia; Hatch, John P; Olvera, Rene L; Fonseca, Manoela; Caetano, Sheila C; Nicoletti, Mark; Pliszka, Steven; Soares, Jair C

    2008-04-01

    We studied the characteristics of family functioning in bipolar children and healthy comparison children. We hypothesized that the family environment of bipolar children would show greater levels of dysfunction as measured by the Family Environment Scale (FES). We compared the family functioning of 36 families that included a child with DSM-IV bipolar disorder versus 29 comparison families that included only healthy children. All subjects and their parents were assessed with the K-SADS-PL interview. The parents completed the FES to assess their current family functioning. Multivariate analysis of variance was used to compare the family environment of families with and without offspring with bipolar disorder. Parents of bipolar children reported lower levels of family cohesion (pfamilies where a parent had a history of mood disorders compared to families where parents had no history of mood disorders. Length of illness in the affected child was inversely associated with family cohesion (r=-0.47, p=0.004). Due to the case-control design of the study, we cannot comment on the development of these family problems or attribute their cause specifically to child bipolar disorder. Families with bipolar children show dysfunctional patterns related to interpersonal interactions and personal growth. A distressed family environment should be addressed when treating children with bipolar disorder.

  3. Smart Start Evaluation Plan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bryant, Donna; Burchinal, Margaret; Buysse, Virginia; Kotch, Jonathan; Maxwell, Kelly; Neenan, Peter; Noblit, George; Orthner, Dennis; Peisner-Feinberg, Ellen; Telfair, Joseph

    Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under 6 years of age and their families. This report describes the comprehensive plan to evaluate the state and local goals and objectives of the program, focusing on the components addressing the…

  4. Center-Based Child Care in the Pioneer Smart Start Partnerships of North Carolina. UNC Smart Start Evaluation Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maxwell, Kelly; Bryant, Donna; Peisner-Feinberg, Ellen; Buysse, Virginia

    Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under 6 years and their families to ensure that all children enter school healthy and prepared to succeed. This study acquired a baseline measure of the quality of child care in the 12 pioneer Smart Start…

  5. [Evolution of stress in families of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guerro-Prado, D; Mardomingo-Sanz, M L; Ortiz-Guerra, J J; García-García, P; Soler-López, B

    2015-11-01

    The objective of this study was to assess the evolution of stress in families of children and adolescents who start psychopharmacological treatment after being diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and the ability to detect this change using the FSI (Family Strain Index) questionnaire. Forty eight (48) specialists in child-adolescent psychiatry or neuropediatrics included 429 families of children diagnosed with ADHD, represented by the father, mother or guardian of the child. In the baseline visit, and at two and four months, the intensity of the symptoms of ADHD was evaluated using the abbreviated Conners scale, and family stress was evaluated using the FSI questionnaire. The following was observed: a) an improvement in the overall FSI score and in all its dimensions (Pchildren or adolescents (420) received treatment with modified-release methylphenidate. There was a significant relationship between the positive evolution of symptoms in children with ADHD and the reduction of family stress, as evaluated by the FSI questionnaire, after starting psychopharmacological treatment. This study showed a great sensitivity to change in the clinical situation of patients with ADHD, evaluated through the stress it produces on its families. It is recommended to use this questionnaire as an indirect measurement of the repercussions of the disorder on the environment of the child with ADHD in terms of family stress. Copyright © 2014 Asociación Española de Pediatría. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

  6. Family characteristics of stuttering children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Simić-Ružić Budimirka

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available INTRODUCTION Stuttering is a functional impairment of speech, which is manifested by conscious, but nonintentionally interrupted, disharmonic and disrhythmic fluctuation of sound varying in frequency and intensity. Aetiology of this disorder has been conceived within the frame of theoretical models, which tend to connect genetic and epigenetic factors. OBJECTIVE The goal of the paper was to study the characteristics of the family functioning of stuttering children in comparison to the family functioning of children without speech disorder, which confirmed the justification of the introduction of family orientated therapeutic interventions into the therapy spectrum of child stuttering. METHOD Seventy-nine nucleus families of 3 to 6 year-old children were examined; of these, 39 families had stuttering children and 40 had children without speech disorder. The assessment of family characteristics was made using the Family Health Scale, an observer-rating scale which according to semistructured interview and operational criteria, measures 6 basic dimensions of family functioning: Emotional State, Communication, Borders, Alliances, Adaptability & Stability, Family Skills. A total score calculated from the basic dimensions, is considered as a global index of family health. RESULTS Families with stuttering children compared to families with children without speech disorder showed significantly lower scores in all the basic dimension of family functioning, as well as in the total score on the Family Health Scale. CONCLUSION Our research results have shown that stuttering children in comparison with children without speech disorder live in families with unfavorable emotional atmosphere, impaired communication and worse control over situational and developmental difficulties, which affect children's development and well-being. In the light of previous research, the application of family therapy modified according to the child's needs is now considered

  7. Oral health of early head start children: a qualitative study of staff, parents, and pregnant women.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mofidi, Mahyar; Zeldin, Leslie P; Rozier, R Gary

    2009-02-01

    We explored the oral health knowledge, attitudes, and activities of Early Head Start (EHS) staff members, parents, and pregnant women, along with their suggestions related to future oral health educational interventions targeting EHS children. Nine focus groups were conducted with EHS staff, parents, and pregnant women. Audiotapes of sessions were transcribed and entered into ATLAS.ti 5.0 for coding and analysis. Attitudes about the importance of children's oral health among parents and pregnant women were mixed. Staff members voiced responsibility for children's oral health but frustration in their inability to communicate effectively with parents. Parents in turn perceived staff criticism regarding how they cared for their children's oral health. Gaps were noted in the oral health activities of EHS programs. Participants expressed confusion regarding the application of Head Start oral health performance standards to EHS. The need for culturally sensitive, hands-on oral health education was highlighted. Tailored, theory-based interventions are needed to improve communication between EHS staff and families. Clear policies on the application of Head Start oral health performance standards to EHS are warranted. Educational activities should address the needs and suggestions of EHS participants.

  8. Head Start FACES 2000: A Whole-Child Perspective on Program Performance. Fourth Progress Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zill, Nicholas; Resnick, Gary; Kim, Kwang; O'Donnell, Kevin; Sorongon, Alberto; McKey, Ruth Hubbell; Pai-Samant, Shefali; Clark, Cheryl; O'Brien, Robert; D'Elio, Mary Ann

    In 1997, Head Start launched the Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES), a study of a national random sample of Head Start programs, designed to describe characteristics, experiences, and outcomes for children and families served by Head Start. In 2000, FACES began data collection on a new national cohort of 2,800 children and their families…

  9. The effect of social geographic factors on the untreated tooth decay among head start children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heima, Masahiro; Ferretti, Margaret; Qureshi, Mehveen; Ferretti, Gerald

    2017-10-01

    Disparities among untreated dental caries exist for children from low-income families in the United States. Understanding of the mechanism of the disparities is required to reduce it and social geographic factors are one of the important influences. Although the effect of fluoridated water has been well reported, studies of other sociogeograpic factors, such as the density of available dentists, are still very limited. The objective of this study is to explore the effect of sociogeographic factors on the number of primary teeth with untreated dental caries among children from low-income families who are enrolled in Head Start programs throughout Northeast Ohio of the United States. This was a cross-sectional chart review study. Three hundred-eighty-eight charts were reviewed, and the number of primary teeth with untreated dental caries (dt) and the children's addresses were retrieved. The sociogeographic variables, including fluoridated water availability and the density of available dentists who accept a government-supported insurance (Medicaid dentists), were collected. The mean (standard deviation) of children's age was 3.51 (1.14) years with a range of 7 months to 5 years. A negative binomial regression model analysis, which used dt as a dependent variable and children's characteristic factors (i.e. age, gender, insurance type, and total number of primary teeth) and sociogeographic factors (i.e. Population, total number of Medicaid dentists, density of Medicaid dentist, and Fluoride water availability) of cities, as independent variables, demonstrated that only the density of Medicaid dentist in the sociogeographic factors indicated a significant effect (Estimated ß-Coefficients (Standard Errors)=-0.003 (0.002), p =0.030). This study demonstrated a significant negative association between the density of available dentists and untreated dental caries among children from low-income families in Head Start programs in Northeast Ohio. Increasing available dentists

  10. Head Start FACES: Longitudinal Findings on Program Performance. Third Progress Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zill, Nicholas; Resnick, Gary; Kim, Kwang; McKey, Ruth Hubbell; Clark, Cheryl; Pai-Samant, Shefali; Connell, David; Vaden-Kiernan, Michael; O'Brien, Robert; D'Elio, Mary Ann

    The Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES) is an ongoing, national, longitudinal study of the cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development of Head Start children; the characteristics, well-being, and accomplishments of families; the observed quality of Head Start classrooms; and the characteristics and opinions of Head…

  11. Researching family through the everyday lives of children across home and day care in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kousholt, Dorte

    2011-01-01

    The article investigates family as a conflictual community with a specific starting point in exploring children's lives across day-care institution and home. Children's development is theorised in relation to taking part in different communities across different contexts. The article draws...... on an ethnographically inspired research project with 6 families living in a small town in Denmark. The analysis points to how the children's possibilities of participation are created across their different life contexts and that the social interplay and conflicts between the children in the day-care institution have...... impacts on the relation and interaction between parents and children. Parenting in that way reaches far beyond the family and includes taking into account various issues in the other places where the children spend their time. The children's developmental possibilities are shaped by the relations...

  12. Researching family through the everyday lives of children across home and day care in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kousholt, Dorte

    2011-01-01

    on an ethnographically inspired research project with 6 families living in a small town in Denmark. The analysis points to how the children's possibilities of participation are created across their different life contexts and that the social interplay and conflicts between the children in the day-care institution have......The article investigates family as a conflictual community with a specific starting point in exploring children's lives across day-care institution and home. Children's development is theorised in relation to taking part in different communities across different contexts. The article draws...... impacts on the relation and interaction between parents and children. Parenting in that way reaches far beyond the family and includes taking into account various issues in the other places where the children spend their time. The children's developmental possibilities are shaped by the relations...

  13. Gay father surrogacy families: relationships with surrogates and egg donors and parental disclosure of children's origins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blake, Lucy; Carone, Nicola; Slutsky, Jenna; Raffanello, Elizabeth; Ehrhardt, Anke A; Golombok, Susan

    2016-11-01

    To study the nature and quality of relationships between gay father families and their surrogates and egg donors and parental disclosure of children's origins. Cross-sectional study. Family homes. Parents in 40 gay father families with 3-9-year-old children born through surrogacy. Administration of a semistructured interview. Relationships between parents, children, surrogates, and egg donors and parental disclosure of children's origins were examined using a semistructured interview. The majority of fathers were content with the level of contact they had with the surrogate, with those who were discontent wanting more contact. Fathers were more likely to maintain relationships with surrogates than egg donors, and almost all families had started the process of talking to their children about their origins, with the level of detail and children's understanding increasing with the age of the child. In gay father surrogacy families with young children, relationships between parents, children, surrogates, and egg donors are generally positive. Copyright © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  14. Effects of residential instability on Head Start children and their relationships with older siblings: influences of child emotionality and conflict between family caregivers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stoneman, Z; Brody, G H; Churchill, S L; Winn, L L

    1999-01-01

    This study examined the influence that residential dislocations have on child behavior problems, depression, peer competence, cognitive competence, and the quality of sibling relations in a sample of 70 Head Start children, aged 32 to 67 months, and their older brothers and sisters, aged 48 to 155 months. This was the first study to investigate the sibling relationship in the context of high residential mobility. Information on child characteristics was obtained from mothers and teachers. Sibling data (warmth/harmony and conflict) were obtained from coding videotaped interactions. Child emotionality was found to be an important moderator of the effects of residential mobility on young, poor children and their siblings; caregiver conflict was a less powerful moderator of these effects. Residential instability seemed to compromise the warmth/harmony of the sibling relationship. It was concluded that the effects of residential instability are complex and cannot be understood without considering child characteristics, such as temperament, and the family context in which the child lives.

  15. Effects of Head Start Hours on Children's Cognitive, Pre-Academic, and Behavioral Outcomes: An Instrumental Variable Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Weilin; Farkas, George; Duncan, Greg J.; Vandell, Deborah Lowe; Burchinal, Margaret

    2013-01-01

    Children from low-income families benefit remarkably from exposure to compensatory education that began with Head Start in 1965 and aimed to improve school readiness skills by design. While empirical evidence has supported more instructional time in elementary and secondary schools for low-income students, little is known that whether increasing…

  16. Addressing Tooth Decay in Head Start Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knowlden, Adam P.; Hill, Lawrence F.; Alles-White, Monica L.; Cottrell, Randall R.

    2012-01-01

    Tooth decay is the most prevalent chronic disease of childhood. Oral health education and dental services are crucial to reducing the number of children afflicted with dental cavities. Due to limited access to preventative care, Head Start children are particularly vulnerable to tooth decay. This article outlines practical implications of a…

  17. Ethnic Variation in the Association between Family Structures and Practices on Child Outcomes at 36 Months: Results from Early Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iruka, Iheoma U.

    2009-01-01

    Research Findings: This study analyzed data from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Study (EHSRES) to examine whether the association between family structural characteristics (maternal education, number of parents, employment status, and number of children), parenting practices (sensitive and negative parenting, cognitively stimulating…

  18. Family-Based Interventions in Preventing Children and Adolescents from Using Tobacco: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas, Roger E; Baker, Philip R A; Thomas, Bennett C

    2016-07-01

    Tobacco is the main preventable cause of death and disease worldwide. Adolescent smoking is increasing in many countries with poorer countries following the earlier experiences of affluent countries. Preventing adolescents from starting smoking is crucial to decreasing tobacco-related illness. To assess effectiveness of family-based interventions alone and combined with school-based interventions to prevent children and adolescents from initiating tobacco use. Fourteen bibliographic databases and the Internet, journals hand-searched, and experts consulted. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with children or adolescents and families, interventions to prevent starting tobacco use, and follow-up ≥6 months. Abstracts/titles independently assessed and data independently entered by 2 authors. Risk of bias was assessed with the Cochrane Risk-of-Bias tool. Twenty-seven RCTs were included. Nine trials of never-smokers compared with a control provided data for meta-analysis. Family intervention trials had significantly fewer students who started smoking. Meta-analysis of 2 RCTs of combined family and school interventions compared with school only, showed additional significant benefit. The common feature of effective high-intensity interventions was encouraging authoritative parenting. Only 14 RCTs provided data for meta-analysis (approximately a third of participants). Of the 13 RCTs that did not provide data for meta-analysis 8 compared a family intervention with no intervention and 1 reported significant effects, and 5 compared a family combined with school intervention with a school intervention only and none reported additional significant effects. There is moderate-quality evidence that family-based interventions prevent children and adolescents from starting to smoke. Copyright © 2016 Academic Pediatric Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Emerging Themes and Lessons Learned: The First Year of Smart Start.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maxwell, Kelly; Bryant, Donna; Adkins, Amee; McCadden, Brian; Noblit, George

    Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under 6 years of age and their families. A formative evaluation of the Smart Start process, to inform the current state-level decision-making processes for future Smart Start efforts, was devised from a…

  20. Short-term treatment outcomes of children starting antiretroviral ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Short-term treatment outcomes of children starting antiretroviral therapy in the intensive care unit, general medical wards and outpatient HIV clinics at Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa: A retrospective cohort study.

  1. Young Children's Sibling Relationship Interactional Types: Associations with Family Characteristics, Parenting, and Child Characteristics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gamble, Wendy C.; Yu, Jeong Jin

    2014-01-01

    Research Findings: This study examines patterns of sibling relationship qualities or interactional types and their association with family characteristics, parenting, and the characteristics of 1 of those children. Participants were 65 children (34 boys; Time 1 mean age = 51 months), their mothers, fathers, and Head Start teachers. Approximately…

  2. Family dynamics in families with children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chu, Kangkang; Li, Shasha; Chen, Yixin; Wang, Mingchun

    2012-10-01

    Development of adjunctive family therapy for the treatment of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in China requires a detailed understanding of the family dynamics of these families. Assess the family dynamics of families with children who have ADHD in Nanjing, China. Forty-six children 10 to 17 years of age treated at the Nanjing Brain Hospital for ADHD and 46 control children of the same age and gender from schools in Nanjing completed the 19-item Questionnaire of Systematic Family Dynamics (QSFD) which assesses four dimensions of family functioning: Family Atmosphere, Individuation, Moral Absolutism, and Personal Responsibility for Psychological Problems. There were no differences between groups in the perceived causes of psychological problems but the ADHD children reported a poorer family atmosphere, less independence from parents, and more ambiguity about 'right' and 'wrong' in the family. After adjustment for the potential confounding effects of parental education and family economic status, the findings of poorer family atmosphere and less individuation in the ADHD children remained statistically significant. The internal consistency of the four dimensions of the QSFD as completed by the children were poor (alpha=0.44-0.53). This preliminary study on the family dynamics of families with children that have ADHD finds that the ADHD children report a poor family atmosphere and little independence from parents. Further work is needed to validate the methods for assessing family dynamics in Chinese families, particularly when using children as informants, but this method provides valuable information that could be used as the focus of adjunctive family therapy to augment the traditional pharmacological and behavioral approaches to the treatment of ADHD.

  3. Head Start Impact on Social-Emotional Outcomes for Children with Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Kyunghee; Calkins, Andrea; Shin, Tae Seob

    2016-01-01

    Objective: Using the Head Start Impact Study data, this study examines Head Start's impacts on social-emotional outcomes for children with disabilities. Method: Among 4,442 children, 570 children were reported to have disabilities. Ordinary least squares regression was used to determine whether the number of disabilities, having an individualized…

  4. Bringing the Community into the Process: Issues and Promising Practices for Involving Parents & Business in Local Smart Start Partnerships. UNC Smart Start Evaluation Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cornish, Mary; Noblit, George

    Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under age 6 and their families. The aim of the program is ensuring that all children enter school healthy and ready to learn. This study examined parent and business involvement in local Smart Start…

  5. Resilient Partners: The Development of a University-Community Collaboration to Promote Wellness for Head Start Children and Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendez, Julia L.; Lloyd, Blake Te'Neil

    2005-01-01

    This paper describes a theoretically driven approach uniquely suited for the development of research partnerships between university teams and local communities serving children enrolled in Head Start programs. A literature review on dimensions of successful research partnerships provides a backdrop for presenting the Resilience…

  6. Ethnic Group Differences in Early Head Start Parents Parenting Beliefs and Practices and Links to Children's Early Cognitive Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keels, Micere

    2009-01-01

    Data from the Early Head Start Research and Evaluation study were used to examine the extent to which several factors mediate between- and within-ethnic-group differences in parenting beliefs and behaviors, and children's early cognitive development (analysis sample of 1198 families). The findings indicate that Hispanic-, European-, and…

  7. Children's Self-Concepts as Related to Family Structure and Family Concept.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parish, Joycelyn G.; Parish, Thomas S.

    1983-01-01

    Surveyed 426 children from intact, divorced, and reconstituted families, who responded to the Personal Attribute Inventory for Children to evaluate their families and themselves. Results showed a significant association between children's self-concepts and both their family structure and family concepts. (JAC)

  8. The sleeping patterns of Head Start children and the influence on developmental outcomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schlieber, M; Han, J

    2018-05-01

    Sleep has a significant influence on children's development. The objective of this study was to investigate Head Start children's sleeping patterns and the impact on cognitive and behavioural outcomes. Using the 2009 cohort of the Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (N = 2,868), information on sleeping patterns was assessed through parent interviews. Cognitive outcomes were assessed using direct assessments (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-IV, the Expressive One-Word Picture Vocabulary Test, and Subtests of the Woodcock-Johnson III) in addition to teacher report. Behavioural outcomes were assessed through parent and teacher reports. A multiple regression analysis was performed for each outcome variable. Descriptive findings showed that 89% of children had a regular bedtime at least 4 days per week and that the average amount of sleep per night was 10.41 hr. White mothers were more likely than other racial groups to adhere to a consistent bedtime, and maternal employment predicted less hour of sleep per night. Multiple regression analyses revealed that disrupted sleep had a negative influence on cognitive outcomes, especially in areas of mathematical problem solving, receptive language, teacher-reported literacy behaviours, and approaches to learning. Disrupted sleep was associated with the risk of misbehaviour by increasing teacher and parent ratings on aggressive behaviours, hyperactivity, and withdrawing in addition to decreased scores on overall social skills. Having an inconsistent bedtime negatively predicted expressive vocabulary and teacher-reported literacy behaviours. The findings of this study support the influential role of sleep on children's development. Sleeping through the night and having a consistent bedtime were found to be predictive of many areas of cognitive and behavioural development. Head Start staff can provide the supports to increase parental knowledge on appropriate child sleep practices. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  9. Families, children, migration and AIDS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haour-Knipe, Mary

    2009-01-01

    Migration is very often a family affair, and often involves children, directly or indirectly. It may give rise to better quality of life for an entire family, or to bitter disappointment, and may also increase vulnerability to HIV and AIDS. This review, carried out for the Joint Learning Initiative on Children and AIDS, links the literature on "migration", on "HIV and AIDS" and on "families". Three themes are sketched: (1) As both HIV prevalence and circular migration increase, former migrant workers affected by AIDS may return to their families for care and support, especially at the end of life, often under crisis conditions. Families thus lose promising members, as well as sources of support. However, very little is known about the children of such migrants. (2) Following patterns of migration established for far different reasons, children may have to relocate to different places, sometimes over long distances, if their AIDS-affected parents can no longer care for them. They face the same adaptation challenges as other children who move, but complicated by loss of parent(s), AIDS stigma, and often poverty. (3) The issue of migrant families living with HIV has been studied to some extent, but mainly in developed countries with a long history of migration, and with little attention paid to the children in such families. Difficulties include involuntary separation from family members, isolation and lack of support, disclosure and planning for children's care should the parent(s) die and differences in treatment access within the same family. Numerous research and policy gaps are defined regarding the three themes, and a call is made for thinking about migration, families and AIDS to go beyond description to include resilience theory, and to go beyond prevention to include care.

  10. Associations among parental feeding styles and children's food intake in families with limited incomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoerr, Sharon L; Hughes, Sheryl O; Fisher, Jennifer O; Nicklas, Theresa A; Liu, Yan; Shewchuk, Richard M

    2009-08-13

    Although general parenting styles and restrictive parental feeding practices have been associated with children's weight status, few studies have examined the association between feeding styles and proximal outcomes such as children's food intake, especially in multi-ethnic families with limited incomes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of parental feeding styles and young children's evening food intake in a multiethnic sample of families in Head Start. Participants were 715 Head Start children and their parents from Texas and Alabama representing three ethnic groups: African-American (43%), Hispanic (29%), and White (28%). The Caregivers Feeding Styles Questionnaire (Hughes) was used to characterize authoritative, authoritarian (referent), indulgent or uninvolved feeding styles. Food intake in several food groups was calculated from 3 days of dietary recalls for the child for evening food intakes from 3 PM until bedtime. Compared to children of authoritarian parents, intakes of fruits, juice and vegetables were lowest among children of indulgent or uninvolved parents (1.77 +/- 0.09 vs 1.45 +/- 0.09 and 1.42 +/- 0.11 cups) as were intakes of dairy foods (0.84 +/- 0.05 vs 0.67 +/- 0.05 and 0.63+0.06 cups), respectively. Findings suggest that permissive parent feeding styles like indulgent or uninvolved relate negatively to children's intake of nutrient-rich foods fruit, 100% fruit juice, vegetables and dairy foods from 3 PM until bedtime.

  11. Family ecology of young children with cerebral palsy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    LaForme Fiss, A; Chiarello, L A; Bartlett, D; Palisano, R J; Jeffries, L; Almasri, N; Chang, H-J

    2014-07-01

    Family ecology in early childhood may influence children's activity and participation in daily life. The aim of this study was to describe family functioning, family expectations of their children, family support to their children, and supports for families of young children with cerebral palsy (CP) based on children's gross motor function level. Participants were 398 children with CP (mean age = 44.9 months) and their parents residing in the USA and Canada. Parents completed four measures of family ecology, the Family Environment Scale (FES), Family Expectations of Child (FEC), Family Support to Child (FSC) and Family Support Scale (FSS). The median scores on the FES indicated average to high family functioning and the median score on the FSS indicated that families had helpful family supports. On average, parents reported high expectations of their children on the FEC and strong support to their children on the FSC. On the FES, higher levels of achievement orientation were reported by parents of children in Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS) level II than parents of children in level I, and higher levels of control were reported by parents of children in level I than parents of children in level IV. On the FEC, parents of children with limited gross motor function (level V) reported lower expectations than parents of children at all other levels. Family ecology, including family strengths, expectations, interests, supports and resources, should be discussed when providing interventions and supports for young children with CP and their families. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  12. Does Head Start differentially benefit children with risks targeted by the program's service model?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Elizabeth B; Farkas, George; Duncan, Greg J

    Data from the Head Start Impact Study ( N = 3540) were used to test for differential benefits of Head Start after one program year and after kindergarten on pre-academic and behavior outcomes for children at risk in the domains targeted by the program's comprehensive services. Although random assignment to Head Start produced positive treatment main effects on children's pre-academic skills and behavior problems, residualized growth models showed that random assignment to Head Start did not differentially benefit the pre-academic skills of children with risk factors targeted by the Head Start service model. The models showed detrimental impacts of Head Start for maternal-reported behavior problems of high-risk children, but slightly more positive impacts for teacher-reported behavior. Policy implications for Head Start are discussed.

  13. Early home-based intervention in the Netherlands for children at familial risk of dyslexia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Otterloo, S.G.; van der Leij, A.; Henrichs, L.F.

    2009-01-01

    Dutch children at higher familial risk of reading disability received a home-based intervention programme before formal reading instruction started to investigate whether this would reduce the risk of dyslexia. The experimental group (n=23) received a specific training in phoneme awareness and

  14. Children's Impressions of Television Families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wartella, Ellen

    This research study examines the types of social behaviors portrayed by families in various television series and explores children's impressions of the TV family members. Content analysis of nine family-oriented TV series was employed to describe the ranges of behaviors of fathers, mothers and children on television. Eleven shows from each series…

  15. Family Emotional Climate and Sibling Relationship Quality: Influences on Behavioral Problems and Adaptation in Preschool-Aged Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Modry-Mandell, Kerri L.; Gamble, Wendy C.; Taylor, Angela R.

    2007-01-01

    We examined the impact of family emotional climate and sibling relationship quality on behavioral problems and adaptation in preschool-aged children. Participants were 63 mothers with a preschool-aged child enrolled in a Southern Arizona Head Start Program. Siblings were identified as children closest in age to target child. Mothers of…

  16. Getting Started: A Call for Storytelling in Family Medicine Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ventres, William; Gross, Paul

    2016-10-01

    In this article we introduce family medicine educators to storytelling as an important teaching tool. We describe how stories are a critical part of the work of family physicians. We review the rationales for family medicine educators to become skilled storytellers. We present the components of effective stories, proposing two different perspectives on how to imagine, construct, and present them. We provide a list of resources for getting started in storytelling and offer two personal vignettes that articulate the importance of storytelling in the authors' respective professional developments. We point the way forward for family medicine educators interested in integrating storytelling into their repertoire of teaching skills.

  17. Associations among parental feeding styles and children's food intake in families with limited incomes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liu Yan

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Although general parenting styles and restrictive parental feeding practices have been associated with children's weight status, few studies have examined the association between feeding styles and proximal outcomes such as children's food intake, especially in multi-ethnic families with limited incomes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association of parental feeding styles and young children's evening food intake in a multiethnic sample of families in Head Start. Methods Participants were 715 Head Start children and their parents from Texas and Alabama representing three ethnic groups: African-American (43%, Hispanic (29%, and White (28%. The Caregivers Feeding Styles Questionnaire (Hughes was used to characterize authoritative, authoritarian (referent, indulgent or uninvolved feeding styles. Food intake in several food groups was calculated from 3 days of dietary recalls for the child for evening food intakes from 3 PM until bedtime. Results Compared to children of authoritarian parents, intakes of fruits, juice and vegetables were lowest among children of indulgent or uninvolved parents (1.77 ± 0.09 vs 1.45 ± 0.09 and 1.42 ± 0.11 cups as were intakes of dairy foods (0.84 ± 0.05 vs 0.67 ± 0.05 and 0.63+0.06 cups, respectively. Conclusion Findings suggest that permissive parent feeding styles like indulgent or uninvolved relate negatively to children's intake of nutrient-rich foods fruit, 100% fruit juice, vegetables and dairy foods from 3 PM until bedtime.

  18. Family Demands, Social Support and Family Functioning in Taiwanese Families Rearing Children with Down Syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hsiao, C-Y.

    2014-01-01

    Background: Down syndrome (DS) affects not only children but also their families. Much remains to be learned about factors that influence how families of children with DS function, especially families in non-Western populations. The purpose of this cross-sectional, correlational study was to examine how family demographics, family demands and…

  19. How can parents get involved in preschool? Barriers and engagement in education by ethnic minority parents of children attending Head Start.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mendez, Julia L

    2010-01-01

    An intervention was developed to promote parent involvement with ethnic minority families of children attending Head Start preschool programs. Two hundred eighty-eight predominantly African American families from a small southern city were included in this study. Parent satisfaction with the program was high, yet engagement was less than optimal. Some effects were found for the program, despite low levels of participation. Ethnic minority parents who received the intervention increased the frequency of reading to their child as compared with parents in a comparison group who did not receive the program. The quality of the parent-teacher relationship was significantly correlated with parental participation in the intervention. Program participation and the parent-teacher relationship were correlated with higher levels of children's school readiness abilities. Children in the intervention condition showed stronger end-of-year receptive vocabulary and parent-rated social competence as compared with children who did not receive treatment. This research documents the challenges involved in engaging parents in prevention programs. Strategies for maximizing the benefits of preschool for ethnic minority families and their children are discussed. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

  20. Delayed Instructional Control of Head Start Children's Free Play.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pierce, Charles H.; Risley, Todd R.

    The free play of 5 black preschool Head Start children was observed. The variables manipulated in the study were delayed instructions and reinforcement for play with selected toys, and specific versus general instructions; the correspondence between the adult's instructions and reinforcement to the children's play was assessed. The data indicated…

  1. The Prevalence of Anemia in Head Start Children. Nutrition Evaluation, 1968-69.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mickelsen, Olaf; And Others

    Concern over the nutritional status of the disadvantaged in America led to this study describing the prevalence of anemia among Head Start children in Pontiac, Michigan. Hemoglobin and hematocrit determinations, along with measurements of height and weight, were performed on 77 children, 4 to 6 years old, enrolled in Head Start classes. These…

  2. Empowering Head Start African American and Latino Families: Promoting Strengths-Based Parenting Characteristics through Child Parent Relationship Training--An Evidence-Based Group Parenting Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheely-Moore, Angela I.; Ceballos, Peggy L.

    2011-01-01

    With the tendency of low-income African American and Latino children identified at-risk for school readiness and school success compared to their early-childhood counterparts, Head Start personnel are challenged to examine the role of family strengths in the promotion of academic success for these populations. This article provides a rationale for…

  3. Early Home-Based Intervention in the Netherlands for Children at Familial Risk of Dyslexia

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Otterloo, Sandra G.; van der Leij, Aryan; Henrichs, Lotte F.

    2009-01-01

    Dutch children at higher familial risk of reading disability received a home-based intervention programme before formal reading instruction started to investigate whether this would reduce the risk of dyslexia. The experimental group (n = 23) received a specific training in phoneme awareness and letter knowledge. A control group (n = 25) received…

  4. Keeping the Vision in Front of You: Results from Smart Start Key Participant Interviews.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bryant, Donna; Adkins, Amee

    Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under 6 years of age and their families. Interviews were conducted to ascertain the impressions, attitudes, and advice of 55 key participants in the 12 pioneer Smart Start counties. The interviews were…

  5. Family characteristics of anxious ADHD children: preliminary results.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kepley, Hayden O; Ostrander, Rick

    2007-02-01

    To investigate the family environments of children in a community sample with ADHD and co-occurring anxiety. Family Environment Scale, Behavioral Assessment System for Children, and Structured Clinical Interview are administered to parents of children with ADHD with and without anxiety. ADHD families are uniformly less cohesive and expressive and possess more conflict than families representing the community sample. In contrast to community or nonanxious ADHD families, anxious ADHD families do not encourage independence and tend to be distinctly less assertive, self-sufficient, and autonomous. Although anxious and nonanxious ADHD children tend to have a uniformly high incidence of maternal ADHD, mothers of anxious ADHD children tend to display a much higher incidence of substance/alcohol abuse than either nonanxious or community participants. Findings are consistent with the notion that an insular, dependent, and somewhat controlling family environment characterizes families of children with ADHD and comorbid childhood anxiety.

  6. A structural model of family empowerment for families of children with special needs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Kuem Sun; Yang, Yunkyung; Hong, Yeong Seon

    2018-03-01

    To explain and predict family empowerment in families of children with special needs. Family empowerment of families of children with special needs can be explained using the Double ABCX model. Although constant stressors such as parenting stress and family demands can have negative effects on family empowerment, family resources and parenting efficacy can mediate the negative effect through effective coping strategies. A cross-sectional research design was employed. A survey was conducted with 240 parents of children with special needs. Upon exclusion of four responses deemed inadequate to the statistics process, 236 responses were selected for the analysis. Based on the items used in the previous research, we used the scale of family demands 38, the scale of parenting stress 24, the scale of parenting efficacy 37, the scale of pattern of organisation 30, the scale of communication process 16 and the scale of family empowerment 32. In families of children with special needs, parenting stress had a negative effect on parenting efficacy and family resources, namely, pattern of organisation and communication process. Family needs had a positive effect on parenting efficacy. Parenting stress and family demands influenced family empowerment through parenting efficacy and family resources (pattern of organisation and communication process), while parenting efficacy contributed to family empowerment. This study empirically analysed the usefulness of the Double ABCX model in predicting family empowerment. Family resource factors (organisation pattern and communication process) and perception or judgement factors (such as parenting efficacy) were found to mediate the negative impact of various stressors experienced by families of children with special needs. The study findings suggest that clinical practice and management should focus on providing efficient intervention methods to lower stress in families of children with special needs. Reinforcing factors contributing to

  7. Family interests and medical decisions for children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baines, Paul

    2017-10-01

    Medical decisions for children are usually justified by the claim that they are in a child's best interests. More recently, following criticisms of the best interests standard, some advocate that the family's interests should influence medical decisions for children, although what is meant by family interests is often not made clear. I argue that at least two senses of family interests may be discerned. There is a 'weak' sense (as the amalgamated interests of family members) of family interests and a 'strong' sense (that the family itself has interests over and above the interests of individuals). I contend that there are problems with both approaches in making medical decisions for children but that the weak sense is more plausible. Despite this, I argue that claims for family interests are not helpful in making medical decisions for children. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  8. Spanish Instruction in Head Start and Dual Language Learners' Academic Achievement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Elizabeth B

    2017-09-01

    Data from the Head Start Impact Study ( N = 1,141) and the Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey, 2009 Cohort ( N = 825) were used to investigate whether Spanish instruction in Head Start differentially increased Spanish-speaking Dual Language Learners' (DLLs) academic achievement. Although hypothesized that Spanish instruction would be beneficial for DLLs' early literacy and math skills, results from residualized growth models showed there were no such positive associations. Somewhat surprisingly, DLL children instructed in Spanish had higher English receptive vocabulary skills at the end of the Head Start year than those not instructed, with children randomly assigned to Head Start and instructed in Spanish having the highest scores. Policy implications for Head Start-eligible Spanish-speaking DLLs are discussed.

  9. Same sex families and children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mršević Zorica

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction comprises the information on two main forms of same sex families, civic partnership (same sex partnership and same sex marriage. Countries and various status modalities of legal regulations are mentioned. The main part of the text is dedicated to presentation of the findings of the most recent research on various aspects regarding children of same sex partnerships. It comprises presentations grouped in four main chapters: acceptance of same sex partnerships, acceptance of legal recognition of the same sex partnerships, family plans of homosexual teenagers, and raising children within and by the same sex partners. Also the real life cases mirroring legal changes through their life destinies are presented, such is e.g. the Irish way to legalization of the same sex partnerships. In addition, a love story of two women crowned by giving birth of their four children is mentioned. Reasons against and negative reactions the author puts under the title Homophobia. In the Concluding remarks, the author presents the most recent examples of legal changes happened in Norway, Ecuador, and in the American states of California and Connecticut. It was also stated that in European countries of low birth rate, the same sex families are inevitably identified as one of demographically valuable source of creating and raising children, which is worthy to be supported, rather than being hindered without reason and discriminated. Although different than a model of heterosexual family, same sex partnerships neither are harrowing to traditional family values, nor reflex of any kind of promiscuous, antisocial behavior, avoidance of parenthood, and negation of family. Quite opposite, these families are an outcome of endeavors of homosexuals not to be deprived of family, parenthood and all of other values of stabile, monogamous, emotional/sexual socially accepted and legally recognized and regulated conventional family. .

  10. Children's participation in family food consumption patterns

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Brunsø, Karen; Christensen, Pia Haudrup

    2006-01-01

    This paper presents a theoretical framework for researching children and food consumption in the family. The proposed framework draws on contemporary social science approaches to the study of family decision making, food consumption patterns and routines, and consumer competence and food......-related lifestyle in order to understand children and families through their everyday practices. It suggest a new emphasis on children as active agents in the formation of family food consumption patterns and looks at children's food choices as embedded in everyday family life. We focus especially on the construct...... of the "Consumer Competence" of the child as one important aspect determining the way a child is involved in and gains influence over family food consumption. The paper also demonstrates how a mixed methods design, employing ethnographic and survey techniques, involves advances in methodological and analytical...

  11. Mothers', fathers' and children's perceptions of parents' expectations about children's family obligations in nine countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lansford, Jennifer E; Godwin, Jennifer; Alampay, Liane Peña; Uribe Tirado, Liliana Maria; Zelli, Arnaldo; Al-Hassan, Suha M; Bacchini, Dario; Bombi, Anna Silvia; Bornstein, Marc H; Chang, Lei; Deater-Deckard, Kirby; Di Giunta, Laura; Dodge, Kenneth A; Malone, Patrick S; Oburu, Paul; Pastorelli, Concetta; Skinner, Ann T; Sorbring, Emma; Tapanya, Sombat

    2016-10-01

    Children's family obligations involve assistance and respect that children are expected to provide to immediate and extended family members and reflect beliefs related to family life that may differ across cultural groups. Mothers, fathers and children (N = 1432 families) in 13 cultural groups in 9 countries (China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Philippines, Sweden, Thailand and United States) reported on their expectations regarding children's family obligations and parenting attitudes and behaviours. Within families, mothers and fathers had more concordant expectations regarding children's family obligations than did parents and children. Parenting behaviours that were warmer, less neglectful and more controlling as well as parenting attitudes that were more authoritarian were related to higher expectations regarding children's family obligations between families within cultures as well as between cultures. These international findings advance understanding of children's family obligations by contextualising them both within families and across a number of diverse cultural groups in 9 countries. © 2015 International Union of Psychological Science.

  12. Children on the homefront: the experience of children from military families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chandra, Anita; Lara-Cinisomo, Sandraluz; Jaycox, Lisa H; Tanielian, Terri; Burns, Rachel M; Ruder, Teague; Han, Bing

    2010-01-01

    Although studies have begun to explore the impact of the current wars on child well-being, none have examined how children are doing across social, emotional, and academic domains. In this study, we describe the health and well-being of children from military families from the perspectives of the child and nondeployed parent. We also assessed the experience of deployment for children and how it varies according to deployment length and military service component. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS. Data from a computer-assisted telephone interview with military children, aged 11 to 17 years, and nondeployed caregivers (n = 1507) were used to assess child well-being and difficulties with deployment. Multivariate regression analyses assessed the association between family characteristics, deployment histories, and child outcomes. After controlling for family and service-member characteristics, children in this study had more emotional difficulties compared with national samples. Older youth and girls of all ages reported significantly more school-, family-, and peer-related difficulties with parental deployment (P children both during deployment and deployed-parent reintegration (P Family characteristics (eg, living in rented housing) were also associated with difficulties with deployment. Families that experienced more total months of parental deployment may benefit from targeted support to deal with stressors that emerge over time. Also, families in which caregivers experience poorer mental health may benefit from programs that support the caregiver and child.

  13. Caregivers' attitudes regarding portion sizes served to children at Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Head Start caregivers are responsible for educating and feeding preschoolers enrolled in the Head Start program. Amongst pre-school aged children, portion size served is positively associated with intake of those foods. Researchers conducted eight focus groups with Hispanic and African American Head...

  14. DELINQUENT BEHAVIOUR OF CHILDREN FROM DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sandra Bateva

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The subject of my research in the paper are the children from dysfunctional families, primarily their delinquent behavior, education and moral, actually, who takes care of them and who undertakes the family roles and whether this care is sufficient for building these personalities.This research approaches towards the study of the delinquent behavior of children from dysfunctional families. It examines to what extent the educational level of parents, the material condition, the health condition, the leisure time, the average monthly income of the family, the available permanent goods, the educational resources, the social communications within the very family, all affect the delinquent behavior of children from dysfunctional families

  15. Lessons in a Box Make a Difference for Head Start Youth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kunkel, Kelly K.; Hurtado, Ghaffar A.; Conrad, Stephanie; Routh, Brianna; Joeng, Ju Ri; Harrison, Megan

    2014-01-01

    This article examines the health education implications of targeted nutrition lesson plans at Head Start programs in south central Minnesota. The Head Start program in Mankato and the University of Minnesota Extension collaborated to deliver and evaluate a nutrition education program directed at preschool children and their families. Nine lesson…

  16. Parenting Interventions in Early Head Start: The Buffering Toxic Stress Consortium

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berlin, Lisa; Blair, Clancy; Boyd, Misty L.; Constantino, John N.; Hallam, Rena A.; Han, Myae; Hustedt, Jason; Harden, Brenda Jones; Raver, C. Cybele; Sarche, Michelle; Vu, Jennifer A.; Watamura, Sarah Enos; Meyer, Aleta; Fortunato, Christine

    2013-01-01

    The Buffering Toxic Stress Consortium was created by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation within the Administration for Children and Families to test preventive interventions for Early Head Start families facing toxic stress, as conceptualized by Shonkoff, Boyce, and McEwen in their influential 2009 article. Because relationships…

  17. "Where to Start": Learning from Somali Bantu Refugee Students and Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roxas, Kevin; Roy, Laura

    2012-01-01

    This article provides an overview of research conducted with Somali Bantu refugee students in two contexts: Michigan and South Texas. We provide recommendations for outreach to refugee families and their families, for instruction in the classroom, for advising and support for these children, and for implementing school and district policy as it…

  18. Supporting Children's Initiative: Appreciating Family Contributions or Paying Children for Chores.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coppens, Andrew D; Alcalá, Lucía

    2015-01-01

    Collaborative initiative is an important aspect of Learning by Observing and Pitching In (LOPI), and many interrelated family and community practices in LOPI may support children's initiative. In this chapter, we examine two cultural ways of supporting children's helpfulness and responsibility that draw on different cultural paradigms for organizing children's participation in everyday work in U.S. Mexican-heritage and European American communities. European American university students reported having received allowances as a contractual enticement to do assigned chores. In contrast, although U.S. Mexican-heritage university students reported having received pocket money from their families, this was as a gift, noncontingent on completed chores or good behavior. They reported that this noncontingent support for children's responsibility focuses children on collaborating with the family, and contributing to shared work with initiative, consistent with LOPI, in which children are integrated in family and community endeavors and are eager to contribute. The chapter challenges traditional dichotomies in motivational theory that attempt to specify the "source" of children's motivation to learn and help within either individuals or social contexts. © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Early Head Start and African American Families: Impacts and Mechanisms of Child Outcomes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harden, Brenda Jones; Sandstrom, Heather; Chazan-Cohen, Rachel

    2012-01-01

    Persistent disparities exist between African American children and their European American counterparts across developmental domains. Early childhood intervention may serve to promote more positive outcomes among African American children. The current study examined whether and how the Early Head Start (EHS) program benefited African American…

  20. Talking about parental substance abuse with children: eight families' experiences of Beardslee's family intervention.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pihkala, Heljä; Dimova-Bränström, Neda; Sandlund, Mikael

    2017-07-01

    Many children are affected by parental substance use disorder. Beardslee's family intervention (BFI) is a family-based psycho-educative method for children of mentally ill parents, used in psychiatric practise in several Nordic countries. The method has also been used to some extent when a parent suffers from substance use disorder. The aim of the study was to explore the family members' experiences of the BFI when a parent has a diagnosis of substance use disorder, to gain new knowledge about the process of the BFI in this area. Ten children and 14 parents were interviewed about their experiences 6 months after a BFI. The interviews were analyzed by qualitative content analysis. The children's psychological symptoms were measured by the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire at baseline and after 6 months. Increased openness about the substance use disorder in the families was a recurrent theme throughout the material and a central issue reported in the children's experiences. The children had a high level of psychological symptoms according to the SDQ at baseline, but the majority of them felt that the BFI made a positive difference in their families and for themselves. The parents reported improved wellbeing of their children. Positive experienced effects for children and parents are reported in families with parental substance use disorder, with possible connection to use of BFI. The present study suggests that Beardslee's family intervention is applicable as a preventive method for children in families with a parent suffering from substance use disorder.

  1. Family Characteristics of Anxious ADHD Children: Preliminary Results

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kepley, Hayden O.; Ostrander, Rick

    2007-01-01

    Objective: To investigate the family environments of children in a community sample with ADHD and co-occurring anxiety. Method: Family Environment Scale, Behavioral Assessment System for Children, and Structured Clinical Interview are administered to parents of children with ADHD with and without anxiety. Results: ADHD families are uniformly less…

  2. Healthy Start: a comprehensive health education program for preschool children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams, C L; Squillace, M M; Bollella, M C; Brotanek, J; Campanaro, L; D'Agostino, C; Pfau, J; Sprance, L; Strobino, B A; Spark, A; Boccio, L

    1998-01-01

    Healthy Start is a 3-year demonstration and education research project designed to evaluate the effectiveness of a multidimensional cardiovascular (CV) risk reduction intervention in preschool centers over a 3-year period of time. Two primary interventions are employed. The first is the preschool food service intervention program designed to reduce the total fat in preschool meals and snacks to less than 30% of calories and reduce the saturated fat to less than 10% of calories. The second major intervention is a comprehensive preschool health education curriculum, focused heavily on nutrition. Effectiveness of the intervention will be determined through evaluation of changes in dietary intake of preschool children at school meals and snacks, especially with respect to intake of total and saturated fat. Evaluation of the education component will include assessment of program implementation by teachers, assessment of changes in nutrition knowledge by preschool children, and assessment of changes in home meals that children consume (total and saturated fat content). Blood cholesterol will be evaluated semiannually to evaluate changes that may be due to modification of dietary intake. Growth and body fatness will also be assessed. While substantial efforts have targeted CV risk reduction and health education for elementary school children, similar efforts aimed at preschool children have been lacking. The rationale for beginning CV risk reduction programs for preschool children is based upon the premise that risk factors for heart disease are prevalent by 3 years of age and tend to track over time, most commonly hypercholesterolemia and obesity, both related to nutrition. Since the behavioral antecedents for nutritional risk factors begin to be established very early in life, it is important to develop and evaluate new educational initiatives such as Healthy Start, aimed at the primary prevention of cardiovascular risk factors in preschool children. The purpose of this

  3. Family-based programmes for preventing smoking by children and adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas, Roger E; Baker, Philip R A; Thomas, Bennett C; Lorenzetti, Diane L

    2015-02-27

    There is evidence that family and friends influence children's decisions to smoke. To assess the effectiveness of interventions to help families stop children starting smoking. We searched 14 electronic bibliographic databases, including the Cochrane Tobacco Addiction Group specialized register, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL unpublished material, and key articles' reference lists. We performed free-text internet searches and targeted searches of appropriate websites, and hand-searched key journals not available electronically. We consulted authors and experts in the field. The most recent search was 3 April 2014. There were no date or language limitations. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of interventions with children (aged 5-12) or adolescents (aged 13-18) and families to deter tobacco use. The primary outcome was the effect of the intervention on the smoking status of children who reported no use of tobacco at baseline. Included trials had to report outcomes measured at least six months from the start of the intervention. We reviewed all potentially relevant citations and retrieved the full text to determine whether the study was an RCT and matched our inclusion criteria. Two authors independently extracted study data for each RCT and assessed them for risk of bias. We pooled risk ratios using a Mantel-Haenszel fixed effect model. Twenty-seven RCTs were included. The interventions were very heterogeneous in the components of the family intervention, the other risk behaviours targeted alongside tobacco, the age of children at baseline and the length of follow-up. Two interventions were tested by two RCTs, one was tested by three RCTs and the remaining 20 distinct interventions were tested only by one RCT. Twenty-three interventions were tested in the USA, two in Europe, one in Australia and one in India.The control conditions fell into two main groups: no intervention or usual care; or school-based interventions provided to all participants. These two

  4. Family Conflict and Children's Self-Concepts: A Comparison of Intact and Single-Parent Families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raschke, Helen J.; Raschke, Vernon J.

