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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Marital Satisfaction And Depression: A Replication Of The Marital Discord Model In A Latino Sample, Cody S. Hollist, Richard Miller, Olga G. Falceto, Carmen Luiza C. Fernandes Dec 2007

Marital Satisfaction And Depression: A Replication Of The Marital Discord Model In A Latino Sample, Cody S. Hollist, Richard Miller, Olga G. Falceto, Carmen Luiza C. Fernandes

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The Marital Discord Model of Depression maintains that marital discord is an important antecedent in the development of depression. Although empirical evidence supports this premise, none of this research has been done with Latinos. The purpose of this study was to test the longitudinal relationship between marital satisfaction and depression among 99 Brazilian women. Using structural equation modeling, results indicated that marital satisfaction was a strong predictor of depression 2 years later. Marital satisfaction was also related to co-occurring depression. These results provide evidence that the Marital Discord Model of Depression is an appropriate theoretical model for the conceptualization of …


Nurturing Care For China’S Orphaned Children, Janice N. Cotton, Carolyn P. Edwards, Wen Zhao, Jerònia Muntaner Gelabert Nov 2007

Nurturing Care For China’S Orphaned Children, Janice N. Cotton, Carolyn P. Edwards, Wen Zhao, Jerònia Muntaner Gelabert

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

As the number of children orphaned or abandoned worldwide rises, we worry about their rights and welfare. Children without parents or loving guardians are vulnerable to neglect, poor health care, and diminished education. Many come to live in institutions where they may experience a host of long-term problems, including malnutrition, growth retardation, sensory processing difficulties, behavioral and attachment disorders, and cognitive and language delays (e.g., Rutter, Quinton, & Hill 1990; Judge 1999; Zeanah 2000; Beckett et al. 2002). Yet, people are finding helpful solutions. Half the Sky Foundation (HTS) conducts infant nurture and preschool enrichment programs that dramatically enhance the …


Frequency Of Heavy Drinking And Perceived Peer Alcohol Involvement: Comparison Of Influence And Selection Mechanisms From A Developmental Perspective, Gilbert R. Parra, Jennifer L. Krull, Kenneth J. Sher, Kristina M. Jackson Oct 2007

Frequency Of Heavy Drinking And Perceived Peer Alcohol Involvement: Comparison Of Influence And Selection Mechanisms From A Developmental Perspective, Gilbert R. Parra, Jennifer L. Krull, Kenneth J. Sher, Kristina M. Jackson

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The present study investigated social influence and selection explanations for the association between frequency of heavy drinking and perceived peer alcohol involvement in emerging and early adulthood. Participants were 489 young adults recruited from a university setting who were taking part in an 11-year longitudinal study, which includes 6 waves of data. Piecewise latent growth curve analyses indicated that patterns of change from ages 18 to 30 for both frequency of heavy drinking and perceived peer alcohol involvement are best represented by two distinct developmental periods (i.e., college and post-college years). Several models were compared to identify a framework that …


Students Learn About Documentation Throughout Their Teacher Education Program, Carolyn P. Edwards, Susan Churchill, Mary Gabriel, Ruth Heaton, Julie Jones-Branch, Christine Marvin, Michelle Rupiper Sep 2007

Students Learn About Documentation Throughout Their Teacher Education Program, Carolyn P. Edwards, Susan Churchill, Mary Gabriel, Ruth Heaton, Julie Jones-Branch, Christine Marvin, Michelle Rupiper

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Study groups and learning circles can offer a systematic way for early childhood teachers to interact about their work and create a culture of professional development. This paper describes how faculty systematically followed a collaborative co-inquiry process in order to improve a new early childhood interdisciplinary teacher preparation program. The team met on a regular basis throughout one academic year, with the stated objective of infusing observation/documentation knowledge and skills in a coherent and systematic way throughout the students’ program of studies. The group created a template of the cycle of inquiry, which could apply to all courses, and analyzed …


Chinese Family Strengths And Resiliency, Anqi Xu, Xiaolin Xie, Wenli Liu, Yan Ruth Xia, Dalin Liu Aug 2007

Chinese Family Strengths And Resiliency, Anqi Xu, Xiaolin Xie, Wenli Liu, Yan Ruth Xia, Dalin Liu

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Chinese family and marriage strengths and challenges are delineated in this article, including equity in marriage, affection, the ability to adapt to changes, mutual trust, compatibility, harmony, and family support. Despite the fact that Chinese households are getting smaller as a result of governmental policy and the broadening of housing markets, families remain crucial support networks, especially in the areas of socialization and intergenerational relationships. Current research on Chinese marriages and families is cited, outlining attitudinal changes regarding mate selection, divorce, and childbirth between genders, between older and younger generations, and between urban and rural residents.


Impacts Of Parents’ Divorce On Chinese Children: A Model With Academic Performance As A Mediator, Anqi Xu, Jiehai Zhang, Yan Ruth Xia Aug 2007

Impacts Of Parents’ Divorce On Chinese Children: A Model With Academic Performance As A Mediator, Anqi Xu, Jiehai Zhang, Yan Ruth Xia

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The study examined the impact of parents’ divorce on Chinese children’s well-being. A Chinese theoretical model was tested using Structural Equation Modeling. The sample consisted of 940 Chinese children aged 6-16. The well-being of children from divorced families was compared with that of two-parent and widowed families. The results showed that children’s academic performance mediated the negative impact of divorce on children’s well-being. The societal discriminating attitude towards divorce and single-parent families had a strong negative effect on the children’s well-being. Parenting skills of the custodial parent had more influence on the children’s well-being than the marital conflicts prior to …


A Dimensional Model Of Psychopathology Among Homeless Adolescents: Suicidality, Internalizing, And Externalizing Disorders, Kevin A. Yoder, Susan L. Longley, Les B. Whitbeck, Dan R. Hoyt Jul 2007

A Dimensional Model Of Psychopathology Among Homeless Adolescents: Suicidality, Internalizing, And Externalizing Disorders, Kevin A. Yoder, Susan L. Longley, Les B. Whitbeck, Dan R. Hoyt

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The present study examined associations among dimensions of suicidality and psychopathology in a sample of 428 homeless adolescents (56.3% female). Confirmatory factor analysis results provided support for a three-factor model in which suicidality (measured with lifetime suicidal ideation and suicide attempts), internalizing disorders (assessed with lifetime diagnoses of major depressive episode and post-traumatic stress disorder), and externalizing disorders (indicated by lifetime diagnoses of conduct disorder, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse) were positively intercorrelated. The findings illustrate the utility of a dimensional approach that integrates suicidality and psychopathology into one model.


Design Effects In The Transition To Web-Based Surveys, Don A. Dillman, Jolene D. Smyth May 2007

Design Effects In The Transition To Web-Based Surveys, Don A. Dillman, Jolene D. Smyth

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Innovation within survey modes should always be mitigated by concerns about survey quality and in particular sampling, coverage, nonresponse, and measurement error. This is as true today with the development of web surveying as it was in the 1970s when telephone surveying was being developed. This paper focuses on measurement error in web surveys. Although Internet technology provides significant opportunities for innovation in survey design, systematic research has yet to be conducted on how most of the possible innovations might affect measurement error, leaving many survey designers “out in the cold.” This paper summarizes recent research to provide an overview …


Nurturing Care For China’S Orphaned Children: Half The Sky Foundation Baby Sisters And Little Sisters Programs, Carolyn P. Edwards, Janice N. Cotton, Wen Zhao, Jerònia Muntaner Gelabert, Jenny Bowen Apr 2007

Nurturing Care For China’S Orphaned Children: Half The Sky Foundation Baby Sisters And Little Sisters Programs, Carolyn P. Edwards, Janice N. Cotton, Wen Zhao, Jerònia Muntaner Gelabert, Jenny Bowen