    1979-01-01

    Using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale to measure self-concept, and self-reports for family structure and family conflict, no significant differences in self-concept scores of children from intact, single-parent, reconstituted, or other types of families were found. Self-concept scores were significantly lower for children reporting…

  5. Family-Peer Linkages for Children with Intellectual Disability and Children with Learning Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Floyd, Frank J; Olsen, Darren L

    2017-09-01

    Family interactions are potential contexts for children with intellectual and learning disabilities to develop skillful social behaviors needed to relate effectively with peers. This study examined problem solving interactions within families of elementary school-age children (7-11 years) with intellectual disability (n = 37), specific learning disabilities (n =48), and without disabilities (n = 22). After accounting for group differences in children's behaviors and peer acceptance, across all groups, mothers' behaviors that encouraged egalitarian problem solving predicted more engaged and skillful problem solving by the children. However, mothers' controlling, directive behaviors predicted fewer of these behaviors by the children. Fathers' behaviors had mixed associations with the children's actions, possibly because they were reactive to children's unengaged and negative behaviors. For the children, greater involvement, more facilitative behaviors, and less negativity with their families were associated with greater acceptance from their peers, supporting family-peer linkages for children at risk for peer rejection.

  6. Parent Perceptions of Family Social Supports in Families With Children With Epilepsy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Decker, Kim A; Miller, Wendy R; Buelow, Janice M

    2016-12-01

    When a child is diagnosed with epilepsy, not only has the child's life been disrupted but also the family's sense of normalcy. Although there is considerable literature discussing family concerns and social support issues in families with chronically ill children, a major gap lies in the exploration of how the specifics of childhood epilepsy affect parents and family operations. The purpose of this study was to identify psychosocial care needs of parents of children with epilepsy. Utilizing the Family Systems Nursing theory as a framework, this correlation study examined the relationships among social and community support, family needs, family empowerment, and family quality of life in 29 primary caregivers of a child with epilepsy. These families felt highly supported; they had low needs and high perceptions of empowerment. There was a negative association between social supports and the total family needs survey scale and the subscales of financial support, help regarding explaining to others, and professional support. There was no association between family empowerment or quality of life with parental perceptions of social support. In general, as parental perceptions of family needs increased, perceptions of familial social supports decreased. Further research is recommended to investigate varying socioeconomic status effects in families with children with pediatric epilepsy.

  7. Resolution on Creating Family-Style Children's Homes, August 1988.

    Science.gov (United States)

    1988-01-01

    This Resolution approves a proposal of the V.I. Lenin Soviet Children's Fund for setting up "family-style" children's homes in the Soviet Union. Children's homes are to consist of a) children's towns--single-family, multiroom homes occupied by families raising at least ten orphaned children and children left without parental care; and b) premises of individual families raising at least five such children while occupying separate multiroom units in regular apartment buildings, specialized buildings, or groups of buildings. In addition to residential buildings, children's towns are to contain a secondary school, a sports and fitness center, preschool facilities, housekeeping and preventative health care buildings, auxiliary farming plots, and other land where children and adults can work together. Thirty homes are to be built in the period 1988-1991. The Resolution also approves proposals establishing an All-Union Wardship Council; charging public health officials with providing permanent, qualified health care, consultation, mental health care, and diagnostics to every family assuming the responsibility of raising children; setting the task of organizing expanded research on children's health and treatment; recommending that enterprises, organizations, and institutions provide transportation service to family-style children's homes and families of employees raising these children and give them passes to sanatoriums, preventoriums, recreation centers and vacation complexes; and pledging the Council of Ministers' participation in the financing, construction, outfitting, and equipping of these homes and in providing material assistance to families raising orphaned children and children left without parental care. The Council of Ministers also decided that the time foster parents spend in raising five or more such children will be added to their overall continuous work record for the purposes of pensions and benefits and to their length of service in their specialty

  8. [Children in family mediation: A practice model].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mayer, Stefan; Normann, Katrin

    2006-01-01

    The authors briefly describe the history of family mediation under the perspective of the role of the children in the process of mediation. They state that originally children were not directly included. But through empirical studies and different higher escalated families asking for help by mediation, the inclusion of children got an important issue in theory and practice. The discussion began with the question in which phases of the mediation process the children should be included - it went to the issue of the age of the children - and the authors propose to take the amount of escalation in the family as the most important point of reference to decide if and how the children should be included. They suggest to diagnose the loss of responsibility and autonomy of the parents on a nine level scale (from F. Glasl) with the parents and to decide and negotiate with them how the children will be included. They describe five different settings of inclusion of the children.

  9. Does Head Start differentially benefit children with risks targeted by the program’s service model?☆

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Elizabeth B.; Farkas, George; Duncan, Greg J.

    2015-01-01

    Data from the Head Start Impact Study (N = 3540) were used to test for differential benefits of Head Start after one program year and after kindergarten on pre-academic and behavior outcomes for children at risk in the domains targeted by the program’s comprehensive services. Although random assignment to Head Start produced positive treatment main effects on children’s pre-academic skills and behavior problems, residualized growth models showed that random assignment to Head Start did not differentially benefit the pre-academic skills of children with risk factors targeted by the Head Start service model. The models showed detrimental impacts of Head Start for maternal-reported behavior problems of high-risk children, but slightly more positive impacts for teacher-reported behavior. Policy implications for Head Start are discussed. PMID:26379369

  10. Peer Effects on Head Start Children’s Preschool Competency

    Science.gov (United States)

    DeLay, Dawn; Hanish, Laura D.; Martin, Carol Lynn; Fabes, Richard A.

    2015-01-01

    The goals of the present study were to investigate whether young children attending Head Start (N=292; Mage=4.3 years) selected peers based on their preschool competency and whether children’s levels of preschool competency were influenced by their peers’ levels of preschool competency. Children’s peer interaction partners were intensively observed several times a week over one academic year. Social network analyses revealed that children selected peer interaction partners with similar levels of preschool competency and were influenced over time by their partners’ levels of preschool competency. These effects held even after controlling for several child (e.g., sex and language) and family factors (e.g., financial strain and parent education). Implications for promoting preschool competency among Head Start children are discussed. PMID:26479545

  11. Children's dental fear and anxiety: exploring family related factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Lingli; Gao, Xiaoli

    2018-06-04

    Dental fear and anxiety (DFA) is a major issue affecting children's oral health and clinical management. This study investigates the association between children's DFA and family related factors, including parents' DFA, parenting styles, family structure (nuclear or single-parent family), and presence of siblings. A total of 405 children (9-13 years old) and their parents were recruited from 3 elementary schools in Hong Kong. Child's demographic and family-related information was collected through a questionnaire. Parents' and child's DFA were measured by using the Corah Dental Anxiety Scale (CDAS) and Children Fear Survey Schedule-Dental Subscale (CFSS-DS), respectively. Parenting styles were gauged by using the Parent Authority Questionnaire (PAQ). DFA was reported by 33.1% of children. The mean (SD) CFSS-DS score was 29.1 (11.0). Children with siblings tended to report DFA (37.0% vs. 24.1%; p = 0.034) and had a higher CFSS-DS score (29.9 vs. 27.4; p = 0.025) as compared with their counterpart. Children from single-parent families had lower CFSS-DS score as compared with children from nuclear families (β = - 9.177; p = 0.029). Subgroup analysis showed a higher CFSS-DS score among boys with siblings (β = 7.130; p = 0.010) as compared with their counterpart; girls' from single-parent families had a lower CFSS-DS score (β = - 13.933; p = 0.015) as compared with girls from nuclear families. Children's DFA was not associated with parents' DFA or parenting styles (p > 0.05). Family structure (nuclear or single-parent family) and presence of siblings are significant determinants for children's DFA. Parental DFA and parenting style do not affect children's DFA significantly.

  12. Oklahoma City FILM Even Start Family Literacy Program Evaluation, 2000-2001.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richardson, Donna Castle; Shove, Joanie; Brickman, Sharon; Terrell, Sherry; Shields, Jane

    This report presents findings from the evaluation of the Oklahoma City Public Schools Even Start Program, also called the Family Intergenerational Literacy Model (FILM), now in its twelfth full year of operation. The evaluation focuses on the total population of adult students, preschoolers, adult graduates, and preschool graduates. The…

  13. A social work study on family patterns and street children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Reza Iravani

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a social work study on relationship between various family characteristics and street children in rural area as well as city of Esfahan, Iran. The proposed study selects a sample of 150 street children, 75 from city and 75 from rural area, and using some statistical tests verifies the effects of three factors including family income, place of residency and family size on street children. The results indicate that the city residence had more street children than rural residence did. In addition, there was a meaningful difference between the number of street children in low-income families and high-income families. Finally, the survey results indicate that big size families more likely suffered from street children than low size families did.

  14. Family resources for families of children with cerebral palsy in Jordan: psychometric properties of the Arabic-family resources scale.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Almasri, N A; Saleh, M; Dunst, C J

    2014-05-01

    Resource-based, family-centred practices are associated with better health, emotional, and social well-being of children with disabilities. The adequacy of resources available for families of children with disabilities in Middle Eastern countries has not been described adequately in part because of lack of measures that are culturally adapted to be used in Arabic countries. Therefore, this study aims to (1) to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Arabic-Family Resource Scale (A-FRS) on a sample of families of children cerebral palsy (CP); (2) examine the adequacy of family resources as perceived by parents of children with CP in Jordan; and (3) examine the influence of child and family demographic variables on how parents report resources available to their families. A cross-section design was applied. One-hundred fifteen parents of children with CP with mean age 4.6 years (SD = 4.4) and their parents participated in the study. Research assistants interviewed the participants to complete the A-FRS, and family and child demographic questionnaire, and determined the Gross Motor Function Classification System level of children. The principal axis factoring of the A-FRS yielded a six-factor solution that accounted for 67.39% of the variance and that is different than the factor structure reported by the developers of the FRS. Cronbach’s coefficient alpha of the total score of family resources was 0.86 indicating a good internal consistency and the test–retest reliability for the total scale score was r = 0.92 (P = 0.000) indicating excellent test–retest reliability. Child health and family income were significantly associated with the total score of the A-FRS. The A-FRS is a valid and reliable measure of family resources for Jordanian families of children with CP. Service providers are encouraged to use A-FRS with families to plan resource-based interventions in which family resources are mobilized to meet family needs.

  15. Psychosocial situation of families with one and many children in the perception of children [Sytuacja psychospołeczna w rodzinach jednoi wielodzietnych w percepcji dzieci

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Danuta OCHOJSKA

    2017-11-01

    , it is necessary, to provide financial support for big families to assure the children get an equal start.

  16. Feeding style differences in food parenting practices associated with fruit and vegetable intake in children fromlow-income families

    Science.gov (United States)

    The objective of this study was to examine the moderating effects of feeding styles on the relationship between food parenting practices and fruit and vegetable intake in low-income families with preschool-aged children. Focus group meetings with Head Start parents were conducted by using the nomina...

  17. Emotional climate, feeding practices, and feeding styles: an observational analysis of the dinner meal in Head Start families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hughes, Sheryl O; Power, Thomas G; Papaioannou, Maria A; Cross, Matthew B; Nicklas, Theresa A; Hall, Sharon K; Shewchuk, Richard M

    2011-06-10

    A number of studies conducted with ethnically diverse, low-income samples have found that parents with indulgent feeding styles had children with a higher weight status. Indulgent parents are those who are responsive to their child's emotional states but have problems setting appropriate boundaries with their child. Because the processes through which styles impact child weight are poorly understood, the aim of this study was to observe differences in the emotional climate created by parents (including affect, tone of voice, and gestures) and behavioral feeding practices among those reporting different feeding styles on the Caregiver's Feeding Styles Questionnaire. A secondary aim was to examine differences on child weight status across the feeding styles. Participants were 177 Head Start families from Houston, Texas (45% African-American; 55% Hispanic). Using an observational approach, the relationship between the observed emotional climate of the meal, behavioral feeding practices, and self-reported parent feeding styles were examined. Mean age of the children was 4.4 years (SD = 0.7) equally distributed across gender. Families were observed on 3 separate dinner occasions. Heights and weight were measured on the parents and children. Parents with self-reported indulgent feeding styles made fewer demands on their children to eat during dinner and showed lower levels of negative affect and intrusiveness. Surprisingly, these parents also showed higher levels of emotional detachment with their children during dinner. Hispanic boys with indulgent parents had significantly higher BMI z scores compared to Hispanic boys in the other three feeding style groups. No other differences were found on child weight status. Results suggest that the emotional climate created by indulgent parents during dinner and their lack of demands on their children to eat may play an important role in how young children become overweight. Numerous observed emotional climate and behavioral

  18. EXAMINING LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF AN INFANT MENTAL HEALTH HOME-BASED EARLY HEAD START PROGRAM ON FAMILY STRENGTHS AND RESILIENCE.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mckelvey, Lorraine; Schiffman, Rachel F; Brophy-Herb, Holly E; Bocknek, Erika London; Fitzgerald, Hiram E; Reischl, Thomas M; Hawver, Shelley; Cunningham Deluca, Mary

    2015-01-01

    Infant Mental Health based interventions aim to promote the healthy development of infants and toddlers through promoting healthy family functioning to foster supportive relationships between the young child and his or her important caregivers. This study examined impacts of an Infant Mental Health home-based Early Head Start (IMH-HB EHS) program on family functioning. The sample includes 152 low-income families in the Midwestern United States, expectant or parenting a child younger than 1 year of age, who were randomly assigned to receive IMH-HB EHS services (n = 75) or to a comparison condition (n = 77). Mothers who received IMH-HB EHS services reported healthier psychological and family functioning, outcomes that are consistent with the IMH focus, when their children were between the ages of 3 and 7 years of age. Specifically, mothers in the IMH-HB EHS group reported healthier family functioning and relationships, better coping skills needed to advocate for their families, and less stress in the parenting role versus those in the comparison condition. The study also examined support seeking coping, some of which changed differently over time based on program group assignment. Overall, findings suggest that the gains families achieve from participating in IMH-HB EHS services are maintained after services cease. © 2015 Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health.

  19. Age and Family Control Influences on Children's Television Viewing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rubin, Alan M.

    1986-01-01

    Indicates that (1) age and family control did not influence children's television viewing levels; (2) age influenced program preferences of children; (3) cartoon preferences related negatively to family control for the youngest groups; and (4) comedy and children's program preferences and television realism related positively to family control for…

  20. Consumer socialization of children in modern family

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kovač-Žnideršić Ružica

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The research presented in this paper is based on the behavior of a specific segment of consumers - specific for its psychological as well as economic characteristics - segment of kids (children as consumers. Therefore, the kids as consumers and their influence in family decision making process, in the framework of modern ('new' families, are the subject of this research. The aim of the paper is analyising the importance of family as the main driving force of consumer socialization of children in which kids achieve more significant and active participation in making purchasing decisions. Results of empirical research, presented in this paper, are in line with the findings of foreign authors with regards to influence of children in family decision making.

  1. Corporal punishment in rural Colombian families: prevalence, family structure and socio-demographic variables.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González, Martha Rocío; Trujillo, Angela; Pereda, Noemí

    2014-05-01

    To reveal the prevalence of corporal punishment in a rural area of Colombia and its correlates to family structure and other socio-demographic variables. A survey about childrearing and childcare was developed for this study, including a specific question about corporal punishment that was developed based on the Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS). Family structure was categorized as follows, based on previous literature: 'nuclear family,' 'single parent' family, 'extended family,' 'simultaneous family' and 'composed family.' Forty-one percent of the parents surveyed admitted they had used corporal punishment of their children as a disciplinary strategy. The type of family structure, the number of children living at home, the age of the children, the gender of the parent who answered the survey, and the age and gender of the partner were significant predictors of corporal punishment. Family structure is an important variable in the understanding of corporal punishment, especially in regard to nuclear families that have a large number of children and parents who started their parental role early in life. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Family Structure Changes and Children's Health, Behavior, and Educational Outcomes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Astrid Würtz

    More and more children do not grow up in traditional nuclear families. Instead they grow up in single parent households or in families with a step-parent. Hence it is important to improve our understanding of the impact of "shocks" in family structure due to parental relationship dissolution...... on children. In this study I empirically test whether children are traumatized both in the short and the long run by shocks in the family structure during childhood. I focus on educational, behavioral, and health outcomes. A population sample of Danish children born in January to May 1983, 1984, and 1985...... is used for the analysis. The empirical cross-sectional analysis indicates a negative relation between the number of family structure changes and children.s educational outcomes. Children experiencing many family structure changes also seem to have worse health outcomes....

  3. Psychiatric Disorders among Children with Cerebral Palsy at School Starting Age

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bjorgaas, H. M.; Hysing, M.; Elgen, I.

    2012-01-01

    The aim of the present population study was to estimate the prevalence of psychiatric disorders in children with cerebral palsy (CP), as well as the impact of comorbid conditions. A cohort of children with CP born 2001-2003, and living in the Western Health Region of Norway were evaluated at school starting age. Parents were interviewed with the…

  4. Parental stress, family quality of life, and family-teacher partnerships: Families of children with autism spectrum disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hsiao, Yun-Ju; Higgins, Kyle; Pierce, Tom; Whitby, Peggy J Schaefer; Tandy, Richard D

    2017-11-01

    Reducing parental stress and improving family quality of Life (FQOL) are continuing concerns for families of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Family-teacher partnerships have been identified as a positive factor to help parents reduce their stress and improve their FQOL. However, the interrelations among parental stress, FQOL, and family-teacher partnerships need to be further examined so as to identify the possible paths to help parents reduce their stress and improve their FQOL. The purpose of this study was to examine the interrelations among these three variables. A total of 236 parents of school children with ASD completed questionnaires, which included three measures: (a) the Beach Center Family Quality of Life Scale, (b) the Parental Stress Scale, and (c) the Beach Center Family-Professional Partnerships Scale. The structural equation modeling was used to analyze the interrelations among these three variables. Perceived parental stress had a direct effect on parental satisfaction concerning FQOL and vice versa. Perceived family-teacher partnerships had a direct effect on FQOL, but did not have a direct effect on parental stress. However, family-teacher partnerships had an indirect effect on parental stress through FQOL. Reducing parental stress could improve FQOL for families of children with ASD and vice versa. Strong family-teacher partnerships could help parents of children with ASD improve their FQOL and indirectly reduce their stress. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Classroom Writing Environments and Children's Early Writing Skills: An Observational Study in Head Start Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Chenyi; Hur, Jinhee; Diamond, Karen E.; Powell, Douglas

    2015-01-01

    This study examined the classroom writing environment in 31 Head Start classrooms, and explored the relations between the writing environment, children's (N = 262) name-writing, and children's letter knowledge using pathway analysis. Our analyses showed that Head Start classrooms provided opportunities (i.e., writing materials and teachers'…

  6. Screening 5 and 6 year-old children starting primary school for development and language.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yılmaz, Deniz; Bayar-Muluk, Nuray; Bayoğlu, Birgül; İdil, Aysun; Anlar, Banu

    2016-01-01

    Beginning school is an important milestone for children. Children's readiness for school involves cognitive, physical, and emotional development. Certain school programs allow children to start first grade after 66 months of age, together with 72 month-old children. In order to estimate school readiness, we screened children before starting first grade and compared their school performance according to their age and socio-demographic characteristics. Marmara School Readiness, Denver II developmental screening, and language assessment tests were applied. Language delays were more frequent and school readiness test scores were lower in the younger group compared to older children. However, school achievement did not differ between the two age groups. Preschool education, parental income and education affected performance in most tests. Preschool screening seems effective in detecting children with lower than average developmental skills, and the school system may provide a practical opportunity for providing support to those children.

  7. Family meals with young children: an online study of family mealtime characteristics, among Australian families with children aged six months to six years.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Litterbach, Eloise-Kate V; Campbell, Karen J; Spence, Alison C

    2017-01-24

    Evidence suggests that family meals influence food intakes and behaviours, which in turn impact children's eating habits, diets and health. Mealtimes therefore offer potential as settings for health promotion. Given diet, health behaviours and health are often socioeconomically patterned, it is important to consider whether family meals differ by socioeconomic position (SEP). The Family Meals with Young Kids study was an online survey completed by parents in 2014. Mealtime characteristics measured included; frequency of shared meals across the day, duration and location of mealtimes, parental modelling, and parental perceived importance of the evening meal. Maternal education was used to assess SEP. The aims of this study were to describe family meal characteristics among Australian families with children aged six months to six years and to describe the socioeconomic patterning of these. Participants (n = 992) were mostly mothers (97%) with a university degree (71%). The evening meal was the most frequently reported meal eaten together with the responding parent and child (77% ≥ five nights/week). Snacks were least commonly eaten together (39% ≥ five days/week). The frequency of having everyone present for the evening meal was inversely associated with SEP (OR 0.70, CI 0.54-0.92). Parent rated importance of family meals was generally high and positively associated with higher SEP (OR 1.32, CI 1.00-1.76). Most children consumed breakfast (73%), lunch (58%) and dinner (82%) sitting at a table or bench and this was positively associated with higher SEP for all meal types (OR 1.61-2.37, p meals was inversely associated with SEP (OR 0.63, CI 0.54-0.72). Less than half of children (36%) watched TV during meals more than once a day. Australian families engage in many healthy mealtime behaviours. Evidence that parents share meals with children and place high value on mealtimes with children provides important opportunities for promoting healthy behaviours

  8. 45 CFR 1305.5 - Recruitment of children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-10-01

    ... 45 Public Welfare 4 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Recruitment of children. 1305.5 Section 1305.5..., DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES THE ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES, HEAD START... of children. (a) In order to reach those most in need of Head Start services, each Head Start grantee...

  9. Maternal Insomnia and Children's Family Socialization Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gregory, Alice M.; Moffitt, Terrie E.; Ambler, Antony; Arseneault, Louise; Houts, Renate M.; Caspi, Avshalom

    2012-01-01

    Study Objectives: To examine concurrent associations between maternal insomnia and different aspects of the family socialization environment. Design: Mothers reported on their symptoms of insomnia in a private standardized interview and interviewers evaluated the family socialization environment using the Coder's Inventory. Setting: Assessments were conducted in participants' homes within the U.K. Patients or Participants: One thousand one hundred sixteen mothers of British children enrolled in the Environmental Risk (E-Risk) study were invited to participate when their children were aged 12 years. Interventions: N/A. Measurements and Results: After controlling for family socioeconomic status (SES), mothers' relationship status, and maternal depression, maternal insomnia was associated with a poorer family socialization environment (β = −0.10, [95% confidence intervals (CI) = −0.16, −0.04], P Ambler A; Arseneault L; Houts RM; Caspi A. Maternal insomnia and children's family socialization environments. SLEEP 2012;35(4):579-582. PMID:22467996

  10. Assessment of family needs in children with physical disabilities: development of a family needs inventory

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Alsem, M. W.; Siebes, R. C.; Gorter, J. W.; Jongmans, M. J.; Nijhuis, B. G. J.; Ketelaar, M.

    2014-01-01

    Valid tools to assess family needs for children with physical disabilities are needed to help tune paediatric rehabilitation care processes to individual needs of these families. To create such a family needs inventory, needs of families of children with a physical disability (age 0-18 years) were

  11. Family Support or School Readiness? Contrasting Models of Public Spending on Children's Early Care and Learning. Evidence Speaks Reports, Vol 1, #16

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whitehurst, Grover J.

    2016-01-01

    In the United States, public policy and expenditure intended to improve the prospects of children from low-income families have focused on better preparing children for school through Head Start and universal pre-K. This school readiness approach differs from the dominant model of public support for early care and learning in Northern Europe,…

  12. South African Families Raising Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Relationship between Family Routines, Cognitive Appraisal and Family Quality of Life

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schlebusch, L.; Samuels, A. E.; Dada, S.

    2016-01-01

    Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between family routines, cognitive appraisal of the impact of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) on the family and family quality of life (FQOL) in families raising children with ASD in South Africa. Methods: A sample of 180 families of young children with ASD who were…

  13. Are family-centred principles, functional goal setting and transition planning evident in therapy services for children with cerebral palsy?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darrah, J; Wiart, L; Magill-Evans, J; Ray, L; Andersen, J

    2012-01-01

    Family-centred service, functional goal setting and co-ordination of a child's move between programmes are important concepts of rehabilitation services for children with cerebral palsy identified in the literature. We examined whether these three concepts could be objectively identified in programmes providing services to children with cerebral palsy in Alberta, Canada. Programme managers (n= 37) and occupational and physical therapists (n= 54) representing 59 programmes participated in individual 1-h semi-structured interviews. Thirty-nine parents participated in eleven focus groups or two individual interviews. Evidence of family-centred values in mission statements and advisory boards was evaluated. Therapists were asked to identify three concepts of family-centred service and to complete the Measures of Process of Care for Service Providers. Therapists also identified therapy goals for children based on clinical case scenarios. The goals were coded using the components of the International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health. Programme managers and therapists discussed the processes in their programmes for goal setting and for preparing children and their families for their transition to other programmes. Parents reflected on their experiences with their child's rehabilitation related to family-centredness, goal setting and co-ordination between programmes. All respondents expressed commitment to the three concepts, but objective indicators of family-centred processes were lacking in many programmes. In most programmes, the processes to implement the three concepts were informal rather than standardized. Both families and therapists reported limited access to general information regarding community supports. Lack of formal processes for delivery of family-centred service, goal-setting and co-ordination between children's programmes may result in inequitable opportunities for families to participate in their children's rehabilitation despite

  14. DELINQUENT BEHAVIOUR OF CHILDREN FROM DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILIES

    OpenAIRE

    Sandra Bateva

    2014-01-01

    The subject of my research in the paper are the children from dysfunctional families, primarily their delinquent behavior, education and moral, actually, who takes care of them and who undertakes the family roles and whether this care is sufficient for building these personalities.This research approaches towards the study of the delinquent behavior of children from dysfunctional families. It examines to what extent the educational level of parents, the material condition, the health conditio...

  15. Effects of Residential Instability on Head Start Children and Their Relationships with Older Siblings: Influences of Child Emotionality and Conflict between Family Members.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stoneman, Zolinda; Brody, Gene H.; Churchill, Susan L.; Winn, Laura L.

    1999-01-01

    Examined influence of residential dislocations on child behavior problems, depression, peer competence, cognitive competence, and quality of sibling relationships among Head Start children and their older siblings. Found that child emotionality moderated the effects of residential mobility. Caregiver conflict was a less powerful moderator.…

  16. Children's influence on family decision-making in food buying and consumption

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mikkelsen, Miguel Romero; Nørgaard, Maria Kümpel

    2006-01-01

    This study investigates children's participation and influence in the family decision process during food buying and consumption. Danish 10 to 13-year-old children and their parents participated in the study. First, an ethnographic field study was carried out with 20 families. The field worker...... visited children at school and families at home during food buying, cooking and eating. Secondly, a survey was carried out with 451 families. The primary findings are that children participate and gain influence on several decision stages and areas during family food buying and that family everyday...... routines are an explaining factor of children's influence on family food decisions. When families buy and consume food, parents are not the only participants and decision-makers. Children and parents not always agree. Implications are that research should include parents as well as children; and that food...

  17. Socialization of Young Children in the Divorced Family.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cox, Martha J.; Cox, Roger D.

    1979-01-01

    Reported is a longitudinal study in which families with preschool children were observed, interviewed, and tested over two years following the parents' divorce and compared with a sample of intact families. Findings on the impact of divorce on individuals, on family interactions, and on children's social and intellectual development are presented.…

  18. Family Environments and Children's Executive Function: The Mediating Role of Children's Affective State and Stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    He, Zhong-Hua; Yin, Wen-Gang

    2016-09-01

    There is increasing evidence that inadequate family environments (family material environment and family psychosocial environment) are not only social problems but also factors contributing to adverse neurocognitive outcomes. In the present study, the authors investigated the relationship among family environments, children's naturalistic affective state, self-reported stress, and executive functions in a sample of 157 Chinese families. These findings revealed that in inadequate family material environments, reduced children's cognitive flexibility is associated with increased naturalistic negative affectivity and self-reported stress. In addition, naturalistic negative affectivity mediated the association between family expressiveness and children's cognitive flexibility. The authors used a structural equation model to examine the mediation model hypothesis, and the results confirmed the mediating roles of naturalistic negative affectivity and self-reported stress between family environments and the cognitive flexibility of Chinese children. These findings indicate the importance of reducing stress and negative emotional state for improving cognitive functions in children of low socioeconomic status.

  19. Promoting Children's Social-Emotional Skills in Preschool Can Enhance Academic and Behavioral Functioning in Kindergarten: Findings from Head Start REDI.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nix, Robert L; Bierman, Karen L; Domitrovich, Celene E; Gill, Sukhdeep

    2013-01-01

    This study examined processes of change associated with the positive preschool and kindergarten outcomes of children who received the Head Start REDI intervention, compared to "usual practice" Head Start. In a large-scale randomized-controlled trial (N = 356 children, 42% African American or Latino, all from low-income families), this study tests the logic model that improving preschool social-emotional skills (e.g., emotion understanding, social problem solving, and positive social behavior) as well as language/emergent literacy skills will promote cross-domain academic and behavioral adjustment after children transition into kindergarten. Validating this logic model, the present study finds that intervention effects on three important kindergarten outcomes (e.g., reading achievement, learning engagement, and positive social behavior) were mediated by preschool gains in the proximal social-emotional and language/emergent literacy skills targeted by the REDI intervention. Importantly, preschool gains in social-emotional skills made unique contributions to kindergarten outcomes in reading achievement and learning engagement, even after accounting for the concurrent preschool gains in vocabulary and emergent literacy skills. These findings highlight the importance of fostering at-risk children's social-emotional skills during preschool as a means of promoting school readiness. The REDI (Research-Based, Developmentally-Informed) enrichment intervention was designed to complement and strengthen the impact of existing Head Start programs in the dual domains of language/emergent literacy skills and social-emotional competencies. REDI was one of several projects funded by the Interagency School Readiness Consortium, a partnership of four federal agencies (the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the Administration for Children and Families, the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation in the Department of Health and Human Services, and the

  20. Fathers' experience of starting family life with an infant born prematurely due to mothers' severe illness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Værland, Inger Emilie; Vevatne, Kari; Brinchmann, Berit Støre

    2017-10-01

    To describe fathers' experiences of starting family life with an infant delivered prematurely out of necessity of saving the mother's and infant's lives due to the mother's severe preeclampsia. A descriptive, qualitative design was used. Six fathers were interviewed twice: from 6 to 24 days and from 4 to 22 weeks after delivery. Data were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a reflective lifeworld research approach. The essence of the fathers' experiences of establishing a family with a seriously ill mother and a premature infant can be described as a process of becoming a family through reflection on life and death in a context of separation. The essence specifically comprised the following constituents: (1) starting fatherhood facing existential issues, (2) connecting the family, (3) becoming familiar with your infant, and (4) becoming a father in a public area. The fathers were able to develop their relationship to their infants; this emphasizes the importance of the fathers being able to spend their time in the NICU. The privacy of the fathers were more or less challenged, health professionals should be aware of individualize their approach to the fathers. The study reveals that family life started with separation. Health professionals should try to ensure that the family should be together. Mutual guidelines between the wards that treats mother and child should be implemented. When new mother and child-centers are planned a family friendly environment should be prioritized. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Parenting, family functioning and anxiety-disordered children: Comparisons to controls, changes after family versus child CBT

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Jongerden, L.; Bögels, S.M.

    2015-01-01

    We examined (1) whether families of clinic-referred anxiety-disordered children are characterized by anxiety-enhancing parenting and family functioning, compared to control families; (2) whether family cognitive-behavioral therapy (FCBT) for anxiety-disordered children decreases anxiety-enhancing

  2. Improving Strategies for Low-Income Family Children's Information Literacy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Haiyan; Washington, Rodney; Yin, Jianjun

    2014-01-01

    This article discussed the significance of improving low-income family children's information literacy, which could improve educational quality, enhance children's self-esteem, adapt children to the future competitive world market, as well as the problems in improving low-income family children's information literacy, such as no home computer and…

  3. Impact of Early Head Start in North Carolina on Dental Care Use Among Children Younger Than 3 Years.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burgette, Jacqueline M; Preisser, John S; Weinberger, Morris; King, Rebecca S; Lee, Jessica Y; Rozier, R Gary

    2017-04-01

    To examine the effects of North Carolina Early Head Start (EHS), an early education program for low-income children younger than 3 years and their families, on dental care use among children. We performed a quasi-experimental study in which we interviewed 479 EHS and 699 non-EHS parent-child dyads at baseline (2010-2012) and at a 24-month follow-up (2012-2014). We estimated the effects of EHS participation on the probability of having a dental care visit after controlling for baseline dental care need and use and a propensity score covariate; we included random effects to account for EHS program clustering. The odds of having a dental care visit of any type (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 2.5; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.74, 3.48) and having a preventive dental visit (adjusted OR = 2.6; 95% CI = 1.84, 3.63) were higher among EHS children than among non-EHS children. In addition, the adjusted mean number of dental care visits among EHS children was 1.3 times (95% CI = 1.17, 1.55) the mean number among non-EHS children. This study is the first, to our knowledge, to demonstrate that EHS participation increases dental care use among disadvantaged young children.

  4. Family-based behavioural intervention for obese children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Epstein, L H

    1996-02-01

    The family environment can contribute to the development of obesity. Parenting styles may influence the development of food preferences and the ability of a child to regulate intake. Parents and other family members arrange a common, shared environment that may be conducive to overeating or a sedentary lifestyle. Family members serve as models, and reinforce and support the acquisition and maintenance of eating and exercise behaviours. Family-based interventions are needed to modify these variables in treating obese children. We have made significant progress in developing interventions that target obese 8-12 year-old children, completing four 10-year follow-up studies that provide support for two factors that are useful in childhood obesity treatment. First, our research suggests that the direct involvement of at least one parent as an active participant in the weight loss process improves short- and long-term weight regulation. Second, our research suggests that increasing activity is important for maintenance of long-term weight control. Correlational analyses on the 10-year database suggest that family and friend support for behaviour change are related to long-term outcome. Family-based obesity treatment provides interventions for both children and their parents, but children benefit more from treatment than their parents. These positive results provide an encouraging basis for optimism that further development of interventions, based on newer research on family processes and behaviour changes, can be useful in treating childhood obesity.

  5. Characteristics of Young Children Exposed to Violence: The Safe Start Demonstration Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaufman, Joy S.; Ortega, Sandra; Schewe, Paul A.; Kracke, Kristen

    2011-01-01

    The Safe Start demonstration projects, funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) under the first phase of the Safe Start initiative, are primarily designed to influence change at the systems or macrolevels to reduce the incidence of and impact of exposure to violence for children aged birth to 6 years; direct…

  6. Family and Provider/Teacher Relationship Quality: Director Measure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Administration for Children & Families, 2015

    2015-01-01

    The director measure is intended for use with program directors in center-based, family child care, and Head Start/Early Head Start settings for children from birth through five years old. This measure asks respondents general questions about the early childhood education environment, the children enrolled in the program, and how the program…

  7. Mental health professionals' family-focused practice with families with dependent children: a survey study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tungpunkom, Patraporn; Maybery, Darryl; Reupert, Andrea; Kowalenko, Nick; Foster, Kim

    2017-12-08

    Many people with a mental illness are parents caring for dependent children. These children are at greater risk of developing their own mental health concerns compared to other children. Mental health services are opportune places for healthcare professionals to identify clients' parenting status and address the needs of their children. There is a knowledge gap regarding Thai mental health professionals' family-focused knowledge and practices when working with parents with mental illness and their children and families. This cross -sectional survey study examined the attitudes, knowledge and practices of a sample (n = 349) of the Thai mental health professional workforce (nurses, social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists) using a translated version of the Family-Focused Mental Health Practice Questionnaire (FFMHPQ). The majority of clinicians reported no training in family (76.8%) or child-focused practice (79.7%). Compared to other professional groups, psychiatric nurses reported lower scores on almost all aspects of family-focused practice except supporting clients in their parenting role within the context of their mental illness. Social workers scored highest overall including having more workplace support for family-focused practice as well as a higher awareness of family-focused policy and procedures than psychiatrists; social workers also scored higher than psychologists on providing support to families and parents. All mental health care professional groups reported a need for training and inter-professional practice when working with families. The findings indicate an important opportunity for the prevention of intergenerational mental illness in whose parents have mental illness by strengthening the professional development of nurses and other health professionals in child and family-focused knowledge and practice.

  8. Out of the picture: a study of family drawings by children from step-, single-parent, and non-step families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dunn, Judy; O'Connor, Thomas G; Levy, Irit

    2002-12-01

    Investigated the family drawings of 180 children ages 5 to 7 years in various family settings, including stepfather, single-parent, complex stepfamilies, and 2-parent control families. The relations of family type and biological relatedness to omission of family members and grouping of parents were examined. Children from step- and single-parent families were more likely to exclude family members than children from "control" non-step families, and exclusion was predicted from biological relatedness. Children who were biologically related to both resident parents were also more likely to group their parents together. Omission of family members was found to be associated with children's adjustment (specifically more externalizing and internalizing behavior) as reported by teachers and parents. The results indicate that biological relatedness is a salient aspect of very young children's representations of their families. The association between adjustment and exclusion of family members and grouping of parents indicates that family drawings may be useful research and clinical tools, when used in combination with other methods of assessment.

  9. Healthy Children, Strong Families 2: A randomized controlled trial of a healthy lifestyle intervention for American Indian families designed using community-based approaches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tomayko, Emily J; Prince, Ronald J; Cronin, Kate A; Parker, Tassy; Kim, Kyungmann; Grant, Vernon M; Sheche, Judith N; Adams, Alexandra K

    2017-04-01

    Background/Aims Few obesity prevention trials have focused on young children and their families in the home environment, particularly in underserved communities. Healthy Children, Strong Families 2 is a randomized controlled trial of a healthy lifestyle intervention for American Indian children and their families, a group at very high risk of obesity. The study design resulted from our long-standing engagement with American Indian communities, and few collaborations of this type resulting in the development and implementation of a randomized clinical trial have been described. Methods Healthy Children, Strong Families 2 is a lifestyle intervention targeting increased fruit and vegetable intake, decreased sugar intake, increased physical activity, decreased TV/screen time, and two less-studied risk factors: stress and sleep. Families with young children from five American Indian communities nationwide were randomly assigned to a healthy lifestyle intervention ( Wellness Journey) augmented with social support (Facebook and text messaging) or a child safety control group ( Safety Journey) for 1 year. After Year 1, families in the Safety Journey receive the Wellness Journey, and families in the Wellness Journey start the Safety Journey with continued wellness-focused social support based on communities' request that all families receive the intervention. Primary (adult body mass index and child body mass index z-score) and secondary (health behaviors) outcomes are assessed after Year 1 with additional analyses planned after Year 2. Results To date, 450 adult/child dyads have been enrolled (100% target enrollment). Statistical analyses await trial completion in 2017. Lessons learned Conducting a community-partnered randomized controlled trial requires significant formative work, relationship building, and ongoing flexibility. At the communities' request, the study involved minimal exclusion criteria, focused on wellness rather than obesity, and included an active

  10. [Comparison of the factors influencing children's self-esteem between two parent families and single parent families].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sok, Sohyune R; Shin, Sung Hee

    2010-06-01

    This study was done to compare factors influencing children's self-esteem between two parent families and single parent families. The participants were 692 children aged 11 to 13 yr (388 in two parent families and 304 in single parent families) recruited from 20 community agencies and 5 elementary schools in Gyeonggi Province and Seoul City, South Korea. Data were collected from May to July, 2007 using a survey questionnaire containing items on self-esteem, internal control, problematic behavior, school record, family hardiness, parent-child communication and social support. The data were analyzed using SPSS 15.0 program and factors affecting children's self-esteem were analyzed by stepwise multiple regression. Scores for the study variables were significantly different between the two groups. The factors influencing children's self-esteem were also different according to family type. For two parent families, internal control, problematic behavior, school record, and parent-child communication significantly predicted the level of self-esteem (adjusted R(2)=.505, psingle parent families, social support, family hardiness, internal control, problematic behavior, school record, and parent-child communication significantly predicted the level of self-esteem (adjusted R(2)=.444, p<.001). Nurse working with children should consider family type-specific factors influencing their self-esteem.

  11. The Development of Children's Ethnic Identity in Immigrant Chinese Families in Canada: The Role of Parenting Practices and Children's Perceptions of Parental Family Obligation Expectations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Tina F.; Costigan, Catherine L.

    2009-01-01

    Parents' role in children's ethnic identity development was examined among 95 immigrant Chinese families with young adolescents living in Canada. Children reported their feelings of ethnic identity and perceptions of parental family obligation expectations. Parents reported their family obligation expectations; parents and children reported on…

  12. Potential for misclassification of micronutrient status in children participating in a Head Start program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Droke, Elizabeth A; Kennedy, Tay Seacord; Hubbs-Tait, Laura

    2006-03-01

    To evaluate relations among measures of iron and zinc status, C-reactive protein (CRP), and leukocytes in low-income children participating in the Head Start program. Cross-sectional correlational study with samples collected at Head Start centers in May 2003. Forty-seven children (aged 3 to 5 years) attending Head Start centers in three rural communities. Zinc, ferritin, CRP, and complete blood count were analyzed in nonfasting blood samples. Correlations were computed among leukocyte levels, CRP levels, and measures of micronutrient status. Children having two abnormal measures (ie, leukocytes and CRP) were compared by univariate analysis of variance with children having zero or one abnormal measure. Most (72%) of the children had elevated CRP levels. Four percent were anemic (hemoglobinreference value that accounts for the presence of infection was used (serum ferritinChildren with two measures that indicated infection had higher serum ferritin and lower plasma zinc levels than children with zero or one indicator of infection. The link between measures of infection and serum ferritin levels suggests low-income preschool children with low iron stores are not identified by the children. Thus, in this population, the presence of infection (as indicated by CRP levels and leukocyte counts) should be determined to assess micronutrient status.

  13. Evaluation of family drawings of physically and sexually abused children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Piperno, Francesca; Di Biasi, Stefania; Levi, Gabriel

    2007-09-01

    The aim of this study is to analyse the family drawings of two groups of physically and/or sexually abused children as compared to the drawings of non-abused children of a matched control group. The drawings by 12 physically abused, 12 sexually abused and 12 non-abused children, all aged between 5 years-old and 10 years-old, were assessed and compared. Family drawings were analysed using a specific Screening Inventory (FDI-Family Drawing Inventory). This Inventory takes into consideration such qualitative and quantitative variables as the quality of drawing, the children's perception of their family members and their own perception of themselves within the family system. The results have shown significant differences between the abused minors and the control group. Abused children are more likely to draw distorted bodies, the human figure is usually represented devoid of details, their drawings generally show clear signals of trauma and the majority of the abused children are likely to exclude their primary caregiver from the drawings. The "drawings of the family" of physically and/or sexually abused children significantly evidence a greater emotional distress then the drawings of the non-abused children of the matched control group.

  14. Family Chaos and Child Functioning in Relation to Sleep Problems Among Children at Risk for Obesity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boles, Richard E; Halbower, Ann C; Daniels, Stephen; Gunnarsdottir, Thrudur; Whitesell, Nancy; Johnson, Susan L

    2017-01-01

    This study evaluated the influence of child and family functioning on child sleep behaviors in low-income minority families who are at risk for obesity. A cross-sectional study was utilized to measure child and family functioning from 2013 to 2014. Participants were recruited from Head Start classrooms while data were collected during home visits. A convenience sample of 72 low-income Hispanic (65%) and African American (32%) families of preschool-aged children were recruited for this study. We assessed the association of child and family functioning with child sleep behaviors using a multivariate multiple linear regression model. Bootstrap mediation analyses examined the effects of family chaos between child functioning and child sleep problems. Poorer child emotional and behavioral functioning related to total sleep behavior problems. Chaos associated with bedtime resistance significantly mediated the relationship between Behavioral and Emotional Screening System (BESS) and Bedtime Resistance. Families at high risk for obesity showed children with poorer emotional and behavioral functioning were at higher risk for problematic sleep behaviors, although we found no link between obesity and child sleep. Family chaos appears to play a significant role in understanding part of these relationships. Future longitudinal studies are necessary to establish causal relationships between child and family functioning and sleep problems to further guide obesity interventions aimed at improving child sleep routines and increasing sleep duration.

  15. Perceptions of Personal and Familial Adjustment by Children from Intact, Single-Parent, and Reconstituted Families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nunn, Gerald D.; And Others

    1983-01-01

    Investigated children's (N=566) personal and familial adjustment as a function of familial configuration and gender. The results revealed less positive adjustment among children from divorced families. Males appeared to be favorably affected within the single-parent configuration, while females were more favorably adjusted within the reconstituted…

  16. Home discharge of technology-dependent children: evaluation of a respiratory-therapist driven family education program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tearl, Donna K; Hertzog, James H

    2007-02-01

    Initial hospital discharge to home of technology-dependent children requires extensive training and education of the family caregivers. Education of adult family members should promote positive interactions in a nonthreatening manner while facilitating the development of the knowledge and skills to competently and independently provide all aspects of the medical care. We utilize a training program for adult family members of children who have undergone tracheostomy to facilitate long-term mechanical ventilatory support and who are being prepared for their initial discharge from the hospital to home. A dedicated respiratory therapist family educator directs this program. Multiple teaching tools, activities, and training sessions, based on adult learning theory, are utilized to develop appropriate clinical skills to manage children with tracheostomies and the associated technological supports. We evaluated the effectiveness of our program by administering a written test to caregivers, at the start and the conclusion of their training. We also surveyed the caregivers about their satisfaction with the educational program and the respiratory therapist family educator's performance. We also surveyed employees of the durable medical equipment companies used by the families, regarding the caregivers' knowledge and competency in the home one month following discharge. Our program was associated with a statistically significant improvement in caregiver test performance, and the caregivers expressed a high degree of satisfaction with the program. The employees of the durable medical equipment companies perceived a high degree of knowledge and competence on the part of the home caregivers. Our training program appears to have a positive impact on the educational preparation of caregivers.

  17. Family Structure Changes and Children's Health, Behavior, and Educational Outcomes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Astrid Würtz

    More and more children do not grow up in traditional nuclear families. Instead, they grow up in single-parent households or in families with a step-parent. Hence, it is important to improve our understanding of the impact of "shocks" in family structure due to parental relationship dissolution...... on children. In this study I empirically test whether children are traumatized both in the short and the long run by shocks in the family structure during childhood. I focus on educational, behavioral, and health outcomes. A population sample of Danish children born in January to May 1985 is used...... for the analysis. The empirical cross-sectional analysis indicates a negative relation between the number of family structure changes and children.s health, behavior, and educational outcomes. These results are con.rmed by a differences-in-differences analysis of health outcomes. This suggests...

  18. Quality of life in home-ventilated children and their families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    González, Rafael; Bustinza, Amaya; Fernandez, Sarah N; García, Miriam; Rodriguez, Silvia; García-Teresa, Ma Ángeles; Gaboli, Mirella; García, Silvia; Sardón, Olaia; García, Diego; Salcedo, Antonio; Rodríguez, Antonio; Luna, Ma Carmen; Hernández, Arturo; González, Catalina; Medina, Alberto; Pérez, Estela; Callejón, Alicia; Toledo, Juan D; Herranz, Mercedes; López-Herce, Jesús

    2017-10-01

    HMV (home mechanical ventilation) in children has increased over the last years. The aim of the study was to assess perceived quality of life (QOL) of these children and their families as well as the problems they face in their daily life.We performed a multicentric cross-sectional study using a semi-structured interview about the impact of HMV on families and an evaluation questionnaire about perceived QOL by the patient and their families (pediatric quality of life questionnaire (PedsQL4.0)). We studied 41 subjects (mean age 8.2 years). Global scores in PedsQL questionnaire for subjects (median 61.4), and their parents (median 52.2) were below those of healthy children. 24.4% received medical follow-up at home and 71.8% attended school. Mothers were the main caregivers (75.6%), 48.8% of which were fully dedicated to the care of their child. 71.1% consider economic and healthcare resources insufficient. All families were satisfied with the care they provide to their children, even though it was considered emotionally overwhelming (65.9%). Marital conflict and neglect of siblings appeared in 42.1 and 36% of families, respectively. Perceived QOL by children with HMV and their families is lower than that of healthy children. Parents are happy to care for their children at home, even though it negatively affects family life. What is Known: • The use of home mechanical ventilation (HMV) in children has increased over the last years. • Normal family functioning is usually disrupted by HMV. What is New: • The aim of HMV is to provide a lifestyle similar to that of healthy children, but perceived quality of life by these patients and their parents is low. • Most of the families caring for children on HMV agree that support and resources provided by national health institutions is insufficient.