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

As the number of the world’s orphaned and abandoned children continues to increase, worry escalates among those concerned about their rights and welfare. Yet, people are finding some helpful solutions. This paper describes an international foundation called Half the Sky’s success in providing infant nurture and preschool enrichment programs, in partnership with Chinese national and provincial governments, through a coherent blend of cultural practices in curriculum and program operation. Both programs foster emotional intelligence and self-esteem, in a way that promotes peace education. Half the Sky opened two pilot programs in 2000 and today operates in 30 institutions in 12 …


Helping Respondents Get It Right The First Time: The Influence Of Words, Symbols, And Graphics In Web Surveys, Leah Melani Christian, Don A. Dillman, Jolene D. Smyth Apr 2007

Helping Respondents Get It Right The First Time: The Influence Of Words, Symbols, And Graphics In Web Surveys, Leah Melani Christian, Don A. Dillman, Jolene D. Smyth

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

We utilize and apply visual design theory to experimentally test ways to improve the likelihood that web respondents report date answers in a particular format desired by the researcher, thus reducing possible deleterious effects of error messages or requests for corrections. These experiments were embedded in a series of web surveys of random samples of university students. We seek to examine the sequential and cumulative effects of visually manipulating the size and proximity of the answer spaces, the use of symbols instead of words, the verbal language of the question stem, and the graphical location of the symbolic instruction. Our …


Family Income And Attitudes Toward Older People In China: Comparison Of Two Age Cohorts, Xiaolin Xie, Yan Ruth Xia, Xiaofan Liu Mar 2007

Family Income And Attitudes Toward Older People In China: Comparison Of Two Age Cohorts, Xiaolin Xie, Yan Ruth Xia, Xiaofan Liu

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Three hundred and five traditional college students and 159 baby boomers (40–55 years old) in China participated in the study with Kogan’s Attitude toward Old People [Kogan (1961) Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 62(1), 44–54] being used. Results from ANOVA showed overall, baby boomers held more positive attitudes toward older people than college students. There was a significant interaction effect between cohorts and family income; that is, the lower family income group in both samples did not differ significantly from each other, it was in the higher family income group that difference was revealed. Baby Boomers in the …


Attrition Bias, Richard B. Miller, Cody S. Hollist Feb 2007

Attrition Bias, Richard B. Miller, Cody S. Hollist

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

Attrition bias is one of the major threats to multiwave studies, and it can bias the sample in two ways. First, attrition bias can affect the external validity of the study. If some groups of people drop out of the study more frequently than others, the subsequent longitudinal sample no longer resembles the original sample in the study. As a result, the remaining sample is not generalizable to the original population that was sampled. For example, a longitudinal sample examining the grieving process of women following the death of a spouse may fail to retain those participants who have become …


American Sociological Association, Michael R. Hill Jan 2007

American Sociological Association, Michael R. Hill

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The American Sociological Association (ASA) is currently the largest and most influential membership organization of professional sociologists in the US. The ASA began its organizational life in 1905 when a small group of self-selected scholars representing several existing scholarly organizations (including the American Economic Association, the American Historical Association, and the American Political Science Association) proposed a separate and independent American Sociological Society (ASS) ("Organization of the American Sociological Society" 1906). The first ASS annual meeting convened December 27-29, 1906, in Providence, Rhode Island, with 115 members and a full program of scholarly papers. In 1959 the organization's name was …


Adult Social Capital And Track Placement Of Ethnic Groups In Germany, Simon Cheng, Leslie Martin, Regina E. Werum Jan 2007

Adult Social Capital And Track Placement Of Ethnic Groups In Germany, Simon Cheng, Leslie Martin, Regina E. Werum

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

The dictum that “context matters” notwithstanding, few researchers have focused on how social capital affects educational outcomes for ethnic groups outside of the United States. Using German Socioeconomic Panel (GSOEP) data, analyses highlight the group-specific effects of parental social capital on track placement among 11–16-year-old German and non-German students. For both groups, parents’ family ties fail to affect track placement. Parents’ community ties have mixed effects. Among Germans, parental involvement in sports affects children’s tracking positively. Among non-Germans, parental socializing with peers affects track placement negatively, while parental involvement in religion-based community groups and interethnic ties with Germans improve track …