  19. Young Children and Families Experiencing Homelessness

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Allison B.; Squires, Jane

    2014-01-01

    The increasing prevalence of homelessness among young children and families in the United States is described, as is the developmental impact on young children and cost to society. Although services are mandated for this population under the McKinney­-Vento Act, Education of Homeless Children and Youth Program, and the Individuals With…

  20. Parental Adjustment, Marital Relationship, and Family Function in Families of Children with Autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gau, Susan Shur-Fen; Chou, Miao-Churn; Chiang, Huey-Ling; Lee, Ju-Chin; Wong, Ching-Ching; Chou, Wen-Jiun; Wu, Yu-Yu

    2012-01-01

    This study aimed to investigate the psychopathology, marital relationship, and family function in parents of children with autistic disorder (autism) as compared to parents of typically developing children. We also compared these measures between the mothers and the fathers. We assessed 151 families with at least one child with autistic disorder…

  1. Head Start Program Performance Standards on Services for Children with Disabilities (45-CFR 1308) [and] Normas de Ejecucion del Programa Head Start Sobre Servicios para Ninos con Discapacidades (45-CFR 1308).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Administration for Children, Youth, and Families (DHHS), Washington, DC. Head Start Bureau.

    This document consolidates, clarifies, and updates federal regulations on Head Start services for children with disabilities. The regulations are designed to complement the Head Start Program Performance Standards governing services to all enrolled children. Specifically, these regulations require Head Start programs to: (1) design comprehensive…

  2. Children's mental health and family functioning in Rhode Island.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Hyun Hanna K; Viner-Brown, Samara I; Garcia, Jorge

    2007-02-01

    Our objectives were to (a) estimate the prevalence of children's mental health problems, (b) assess family functioning, and (c) investigate the relationship between children's mental health and family functioning in Rhode Island. From the 2003 National Survey of Children's Health, Rhode Island data for children 6 to 17 years of age were used for the analyses (N = 1326). Two aspects of family functioning measures, parental stress and parental involvement, were constructed and were examined by children's mental health problems, as well as other child and family characteristics (child's age, gender, race/ethnicity, special needs, parent's education, income, employment, family structure, number of children, and mother's general and mental health). Bivariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression were used to investigate the relationship. Among Rhode Island children, nearly 1 (19.0%) in 5 had mental health problems, 1 (15.6%) in 6 lived with a highly stressed parent, and one third (32.7%) had parents with low involvement. Bivariate analyses showed that high parental stress and low parental involvement were higher among parents of children with mental health problems than parents of children without those problems (33.2% vs 11.0% and 41.0% vs 30.3%, respectively). In multivariate logistic regression, parents of children with mental health problems had nearly 4 times the odds of high stress compared with parents of children without those problems. When children's mental health problems were severe, the odds of high parental stress were elevated. However, children's mental health was not associated with parental involvement. Children's mental health was strongly associated with parental stress, but it was not associated with parental involvement. The findings indicate that when examining the mental health issues of children, parental mental health and stress must be considered.

  3. Emotional climate, feeding practices, and feeding styles: an observational analysis of the dinner meal in Head Start families

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hall Sharon K

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A number of studies conducted with ethnically diverse, low-income samples have found that parents with indulgent feeding styles had children with a higher weight status. Indulgent parents are those who are responsive to their child's emotional states but have problems setting appropriate boundaries with their child. Because the processes through which styles impact child weight are poorly understood, the aim of this study was to observe differences in the emotional climate created by parents (including affect, tone of voice, and gestures and behavioral feeding practices among those reporting different feeding styles on the Caregiver's Feeding Styles Questionnaire. A secondary aim was to examine differences on child weight status across the feeding styles. Methods Participants were 177 Head Start families from Houston, Texas (45% African-American; 55% Hispanic. Using an observational approach, the relationship between the observed emotional climate of the meal, behavioral feeding practices, and self-reported parent feeding styles were examined. Mean age of the children was 4.4 years (SD = 0.7 equally distributed across gender. Families were observed on 3 separate dinner occasions. Heights and weight were measured on the parents and children. Results Parents with self-reported indulgent feeding styles made fewer demands on their children to eat during dinner and showed lower levels of negative affect and intrusiveness. Surprisingly, these parents also showed higher levels of emotional detachment with their children during dinner. Hispanic boys with indulgent parents had significantly higher BMI z scores compared to Hispanic boys in the other three feeding style groups. No other differences were found on child weight status. Conclusions Results suggest that the emotional climate created by indulgent parents during dinner and their lack of demands on their children to eat may play an important role in how young children become

  4. [Characteristics of growth and development in children from families at social risk].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stojadinović, A

    2001-01-01

    Body height and weight are important indicators of children's health status. There are many evidences that children from disadvantaged families have lower height and weight than children of the same age from families without social risk. The aim of this study was to investigate characteristics of growth and development of children from economically disadvantaged families. The study was partly retrospective and partly prospective. The retrospective study included 509 children from disadvantaged families hospitalized at the Institute of Child and Adolescent Health Care in Novi Sad, during a five-year period. The prospective study included 90 children from disadvantaged families (experimental group) and 132 children from families without social risk (control group) hospitalized at the Institute during a six month period. Height/length, weight, head circumference, and psychomotor/intellectual development have been examined. In the retrospective study results were compared with theoretically expected values, whereas the prospective study results of experimental and control group were compared. In the retrospective study that included only children from disadvantaged families, 136 (26.7%) children had height/length, 173 (34%) had weight, and 86 (16.9%) children had head circumference below 10th percentile. Delay in psychomotor/intellectual development was established in 177 (34.8%) children. Children from families with social risk have significantly more often height/length, weight, head circumference and developmental delay than theoretically expected. In the prospective study 40 (44.4%) children from experimental group had height/length, 29 (32.2%) had weight, 20 (22.2%) children had head circumference below 10th percentile, and 17 (26.2%) had delay in psychomotor/intellectual development. Children from disadvantaged families (experimental group) significantly more often had delay in growth and development comparing with children from families without social risk

  5. Attachment and Family Processes in Children's Psychological Adjustment in Middle Childhood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demby, Kimberly P; Riggs, Shelley A; Kaminski, Patricia L

    2017-03-01

    This study examined the links between parent-child attachment, whole family interaction patterns, and child emotional adjustment and adaptability in a sample of 86 community families with children between the ages of 8 and 11 years. Family interactions were observed and coded with the System for Coding Interactions and Family Functioning (SCIFF; Lindahl, 2001). Both parents and each target child completed the appropriate form of the Behavior Assessment System for Children-2nd Edition (BASC-2; Reynolds & Kamphaus, 2004). Target children also completed the Children's Coping Strategies Questionnaire (CCSQ; Yunger, Corby, & Perry, 2005). Hierarchical multiple regressions indicated that Secure mother-child attachment was a robust predictor of children's emotional symptoms, but father-child attachment strategies were not significant independent predictors. Positive Affect in family interactions significantly increased the amount of variance accounted for in children's emotional symptoms. In addition, Family Cohesion and Positive Affect moderated the relationship between father-child attachment and children's emotional symptoms. When data from all BASC-2 informants (mother, father, child) were considered simultaneously and multidimensional constructs were modeled, mother-child security directly predicted children's adjustment and adaptive skills, but the influence of father-child security was fully mediated through positive family functioning. Results of the current study support the utility of considering dyadic attachment and family interaction patterns conjointly when conceptualizing and fostering positive emotional and behavioral outcomes in children. © 2015 Family Process Institute.

  6. Are Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families with Alcoholism Different from Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families without Alcoholism? A Look at Committed, Intimate Relationships.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harrington, Christine M.; Metzler, April E.

    1997-01-01

    Compared adult children from dysfunctional families (with and without alcoholism) and adult children of functional families to gauge current relationship satisfaction. No significant differences emerged between the two dysfunctional groups. Analyses connected dysfunction in the family of origin to global distress and to difficulties with…

  7. Children's Gender Identity in Lesbian and Heterosexual Two-Parent Families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bos, Henny; Sandfort, Theo G M

    2010-01-01

    This study compared gender identity, anticipated future heterosexual romantic involvement, and psychosocial adjustment of children in lesbian and heterosexual families; it was furthermore assessed whether associations between these aspects differed between family types. Data were obtained in the Netherlands from children in 63 lesbian families and 68 heterosexual families. All children were between 8 and 12 years old. Children in lesbian families felt less parental pressure to conform to gender stereotypes, were less likely to experience their own gender as superior and were more likely to be uncertain about future heterosexual romantic involvement. No differences were found on psychosocial adjustment. Gender typicality, gender contentedness and anticipated future heterosexual romantic involvement were significant predictors of psychosocial adjustment in both family types.

  8. Surrogacy families headed by gay men: relationships with surrogates and egg donors, fathers' decisions over disclosure and children's views on their surrogacy origins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carone, Nicola; Baiocco, Roberto; Manzi, Demetria; Antoniucci, Chiara; Caricato, Victoria; Pagliarulo, Eugenio; Lingiardi, Vittorio

    2018-02-01

    How do gay father families experience surrogacy in terms of their relationships with surrogates and egg donors, fathers' disclosure decisions and children's views on their surrogacy origins? More families had a relationship with the surrogate than the egg donor, and almost all had started to disclose to their children, the majority of whom expressed limited interest in their surrogacy conception. Gay fathers tend to report greater contact with the surrogate than the egg donor and to disclose only the use of a surrogate (omitting discussion of the egg donor and the respective fathers' genetic relatedness). Children's views on their surrogacy conception to gay fathers are not known. Thirty-one children and 80 fathers were interviewed as part of a larger in-depth investigation of 40 Italian gay father surrogacy families. Multiple strategies were used to recruit participants. Children were aged 6-12 years and had been born to gay fathers through gestational surrogacy. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in participants' homes with each family member, separately. Fathers' interviews were presented from the perspective of the father who identified as being most involved with the child on a day-to-day basis. Qualitative content analysis was performed and quotations illustrating the findings were reported. Where appropriate, comparisons were conducted using χ2 or Fisher's exact tests. A total of 31 children in 24 families were interviewed. Most families reported a harmonious relationship with the surrogate (n = 20, 57.1%) and a distant relationship with the donor (n = 10, 66.7%) (χ2(1) = 23.33, P surrogacy had not been heard. Future research on factors influencing children's desired contact with-or interest in-the surrogate and/or egg donor and their feelings when contact is not possible will be important in preparing families for such events. Support was obtained from a Sapienza Starting Grant for Research to the first author (grant number AR11715C77EB56B2). None

  9. The Performance of Fundamental Gross Motor Skills by Children Enrolled in Head Start.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woodard, Rebecca J.; Yun, Joonkoo

    2001-01-01

    This study sought to descriptively evaluate the performance of fundamental gross motor skills among Head Start children. Levels of performance were compared and contrasted with performance profiles of the Test of Gross Motor Development. Findings suggest that Head Start curriculum should focus on the importance of developing fundamental gross…

  10. Family Structure Changes and Children's Health, Behavior, and Educational Outcomes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Astrid Würtz

    decreased to 73% in 2005. Hence it is important to improve our understanding of the impact of "shocks" in family structure due to parental relationship dissolution on children. International studies mainly suggest a negative relationship between non-nuclear family structure and child outcomes. There are two...... relation between family structure changes and children's outcomes. Children who have experienced family structure changes during childhood seem to have worse educational outcomes and a higher propensity to being hospitalized and convicted of a crime. The children in the dataset experience up to 13 family...... structure changes during childhood. More family structure changes implies worse outcomes and might actually be more important than the number of years a child has spent in a single parent household. The age at which the family structure change occurs also seems to be important at least for some outcomes....

  11. Marital Conflict, Children's Representations of Family Relationships, and Children's Dispositions towards Peer Conflict Strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Du Rocher Schudlich, Tina D.; Shamir, Haya; Cummings, E. Mark

    2004-01-01

    The links among marital relations and children's representations were examined. Forty-seven children between the ages of 5 and 8 completed the Family Stories Task (FAST) to obtain their narrative representations of family relations and performed a variation of a puppet procedure (Mize & Ladd, 1988) to assess children's dispositions towards peer…

  12. Family structure and children's television viewing and physical activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bagley, Sarah; Salmon, Jo; Crawford, David

    2006-05-01

    This study aimed to examine how physical activity (PA) and television (TV) viewing time of children varied according to family structure. In 2001, 5- to 6-yr-old (N = 296) and 10- to 12-yr-old (N = 919) children and their parents were recruited from 19 state elementary schools in Melbourne, Australia. Children's PA was objectively assessed using accelerometers worn for 8 d. Sociodemographic and family structure information and time spent watching TV was collected via questionnaire completed by parents. ANCOVA revealed that, after controlling for socioeconomic status and age of child, boys without any siblings spent more minutes per day watching TV (153.2 +/- 71.3) compared with those who have siblings (129.0 +/- 64.4, P s sex with PA and between number of siblings and sex with TV viewing. Family structure may be an important source of influence on children's PA and TV viewing time. Aspects of family structure interact differently with PA and TV viewing, suggesting interventions may need to be tailored with consideration of the family structure of children.

  13. Evaluation of hearing ability in Danish children at the time of school start and at the end of school

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gissel, S.; Mortensen, Jens Tølbøll; Juul, S.

    2002-01-01

    Since previous studies have shown reduced hearing ability in children and adolescents at school start, this study was undertaken to evaluate the hearing ability in Danish children at the time of start and end of school. Children starting school in 1977, 1987, and 1997 from four minor municipalities...... in North Jutland County, Denmark were evaluated for hearing ability by a review of 1,605 school health records. We found a higher prevalence of impaired hearing ability in children who started school 1987 and 1997 compared to those who started school 1977. Reduced hearing was typically at high frequencies....... At the end of school, hearing ability of the year group 1977 was just as poor as for the year group 1987. Whether reduced hearing can influence the learning abilities of these children should be evaluated by further studies including information on the exposure to noise....

  14. Families' engagement with young children's science and technology learning at home

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Robin L.; Schaverien, Lynette

    2001-07-01

    There is accumulating evidence of the worth of involving families in young children's learning in informal contexts. By exploring families' engagement with their children's science and technology learning at home over a 6-month period, the present investigation sought to illuminate both the nature and the educational significance of what families do. Initially, in order to seed scientific and technological inquiry in homes, kindergarten and year-one children investigated flashlights with family members at school. Each day, equipment was available to take home. Using established anthropological methods, one of the researchers investigated children's further inquiries beyond the classroom in diverse ways; for example, by visiting homes and conversing via telephone and facsimile. The findings showed that families engaged with children's inquiries at home in many ways - by providing resources, conversing, and investigating collaboratively with children. Moreover, when families pursued inquiries together and when children conducted their own sustained intellectual searches, children's ideas deepened. Such evidence of the educational significance of what families do suggests that early science and technology education might be made more effective if it were aligned with the ways people learn together outside formal institutions.

  15. Family Structure Changes and Children's Health, Behavior, and Educational Outcomes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Astrid Würtz

    More and more children do not grow up in traditional nuclear families. Instead they grow up in single parent households or in families with a step-parent. Hence it is important to improve our understanding of the impact of 'shocks' in family structure due to parental relationship dissolution...... on children. In this study I empirically test whether children are traumatized by shocks in the family structure during childhood. I focus on both educational, behavioral, and health outcomes. A population sample of Danish children born in January to May 1983, 1984, and 1985 is used for the analysis...

  16. The family's role in children's interpretation of advertising

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Buijzen, M.A.; Blades, M.; Oates, C.; Blumberg, F.; Gunter, B.

    2014-01-01

    Family communication is often considered the most effective tool in the management of advertising influence on children. The family context not only influences how children use the media and the messages they get from them, but also how literate they become as media users. In this chapter, I discuss

  17. Parental communication style and family relationships in children of bipolar parents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vance, Yvonne H; Huntley Jones, Steven; Espie, Jonathan; Bentall, Richard; Tai, Sara

    2008-09-01

    To examine relationships between parental communication styles and family environment in parents with bipolar disorder (BD) and their children (CBP). On measures of parental communication styles and family environment, 20 BD parents and their 23 children (CBP) were compared to controls. Children completed a current mood measure. BD parents endorsed more negative communication styles and were less expressive than controls. CBP presented with more current or lifetime mood disorder diagnoses than control children (CC). Current depressive mood was associated with different perceptions of family environment for both CBP and CC. This familial high risk design indicated differences in family environment, parenting style, and in children of bipolar parents' perception of their family environment as it relates to their current mood.

  18. Familial hypercholesterolaemia in children and adolescents

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wiegman, Albert; Gidding, Samuel S; Watts, Gerald F

    2015-01-01

    . If a parent has a genetic defect, the LDL-C cut-off for the child is ≥3.5 mmol/L (130 mg/dL). We recommend cascade screening of families using a combined phenotypic and genotypic strategy. In children, testing is recommended from age 5 years, or earlier if homozygous FH is suspected. A healthy lifestyle......Familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) is a common genetic cause of premature coronary heart disease (CHD). Globally, one baby is born with FH every minute. If diagnosed and treated early in childhood, individuals with FH can have normal life expectancy. This consensus paper aims to improve awareness...... of the need for early detection and management of FH children. Familial hypercholesterolaemia is diagnosed either on phenotypic criteria, i.e. an elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) level plus a family history of elevated LDL-C, premature coronary artery disease and/or genetic diagnosis...

  19. The proper name as starting point for basic reading skills

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Both-De Vries, Anna C.; Bus, Adriana G

    Does alphabetic-phonetic writing start with the proper name and how does the name affect reading and writing skills? Sixty 4- to 5(1/2)-year-old children from middle SES families with Dutch as their first language wrote their proper name and named letters. For each child we created unique sets of

  20. Parent Perceptions of Mobile Device Use Among Preschool-Aged Children in Rural Head Start Centers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCloskey, Morgan; Johnson, Susan L; Benz, Cristen; Thompson, Darcy A; Chamberlin, Barbara; Clark, Lauren; Bellows, Laura L

    2018-01-01

    To describe child use and parents' beliefs and comfort with young children's use of mobile devices in low-income, rural communities. This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study. The survey, which consisted of 18 multiple-part questions, was distributed to families at 5 Head Start/preschool centers in Colorado. In total, 192 surveys were returned (28.5% response rate). Most children (92%) used a smartphone or tablet at some frequency and most parents (90%) had downloaded apps specifically for their child. Education and ethnicity were related to parents' technology beliefs. Parent comfort with technology was positively associated with greater child use of technology (P Mobile device use was relatively high in this sample. Mobile devices appear to be a feasible platform to offer nutrition and physical activity education for this audience. Ensuring parent comfort with technology and apps will be important. Copyright © 2017 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Family meals with young children: an online study of family mealtime characteristics, among Australian families with children aged six months to six years

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eloise-kate V. Litterbach

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Evidence suggests that family meals influence food intakes and behaviours, which in turn impact children’s eating habits, diets and health. Mealtimes therefore offer potential as settings for health promotion. Given diet, health behaviours and health are often socioeconomically patterned, it is important to consider whether family meals differ by socioeconomic position (SEP. Methods The Family Meals with Young Kids study was an online survey completed by parents in 2014. Mealtime characteristics measured included; frequency of shared meals across the day, duration and location of mealtimes, parental modelling, and parental perceived importance of the evening meal. Maternal education was used to assess SEP. The aims of this study were to describe family meal characteristics among Australian families with children aged six months to six years and to describe the socioeconomic patterning of these. Results Participants (n = 992 were mostly mothers (97% with a university degree (71%. The evening meal was the most frequently reported meal eaten together with the responding parent and child (77% ≥ five nights/week. Snacks were least commonly eaten together (39% ≥ five days/week. The frequency of having everyone present for the evening meal was inversely associated with SEP (OR 0.70, CI 0.54-0.92. Parent rated importance of family meals was generally high and positively associated with higher SEP (OR 1.32, CI 1.00-1.76. Most children consumed breakfast (73%, lunch (58% and dinner (82% sitting at a table or bench and this was positively associated with higher SEP for all meal types (OR 1.61-2.37, p < 0.05. Increased television (TV viewing during meals was inversely associated with SEP (OR 0.63, CI 0.54-0.72. Less than half of children (36% watched TV during meals more than once a day. Conclusions Australian families engage in many healthy mealtime behaviours. Evidence that parents share meals with children and

  2. Early Intervention for Families and Children Experiencing Homelessness

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hurley, Jennifer J.; Looby, Winnie; Goodrum, Ashley R.; Campbell, Elizabeth M.; Bonti, Gregg K.; Raymon, Becca A.; Condon, Rebecca; Schwaeber, Sami E.; Mauceri, Melina E.; Bourne, Erin M.; Callahan, Elizabeth D.; Hardy, Danielle L.; Mathews, Pamela

    2018-01-01

    Early intervention (EI) services are provided for families and children at risk for or with developmental delays. Early intervention includes services that are provided in the natural environment as mandated by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA; 2004). The natural environment is where children and families would naturally spend…

  3. Families with special needs children: family health, functioning, and care burden.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caicedo, Carmen

    2014-01-01

    There are 11.2 million children with special health care needs in the United States or one in five households caring for a special needs child. A small group of children who need continuous medical, nursing, therapeutic services that enable them to survive is growing in numbers. This study examined physical health (physical functioning), mental health (emotional, social, and cognitive functioning; communication; and worry), family functioning (daily activities, family relationships), and care burden (caregiver employment, caregiving time, travel time, health-related out-of-pocket expenditures) of parent caregivers for medically complex, medical technology-dependent children. Data were collected once a month for 5 months on 84 parents recruited in South Florida using the Pediatric Quality of Life Family Impact Module. Physically, parents were tired when they woke up: too tired to do the things they liked to do and with little energy for chores or social activities. Mentally, they were frustrated, anxious, and angry; felt helpless and hopeless; had cognitive problems remembering and focusing on tasks; were worried about the child's medications, treatments, side effects; and were anxious about child's future and effect of the child's condition on other family members. Socially, they felt isolated and that people did not understand their family situation; they found it hard to talk with others including physicians and nurses. Average weekly hours of direct care was 33.0 (SD = 30.4 hours); average monthly out-of-pocket expenditures was $348.78 (SD = $623.34). It is essential to assess parents' physical and mental health and functioning and to provide interventions to improve health and functioning for both the parents and the children for whom they are caring. © The Author(s) 2014.

  4. Researching with Families: Ethical Issues and Situations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dockett, Sue; Perry, Bob; Kearney, Emma; Hampshire, Anne; Mason, Jan; Schmied, Virginia

    2009-01-01

    This article draws on an Australian project engaging with families with complex support needs as their children start school. The project itself is focused on developing collaborative research relationships between families, community support agencies and researchers with the aim of investigating what happens for families during the transition to…

  5. Familial correlates of social anxiety in children and adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bögels, S M; van Oosten, A; Muris, P; Smulders, D

    2001-03-01

    Retrospective studies suggest a relationship between parental rearing practices and social phobia. The present study investigated whether socially anxious children perceive their current parental rearing as rejecting, overprotective, and lacking emotional warmth, and as emphasizing the importance of other's opinion, and de-emphasizing social initiatives and family sociability. Furthermore, we examined whether parents of socially anxious children report to rely on such rearing practices, and suffer themselves from social fears. A regression analysis as well as extreme group comparisons were applied. Little support was found for the presumed role of the assessed family rearing aspects in the development of social anxiety in children. Solely family sociability (children's and mothers' report) and children's perception of overprotection of the mother predicted social anxiety in the regression analysis. Given the influence of the mentioned rearing practices, social anxiety of the mother still significantly predicted social anxiety of the child. In the extreme group comparisons, differences in the expected direction were found between socially anxious and normal children on parental rejection, emotional warmth, and family sociability. However, the lack of differences between socially anxious and clinical control children suggests that these variables do not form a specific pathway to social fears.

  6. Familial Influences on Poverty Among Young Children in Black Immigrant, U.S.-born Black, and Nonblack Immigrant Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas, Kevin J. A.

    2014-01-01

    This study examines how familial contexts affect poverty disparities between the children of immigrant and U.S.-born blacks, and among black and nonblack children of immigrants. Despite lower gross child poverty rates in immigrant than in U.S.-born black families, accounting for differences in family structure reveals that child poverty risks among blacks are highest in single-parent black immigrant families. In addition, within two-parent immigrant families, child poverty declines associated with increasing assimilation are greater than the respective declines in single-parent families. The heads of black immigrant households have more schooling than those of native-black households. However, increased schooling has a weaker negative association with child poverty among the former than among the latter. In terms of racial disparities among the children of immigrants, poverty rates are higher among black than nonblack children. This black disadvantage is, however, driven by the outcomes of first-generation children of African and Hispanic-black immigrants. The results also show that although children in refugee families face elevated poverty risks, these risks are higher among black than among nonblack children of refugees. In addition, the poverty-reducing impact associated with having an English-proficient household head is about three times lower among black children of immigrants than among non-Hispanic white children of immigrants. PMID:21491186

  7. Quantifying Variation in Head Start Effects on Young Children's Cognitive and Socio-Emotional Skills Using Data from the National Head Start Impact Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bloom, Howard S.; Weiland, Christina

    2015-01-01

    This paper uses data from the Head Start Impact Study (HSIS), a nationally representative multisite randomized trial, to quantify variation in effects of Head Start during 2002-2003 on children's cognitive and socio-emotional outcomes relative to the effects of other local alternatives, including parent care. We find that (1) treatment and control…

  8. Family Functioning Differences Across the Deployment Cycle in British Army Families: The Perceptions of Wives and Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pye, Rachel E; Simpson, Leanne K

    2017-09-01

    Military deployment can have an adverse effect on a soldier's family, though little research has looked at these effects in a British sample. We investigated wives' of U.K.-serving soldiers perceptions of marital and family functioning, across three stages of the deployment cycle: currently deployed, postdeployment and predeployed, plus a nonmilitary comparison group. Uniquely, young (aged 3.5-11 years) children's perceptions of their family were also investigated, using the parent-child alliance (PCA) coding scheme of drawings of the family. Two hundred and twenty British military families of regular service personnel from the British Army's Royal Armoured Corps, were sent survey packs distributed with a monthly welfare office newsletter. Wives were asked to complete a series of self-report items, and the youngest child in the family between the ages of 3.5 and 11 years was asked to draw a picture of their family. Complete data were available for 78 military families, and an additional 34 nonmilitary families were recruited via opportunity sampling. Results indicated wives of currently deployed and recently returned personnel were less satisfied with their family and its communication, and children's pictures indicated higher levels of dysfunctional parent-child alliance, whereas predeployed families responded similarly to nonmilitary families. Marital satisfaction was similar across all groups except predeployed families who were significantly more satisfied. Nonmilitary and predeployed families showed balanced family functioning, and currently and recently deployed families demonstrated poor family functioning. In comparison to nonmilitary families, predeployed families showed a large "spike" in the rigidity subscale of the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale IV. Wives' perceptions of family functioning, but not marital satisfaction, differed between the deployment groups. The results from the coded children's drawings correlated with the self

  9. Do family policy regimes matter for children's well-being?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Engster, Daniel; Stensöta, Helena Olofsdotter

    2011-01-01

    Researchers have studied the impact of different welfare state regimes, and particularly family policy regimes, on gender equality. Very little research has been conducted, however, on the association between different family policy regimes and children's well-being. This article explores how the different family policy regimes of twenty OECD countries relate to children's well-being in the areas of child poverty, child mortality, and educational attainment and achievement. We focus specifically on three family policies: family cash and tax benefits, paid parenting leaves, and public child care support. Using panel data for the years 1995, 2000, and 2005, we test the association between these policies and child well-being while holding constant for a number of structural and policy variables. Our analysis shows that the dual-earner regimes, combining high levels of support for paid parenting leaves and public child care, are strongly associated with low levels of child poverty and child mortality. We find little long-term effect of family policies on educational achievement, but a significant positive correlation between high family policy support and higher educational attainment. We conclude that family policies have a significant impact on improving children's well-being, and that dual-earner regimes represent the best practice for promoting children's health and development.

  10. Family Characteristics of Children with Dyslexia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Melekian, Badrig A.

    1990-01-01

    A retrospective review of 249 French children (ages 8-15) with severe dyslexia found that families were characterized by low occupational status and educational level for parents and predominance of high-ranking children in large sibships. Parental age and matrimonial status seemed unimportant. (Author/JDD)

  11. Adoptive and Birth Family Adjustment to Rearing Retarded Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glidden, Laraine Masters; Bush, Beverly A.

    The study identified 81 families who adopted children with mental retardation or at risk for mental retardation, and compared them with 61 matched families with similar birth children. For birth families, the initial diagnosis was a time of crisis, with high depression scores, while scores at follow-up (an average of 5.3 years later) indicated no…

  12. The characteristics of family functioning with mentally ill children and adolescents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jelkić Milica

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Background/Aim. The family functioning and characteristics are the major risk factors in the genesis and persistence of mental disorders in children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of functioning of family with mentally ill children and adolescents. Methods. This study explored 47 families with a child/adolescent suffering from mental disorders and 47 families of age matched healthy children/adolescents. The socio-demographic questionnaire, Social Adaptation Self-evaluation scale (SASS and Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scale (FACES III (Olson, 1983 were completed by parents. Results. For all three FACES III dimensions multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA showed significant differences between groups ( Wilks λ = .887; F = 3.839; df = 3; p = 0.012. Univariate analysis results showed significant differences for cohesiveness F = 6.99 p = 0.001 and adaptability F = 10.07 p = 0 .001. The analysis of the social adaption (SASS assessment showed that the mean score for clinical vs. non-clinical group was 39.66 ± 6.82 vs. 38.06 ± 8.44 without significant difference between groups (p = 0.32. The families of mentally ill children showed frequently lower socioeconomic status and education level, higher number of children per family, and broken home. Conclusion. The results suggested that cohesiveness and adaptability were significantly more prominent among families with mentaly ill children, but adaptation was similar to families with healthy children. It would be useful to evaluate adaptability, cohesiveness and adaptation of primary families when planning prevention and rehabillitation of mentally ill children and adolescent.

  13. Exploring Teachers' Depressive Symptoms, Interaction Quality, and Children's Social-Emotional Development in Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, Amy; LoCasale-Crouch, Jennifer; Hamre, Bridget; DeCoster, Jamie

    2016-01-01

    Research Findings: This study explored the role Head Start teachers' (n = 355) depressive symptoms play in their interactions with children and in children's (n = 2,203) social-emotional development, specifically changes in children's problem behaviors and social skills as reported by parents and teachers during the preschool year. Results of the…

  14. IDENTITY FORMATION AMONG PRIMARY SCHOOL-AGED CHILDREN IN DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. G. Bulygina

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Primary school age is a stage of significant personal changes of a child, including the identity formation as a result of a major restructuring of the system of relations of the child within the family. Background: The aim is to study the influence of a dysfunctional family system on the identity formation of primary school-aged children. Methods: There were examined seven-year-old children, secondary school pupils from families with signs of dysfunctionality (n =42. To assess interfamilial relations there were used proprietary methodologies and standardized tests diagnosing a role structure of the family, emotional sphere of children, peculiarities of the child identification with family members, signs of the family dysfunctionality. Results: It is revealed that the process of identity formation in primary school-aged children in dysfunctional families is characterized by expressed difficulties in identifying himself with family members. In 33% of cases the low hierarchical position and the typical female role characteristics are ascribed to father. To the contrary, the male social role position in 47% of cases is attributed to mother. The ambivalence of the child’s self-relation and his relation to family members is revealed. Therewith, 38% of girls’ profiles coincide either with the set of characteristics of fathers, or equally with sets of characteristics of both parents. The negative emotional state is diagnosed in 62% of children. Conclusion: It is established that in dysfunctional families the interfamilial relations and role structure have specific features, negatively influencing on the child development and the formation of his personality.Key words: children, primary school age, dysfunctional family, identity formation.

  15. [The physical development of children in families with different financial position].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leonova, I A; Khomich, M M

    2010-01-01

    Physical development is one of the important health indices in children. Anthropometric data were analyzed in 660 and 113 children from rich and poor families, respectively. The performed investigation revealed the following features of physical development of children in families with different financial position: (1) impaired physical development is equally common in the families with low (284.85% per hundred) and high (292.04% per hundred) incomes (p > 0.05); (2) the pattern of distribution of different types of physical development is not determined by the financial position of a family; however, it may be noted that there is a preponderance of children with disharmonious development in the high-income families due to excess weight for both average age indices and height. Every seven child from a high-income family has excess weight. Naturally, the lower financial position of a family is, the higher proportion of children with nutritional state below the average low values is; (3) the children in low-income families have lower height. The revealed specific features may be largely accounted for by specific nutritional features and motor activity in children, which should be kept in mind in working out the programs on therapeutic-and-prophylactic work with these population categories.

  16. Impact of selected family socio-economic factors on coordinational predispositions of children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jarosław Domaradzki

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Biological growth of children is genetically determined but there are a lot of factors modifying trends of growth. Among them the most important seems to be parents’ education and number of children in family – socio-economical factors. Factors don’t affect organism individually. Interactions between them can increase or decrease. So the aim of the work was to estimate the influence of socio-economic factors like parents’ education and number of children in family on coordinational traits of children aged 10–11. Material and methods: 199 children aged 10-11 underwent medical examination in 2008 in Polkowice and data collected were used in this study.. Information on parents’ education and number of children was used to divide children into four groups: lower education and 3 or more children in family, lower education and less than 3 children in family, higher education and more than 3 children in family and higher education and less than 3 children in family. Three coordinational traits were measured: short time memory, precision of hand and speed movement of the hand. MANOVA test was used to estimate differences between groups and to check interactions between factors. Results: From among 4 groups of boys, these from the worst socio-economic status of family received the worst results in all three tests. Differences between them and the rest of the groups were statistically significant. Differences between the rest of the groups were not statistically significant. In the girls groups children from families with higher parents’ education received statistically significant better results in test of memory. There were not differences between all 4 groups in precision of the hand test. Girls from family with higher parents’ education and 3 or more children in family received the best results in speed of the hand test. Conclusions: Boys are the gender more eco-sensitive. The family with more than 2 children in family

  17. The Influence of an Early Childhood Program on Parental Involvement: Perceptions of Former Head Start Parents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Croft, Stacey

    2017-01-01

    A key component of effective early childhood programs is collaborative relationships between schools, families, and the community (Fiese, Eckert, & Spagnola, 2005). One of these early childhood programs, Head Start, stands out among the others in its efforts to work with children, families, and communities to promote parental involvement. Some…

  18. Using "I Am Moving, I Am Learning" to Increase Quality Instruction in Head Start Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allar, Ishonté; Jones, Emily; Bulger, Sean

    2018-01-01

    Quality teacher-child interactions are characteristic of effective classrooms resulting in benefits for all children, but may be particularly important for children from low-income families. The purpose of this study was to explore the perception of Illinois Head Start teachers related to how "I am Moving, I am Learning" (IMIL) could…

  19. Evaluation of hearing ability in Danish children at the time of school start and at the end of school

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gissel, S.; Mortensen, Jens Tølbøll; Juul, S.

    2002-01-01

    Since previous studies have shown reduced hearing ability in children and adolescents at school start, this study was undertaken to evaluate the hearing ability in Danish children at the time of start and end of school. Children starting school in 1977, 1987, and 1997 from four minor municipalities....... At the end of school, hearing ability of the year group 1977 was just as poor as for the year group 1987. Whether reduced hearing can influence the learning abilities of these children should be evaluated by further studies including information on the exposure to noise....

  20. Familial Hypercholesterolemia: Cascade Screening in Children and Relatives of the Affected.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Setia, Nitika; Saxena, Renu; Sawhney, J P S; Verma, Ishwar C

    2018-05-01

    Familial Hypercholesterolemia (FH) is an inherited disorder of lipid metabolism characterized by very high low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol since birth, resulting in premature atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease (CAD). Cascade screening of children and family members of proven FH individuals can identify more subjects who have high LDL cholesterol or the family mutation and appropriate intervention can reduce their risk of atherosclerosis and prevent its complications. Cascade screening by molecular testing, was carried out in 133 family members, comprising 24 children, of 31 probands with FH having a pathogenic mutation in LDLR/ApoB gene. Lipid profiles were obtained in 44 family members including 11 children. Of 133 family members tested, 88 (66.1%) were identified to carry the family mutation. Twelve of these were children below 18 y of age and 76 were adults. CAD was present in 15 (11.2%) family members and 63(47.4%) family members, including nine children, were already on Lipid Lowering Therapy. Cascade screening led to identification of 88 new cases, with a pathogenic mutation, who were at a very high risk of developing premature CAD. The authors identified 12 children with family specific mutation, out of which 9 were initiated on low dose statin therapy. Four homozygous children were treated with high dose statins because of substantially increased risk of CAD. Cascade screening, therefore, proved to be a successful initiative towards primary prevention of CAD in India.

  1. Results from an experimental trial at a Head Start center to evaluate two meal service approaches to increase fruit and vegetable intake of preschool aged children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Harnack Lisa J

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Strategies to increase fruit and vegetable consumption of preschool aged children are needed. Objectives Evaluate the independent effects of the following meal service strategies on intake of fruits and vegetables of preschool children: 1. Serving fruits and vegetables in advance of other menu items as part of traditional family style meal service; and 2. Serving meals portioned and plated by providers. Methods Fifty-three preschool aged children completed a randomized crossover experiment conducted at a Head Start center in Minneapolis, MN. Over a six week trial period each of the experimental meal service strategies (serving fruits and vegetable first and serving meals portioned by providers was implemented during lunch service for two one-week periods. Two one-week control periods (traditional family style meal service with all menu items served at once were also included over the six week trial period. Childrens lunch intake was observed as a measure of food and nutrient intake during each experimental condition. Results Fruit intake was significantly higher (p Conclusions Serving fruits in advance of other meal items may be a low cost easy to implement strategy for increasing fruit intake in young children. However, serving vegetables first does not appear to increase vegetable intake. Results provide support for current recommendations for traditional family style meal service in preschool settings.

  2. Matching career and family related factors for families with children

    OpenAIRE

    Rutkienė, Aušra; Trepulė, Elena

    2015-01-01

    Work-family conflict is a complex, multi-dimensional construct. When families decide to continue their professional career, work and family role matching demands efforts and causes strain. Results of a qualitative research show that having and taking care of pre-school and primary-school age children is one of main conflict reasons. Child-care arrangements have an important impact on parents’ experiences of work and their career paths. Job tenure and involvement into work-team are lower stres...

  3. Mental Health of Children Living in Foster Families in Rural Rwanda: The Role of HIV and the Family Environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nduwimana, Estella; Mukunzi, Sylvere; Ng, Lauren C; Kirk, Catherine M; Bizimana, Justin I; Betancourt, Theresa S

    2017-06-01

    Fostering children is common in sub-Saharan Africa, but few studies examine these children's mental health needs. This study investigated the impact of living in a foster family on the mental health of HIV-positive, HIV-affected and HIV-unaffected children (n = 681 aged 10-17) in rural Rwanda. Regression analyses assessed the impact of living in a foster family on mental health, parenting, and daily hardships; multiple mediation analyses assessed whether family factors mediated the association between foster status and mental health. HIV-positive children were eight times more likely to live in foster families than HIV-unaffected children. Being HIV-affected was predictive of depression and irritability symptoms after controlling for family factors. Controlling for HIV-status, foster children had more symptoms of depression, anxiety, and irritability than non-fostered children. Positive parenting fully mediated the association between foster status and mental health. Mental health and parenting interventions for foster children and HIV-affected children may improve child outcomes.

  4. Family income affects children's altruistic behavior in the dictator game.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yongxiang Chen

    Full Text Available This study aimed to examine how family income and social distance influence young rural Chinese children's altruistic behavior in the dictator game (DG. A total of 469 four-year-old children from eight rural areas in China, including many children left behind by parents who had migrated to urban areas for work, played the DG. Stickers comprised the resource, while recipients in the game were assumed to be either their friends or strangers, with the social distance (i.e., strangers compared to friends as a between-subjects variable. Children donated significantly more stickers to their friends than to strangers. Moreover, children from lower income families donated more stickers than children from higher income families. However, no gender and parental migrant status differences in children's prosocial behaviors were evident in this sample. Findings of this study suggest that children's altruistic behaviours to peers are influenced by family characteristics since preschool age. The probable influence of local socialization practices on development and the possible adaptive significance were discussed.

  5. Nutritional Status of New Orleans, Mississippi and Alabama Head Start Children. Final Report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Jack L.

    Three purposes guided compilation of this final report on the nutritional status of New Orleans, Mississippi, and Alabama Head Start children: (1) to evaluate the causes of anemia through detailed studies of urban New Orleans preschool children and their mothers, (2) to study the effect of dietary supplementation of school feeding programs upon…

  6. [Effects of family cohesion and adaptability on behavioral problems in preschool children].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yan-Ni; Xue, Hong-Li; Chen, Qian

    2016-05-01

    To investigate the effects of family cohesion and adaptability on behavioral problems in preschool children. The stratified cluster multistage sampling method was used to perform a questionnaire survey in the parents of 1 284 children aged 3-6 years in the urban area of Lanzhou, China. The general status questionnaire, Conners Child Behavior Checklist (Parent Symptom Question), and Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale, Second edition, Chinese version (FACESII-CV) were used to investigate behavioral problems and family cohesion and adaptability. The overall detection rate of behavioral problems in preschool children was 17.13%. The children with different types of family cohesion had different detection rates of behavioral problems, and those with free-type family cohesion showed the highest detection rate of behavioral problems (40.2%). The children with different types of family adaptability also had different detection rates of behavioral problems, and those with stiffness type showed the highest detection rate of behavioral problems (25.1%). The behavioral problems in preschool children were negatively correlated with family cohesion and adaptability. During the growth of preschool children, family cohesion and adaptability have certain effects on the mental development of preschool children.

  7. Physical family violence and externalizing and internalizing behaviors among children and adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Renner, Lynette M; Boel-Studt, Shamra

    2017-01-01

    Family violence has been associated with various negative outcomes among children and adolescents. Yet, less is known about how unique forms of physical family violence contribute to externalizing and internalizing behaviors based on a child's developmental stage. Using data from the Illinois Families Study and administrative Child Protective Services data, we explored the relation between 3 types of physical family violence victimization and externalizing and internalizing behaviors among a sample of 2,402 children and adolescents. After including parent and family level covariates in Poisson regressions, we found that a unique form of family violence victimization was associated with increased externalizing behaviors among children at each age group: exposure to physical intimate partner violence (IPV) among children ages 3-5, exposure to the physical abuse of a sibling among children ages 6-12, and child physical abuse among adolescents ages 13-18. No form of physical family violence was significantly associated with internalizing behaviors for children in any age group. Including exposure to the child maltreatment of a sibling is crucial when attempting to contextualize children's responses to family violence and providing comprehensive services in an effort to enhance the well-being of all children in a family. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

  8. [Development of a structural equation model for children's adaptation in divorced families].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shin, Sung Hee

    2010-02-01

    This study was designed to develop and test a structural model for children's adaptation in divorced families. The hypothetical model was constructed based on the Family Resilience Model by McCubbin and McCubbin. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires from 219 children (3-6th grade) in divorced families. The children attended one of 22 community agencies, 8 after-school programs, 3 elementary schools in three cities in South Korea. The collected data were analyzed using LISREL program to test the hypothetical model. The modified model was constructed by deleting four paths in accordance with the statistical and theoretical criteria. Compared to the hypothetical model, the revised one had a better fit to the data. Self-esteem, and beliefs about parental divorce had direct effects, and family communication and internal control had indirect effects on children's adaptation in divorced families. These variables explained 56% of the variance in children's adaptation. The modified model was supported by empirical data. This model could be applied to family nursing interventions with divorced families or any other suffering family transition. When working with children experiencing parental divorce, it is important for nurses to enhance children's self-esteem, family communication and to decrease children's negative beliefs about parental divorce to help in their adaptation.

  9. Family Structure and Children's Psychosocial Outcomes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Zheng; Hou, Feng; Schimmele, Christoph M.

    2008-01-01

    This article examines the influence of family structure on children's short-term psychosocial behavioral outcomes, including emotional disorder, conduct disorder, and prosocial behavior. The analysis uses five waves of data (1994-2003) from Canada's National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth to model how living in a cohabitational…

  10. Parent training in head start: a comparison of program response among African American, Asian American, Caucasian, and Hispanic mothers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reid, M J; Webster-Stratton, C; Beauchaine, T P

    2001-12-01

    The effectiveness of the Incredible Years Parenting Program was evaluated in a low-income sample of Caucasian, African American, Hispanic, and Asian mothers whose children were enrolled in Head Start. Data from two prior intervention studies [Webster-Stratton (1998) Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66(5), 715-730; Webster-Stratton et al. (in press) Journal of Clinical Child Psychology] were combined, yielding a sample of 634 families (370 Caucasian, 120 African American, 73 Asian, 71 Hispanic) across 23 Head Start centers. Centers were matched and assigned randomly to either an experimental condition (8-12 weeks of weekly 2-hr parenting classes), or a control condition (the regular Head Start Program without parenting groups). Families in both conditions were assessed using home observations of parent-child interactions and parent reports of parenting style and discipline strategies and child behavior problems in the fall (baseline) and spring (postintervention) of the children's Head Start year. Families were reassessed 1 year later. Following treatment, intervention mothers were observed to be more positive, less critical, more consistent, and more competent in their parenting than were control mothers. Additionally, children of intervention parents were observed to exhibit fewer behavior problems than were control children. Differences in treatment response across ethnic groups were few, and did not exceed the number expected by chance. Parents from all groups reported high satisfaction levels following the parenting program. Results indicate that the Incredible Years Program is accepted by and effective with diverse populations.

  11. Music in the family: music making and music therapy with young children and their families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wetherick, Donald

    2009-01-01

    Songs and singing games are a healthy part of young children's social, emotional and cognitive development. Such shared music making can facilitate and strengthen relationships between parents and children. Family health workers can encourage carers' informal uses of music with their children. In cases of developmental delay, disability, severe illness or family stress, music can continue to have a significant role in supporting children and parents. In some cases referral to specialist music therapy services may be appropriate for assessment and/or treatment.

  12. Family ties after divorce: long-term implications for children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahrons, Constance R

    2007-03-01

    Drawing on the data from the longitudinal Binuclear Family Study, 173 grown children were interviewed 20 years after their parents' divorce. This article addresses two basic questions: (1) What impact does the relationship between parents have on their children 20 years after the divorce? and (2) When a parent remarries or cohabits, how does it impact a child's sense of family? The findings show that the parental subsystem continues to impact the binuclear family 20 years after marital disruption by exerting a strong influence on the quality of relationships within the family system. Children who reported that their parents were cooperative also reported better relationships with their parents, grandparents, stepparents, and siblings. Over the course of 20 years, most of the children experienced the remarriage of one or both parents, and one third of this sample remembered the remarriage as more stressful than the divorce. Of those who experienced the remarriage of both of their parents, two thirds reported that their father's remarriage was more stressful than their mother's. When children's relationships with their fathers deteriorated after divorce, their relationships with their paternal grandparents, stepmother, and stepsiblings were distant, negative, or nonexistent. Whether family relationships remain stable, improve, or get worse is dependent on a complex interweaving of many factors. Considering the long-term implications of divorce, the need to emphasize life course and family system perspectives is underscored.

  13. The Family as a Place of Education. Between a School- Centred Focus on Education and Family Needs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ulrike Loch

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The results of PISA studies over recent years have revealed the social selectivity of the scholastic education system. Based on my empirical research on families with mentally ill parents, I show how, for the children involved, social exclusion begins before they even start school. I also show how parents’ mental illness is seen to affect children, and what support such families require. The findings demonstrate how important it is to take family coping situations into account in education discourse concerning child and youth welfare services and formal education systems.

  14. The Everyday Life of Children Across Early Childhood Institution and The Family

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kousholt, Dorte

    2008-01-01

    This article focuses on the everyday life of Danish children across different social practices and explores what this outset can tell us about the life of children and families. Building on the critique of classical approaches in developmental psychology (e.g. Burman 1994; James, Jenks, & Prout...... 1998) and family research (e.g. Leira 1993; Thorne & Yalom 1982) the article puts forward a decentred approach to family life. The aim is to show how the institutional context and family context sets conditions for each other - and that interplay sets conditions for the development of the children...... and professionals influences the parents' possibilities for supporting their children's life outside the family. That means that the institutional practice influences their possibilities as parents. Keywords: children's perspectives; family life; early childhood institution; communities of children; parent (and...