It Takes Time: Impacts Of Early Head Start That Lead To Reductions In Maternal Depression Two Years Later, Rachel Chazan-Cohen, Catherine Ayoub, Barbara Alexander Pan, Lori Roggman, Helen Raikes, Lorraine Mckelvey, Leanne Whiteside-Mansell, Andrea Hart Jan 2007

It Takes Time: Impacts Of Early Head Start That Lead To Reductions In Maternal Depression Two Years Later, Rachel Chazan-Cohen, Catherine Ayoub, Barbara Alexander Pan, Lori Roggman, Helen Raikes, Lorraine Mckelvey, Leanne Whiteside-Mansell, Andrea Hart

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The Early Head Start Research and Evaluation Project, a random-assignment evaluation, found a broad pattern of positive impacts for children and families. However, there were no program impacts on depression or use of mental health services by the time children reached age 3, at the end of the Early Head Start (EHS) program. This paper presents recent findings from the follow-up study in the spring prior to the children entering kindergarten, when a positive program impact emerged for reducing maternal depression. Results show that earlier program impacts on children and parents (when children were 2 and 3 years of age) …


Providers’ Perspectives On Troublesome Overusers Of Medical Services, Richard Bischoff, Cody S. Hollist, Joellen Patterson, Lee Williams, Layne Prest, Matthew D. Barkdull Jan 2007

Providers’ Perspectives On Troublesome Overusers Of Medical Services, Richard Bischoff, Cody S. Hollist, Joellen Patterson, Lee Williams, Layne Prest, Matthew D. Barkdull

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to better understand providers’ perspectives of and experiences with frequent users of medical services. Focus group interviews were con¬ducted with physicians in San Diego, California, and Omaha, Nebraska. Indicators of problematic patient overuse of medical services were identified as well as the common physician experience of overuse that is troublesome and problematic. Qualitative data analysis revealed that physicians did not consider patient overuse, by itself, to be problematic. Overuse became problematic and troublesome when patient behavior violated the physician-patient relationship of trust. All participants described a distinct negative physiological reaction to these patients.


Culture-Related Strengths Among Latin American Families: A Case Study Of Brazil, Gustavo Carlo, Silvia Koller, Marcela Raffaelli, Maria Rosario De Guzman Jan 2007

Culture-Related Strengths Among Latin American Families: A Case Study Of Brazil, Gustavo Carlo, Silvia Koller, Marcela Raffaelli, Maria Rosario De Guzman

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

We provide an analysis of culturally-specific strength characteristics associated with families in Brazil. The focus is on familism and familial interdependence, the role of the extended family, cooperative and prosocial tendencies, a collective orientation, and the closing gender gap. The article is divided into four sections. First, we provide some background information on the demographics and history of Brazil. Second, the family strength characteristics are discussed. Third, case studies are briefly presented to illustrate the protective role of the characteristics. And fourth, we discuss the implications of the strengths-based approach to studying families for theories, research, and program development.


Development And Confirmatory Factor Analysis Of The Community Norms Of Child Neglect Scale, Rebecca Goodvin, David R. Johnson, Sam A. Hardy, Michelle Graef, Jeff M. Chambers Jan 2007

Development And Confirmatory Factor Analysis Of The Community Norms Of Child Neglect Scale, Rebecca Goodvin, David R. Johnson, Sam A. Hardy, Michelle Graef, Jeff M. Chambers

Center on Children, Families, and the Law: Faculty Publications

This article describes the development of the Community Norms of Child Neglect Scale (CNCNS), a new measure of perceptions of child neglect, for use in community samples. The CNCNS differentiates among four subtypes of neglect (failure to provide for basic needs, lack of supervision, emotional neglect, and educational neglect). Scenarios ranging in seriousness for each subtype were presented to a large community sample (N = 3,809). Confirmatory factor analyses indicated that a four-factor model provided a better fit to the data than did a model specifying only one overall neglect factor, suggesting this sample distinguished among the four subtypes of …