  15. Family attitudes about tobacco smoke exposure of young children at home.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yousey, Yvonne

    2007-01-01

    To explore families' attitudes about smoking and their perceptions of the effects of environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure on their children. Qualitative study using face-to-face interviews with a semistructured guide in 20 households containing a child under age 5. Content analysis was done on the interview data. Families identified "health protection" as the parental responsibility for children and emphasized helping children make decisions not to smoke. Some reported negative experiences with ETS exposure as children themselves or health problems in their children, reinforcing their opposition to smoke exposure for their children. Most parents said they did not allow smoking in their homes, but some later disclosed that they made exceptions for family and friends. Some parents, however, limited their children's contact with smoking members of their families. Smoking parents expressed guilt about ETS exposure of their children and tried to limit smoking to certain areas of their houses, such as the basement. Other parents, mostly the nonsmokers, did not identify ETS as a problem. Families who maintained smoke-free households identified that family and friends had to "respect" their wishes. To protect children from the negative effects of ETS exposure, nurses should discuss not only if parents smoke but also if family members and friends are allowed to smoke in the home. It would be helpful to assess the priority that parents set on ETS and how they attempt to prevent it in their daily lives.

  16. Teacher Education, Book-Reading Practices, and Children's Language Growth across One Year of Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gerde, Hope K.; Powell, Douglas R.

    2009-01-01

    Research Findings: An observational study of 60 Head Start teachers and 341 children (177 boys, 164 girls) enrolled in their classrooms found teachers' book-reading practices to predict growth in children's receptive vocabulary. Multilevel growth analyses indicated that children in classrooms where teachers used more book-focused utterances made…

  17. Social Support May Buffer the Effect of Intrafamilial Stressors on Preschool Children's Television Viewing Time in Low-Income Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jurkowski, Janine M.; Davison, Kirsten K.

    2013-01-01

    Abstract Background: Excessive television (TV) viewing in preschool children has been linked to negative outcomes during childhood, including childhood obesity. In a sample of low-income families, this study examined associations between intrafamilial factors and preschool children's TV-viewing time and the moderating effect of social support from nonfamily members on this association. Methods: In 2010, 129 mothers/female guardians of 2- to 5-year-old children enrolled at five Head Start centers in Rensselaer County, New York, completed a self-report survey. The survey assessed child TV-viewing time (including TV, DVDs, and videos) and intrafamilial risk factors, including maternal perceived stress, depressive symptoms, TV viewing, leisure-time physical activity (inactivity), and family functioning. Social support from nonfamily members (nonfamily social support) was also measured and examined as an effect modifier. Results: Children watched TV an average of 160 minutes per day. Moderate depressive symptoms (Personal Health Questionnaire depression scale scores ≥10), higher perceived stress, poorer family functioning, and higher maternal TV-viewing were significantly and independently associated with greater minutes of child TV viewing, controlling for covariates. In all instances, nonfamily social support moderated these associations, such that negative experiences within the family environment were linked with higher child TV-viewing time under conditions of low nonfamily social support, but not high nonfamily support. Conclusions: Social support from nonfamily members may buffer potentially negative effects of intrafamilial factors on preschool children's TV-viewing time. PMID:24168754

  18. Social support may buffer the effect of intrafamilial stressors on preschool children's television viewing time in low-income families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Kaigang; Jurkowski, Janine M; Davison, Kirsten K

    2013-12-01

    Excessive television (TV) viewing in preschool children has been linked to negative outcomes during childhood, including childhood obesity. In a sample of low-income families, this study examined associations between intrafamilial factors and preschool children's TV-viewing time and the moderating effect of social support from nonfamily members on this association. In 2010, 129 mothers/female guardians of 2- to 5-year-old children enrolled at five Head Start centers in Rensselaer County, New York, completed a self-report survey. The survey assessed child TV-viewing time (including TV, DVDs, and videos) and intrafamilial risk factors, including maternal perceived stress, depressive symptoms, TV viewing, leisure-time physical activity (inactivity), and family functioning. Social support from nonfamily members (nonfamily social support) was also measured and examined as an effect modifier. Children watched TV an average of 160 minutes per day. Moderate depressive symptoms (Personal Health Questionnaire depression scale scores ≥10), higher perceived stress, poorer family functioning, and higher maternal TV-viewing were significantly and independently associated with greater minutes of child TV viewing, controlling for covariates. In all instances, nonfamily social support moderated these associations, such that negative experiences within the family environment were linked with higher child TV-viewing time under conditions of low nonfamily social support, but not high nonfamily support. Social support from nonfamily members may buffer potentially negative effects of intrafamilial factors on preschool children's TV-viewing time.

  19. Violence against children within the family

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    JACEK J. BŁESZYŃSKI

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Th e article presents the problem of child abuse in the family. Shows the causes of violence in the family, but also treats children’s rights under the Convention on the Rights of the child, such as the right to an identity, right to expression, the right to live without violence, the right to social assistance, right to education. Th is article presents the family as the basic environment in which the child is born and brought up, because it has strong infl uence on the shaping of his personality. Refers to the fact that the home should be a place where the child feels safe. Pointed out that oft en but this is different, because victims of domestic violence are mostly women and children, as being weak and defenseless against their persecutors. Th e defi nition of domestic violence was quoted. Pointed to factors that protection children from violence, as well as the factors which contribute to harming. Defi ned physical violence against the child, and refers to the normative acts in this area, established as the sexual exploitation of children, studies showing the extent of the problem, and also refers to the legislation, to protect the child from sexual abuse. Th e article refers to the mental abuse and neglect in the family. Distinguished category of emotional abuse, as well as identifi ed other forms of child abuse in the family, such as alcoholism, drug abuse or other negative attitudes of parents, stigmatized by the law.

  20. Children in Beardslee's family intervention: relieved by understanding of parental mental illness.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pihkala, Heljä; Sandlund, Mikael; Cederström, Anita

    2012-11-01

    Beardslee's family intervention (FI), which is a family-based preventive method for children of mentally ill parents, has been implemented on a national level in Sweden. Fourteen children and parents from nine families were interviewed about how the FI was for the children. Data were analysed by qualitative content analysis. A central finding was children's sense of relief and release from worry because of more knowledge and openness about the parent's illness in the family. The results indicating relief for the children are encouraging.

  1. The characteristics of family functioning with mentally ill children and adolescents

    OpenAIRE

    Jelkić Milica; Mandić-Gajić Gordana; Stojanović Zvezdana; Đokić Milan; Eror Aleksandar; Kolundžija Ksenija

    2018-01-01

    Background/Aim. The family functioning and characteristics are the major risk factors in the genesis and persistence of mental disorders in children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the characteristics of functioning of family with mentally ill children and adolescents. Methods. This study explored 47 families with a child/adolescent suffering from mental disorders and 47 families of age matched healthy children/adolescents. The socio-demographic questionnaire, Social Adaptation Self-ev...

  2. Views of the Family by Chinese and U.S. Children: A Comparative Study of Kinetic Family Drawings.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nuttall, Ena Vasquez; And Others

    1988-01-01

    Compared family drawings of Chinese (People's Republic of China) and United States (U.S.) elementary school children. Chinese children depicted parents and grandparents more frequently, reflecting the Chinese tendency to perceive themselves as members of nuclear and extended families, whereas U.S. children expressed more individualism and…

  3. Administration for Children and Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... 9 (San Francisco) Region 10 (Seattle) Social sharing Administration for Children and Families Search form Search Main navigation Home About Expand What We Do Vision, Mission & Values Leadership Offices Budget Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) ...

  4. Exploring the Lived Experiences of Homeless Families with Young Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hinton, Stephanie; Cassel, Darlinda

    2013-01-01

    This study researched the experiences of homeless families with young children between the ages of four and eight. Many families experience homelessness every year; therefore, it is important for early childhood educators to have an understanding of how homelessness affects families with young children so that educators can effectively serve the…

  5. Public Health Insurance and Health Care Utilization for Children in Immigrant Families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Percheski, Christine; Bzostek, Sharon

    2017-12-01

    Objectives To estimate the impacts of public health insurance coverage on health care utilization and unmet health care needs for children in immigrant families. Methods We use survey data from National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) (2001-2005) linked to data from Medical Expenditures Panel Survey (MEPS) (2003-2007) for children with siblings in families headed by at least one immigrant parent. We use logit models with family fixed effects. Results Compared to their siblings with public insurance, uninsured children in immigrant families have higher odds of having no usual source of care, having no health care visits in a 2 year period, having high Emergency Department reliance, and having unmet health care needs. We find no statistically significant difference in the odds of having annual well-child visits. Conclusions for practice Previous research may have underestimated the impact of public health insurance for children in immigrant families. Children in immigrant families would likely benefit considerably from expansions of public health insurance eligibility to cover all children, including children without citizenship. Immigrant families that include both insured and uninsured children may benefit from additional referral and outreach efforts from health care providers to ensure that uninsured children have the same access to health care as their publicly-insured siblings.

  6. Parental education and family status--association with children's cigarette smoking.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zaloudíková, Iva; Hrubá, Drahoslava; Samara, Ibrahim

    2012-03-01

    Social influences are among the most important factors associated with children's and adolescents' smoking. Social norms in families, peer groups, professional and municipal communities influence the individuals ones by the process of socialization obtained mainly by interactions and observations. Especially social context of the home environment expressed by household smoking restriction serves as a socialization mechanism that dissuades from the using of tobacco. Parental anti-smoking socialization practices (their attitudes and knowledge about children smoking, discussion about smoking in appropriate quality and frequency, smoking environment in homes) are influenced by their education and family status. Markers of social environment (the level of mothers' and fathers' education, family status) were investigated during interview with 5th graders included in the cohort participating in the programme "Non-smoking Is Normal". Data about the self-reported exposure to passive smoking at homes and cars were taken into consideration. Information about discussions with parents about smoking, opinions about adults smoking, experimentation with smoking, and concurrent decision about smoking in the future were obtained from 766 children aged 11 years. Those who did not know parental education or family status were excluded from the evaluation. Differences were evaluated using the chi-square, Mantel-Haenszel, Fisher and Yates corrected tests in the statistic software Epi Info, version 6. The level of mothers' and fathers' education significantly influenced the exposure of children to passive smoking. Compared to families of higher educated parents, children living in families with middle and low levels of parents' education were significantly more exposed to environmental tobacco smoke at home and in car (RR 1.38; 95% CI 1.04-1.83) and fewer of them live in non-smoking environments. In the whole cohort, 67.5% children have not smoked even one puff yet, 17.2% reported one

  7. The importance of family to health, development and welfare of children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christensen, E; Lynge, I

    2004-01-01

    Recent investigations have shown that a number of families in Greenland have problems related to parents' use of alcohol. One of the consequences is that children get more difficult conditions during childhood. Children suffer when their parents have alcohol-related problems. An alcoholic parent is generally not able to meet the needs of his or her child. Many children are very lonely and do not discuss their thoughts, their situation or their problems with anyone. Some children get serious psychosocial problems as grown-ups. Professionals who work with children in health services, social services or within the school system are generally not adequately aware of the importance of family to the children's reactions. This means that the children are at risk of being treated only for symptoms when the unity of child and family is not adequately taken into account. Prevention has to focus on the first steps. Children must be allowed to talk about their problems. The whole family should be included in the treatment.

  8. Literacy in the Twenty-First Century: Children, Families and Policy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Saracho, Olivia N.

    2017-01-01

    Family literacy refers to parents and their children using literacy together at home. They participate in literacy experiences in a natural way during their daily routines. Studies on family literacy show its impact on the children's literacy development. For more than five decades, family literacy studies have demonstrated the importance of the…

  9. Parenting and Children's Externalizing Problems in Substance-Abusing Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stanger, Catherine; Dumenci, Levent; Kamon, Jody; Burstein, Marcy

    2004-01-01

    This study tested associations in path models among positive and negative parenting and children's rule-breaking behavior, aggressive and oppositional behavior, and attention problems for families with a drug-dependent parent. A structural model tested relations between parenting and children's externalizing problems for 251 families with 399…

  10. Parental incarceration and multiple risk experiences: effects on family dynamics and children's delinquency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aaron, Lauren; Dallaire, Danielle H

    2010-12-01

    Children of incarcerated parents are exposed to factors that place them at risk for delinquency. Few studies have examined the effects of having an incarcerated parent after controlling for other experiences such as contextual risk factors and family processes. Past studies have also not examined effects of recent, but not current, parental incarceration on children. The present study examines an archival dataset, in which children aged 10-14 years and their parents/guardians reported children's risk experiences (e.g., exposure to poverty, parental substance use), family processes (e.g., level of family victimization, family conflict), and children's delinquent behaviors at two time points. Parents also reported their recent and past incarceration history. Hierarchical linear regression analyses show that a history of parental incarceration predicted family victimization, delinquent behaviors of children's older siblings, and delinquent behaviors of the child participants, over and above children's demographic characteristics and other risk experiences. Recent parental incarceration predicted family conflict, family victimization, and parent-reports of children's delinquency after also controlling for previous parental incarceration. The role of family processes in research and intervention directions involving children of incarcerated parents is discussed.

  11. Iowa Family Day Care Handbook. Second Edition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pinsky, Dorothy; And Others

    The Iowa Family Day Care Handbook is designed as an aid for persons entering the business of providing home day care as well as for those persons already in the field. Topics include advantages and disadvantages of family day care for children, parents and providers; getting started in family day care; and a list and description of records that…

  12. How Sensory Experiences of Children With and Without Autism Affect Family Occupations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bagby, Molly Shields; Dickie, Virginia A.; Baranek, Grace T.

    2012-01-01

    We used a grounded theory approach to data analysis to discover what effect, if any, children's sensory experiences have on family occupations. We chose this approach because the existing literature does not provide a theory to account for the effect of children's sensory experiences on family occupations. Parents of six children who were typically developing and six children who had autism were interviewed. We analyzed the data using open, axial, and selective coding techniques. Children's sensory experiences affect family occupations in three ways: (1) what a family chooses to do or not do; (2) how the family prepares; and (3) the extent to which experiences, meaning, and feelings are shared. PMID:22389942

  13. 'Start the conversation': the New South Wales (Australia) family health history campaign.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dunlop, K; Barlow-Stewart, K

    2010-01-01

    Evidence that family health history (FHH) informs recommendations for appropriate early detection strategies used for the prevention of many health conditions underscores the importance of optimizing a patient's knowledge of his/her personal FHH. For some conditions, FHH also underpins identifying those at potentially high risk for whom genetic testing may be possible and suitable to further inform the advice. The Family Health History Campaign 'Start the Conversation' was conducted in New South Wales (Australia) in August 2006 as a small state-wide media campaign with the aim of encouraging individuals to discuss and gather their FHH information about several conditions and report it to their doctor. Campaign development included consultations with consumers and primary care practitioners (general practitioners - GPs), development of campaign resources, and establishment of partnerships. Evaluation methodologies included community poll surveys pre- and post-campaign, a GP mail survey, and website usage analysis. While only 112/403 of the polled community reported hearing about the campaign in the media, 48% of those men and women were encouraged to start the conversation with their families. Limited findings from the GP survey respondents suggested they were engaged, made aware of the potential lack of patient knowledge about FHH and generated referral for several high-risk patients. Campaigns that use the media to encourage the community to take action and also engage the GPs can create a supportive environment that has the potential to increase the accuracy with reporting of FHH to maximize benefit for early detection and prevention.

  14. Effect of a family focused active play intervention on sedentary time and physical activity in preschool children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Dwyer, Mareesa V; Fairclough, Stuart J; Knowles, Zoe; Stratton, Gareth

    2012-10-01

    Early childhood provides a window of opportunity for the promotion of physical activity. Given the limited effectiveness of interventions to date, new approaches are needed. Socio-ecological models suggest that involving parents as intervention targets may be effective in fostering healthier lifestyles in children. This study describes the effectiveness of a family-focused 'Active Play' intervention in decreasing sedentary time and increasing total physical activity in preschool children. Seventy-seven families were recruited from 8 randomly selected SureStart children's centres in the North West of England. Centres were randomly assigned to either an intervention (n = 4) or a comparison group (n = 4). Parents and children in the intervention group received a 10-week active play programme delivered by trained active play professionals; this included an activity and educational component. Families in the comparison group were asked to maintain their usual routine. Each participating parent and child wore a uni-axial accelerometer for 7 days at baseline and post-test. Week and weekend day sedentary time and total physical activity adjusted for child- and home- level covariates were analysed using multilevel analyses. Significant intervention effects were observed for sedentary time and physical activity for both week and weekend days. Children in the intervention group engaged in 1.5% and 4.3% less sedentary time during week and weekend days, respectively and 4.5% and 13.1% more physical activity during week and weekend days, respectively than children in the comparison group. Parent's participation in sport and their physical activity levels, child's sex, availability of media in the home and attendance at organised activities were significant predictors of sedentary time and physical activity in this age group. A 10-week family focused active play intervention produced positive changes in sedentary time and total physical activity levels in preschool children

  15. Families with school-age children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christensen, Kathleen; Schneider, Barbara; Butler, Donnell

    2011-01-01

    Most working parents face a common dilemma--how to care for their children when they are not in school but the parents are at work. In this article Kathleen Christensen, Barbara Schneider, and Donnell Butler describe the predictable and unpredictable scheduling demands school-age children place on working couples and single working parents. The authors assess the potential capacity of schools to help meet the needs of working families through changes in school schedules and after-school programs and conclude that the flexibility parents need to balance family-work responsibilities probably cannot be found in the school setting. They argue that workplaces are better able than schools to offer the flexibility that working parents need to attend to basic needs of their children, as well as to engage in activities that enhance their children's academic performance and emotional and social well-being. Two types of flexible work practices seem especially well suited to parents who work: flextime arrangements that allow parents to coordinate their work schedules with their children's school schedules, and policies that allow workers to take short periods of time off--a few hours or a day or two-to attend a parent-teacher conference, for example, or care for a child who has suddenly fallen ill. Many companies that have instituted such policies have benefited through employees' greater job satisfaction and employee retention. Yet despite these measured benefits to employers, workplaces often fall short of being family friendly. Many employers do not offer such policies or offer them only to employees at certain levels or in certain types of jobs. Flexible work practices are almost nonexistent for low-income workers, who are least able to afford alternative child care and may need flexibility the most. Moreover the authors find that even employees in firms with flexible practices such as telecommuting may be reluctant to take advantage of them, because the workplace culture

  16. Head Start Evaluation and Research Center, University of Kansas. Report No. VIII, Physical Development of Children in the Head Start Program in the Central United States.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bass, William; And Others

    Information on the nutritional habits of 154 Head Start children from rural, small city, and metropol tan areas in the central United States was obtained from questionnaires answered by the children's mothers. The information was restricted to what foods the children liked and disliked, except that a determination of the quantity of milk consumed…

  17. Child behavioural problems and body size among 2-6 year old children predisposed to overweight. results from the "healthy start" study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Olsen, Nanna J; Pedersen, Jeanett; Händel, Mina N; Stougaard, Maria; Mortensen, Erik L; Heitmann, Berit L

    2013-01-01

    Psychological adversities among young children may be associated with childhood overweight and obesity. We examined if an increased level of child behavioural problems was associated with body size among a selected group of 2-6 year old children, who were all predisposed to develop overweight. Cross-sectional analyses were conducted using baseline data from the "Healthy Start" intervention study. A total of 3058 children were invited to participate, and data from 583 children who were all predisposed for obesity was analyzed. The Danish version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used to assess child stress by the SDQ Total Difficulties (SDQ-TD) score and the Prosocial Behavior (PSB) score. Height and weight were measured, and BMI z-scores were calculated. A direct, but non-significant linear trend was found between SDQ-TD score and BMI z-score (β = 0.021, p = 0.11). Having an SDQ-TD score above the 90(th) percentile was associated with BMI z-score (β = 0.36, p = 0.05). PSB score was not associated with BMI z-score. Analyses were adjusted for parental socioeconomic status, parental BMI, family structure, dietary factors, physical activity, and family stress level. The results suggested a threshold effect between SDQ-TD score and BMI z-score, where BMI z-score was associated with childhood behavioural problems only for those with the highest scores of SDQ-TD. No significant association between PSB score and BMI z-score was found.

  18. Modeling Family Dynamics in Children with Fragile X Syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Scott S.; Burns, David D.; Reiss, Allan L.

    2007-01-01

    Few studies have examined the impact of children with genetic disorders and their unaffected siblings on family functioning. In this study, the reciprocal causal links between problem behaviors and maternal distress were investigated in 150 families containing a child with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and an unaffected sibling. Both children's…

  19. Experiences of Parents Whose Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Are Starting Primary School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Connolly, Micaela; Gersch, Irvine

    2016-01-01

    Starting school is a critical event in a child's life and successful transitions to school have been posited as key indicators for future academic achievement. For children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the process is complicated by difficulties in social communication and social interaction. Parents of children with ASD can experience…

  20. Poverty, Family Process, and the Mental Health of Immigrant Children in Canada

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beiser, Morton; Hou, Feng; Hyman, Ilene; Tousignant, Michel

    2002-01-01

    Objectives. This study examined the differential effects of poverty on the mental health of foreign-born children, Canadian-born children of immigrant parents, and children of nonimmigrant parents. Methods. Secondary analysis of data from a national Canadian study of children between 4 and 11 years of age was conducted. Results. Compared with their receiving-society counterparts, foreign-born children were more than twice as likely to live in poor families, but they had lower levels of emotional and behavioral problems. The effect of poverty on children's mental health among long-term immigrant and receiving-society families was indirect and primarily mediated by single-parent status, ineffective parenting, parental depression, and family dysfunction. In comparison, the mental health effect of poverty among foreign-born children could not be explained by the disadvantages that poor families often suffer. Conclusions. Poverty may represent a transient and inevitable part of the resettlement process for new immigrant families. For long-stay immigrant and receiving-society families, however, poverty probably is not part of an unfolding process; instead, it is the nadir of a cycle of disadvantage. PMID:11818295

  1. DOES FAMILY BACKGROUND MATTER FOR LEARNING IN EAST AFRICA?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jones, Edward Samuel; Schipper, Youdi

    2015-01-01

    The extent to which differences in family background characteristics explain differences in learning outcomes between children captures the extent of equality in educational opportunities. This study uses large-scale data on literacy and numeracy outcomes for children of school age across East....... Even so, family background does not fully explain why children of school starting age display large differences in learning between countries....... Africa (Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda) to investigate the contribution of family background to learning differences. We find that learning differences between children from less-advantaged households and those from more-advantaged households equals around one year or more of effective learning on average...

  2. Families of Children with Chronic Illness and the Relational Family Model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tanja Pate

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Families of children with chronic illness experience persistent stress. Facing the diagnosis and learning how to cope with it is a stressful experience not only for the child but also for the parents and for the whole family. The illness, with its unpredictability and treatment, disturbs their daily routine and threatens the whole family system. Parental involvement in the child’s disease management and their emotional support are crucial for effective coping and adaptation to the child’s chronic illness. The aim of this article is to present the importance of the parental role in these families through theoretical findings of the relational family model.

  3. Children's Family Environments and Intellectual Outcomes during Maternal Incarceration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poehlmann, Julie

    2005-01-01

    Despite the dramatic increase in incarcerated mothers that has occurred in the past decades, there is a paucity of family research focusing on the children affected by maternal imprisonment. The present study investigated family environments and intellectual outcomes in 60 children between the ages of 2 and 7 years during their mothers'…

  4. Association of family structure with atopic dermatitis in United States children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McKenzie, Costner; Silverberg, Jonathan I

    2018-05-31

    Children from families without two married, biological parents have increased risk of poverty and poor health. The relationship between family structure and atopic dermatitis (AD) has not been elucidated. To determine the prevalence of AD and related outcomes in children from different family structures. Data were analyzed from 13,275 children (≤17 years) and their parents from the 2012 National Health Interview Survey. In multivariable logistic regression models adjusting for socio-demographics, children from single adult households (adjusted odds ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.272 [1.050-1.542]), families with ≤2 members (1.413 [1.079-1.852]), families with a mother, but no father present (1.402 [1.179-1.667]), non-biological fathers (1.464 [1.089-1.969]), or unmarried mothers (1.508 [1.017-2.237]) had increased odds of AD. Among children with AD, there were significantly increased odds of having only good/fair/poor vs. very good/excellent overall health (1.545 [1.262-1.893]), greater odds of depression (2.287 [1.523-3.434]), anxiety (2.001 [1.543-2.595]), and stress (2.013 [1.499-2.704]). Cross-sectional study. US children from families with single adults, single mothers, non-biological fathers, or unmarried mothers may have increased odds of AD. Family structures were associated with poorer overall health, depression, anxiety, and stress in children with AD. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  5. Cortisol levels in response to starting school in children at increased risk for social phobia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Russ, Stephanie J; Herbert, Joe; Cooper, Peter; Gunnar, Megan R; Goodyer, Ian; Croudace, Tim; Murray, Lynne

    2012-04-01

    Research on depression has identified hyperactivity of the HPA axis as a potential contributory factor to the intergenerational transmission of affective symptoms. This has not yet been examined in the context of social phobia. The current study compared HPA axis activity in response to a universal social stressor (starting school) in children of 2 groups of women: one with social phobia and one with no history of anxiety (comparison group). To determine specificity of effects of maternal social phobia, a third group of children were also examined whose mothers had generalised anxiety disorder (GAD). Children provided salivary cortisol samples in the morning, afternoon and at bedtime across 3 time-blocks surrounding the school start: a month before starting school (baseline), the first week at school (stress response), and the end of the first school term (stress recovery). Child behavioural inhibition at 14 months was assessed to explore the influence of early temperament on later stress responses. All children displayed an elevation in morning and afternoon cortisol from baseline during the first week at school, which remained elevated until the end of the first term. Children in the social phobia group, however, also displayed an equivalent elevation in bedtime cortisol, which was not observed for comparison children or for children of mothers with GAD. Children in the social phobia group who were classified as 'inhibited' at 14 months displayed significantly higher afternoon cortisol levels overall. A persistent stress response to school in the morning and afternoon is typical for all children, but children of mothers with social phobia also display atypical elevations in evening cortisol levels when at school--signalling longer-term disruption of the circadian rhythm in HPA axis activity. This is the first study to report HPA axis disruption in children at increased risk of developing social phobia. Future research should determine whether this represents a

  6. Unsociable Work? Nonstandard Work Schedules, Family Relationships, and Children's Well-Being

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strazdins, Lyndall; Clements, Mark S.; Korda, Rosemary J.; Broom, Dorothy H.; D'Souza, Rennie M.

    2006-01-01

    Many children live in families where one or both parents work evenings, nights, or weekends. Do these work schedules affect family relationships or well-being? Using cross-sectional survey data from dual-earner Canadian families (N=4,306) with children aged 2-11 years (N=6,156), we compared families where parents worked standard weekday times with…

  7. Early Family System Types Predict Children's Emotional Attention Biases at School Age

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindblom, Jallu; Peltola, Mikko J.; Vänskä, Mervi; Hietanen, Jari K.; Laakso, Anu; Tiitinen, Aila; Tulppala, Maija; Punamäki, Raija-Leena

    2017-01-01

    The family environment shapes children's social information processing and emotion regulation. Yet, the long-term effects of early family systems have rarely been studied. This study investigated how family system types predict children's attentional biases toward facial expressions at the age of 10 years. The participants were 79 children from…

  8. How can policy strengthen community support for children in military families?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boberiene, Liepa V; Hornback, Bradley J

    2014-09-01

    The extraordinary demands of recent wars have increased burdens on many military families and existing systems of care. The sacrifices made by service members are made also by their children and families, and these sacrifices can have long-term consequences. Therefore, military children and families cannot go unrecognized and unsupported. Policy responses should be less about diagnosing and treating individuals and more about recognizing and supporting families' and communities' resilience in the face of wartime deployment. Policy should focus on identifying military children in diverse communities and supporting them where they live, learn, and receive care. A range of community-based prevention strategies could decrease stress before it escalates into serious mental health issues. Efforts to develop family resilience during deployment and reintegration are extremely important in facilitating children's healthy development and veterans' recovery. Military personnel should partner with community leaders to implement effective programs providing emotional, social, and practical support to families. Emphasizing family cohesion, community social support, and comprehensive programs through education and health care organizations would go a long way in fostering families' resilience. At the same time, pro- grams should be monitored and evaluated, and military and civilian researchers should share data on family risk and resilience to improve evidence- based approaches. Such efforts would benefit not only military children, but also larger populations as programs improve family and community capacity to support thriving and mitigate challenges in the face of adversity.

  9. Children's influence on family purchase decision in India.

    OpenAIRE

    Desai, Tanvi

    2008-01-01

    The importance of children in purchase decision making has grown over the years. They not only make purchase decisions for personal consumption but they also influence family purchase decision-making (Kaur and Singh, 2006). This research looks at available literature, which is discussed with respect to children influence on product categories, decision-making stages, socialising agents like parents, peers and media and role of family communication in purchase decision making. Demographic vari...

  10. Modification Effects of Family Economic Status and School Factors on Depression Risk of Single-Father Family Children in Mid-Taiwan Area

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Jin-Ding; Hsieh, Yu-Hsin; Lin, Fu-Gong

    2013-01-01

    The incidence of single-parent families has increased significantly in Taiwan in recent years. Children born in single-parent families are predisposed to suffering from emotional problems. We aimed to determine if the children of single-parent families are more depressive than children from both-parent families, and to examine the individual and…

  11. Family Management Style Framework: a new tool with potential to assess families who have children with brain tumors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deatrick, Janet A; Thibodeaux, Annaka G; Mooney, Kim; Schmus, Cynthia; Pollack, Rosanna; Davey, Barbara Hieb

    2006-01-01

    Qualitative studies of families with children who have cancer or other serious illnesses have found that families often come to view their child and their lives as normal. They manage illness-related demands using family management styles that sustain usual patterns of family and child functioning. Few studies have addressed the family management styles of families who express less satisfaction with family and child functioning or who are identified by health care professionals as having difficulty with family functioning. Such families are likely to be overrepresented among those whose children are being treated for brain tumors that entail extremely burdensome treatments as well as a range of unfavorable prognoses and long-term sequelae. In fact, little is known about how these families manage on a day-to-day basis and how the interdisciplinary team can best provide supportive care to optimize their functioning. The purpose of this article is to present the Family Management Styles Framework as a tool that is useful in both clinical practice and research for assessing families who have children with cancer, including those with brain tumors.

  12. The Consequences of Witnessing Family Violence on Children and Implications for Family Counselors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adams, Christopher M.

    2006-01-01

    Although a large number of children are directly abused, an even larger number may indirectly experience the effects of abuse as witnesses of family violence. However, the effects on children who witness such violence have long been unaddressed, although a growing body of research indicates that these children are affected in various domains,…

  13. Engagement in family activities: a quantitative, comparative study of children with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities and children with typical development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Axelsson, A K; Granlund, M; Wilder, J

    2013-07-01

    Participation is known to be of great importance for children's development and emotional well-being as well as for their families. In the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health - Children and Youth version participation is defined as a person's 'involvement in a life situation'. Engagement is closely related to involvement and can be seen as expressions of involvement or degree of involvement within a situation. This study focuses on children's engagement in family activities; one group of families with a child with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD) and one group of families with children with typical development (TD) were compared. A descriptive study using questionnaires. Analyses were mainly performed by using Mann-Whitney U-test and Spearman's rank correlation test. Engagement in family activities differed in the two groups of children. The children with PIMD had a lower level of engagement in most family activities even though the activities that engaged the children to a higher or lesser extent were the same in both groups. Child engagement was found to correlate with family characteristics mostly in the children with TD and in the children with PIMD only negative correlations occurred. In the children with PIMD child engagement correlated with cognition in a high number of listed family activities and the children had a low engagement in routines in spite of these being frequently occurring activities. Level of engagement in family activities in the group of children with PIMD was lower compared with that in the group of children with TD. Families with a child with PIMD spend much time and effort to adapt family living patterns to the child's functioning. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  14. Outcome for Children Receiving the Early Start Denver Model before and after 48 Months

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vivanti, Giacomo; Dissanayake, Cheryl

    2016-01-01

    The Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) is an intervention program recommended for pre-schoolers with autism ages 12-48 months. The rationale for this recommendation is the potential for intervention to affect developmental trajectories during early sensitive periods. We investigated outcomes of 32 children aged 18-48 months and 28 children aged…

  15. Community Violence, Family Conflict, and Preschoolers' Socioemotional Functioning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farver, Jo Ann M.; Xu, Yiyuan; Eppe, Stefanie; Fernandez, Alicia; Schwartz, David

    2005-01-01

    This study examined the relations among family conflict, community violence, and young children's socioemotional functioning and explored how children's social cognition and mothers' psychological functioning may mediate the outcomes associated with this exposure. Mothers of 431 Head Start preschoolers completed questionnaires about their family…

  16. Parental Influence on Children during Educational Television Viewing in Immigrant Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Yuting; Phillips, Beth M.

    2013-01-01

    It has been suggested by researchers that educational television programmes may support the language and literacy development for children, especially those in immigrant families. In an immigrant family, many family characteristics appear to be related to educational television programme viewing of children at home, for example, parental…

  17. Does Family Structure Affect Children's Educational Outcomes? NBER Working Paper Series.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pollak, Robert A.; Ginther, Donna K.

    This paper examines correlations between children's educational outcomes and family structure. Although popular discussions focus on distinctions between two-parent and single-parent families, earlier research shows that outcomes for stepchildren are similar to outcomes for children in single-parent families, and earlier researchers suggested that…

  18. Children's Security in the Context of Family Instability and Maternal Communications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winter, Marcia A.; Davies, Patrick T.; Cummings, E. Mark

    2010-01-01

    This multimethod study examined the association between family instability and children's internal representations of security in the family system within the context of maternal communications about disruptive family events. Participants included 224 kindergarten children (100 boys and 124 girls) and their parents. Parents reported on the…

  19. Family Relationships Effect to Children s Psychology Development.

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    赵科研

    2012-01-01

    Based on studying the social interaction development of children,and analysis on the reasons and the necessity of children's behavior occurrence,I conclude that the importance of family influence on child development.

  20. Family disintegration in Latin America: the consequences for children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siqueira, L

    1982-12-01

    A federal study on children conducted by Brazil's Chamber of Deputies in 1975 concluded that some 25 million children, 40% of the total population below the age of 18 years, could be classified as disadvantaged. By 1980 this figure was estimated to have grown by an additional 3 million. An estimated 11 million of the disadvantaged children were literally destitute and homeless. They have been abandoned by their impoverished parents to a precarious life on the streets of the major cities of Brazil. The parents of many such abandoned children are recent migrants from rural areas. Unable to find adequate work and too poor to partake of health and other services, such families slip slowly into a state of destitution and disarray. The children end up on the streets where they are abused, exploited, and drawn into lives of crime and violence. Abandoned children are not the only young victims of the imbalances in Brazilian society. As many as 80% of Brazil's children suffer from some degree of malnutrition. Infant mortality is 84 deaths/1000 compared to an average of 12/1000 for Western Europe. In the Western hemisphere, several nations with lower per capita incomes have made greater progress in reducing infant and child mortality. These facts point up the fallacy of confusing economic growth with development. Economic growth is quantitative, mechanical, and materialistic. Development is organic and includes social dimensions, such as the educational, nutritional, and health status of the population. The problem of the disadvantaged children in Brazil is a problem of families and of the stresses placed on them by rapid, disorienting changes in social, economic, political, and cultural systems. The loss of the traditional functions of the family in the process of technological evolution has throughout modern history placed great strains on the family. This historical tendency toward family disintegration is greatly aggravated throughout the countries of the 3rd and 4th

  1. [Considerations on family dynamics and the malnutrition syndrome in Mexican children].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vásquez-Garibay, Edgar Manuel; González-Rico, José Luis; Romero-Velarde, Enrique; Sánchez-Talamantes, Eva; Navarro-Lozano, María Eugenia; Nápoles-Rodríguez, Francisco

    2015-01-01

    Since the early 1990s we noted that family dysfunction was more common in children with severe primary malnutrition than in children admitted to the hospital without malnutrition. Defects on feeding habits during the first year of life, especially early weaning and inadequate complementary feeding were more common in dysfunctional families. We also observed that chronic malnutrition in preschool children, and overweight and obesity in schoolchildren were more common in children from dysfunctional families. Once the association between dysfunctional family dynamics and obesity in schoolchildren was demonstrated, it was observed that low education of fathers and mothers increased twofold the possibility of family dysfunction: OR: 2.06; 95% CI: 1.37-3.10 and OR: 2.47; 95% CI: 1.57-3.89, respectively. In addition, the low-income and the lower purchasing power of foods were associated to family dysfunction (pdysfunction in composite, extended, single-parent families where there exist other persons vulnerable to the different entities of malnutrition syndrome and indeed depend on adults for their care, food and nutrition.

  2. Income, Family Context, and Self-Regulation in 5-Year-Old Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Mengying; Riis, Jenna L; Ghazarian, Sharon R; Johnson, Sara B

    Self-regulation (SR) is a core aspect of child development with enduring effects on health and wellbeing across the lifespan. Early childhood poverty may shape SR development. This study examined the cross-sectional relationship among family income, family context, and SR in 5-year-old children. A total of 140 five-year-old children and their mothers participated in the study. Children completed a battery of SR tasks; mothers completed questionnaires. Cognitive and emotional SR composite scores were generated based on a principal component analysis of the SR tasks. The SR scores were first regressed on family income (in 10 levels ranging from family context variables were subsequently added to the models. Controlling for age, sex, and race, each level increase in family income was associated with 0.04 SD increase in emotional SR (p = .32) and 0.08 SD increase in cognitive SR (p = .01). In fully adjusted models, exposure to household instability and experiencing 10 or more negative life events was associated with worse emotional SR; exposure to mother's depressive symptoms was associated with worse cognitive SR. Higher income buffered children's SR from some contextual risk factors. Family contextual variables explained 62% of the correlation between higher income and better cognitive SR scores. Income-based cognitive SR disparities were associated with family contextual factors. Screening for family adversity in pediatric care and linking families to needed resources may protect children's developing SR capacities, with benefits to health and well-being.

  3. [Family Health Program and children palliative care: listening the relatives of technology dependent children].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rabello, Cláudia Azevedo Ferreira Guimarães; Rodrigues, Paulo Henrique de Almeida

    2010-03-01

    This study discusses the creation of a new children palliative care program based on the Family Health Program, considering the level of care at home and yielding to family requests. The study focused on eighteen members of nine families of technology dependent children (TDC) who were hospital patients at Instituto Fernandes Figueira (IFF): four who are being assisted by its palliative care program Programa de Assistência Domiciliar Interdisciplinar (PADI); three who were inpatients waiting for inclusion in the Program, and finally two inpatients already included in PADI. PADI was chosen because it is the only child palliative care program in Brazil. The results are positive in regards to the connection established between the families and the health care team, the reception of the children, the explanation to the family concerning the disease, and the functional dynamics between the PADI and IFF. As negative points, difficulties arose as a result of the implementation of the program, from its continuity to the worsening or illness of the entire family. In conclusion, although the PADI is the IFF's way of discharging patients, the domiciliary cares taken by the Family Health Program, well articulated with the healthcare system, would be ideal for being the adequate assistance for such.

  4. Birth order, family size, and children's use of physician services.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tessler, R

    1980-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to separate out the effects of number of siblings and birth order on children's use of physician services. Prior research has consistently revealed an inverse relationship between family size and physician visits, but the possible confounding influence of the child's ordinal position in the family has been ignored. Later born children may be taken to the doctor less often than first and other early borns because of their parents' increasing knowledgeability in regard to child care as well as their growing understanding of the uses and limitations of physician visits. On the assumption that part of the family size effect observed in prior research may have been due to the clustering of first and early borns in small families, an inverse relationship between birth order and physician utilization is hypothesized. Support for this hypothesis comes from an empirical study of 1,665 children from 587 families in which variation in family size is statistically controlled. PMID:7372499

  5. Psychological health of military children: longitudinal evaluation of a family-centered prevention program to enhance family resilience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lester, Patricia; Stein, Judith A; Saltzman, William; Woodward, Kirsten; MacDermid, Shelley W; Milburn, Norweeta; Mogil, Catherine; Beardslee, William

    2013-08-01

    Family-centered preventive interventions have been proposed as relevant to mitigating psychological health risk and promoting resilience in military families facing wartime deployment and reintegration. This study evaluates the impact of a family-centered prevention program, Families OverComing Under Stress Family Resilience Training (FOCUS), on the psychological adjustment of military children. Two primary goals include (1) understanding the relationships of distress among family members using a longitudinal path model to assess relations at the child and family level and (2) determining pathways of program impact on child adjustment. Multilevel data analysis using structural equation modeling was conducted with deidentified service delivery data from 280 families (505 children aged 3-17) in two follow-up assessments. Standardized measures included service member and civilian parental distress (Brief Symptom Inventory, PTSD Checklist-Military), child adjustment (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire), and family functioning (McMaster Family Assessment Device). Distress was significantly related among the service member parent, civilian parent, and children. FOCUS improved family functioning, which in turn significantly reduced child distress at follow-up. Salient components of improved family functioning in reducing child distress mirrored resilience processes targeted by FOCUS. These findings underscore the public health potential of family-centered prevention for military families and suggest areas for future research. Reprint & Copyright © 2013 Association of Military Surgeons of the U.S.

  6. Family relationships and the psychosocial adjustment of school-aged children in intact families

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hakvoort, E.M.; Bos, H.M.W.; van Balen, F.; Hermanns, J.M.A.

    2010-01-01

    The authors investigated whether the quality of three family relationships (i.e., marital, parent-child, sibling) in intact families are associated with each other and with children's psychosocial adjustment. Data were collected by means of maternal and child reports (N = 88) using standardized

  7. Kids Market and Children Effects on Family Decisions: The Case of Marmaris

    OpenAIRE

    KARADAĞ, Levent

    2011-01-01

    Papers about family decision making process based on some teories like all members of family participate to decision, only parents participate to decision or one of parents dominated to decision. However at the present the children have effected family consumption decision. Nonetheless companies perceive the children as a new market and they have increased new marketing and selling strategies. The purpose of this paper is children effects on family - live in Marmaris and have at least one ki...

  8. Family structure and upbringing as factors of intellectual development of preschool children

    OpenAIRE

    Golovey L.A.; Savenysheva S.S.; Engelgardt E.E.

    2016-01-01

    The paper is devoted to investigation of the influence of the family structure and family attitudes, child-parent relationship, styles of family upbringing on the intellectual develop- ment of pre-school-age children. Attention is paid to the analysis of the influence of parents and children gender. The sample included 150 children, 150 mothers and 75 fathers, all the families live in St. Petersburg. Results of the study reveal a significantly greater influence of the child's parent-child rel...

  9. Correlation Analysis of Personality Characteristics of Children with TIC Disorder with Family Factors

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    LI Rui; WANG Liqun; MA Chunxia; MA Lixian

    2016-01-01

    Objective To explore the personality characteristics of children with tic disorders and their relationship with family factors.Methods Sixty cases of children with tic disorders diagnosed in our hospital were selected as the case group and 65 cases of normal children were selected as the control group.The children of two groups were assessed using Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ),Family Environment Scale (FES-CV) and general situation questionnaire of family (GSQ),respectively.The scores of EPQ personality characteristics,FES-CV and GSQ scores were compared for the children in the two groups.The Person correlation analysis method was used to analyze the correlation between personality scores of children in case group and family environment factors.Results The general situation questionnaire results showed that there was significant statistically difference in parenting style,parental education level and family types of the children between case group and control group (P < 0.05);EPQ results showed that the neuroticism and psychoticism scores of children in the case group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P< 0.05) and the lying degree scores in the control group were significantly higher than those in the case group (P< 0.05);FES-CV results showed that the family cohesion scores of the case group were significantly lower than those of the control group (P<0.05),and the family conflict scores in the case group were significantly higher than those in the control group (P<0.05).The Person correlation analysis results indicated that the psychoticism score was negatively correlated with the score of family cohesion (P<0.05),and positively correlated with family conflict (P<0.05),while the neuroticism score was positively correlated with family conflict score (P<0.05).Conclusion The children with tic disorders have significant personality deviation compared to the normal children,and the personality deviation degree is

  10. Children's cancer camps: a sense of community, a sense of family.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laing, Catherine M; Moules, Nancy J

    2014-05-01

    Childhood cancer is a family affair, and each year in Canada, approximately 1,400 children and adolescents under the age of 20 are diagnosed with cancer. Innumerable challenges accompany this diagnosis, and in recognition of the stress of childhood cancer, children's cancer camps arose in the 1970s to help children and their families escape the rigidity and severity of cancer treatment. Very little is known about these cancer camps, and to that end, a philosophical hermeneutic study was conducted to understand the meaning of children's cancer camps for the child with cancer and the family. Six families were interviewed to bring understanding to this topic. While the research included findings related to the concept of play, fit and acceptance, storytelling, and grief, this paper will detail the finding related to the solidarity of the community--the "camp family"--as one that creates intense, healing bonds.

  11. Children's adjustment in non-traditional families in Israel: the effect of parental sexual orientation and the number of parents on children's development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shechner, T; Slone, M; Lobel, T E; Shechter, R

    2013-03-01

    This study examined differences in children's psychological and social indicators in non-traditional families in Israel, focusing on fatherless families headed by lesbian mothers and single mothers by choice. Although Israel is considered an industrialized westernized country, centrality of the traditional nuclear family predominates this country. This factorial design study included four family types: lesbian and heterosexual mothers, each in both single and coupled parenthood. Children's measures included the Child Behavior Checklist, perception of peer relations and perceived self-competence. Children from single parent as opposed to two-parent families exhibited more externalizing behaviour problems and aggressiveness. Children of lesbian mothers reported more prosocial behaviours and less loneliness than children from heterosexual families. No differences emerged for perceived self-competence across family types. Mother's sexual orientation did not affect children's adjustment negatively, whereas single parenthood placed children at greater risk for some difficulties. Implications include the need for apprising health professionals of effects of family types on children's development. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

  12. State-level income inequality and family burden of U.S. families raising children with special health care needs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parish, Susan L; Rose, Roderick A; Dababnah, Sarah; Yoo, Joan; Cassiman, Shawn A

    2012-02-01

    Growing evidence supports the hypothesis that income inequality within a nation influences health outcomes net of the effect of any given household's absolute income. We tested the hypothesis that state-level income inequality in the United States is associated with increased family burden for care and health-related expenditures for low-income families of children with special health care needs. We analyzed the 2005-06 wave of the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs, a probability sample of approximately 750 children with special health care needs in each state and the District of Columbia in the US Our measure of state-level income inequality was the Gini coefficient. Dependent measures of family caregiving burden included whether the parent received help arranging or coordinating the child's care and whether the parent stopped working due to the child's health. Dependent measures of family financial burden included absolute burden (spending in past 12 months for child's health care needs) and relative burden (spending as a proportion of total family income). After controlling for a host of child, family, and state factors, including family income and measures of the severity of a child's impairments, state-level income inequality has a significant and independent association with family burden related to the health care of their children with special health care needs. Families of children with special health care needs living in states with greater levels of income inequality report higher rates of absolute and relative financial burden. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. From Head Start to Sure Start: Reflections on Policy Transfer

    Science.gov (United States)

    Welshman, John

    2010-01-01

    This article uses the history of debates over the US Head Start programme (1965), Early Head Start (1994) and the UK Sure Start initiative (1998), as a window on to policy transfer. In all the three, the aim was that early intervention could offer a means of boosting children's educational attainment and of countering the wider effects of poverty…

  14. Family characteristics and parents' and children's health behaviour are associated with public health nurses' concerns at children's health examinations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poutiainen, Hannele; Hakulinen, Tuovi; Mäki, Päivi; Laatikainen, Tiina

    2016-12-01

    The study aimed to establish whether family characteristics and the health behaviour and illnesses of parents and children are associated with public health nurses' (PHNs') concerns about children's physical health and psychosocial development in the context of health examinations. Factors affecting children's health and well-being should be identified as early as possible to provide children and families appropriate support. In 2007-2009, a cross-sectional study in Finland collected information about PHNs' concerns, children's health and well-being as well as the background factors affecting them during health examinations of preschool-age children and school-aged children (n = 4795). Associations between family characteristics, parents' and children's behaviour and diseases, and PHNs' concerns were assessed using logistic regression analysis. Overweight in children, the long-term illnesses of both children and parents, and parental smoking were the factors most strongly associated with PHNs' concerns about a child's physical health whereas non-nuclear family types, the father's low educational level and unemployment, the child's lack of sleep, and bullying were associated with concerns about the child's psychosocial development. The connections found demonstrate that health examinations should address factors that affect the whole family's well-being so as to comprehensively promote children's health, growth and development. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  15. Children's Adjustment Problems in Families Characterized by Men's Severe Violence toward Women: Does Other Family Violence Matter?

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDonald, Renee; Jouriles, Ernest N.; Tart, Candyce D.; Minze, Laura C.

    2009-01-01

    Objective: This research examined whether additional forms of family violence (partner-child aggression, mother-child aggression, and women's intimate partner violence [IPV]) contribute to children's adjustment problems in families characterized by men's severe violence toward women. Methods: Participants were 258 children and their mothers…

  16. Child behavioural problems and body size among 2-6 year old children predisposed to overweight. results from the "healthy start" study.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nanna J Olsen

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: Psychological adversities among young children may be associated with childhood overweight and obesity. We examined if an increased level of child behavioural problems was associated with body size among a selected group of 2-6 year old children, who were all predisposed to develop overweight. METHODS: Cross-sectional analyses were conducted using baseline data from the "Healthy Start" intervention study. A total of 3058 children were invited to participate, and data from 583 children who were all predisposed for obesity was analyzed. The Danish version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ was used to assess child stress by the SDQ Total Difficulties (SDQ-TD score and the Prosocial Behavior (PSB score. Height and weight were measured, and BMI z-scores were calculated. RESULTS: A direct, but non-significant linear trend was found between SDQ-TD score and BMI z-score (β = 0.021, p = 0.11. Having an SDQ-TD score above the 90(th percentile was associated with BMI z-score (β = 0.36, p = 0.05. PSB score was not associated with BMI z-score. Analyses were adjusted for parental socioeconomic status, parental BMI, family structure, dietary factors, physical activity, and family stress level. CONCLUSION: The results suggested a threshold effect between SDQ-TD score and BMI z-score, where BMI z-score was associated with childhood behavioural problems only for those with the highest scores of SDQ-TD. No significant association between PSB score and BMI z-score was found.

  17. Chinese Families of Children with Severe Disabilities: Family Needs and Available Support

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Peishi; Michaels, Craig A.

    2009-01-01

    This descriptive study gathered quantitative and qualitative data about 368 families in the People's Republic of China who had children with severe disabilities to better understand (a) the perceived needs that families have, (b) the supports available to them, (c) any differences in perceived needs and support between mothers and fathers, and (d)…

  18. Investigating Maternal Self-Efficacy and Home Learning Environment of Families Enrolled in Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bojczyk, Kathryn Elizabeth; Haverback, Heather Rogers; Pae, Hye K.

    2018-01-01

    The aim of this study was to examine the relationships between mothers' self-efficacy beliefs, their preschool children's home learning environments, and literacy skills. A sample of 112 mother-child dyads was recruited from Head Start centers in rural and urban communities. The measures included maternal self-efficacy and maternal perceptions of…

  19. Sleep Disordered Breathing in Early Childhood: Quality of Life for Children and Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jackman, Angela R.; Biggs, Sarah N.; Walter, Lisa M.; Embuldeniya, Upeka S.; Davey, Margot J.; Nixon, Gillian M.; Anderson, Vicki; Trinder, John; Horne, Rosemary S. C.

    2013-01-01

    Objectives: To characterize health-related quality of life (QOL) in preschool children with sleep disordered breathing (SDB) and their families compared with nonsnoring control patients in the community. It was hypothesized that children with SDB and their families would have poorer QOL than control children, that a relationship would be found between SDB severity and QOL, and that even children with mild SDB and their families would have reduced QOL. Participants and Methods: A clinical sample of preschool children (3-5 y) with SDB diagnosed by gold standard polysomnography (primary snoring, PS = 56, mild obstructive sleep apnea, OSA = 35, moderate/severe OSA = 24) and control children recruited from the community (n = 38) were studied. Parents completed health-related QOL and parenting stress questionnaires. Results: Children and families in the PS and mild OSA groups had consistently poorer QOL than control children (both P Biggs SN; Walter LM; Embuldeniya US; Davey MJ; Nixon GM; Anderson V; Trinder J; Horne RSC. Sleep disordered breathing in early childhood: quality of life for children and families. SLEEP 2013;36(11):1639-1646. PMID:24179296

  20. Children's Family Drawings: A Study of Attachment, Personality, and Adjustment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goldner, Limor; Scharf, Miri

    2011-01-01

    This study examined the relationship between children's attachment security, as manifested in their family drawings, and their personality and adjustment. Family drawings were collected from 222 Israeli children, as well as data regarding their personality and adjustment. Each drawing was coded and classified into 1 of 4 attachment categories…

  1. A Socio-Cultural Perspective on Children's Early Language: A Family Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marjanovic-Umek, Ljubica; Fekonja-Peklaj, Urška; Socan, Gregor; Tašner, Veronika

    2015-01-01

    This study examines the effect of certain socio-cultural factors of the family environment on the language of toddlers and children in early childhood. The sample included 86 families with one- to six-year-old children. The data on the social, economic, and cultural factors of the family environment, parental reading literacy, parental knowledge…

  2. Methods That Examine the Extent to Which the Quality of Children's Experiences in Elementary School Moderate the Long-Term Impacts of Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mashburn, Andrew J.; Downer, Jason T.

    2013-01-01

    The goals of the Head Start Impact Study (HSIS) are to: (1) determine the impacts of Head Start on children's school readiness and parental practices that support children's development; and (2) to determine under what circumstances Head Start achieves its greatest impacts and for which children (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2010).…

  3. Family Quality of Life of South African Families Raising Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schlebusch, Liezl; Dada, Shakila; Samuels, Alecia E.

    2017-01-01

    This article describes the family quality of life among families who are raising a young child with autism spectrum disorder. Survey research was conducted with 180 families of children with autism spectrum disorder who were receiving disability-related services in the Gauteng province of South Africa. The principle measure used was the Beach…

  4. Children's influence on and participation in the family decision process during food buying

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nørgaard, Maria Kümpel; Brunsø, Karen; Christensen, Pia Haudrup

    2007-01-01

    Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to contribute to studies of family decision making during food buying. In particular a theoretical framework is proposed for structuring future studies of family decision making that include children's influence and participation at specific stages of the pr......Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to contribute to studies of family decision making during food buying. In particular a theoretical framework is proposed for structuring future studies of family decision making that include children's influence and participation at specific stages...... to 13 using questionnaires for both children and parents. Findings - Family food decision making is often a joint activity, and children's active participation, among other things, determines the influence they gain. Parents and children do not always agree on how much influence children have...... in the various stages of the process, indicating the importance of listening to both parties in research into the family dynamics and processes involved in everyday food buying. Research limitations/implications - Future research should further extend the knowledge about the areas where children have influence...

  5. The Impact of a Collaborative Family Involvement Program on Latino Families and Children's Educational Performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Donnell, Julie; Kirkner, Sandra L.

    2014-01-01

    Latino families highly value education and are committed to their children's educational success; however, Latino students often experience educational challenges. Well-designed family involvement programs can encourage Latino families, especially new immigrants or monolingual Spanish-speakers, to increase their involvement resulting in positive…

  6. Correlation between obesity with atopy and family history of atopy in children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Putria Rayani Apandi

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Background The prevalence of childhood obesity and atopy has increased in recent decades. Research on links between obesity and atopy has shown varied results. Few previous studies have reported on the significance of family history of atopic disease in children. Objective To determine correlation between obesity with atopy and family history of atopic disease in children. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted from April to September 2010 in the Pediatric Allergy-Immunology subdivision, Hasan Sadikin Hospital. Children aged 6−11 years were divided into four groups of 40 each: obese subjects with and without family history of atopic disease, and normal weight subjects with and without family history of atopic disease. Skin prick test was performed to determine which subjects had atopy. Chi-square test was used to analyze mutual independence, and partial Chi-square test was used to analyze correlation of obesity to atopy and family history of atopic disease in children. Environmental factors, type of childbirth, and pregnancy history were also analyzed as risk factors for atopy. Results Of 80 obese children with and without family history of atopic disease, 40 (100% and 38 (95%, respectively, were atopic. Of 80 normal weight children with and without family history of atopic disease, 39 (98% and 9 (23%, respectively, were atopic. Thus atopy was observed in 126 subjects, while the remaining 34 subjects were non-atopic. Partial test showed a correlation between obesity with atopy and family history of atopic disease (P < 0.001. There were no significant differences in risk factors for atopy by group. Conclusion Obesity correlates with atopy and family history of atopic disease in children.

  7. State Medicaid Spending and Financial Burden of Families Raising Children with Autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parish, Susan L.; Thomas, Kathleen C.; Rose, Roderick; Kilany, Mona; Shattuck, Paul T.

    2012-01-01

    We examined the association between state Medicaid spending for children with disabilities and the financial burden reported by families of children with autism. Child and family data were from the 2005-2006 National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs (n = 2,011 insured children with autism). State characteristics were from public…

  8. The Association Between Familial Homelessness, Aggression, and Victimization Among Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jetelina, Katelyn K; Reingle Gonzalez, Jennifer M; Cuccaro, Paula M; Peskin, Melissa F; Elliott, Marc N; Coker, Tumaini R; Mrug, Sylvie; Davies, Susan L; Schuster, Mark A

    2016-12-01

    The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the number of periods children were exposed to familial homelessness and childhood aggression and victimization. Survey data were obtained from 4,297 fifth-grade children and their caregivers in three U.S. cities. Children and primary caregivers were surveyed longitudinally in 7th and 10th grades. Family homelessness, measured at each wave as unstable housing, was self-reported by the caregiver. Children were categorized into four mutually exclusive groups: victim only, aggressor only, victim-aggressor, and neither victim nor aggressor at each time point using validated measures. Multinomial, multilevel mixed models were used to evaluate the relationship among periods of homelessness and longitudinal victimization, aggression, and victim aggression compared to children who were nonvictims and nonaggressors. Results suggest that children who experienced family homelessness were more likely than domiciled children to report aggression and victim aggression but not victimization only. Multivariate analyses suggested that even brief periods of homelessness were positively associated with aggression and victim aggression (relative to neither) compared to children who were never homeless. Furthermore, childhood victimization and victim aggression significantly decreased from 5th grade to 10th grade while aggression significantly increased in 10th grade. Children who experienced family homelessness for brief periods of time were significantly more likely to be a victim-aggressor or aggressor compared to those who were never homeless. Prevention efforts should target housing security and other important factors that may reduce children's likelihood of aggression and associated victimization. Copyright © 2016 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Impact of the threat of war on children in military families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ryan-Wenger, Nancy A

    2002-01-01

    The potential for war is a pervasive threat to the security and family structure of children in military families. This study compared children of active-duty, reserve, and civilian families with respect to their perceptions of war, origin of fears related to war, levels of manifest anxiety, coping strategies, and projection of emotional problems in human figure drawings.

  10. Characteristics for the Identification of Children Who Commit Family Murder in South Africa.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moen, Melanie Carmen

    2017-06-01

    Children who commit family murder have been increasingly reported on in the South African media. Violence of this type has far-reaching consequences for families and communities. In this qualitative study, nine documented cases of children who committed family murder were analyzed to gain an in-depth understanding of the factors that contribute to children murdering family members. The personal and systemic reasons for these types of murders guided the research. The Interpersonal Parental Acceptance-Rejection Theory (IPARTheory) was used as theoretical framework. The researcher argues that the quality of the interaction between the parent and the child, as well as individual differences within a specific environment, is central to committing family member murder. A narrative summary of the general characteristics of children who kill a family member was compiled. In this study, the children were predominantly exposed to dysfunctional family environments characterized by problematic attachment to the caregiver/s, rejection, abuse, and extreme parenting styles. The parenting styles were often extremely authoritarian or in some cases permissive. The caregivers often expected the child to conform to their idea of the ideal child, and nonconformance resulted in punishment and rejection. These children presented with interpersonal relationship problems, anxiety, and aggression, and fantasized about escaping their challenging home environments. In some of the cases, the children abused alcohol and drugs. In only a few of the cases, signs of antisocial personality disorder were present. The family murders committed by children were predominantly committed by males. The weapons used in the murders were often everyday objects available in the environment. In this study, it was important to note that children who commit family murder have unique backgrounds and circumstances. Therefore, the characteristics discussed in this article only serve as a guideline to understanding

  11. Starting and Stopping Spontaneous Family Conflicts.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vuchinich, Samuel

    1987-01-01

    Examined how 52 nondistressed families managed spontaneous verbal conflicts during family dinners. Found conflict initiation to be evenly distributed across family roles. Extension of conflict was constrained by constant probability of a next conflict move occurring. Most conflicts ended with no resolution. Mothers were most active in closing…

  12. Transforming Teacher Constructs of Children and Families Who Are Homeless

    Science.gov (United States)

    Powers-Costello, Beth; Swick, Kevin J.

    2011-01-01

    The focus of this article is on articulating the importance of teacher development of constructs about homeless children and families and examining factors that influence teachers' perceptions of children and families who are homeless or at high-risk of becoming homeless. The article also explores some strategies to support teachers in…

  13. Evidence of Resilience in Families of Children with Autism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bayat, Mojdeh

    2007-01-01

    Background: Family resilience is a growing field of inquiry, investigating factors that contribute to a family's becoming stronger in spite of dealing with adversity. Despite the growing interest in studying family resilience, the topic has not been explored in families with children who have disabilities. This report, a part of a larger…

  14. Nutriendo la Promesa: Materiales Para la Aplicacion de las Normas de Ejecucion del Programa Head Start. Guia Para la Utilizacion de los Materiales [y] Transparencias (Nurturing the Promise: Set of Training Materials on the Head Start Program Performance Standards. User's Guide [and] Set of Transparencies).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Educational Services, Inc., Washington, DC.

    Since 1975, the Head Start Program Performance Standards have defined the services that local programs are required to provide to enrolled children and families. With revisions effective in 1998, the Program Performance Standards translate the Head Start vision into quality practices implemented at the local level. This document is comprised of a…

  15. The ethnography of help - Supporting families with children with intellectual disabilities

    OpenAIRE

    Summers, N.

    2010-01-01

    This thesis explored parents’ of children with learning disabilities perceptions of family support workers’ helping strategies. A qualitative approach drawing on the principles of ethnography was used to explore the experiences of six families of the helping strategies adopted by family workers and posed three research questions:\\ud (1) What are the perceptions of parents, of children with learning disabilities, of the helping strategies of family support workers?\\ud (2) How do parents unders...

  16. Family Rituals and Quality of Life in Children With Cancer and Their Parents: The Role of Family Cohesion and Hope.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santos, Susana; Crespo, Carla; Canavarro, M Cristina; Kazak, Anne E

    2015-08-01

    Family rituals are associated with adaptive functioning in pediatric illness, including quality of life (QoL). This article explores the role of family cohesion and hope as mediators of this association in children with cancer and their parents. Portuguese children with cancer (N = 389), on- and off-treatment, and one of their parents completed self-report measures. Structural equation modeling was used to examine direct and indirect links between family rituals and QoL. When children and parents reported higher levels of family rituals, they also reported more family cohesion and hope, which were linked to better QoL. At the dyadic level, children's QoL was related to parents' family rituals through the child's family cohesion. This model was valid across child's age-group, treatment status, and socioeconomic status. Family rituals are important in promoting QoL in pediatric cancer via family cohesion and hope individually and via family cohesion in terms of parent-child interactions. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  17. School Starting Age and Crime

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Landersø, Rasmus; Nielsen, Helena Skyt; Simonsen, Marianne

    This paper investigates the effects of school starting age on crime while relying on variation in school starting age induced by administrative rules; we exploit that Danish children typically start first grade in the calendar year they turn seven, which gives rise to a discontinuity in children......’s school starting age. Analyses are carried out using register-based Danish data. We find that higher age at school start lowers the propensity to commit crime, but that this reduction is caused by incapacitation while human capital accumulation is unaffected. Importantly, we also find that the individuals...

  18. Chinese children at a crossroads: influence of family socioeconomic factors on diet patterns.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ong, Hilary; Meng, Mao; Wei, Liu; Xiawei, Zhao; Wang, May C

    2010-01-01

    This pilot study explores the roles of family socioeconomic status (SES) in influencing dietary consumption patterns in 60 Chinese elementary school-aged children (ages 6-11) in Chengdu, China. Two interviewer-administered questionnaires were specially developed to gather sociodemographic and food frequency data. Children from low SES families consumed rice and traditional staples, and high calcium drinks more frequently, and western fast food less frequently than children from higher SES families. After controlling for family SES, children who were primarily cared for by their mothers or grandparents consumed less healthy snacks less frequently than children who were primarily cared for by other adults (including fathers).

  19. Unanticipated Effects of Children with Learning Disabilities on Their Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dyson, Lily

    2010-01-01

    This study examined the unanticipated effects that children with learning disabilities have on the life of their families. Eleven parents of students aged 8 to 16 years old participated in two separate focus group interviews. Findings showed that children with learning disabilities had a range of effects on their families. These included family…

  20. The Extended Family and Children's Educational Success

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jæger, Mads Meier

    2012-01-01

    Research on family background and educational success focuses almost exclusively on two generations and on parents and children. This paper argues that the extended family makes up a significant part of the total effect of family background on educational success. Empirical results based...... on the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study show that, net of family factors shared by siblings from the same immediate family, factors shared by first cousins from the same extended family account for a nontrivial part of the total variance in children’s educational success. Results also show that while socioeconomic...... characteristics of grandparents and aunts and uncles have few direct effects on educational success, resources in the extended family compensate lacking resources in low-SES families, which in turn promote children’s educational success. The main conclusion is that the total effect of family background...

  1. Why are children in the same family so different from one another?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plomin, Robert; Daniels, Denise

    2011-06-01

    One of the most important findings that has emerged from human behavioral genetics involves the environment rather than heredity, providing the best available evidence for the importance of environmental influences on personality, psychopathology, and cognition. The research also converges on the remarkable conclusion that these environmental influences make two children in the same family as different from one another as are pairs of children selected randomly from the population. The theme of the target article is that environmental differences between children in the same family (called "nonshared environment") represent the major source of environmental variance for personality, psychopathology, and cognitive abilities. One example of the evidence that supports this conclusion involves correlations for pairs of adopted children reared in the same family from early in life. Because these children share family environment but not heredity, their correlation directly estimates the importance of shared family environment. For most psychological characteristics, correlations for adoptive "siblings" hover near zero, which implies that the relevant environmental influences are not shared by children in the same family. Although it has been thought that cognitive abilities represent an exception to this rule, recent data suggest that environmental variance that affects IQ is also of the nonshared variety after adolescence. The article has three goals: (1) To describe quantitative genetic methods and research that lead to the conclusion that nonshared environment is responsible for most environmental variation relevant to psychological development, (2) to discuss specific nonshared environmental influences that have been studied to date, and (3) to consider relationships between nonshared environmental influences and behavioral differences between children in the same family. The reason for presenting this article in BBS is to draw attention to the far

  2. The role of family communication and parents' feeding practices in children's food preferences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alm, Siril; Olsen, Svein Ottar; Honkanen, Pirjo

    2015-06-01

    This study used Family Communication Patterns Theory (FCPT) to explore how family-dinner-related communication takes place and how parents' feeding practices may be associated with children's preferences for dinner meals. The sample consisted of 12 dyads with seven- and eight-year-old Norwegian children and their parents. In-depth photo interviews were used for collecting data. Interview transcripts and photographs were examined through content analysis. Results indicated that most families were conversation oriented, and communication tended to shift from consensual during weekdays to pluralistic at weekends. On weekdays, the dinner menu was often a compromise between children's preferences and parents' intentions to provide quick, healthy dinner options for the family. To a greater extent at weekends, children were allowed to choose dinner alternatives for the entire family. Restriction of unhealthy dinner alternatives was the practice most used to control children's diets and, in fact, might explain children's high preferences for unhealthy dinner alternatives. Results underline the importance of giving children control of what they eat and being responsive to children's preferences while guiding them towards healthy dinner alternatives rather than using force and restriction. From a more theoretical perspective, this study explored how FCPT could be combined with theories about parents' feeding practices to understand meal preferences and choices among young children and their families, and how time and situation (context) influence families' communication patterns and feeding practices in their homes. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. The Association between Language Maintenance and Family Relations: Chinese Immigrant Children in Australia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tannenbaum, Michal; Howie, Pauline

    2002-01-01

    Investigated the relevance of emotional and familial factors to language maintenance in immigrant families. Information on the family relations of 40 children from Chinese-speaking immigrant families in Sydney, Australia. Analysis revealed that children likely to use their parents' mother tongue were those who perceived their family to be more…

  4. Paternal Incarceration and Support for Children in Fragile Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geller, Amanda; Garfinkel, Irwin; Western, Bruce

    2011-01-01

    High U.S. incarceration rates have motivated recent research on the negative effects of imprisonment on later employment, earnings, and family relationships. Because most men in jail and prison are fathers, a large number of children may be placed at considerable risk by policies of incarceration. This article examines one dimension of the economic risk faced by children of incarcerated fathers: the reduction in the financial support that they receive. We use a population-based sample of urban children to examine the effects of incarceration on this support. Both cross-sectional and longitudinal regressions indicate that formerly incarcerated men are less likely to contribute to their families, and those who do contribute provide significantly less. The negative effects of incarceration on fathers’ financial support are due not only to the low earnings of formerly incarcerated men but also to their increased likelihood to live apart from their children. Men contribute far less through child support (formal or informal) than they do when they share their earnings within their household, suggesting that the destabilizing effects of incarceration on family relationships place children at significant economic disadvantage. PMID:21318455

  5. Children's Perceived Realism of Family Television Series.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rabin, Beth E.; And Others

    This study examined the influence of grade level, program content, and ethnic match between viewer and television characters on children's perceptions of the realism of families portrayed in television series. In the 1986-87 school year, a sample of 1,692 children in 2nd, 5th, and 10th grades completed a 13-item questionnaire measuring their…

  6. A Psychological Perspective on Preterm Children: The Influence of Contextual Factors on Quality of Family Interactions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michela Gatta

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Preterm birth has a critical influence on interactive, communicative, and expressive child behaviour, particularly during the first years of life. Few studies have stressed the assessment of mother-father-child interaction in families with preterm children, generating contradictory results. The present study wished to develop these fields: (i comparing the quality of family interactions between families with preterm children and families with children born at full term; (ii observing the development of family interactions after six months in the families with children born preterm; (iii assessing family and contextual factors, as parental stress and social support, in parents of preterm children in order to observe their influence on the quality of family interactions. 78 families are recruited: 39 families with preterm children (M = 19,8 months, SD = 11,05 and 39 families with full-term children (M = 19,66 months; SD = 13,10. Results show that families with preterm children display a low quality of mother-father-child interactions. After six months, family interactions result is generally stable, except for some LTP-scales reflecting a hard adjustment of parenting style to the evolution of the child. In families with preterm children, the parenting stress seemed to be correlated with the quality of mother-father-child interactions.

  7. A Psychological Perspective on Preterm Children: The Influence of Contextual Factors on Quality of Family Interactions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gatta, Michela; Miscioscia, Marina; Svanellini, Lorenza; Peraro, Chiara; Simonelli, Alessandra

    2017-01-01

    Preterm birth has a critical influence on interactive, communicative, and expressive child behaviour, particularly during the first years of life. Few studies have stressed the assessment of mother-father-child interaction in families with preterm children, generating contradictory results. The present study wished to develop these fields: (i) comparing the quality of family interactions between families with preterm children and families with children born at full term; (ii) observing the development of family interactions after six months in the families with children born preterm; (iii) assessing family and contextual factors, as parental stress and social support, in parents of preterm children in order to observe their influence on the quality of family interactions. 78 families are recruited: 39 families with preterm children ( M = 19,8 months, SD = 11,05) and 39 families with full-term children ( M = 19,66 months; SD = 13,10). Results show that families with preterm children display a low quality of mother-father-child interactions. After six months, family interactions result is generally stable, except for some LTP-scales reflecting a hard adjustment of parenting style to the evolution of the child. In families with preterm children, the parenting stress seemed to be correlated with the quality of mother-father-child interactions.

  8. Young Children's Initiation into Family Literacy Practices in the Digital Age

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marsh, Jackie; Hannon, Peter; Lewis, Margaret; Ritchie, Louise

    2017-01-01

    This article reports a study that explored young children's digital literacy in the home. The aim of the study was to identify the range of digital literacy practices in which children are engaged in the home and to explore how these are embedded into family life and involve family members. Four children, two girls and two boys aged between 2 and…

  9. Supporting and including children from low income families

    OpenAIRE

    Benoist, FD

    2017-01-01

    This chapter explores: • What we mean by low income and poverty and how poverty is defined • The families living on low income in the UK today and the impact of low income and poverty on children’s well-being, development and learning • Supporting children from low income families • The attainment gap between children from low income backgrounds and their peers • The pupil premium and how schools have used the extra funding to raise attainment • Key aspects of good practice and what schools c...

  10. Motivational readiness of children to school in nuclear and single parent families

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kateryna Ostrovska

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The aim of the paper is a comparison of psychological readiness of the child to go to school in nuclear and single parent families. To obtain the objectives of the paper the following methods were used: 1 methods “Two schools” by L.A Venger to identify the level of formation of internal position of the student; 2 the method “Motivational research studies in older preschoolers” by M.R. Ginsburg; 3 method “Pattern” by L.I. Tsehanskaya to determine the degree of development of skills training activities; 4 method “Graphic dictation” by D. El’konin to study the ability to follow adult instructions. The investigated group consisted of 40 students from first grade secondary school - 20 students from nuclear families (12 girls and 8 boys and 20 students from single parent families (9 girls and 11 boys. As a result of qualitative, comparative and correlation analysis it was shown that readiness of children to go to school susbstantially depends on completness of their families. The children from families have a higher level of skill training and internal position than children from single parent families. This occurs because both parents pay more attention to the children in the forming of a willingness to learn in school. The studies have shown that in the group of children from nuclear families dominate the highest level of development of skills training activities, increased formation of internal positions and childrens social motivation. These indicators are the hallmarks of readiness to learn at school. Also, some recommendations to teachers are provided as for increase of motivation to learn in children from single parent families.

  11. Family processes as pathways from income to young children's development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Linver, Miriam R; Brooks-Gunn, Jeanne; Kohen, Dafna E

    2002-09-01

    A variety of family processes have been hypothesized to mediate associations between income and young children's development. Maternal emotional distress, parental authoritative and authoritarian behavior (videotaped mother-child interactions), and provision of cognitively stimulating activities (Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment [HOME] scales) were examined as possible mediators in a sample of 493 White and African American low-birth-weight premature infants who were followed from birth through age 5. Cognitive ability was assessed by standardized test, and child behavior problems by maternal report, when the children were 3 and 5 years of age. As expected, family income was associated with child outcomes. The provision of stimulating experiences in the home mediated the relation between family income and both children's outcomes; maternal emotional distress and parenting practices mediated the relation between income and children's behavior problems.

  12. Family Relationships and the Psychosocial Adjustment of School-Aged Children in Intact Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hakvoort, Esther M.; Bos, Henny M. W.; Van Balen, Frank; Hermanns, Jo M. A.

    2010-01-01

    The authors investigated whether the quality of three family relationships (i.e., marital, parent-child, sibling) in intact families are associated with each other and with children's psychosocial adjustment. Data were collected by means of maternal and child reports (N = 88) using standardized instruments (i.e., Marital Satisfaction Scale,…

  13. Effectiveness of differing levels of support for family meals on obesity prevention among head start preschoolers: the simply dinner study

    OpenAIRE

    Holly E. Brophy-Herb; Mildred Horodynski; Dawn Contreras; Jean Kerver; Niko Kaciroti; Mara Stein; Hannah Jong Lee; Brittany Motz; Sheilah Hebert; Erika Prine; Candace Gardiner; Laurie A. Van Egeren; Julie C. Lumeng

    2017-01-01

    Abstract Background Despite slight decreases in obesity prevalence in children, nearly 25% of preschool-aged children are overweight or obese. Most interventions focused on promoting family meals as an obesity-prevention strategy target meal planning skills, knowledge and modeling of healthy eating without addressing the practical resources that enable implementation of family meals. There is a striking lack of evidence about what level of resources low-income parents need to implement family...

  14. The Perceptions and Views on Family Interaction and Relationships of Middle Children from Large Families: An Informal Mini Survey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hall, Elena C. Thomas

    In Adler's Theory of Individual Psychology the significance of birth order position in the family constellation depends on the interpretation given to it by the child, which in turn influences his character. This study surveyed the perceptions of middle children in large families. Subjects (N=13) were middle children in families of more than five…

  15. Don't Forget to Pack My EpiPen[R] Please: What Issues Does Food Allergy Present for Children's Starting School?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanagavarapu, Prathyusha

    2012-01-01

    Food allergy impairs the health-related quality of life of both the affected children and their families. In particular, parents and children become anxious about the potential risks and consequences of food allergy, including disruptions in families' and children's social activities, the need for constant vigilance, children's safety, and the…

  16. Theory of Mind Predicts Emotion Knowledge Development in Head Start Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seidenfeld, Adina M; Johnson, Stacy R; Cavadel, Elizabeth Woodburn; Izard, Carroll E

    2014-10-01

    Emotion knowledge (EK) enables children to identify emotions in themselves and others and its development facilitates emotion recognition in complex social situations. Social-cognitive processes, such as theory of mind (ToM), may contribute to developing EK by helping children realize the inherent variability associated with emotion expression across individuals and situations. The present study explored how ToM, particularly false belief understanding, in preschool predicts children's developing EK in kindergarten. Participants were 60 3- to 5-year-old Head Start children. ToM and EK measures were obtained from standardized child tasks. ToM scores were positively related to performance on an EK task in kindergarten after controlling for preschool levels of EK and verbal ability. Exploratory analyses provided preliminary evidence that ToM serves as an indirect effect between verbal ability and EK. Early intervention programs may benefit from including lessons on ToM to help promote socio-emotional learning, specifically EK. This consideration may be the most fruitful when the targeted population is at-risk.

  17. Familial clustering of habitual constipation: a prospective study in children from West Virginia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ostwani, Waseem; Dolan, Jenna; Elitsur, Yoram

    2010-03-01

    To investigate familial clustering of habitual constipation in pediatric patients who attended our medical facilities. Children with the diagnosis of functional, habitual constipation or patients without constipation and their respective family members were prospectively recruited to our study. Constipation was established in all participants using a standard questionnaire (Rome criteria). A total of 112 children and their families participated in the study, of which 37 were probands families (test) and 75 children and their respective family members constituted the control group. A total of 310 family members completed the questionnaire. No significant differences were found between the study and the control groups in age, sex, or family size. Siblings or parents from the study group (probands) had significantly higher rates of constipation compared with the control group (30% vs 7% and 42% vs 9%, respectively; P = 0.001). Habitual constipation in children seemed to cluster in families. The pathophysiology behind this phenomenon is yet unknown.

  18. Between pink and blue: a multi-dimensional family approach to gender nonconforming children and their families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Malpas, Jean

    2011-12-01

    Families of gender nonconforming children need to negotiate the interactions between two gender systems: a rigid gender binary imported from familial, social, and cultural experiences and a fluid gender spectrum articulated by their child. This article reviews parental reactions to nonconforming gender developments and poses that the parental mandates of protection and acceptance are problematized by the difference of gender norms between the child and the family, as well as the child and the environment. Through multiple therapeutic modalities-parental coaching and education, parent support group, and child and family therapy-the author illustrates interventions supporting both parents and prepubescent children in their negotiation of safety, connection, and fluidity. Case vignettes illustrate the method in action.

  19. Access to and use of paid sick leave among low-income families with children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clemans-Cope, Lisa; Perry, Cynthia D; Kenney, Genevieve M; Pelletier, Jennifer E; Pantell, Matthew S

    2008-08-01

    The ability of employed parents to meet the health needs of their children may depend on their access to sick leave, especially for low-income workers, who may be afforded less flexibility in their work schedules to accommodate these needs yet also more likely to have children in poor health. Our goal was to provide rates of access to paid sick leave and paid vacation leave among low-income families with children and to assess whether access to these benefits is associated with parents' leave taking to care for themselves or others. We used a sample of low-income families (paid leave and characteristics of children, families, and parents' employer. Access to paid leave was lower among children in low-income families than among those in families with higher income. Within low-income families, children without >or=1 full-time worker in the household were especially likely to lack access to this benefit, as were children whose parents work for small employers. Among children whose parents had access to paid sick leave, parents were more likely to take time away from work to care for themselves or others. This relationship is even more pronounced among families with the highest need, such as children in fair or poor health and children with all parents in full-time employment. Legislation mandating paid sick leave could dramatically increase access to this benefit among low-income families. It would likely diminish gaps in parents' leave taking to care for others between families with and without the benefit. However, until the health-related consequences are better understood, the full impact of such legislation remains unknown.

  20. Attachment security representations in institutionalized children and children living with their families: links to problem behaviour.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torres, Nuno; Maia, Joana; Veríssimo, Manuela; Fernandes, Marilia; Silva, Filipa

    2012-01-01

    The present work analyses differences in the attachment representations of institutionalized children as compared with children from low and high educational level living with their natural families. Participants were 91 Portuguese children, 52% girls, aged 48-96 months. There were three different groups: 19 institutionalized children, 16 low educational level families' children and 56 from high educational level families'. Attachment representations were assessed for Security of the narratives of the Attachment Story Completion Task (ASCT). Psychopathological symptoms were assessed using the Child Behaviour Checklist for parents and caretakers. Verbal skills were assessed using the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence--Revised. Results show that institutionalized children have significantly lower security of attachment representations, less verbal skills and higher aggressive behaviour than the other two groups. Attachment representations were associated with social/withdrawal and aggression, independently of age, verbal skills and parents' education. The main effect of institutionalization on externalizing aggressive behaviour was completely mediated by the security of attachment representations.  Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  1. Family structure and upbringing as factors of intellectual development of preschool children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Golovey L.A.

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper is devoted to investigation of the influence of the family structure and family attitudes, child-parent relationship, styles of family upbringing on the intellectual develop- ment of pre-school-age children. Attention is paid to the analysis of the influence of parents and children gender. The sample included 150 children, 150 mothers and 75 fathers, all the families live in St. Petersburg. Results of the study reveal a significantly greater influence of the child's parent-child relationship and family atmosphere on the intellectual develop- ment in comparison with its structure. Negative impact of attitudes on the severity, harsh- ness, acceleration the development of the child on the intellectual development is revealed. Influence of parents’ gender on intellectual development of children manifests in the lead- ing role of the father’s relationship in girls IQ results, and mother’s parental attitudes in boys IQ results. The authors of the article reveal the importance of the adequacy of the system of regulation and control, severity of requirements for the development of girls; lack of parental custody and adequacy to meet the needs — for the development of boys. The authors outline the significant role of preschool children perception, especially girls, of the emotional atmosphere in the family in their intellectual development. This work was supported by the Russian Foundation for Humanities (project №13-06-008480 «Family as a resource for mental development of children in stable and critical periods of ontogeny»

  2. Key Working for Families with Young Disabled Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bernie Carter

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available For families with a disabled child, the usual challenges of family life can be further complicated by the need to access a wide range of services provided by a plethora of professionals and agencies. Key working aims to support children and their families in navigating these complexities ensuring easy access to relevant, high quality, and coordinated care. The aim of this paper is to explore the key worker role in relation to “being a key worker” and “having a key worker”. The data within this paper draw on a larger evaluation study of the Blackpool Early Support Pilot Programme. The qualitative study used an appreciative and narrative approach and utilised mixed methods (interviews, surveys and a nominal group workshop. Data were collected from 43 participants (parents, key workers, and other stakeholders. All stakeholders who had been involved with the service were invited to participate. In the paper we present and discuss the ways in which key working made a difference to the lives of children and their families. We also consider how key working transformed the perspectives of the key workers creating a deeper and richer understanding of family lives and the ways in which other disciplines and agencies worked. Key working contributed to the shift to a much more family-centred approach, and enhanced communication and information sharing between professionals and agencies improved. This resulted in families feeling more informed. Key workers acted in an entrepreneurial fashion, forging new relationships with families and between families and other stakeholders. Parents of young disabled children and their service providers benefited from key working. Much of the benefit accrued came from strong, relational, and social-professional networking which facilitated the embedding of new ways of working into everyday practice. Using an appreciative inquiry approach provided an effective and relevant way of engaging with parents, professionals

  3. Children in planned lesbian families: Stigmatisation, psychological adjustment and protective factors

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bos, H.M.W.; van Balen, F.

    2008-01-01

    The study assessed the extent to which children between eight and 12 years old in planned lesbian families in the Netherlands experience stigmatization, as well as the influence of protective factors (relationship with parents, social acceptance by peers, contact with children from other families

  4. EFFECT OF FAMILY EMPOWERMENT IN ENHANCING THE CAPABILITIES OF CHILDREN WITH AUTISM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Suprajitno

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Background: Children with autism as individuals have a right to receive developmental needs obtained from parent/caregiver during their stay in the family. The family ability can be improved through empowerment training to provide stimulation for the development of children with autism. Objective: This study aims examine the effect of family empowerment in enhancing the capabilities of children with autism. Methods: The research design used a two-stage quasi-experiment. The first stage was a training for parent/caregiver of children with autism using modules. Training was done three times in the Autism Service Center (PLA of Blitar City. The second stage was the parent/caregiver provided stimulation to their children at home. There were 33 children selected using total sampling in the PLA of Blitar City on April – August, 2016. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and paired t-test. Results: The family ability to stimulate the capability of children with autism in the sense of hearing, vision, motoric, and inviting to play obtained average changes of 61.99%, with average items increased from 18.52 to 30.00. While the increase capabilities of children with autism were categorized into five classification: communication, fulfilling of activity daily living, language-numbers–tactile, psychology, and understanding commands. Conclusion: There was a significant effect of family empowerment in enhancing the capabilities of children with autism. Thus, training to improve the ability of parent/caregiver in caring children with autism needs to be implemented in a planned and gradually manner.

  5. Health and Self-Regulation among School-Age Children Experiencing Family Homelessness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew J. Barnes

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Children in homeless families have high levels of adversity and are at risk for behavior problems and chronic health conditions, however little is known about the relationship between cognitive-emotional self-regulation and health among school-aged homeless children. Children (n = 86; mean age 10.5 living in shelters were assessed for health, family stress/adversity, emotional-behavioral regulation, nonverbal intellectual abilities, and executive function. Vision problems were the most prevalent health condition, followed by chronic respiratory conditions. Cumulative risk, child executive function, and self-regulation problems in children were uniquely related to child physical health. Homeless children experience problems with cognitive, emotional, and behavioral regulation as well as physical health, occurring in a context of high psychosocial risk. Several aspects of children’s self-regulation predict physical health in 9- to 11-year-old homeless children. Health promotion efforts in homeless families should address individual differences in children’s self-regulation as a resilience factor.

  6. Fit Families Program Improves Self-Perception in Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Archuleta, Martha; VanLeeuwen, Dawn; Turner, Carol

    2016-06-01

    To determine the impact of the Fit Families youth weight management program on self-perception of participants. Fit Families was delivered through Cooperative Extension and provided education to overweight and obese children and their families on healthful eating and physical activity along with building self-esteem and social competence. At the beginning and end of the 7-week program, a convenience sample of 46 youth completed the Self-Perception Profile for Children questionnaire to evaluate changes in self-perception. Youth had improved self-perception in the areas of athletic competence (P = .04) and physical appearance (P = .007) after participating in Fit Families. Fit Families provides a holistic approach to weight management that promotes positive self-perception, which may decrease the burden of depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem obese youth face. Copyright © 2016 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Help seeking by parents in military families on behalf of their young children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    O'Grady, Allison E Flittner; Wadsworth, Shelley MacDermid; Willerton, Elaine; Cardin, Jean-François; Topp, David; Mustillo, Sarah; Lester, Patricia

    2015-08-01

    Over the past decade, many children have experienced a parental deployment, increasing their risk for emotional and behavioral problems. Research in the general population has shown that while many services are available for families with children experiencing problems, the rate of service utilization is low. This study examined help-seeking processes in military families in relation to children's problems. We collected data on emotional and behavioral problems from a sample of military parents with children ranging in age from zero to 10 years. While prevalence of children with problems was similar to prior research, results in this study suggested that military parents were alert to problems. Although military parents' help-seeking processes were similar to those documented in civilian studies in many respects, we did not find a significant gender difference in the recognition of problems. Furthermore, we found that children's experiences of deployment were related to use of services. Families who used services most often relied on primary care providers. These findings suggest military families are mindful of the possibility of their children having problems. In addition, many families utilize civilian services. Therefore, it is important to ensure that front-line civilian providers fully understand the context of military family issues. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

  8. Understanding Children's Sedentary Behaviour: A Qualitative Study of the Family Home Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Granich, Joanna; Rosenberg, Michael; Knuiman, Matthew; Timperio, Anna

    2010-01-01

    Electronic media (EM) (television, electronic games and computer) use has been associated with overweight and obesity among children. Little is known about the time spent in sedentary behaviour (SB) among children within the family context. The aim of this study was to explore how the family home environment may influence children's…

  9. Comorbidities in preschool children at family risk of dyslexia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gooch, Debbie; Hulme, Charles; Nash, Hannah M; Snowling, Margaret J

    2015-01-01

    Background Comorbidity among developmental disorders such as dyslexia, language impairment, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and developmental coordination disorder is common. This study explores comorbid weaknesses in preschool children at family risk of dyslexia with and without language impairment and considers the role that comorbidity plays in determining children’s outcomes. Method The preschool attention, executive function and motor skills of 112 children at family risk for dyslexia, 29 of whom also met criteria for language impairment, were assessed at ages 3 ½ and 4 ½. The performance of these children was compared to the performance of children with language impairment and typically developing controls. Results Weaknesses in attention, executive function and motor skills were associated with language impairment rather than family risk status. Individual differences in language and executive function are strongly related in the preschool period and preschool motor skills predicted unique variance (4%) in early reading skills over and above children’s language ability. Conclusion Comorbidity between developmental disorders can be observed in the preschool years: children with language impairment have significant and persistent weaknesses in motor skills and executive function compared to those without language impairment. Children’s early language and motor skills are predictors of children’s later reading skills. PMID:24117483

  10. Early parenting, represented family relationships, and externalizing behavior problems in children born preterm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poehlmann, Julie; Burnson, Cynthia; Weymouth, Lindsay A

    2014-01-01

    Through assessment of 173 preterm infants and their mothers at hospital discharge and at 9, 16, 24, 36, and 72 months, the study examined early parenting, attachment security, effortful control, and children's representations of family relationships in relation to subsequent externalizing behavior problems. Less intrusive early parenting predicted more secure attachment, better effortful control skills, and fewer early behavior problems, although it did not directly relate to the structural or content characteristics of children's represented family relationships. Children with higher effortful control scores at 24 months had more coherent family representations at 36 months. Moreover, children who exhibited less avoidance in their family representations at 36 months had fewer mother-reported externalizing behavior problems at 72 months. The study suggests that early parenting quality and avoidance in children's represented relationships are important for the development of externalizing behavior problems in children born preterm.

  11. Gender and nurturance in families of children with neurodevelopmental conditions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shapiro, Danielle N; Dixon-Thomas, Pamela; Warschausky, Seth

    2014-05-01

    This study tested the hypothesis that gender differences in parent-reported nurturance of children would be attenuated in families of children with neurodevelopmental conditions (NDCs). In this cross-sectional study, participants included 49 (29 male) children diagnosed with an NDC and 60 (30 male) typically developing (TD) children. Children in the NDC group had a diagnosis of cerebral palsy (CP; n = 41) or spina bifida (SB; n = 8). Parental nurturance was measured using the nurturance subscale of the Parenting Dimensions Inventory (PDI; Power, 1991). Data were analyzed using a 2 × 2 (gender × diagnosis) analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with child age as the covariate. As a simple main effect, parents reported more nurturing behavior toward TD girls than TD boys. However, girls with an NDC received less nurturance, thereby eliminating the gender difference in parental nurturance in the NDC sample. This pattern was reflected in the larger ANCOVA as a 2-way interaction between diagnosis and gender. Group differences in other PDI subscales were not statistically significant. This pattern of results suggests that the parents of girls with NDCs may be less nurturing toward them, thereby attenuating gender differences observed in families with TD children. Findings highlight the need for more research on the gendered dynamics in families with a child with an NDC to develop systemic models of family functioning and targeted parenting interventions for this group. (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved.

  12. Family Connections: Visual Supports for Promoting Social Skills in Young Children--A Family Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moody, Amelia K.

    2012-01-01

    Family members of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) often face social, emotional, and behavioral challenges in the home. Difficulty communicating with family members, forming relationships with friends, and responding appropriately to others can cause significant challenges in the home (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental…

  13. Understanding children's sedentary behaviour: a qualitative study of the family home environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Granich, Joanna; Rosenberg, Michael; Knuiman, Matthew; Timperio, Anna

    2010-04-01

    Electronic media (EM) (television, electronic games and computer) use has been associated with overweight and obesity among children. Little is known about the time spent in sedentary behaviour (SB) among children within the family context. The aim of this study was to explore how the family home environment may influence children's electronic-based SB. Focus groups and family interviews were conducted with 11- to 12-year old children (n = 54) and their parents (n = 38) using a semi-structured discussion guide. Transcripts were analysed using a thematic content approach. A brief self-completed questionnaire was also used to measure leisure behaviour and electronic devices at home. Children incorporated both sedentary and physical activities into their weekly routine. Factors influencing children's EM use included parent and sibling modelling and reinforcement, personal cognitions, the physical home environment and household EM use rules and restrictions. Participants were not concerned about the excessive time children spent with EM. This under-recognition emerged as a personal influencing factor and was viewed as a major barrier to modifying children's electronic-based SB. Efforts to reduce SB in children should focus on the influencing factors that reciprocally interact within the family home. An emphasis on increasing awareness about the risks associated with spending excessive time in screen-based activities should be a priority when developing intervention strategies aimed at modifying the time children spend in SB.

  14. Neighborhood Economic Disadvantage and Children's Cognitive and Social-Emotional Development: Exploring Head Start Classroom Quality as a Mediating Mechanism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCoy, Dana Charles; Connors, Maia C; Morris, Pamela A; Yoshikawa, Hirokazu; Friedman-Krauss, Allison H

    Past research has shown robust relationships between neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage and children's school achievement and social-emotional outcomes, yet the mechanisms for explaining these relationships are poorly understood. The present study uses data from 1,904 Head Start participants enrolled in the Head Start Impact Study to examine the role that classroom structural and relational quality play in explaining the association between neighborhood poverty and children's developmental gains over the preschool year. Results suggest that neighborhood poverty is directly related to lower levels of classroom quality, and lower gains in early literacy and math scores. Indirect relationships were also found between neighborhood poverty and children's social-emotional outcomes (i.e., approaches to learning and behavior problems) via differences in the physical resources and negative student-teacher relationships within classrooms. These findings highlight the need for policy initiatives to consider community characteristics as potential predictors of disparities in classroom quality and children's cognitive and social-emotional development in Head Start.

  15. Family-centred care of children in hospital - a concept analysis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mikkelsen, Gitte; Frederiksen, Kirsten

    2011-01-01

    from 1951 to 2009 resulted in a sample of 25 research articles. Review methods.  A theoretical concept analysis influenced by Risjord's distinction between theoretical and colloquial analyses and based on the principles developed by Morse, Hupcey and Penrod was used to examine the structure...... of professionals and families, mostly represented by mothers. Few attempts have been made to operationalize the concept. Conclusion.  Family-centred care is a partially mature and highly abstract concept. Developing a theory of family-centred care could position the concept in a theoretical context and should also......mikkelsen g. & frederiksen k. (2011) Family-centred care of children in hospital - a concept analysis. Journal of Advanced Nursing67(5), 1152-1162. ABSTRACT: Aim.  This paper reports a concept analysis of family-centred nursing care of hospitalized children. Background.  Family-centred care...

  16. An Examination of the Contributions of Interactive Peer Play to Salient Classroom Competencies for Urban Head Start Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fantuzzo, John; Sekino, Yumiko; Cohen, Heather L.