The Gunman In Blacksburg, Michael R. Hill Jan 2007

The Gunman In Blacksburg, Michael R. Hill

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

TWODAYSAGO, on Monday morning, April 16, while this class was in session, a lethal, hypermodern tragedy was unfolding on the campus of Virginia Polytechnic Institute, more commonly known today as Virginia Tech. The precise details of the deadly episode in Blacksburg are still preliminary and will undoubtedly be clarified in the coming days. What we do know is that a disturbed young man, a fully-credentialed college senior, shot and killed some thirty persons—black and white, classmates and instructors—and seriously wounded dozens more. He then took his own life. The shooter employed small, industrially-produced, rapid-firing handguns. It was an horrific happening, …


Howard, George Elliott (1849-1928), Michael R. Hill Jan 2007

Howard, George Elliott (1849-1928), Michael R. Hill

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

George Elliott Howard, a distinguished social scientist trained initially in history, rose to the presidency of the American Sociological Society in 1917. Howard earned the A.B. in 1876 at the University of Nebraska. Following two years of advanced study in Germany, Howard joined the Nebraska faculty in 1879. Howard's most prominent Nebraska student from this period, Amos Griswold Warner, later wrote American Charities (1894) - a standard classic in the field. Howard was named to the prestigious "First Faculty" of Stanford University in 1891.


Ward, Lester Frank (1841-1913), Michael R. Hill Jan 2007

Ward, Lester Frank (1841-1913), Michael R. Hill

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Lester Frank Ward, a man of modest origins born in Joliet, Illinois, was a major architect of American sociology. Prior to Ward's election to the first presidency (1906-7) of the American Sociological Society (ASS, now the American Sociological Association), academic sociology in the US had no independent national disciplinary organization save the unifying voice of the American Journal of Sociology, then edited by Albion W. Small at the University of Chicago. The ASS, under Lester Ward's pi


Visual Design, Order Effects, And Respondent Characteristics In A Self-Administered Survey, Michael J. Stern, Don A. Dillman, Jolene D. Smyth Jan 2007

Visual Design, Order Effects, And Respondent Characteristics In A Self-Administered Survey, Michael J. Stern, Don A. Dillman, Jolene D. Smyth

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Recent survey design research has shown that small changes in the structure and visual layout of questions can affect respondents’ answers. While the findings have provided strong evidence of such effects, they are limited by the homogeneity of their samples, in that many of these studies have used random samples of college students. In this paper, we examine the effects of seven experimental alterations in question format and visual design using data from a general population survey that allows us to examine the effects of demographic differences among respondents. Results from a 2005 random sample mail survey of 1,315 households …


Pound, Roscoe (1870-1964), Michael R. Hill Jan 2007

Pound, Roscoe (1870-1964), Michael R. Hill

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Roscoe Pound, sociologist, ecologist, and noted jurist, originated and promulgated the legal movement known as the American school of sociological jurisprudence. This revolutionary perspective remains the single most consequential application of sociological thinking in American society. Pound's sociological theories and empirical methodologies fundamentally transformed the prosecution and administration of US law for a full half-century.


Gilman, Charlotte Perkins (1860-1935), Michael R. Hill Jan 2007

Gilman, Charlotte Perkins (1860-1935), Michael R. Hill

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Charlotte Perkins Gilman was an influential and sometimes controversial contributor to early American sociology. Her Women and Economics (1898) launched a searching feminist sociological critique of the economic position of women in patriarchal societies. The primary site for Gilman's continuing sociological work was the Forerunner (1909-16), a monthly journal that Gilman wrote and self-published. The socially problematic issues that Gilman explored in her works echo theoretical proposals of Lester F. Ward (1841-1913), a founding American sociologist who admired Gilman and vice versa. Ward's concept of gynecocentric (i.e., womancentered) social theory reinforced Gilman's strong belief in the fundamental rationality of women's …