    2004-01-01

    Relations between children's peer play competence and other relevant competencies were investigated using two samples of urban Head Start children. Dimensions of peer play were examined concurrently with emotion regulation, autonomy, and language. Children exhibiting high levels of peer play interaction were found to demonstrate more competent…

  17. Education and the Children of One-Parent Families: A Background Paper.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riley, Barb

    Current literature about children of one-parent families can provide educators with information on what effects living in a one-parent family have on a child's personality, behavior, and academic performance. Research indicates that at the elementary level children often fear abandonment, act aggressively, and display attention-seeking behaviors…

  18. Psychological, behavioral and familial factors in obese Cuban children and adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pérez, Lourdes M; García, Keytel; Herrera, Raúl

    2013-10-01

    The global prevalence of obesity has reached alarming proportions. In Cuba, the rise in numbers of children who are overweight or obese, especially preschoolers and adolescents, is similar to that observed in developed countries. Beyond the physical risk factors, there is evidence that obesity has negative psychological, social, academic and economic effects. Describe the psychological, behavioral and familial factors present in a group of obese children and adolescents in Cuba. This is a qualitative cross-sectional study of 202 obese children and adolescents aged 3-18 years, with an average age of 9.9 years, seen at the Medical-Surgical Research Center (Havana) psychology service from January 2009 through December 2012. Techniques included interviews of patients and parents, projective drawings and the Rotter Incomplete Sentence Blank. Unhealthy eating habits were reported in 96% of obese children and adolescents, and sedentary lifestyles in 88.1%. Emotional state was affected in 80.2%, and in 72.3% there were family attitudes with potential to produce psychological disturbances in children. Psychological, behavioral, and familial factors known to foster development and perpetuation of obesity were observed in the majority of cases. This is a first diagnostic stage that will aid in design and implementation of a psychological intervention program for obese and overweight children and their families.

  19. Family Rituals and Quality of Life in Children With Cancer and Their Parents: The Role of Family Cohesion and Hope

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crespo, Carla; Canavarro, M. Cristina; Kazak, Anne E.

    2015-01-01

    Objective Family rituals are associated with adaptive functioning in pediatric illness, including quality of life (QoL). This article explores the role of family cohesion and hope as mediators of this association in children with cancer and their parents. Methods Portuguese children with cancer (N = 389), on- and off-treatment, and one of their parents completed self-report measures. Structural equation modeling was used to examine direct and indirect links between family rituals and QoL. Results When children and parents reported higher levels of family rituals, they also reported more family cohesion and hope, which were linked to better QoL. At the dyadic level, children’s QoL was related to parents’ family rituals through the child’s family cohesion. This model was valid across child’s age-group, treatment status, and socioeconomic status. Conclusions Family rituals are important in promoting QoL in pediatric cancer via family cohesion and hope individually and via family cohesion in terms of parent–child interactions. PMID:25775914

  20. Longitudinal Impact of a Family Critical Time Intervention on Children in High-Risk Families Experiencing Homelessness: A Randomized Trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shinn, Marybeth; Samuels, Judith; Fischer, Sean N; Thompkins, Amanda; Fowler, Patrick J

    2015-12-01

    A randomized trial compared effects of a Family Critical Time Intervention (FCTI) to usual care for children in 200 newly homeless families in which mothers had diagnosable mental illness or substance problems. Adapted from an evidence-based practice to prevent chronic homelessness for adults with mental illnesses, FCTI combines housing and structured, time-limited case management to connect families leaving shelter with community services. Families were followed at five time points over 24 months. Data on 311 children-99 ages 1.5-5 years, 113 ages 6-10 years, and 99 ages 11-16 years-included mother-, teacher-, and child-reports of mental health, school experiences, and psychosocial well-being. Analyses used hierarchical linear modeling to investigate intervention effects and changes in child functioning over time. Referral to FCTI reduced internalizing and externalizing problems in preschool-aged children and externalizing for adolescents 11-16. The intervention led to declines in self-reported school troubles for children 6-10 and 11-16. Both experimental and control children in all age groups showed reductions in symptoms over time. Although experimental results were scattered, they suggest that FCTI has the potential to improve mental health and school outcomes for children experiencing homelessness.

  1. Home Food Preservation among Families with Young Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lorenz, Lorraine J.; Sawicki, Marjorie A.; Elliott, Michael; White, Melissa

    2016-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to determine preservation practices, perceived barriers, and likelihood of parents with young children to home preserve food in the future. Implications of this research relate to family and consumer sciences professionals who endeavor to improve fruit and vegetable intake and provide resources to families and…

  2. Family Stability as a Protective Factor against Psychopathology for Urban Children Receiving Psychological Services

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ivanova, Masha Y.; Israel, Allen C.

    2006-01-01

    Family stability, defined as the consistency of family activities and routines, was examined in a sample of urban families (n = 70) with children (ages 7 to 16) receiving psychological services. Parent-reported family stability was associated with lower parent-reported children's internalizing behavior problems. Child-reported family stability…

  3. Preventive interventions in families with parental depression: children's psychosocial symptoms and prosocial behaviour.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Solantaus, Tytti; Paavonen, E Juulia; Toikka, Sini; Punamäki, Raija-Leena

    2010-12-01

    The aim is to document the effectiveness of a preventive family intervention (Family Talk Intervention, FTI) and a brief psychoeducational discussion with parents (Let's Talk about the Children, LT) on children's psychosocial symptoms and prosocial behaviour in families with parental mood disorder, when the interventions are practiced in psychiatric services for adults in the finnish national health service. Patients with mood disorder were invited to participate with their families. Consenting families were randomized to the two intervention groups. The initial sample comprised 119 families and their children aged 8-16. Of these, 109 completed the interventions and the baseline evaluation. Mothers and fathers filled out questionnaires including standardized rating scales for children's symptoms and prosocial behaviour at baseline and at 4, 10 and 18 months post-intervention. The final sample consisted of parental reports on 149 children with 83 complete data sets. Both interventions were effective in decreasing children's emotional symptoms, anxiety, and marginally hyperactivity and in improving children's prosocial behaviour. The FTI was more effective than the LT on emotional symptoms particularly immediately after the intervention, while the effect of the LT emerged after a longer interval. The study supports the effectiveness of both interventions in families with depressed parents. The FTI is applicable in cultural settings other than the USA. Our findings provide support for including preventive child mental health measures as part of psychiatric services for mentally ill parents.

  4. How Will Higher Minimum Wages Affect Family Life and Children's Well-Being?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, Heather D; Romich, Jennifer

    2018-06-01

    In recent years, new national and regional minimum wage laws have been passed in the United States and other countries. The laws assume that benefits flow not only to workers but also to their children. Adolescent workers will most likely be affected directly given their concentration in low-paying jobs, but younger children may be affected indirectly by changes in parents' work conditions, family income, and the quality of nonparental child care. Research on minimum wages suggests modest and mixed economic effects: Decreases in employment can offset, partly or fully, wage increases, and modest reductions in poverty rates may fade over time. Few studies have examined the effects of minimum wage increases on the well-being of families, adults, and children. In this article, we use theoretical frameworks and empirical evidence concerning the effects on children of parental work and family income to suggest hypotheses about the effects of minimum wage increases on family life and children's well-being.

  5. The Multivariate Roles of Family Instability and Interparental Conflict in Predicting Children's Representations of Insecurity in the Family System and Early School Adjustment Problems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Coe, Jesse L; Davies, Patrick T; Sturge-Apple, Melissa L

    2017-02-01

    This study examined the moderating role of family instability in relations involving destructive interparental conflict, children's internal representations of insecurity in the family system, and their early school maladjustment. Two hundred forty-three preschool children (M age = 4.60 years; 56 % girls) and their families participated in this multi-method (i.e., observations, structured interview, surveys) multi-informant (i.e., observer, parent, teacher), longitudinal study. Findings indicated that the mediational role of children's insecure family representations in the pathway between destructive interparental conflict and children's adjustment problems varied significantly depending on the level of family instability. Interparental conflict was specifically associated with insecure family representations only under conditions of low family instability. In supporting the role of family instability as a vulnerable-stable risk factor, follow up analyses revealed that children's concerns about security in the family were uniformly high under conditions of heightened instability regardless of their level of exposure to interparental conflict.

  6. Mediated intimacy in families: understanding the relation between children and parents

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dalsggaard, Thomas; Skov, Mikael B.; Stougaard, Malthe

    2006-01-01

    interaction phenomena that unfold between children and their parents. We used cultural probes and contextual interviews to investigate the intimate acts between children and parents in three families. Our findings show that the intimate act between children and parents share a number of similarities......Mediating intimacy between children and their parents is still limited investigated and at the same time, we find that, emerging technologies are about to change and affect the way we interact with each other. In this paper, we report from an empirical study where we investigated the social...... in families....

  7. Family meal frequency among children and adolescents with eating disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elran-Barak, Roni; Sztainer, Maya; Goldschmidt, Andrea B; Le Grange, Daniel

    2014-07-01

    Previous studies on family meals and disordered eating have mainly drawn their samples from the general population. The goal of the current study is to determine family meal frequency among children and adolescents with anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), and feeding or eating disorder not elsewhere classified (FED-NEC) and to examine whether family meal frequency is associated with eating disorder psychopathology. Participants included 154 children and adolescents (M = 14.92 ± 2.62), who met criteria for AN (n = 60), BN (n = 32), or FED-NEC (n = 62). All participants completed the Eating Disorder Examination and the Family Meal Questionnaire prior to treatment at the University of Chicago Eating Disorders Program. AN and BN participants significantly differed in terms of family meal frequency. A majority of participants with AN (71.7%), compared with less than half (43.7%) of participants with BN, reported eating dinner with their family frequently (five or more times per week). Family meal frequency during dinner was significantly and negatively correlated with dietary restraints and eating concerns among participants with BN (r = -.381, r = -.366, p meal frequency may be explained by their parents' relatively greater vigilance over eating, whereas families of BN patients may be less aware of eating disorder behaviors and hence less insistent upon family meals. Additionally, children and adolescents with AN may be more inhibited and withdrawn and therefore are perhaps more likely to stay at home and eat together with their families. Copyright © 2014 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Social inclusion and wellbeing of families of children with special needs transnational study report

    OpenAIRE

    Colomeischi, Aurora Adina; Fillella Gui, Gemma; Veiga Branco, Augusta; Alimović, Sonja; Baranauskiene, Ingrida; Gol-Guven, Mine

    2016-01-01

    BUILDING BRIDGES: PROMOTING SOCIAL INCLUSION AND WELLBEING FOR FAMILIES OF CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS – PSI-WELL The project entitled Building Bridges: Promoting Social Inclusion and Wellbeing for Families of Children with Special Needs (PSI_WELL) proposes an innovative approach aimed to facilitate social inclusion and wellbeing for families confronting with disabled children through adult education for parents. The project is addressing to the specific needs of families parenting childre...

  9. The impact of epilepsy on preschool children and their families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tanriverdi, Müberra; Mutluay, Fatma Karantay; Tarakçi, Devrim; Güler, Serhat; Iscan, Akin

    2016-09-01

    This study investigated the possible presence of sensory-motor developmental impairments in preschool children with epilepsy and explored epilepsy impact on their activities and quality of life and on the stress load of their family. Study participants were children aged 2-6years diagnosed with epilepsy without any other comorbidities (epi-only children). The instruments used for assessment included the Neurological, Sensory, Motor, Developmental Assessment (NSMDA) scale for sensory-motor development, the Impact of Childhood Neurologic Disability Scale (ICNDS), and the Impact of Pediatric Epilepsy Scale (IPES) for disease impact on disability and Quality of Life (QoL), as well as the Pediatric Outcomes Data Collection Instrument (PODCI) for functional health status, and the Parental Stress Scale (PSS) for the family stress load. Required data were obtained from direct testing or observation of children's activities and mother-supplied answers to questions. Eighty-two children were investigated. The NSMDA scores were in the normal development range 6-8. Significant moderate impact of the disease on disability and QoL was estimated with the ICNDS and IPES instruments. The PODCI scores were similar to healthy population levels except for the happiness dimension which was better for children with epilepsy. PSS were significantly above normal. The functional health and QoL of the children as well as their family stress were found to be positively correlated with increasing age. It is found that epilepsy does not degrade neuromotor development and functional health status of preschool epi-only children, though it has a significant impact on their neurological disability and QoL and the stress level of their families; this impact seems to decrease with age. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. Exploring family-centered care for children living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Achema, Godwin; Ncama, Busisiwe P

    2016-04-01

    To explored the role of family-centered care in supporting children living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria. A qualitative research design was adopted for this study with a grounded theory approach. Children aged between 11 and 14 years living with HIV and AIDS, their caregivers, and nurse practitioners working in the HIV clinic were engaged in separate focus group discussions in two hospitals in Nigeria. The findings showed that the value African families place on children plays a significant role in identifying their care needs and providing their basic necessities; hence, people around the sick child tend to make him feel better, as attested by nurse practitioners and caregiver participants. Nurse practitioner participants cited unified families as providing care support and love to the children and the support needed to alleviate their sicknesses. Children participants confirmed that family members/relatives were always at their disposal to provide supportive care in terms of administrating antiretroviral medication as well as other psychological care; although a few participants indicated that disruption in family structures in resource-poor settings, isolation and withdrawal, and deprivation of care due to poverty threatened the care rendered to the children. The study highlighted the value attached to children in the African context as helping family members to identify the care needs of children living with HIV and AIDS; thereby providing succor to alleviate their sicknesses and enhance their quality of life. © 2016 Japan Academy of Nursing Science.

  11. Feasibility and potential efficacy of the family-centered Prevent-Teach-Reinforce model with families of children with developmental disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bailey, Kathleen M; Blair, Kwang-Sun Cho

    2015-12-01

    This study examined the feasibility and potential efficacy of the family-centered Prevent-Teach-Reinforce (PTR) model with three families of young children with an autism spectrum disorder or language delay with sensory processing problems. Particularly, the study assessed the family adherence to the PTR intervention, changes in child behavior, family use of the Individualized Behavior Rating Scale Tool (IBRST), procedural integrity, and social validity. A multiple-baseline design across families was used to examine the functional relation between parent-implemented PTR intervention and changes in child behavior. Results indicated that the family-centered PTR process was successful in promoting parents to design and implement the PTR intervention plans with fidelity, and the parents' implemented intervention plans were effective in increasing replacement behavior and decreasing problem behavior across children. The results also indicated that the parents successfully used the IBRST to monitor their child's progress and were highly satisfied with the PTR intervention process and outcomes for their children. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Family relationships versus learning: an analysis with children aged 5 and 6 years

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marisa Claudia Jacometo Durante

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available As the first mediator between man and culture, the family constitutes the dynamic unity of affective, social and cognitive relations that are immersed in the material, historical and cultural conditions of a given social group. The overall objective of the study was to investigate whether family relationships can compromise children’s learning. Specifically, it was intended to: a Identify conflicts in family relationships; B To verify if the conflicts in the family relations can compromise the interpersonal relationship of the children in the literacy phase; C Analyze whether conflicts in family relationships interfere with children’s learning. A total of 219 families with children aged 5 and 6 participated in the study. The main results indicate that there is a distancing of the parents in relation to the school life of the children, as well as in the family relationships there is a mixture of conflict and affection. It is considered that the learning of children can be compromised by conflicts in family relationships because learning and school performance depend primarily on family interaction and later on the relationship between teacher-student.

  13. Family-centred care for hospitalised children aged 0-12 years.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shields, Linda; Zhou, Huaqiong; Pratt, Jan; Taylor, Marjory; Hunter, Judith; Pascoe, Elaine

    2012-10-17

    This is an update of the Cochrane systematic review of family-centred care published in 2007 (Shields 2007). Family-centred care (FCC) is a widely used model in paediatrics, is thought to be the best way to provide care to children in hospital and is ubiquitous as a way of delivering care. When a child is admitted, the whole family is affected. In giving care, nurses, doctors and others must consider the impact of the child's admission on all family members. However, the effectiveness of family-centred care as a model of care has not been measured systematically. To assess the effects of family-centred models of care for hospitalised children aged from birth (unlike the previous version of the review, this update excludes premature neonates) to 12 years, when compared to standard models of care, on child, family and health service outcomes. In the original review, we searched up until 2004. For this update, we searched: the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL,The Cochrane Library, Issue 12 2011); MEDLINE (Ovid SP); EMBASE (Ovid SP); PsycINFO (Ovid SP); CINAHL (EBSCO Host); and Sociological Abstracts (CSA). We did not search three that were included in the original review: Social Work Abstracts, the Australian Medical Index and ERIC. We searched EMBASE in this update only and searched from 2004 onwards. There was no limitation by language. We performed literature searches in May and June 2009 and updated them again in December 2011. We searched for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) including cluster randomised trials in which family-centred care models are compared with standard models of care for hospitalised children (0 to 12 years, but excluding premature neonates). Studies had to meet criteria for family-centredness. In order to assess the degree of family-centredness, we used a modified rating scale based on a validated instrument, (same instrument used in the initial review), however, we decreased the family-centredness score for

  14. The Bears Family Projective Test: evaluating stories of children with emotional difficulties.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Iandolo, Giuseppe; Esposito, Gianluca; Venuti, Paola

    2012-06-01

    The aim of this study was to describe and analyze the storytelling of children with emotional difficulties. Forty children with emotional and relational difficulties (inhibited and impulsive), ages between 5.5 and 9.4 years old, were assessed by a multiaxial procedure and the bears family projective test. The bears family test is a constructive-thematic-projective method based on an anthropomorphic family of bears that children can manipulate to tell a story. The stories of 40 children without emotional difficulties (matched by IQ, socio-economic status, and gender) and 322 typically developing children, aged between four and 10 years old, were used as a reference for comparisons. Results indicated that the stories of children with emotional difficulties showed many unsolved problematic events, unclear characters, negative relationships, and negative behaviors. Unlike the stories of children without emotional difficulties, positive contents didn't prevail over negative, and there wasn't a positive compensation for negative elements.

  15. Family food involvement is related to healthier dietary intake in preschool-aged children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Metcalfe, Jessica Jarick; Fiese, Barbara H

    2018-03-27

    Children in the United States fall far short of meeting federal dietary recommendations. The unhealthy diets common amongst young children are of crucial public health concern, given that they can inhibit healthy development and are predictive of chronic diseases in adulthood. Research investigating behaviors that are related to dietary habits is crucial to allow a better understanding of the causes of unhealthy dietary practices. Involvement in food preparation is known to be associated with healthy dietary behaviors in school-aged children, but little is known about these behaviors and their correlates in younger children. The present study sought to examine the influences and correlates of involvement in family food preparation in children at ages three and four. Parents of preschool aged children (n = 497) completed surveys including information about demographic background, their children's family food involvement, dietary intake, mealtime routines, and problematic eating behaviors. Data were collected when children were three (wave one of the survey) and four years of age (wave two). Findings from this study indicate that family food involvement at age three is predictive of healthier dietary intake at age four (increased consumption of fruits and vegetables, decreased consumption of fast food). These findings indicate that family food involvement is predictive of healthier dietary behaviors in young children, and that outreach efforts focused on family food involvement in early childhood may improve children's dietary habits. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  16. Adoptive gay father families: parent-child relationships and children's psychological adjustment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Golombok, Susan; Mellish, Laura; Jennings, Sarah; Casey, Polly; Tasker, Fiona; Lamb, Michael E

    2014-01-01

    Findings are presented on a U.K. study of 41 gay father families, 40 lesbian mother families, and 49 heterosexual parent families with an adopted child aged 3-9 years. Standardized interview and observational and questionnaire measures of parental well-being, quality of parent-child relationships, child adjustment, and child sex-typed behavior were administered to parents, children, and teachers. The findings indicated more positive parental well-being and parenting in gay father families compared to heterosexual parent families. Child externalizing problems were greater among children in heterosexual families. Family process variables, particularly parenting stress, rather than family type were found to be predictive of child externalizing problems. The findings contribute to theoretical understanding of the role of parental gender and parental sexual orientation in child development. © 2013 The Authors. Child Development © 2013 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

  17. Evaluation of the Even Start--Padres y Progreso Program in the Houston Independent School District.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stevens, Carla J.; And Others

    The Even Start-Padres y Progreso program is a nationally funded program designed to prepare young children to enter school by not only offering early childhood education, but also assisting their families with adult literacy and English as a Second Language (ESL), parenting-skills training, and employment-skills training. An evaluation of the…

  18. Evaluation of the Fourth and Final Year of the Even Start--Padres y Progreso Program.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stevens, Carla J.; And Others

    The Even Start--Padres y Progreso program was a nationally funded program in Houston (Texas) designed to prepare young children to enter school not only by offering early childhood education, but also assisting their families with adult literacy/English as a second language, parenting skills training, and employment skills training. The program…

  19. Impact of employee benefits on families with children with autism spectrum disorders.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gnanasekaran, Sangeeth; Choueiri, Roula; Neumeyer, Ann; Ajari, Ogheneochuko; Shui, Amy; Kuhlthau, Karen

    2016-07-01

    The objectives of this study are to evaluate the employee benefits parents of children with autism spectrum disorders have, how benefits are used, work change, and job satisfaction. We conducted a cross-sectional mailed survey study of 435 families with children with autism spectrum disorders residing in the United States. We received 161 surveys for a response rate of 37%. Families reported using the following benefits: 39% paid family leave, 19% unpaid family leave, 91% flexible work arrangements, and 86% telecommuting. Of respondents, 43% reported stopping work, cutting down on hours worked, or changing jobs because of their child's condition. Having paid family leave was a positive predictor for job satisfaction. Parents of children with autism spectrum disorders have an interest and need for alternative work arrangements. © The Author(s) 2015.

  20. The family child care home environment and children's diet quality.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benjamin-Neelon, Sara E; Vaughn, Amber E; Tovar, Alison; Østbye, Truls; Mazzucca, Stephanie; Ward, Dianne S

    2018-07-01

    Developing healthy eating behaviors and food preferences in early childhood may help establish future healthy diets. Large numbers of children spend time in child care, but little research has assessed the nutritional quality of meals and snacks in family child care homes. Therefore, it is important to assess foods and beverages provided, policies related to nutrition and feeding children, and interactions between providers and children during mealtimes. We examined associations between the nutrition environments of family child care homes and children's diet quality. We assessed the nutrition environments of 166 family child care homes using the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (EPAO) (scores range: 0-21). We also recorded foods and beverages consumed by 496 children in care and calculated healthy eating index (HEI) (scores range: 0-100). We used a mixed effects linear regression model to examine the association between the EPAO nutrition environment (and EPAO sub-scales) and child HEI, controlling for potential confounders. Family child care homes had a mean (standard deviation, SD) of 7.2 (3.6) children in care, 74.1% of providers were black or African American, and children had a mean (SD) age of 35.7 (11.4) months. In adjusted multivariable models, higher EPAO nutrition score was associated with increased child HEI score (1.16; 95% CI: 0.34, 1.98; p = 0.006). Higher scores on EPAO sub-scales for foods provided (8.98; 95% CI: 3.94, 14.01; p = 0.0006), nutrition education (5.37; 95% CI: 0.80, 9.94; p = 0.02), and nutrition policy (2.36; 95% CI: 0.23, 4.49; p = 0.03) were all associated with greater child HEI score. Foods and beverages served, in addition to nutrition education and nutrition policies in family child care homes, may be promising intervention targets for improving child diet quality. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  1. Shared activities of parents and their preschool children during family pastime

    OpenAIRE

    SOBKIN VLADIMIR S.; SKOBELTSINA KSENIA N.

    2015-01-01

    This article studies the structure of the pastime of contemporary preschool children and the importance and prevalence of various kinds of activities that parents and their children share. The emphasis is on those features of parental behavior that are determined by gender role (mother/father), family status (two-parent/separated family), style of parent-child relationship, and also child’s gender. The work is based on data from 1,936 questionnaires received from parents of preschool children...

  2. Marital conflict typology and children's appraisals: the moderating role of family cohesion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindahl, Kristin M; Malik, Neena M

    2011-04-01

    Intense and frequent marital conflict is associated with greater appraisals of threat and self-blame in children, but little else is known about contextual factors that might affect appraisals. Systemic family theories propose that to understand child adaptation, it is necessary to understand the interconnected nature of family subsystem relationships. In a sample of 257 families with 8- to 12-year-old children, this study examined whether a four-level typology of marital conflict management was related to children's perceptions of marital conflict and their appraisals of perceived threat and self-blame. In addition, family cohesion was tested as a moderator of the relationship between marital conflict style and children's appraisals. Observational coding was used to group couples into Harmonious, Disengaged, Conflictual-Expressive, and Conflictual-Hostile groups. Children's report of the intensity, frequency, and degree of resolution of interparental discord corresponded well with observers' ratings. The relationship between marital conflict style and appraisals of threat and self-blame was moderated by family cohesiveness. At high levels of family cohesiveness, no group differences were found for either perceived threat or self-blame, whereas when family cohesiveness was low, threat was higher for the Harmonious and Conflictual-Hostile groups, as compared to the Conflictual-Expressive group, and self-blame was higher for both conflict groups (expressive and hostile), as compared to the Disengaged group. The results provide further evidence of interconnected nature of family subsystem relationships and the importance of distinguishing among different approaches to marital conflict management for understanding the complex and perhaps subtle but meaningful effects different family system factors have on child adaptation.

  3. Children's Books in Review: Books on Strengthening Family Ties.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Winfield, Evelyn T.

    1991-01-01

    Reviews children's books that emphasize the strengthening of family ties. Characters in the books realize the importance and influence of family relationships as they struggle with sibling rivalry, self-discovery, peer relationships, a search for heritage, adoption, and death. (SM)

  4. Exploring parent-sibling communication in families of children with sickle cell disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Graff, J Carolyn; Hankins, Jane S; Hardy, Belinda T; Hall, Heather R; Roberts, Ruth J; Neely-Barnes, Susan L

    2010-01-01

    Communication within families of children with sickle cell disease is important yet has not been adequately investigated. Focus group interviews were conducted with parents of children with sickle cell disease to explore parent-sibling communication about sickle cell disease. Communication was influenced by attributes and behaviors of the parent, the child with sickle cell disease, and the sibling; extended family, neighbors, friends, and church members or social networks; and available, accessible resources related to the child's health, child's school, and parent employment. Outcomes that influenced and were influenced by factors within and outside the parent-sibling dyad and nuclear family included parent satisfaction, parent roles, family intactness, and status attainment. These findings support previous research with African-American families and expand our views of the importance of educating parents, family members, and others about sickle cell disease. The findings suggest a need to explore sibling perception of this communication, parent and sibling perception of the impact of frequent hospitalizations and clinic visits on the sibling and family, and variations within families of children with sickle cell disease.

  5. Early home-based intervention in the Netherlands for children at familial risk of dyslexia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Otterloo, Sandra G; van der Leij, Aryan; Henrichs, Lotte F

    2009-08-01

    Dutch children at higher familial risk of reading disability received a home-based intervention programme before formal reading instruction started to investigate whether this would reduce the risk of dyslexia. The experimental group (n=23) received a specific training in phoneme awareness and letter knowledge. A control group (n=25) received a non-specific training in morphology, syntax, and vocabulary. Both interventions were designed to take 10 min a day, 5 days a week for 10 weeks. Most parents were sufficiently able to work with the programme properly. At post-test the experimental group had gained more on phoneme awareness than the control group. The control group gained more on one of the morphology measures. On average, these specific training results did not lead to significant group differences in first-grade reading and spelling measures. However, fewer experimental children scored below 10th percentile on word recognition. (c) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  6. The Impact of Parent Involvement in Head Start on Parents and Children. Final Report [and] Executive Summary.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parker, Faith Lamb; Piotrkowski, Chaya S.; Kessler-Sklar, Susan; Baker, Amy J. L.; Peay, Lenore; Clark, Beryl

    From its inception, Head Start's legislative mandate called for "maximum feasible participation" of parents in all programmatic efforts and policy decisions. Nevertheless, there has been little research done on the benefits of Head Start to parents and on the role of parents as mediators of child and family outcomes. The Head Start…

  7. An introduction to family-centred services for children affected by HIV and AIDS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richter, Linda

    2010-06-23

    Family-centred services in the context of HIV/AIDS acknowledge a broad view of a "family system" and ideally include comprehensive treatment and care, community agencies and coordinated case management. The importance of family-centred care for children affected by HIV/AIDS has been recognized for some time. There is a clear confluence of changing social realities and the needs of children in families affected by HIV and AIDS, but a change of paradigm in rendering services to children through families, in both high-prevalence and concentrated epidemic settings, has been slow to emerge.Despite a wide variety of model approaches, interventions, whether medical or psychosocial, still tend to target individuals rather than families. It has become clear that an individualistic approach to children affected by HIV and AIDS leads to confusion and misdirection of the global, national and local response. The almost exclusive focus on orphans, defined initially as a child who had lost one or both parents to AIDS, has occluded appreciation of the broader impact on children exposed to risk in other ways and the impact of the epidemic on families, communities and services for children. In addition, it led to narrowly focused, small-scale social welfare and case management approaches with little impact on government action, global and national policy, integration with health and education interventions, and increased funding.National social protection programmes that strengthen families are now established in several countries hard hit by AIDS, and large-scale pilots are underway in others. These efforts are supported by international and national development agencies, increasingly by governments and, more recently, by UNAIDS and the global AIDS community.There is no doubt that this is the beginning of a road and that there is still a long way to go, including basic research on families, family interventions, and effectiveness and costs of family-centred approaches. It is also

  8. Frequency of family meals and 6-11-year-old children's social behaviors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lora, Karina R; Sisson, Susan B; DeGrace, Beth W; Morris, Amanda S

    2014-08-01

    Family meals are regarded as an opportunity to promote healthy child development. In this brief report, we examined the relationship between frequency of family meals and children's social behaviors in 6-11-year-olds. The 2007 U.S. National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) provided data on the frequency of family meals in a sample of 6-11-year-old children (N = 24,167). The following social behavior indicators were examined: child positive social skills, child problematic social behaviors, child engagement in school, and parental aggravation with the child. Individual logistic regression analyses were calculated in unadjusted and adjusted models. On average, families had 5.3 meals together per week. In adjusted models, more frequent family meals increased the odds of child positive social skills (OR = 1.08, 95% CI [1.02, 1.16]) and child engagement in school (OR = 1.11, 95% CI [1.06, 1.15]), and decreased the likelihood of child problematic social behaviors (OR = 0.92, 95% CI [0.87, 0.98]). There was no association between frequency of family meals and parental aggravation with the child (OR = 0.98, 95% CI [0.93, 1.04]). Findings support the promotion of family meals to benefit children's development of healthy social behaviors.

  9. Psychiatric and family functioning in children with leukemia and their parents

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Goodarzi A

    1999-07-01

    Full Text Available The present study reports data from a cross-sectional investigation of the psychiatric and psychosocial functioning of 55 children diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia and their families at three points in time: diagnosis (newly diagnosed, 1 year postdiagnosis, and 1 year after the completion of chemotherapy (offtherapy. Results reveal minimal psychopathology in these children and their parents based on self-and informantreports and structured diagnostic interviews. These families appear to be functioning adequately and report more family cohesiveness and marital satisfaction after chemotherapy was completed. Coping strategies commonly used by children and their parents include problem solving, a positive outlook, and good communication. Implications for psychiatric consultation are presented.

  10. The effect of family characteristics on the recovery of burn injuries in children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheridan, Robert L; Lee, Austin F; Kazis, Lewis E; Liang, Matthew H; Li, Nien-Chen; Hinson, Michelle I; Bauk, Helena; Meyer, Walter J; Stubbs, Teresa K; Palmieri, Tina L; Tompkins, Ronald G

    2012-09-01

    Interactions between family members and characteristics of family life and function may affect a child's recovery from burn injury. We prospectively examined the relationship between family characteristics and physical and psychosocial recovery from burns. The families of 399 burned children aged 5 years to 18 years admitted to one of four Shriners Hospitals for Children for management of acute burns completed the Family Environment Scale within 7 days of admission and then the American Burn Association/Shriners Hospitals for Children Burn Outcome Questionnaire (BOQ) at baseline, 3, 6, 12, 18, 24, 36, and 48 months. Generalized estimating equations with random effects for the time since burn were used to track recovery of the BOQ patient-centered domains associated with baseline family characteristics during the course of the study. The children had a mean age of 11 years and burn size of 32% total body surface area burned. Higher Family Environment Scale scores in cohesion, independence, organization, and active recreational orientation were associated with significantly better rates of recovery in multiple BOQ domains of health-related quality of life. Higher scores in conflict and achievement orientation predicted statistically significant impaired recovery. Higher expressiveness predicted greater difficulty with school reentry. Family characteristics affect the recovery of children after serious burns. Some of these may be amenable to focused anticipatory family interventions to help optimize outcomes. In particular, those characteristics that impair school reentry should be targeted.

  11. Rising Inequality in Family Incomes and Children's Educational Outcomes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Greg J. Duncan

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Increases in family income inequality in the United States have translated into widening gaps in educational achievement and attainments between children from low- and high-income families. We describe the mechanisms that have produced this disturbing trend. We argue that the three dominant policy approaches states and the federal government have used to improve the education of the disadvantaged have had at best modest success in improving education for disadvantaged children. To conclude, we describe the building blocks for an American solution to the problem of growing inequality of educational outcomes.

  12. Confirmatory Factor Analysis of a Family Quality of Life Scale for Families of Kindergarten Children without Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zuna, Nina I.; Selig, James P.; Summers, Jean Ann; Turnbull, Ann P.

    2009-01-01

    Recently, within the field of special education, attention has been accorded to the conceptualization and measurement of family outcomes. The Family Quality of Life (FQOL) Scale is an instrument that can be used to measure family outcomes for families who have children with disabilities, and it has been demonstrated to have psychometric validity.…

  13. Attachment Stability in Children Aged 6 to 9 Years in Extended and Nuclear Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Seven, Serdal; Ogelman, Hulya Gulay

    2012-01-01

    Research Findings: The main aim of this study was to identify whether the attachment security of children living in nuclear and extended families is stable from ages 6 to 9 years in a sample of Turkish children. In total, 54 children participated in the study, of whom 27 lived in nuclear families and the other 27 lived in extended families in Mus…

  14. Web-based family intervention for overweight children: a pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Delamater, Alan M; Pulgaron, Elizabeth R; Rarback, Sheah; Hernandez, Jennifer; Carrillo, Adriana; Christiansen, Steven; Severson, Herbert H

    2013-02-01

    Research has shown the efficacy of family-based behavioral interventions for overweight children, but a major difficulty is access to effective treatment programs. The objective of this study was to develop and test the initial feasibility and efficacy of a web-based family program for overweight 8- to 12-year-old children. A website was created using concepts from effective family-based behavioral programs and input from focus groups with overweight children, parents, and pediatricians. The website provided information about obesity and healthy lifestyles, assessment of dietary and physical activity habits, interactive dietary and physical activity games, and instruction in goal-setting and monitoring of goals. Children selected a dietary and physical activity goal and a daily step goal with pedometers. Feasibility and pilot testing over 4 weeks was conducted with 24 overweight children referred by a physician. Outcomes were z-BMI, healthy eating and physical activity, and intrinsic motivation and self-efficacy for weight control. Mean number of logins over the study period was 11.4 for the study sample. Eighteen families (75%) returned for the follow-up assessment. Pre-post analyses for these participants showed improvements in intrinsic motivation, (p=0.05), self-efficacy (p=0.025), physical activity (p=0.005), and healthy lifestyle behaviors (p=0.001). Comparisons between high and low users of the program indicated that high users reduced their BMI while low users increased their BMI over time (p=0.02); high users also improved their dietary intake relative to low users (p=0.04). Consumer satisfaction ratings were high. These pilot findings suggest this is a feasible approach for treatment of overweight children and that children who used the web program frequently improved their BMI and dietary intake.

  15. Child and family-related predictors of psychological outcomes in children adopted from abroad; what is the role of caregiver time?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rita, Niina; Elovainio, Marko; Raaska, Hanna; Lahti-Nuuttila, Pekka; Matomäki, Jaakko; Sinkkonen, Jari; Lapinleimu, Helena

    2017-08-01

    International adoptees need to cope with stressful transitions and to develop secure attachment with their caregivers at the same time. Although most children adopted from abroad adjust fine, they are at increased risk of psychological problems. We investigated whether both child and family-related factors are associated with later psychological problems and whether the length of time spent at home after adoption before daycare moderates these associations among internationally adopted children in Finland (FinAdo, Finnish Adoption Study). The sample consisted of 1,265 children (708 girls, 557 boys) who arrived in Finland before they started school (mean age 2 years at arrival). Later behavioral problems were measured using the Child Behavior Check List (CBCL). According to our results, male gender, older age, child's early clinical symptoms (problems of sensory processing) and single parenthood were associated with later behavioral problems measured by CBCL scores. Longer stay at home before the start of daycare or school modified these results. Longer stay at home was associated with less later behavioral externalizing problems in girls but not in boys compared to those who spent a shorter time at home. © 2017 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  16. Family factors and psychopathology in children with epilepsy: a literature review

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rodenburg, R.; Meijer, A.M.; Dekovic, M.; Aldenkamp, A.P.

    2005-01-01

    Purpose: From a social interactional and ecological framework, studies were reviewed that (1) compared family factors in children with epilepsy with those in children from normative groups, healthy children, children with a chronic illness, or siblings; and (2) examined the relationship between

  17. Starting Young: Massachusetts Birth-3rd Grade Policies That Support Children's Literacy Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cook, Shayna; Bornfreund, Laura

    2015-01-01

    Massachusetts is one of a handful of states that is often recognized as a leader in public education, and for good reason. The Commonwealth consistently outperforms most states on national reading and math tests and often leads the pack in education innovations. "Starting Young: Massachusetts Birth-3rd Grade Policies that Support Children's…

  18. Mealtime family interactions in home environments of children with loss of control eating.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Czaja, Julia; Hartmann, Andrea Sabrina; Rief, Winfried; Hilbert, Anja

    2011-06-01

    Experimental and self-report studies have shown that parents have a strong influence on their normal or overweight children's eating behavior, i.e. through parental feeding behavior or communication. Studies in children with loss of control (LOC) eating that have investigated this relationship are scarce, and ecologically valid observational studies are missing. This study examined family functioning at mealtimes in home environments in 43 families of a child with LOC eating and 31 families of a child without LOC eating; the children were 8-13 years old. Familial interactions, child eating behavior, and parental mealtime behavior were assessed using the Mealtime Family Interaction Coding System, observation of bite speed of the child, and self-report questionnaires. Less healthy patterns of communication (U=201.53, pchild with LOC eating compared to those without LOC eating. Children with LOC eating (M=4.73, SD=1.88) ate faster than controls (M=3.71, SD=1.19; pchild's eating behavior. Parent-child communication training should be tested as an intervention for children with LOC episodes. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Birth order and preschool children's cooperative abilities: A within-family analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prime, Heather; Plamondon, André; Jenkins, Jennifer M

    2017-09-01

    There is evidence for a laterborn sibling advantage in some social skills, although this has not been investigated in children's early capacities for cooperation. Using a within-family design, this study compared firstborn and laterborn (i.e., middle and youngest) siblings on their cooperative abilities when they were aged around 3 years. Further, the study investigated whether the association between children's birth order and cooperative abilities was dependent on the prosocial behaviour of other siblings in the home. The sample included 288 ethnically and sociodemographically diverse children clustered within 144 families. Cooperation was directly assessed using a problem-solving paradigm requiring two simultaneous and complementary actions of the child and adult tester to achieve a joint goal. Parents reported on the prosocial behaviour of up to four siblings in the home. Results of a multilevel analysis indicated that youngest children were more advanced in their cooperative abilities, compared to firstborn children, irrespective of their siblings' prosociality. Middle children, in contrast, were only advantaged over firstborn children if their siblings showed high levels of prosociality. The analysis accounted for a number of potential family-wide confounds, providing evidence that this is a child-specific effect related to birth order. Findings are discussed from a social constructivist perspective with an emphasis on the sibling relationship as a context for cooperative interactions that facilitate sociocognitive development. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? There are individual differences in children's early capacities for cooperation. Children's early cooperation has not been considered in relation to birth order and/or sibling interaction quality. What does this study add? Youngest children are advantaged in their cooperation as compared to firstborn children. Middle children are also advantaged, but only if their

  20. Astronomy Outreach Activities for Special Needs Children and Their Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lubowich, D.

    2010-08-01

    I present the results of two NASA-IDEAS/STScI sponsored astronomy outreach programs for seriously ill children and their families staying at the Ronald McDonald House of Long Island (New Hyde Park, NY) and for children hospitalized at the Children's Medical Center, Winthrop University Hospital (Mineola, NY). These programs are designed for children of all ages and include STSCi's Tonight's Sky (monthly guide to the sky); telescope observations of the Moon, Sun, planets, nebulae, and stars; and hands-on activities. During cloudy weather remote/robotic telescope observations are shown. Edible demonstrations using chocolate, marshmallows, and popcorn are used to stimulate interest. The staff at the Ronald McDonald House and Children's Medical Center are being trained to use the telescope and to do demonstrations. These educational activities help children and their families learn about astronomy while providing a diversion to take their minds off their illness during a stressful time.

  1. Dimensions of Parenting in Families Having Children with Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bradley, Robert H.; And Others

    1991-01-01

    This study examined relationships between parenting, severity of disability, and 5 aspects of family ecology for 83 preschool and 69 elementary school children with disabilities. Family ecology variables included socioeconomic status, coping styles, social support, stressful life events, and marital quality. Results showed positive correlations…

  2. Harnessing the Power of Play in Emotionally Focused Family Therapy With Preschool Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Willis, Amber B; Haslam, Darryl R; Bermudez, J Maria

    2016-10-01

    Emotionally focused family therapy (EFFT) is an attachment-based therapy model that has been used with older children and adolescents. More recently, it has been suggested for use with young children. EFFT holds promise as a clinical treatment for young children coping with attachment problems, but more detailed guidelines are needed for implementing the model with this age-group. Whereas preschool and kindergarten age children are less able to participate in talk therapy than older children, accommodations need to be made to this approach when the identified patient is a young child. This article offers a variety of play therapy activities that may be incorporated within an EFFT framework to strengthen the emotional bonds in families with children ages four to six. © 2016 American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.

  3. Children's television viewing and objectively measured physical activity: associations with family circumstance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Salmon Jo

    2006-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The contribution of family circumstance to physical activity and television viewing has not been widely investigated in pre-adolescents, and available information is inconsistent. This study examines whether television viewing and objectively measured physical activity vary by different indicators of family circumstance. Methods Data from the 2001 Children's Leisure Activity Study and the 2002/3 Health, Eating and Play Study, involving Australian children in Grades Prep (mean age 6y and 5–6 (mean age 11y, were combined. Children wore accelerometers for six consecutive 24 hour periods. Average min/day in low-intensity activity (1.0–1.9 METs and moderate-to-vigorous-intensity activity (≥3 METs were calculated. Parents reported children's television viewing and family circumstance. Linear regression analyses were conducted separately for young girls, young boys, older girls and older boys. Results Complete data were available for 2458 children. Parental education and, to a lesser extent, employment level were inversely associated with television viewing. Children in single-parent families, those whose fathers were not in paid employment, and those without siblings tended to spend more time in low-intensity activity than their peers. Children with siblings spent more time in moderate-to-vigorous-intensity activity; associations were stronger for girls. Maternal education was positively associated with moderate-to-vigorous-intensity activity for younger children. Maternal employment was positively associated with moderate-to-vigorous-intensity activity for older children. Multivariable models did not demonstrate a cumulative explanatory effect. Conclusion Individual measures of family circumstance were differentially associated with television, low-intensity activity and moderate-to-vigorous-intensity activity and associations were often not consistent across age-by-gender groups. Interventions may need to be tailored

  4. Family Support in Children's Mental Health: A Review and Synthesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hoagwood, Kimberly E.; Cavaleri, Mary A.; Olin, S. Serene; Burns, Barbara J.; Slaton, Elaine; Gruttadaro, Darcy; Hughes, Ruth

    2010-01-01

    A comprehensive review of structured family support programs in children's mental health was conducted in collaboration with leadership from key national family organizations. The goals were to identify typologies of family support services for which evaluation data existed and identify research gaps. Over 200 programs were examined; 50 met…

  5. Financial Impact of Divorce on Children and Their Families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teachman, Jay D.; Paasch, Kathleen M.

    1994-01-01

    Examines the financial impact of divorce on children and their families. The preponderance of evidence suggests that women and children experience substantial declines after divorce whereas the relative income of divorced men remains stable or increases. The impact of public assistance is also considered. (SLD)

  6. Time with Children, Children's Well-Being, and Work-Family Balance among Employed Parents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Milkie, Melissa A.; Kendig, Sarah M.; Nomaguchi, Kei M.; Denny, Kathleen E.

    2010-01-01

    Cultural imperatives for "good" parenting include spending time with children and ensuring that they do well in life. Knowledge of how these factors influence employed parents' work-family balance is limited. Analyses using time diary and survey data from the 2000 National Survey of Parents (N = 933) indicate that how time with children relates to…

  7. Helping Families Succeed in Two Worlds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murray, Vivian

    Kamehameha Schools' Prekindergarten Educational Program (PREP) was started in 1978 to prepare at-risk Hawaiian families and their children for success in school. PREP's direct services include: (1) parent-infant educational services, including home visits to help parents prepare for a new baby and later learn appropriate child development…

  8. Mental wellbeing of children engaged in agricultural work activities and quality of family environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lachowski, Stanisław; Lachowska, Bogusława

    2007-01-01

    A considerable percentage of Polish children from agricultural families are engaged by their parents in performing work activities on farms. The performance of these tasks arouses various emotional reactions in children, from the feeling of threat, fear and anxiety, to the feeling of satisfaction, being contented and proud. The subjective feeling of happiness and life satisfaction is an extremely important factor affecting the mental health and functioning of a human being. The objective of the study was to show to what extent the quality of communication between children and parents, and the level of family cohesion and adaptability according to the Circumplex Model by D. H. Olson et al., modifies children's emotional reactions associated with the tasks performed. The study covered 192 children aged 12-13, whose parents were running a family farm. Growing up in a healthy family characterised by a balanced level of cohesion, adaptability and good communication with the father and mother, favours the occurrence in children of pleasant emotions in reaction to work which they undertake on behalf of their parents on a farm. In such families, more often than in families with bad communication and dysfunctional families (disengaged, rigid), children experience satisfaction, have a feeling of deepening bonds with their parents, and the feeling of being more adult and preparing themselves well for adult life. Family characteristics which are evidence of disorders in its functioning (lack of good communication with the father, mother, lack of bonds between family members, rigid, chaos in a family) co-occur with the child experiencing unpleasant emotional states in associated with the work performed, there occur feelings of dissatisfaction, unhappiness, unpleasantness, the feeling that it would be better to learn than to work.

  9. Transforming Parent-Child Interaction in Family Routines: Longitudinal Analysis with Families of Children with Developmental Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lucyshyn, Joseph M; Fossett, Brenda; Bakeman, Roger; Cheremshynski, Christy; Miller, Lynn; Lohrmann, Sharon; Binnendyk, Lauren; Khan, Sophia; Chinn, Stephen; Kwon, Samantha; Irvin, Larry K

    2015-12-01

    The efficacy and consequential validity of an ecological approach to behavioral intervention with families of children with developmental disabilities was examined. The approach aimed to transform coercive into constructive parent-child interaction in family routines. Ten families participated, including 10 mothers and fathers and 10 children 3-8 years old with developmental disabilities. Thirty-six family routines were selected (2 to 4 per family). Dependent measures included child problem behavior, routine steps completed, and coercive and constructive parent-child interaction. For each family, a single case, multiple baseline design was employed with three phases: baseline, intervention, and follow-up. Visual analysis evaluated the functional relation between intervention and improvements in child behavior and routine participation. Nonparametric tests across families evaluated the statistical significance of these improvements. Sequential analyses within families and univariate analyses across families examined changes from baseline to intervention in the percentage and odds ratio of coercive and constructive parent-child interaction. Multiple baseline results documented functional or basic effects for 8 of 10 families. Nonparametric tests showed these changes to be significant. Follow-up showed durability at 11 to 24 months postintervention. Sequential analyses documented the transformation of coercive into constructive processes for 9 of 10 families. Univariate analyses across families showed significant improvements in 2- and 4-step coercive and constructive processes but not in odds ratio. Results offer evidence of the efficacy of the approach and consequential validity of the ecological unit of analysis, parent-child interaction in family routines. Future studies should improve efficiency, and outcomes for families experiencing family systems challenges.

  10. Beneficial effect of nutritional supportive plan among under-nourished children in poor families in Iran with collaborating Ministry of Health and Emam Khomeini

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Minaei, Mina; Zarei, Maryam; Araste, Razieh; Kamali, Behroo

    2014-01-01

    Full text: Malnutrition in the form of Protein – Energy Malnutrition (PEM) and micro nutrient deficiencies, is one of the most important health problems in developing countries, Iran included. The purpose of this study was to improve nutritional status among under-nourished children in poor families. Methods: A total of 50,000 children under 5 (girls and boys) in 30 provinces in Iran which suffered by moderate and severe malnutrition participated (<-2SD weight for age) in this program. Malnourished children belong to poor families were determined; weights and heights were measured and anthropometric indicators were determined based on WHO, 2007. Then, these malnourished children were introduced to Imam Khomeini Foundation. Khomeini Foundation as one of the biggest NGO in Iran which supports poor families since 1979. This study collaborated with Ministry of Welfare, Ministry of Health and Emam Khomeini. They have started to receive monthly supportive food basket which could support their daily nutritional requirements. This basket included (meat, egg, cheese, legumes, milk, tuna fish, chicken, liquid oil). Along with food support community health workers were actively involved with counseling of mothers on the nutritional requirements of children. Nutritional support cut for whoever has been improved nutritional status. However, nutritional education still had continued. Results: The results of monitoring & evaluation (according to anthropometric indicators) of this plan have shown around more than 45% of children that received food basket had consistently improved nutritional status. Conclusion: Likewise other intervention nutrition programs in developing countries this project showed that inter sector collaboration have been the best way for decreasing malnutrition in children. (author)

  11. The Healthy Children, Strong Families intervention promotes improvements in nutrition, activity and body weight in American Indian families with young children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tomayko, Emily J; Prince, Ronald J; Cronin, Kate A; Adams, Alexandra K

    2016-10-01

    American Indian children of pre-school age have disproportionally high obesity rates and consequent risk for related diseases. Healthy Children, Strong Families was a family-based randomized trial assessing the efficacy of an obesity prevention toolkit delivered by a mentor v. mailed delivery that was designed and administered using community-based participatory research approaches. During Year 1, twelve healthy behaviour toolkit lessons were delivered by either a community-based home mentor or monthly mailings. Primary outcomes were child BMI percentile, child BMI Z-score and adult BMI. Secondary outcomes included fruit/vegetable consumption, sugar consumption, television watching, physical activity, adult health-related self-efficacy and perceived health status. During a maintenance year, home-mentored families had access to monthly support groups and all families received monthly newsletters. Family homes in four tribal communities, Wisconsin, USA. Adult and child (2-5-year-olds) dyads (n 150). No significant effect of the mentored v. mailed intervention delivery was found; however, significant improvements were noted in both groups exposed to the toolkit. Obese child participants showed a reduction in BMI percentile at Year 1 that continued through Year 2 (PChild fruit/vegetable consumption increased (P=0·006) and mean television watching decreased for children (P=0·05) and adults (P=0·002). Reported adult self-efficacy for health-related behaviour changes (P=0·006) and quality of life increased (P=0·02). Although no effect of delivery method was demonstrated, toolkit exposure positively affected adult and child health. The intervention was well received by community partners; a more comprehensive intervention is currently underway based on these findings.

  12. Family/children cash benefits in Serbia: The analysis and policy recommendations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matković Gordana

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Around 400 thousand children in Serbia are covered with cash-benefits targeting poor children representing 31.7% of the total number of children in 2011. Additionally, around 60 thousand families receive birth grants that is more than 90% of the newly born. When it comes to child-birth related leaves, there were around 37 thousand beneficiaries in 2012. This means that around 50% of the newly born children’s parents are covered with maternity/parental leave, while the coverage of employed mothers is almost full. Coverage of the poor children, particularly by the financial social assistance (FSA, can be considered inadequate. When it comes to targeting (vertical efficiency, FSA is targeted quite well, while there is scope for improvement of the inclusion error within the child-allowance program. When the adequacy of cash benefits targeting poor children is analyzed from the perspective of meeting the basic needs, then the amount is at the verge of being acceptable and differs for different kinds of families - single parent and families with very young children (0-2 being better off. However, when compared to the minimum wage, the cumulative amount of FSA and child allowance is lower only for one- child families. Total expenditures for cash-benefits connected to children amount to 1.4%of GDP - 1.21% being related to ESSPROS family/children function and 0.18% for the FSA for families with children. When compared to the EU, the total expenditure is below the EU average, with the birth related expenditures being higher and child allowance lower than the EU average. The first group of recommendations for cash benefits aimed at families with children relate to the improvement of adequacy and coverage of benefits aiming at poverty reduction, while respecting budget constraints. The increase of benefits for children above 14 years old - increase of child allowance or/and assigning higher weights (0.5 instead of 0.3 for the FSA’s equivalence scale

  13. Comparison of children's self-reports of depressive symptoms among different family interaction types in northern Taiwan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yen Lee-Lan

    2007-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Previous research has shown that family interactions are associated with depressive symptoms in children. However, detailed classifications of family interaction types have not been studied thoroughly. This study aims to understand the types of family interactions children experience and to identify the specific types of family interactions that are associated with a higher risk of depressive symptoms in children. Methods Data used in the study was collected as part of the Child and Adolescent Behavior in Long term Evolution (CABLE project in 2003. CABLE is a longitudinal cohort study that commenced in 2001 and collects data annually from children in Taipei city and Hsinchu county in northern Taiwan. The data analyzed in this study was that obtained from the sixth graders (aged 11 to 12 years old in 2003. Of the 2,449 sixth graders, 51.2% were boys and 48.8% were girls. Factor analysis and cluster analysis were used to investigate the types of family interactions. One way ANOVA was used to establish the relationship between family interaction types and children's self-reports of depressive symptoms. Results Based on the results of factor analysis, the latent factors for family interactions included supporting activities, psychological control, parental discipline, behavioral supervision, and family conflict. After conducting cluster analysis using factor scores, four types of family interactions were revealed: supervised (29.66%, disciplined (13.56%, nurtured (40.96% and conflict (15.82%. Children from the disciplined or conflict families were more likely to report depressive symptoms. Children from the nurtured families were least likely to report depressive symptoms. Conclusion Family interactions can be classified into four different types, which are related to children's self-reports of depressive symptoms. The creation of a family interaction environment that is beneficial for children's mental health is an important

  14. Families OverComing under Stress (FOCUS) for Early Childhood: Building Resilience for Young Children in High Stress Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mogil, Catherine; Paley, Blair; Doud, Tricia; Havens, Linda; Moore-Tyson, Jessica; Beardslee, William R.; Lester, Patricia

    2010-01-01

    Parental distress and trauma affects the entire family, including the youngest children. Families OverComing Under Stress (FOCUS) is a targeted prevention program for high-risk families that aims to enhance family cohesion, support the parent-child relationship, and build emotional regulation, communication, and problem-solving skills across the…

  15. Children's representations of multiple family relationships: organizational structure and development in early childhood.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schermerhorn, Alice C; Cummings, E Mark; Davies, Patrick T

    2008-02-01

    The authors examine mutual family influence processes at the level of children's representations of multiple family relationships, as well as the structure of those representations. From a community sample with 3 waves, each spaced 1 year apart, kindergarten-age children (105 boys and 127 girls) completed a story-stem completion task, tapping representations of multiple family relationships. Structural equation modeling with autoregressive controls indicated that representational processes involving different family relationships were interrelated over time, including links between children's representations of marital conflict and reactions to conflict, between representations of security about marital conflict and parent-child relationships, and between representations of security in father-child and mother-child relationships. Mixed support was found for notions of increasing stability in representations during this developmental period. Results are discussed in terms of notions of transactional family dynamics, including family-wide perspectives on mutual influence processes attributable to multiple family relationships.

  16. Parental Stress in Families of Children With Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valicenti-McDermott, Maria; Lawson, Katharine; Hottinger, Kathryn; Seijo, Rosa; Schechtman, Merryl; Shulman, Lisa; Shinnar, Shlomo

    2015-11-01

    The level of parental stress in families of children with autism and other developmental disabilities and its association with child comorbid symptoms was studied in an ethnically diverse population, in a cross-sectional study with structured interview. The sample included 50 families of children with autism and 50 families of children with other developmental disabilities, matched by age/gender. Interview included Parenting Stress Index-Short Form, Gastrointestinal Questionnaire, Child Sleep Habits Questionnaire, and Aberrant Behavior Checklist. In this ethnically diverse sample, parental stress was significantly higher for the autism group and for non-Hispanic and US-born mothers. In both study groups, parental stress was related to child irritability. Parental stress was also related to gastrointestinal problems in the autism group and to sleep difficulties in the developmental disabilities group. Targeting child irritability may be particularly important in reducing parental stress for families of children with autism and other developmental disabilities. © The Author(s) 2015.

  17. Children Involvement on Family Purchase Decision Making

    OpenAIRE

    Jostein, Revina Wintry

    2013-01-01

    Children take big involvement in family decision making process today. There are several factors that make this phenomenon happen, such as media influence. Currently, the development of information and communication technology is so fast, indirectly encourages all parties, including the children to be able to follow the changes. There are two main objectives that will be examined, related with all the stated problems at the previous section, which are to analyze which product category does ch...

  18. NASA Family Science Night: Changing perceptions one family at a time

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitchell, Sara E.; Drobnes, Emilie; Sol Colina-Trujillo, M.; Noel-Storr, Jacob

    2008-12-01

    Parents and families have the greatest influence on children's attitudes towards education and career choices. If students' attitudes towards science, particularly the physical sciences, are not influenced positively by parental/familial attitudes, efforts to improve the quality of content and teaching of these subjects in school may be futile. Research shows that parental involvement increases student achievement outcomes, and family-oriented programs have a direct impact on student performance. Based on this premise, the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center started a series of Family Science Nights for middle school students and their families. The program provides a non-threatening venue for families to explore the importance of science and technology in our daily lives by engaging in learning activities that change their perception and understanding of science - making it more practical and approachable for participants of all ages. Family Science Night strives to change the way that students and their families participate in science, within the program and beyond.

  19. Familial occurrence of signs of temporomandibular disorders in headache children and their mothers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liljeström, Marjo-Riitta; Aromaa, Minna; Bell, Yrsa Le; Jämsä, Tapio; Helenius, Hans; Virtanen, Ruut; Anttila, Pirjo; Metsähonkala, Liisa; Rautava, Päivi; Alanen, Pentti; Sillanpää, Matti

    2007-06-01

    Earlier studies have provided evidence of genetic inheritance of headache, especially migraine, but no familial occurrence has been found regarding temporomandibular disorders (TMD). In adults, headache and TMD have been found to be associated with each other, but studies on children are few. The aim of the present study was to test the hypothesis that there is no association between signs of TMD in 13-year-old headache children and their mothers. The study population was a nested case-control study of the population-based Finnish Family Competence Study originally consisting of over 1000 families. A structured questionnaire was sent to the families of 6-year-old children. A clinical examination was performed in 96 children with headache and 96 pairwise controls. At the age of 13 years, 75 of these same 96 children with headache and 79 of 96 headache-free controls participated in pediatric and stomatognathic examinations. Moreover, the mothers (n=154) filled in a structured headache questionnaire and participated in the stomatognathic examination. No association between mother's and child's TMD signs was found. There was a significant association between signs of TMD and both migraine and tension-type headache in children. In mothers, the association was significant only between migraine and TMD signs. Familial occurrence of signs of TMD cannot be found in headache children and their mothers.

  20. Health care needs of children with Down syndrome and impact of health system performance on children and their families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Phelps, Randall A; Pinter, Joseph D; Lollar, Donald J; Medlen, Joan Guthrie; Bethell, Christina D

    2012-04-01

    The functional, financial, and social impact on families of children with Down syndrome (DS) in the United States and the role of the US health care system in ameliorating these impacts have not been well characterized. We sought to describe the demographic characteristics and functional difficulties of these children and to determine whether children with DS, compared with children with "intellectual disability" (ID) generally, and compared with other "children and youth with special health care needs" (CYSHCN), are more or less likely to receive health care that meets quality standards related to care coordination and to have their health care service needs met. This study analyzed data from the 2005-2006 National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs (n = 40,723). Children and youth aged 0 to 17 years with special health care need (CYSHCN) who experience DS (n = 395) and/or IDs (n = 4252) were compared with each other and other CYSHCN on a range of functioning, family impact, and health care quality variables using bivariate and multivariate methods. Data were weighted to represent all CYSHCN in the United States. Compared with CYSHCN without DS, children with DS were significantly less likely to receive comprehensive care within a medical home (29.7% vs 47.3%; p work due to their child's health needs (23.5% vs 55.1%; p performance was poorer for children with DS compared with those with ID and no DS after adjustment for family income, prevalence on most aspects of quality of care and family impacts evaluated were similar for these 2 groups. In this study, the families of children with DS, and ID generally, are burdened disproportionately when compared with other CYSHCN, reflecting the combination of impairments intrinsic to DS and ID and impacts of suboptimal medical care coordination and social support.

  1. Separation and Divorce: Supporting Children and Families in Times of Stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gray, Barbara

    2001-01-01

    Discusses how teachers/caregivers can support children and families during marital separation and divorce. Describes the impact of divorce on young children. Offers eight suggestions for teachers/caregivers, including providing security and support, helping children feel competent and in control, understanding why children may have behavior…

  2. Functional consequences of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder on children and their families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Usami, Masahide

    2016-08-01

    Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with core symptoms that include hyperactivity, impulsiveness, and inattention, and it is the most common psychiatric disorder among children and adolescents. These core symptoms are continuously recognized throughout the day from childhood to adulthood. Furthermore, children with ADHD from childhood to adulthood might also have various comorbid psychiatric disorders. Recently, bipolar disorder and disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, a new clinical issue, have been discussed as comorbid disorders or differential disorders associated with ADHD. Furthermore, comorbid disorders of ADHD are related to quality of life and family burden. Children with ADHD have poorer long-term outcomes than controls with respect to: academic achievement and attainment, occupational rank and job performance, risky sexual practices and early unwanted pregnancies, substance use, relationship difficulties, marital problems, traffic violations, and car accidents. Irritability of children with ADHD has been a key symptom that clinicians and researchers have used to evaluate the developmental condition of children with ADHD. ADHD is sometimes a chronic disorder that occurs over a long period, increasing the family burden of these children (including health-care costs), which will increase with aging for unremitted children with ADHD. Therefore, clinicians should evaluate not only the mental condition of the child but also the family burden. Children with ADHD should be treated during childhood to reduce their clinical symptoms and family burden. © 2016 The Authors. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences © 2016 Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology.

  3. Parent-Reported Family Functioning Among Children With Cleft Lip/Palate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crerand, Canice E; Rosenberg, Janine; Magee, Leanne; Stein, Margot B; Wilson-Genderson, Maureen; Broder, Hillary L

    2015-11-01

    To examine family functioning related to sociodemographic and clinical characteristics in youth with cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P). Cross-sectional, multi-site investigation. Six U.S. cleft centers. A diverse sample of 1200 children with CL/P and their parents. Parents completed the Family Environment Scale (FES), which assesses three domains of family functioning: cohesion (or closeness), expressiveness (open expression of feelings), and conflict. Demographic and clinical characteristics were also assessed including race, ethnicity, type of insurance, and surgical recommendations. The FES scores for families seeking team evaluations for their youth with CL/P (mean age = 11.6 years) fall within the average range compared with normative samples. Families receiving surgical recommendations for their youth also had FES scores in the average range, yet families of children recommended for functional surgery reported greater cohesion, expressiveness, and less conflict compared with those recommended for aesthetic surgery (P conflict domain. Families with private insurance reported significantly greater cohesion (P functioning across domains was in the average range. However, observed differences by race, ethnicity, type of insurance, and surgical recommendation may warrant consideration in clinical management for patients and families.

  4. Perceptions of children: low academic performance, school and family

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabriela Maffei Moreira-Malagolli

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Seizing children's perceptions is a challenge for family members, teachers and researchers. Aware of this, this article was the result of three researches developed in the years 2006 and 2010 and aims to appropriate discourses of children / students of the 4th grade / 5th year of Elementary School to understand how they conceived and experienced situations of low performance School. From the Bioecological Perspective of Human Development, semi-structured interviews with children were organized. The results showed that the children who participated in the three studies understood the family as a point of support, support and affection. They recognized the figure of the teacher, highlighting the affective relationship they had with her. In addition, they also revealed feeling guilty about their learning difficulties, expressing anguish and sadness. Attention must be paid to the child's educational trajectory in order to prevent the child from reaching the 5th grade with lags or even to acquire the idea that the course of schooling is painful.

  5. Family Interventions on Protection of Children from Domestic Violence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ceyda Basogul

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Violence is the biggest obstacle for living as a respectable, dignity, equal and free individual and for self-actualization of a child. Children learn to show aggression when, how and against whom. Knowledge is transmitted from parents to children as well as children learn it from peer groups and the mass media. It has become a cycle of violence in this way. In studies on this issue, it was determined that interventions for families (counseling and therapy interventions, crisis and outreach interventions, parenting interventions, and multicomponent interventions provide developments in behavior problems in children, the level of information related security, anger and violence, self-esteem, conflict management, the psychological distress in families, empathy in parent-child interactions, parenting skills and psychological functioning. Nurses having the opportunity to meet with the group at risk for domestic violence in many environments have important responsibilities in this regard. [Psikiyatride Guncel Yaklasimlar - Current Approaches in Psychiatry 2017; 9(2.000: 123-135

  6. Relationship between body mass index and family functioning, family communication, family type and parenting style among African migrant parents and children in Victoria, Australia: a parent-child dyad study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cyril, S; Halliday, J; Green, J; Renzaho, A M N

    2016-08-03

    Although childhood obesity prevalence is stabilised in developed countries including Australia, it is continuing to rise among migrants and socially disadvantaged groups in these countries. African migrants and refugees in particular, are at high risk of obesity due to changes in their family dynamics. The aim of this study was to examine the difference between children and parental perception of family functioning, family communication, family type and parenting styles and their relationship with body mass index. A cross-sectional parent-child dyad study was conducted among 284 African families from migrant and refugee backgrounds living in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. Bilingual workers were trained to collect demographic, anthropometric and questionnaire data on family functioning, parenting, family type and family communication. Parents and children reported different levels of family dynamics. Children reported a higher prevalence of poor family functioning (61.5 %, 95 % CI: 55.6, 67.2 versus 56.8 %, 95 % CI: 49.7, 61.6) and protective family type (29 %, 95 % CI: 23.9, 34.5 vs. 13.4 %, 95 % CI: 9.9, 17.9), but a lower prevalence of authoritative parenting style (51.6 %, 95 % CI: 45.7, 57.5 vs. 63 %, 95 % CI: 57.5, 68.8) than parents. There was a positive relationship between poor family functioning and child BMI both before (β = 1.28; 95 % CI: 0.14, 2.41; p parental BMI and family functioning, communication, family type or parenting style. Children's perception of poor family functioning was associated with childhood obesity. Family interventions to reduce childhood obesity need to adopt an intergenerational approach to promote a clear understanding of family dynamics between children and parents. Unless these intergenerational challenges associated with family dynamics are clearly addressed in obesity interventions, current obesity prevention initiatives will continue to widen the childhood obesity gap in Australia.

  7. Preschool Facilities - MDC_HeadStart

    Data.gov (United States)

    NSGIC Local Govt | GIS Inventory — A label (point) feature class of Head Start / Early Head Start/ Delegate Agencies/ Child Care Partnership & Family Day Care Homes Programs location in Miami-Dade...

  8. Birth Family Contact for Children in Care: How Much? How Often? Who with?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Atwool, Nicola

    2013-01-01

    Irrespective of type of placement, contact with the birth family is one of the more contentious issues in decision-making for children in care. Despite widespread belief that contact with the birth family is beneficial for children and young people in care, this aspect of children's care experience has not received a great deal of attention. In…

  9. How Much Time Do Families Spend on the Health Care of Children with Diabetes?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, Jane E; Nugent, Colleen N; Russell, Louise B

    2016-09-01

    Family time caring for children with diabetes is an overlooked component of the overall burden of the condition. We document and analyze risk factors for time family members spend providing health care at home and arranging/coordinating health care for children with diabetes. Data for 755 diabetic children and 16,161 non-diabetic children whose chronic conditions required only prescription (Rx) medication were from the 2009-2010 United States National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs (NS-CSHCN). We used generalized ordered logistic regressions to estimate adjusted odds ratios (AORs) of time burden by diabetes, insulin use, and stability of the child's health care needs, controlling for health and socioeconomic status. Nearly one-quarter of diabetic children had family members who spent 11+ h/week providing health care at home, and 8% spent 11+ h/week arranging/coordinating care, compared with 3.3% and 1.9%, respectively, of non-diabetic Rx-only children. Time providing care at home for insulin-using children was concentrated in the higher time categories: AORs for insulin-using diabetic compared to non-diabetic Rx-only children were 4.4 for 1+ h/week compared with less pronounced for non-insulin-using children. AORs for arranging/coordinating care did not vary by time contrast: AOR = 4.2 for insulin-using, 3.0 for non-insulin-using children. Health care providers, school personnel, and policymakers need to work with family members to improve care coordination and identify other ways to reduce family time burdens caring for children with diabetes.

  10. Feeding style differences in food parenting practices associated with fruit and vegetable intake in children from low-income families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papaioannou, Maria A; Cross, Matthew B; Power, Thomas G; Liu, Yan; Qu, Haiyan; Shewchuk, Richard M; Hughes, Sheryl O

    2013-01-01

    To examine the moderating effects of feeding styles on the relationship between food parenting practices and fruit and vegetable (F & V) intake in low-income families with preschool-aged children. Focus group meetings with Head Start parents were conducted by using the nominal group technique. Parents completed information on food parenting practices and feeding styles. Three dietary recalls were collected on each child. Parents completed measures in Head Start centers and/or over the telephone. 667 parents of preschool-aged children participated. Food parenting practices and F & V intake. Mean differences in the food parenting practices across the 4 feeding styles were established through multivariate general linear modeling using MANOVA. Moderated multiple regression analysis was conducted to examine the moderating role of feeding style on food parenting practices and child F & V intake. The indulgent feeding style moderated the relationship between food parenting practices and child F & V intake. This study indicates that parents' feeding styles have a moderating effect on the relationship between the food parenting practices and children's F & V intake. This finding can facilitate the development of interventions aimed at reducing childhood overweight. Copyright © 2013 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Network and social support in family care of children with diabetes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pennafort, Viviane Peixoto Dos Santos; Queiroz, Maria Veraci Oliveira; Nascimento, Lucila Castanheira; Guedes, Maria Vilani Cavalcante

    2016-01-01

    to understand the influence of network and social support in the care of a child with type 1 diabetes. qualitative study, with assumptions of ethnonursing, conducted in a reference service specialized in the treatment of diabetes, in 2014, in the city of Fortaleza, state of Ceará, Brazil. Twenty-six members of the family and their respective school children participated in the study. The process of collection and analysis followed the observation-participation-reflection model. the analytical categories showed that the social network in the care of children with diabetes helped sharing of information and experiences, moments of relaxation and aid in the acquisition of supplies for treatment, with positive repercussions in the family context, generating well-being and confidence in the care of children with diabetes. the cultural care provided by nurses strengthens the network and social support because it encourages autonomy in the promotion of the quality of life of children with type 1 diabetes and their families.

  12. Personal and Familial Properties of Street Children--"Street Children: The Forgotten or Not Remembered Ones"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Özbas, Mehmet

    2015-01-01

    With this research it is aimed to determine the personal traits of Street Children depending on them and also the socio-economic variables of Street Children resulting from their families. For this main aim in the research process, it is provided to have communication directly with the parents of Street Children using one-to-one and face-to-face…

  13. Family Investments in Low-Income Children's Achievement and Socioemotional Functioning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Longo, Francesca; McPherran Lombardi, Caitlin; Dearing, Eric

    2017-01-01

    Family processes and parenting practices help explain developmental differences between children in low- versus higher-income households. There are, however, few studies addressing the question of: what are the key family processes and parenting practices for promoting low-income children's growth? We address this question in the present study,…

  14. Evaluation of a Multimedia Intervention for Children and Families Facing Multiple Military Deployments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Flittner O'Grady, Allison; Thomaseo Burton, E; Chawla, Neelu; Topp, David; MacDermid Wadsworth, Shelley

    2016-02-01

    Repeated military deployments have been a common experience for many military families in the past 15 years. While there has been an increase in research and intervention focused on the effects on families of military deployments, much of this work has not focused specifically on the particular needs of young children. Talk, Listen, Connect: Multiple Deployments (TLC-II MD), a multimedia kit designed for home use, is among the first interventions directed toward young children. Created by Sesame Workshop and using popular Sesame Street characters, TLC-II MD was designed to support and equip families with young children with skills to address challenges associated with multiple deployments. This study utilized a randomized experimental design to evaluate the impact of TLC-II MD relative to a control condition using a Sesame Workshop multimedia kit not tailored to military families. Parents in both groups reported that children enjoyed the video overall and watched it repeatedly. Also in both groups, caregivers' depressive symptoms and children's aggressive behaviors declined significantly over time. Caregivers in the test group reported significantly larger increases in comfort discussing the deployment with their child and stronger perceptions that the DVD helped children to cope. Thus, the resilience-oriented materials were helpful to both groups, but those tailored to military families were significantly more likely to be perceived as helpful. Findings offer evidence regarding the ability of multimedia self-administered interventions to assist military families.

  15. The impact of recurrent throat infection on children and their families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Howel, Denise; Webster, Simon; Hayes, Jane; Barton, Andrew; Donaldson, Liam

    2002-06-01

    Recurrent throat problems in children are common and have an impact on the family. The appropriateness of surgery will depend on both clinical and social factors. The aim of this study was to assess the impact on the whole family when a child is suffering from recurrent throat problems, and investigate related parental attitudes. A total of 1190 parents of children in northern England for whom tonsillectomy or adeno-tonsillectomy was a possible treatment option were sent a questionnaire covering social and clinical issues such as children's symptoms, the impact on family life and parental attitudes. The majority of children had experienced more than four episodes in the previous year, had their sleep affected and time off school. Most parents were worried and reported disruption to the family, including taking time off work and cross-infection. Parental disruption, worry and eagerness for surgery were significantly associated with the duration of episodes of throat problems and the number of episodes in the previous year, but not with duration of tonsillitis. Time off school, or parental time off work was significantly associated with parental worry and disruption, but not with eagerness for surgery. This work highlights the impact of recurrent throat problems and related parental attitudes, and will aid in striking a balance between clinical requirements and the needs and wishes of the family.

  16. Family Resources in Two Generations and School Readiness among Children of Teen Parents

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fomby, Paula; James-Hawkins, Laurie; Mollborn, Stefanie

    2015-01-01

    Overall, children born to teen parents experience disadvantaged cognitive achievement at school entry compared to children born to older parents. However, within this population there is variation, with a significant fraction of teen parents’ children acquiring adequate preparation for school entry during early childhood. We ask whether the family background of teen parents explains this variation. We use data on children born to teen mothers from three waves of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (N~700) to study the association of family background with children's standardized reading and mathematics achievement scores at kindergarten entry. When neither maternal grandparent has completed high school, children's scores on standardized assessments of math and reading achievement are one-quarter to one-third of a standard deviation lower compared to families where at least one grandparent finished high school. This association is net of teen mothers’ own socioeconomic status in the year prior to children's school entry. PMID:26806989

  17. Same sex families and children

    OpenAIRE

    Mršević Zorica

    2009-01-01

    Introduction comprises the information on two main forms of same sex families, civic partnership (same sex partnership) and same sex marriage. Countries and various status modalities of legal regulations are mentioned. The main part of the text is dedicated to presentation of the findings of the most recent research on various aspects regarding children of same sex partnerships. It comprises presentations grouped in four main chapters: acceptance of same sex partnerships, acceptance of legal ...

  18. Relationship between Family Characteristics and Aggressive Behaviors of Children and Adolescents

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    YU Yizhen; SHI Junxia; HUANG Yan; WANG Jun

    2006-01-01

    In order to identify family factors obviously relevant to aggression, and offer a theoretical foundation for the prevention of aggression, 4010 students from primary and secondary schools in 5 different areas in Hubei province were surveyed. The Child Behavior Checklist "parents' form"(Chinese version) and the four scales of Family Environment Scale were used. A multiple logistic regression was used to identify risk factors of children's and adolescents' aggressive behavior. The results showed that maternal education, paternal occupation, family type, parental child-rearing attitude and patterns, students' interpersonal relationship were significantly associated with the children's and adolescents' aggression. The risk factors of aggression were parental child-rearing patterns, peer relationship, teacher-student relationship, and family conflicts.

  19. Mobile social network services for families with children with developmental disabilities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chou, Li-Der; Lai, Nien-Hwa; Chen, Yen-Wen; Chang, Yao-Jen; Yang, Jyun-Yan; Huang, Lien-Fu; Chiang, Wen-Ling; Chiu, Hung-Yi; Shin, Haw-Yun

    2011-07-01

    As Internet technologies evolve, their applications have changed various aspects of human life. Here, we attempt to examine their potential impact on services for families with developmentally delayed children. Our research is thus designed to utilize wireless mobile communication technologies, location services, and search technology in an effort to match families of specific needs with potential care providers. Based on the investigation conducted by our counselors, this paper describes a platform for smooth communication between professional communities and families with children with developmental disabilities (CDD). This research also looks into the impact of management of mobile social network services and training on the operation of these services. Interaction opportunities, care, and support to families with CDD are introduced.

  20. Family violence against children: intervention of nurses from the Family Health Strategy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kelianny Pinheiro Bezerra

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available This study Aimed to analyze the performance of nurses of the Family Health Strategy by facing family violence against children and identifying actions to prevent the problem. It is a descriptive and exploratory research with qualitative feature, whose data were analyzed according to content analysis. 14 nurses from the Family Health Strategy of Mossoró-RN took part in the Study. Data were collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Health promotion actions are educational activities developed after detecting the problem. Fear of reprisals by the offending agent, work overload, lack of managerial support and the difficulty for the accomplishment of interdisciplinarity, intersectorality and comprehensive care were mentioned as barriers to the confrontation of the problem.

  1. Working with children from substance-affected families: the community-based group intervention TRAMPOLINE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sonja Bröning

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Children from substance-affected families show an elevated risk for developing own substance-related or other mental disorders. Frequently, they experience violence, abuse and neglect in their families. Therefore, they are an important target group for preventive efforts. In Germany it is estimated that approx. 2.65 million children are affected by parental substance abuse or dependence. Only ten percent of them receive treatment when parents are treated. To date, no evaluated program for children from substance-affected families exists in Germany. Methods: A new group intervention for children from substance-affected families was developed and is currently being evaluated in a randomized-controlled multicenter study funded by the German Ministry of Health. The development process was simultaneously guided by theory, existing research knowledge and expert opinion. Promoting resilience in children affected by parental substance abuse is a key goal of the program. Results: The TRAMPOLINE manual describes a 9-session addiction-focused, modular group program for children aged 8 to 12 years with at least one substance-using parent. Weekly sessions last for 90 minutes and combine psychoeducational elements with exercises and role play. A two-session parent intervention component is also integrated in the program. Content, structure and theoretical background of the intervention are described. Discussion: TRAMPOLINE is a new interventive effort targeting children from substance-affected families. It is grounded in theory and practice. The results of the research in progress will provide fundamental information on the effectiveness of a structured group prevention program for German children from substance-abusing families. Thus, the study will contribute to creating a broader and more effective system of preventive help for this high-risk target group.

  2. Characteristics of Incarcerated Fathers and Mothers: Implications for Preventive Interventions Targeting Children and Families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kjellstrand, Jean; Cearley, Jennifer; Eddy, J Mark; Foney, Dana; Martinez, Charles R

    2012-12-01

    The number of children of incarcerated parents in the U.S. has grown dramatically in recent years. These children appear to be at risk for various problems, and a number of family-focused preventive efforts have been attempted. The current study examines differences between incarcerated mothers, incarcerated fathers, and their families on factors that might be important to consider when creating the content and process of preventive intervention programs. Participants were 359 inmates (54% women; 41% minority) who were parents of children between the ages of 3 and 11 years and who parented their children prior to imprisonment. Mothers and fathers were similar on a number of dimensions including age, education-level, number and age of children, and family criminal history, but differences were observed on key variables relevant to outcomes for children and families, including employment history and income, substance use, mental health, trauma experiences and criminal history. Implications for prevention programs are discussed.

  3. Family Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Children and Adolescents with Clinical Anxiety Disorders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bogels, Susan M.; Siqueland, Lynne

    2006-01-01

    Objective: A family cognitive-behavioral therapy for children and adolescents ages 8 to 18 years with clinical anxiety disorders was developed and evaluated. Method: Seventeen families were measured before and after waitlist, after treatment, and at 3-month and 1-year follow-up. Results: No children changed their diagnostic status during waitlist,…

  4. Too Safe Schools, Too Safe Families: Denying Children the Risk-Taker's Advantage

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ungar, Michael

    2008-01-01

    In his work as a family therapist and researcher with children and families in educational and community settings, the author encounters children who are anxious, depressed, lacking in empathy, self-esteem and motivation, and naive in their expectations about their physical and mental abilities. They haven't been properly challenged. These kids…

  5. Family socioeconomic status and weight velocity in children aged 6-24 months

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tiara Eka

    2016-07-01

    Conclusion High to moderate level of family welfare is significantly correlated to good weight velocity. However, weight velocity has no significant correlation to either the level of maternal education or the number of children in the family. Caregivers of children and duration of exclusive breastfeeding are not confounding variables for this study.

  6. A Report of Survey on Conditions of Preschool Children's Family Music Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bi, Yujuan

    2011-01-01

    The author composes a questionnaire about conditions of preschool children's family music education. The survey includes 280 preschool children in a city of Shandong province. It finds that most parents have recognized the importance of early childhood music education, but there is the tendency of utilitarian. The content of family music education…

  7. FAMILY ANAMNESIS OF CHILDREN WITH MUTATION OF THE INHERITED HEMOCHROMATOSIS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S.I. Polyakova

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available The inherited burdened is studied on diseases, associated with an overload iron in 41 children with frequent mutations of the inherited hemochromatosis (IG of a 1 type (C282y, H63d, S65c. Control group was made by 27 children with undiscovered frequent mutations of NG. Frequencies of iron-associated diseases are compared for 560 members of families which have children with mutations of IG and 390 members of families which have children without IG mutations. Some features of medical-genealogical anamnesis, which can be conditioned of siderosis, are exposed, and indirectly specify in the presence of mutations in the gene of HFE. So, the high frequency of oncologic diseases, diabetes mellitus, hepatocirrhosis and deaths of relatives under the age of 50 years are the foundation for research of exchange of iron and holding of molecular-genetic research of the inherited hemochromatosis. Key words: inherited hemochromatosis, heredity, children. (Pediatric Pharmacology. – 2010; 7(3:52-56

  8. Representations of Parent-Child Alliances in Children's Family Drawings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leon, Kim; Wallace, Tamar; Rudy, Duane

    2007-01-01

    The purpose of this study was to investigate relationships between children's representations of parent-child alliances (PCA) and their peer relationship quality, using a new scale that was developed to rate representations of PCA in children's family drawings. The parent-child alliance pattern is characterized by a relationship between parent and…

  9. Children's gender identity in lesbian and heterosexual two-parent families

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bos, H.; Sandfort, T.G.M.

    2010-01-01

    This study compared gender identity, anticipated future heterosexual romantic involvement, and psychosocial adjustment of children in lesbian and heterosexual families; it was furthermore assessed whether associations between these aspects differed between family types. Data were obtained in the

  10. The value of children in the context of the family in Java / by Paul A. Meyer

    Trove (Australia)

    Meyer, Paul A

    1987-01-01

    ... The value of children in the context of the family in Java [microform] / by Paul A. Meyer. The value of children in the context of the family in Java by Paul A. Meyer. The value of children in the context of the family in Java ...

  11. Rural Issues for Children and Families Affected by Epilepsy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ellis, Gail Johnston

    Epilepsy affects approximately one percent of the population, with most cases having onset during childhood. School personnel can best incorporate the child with epilepsy into the classroom and provide support for families by becoming familiar with the types of seizure disorders, the issues that epilepsy presents for children and families, and the…

  12. Family systems approach to attachment relations, war trauma, and mental health among Palestinian children and parents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Punamäki, Raija-Leena; Qouta, Samir R; Peltonen, Kirsi

    2017-01-01

    Background : Trauma affects the family unit as a whole; however, most existing research uses individual or, at most, dyadic approaches to analyse families with histories of trauma. Objective : This study aims to identify potentially distinct family types according to attachment, parenting, and sibling relations, to analyse how these family types differ with respect to war trauma, and to explore how children's mental health and cognitive processing differ across these family types. Method: Participants included Palestinian mothers and fathers ( N  = 325) and their children (one per family; 49.4% girls; 10-13 years old; mean ±  SD age = 11.35 ± 0.57 years) after the Gaza War of 2008-2009. Both parents reported their exposure to war trauma, secure attachment availability, and parenting practices, as well as the target child's internalizing and externalizing symptoms [Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)]. Children reported their symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (on the Children's Revised Impact Event Scale), depression (Birleson), and SDQ, as well as their post-traumatic cognitions (Children's Post Traumatic Cognitions Inventory). Results: A cluster analysis identified four family types. The largest type reflected secure attachment and optimal relationships (security and positive family relationships, 36.2%, n  = 102), and the smallest exhibited insecurity and problematic relationships (insecurity and negative family relationships, 15.6%; n  = 44). Further, families with discrepant experiences (23.0%; n  = 65) and moderate security and neutral relationships (25.2%; n  = 71) emerged. The insecurity and negative relationships family type showed higher levels of war trauma; internalizing, externalizing, and depressive symptoms among children; and dysfunctional post-traumatic cognitions than other family types. Conclusion: The family systems approach to mental health is warranted in war conditions, and therapeutic interventions for

  13. The State of City Leadership for Children and Families: Youth in Transition

    Science.gov (United States)

    National League of Cities Institute for Youth, Education and Families (NJ1), 2009

    2009-01-01

    The Institute for Youth, Education, and Families (YEF Institute) is a special entity within the National League of Cities (NLC). The YEF Institute helps municipal leaders take action on behalf of the children, youth, and families in their communities. The YEF Institute's first-ever report on The State of City Leadership for Children and Families…

  14. [Children with Multiple Risk Factor Exposition Benefit from the German "Strengthening Families Program"].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bröning, Sonja; Sack, Peter-Michael; Thomsen, Monika; Thomasius, Rainer

    2016-09-01

    Children with Multiple Risk Factor Exposition Benefit from the German "Strengthening Families Program" The German adaptation of the substance use-preventive family-based Strengthening Families Program 10-14 (SFP, Iowa version) was evaluated in a longitudinal two-year follow-up trial. Participants were N = 292 children with a mean age of twelve years at baseline, and N = 292 parents. We employed a multi-centric, randomized-controlled, two-armed (SFP vs. minimal control condition) study design. Following a "risk moderation hypothesis", we assumed that children with an elevated risk-exposition R(+) would benefit more than children with a low risk-exposition R(-) irrespective of the preventive intervention, and that R(+) under SFP would benefit more than R(+) under the minimal control condition. "Risk-exposition" was measured in correspondence with the Communities That Care Youth Survey-questionnaire. A total of 28 % of children were classified with an elevated risk level. Children's reports confirmed our hypothesis: R(+) report a total of eleven improvements, four of these being significantly more distinct than in the other groups (Anxiety-Depressivity, Punitive Parenting of mother, Punitive Parenting of father, Unbalanced family functioning). In three measures an improvement appears solely in R(+) under SFP (Satisfaction with family functioning, School Attachment and Peer Relationship Quality, Quality of Life). Parents' reports showed a similar tendency, but were less pronounced.

  15. Building Communities of Care for Military Children and Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kudler, Harold; Porter, Rebecca I.

    2013-01-01

    Military children don't exist in a vacuum; rather, they are embedded in and deeply influenced by their families, neighborhoods, schools, the military itself, and many other interacting systems. To minimize the risks that military children face and maximize their resilience, write Harold Kudler and Colonel Rebecca Porter, we must go beyond…

  16. Parental and family factors for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in Taiwanese children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gau, Susan Shur-Fen

    2007-08-01

    The present study aimed to examine the association between attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and maternal psychological distress, parenting style and perceived family support, and the child's interaction with parents and behavioural problems at home in Taiwan. The sample included 375 medicated pediatric patients with DSM-IV ADHD, and 750 school controls selected based on the age and gender structures of the ADHD group. Mothers reported on the Chinese Health Questionnaire, the Chinese versions of the Parental Bonding Instrument, the Family Adaptation, Partnership, Growth, Affection, and Resolve, and the Home Behaviours of the Social Adjustment Inventory for Children and Adolescents. Mothers of children with ADHD reported greater psychological distress and perceived less support from their families than did mothers of controls. Moreover, mothers of children with ADHD were less affectionate and more overprotective and controlling toward their children than were mothers of controls. This difference was more apparent in boys than in girls. Children with ADHD were less likely to interact with their parents, yet demonstrated more severe behavioural problems at home. Although the Taiwanese children with ADHD were under treatment with methylphenidate, they and their families still encountered a variety of difficulties in interaction, support, and communication with each other. Therefore, the parental approach should be integrated into the medication treatment for ADHD in Taiwan.

  17. Psychiatric Effects of Military Deployment on Children and Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    James, Trenton

    2012-01-01

    Deployments in the United States military have increased greatly in the past 10 years. Families and children are psychiatrically affected by these deployments, and recent studies are clarifying these effects. This article focuses on the psychiatric effects of deployment on children and uses a composite case example to review the use of play therapy to treat children who are having psychiatric issues related to the deployment of one or both parents. PMID:22468239

  18. Building Social Competence in Preschool: The Effects of a Social Skills Intervention Targeting Children Enrolled in Head Start

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stanton-Chapman, Tina L.; Walker, Virginia; Jamison, Kristen R.

    2014-01-01

    The current study evaluated the peer-to-peer interactions of at-risk children enrolled in Head Start who participated in a social pragmatic intervention targeting skills such as initiations, responses, name use, proximity, and turn-taking skills. Eight Head Start classroom teams received two workshops and two coaching sessions and were taught to…

  19. Factor analysis shows association between family activity environment and children's health behaviour.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hendrie, Gilly A; Coveney, John; Cox, David N

    2011-12-01

    To characterise the family activity environment in a questionnaire format, assess the questionnaire's reliability and describe its predictive ability by examining the relationships between the family activity environment and children's health behaviours - physical activity, screen time and fruit and vegetable intake. This paper describes the creation of a tool, based on previously validated scales, adapted from the food domain. Data are from 106 children and their parents (Adelaide, South Australia). Factor analysis was used to characterise factors within the family activity environment. Pearson-Product Moment correlations between the family environment and child outcomes, controlling for demographic variation, were examined. Three factors described the family activity environment - parental activity involvement, opportunity for role modelling and parental support for physical activity - and explained 37.6% of the variance. Controlling for demographic factors, the scale was significantly correlated with children's health behaviour - physical activity (r=0.27), screen time (r=-0.24) and fruit and vegetable intake (r=0.34). The family activity environment questionnaire shows high internal consistency and moderate predictive ability. This study has built on previous research by taking a more comprehensive approach to measuring the family activity environment. This research suggests the family activity environment should be considered in family-based health promotion interventions. © 2011 The Authors. ANZJPH © 2011 Public Health Association of Australia.

  20. Family violence in a sample of treatment-seeking gamblers: the effect of having dependent children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bellringer, Maria; Pearson, Janet; du Preez, Katie Palmer; Wilson, Denise; Koziol-McLain, Jane; Garrett, Nick; Abbott, Max

    2017-01-01

    This study investigated the effect of problem gambler gender on the relationship between the gambler having dependent children (younger than 18 years) living at home and the gambler perpetrating or being a victim of family violence. The sample comprised 164 help-seeking gamblers (43% female; 37% with dependent child/ren) recruited from three national gambling treatment services in New Zealand. Family violence was measured using a modified version of the HITS scale covering physical, psychological, verbal, emotional and sexual violence. Forty-nine percent of participants reported being a victim of violence and 43% had perpetrated violence. Multivariable logistic regression modelling was conducted, adjusting in sequence for significant socio-demographic, psychosocial and gambling factors. The relationship between having dependent children and being a victim of family violence was gender-related. Female gamblers living with dependent children reported more family violence perpetration and victimisation than male gamblers living with dependent children. Female gamblers with dependent children living at home had greater odds of being a victim of family violence than male gamblers without dependent children living at home. This relationship remained when adjusted for contextual factors of being a victim (ethnicity, income support status, and feelings of inadequacy) in this sample. A similar gender effect of having dependent children living at home on violence perpetration disappeared when known psychosocial contextual factors of violence perpetration (aggression, difficulties in emotion regulation, drug issue in the family, and interpersonal support) were taken into account. These findings suggest the value of coordinated approaches between gambling treatment services and programmes supporting vulnerable families in order to identify vulnerable families and put support mechanisms in place.

  1. Family violence in a sample of treatment-seeking gamblers: the effect of having dependent children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Bellringer

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract This study investigated the effect of problem gambler gender on the relationship between the gambler having dependent children (younger than 18 years living at home and the gambler perpetrating or being a victim of family violence. The sample comprised 164 help-seeking gamblers (43% female; 37% with dependent child/ren recruited from three national gambling treatment services in New Zealand. Family violence was measured using a modified version of the HITS scale covering physical, psychological, verbal, emotional and sexual violence. Forty-nine percent of participants reported being a victim of violence and 43% had perpetrated violence. Multivariable logistic regression modelling was conducted, adjusting in sequence for significant socio-demographic, psychosocial and gambling factors. The relationship between having dependent children and being a victim of family violence was gender-related. Female gamblers living with dependent children reported more family violence perpetration and victimisation than male gamblers living with dependent children. Female gamblers with dependent children living at home had greater odds of being a victim of family violence than male gamblers without dependent children living at home. This relationship remained when adjusted for contextual factors of being a victim (ethnicity, income support status, and feelings of inadequacy in this sample. A similar gender effect of having dependent children living at home on violence perpetration disappeared when known psychosocial contextual factors of violence perpetration (aggression, difficulties in emotion regulation, drug issue in the family, and interpersonal support were taken into account. These findings suggest the value of coordinated approaches between gambling treatment services and programmes supporting vulnerable families in order to identify vulnerable families and put support mechanisms in place.

  2. Children and Career Interruptions: The Family Gap in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gupta, Nabanita Datta; Smith, Nina

    2002-01-01

    Abstract: The effect of children and career interruptions on the family gap is analysed based on longitudinal data covering the years 1980-1995. The estimated model controls for unobserved time-constant heterogeneity. The results show that when controlling for unobserved heterogeneity, the negative...... effect of children on mothers' wages disappear, but there are large differences between educational groups and the public and private sector. The main effect of children seems to be a loss of human capital accumulation during child-birth periods. Beside this, there is no indication that children have...

  3. Parental break-ups and stress: roles of age & family structure in 44 509 pre-adolescent children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dissing, Agnete S; Dich, Nadya; Andersen, Anne-Marie Nybo; Lund, Rikke; Rod, Naja H

    2017-10-01

    Parental break-up is wide spread, and the effects of parental break-up on children's well-being are known. The evidence regarding child age at break-up and subsequent family arrangements is inconclusive. Aim: to estimate the effects of parental break-up on stress in pre-adolescent children with a specific focus on age at break-up and post-breakup family arrangements. We used data from the Danish National Birth Cohort. Participants included 44 509 children followed from birth to age 11. Stress was self-reported by children at age 11, when the children also reported on parental break-up and post break-up family arrangements. Twenty-one percent of the children had experienced a parental break-up at age 11, and those who had experienced parental break-up showed a higher risk of stress (OR:1.72, 95%CI:1.55;1.91) regardless of the child's age at break-up. Children living in a new family with stepparents (OR = 1.63, 95%CI:1.38;1.92), or shared between the parents (OR = 1.48, 95%CI:1.26;1.75) reported higher stress than children of intact families. Single parent families reported markedly higher stress levels than children in intact families (OR = 2.18, 95%CI:1.90;2.50) and all other family types. Children who were satisfied with their living arrangements post-break-up reported the same stress level as children living in intact families (OR = 1.01, 95%CI:0.86;1.18). Children who experience parental break-up have higher stress levels, also many years after the break-up, and those living in a single parent household post break-up seem to be most vulnerable. Living arrangements post-breakup should be further investigated as a potential protective factor. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association. All rights reserved.

  4. Factors Associated with Young Children's Opportunities for Maintaining Family Relationships during Maternal Incarceration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Poehlmann, Julie; Shlafer, Rebecca J.; Maes, Elizabeth; Hanneman, Ashley

    2008-01-01

    Children affected by maternal incarceration experience challenges maintaining continuous family relationships because of changes in caregivers, separation from siblings, and limited contact with mothers. In this mixed-method study, we investigated maternal and contextual factors associated with continuity in family relationships of children living…

  5. Inspiring Families to Embrace Children's Daily Connections with Nature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Exchange: The Early Childhood Leaders' Magazine Since 1978, 2012

    2012-01-01

    In today's world, families are bombarded with messages that tout the "latest and greatest" gadget to buy if they want their children to grow into happy, healthy, productive adults. Parents are overwhelmed with information that persuades them to provide the "right" kind of experience for their children. Even though the benefits of a childhood…

  6. The first 5 years of the family clinic for HIV at Tygerberg Hospital: Family demographics, survival of children and early impact of antiretroviral therapy

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Kooten Niekerk, N. K. M.; Knies, M. M.; Howard, J.; Rabie, H.; Zeier, M.; van Rensburg, A.; Frans, N.; Schaaf, H. S.; Fatti, G.; Little, F.; Cotton, M. F.

    2006-01-01

    Background: Family clinics address the problems of HIV-infected children and their families. The aims were to document demographics of the children and caregivers attending the Family Clinic for HIV at Tygerberg Academic Hospital (TAH) and to investigate factors affecting disease progression in

  7. Beyond access: the role of family and community in children's oral health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mouradian, Wendy E; Huebner, Colleen E; Ramos-Gomez, Francisco; Slavkin, Harold C

    2007-05-01

    Children's health outcomes result from the complex interaction of biological determinants with sociocultural, family, and community variables. Dental professionals' efforts to reduce oral health disparities often focus on improving access to dental care. However, this strategy alone cannot eliminate health disparities. Rising rates of early childhood caries create an urgent need to study family and community factors in oral health. Using Los Angeles as a multicultural laboratory for understanding health disparities, the Santa Fe Group convened an experiential conference to consider models of ensuring child and family health within communities. This article summarizes key conference themes and insights regarding 1) children's needs and societal priorities; 2) the science of child health determinants; 3) the rapidly changing demographics of the United States; and 4) the importance of communities that support children and families. Conference participants concluded that to eliminate children's oral health disparities we must change paradigms to promote health, integrate oral health into other health and social programs, and empower communities. Oral health advocates have a key role in ensuring oral health is integrated into policy for children. Dental schools have a leadership role to play in expanding community partnerships and providing education in health determinants. Participants recommended replicating this experiential conference in other venues.

  8. U.S. Families' Adoption of Chinese Daughters: A Narrative Analysis of Family Themes in Children's Books

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fitzpatrick, Jacki; Kostina-Ritchey, Erin

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the ways in which family formation processes were presented in international children's adoption books. Guided by Pinderhughes' (1996) adoptive family development model, we conducted a content analysis for the representation of two developmental phases (anticipation and accommodation). A total…

  9. Immigrant Families, Children With Special Health Care Needs, and the Medical Home.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kan, Kristin; Choi, Hwajung; Davis, Matthew

    2016-01-01

    Immigrant children in the United States historically experience lower-quality health care. Such disparities areconcerning for immigrant children with special health care needs (CSHCNs). Our study assesses the medical home presence for CSHCN by immigrant family type and evaluates which medical home components are associated with disparities. We used the 2011 National Survey of Children's Health, comparing the prevalence and odds of a parent-reported medical home and 5 specific medical home components by immigrant family types using bivariate and multivariate logistic regression. Foreign-born CSHCNs were less likely than CSHCNs with US-born parents to have a medical home (adjusted odds ratio = 0.40, 95% confidence interval 0.19-0.85). The adjusted prevalence of having a medical home was 28% among foreign-born CSHCNs (P special needs also had a lower odds of a medical home, compared with children with US-born parents (adjusted odds ratio = 0.62, 0.46-0.83). The medical home component most frequently absent for immigrant children without special needs and CSHCNs with a foreign-born parent was family-centered care. In contrast, foreign-born CSHCNs most often lacked care coordination (adjusted prevalence = 37% versus 56% for CSHCNs with US-born parents; P < .05). Disparities in medical home presence for CSHCNs appear to be exacerbated by immigrant family type. Efforts focused on improving family-centered care and care coordination may provide the greatest benefit for immigrant CSHCNs. Copyright © 2016 by the American Academy of Pediatrics.

  10. Psychotherapy with children in refugee families who have survived torture

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Grünbaum, Liselotte

    1997-01-01

    and recurring exposure to shocking violence. The traumatic experiences of the child in the country of origin take place in the broader context of chronic danger and persecution, often to be followed in the country of exile both by recurrent family strain and social estrangement. In the transference......Children of refugee families who have survived torture often have emotional, psychosomatic and behavioural problems as well as problems with learning. In order to understand the difficulties of these children, we have to recognize the complicated interaction of cumulative traumatic strain...

  11. Multi-Level Family Factors and Affective and Behavioral Symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder in Chinese Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yixin Tang

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Given the important role of family environment in children's psychological development, the objective of this study was to examine the linkages between family factors at the whole, dyadic, and individual levels and two dimensions (affective and behavioral of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD symptoms in Chinese children. Participants comprised of 80 father-child dyads and 169 mother-child dyads from families with ODD children. The results indicated that multilevel family factors were differently associated with children's affective and behavioral ODD symptoms. All the family factors at the dyadic and individual levels were significantly associated with child affective ODD symptoms. However, only the most proximal factors (parent-child relationship and child emotion regulation, which were directly related to child were significantly related to child behavioral ODD symptoms. The present study extends the current knowledge regarding the relationships between family factors and two dimensions of child ODD symptoms by testing the comprehensive multilevel family factors model. This study also recommends that future interventions for ODD children should consider the multi-level family factors to enhance intervention efficacy.

  12. Playing with Daddy: Social Toy Play, Early Head Start, and Developmental Outcomes

    OpenAIRE

    Roggman, Lori A.; Boyce, Lisa; Cook, G. A.; Christiansen, K.; Jones, D.

    2007-01-01

    Research on fathers in Early Head Start (EHS) has provided an opportunity to study fathers from low-income families. We examined father-toddler social toy play in relation to EHS enrollment, fathers' psychosocial well-being, and children's developmental outcomes in a sample of 74 father-toddler dyads. Overall, our results show that father-toddler social toy play was more complex among fathers in an EHS program than among those in a comparison group. Greater complexity in father-toddler social...

  13. Steady-state pharmacokinetics of pravastatin in children with familial hypercholesterolaemia

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wiersma, Heleen E.; Wiegman, Albert; Koopmans, Richard P.; Bakker, Henk D.; Kastelein, John J. P.; van Boxtel, Chris J.

    2004-01-01

    Objective: To determine pharmacokinetic data for pravastatin in children, since current data are insufficient in this age group. Subjects and methods: A 2-week, multiple-dose, steady-state pharmacokinetic study was carried out with pravastatin 20mg daily in 24 children with familial

  14. Family Smoking, Exposure to Secondhand Smoke at Home and Family Unhappiness in Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jian Jiu Chen

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Tobacco use adversely affects many aspects of well-being and is disliked by non-smokers. However, its association with family happiness is unknown. We investigated the associations of family unhappiness with smoking in family members and secondhand smoke (SHS exposure at home in Hong Kong children. In a school-based survey in 2012–2013, 1238 primary school students (mean age 8.5 years, standard deviation 0.9; 42.6% boys reported family smoking, SHS exposure at home and whether their families had any unpleasant experience caused by smoking or SHS in the past 30 days (tobacco-related unpleasant experience, and rated the overall level of happiness in their families (family unhappiness. Multivariable logistic regression was used to study the associations of tobacco-related unpleasant experience and family unhappiness with family smoking and SHS exposure at home. Tobacco-related unpleasant experience and family unhappiness were reported by 27.5% and 16.5% of students. Unpleasant experience was more strongly associated with family smoking than SHS exposure at home. Family unhappiness was associated with both family smoking (odds ratio 2.37; 95% confidence interval 1.51–3.71 and SHS exposure at home (1.82; 1.39–2.40. These results suggest a previously neglected possible impact of tobacco use on family happiness.

  15. Effects of regular Taekwondo exercise on mood changes in children from multicultural families in South Korea: a pilot study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Jung Su; Ko, Jae Myun; Roh, Hee Tae

    2018-04-01

    [Purpose] The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of regular Taekwondo training on mood state in children from multicultural families. [Subjects and Methods] Twenty-four children participated in the study. Eight children from non-multicultural families were assigned to the non-multicultural family children group. The remaining 16 children from multicultural families were randomly assigned to the multicultural family children (control, n=8) or multicultural family children trained in Taekwondo (Taekwondo training, n=8) group. Mood state was measured using the Profile of Mood States (Tension-Anxiety, Depression-Dejection, Anger-Hostility, Vigor-Activity, Fatigue-Inertia, and Confusion-Bewilderment). [Results] Vigor-Activity scores increased significantly, whereas Tension-Anxiety and Anger-Hostility scores decreased significantly after intervention when compared with the pre-intervention scores in the multicultural family children trained in Taekwondo group. [Conclusion] It is suggested that regular Taekwondo training may be effective in improving the mood states of children from multicultural families living in Korea.

  16. Online information as support to the families of children and adolescents with chronic disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mazza, Verônica de Azevedo; Lima, Vanessa Ferreira de; Carvalho, Ana Karoline da Silva; Weissheimer, Gisele; Soares, Larissa Gramazio

    2017-04-20

    To describe the use of online information as support to families of children and adolescents with chronic disease. This is an integrative review conducted in August 2015, with an online search in the following databases: PubMed, Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde, Cumulative Index to Nursing & Allied Health Literature, and Science Direct. Twelve studies were selected from the 293 studies found in the databases. After analysis, the following two categories emerged: Potentialities of the use of online information by families of children and adolescents with chronic disease, and Weaknesses of the use of online information by families of children and adolescents with chronic disease. The internet offers a wide range of information that helps families manage the care of children and adolescents with chronic diseases, but it also has characteristics that need to be analysed.

  17. Relationships between Humor Styles and Family Functioning in Parents of Children with Disabilities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rieger, Alicja; McGrail, J. Patrick

    2015-01-01

    The humor styles and family functioning of parents of children with disabilities are understudied subjects. This study seeks to shed quantitative light on these areas. Seventy-two parents of children with disabilities completed the "Family Adaptability and Cohesion Evaluation Scales" (FACES IV) and the "Humor Styles…

  18. The impact of single and shared rooms on family-centred care in children's hospitals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Curtis, Penny; Northcott, Andy

    2017-06-01

    To explore whether and how spatial aspects of children's hospital wards (single and shared rooms) impact upon family-centred care. Family-centred care has been widely adopted in paediatric hospitals internationally. Recent hospital building programmes in many countries have prioritised the provision of single rooms over shared rooms. Limited attention has, however, been paid to the potential impact of spatial aspects of paediatric wards on family-centred care. Qualitative, ethnographic. Phase 1; observation within four wards of a specialist children's hospital. Phase 2; interviews with 17 children aged 5-16 years and 60 parents/carers. Sixty nursing and support staff also took part in interviews and focus group discussions. All data were subjected to thematic analysis. Two themes emerged from the data analysis: 'role expectations' and 'family-nurse interactions'. The latter theme comprised three subthemes: 'family support needs', 'monitoring children's well-being' and 'survey-assess-interact within spatial contexts'. Spatial configurations within hospital wards significantly impacted upon the relationships and interactions between children, parents and nurses, which played out differently in single and shared rooms. Increasing the provision of single rooms within wards is therefore likely to directly affect how family-centred care manifests in practice. Nurses need to be sensitive to the impact of spatial characteristics, and particularly of single and shared rooms, on families' experiences of children's hospital wards. Nurses' contribution to and experience of family-centred care can be expected to change significantly when spatial characteristics of wards change and, as is currently the vogue, hospitals maximise the provision of single rather than shared rooms. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Listening to children: gaining a perspective of the experiences of poverty and social exclusion from children and young people of single-parent families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Janet; Crawford, Karin; Taylor, Francesca

    2008-07-01

    This paper reports on the experiences and views of children and young people of single-parent families, as findings from a European Union-funded research project undertaken in England, Greece and Cyprus. The objectives of the research project were to investigate how children and young people of single-parent families understand and experience their worlds as members of these families: whether and to what extent they experience poverty and social exclusion and how they cope with the challenges that this confronts them with. Methodology was replicated in each of the countries; however, this paper draws on the English experiences. Semistructured interviews (40) and focus groups (four) were undertaken with children of single parents. In addition, focus groups were undertaken with children of two-parent families (four), focus groups with single parents, focus groups with two-parent families (four) and individual interviews with key professionals. Detailed discussion guides were followed, with open-ended questions to allow participants to express their feelings and ideas in their own words. The research sample included children from single-parent and two-parent families, aged 6 years to 16 years, balanced in terms of age, gender and geographical location. Findings demonstrate the children's and young people's understanding of the impact of poverty and social exclusion on their family life and their everyday experiences. The positive benefits of being in a single-parent family are highlighted, with 'time poverty' raised as a significant issue. Children and young people are aware of their poverty and how it influences exclusion from friendships, play, leisure and community activities. Policy needs to take account of the systematic reality of children's experiences; alliances with adults that support meaningful involvement and participation by children and young people will make a significant contribution to this.

  20. The Role of Family in Abnormality and Crime of Children with a Case Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Rasool Ahangaran

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Family is one of the most important grounds of crime and crime victimization development. The experts, welfare workers, lawyers and sociologists argue that the factor or factors should be identified that provide the kind of conditions under which the individuals abuse, tolerate or accept the crime in order to secure the society, reduce the social harms and finally propose the procedures to reform it. The purpose of this study is to investigate the crime victimization of children in the city of Qom. So, a questionnaire was distributed and completed through the interviews with the parents live in this city and who have a child or children. The questionnaires were analyzed by the SPSS software. The sample size was 266 individuals. The findings of research show that there is a meaningful inverse relationship among the children' control by their families, the rate of children belonging to their families, family cohesion and tendency towards criminal behavior. In other words, as the above mentioned variables increase, the children' tendency towards criminal behaviors decrease and vice versa. The analysis of variance (ANOVA test was used to compare the family structure with the children' tendency towards criminal behaviors. The result of this test shows a significant difference. In other words, the comparison of means suggests that the children with separated parents are more inclined to criminal behaviors.

  1. The Family as a Place of Education. between a School-Centred Focus on Education and Family Needs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loch, Ulrike

    2016-01-01

    The results of PISA studies over recent years have revealed the social selectivity of the scholastic education system. Based on my empirical research on families with mentally ill parents, I show how, for the children involved, social exclusion begins before they even start school. I also show how parents' mental illness is seen to affect…

  2. Psychosocial outcomes for preschool children and families after surgery for complex congenital heart disease.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brosig, C L; Mussatto, K A; Kuhn, E M; Tweddell, J S

    2007-01-01

    The purpose of the current study was to assess the psychosocial outcomes of preschool-aged survivors (ages 3-6 years) of hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS; n=13) and transposition of the great arteries (TGA; n=13). Parents completed the following measures: Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory, Impact on the Family Scale, Parenting Stress Index, Parent Behavior Checklist, and Child Behavior Checklist. Quality of life scores did not differ from those of healthy controls. Parents of children with HLHS reported more negative impact of the child's illness on the family and more parenting stress than parents of children with TGA. Parents of both groups of children were more permissive in their parenting style than parents of healthy controls. Children with HLHS had higher rates of attention and externalizing behavior problems than children with TGA. The results highlight the need for practitioners working with these children and families to ask about parental stress, family functioning, and behavioral expectations for the child in the context of routine medical/cardiac follow-up.

  3. Afterword: New Directions in Research with Immigrant Families and Their Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Suarez-Orozco, Carola; Carhill, Avary

    2008-01-01

    Although migration is fundamentally a family affair, the family, as a unit of analysis, has been understudied both by scholars of migration and by developmental psychologists. Researchers have often struggled to conceptualize immigrant children, adolescents, and their families, all too often giving way to pathologizing them, ignoring generational…

  4. Efficacy of Family Anxiety Management Training with Mothers of Anxious Preschool Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Soodabeh Bassak-Nejad

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Background: The aim of this study is to investigate the efficacy of family management training in reducing anxiety difficulties in preschool children (4 to 6 years old in Ahvaz. Materials and Methods: The present research is a pilot study with pre-test/post-test control group design. A total of 50 mothers whose children scored 1.0 standard deviation above the mean on Spence’s children anxiety scale (parent report form were randomly chosen and then divided into experimental and control groups. According to the treatment plan, the participants underwent ten 120-minute sessions of family anxiety management training. Results: Multivariate analysis of covariance demonstrates that experimental intervention is efficient in reduction of children anxiety (p=0.03. Following up the experimental group for a course of one month show that intervention impact can last over the time. Conclusion: The results indicate that family anxiety management training has been effective in reduction of anxiety disorders in anxious children (4 to 6 years old, studying at kindergartens within Ahvaz. Therefore, it can be useful strategy as an educational and preventive program in pre-school and school children.

  5. The Family Economic Environment as a Context for Children's Development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farran, Dale Clark; Margolis, Lewis H.

    1987-01-01

    Longitudinally examines how the complexities of the family economic environment may affect children's health, behavior, and ideas about the world of work. Family economic factors considered include father's/mother's work status (especially parental unemployment); per-capita income; health insurance; father's job security; and satisfaction with…

  6. Home Literacy Environment and Head Start Children's Language Development: The Role of Approaches to Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Meng, Christine

    2015-01-01

    Research Findings: This study examined whether approaches to learning moderate the association between home literacy environment and English receptive vocabulary development. The Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (2003 cohort) was used for analysis. Latent growth curve modeling was utilized to test a quadratic model of English…

  7. A quasi-experimental evaluation of a school-based intervention for children experiencing family disruption.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abel, Eileen Mazur; Chung-Canine, Unju; Broussard, Karen

    2013-01-01

    Despite the fact that children are negatively impacted by family separation and divorce (Amato, 2001 ; Dreman & Shemi, 2004 ; Kelly, 2000 ) there is a paucity of information regarding evidence-based social work practice with children coping with family disruption. In order to address this gap, the authors describe the process and outcomes of a quasi-experimental evaluation (N = 79) designed to reduce the behavioral, emotional, and academic problems that children often face when experiencing divorce or parental separation. Results of data analysis (paired t-tests, independent t-tests, and analysis of variance) suggest (p < .05) that the intervention is effective in helping children cope with family disruption.

  8. Financial Therapy and Planning for Families with Special Needs Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mitzi Lauderdale

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available This study examines factors associated with the likelihood of having a plan that includes a special needs trust among families that have disabled minor children. Descriptive analyses indicate that the top two reasons families provide for not having a plan are the inability to save and no perceived need. Among families that do indicate having a plan, most do not include a special needs trust. Multivariate analyses reveal that professional involvement (financial, legal, and mental health professionals is a key factor to increasing the likelihood of having a plan with a special needs trust. Families that have met with a financial advisor are 23 times more likely, and families who are encouraged to create a plan by a mental health professional are almost three times more likely, to have a plan that includes a special needs trust. Results from this study suggest that financial therapists are uniquely positioned to educate and ensure that appropriate plans are in place to provide for the future of children with special needs.

  9. Divorce in families of children with Down syndrome: a population-based study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urbano, Richard C; Hodapp, Robert M

    2007-07-01

    In this study, we examined the nature, timing, and correlates of divorce in families of children with Down syndrome (647), other birth defects (10,283) and no identified disability (361,154). Divorce rates among families of children with Down syndrome were lower than in the other two groups. When divorce did occur in the Down syndrome group, however, a higher proportion occurred within the first 2 years after the child's birth. Mothers and fathers of children with Down syndrome were much more likely to divorce if they were younger, had not graduated from high school, and if fathers were less educated and lived in a rural area. Few effects on divorce were noted for a variety of family structure variables.

  10. The Relationship between Family Functioning and Behavior Problems in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sikora, Darryn; Moran, Erin; Orlich, Felice; Hall, Trevor A.; Kovacs, Erica A.; Delahaye, Jennifer; Clemons, Traci E.; Kuhlthau, Karen

    2013-01-01

    Although it is well known that families of children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at risk for increased stress and other problems, little is known about what child characteristics may mediate that risk. To address the impact of child behavior problems on family health, we examined data collected from 136 families raising children with…

  11. Adopted children in their adoptive families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schechter, M D; Holter, F R

    1975-08-01

    The adoptive process can produce unusual stresses on the child, and biologic and adoptive parents, from prenatal to postnatal life, and through the various phases of physical and pscyhological development. Because of the possibility of these children and their families falling into the "at risk" category with greater potential for psychological and social problems, the pediatrician is of primary importance in diagnosis and counseling. The pediatrician can be of major help in properly diagnosing emotional, behavioral and/or learning problems occurring in adopted children. There must be a thorough evaluation of the child and his family to understand and properly treat symptomatic behavior. The pediatrician can give advice regarding developmental milestones, and especially help the adoptive parents in appreciating their conscious and unconscious attitudes so as to enhance attachment behaviors. Pediatricians are the consultants to whom parents turn for advice regarding the timing of telling about adoption. This advice needs to be individualized according to the specific child's needs. Using a developmental conceptual framework, the pediatrician is in the best position to help the parents and their adopted children with their feelings about societal attitudes and how these can most appropriately be handled. Along this line, the pediatrician can give help and advice when and if the adoptee decides to search for his biologic parents. There is a need to clarify laws which seal the original birth certificate permitting those adoptees who wish to attain a knowledge of potentially related disease processes and an identity with his own genealogical past to do so. This would also allow the adoptee to offer his own children information about their own genetic pool and an awareness of adoption as one of the most valuable and historically significant child rearing practices.

  12. Hope for children and families: targeting abusive parenting and the associated impairment of children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bentovim, Arnon; Elliott, Ian

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to distill the "effective practice elements" from randomised controlled interventions (RCTs) to prevent the recurrence of abusive and neglectful parenting and the associated health and developmental impairment of children. The resulting elements would be used then to develop a step-by-step modular-systemic approach to intervention that is suitable to the needs of a variety of frontline practitioners in social care, health, and education. A series of 22 randomised RCTs were analysed using the distillation and matching approach to establish the presence of effective practice elements. The focus was physical and sexual abuse, victims and children, and young people as perpetrators; neglect including failure to thrive, emotional abuse (exposure to violence and mental health issues). The studies were analysed for effective practice elements, across different approaches matched to interventions focused on parenting, on children and young people, and on family/professional relationships. The proportion of practice elements utilised in each form of maltreatment was defined. The distillation process resulted in a total of 47 practice elements present across all forms of maltreatment studied. An experienced group of practitioners from statutory and voluntary agencies ordered and integrated the most frequently utilised emerging elements into a series of step-by-step modules, which could fit the complex needs of families when maltreatment had occurred. The resulting manual, Hope for Children and Families, provides a "menu" of evidence-based, step-by-step modular interventions targeting the profile of abusive and neglectful parenting and associated impairments of children. To be effective for frontline practitioners, the manual will need to be delivered in a user-friendly format, training developed, and supervision and support provided.

  13. Family-based hip-hop to health: outcome results.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fitzgibbon, Marian L; Stolley, Melinda R; Schiffer, Linda; Kong, Angela; Braunschweig, Carol L; Gomez-Perez, Sandra L; Odoms-Young, Angela; Van Horn, Linda; Christoffel, Katherine Kaufer; Dyer, Alan R

    2013-02-01

    This pilot study tested the feasibility of Family-Based Hip-Hop to Health, a school-based obesity prevention intervention for 3-5-year-old Latino children and their parents, and estimated its effectiveness in producing smaller average changes in BMI at 1-year follow-up. Four Head Start preschools administered through the Chicago Public Schools were randomly assigned to receive a Family-Based Intervention (FBI) or a General Health Intervention (GHI). Parents signed consent forms for 147 of the 157 children enrolled. Both the school-based and family-based components of the intervention were feasible, but attendance for the parent intervention sessions was low. Contrary to expectations, a downtrend in BMI Z-score was observed in both the intervention and control groups. While the data reflect a downward trend in obesity among these young Hispanic children, obesity rates remained higher at 1-year follow-up (15%) than those reported by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2009-2010) for 2-5-year-old children (12.1%). Developing evidence-based strategies for obesity prevention among Hispanic families remains a challenge. Copyright © 2012 The Obesity Society.

  14. Cost Offset Associated With Early Start Denver Model for Children With Autism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cidav, Zuleyha; Munson, Jeff; Estes, Annette; Dawson, Geraldine; Rogers, Sally; Mandell, David

    2017-09-01

    To determine the effect of the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) for treatment of young children with autism on health care service use and costs. We used data from a randomized trial that tested the efficacy of the ESDM, which is based on developmental and applied behavioral analytic principles and delivered by trained therapists and parents, for 2 years. Parents were interviewed about their children's service use every 6 months from the onset of the intervention to follow-up (age 6 years). The sample for this study consisted of 39 children with autism who participated in the original randomized trial at age 18 to 30 months, and were also assessed at age 6 years. Of this sample, 21 children were in the ESDM group, and 18 children were in the community care (COM) group. Reported services were categorized and costed by applying unit hourly costs. Annualized service use and costs during the intervention and post intervention for the two study arms were compared. During the intervention, children who received the ESDM had average annualized total health-related costs that were higher by about $14,000 than those of children who received community-based treatment. The higher cost of ESDM was partially offset during the intervention period because children in the ESDM group used less applied behavior analysis (ABA)/early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) and speech therapy services than children in the comparison group. In the postintervention period, compared with children who had earlier received treatment as usual in community settings, children in the ESDM group used less ABA/EIBI, occupational/physical therapy, and speech therapy services, resulting in significant cost savings in the amount of about $19,000 per year per child. Costs associated with ESDM treatment were fully offset within a few years after the intervention because of reductions in other service use and associated costs. Early Characteristics of Autism; http://clinicaltrials.gov/; NCT0009415

  15. Family Interventions on Protection of Children from Domestic Violence

    OpenAIRE

    Başoğul, Ceyda; Lök, Neslihan; Öncel, Selma

    2017-01-01

    Violence is the biggest obstacle for living as a respectable, dignity, equal and free individual and for self-actualization of a child. Children learn to show aggression when, how and against whom. Knowledge is transmitted from parents to children as well as children learn it from peer groups and the mass media. It has become a cycle of violence in this way. In studies on this issue, it was determined that interventions for families (counseling and therapy interventions, crisis and outreach...

  16. ["Nicht von schlechten Eltern - NischE": A Family Orientated Collaborative Care Approach to Support Children in Families with Mentally Ill Parents].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wabnitz, Pascal; Kronmüller, Klaus-Thomas; Wieskus-Friedemann, Erwin; Kliem, Sabine; Hoppmann, Johannes; Burek, Monika; Löhr, Michael; Kemper, Ulrich; Nienaber, André

    2016-11-01

    "Nicht von schlechten Eltern - NischE": A Family Orientated Collaborative Care Approach to Support Children in Families with Mentally Ill Parents The present work describes the setting- and multi-professional offer "NischE" in Gütersloh, a systemic approach for the care of children and their mentally ill parents. Children of mentally ill parents are a special risk group for developing their own mental illness. The aim of the collaborative care model between child and adolescent psychiatry, youth services and adult psychiatry is to enable affected families in terms of family-focused practice a low threshold access to different services. For this purpose, two positions have been created to advise the affected families and support access to the help system in the sense of a systemic case management in a project. The article describes the background and the need for the development of the offer, the current scientific knowledge base on the subject and illustrates the procedure using a case study from practice.

  17. Counselling Intervention and Support Programmes for Families of Children with Special Educational Needs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fareo, Dorcas Oluremi

    2015-01-01

    All couples look forward to having normal healthy babies. The issues of disabilities in their children shake the families and serve as sources of severe psychological disruption to family adjustment. The parents of such children live with many difficult issues and frequently experience trauma, grief and stress. Intervention programmes are…

  18. 25 CFR 20.400 - Who should receive Services to Children, Elderly, and Families?

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 25 Indians 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Who should receive Services to Children, Elderly, and Families? 20.400 Section 20.400 Indians BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR HUMAN SERVICES FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE AND SOCIAL SERVICES PROGRAMS Services to Children, Elderly, and Families § 20.400 Who...

  19. Involving Parents in Their Children's Dental Care.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Becker, Donna

    1998-01-01

    Asserts that parent education is vital to good dental hygiene for the whole family. Discusses what Head Start staffers can do to ensure that children's dental needs are being met, particularly in assisting parents with taking responsibility for children's dental hygiene. Covers dental care tips for parents, questions and answers about dental…

  20. The Effectiveness of Role Theory Based Group Counseling on Family Function of Families With Slow-Learning Children

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    فرناز حوله کیان

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of group counseling based on the role theory on function of families with slow-learningchildren. The present study is a Quasi - experimental research with pre-test and post - test, and with experimental and control groups. Statistical population in cludes all mothers of slow - learning children in thecity of Hamadan. A sample of 30 subjects selected through available sampling method from high schools with equal numbers of both genders. Based on cloning features were allocated in experimental and control groups. The experimental group received 10 group counseling and control group was placed in the waiting list. Data collection instrument is family function questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, covariance analysis and t-test were applied to analyze data. It was found that there is a significant difference between post-test of experimental and control group (p<0/001. t-test showed significant difference in effectiveness of role theory group counseling for mothers with slow-learning girl and boy (p<0/001. So we can conclude that group counseling based on the role theory is effective on improving the function of families with slow-learning children. In addition, this effectivenessis different for families of slow-learning children based on the gender of child.

  1. Impact of cleft lip and/or palate in children on family quality of life before and after reconstructive surgery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macho, P; Bohac, M; Fedeles, J; Fekiacova, D; Fedeles, J

    2017-01-01

    The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of cleft lip/palate children together with consequent treatment on quality of family life using standardized questionnaire. Different to previous studies the evaluation of quality of family life by questionnaire was realized twice in the same group of families (before the reconstructive surgery and several months after palatoplasty). The study was conducted in 40 families divided in two groups: 20 families with children with cleft lip (CL), 20 families with children with cleft lip and palate (CLP). The questionnaire of the Impact on Family Scale was used for evaluation of the influence of orofacial clefts on parent´s quality of life. Evaluations were made at the second month of child´s life and at one year of child´s life with reciprocally comparison. The higher impact of children with CLP on quality of family life was noted at 2 months and 1 year of child's age as compared to the impact of children with CL. The reduction of impact on quality of life after surgical correction was observed in families of children with CL at one year of child's age. This decrease of influence on family quality of life was due to significantly lower impact in strain and economic dimensions in families with CL children after operation. However, in the group of families with CLP children no significant changes in the impact on family quality of life were noted when compared to the values before and shortly after the reconstructive surgery. This study showed that orofacial clefts in children influence markedly the quality of their family life. The higher impact of children with CLP on quality of family life as compared to children with CL was noted and this impact in CLP group was not influenced shortly after reconstructive surgery. It is suggested that appropriate medical care in Cleft Centre with special psychological support may lead to improvement in quality of life for families with cleft lip and palate children (Tab. 2, Fig. 2, Ref

  2. The family drawings of at-risk children: concurrent relations with contact with incarcerated parents, caregiver behavior, and stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dallaire, Danielle H; Ciccone, Anne; Wilson, Laura C

    2012-01-01

    The current study examined children's attachment representations as assessed with their family drawings in relation to contact with an incarcerated or estranged parent, caregiver behavior, and family stress in a high-risk sample of children (N = 44, M (age) = 8.14), 55% of whom had incarcerated parents. Greater phone, mail, and physical contact with an incarcerated parent was associated with more role reversal in children's family drawings. Additional results show that child-reports of more hostile caregiver behavior were associated with greater overall insecurity in their family drawings; child and caregiver reports of stress were associated with increased global pathology and bizarreness/dissociation in children's family drawings. Given the lack of research on concurrent familial-based correlates of ratings made of children's family drawings, these results provide additional insights into children's representations of attachment relationships in early middle childhood. Further, the results regarding contact with incarcerated parents have implications for researchers and clinicians working with families impacted by parental incarceration.

  3. The family role in children׳s sleep disturbances: Results from a cross-sectional study in a Portuguese Urban pediatric population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martins, Andreia Luís; Chaves, Petra; Papoila, Ana Luísa; Loureiro, Helena Cristina

    2015-11-01

    Sleep Disorders (SlD) are frequently undervalued complaints in childhood. Several factors influence sleep, particularly socio-cultural environment and medical conditions such as breathing disorders. Poor sleep hygiene has physical, educational and social consequences. In Portugal, there are few published studies about children׳s sleep habits and rarely based on validated questionnaires. To study the prevalence of SlD and associated factors, in an outpatient pediatric population of a Primary Health Care Center (PHCC). Cross-sectional study of children admitted to a PHCC on a suburban area of Lisbon. Children Sleep Habits Questionnaire, validated for the Portuguese population (CSHQ-PT) for the screening of SlD (cut-off=44), was applied to parents, as well as a demographic inquiry. Body mass index z-score was evaluated. Children scoring 44 or above were sent to Pediatric Sleep Disorders consultation (PSDC). Parametric and non-parametric tests were used whenever appropriate. From 128 children, 57.8% were male; the median age was 6.0 years (P 25=5.0; P 75=8.0). The median of cohabitants per family was 4.0 (P 25=3.0; P 75=5.0); 21.1% lived in a single-parent family. From CSHQ-PT, 59.4% (76) scored above the cut-off. Data showed that children from a single-parent family have more SlD (p=0.048), particularly parasomnia (p=0.019). Children with sleep disordered breathing (SDB) suffer more daytime sleepiness (p=0.034). From 63 children sent to PSDC, 33 attended. Regarding these children, a difference was found between BMI z-scores of those with and without SDB (p=0.06). Family structure plays a non-negligible role in children's sleep habits. Daily performance of children with SDB may become compromised.

  4. Shared activities of parents with their preschool children during family pastime.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sobkin V.S.

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available This article studies the structure of the pastime of contemporary preschool children and the importance and prevalence of various kinds of activities that parents and their children share. The emphasis is on those features of parental behavior that are determined by gender role (mother/father, family status (two-parent/separated family, style of parentchild relationship, and also child’s gender. The work is based on data from 1,936 questionnaires received from parents of preschool children (from 1.5 to 7 years old who were attending Moscow kindergartens. The research was carried out in 41 kindergartens in 9 districts of Moscow. The survey uncovered several social-psychological features of the position parents take while organizing their shared pastime with preschool children: the influence of traditional gender-role models of parental behavior; the “complementary” principle of mother’s and father’s social-role positions in the upbringing of a daughter; the distortion of traditional maternal behavior in the upbringing of a son in a separated family; the reduced organization of shared play with a child in a separated family; the influence of the style of the parent-child relationship on the participation of parents in their children’s activities. The dynamics show how the parents’ position changes as their children grow older (from 1.5 years to 7 years: namely, the decrease of parents’ organization of and participation in a preschool child’s activities has a negative impact on their emotional state while interacting with the child.

  5. A spotlight on preschool: the influence of family factors on children's early literacy skills.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Steve M Heath

    Full Text Available Phonological awareness, letter knowledge, oral language (including sentence recall and rapid automatised naming are acknowledged within-child predictors of literacy development. Separate research has identified family factors including socio-economic status, parents' level of education and family history. However, both approaches have left unexplained significant amounts of variance in literacy outcomes. This longitudinal study sought to improve prospective classification accuracy for young children at risk of literacy failure by adding two new family measures (parents' phonological awareness and parents' perceived self-efficacy, and then combining the within-child and family factors.Pre-literacy skills were measured in 102 four year olds (46 girls and 56 boys at the beginning of Preschool, and then at the beginning and end of Kindergarten, when rapid automatised naming was also measured. Family factors data were collected at the beginning of Preschool, and children's literacy outcomes were measured at the end of Year 1 (age 6-7 years.Children from high-risk backgrounds showed poorer literacy outcomes than low-risk students, though three family factors (school socio-economic status, parents' phonological awareness, and family history typically accounted for less Year 1 variance than the within-child factors. Combining these family factors with the end of Kindergarten within-child factors provided the most accurate classification (i.e., sensitivity = .85; specificity = .90; overall correct = .88.Our approach would identify at-risk children for intervention before they began to fail. Moreover, it would be cost-effective because although few at-risk children would be missed, allocation of unnecessary educational resources would be minimised.

  6. A spotlight on preschool: the influence of family factors on children's early literacy skills.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heath, Steve M; Bishop, Dorothy V M; Bloor, Kimberley E; Boyle, Gemma L; Fletcher, Janet; Hogben, John H; Wigley, Charles A; Yeong, Stephanie H M

    2014-01-01

    Phonological awareness, letter knowledge, oral language (including sentence recall) and rapid automatised naming are acknowledged within-child predictors of literacy development. Separate research has identified family factors including socio-economic status, parents' level of education and family history. However, both approaches have left unexplained significant amounts of variance in literacy outcomes. This longitudinal study sought to improve prospective classification accuracy for young children at risk of literacy failure by adding two new family measures (parents' phonological awareness and parents' perceived self-efficacy), and then combining the within-child and family factors. Pre-literacy skills were measured in 102 four year olds (46 girls and 56 boys) at the beginning of Preschool, and then at the beginning and end of Kindergarten, when rapid automatised naming was also measured. Family factors data were collected at the beginning of Preschool, and children's literacy outcomes were measured at the end of Year 1 (age 6-7 years). Children from high-risk backgrounds showed poorer literacy outcomes than low-risk students, though three family factors (school socio-economic status, parents' phonological awareness, and family history) typically accounted for less Year 1 variance than the within-child factors. Combining these family factors with the end of Kindergarten within-child factors provided the most accurate classification (i.e., sensitivity = .85; specificity = .90; overall correct = .88). Our approach would identify at-risk children for intervention before they began to fail. Moreover, it would be cost-effective because although few at-risk children would be missed, allocation of unnecessary educational resources would be minimised.

  7. Child development in rural China: children left behind by their migrant parents and children of nonmigrant families.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wen, Ming; Lin, Danhua

    2012-01-01

    Using recent cross-sectional data of rural children aged from 8 to 18 in Hunan Province of China, this article examines psychological, behavioral, and educational outcomes and the psychosocial contexts of these outcomes among children left behind by one or both of their rural-to-urban migrant parents compared to those living in nonmigrant families. The results showed that left-behind children were disadvantaged in health behavior and school engagement but not in perceived satisfaction. The child's psychosocial environment, captured by family socioeconomic status, socializing processes, peer and school support, and psychological traits, were associated with, to varying extent, child developmental outcomes in rural China. These influences largely remain constant for the sampled children regardless of their parents' migrant status. © 2011 The Authors. Child Development © 2011 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

  8. FAMILY INFLUENCE ON FORMATION OF CHILDREN'S MANIPULATIVE ATTITUDES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liubov Ivanovna Ryumshina

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available The article raises the issue of children's manipulation, and examines the conditions contributing to the formation of the manipulative attitudes. As such are analyzed: importance of these attitudes for the child, existence of manipulative attitudes in parents, family microclimate and position to the manipulations in society.According to the results of an empirical study, the characteristics of the family, provoking the development of manipulative behavior in children, are described. The members of this family hardly cooperate with each other and others, are focused on self-interests, and try to satisfy them without much effort, and by using the people around them. It is accompanied by the insincerity and lack of attention to the child, and most of all to his needs, feelings and emotional stress. Normal 0 false false false RU X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Обычная таблица"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}

  9. The Effect of Barkley's family-oriented program on the burden of care on families of children with attention deficit-hyperactive disorder

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sharifeh Mousavi

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: Attention deficit-hyperactive disorder (ADHD is the most common behavioral disorders during childhood whose treatment is greatly dependent on families; therefore, families of such children should improve their relation with them so that they could enjoy their lives. Hence, this study was conducted to evaluate the effect of Barkley's family-oriented program on the burden of care on such families. Materials and Methods: This clinical trial was conducted among 64 family care givers for children with ADHD. By simple sampling, samples passing the inclusion criteria were selected and randomly allocated into two groups of control and intervention. The intervention group received Barkley's family education program through 9 sessions; the control group participated in 3 group sessions and expressed their problems and experiences. Data were collected and analyzed using the Zarit Burden Interview. Results: Burden of care was gradually reduced through the study in the intervention group, however, the mean score of burden of care did not have a significant reduction in the control group. Conclusions: Because Barkley's family-oriented program was able to reduce the burden of care in families of children with ADHD, it is recommended to develop similar programs and evaluate them through various studies.

  10. Children's disaster reactions: the influence of family and social factors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pfefferbaum, Betty; Jacobs, Anne K; Houston, J Brian; Griffin, Natalie

    2015-07-01

    This review examines family (demographics, parent reactions and interactions, and parenting style) and social (remote effects, disaster media coverage, exposure to secondary adversities, and social support) factors that influence children's disaster reactions. Lower family socioeconomic status, high parental stress, poor parental coping, contact with media coverage, and exposure to secondary adversities have been associated with adverse outcomes. Social support may provide protection to children in the post-disaster environment though more research is needed to clarify the effects of certain forms of social support. The interaction of the factors described in this review with culture needs further exploration.

  11. Associations between family food behaviors, maternal depression, and child weight among low-income children

    OpenAIRE

    McCurdy, Karen; Gorman, Kathleen S.; Kisler, Tiffani; Metallinos-Katsaras, Metallinos-Katsaras

    2014-01-01

    Although low-income children are at greater risk for overweight and obesity than their higher income counterparts, the majority of poor children are not overweight. The current study examined why such variation exists among diverse young children in poor families. Cross-sectional data were collected on 164 low-income, preschool aged children and their mothers living in two Rhode Island cities. Over half of the sample was Hispanic (55%). Mothers completed measures of family food behaviors and ...

  12. Vulnerability of families with children with intestinal stomas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clara Ferraz Lazarini Zacarin

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Intestinal stomas cause transformations in the body and create specific and continuous needs for care that imply in hospitalization and surgeries. In this context, we applied the concept of family vulnerability in order to identify the vulnerability of the family living with a child who has intestinal stoma. It is a qualitative study which interviewed the mothers of children with this chronic condition. We used narrative analysis based on the concept of family vulnerability. The results display that the family has gone through previous noteworthy experiences associated with the child’s condition. The family cares for the child on their own and seeks ways to control the situation and regain autonomy, hoping for stoma reversal. Based on the concept of vulnerability, we observed that these families can be considered vulnerable, for they experience threats to their autonomy, but are moved by the hope of reversal and intestinal tract reconstruction. doi: 10.5216/ree.v16i2.26639.

  13. Early Maternal Employment and Children's School Readiness in Contemporary Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lombardi, Caitlin McPherran; Coley, Rebekah Levine

    2014-01-01

    This study assessed whether previous findings linking early maternal employment to lower cognitive and behavioral skills among children generalized to modern families. Using a representative sample of children born in the United States in 2001 (N = 10,100), ordinary least squares regression models weighted with propensity scores assessed links…

  14. Family Stress Theory and the Impact of Divorce on Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peterson, Gary W.; And Others

    1984-01-01

    Presents a middle-range theory that describes the potential impact of divorce on children, based on concepts from family stress theory. The proposed theoretical model is concerned especially with variations in the definition of the situation assigned to the crisis of divorce by children and custodial parents. (JAC)

  15. Children and Power in Mexican Transnational Families

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dreby, Joanna

    2007-01-01

    Today, many families find that they are unable to fulfill the goal of maintaining a household by living together under the same roof. Some members migrate internationally. This article addresses the consequences of a transnational lifestyle for children who are left behind by migrant parents. Using ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with a…

  16. School Starting Age and the Crime-Age Profile

    OpenAIRE

    Landerso, Rasmus; Nielsen, Helena Skyt; Simonsen, Marianne

    2015-01-01

    This paper uses register-based data to investigate the effects of school starting age on crime. Through this, we provide insights into the determinants of crime-age profiles. We exploit that Danish children typically start first grade in the calendar year they turn seven, which gives rise to a discontinuity in school starting age for children born around New Year. Our analysis speaks against a simple invariant crime-age profile as is popular in criminology: we find that higher school starting...

  17. Family Resiliency: A Neglected Perspective in Addressing Obesity in Young Children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sigman-Grant, Madeleine; Hayes, Jenna; VanBrackle, Angela; Fiese, Barbara

    2015-12-01

    Traditional research primarily details child obesity from a risk perspective. Risk factors are disproportionately higher in children raised in poverty, thus negatively influencing the weight status of low-income children. Borrowing from the field of family studies, the concept of family resiliency might provide a unique perspective for discussions regarding childhood obesity, by helping to identify mediating or moderating protective mechanisms that are present within the family context. A thorough literature review focusing on (1) components of family resiliency that could be related to childhood obesity and (2) factors implicated in childhood obesity beyond those related to energy balance was conducted. We then conceptualized our perspective that understanding resiliency within an obesogenic environment is warranted. Both family resiliency and childhood obesity prevention rely on the assumptions that (1) no one single answer can address the multifactorial nature involved with adopting healthy lifestyle behaviors and (2) the pieces in this complex puzzle will differ between families. Yet, there are limited holistic studies connecting family resiliency measures and childhood obesity prevention. Combining mixed methodology using traditional measures (such as general parenting styles, feeding styles, and parent feeding behaviors) with potential family resiliency measures (such as family routines, family stress, family functioning, and family structure) might serve to broaden understanding of protective strategies. The key to future success in child obesity prevention and treatment may be found in the application of the resiliency framework to the exploration of childhood obesity from a protective perspective focusing on the family context.

  18. Predictors of needs for community and financial resources for families of pre-school children with cerebral palsy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bertule D.

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available An understanding of predictors of family needs for the families of preschool children with cerebral palsy (CP is important for provision of efficient and cost-effective services. The aim of this study was to identify the characteristics of children, families and services that are risk factors to meeting family needs for community and financial resources. 234 parents of pre-school children with CP completed a modified version of the Family Needs Survey (FNS, the Measure of Processes of Care (MPOC-20, and a demographic questionnaire. The gross motor function level and communication function level of children were classified on the basis of the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS and the Communication Function Classification System (CFCS respectively. Two hierarchical multiple regression models were generated to determine the predictors of unmet family needs. The socialisation and communication skills of children, as well as caregiver employment and family income levels were significant predictors of family needs for community resources (adjusted R2=0.44. Significant risk factors in terms of family needs for financial resources included the child's gross motor limitations, caregiver employment, low levels of family income and no ability to receive services on the basis of enabling and partnership principles (adjusted R2=0.51. A child's limitations in terms of communication, gross motor functions and socialisation, as well as the socioeconomic status of the child's family, must be taken into account when planning services for families with preschool children with CP.

  19. Effect of occurrence of vitiligo in children over quality of life of their families: A hospital-based study using family dermatology life quality index

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pratik Gahalaut

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Vitiligo in an adult patient has a profound effect on the quality of life (QoL of that particular patient. Although it is known that vitiligo in adult patient affects QoL in their family, very little information is available regarding QoL in a family having children suffering from vitiligo. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional, hospital-based study to ascertain the effect children suffering from vitiligo have on the QoL of their respective families. Study participants were fifty healthy parent/immediate caregivers of fifty corresponding children suffering from vitiligo. The QoL in the family of these vitiliginous children was assessed with the help of Family Dermatology Life Quality Index (FDLQI. Results: There was significantly more impairment of FDLQI among respondents if vitiliginous child was female compared to male. The total FDLQI showed a significant negative correlation with duration of vitiligo in children. Analysis of individual items in FDLQI revealed emotional distress as the most impaired facet of FDLQI and housework as the least affected item. Conclusion: Presence of vitiligo in children affects the QoL of that particular child and his/her family. This impairment of FDLQI is more if the child suffering from vitiligo is female. Treatment of vitiligo in pediatric age group should include psychological counseling and support for the child as well as their parents/caregivers.

  20. Relation between family history, obesity and risk for diabetes and heart disease in Pakistani children

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Basit, A.; Hakeem, R.; Hydrie, M.Z.; Ahmadani, M.Y.; Masood, Q.

    2004-01-01

    Objective: To assess the differences in relative risk of developing diabetes and CHD, obesity, fasting blood glucose, insulin and lipids of children having family history of diabetes or heart disease in first or second degree relatives as compared to control group. Design: Children were given a questionnaire to collect demographic data and to assess their dietary habits and family history. Anthropometric measurements and blood samples for fasting blood glucose, insulin and lipids of 8-10 years old children from 4 schools was taken. Subjects: Children having positive family history of diabetes (n=44) or heart disease (n=16) in first or second degree relatives were compared with a control group (n=39). Results: Children having positive family history for diabetes had slightly higher mean values for BMI, waist circumference, arm fat % as compared to the controls but the differences were not statistically significant. Overweight children (>85th Percentile of BMI for age) did not differ significantly in terms of various risk indicators however those who were in the uppermost tertile of arm fat % had significantly higher total Cholesterol, Triglycerides, LDL-C, LDL:HDL and Insulin levels (P<0.05 in each case). Conclusion: Diabetes and CVD risks from positive family history for the disease are probably mediated through increased body fat percentage. Thus even when information about family history of disease is lacking, arm-fat-percentage could be used as an important screening tool for determining the risk status of children. (author)