Family, Life Course, and Society Commons^™

Deciding On Leave: How Us Women In Dual-Earner Couples Decide On Maternity Leave Length, Medora W. Barnes

Sociology

This research contributes to the dialogue on maternity leave policy in the United States through analysing how pregnant school teachers with access to extended maternity leave decide how long a leave to take. The lived experiences of new mothers are examined through a series of longitudinal interviews with 16 public school teachers conducted at three points over the course of the transition to parenthood (pregnancy through first year). Findings indicate that although financial reasons played a large role in women deciding to return to work more quickly, issues of professional identity and personal happiness were also meaningful. Additionally, holding gendered …

Scaffolding As A Tool For Environmental Education In Early Childhood, Alex Zurek, Julia C. Torquati, Ibrahim H. Acar

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

This paper describes the process of “scaffolding” as a teaching strategy in early childhood education, and demonstrates how scaffolding can promote children’s learning about the natural environment. Examples of scaffolding are provided from seventy-four running record observations made over a two-year period in a nature-based preschool program. Qualitative analysis examined the extent to which scaffolding was used to support children’s learning about nature; the types of scaffolding strategies used by teachers; whether high- and low-support strategies were used in specific types of situations; the effectiveness of scaffolding; and what children learned when teachers engaged them in scaffolding. Examples illustrate specific …

Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Marriage, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Early marriage deprives girls of the opportunity for personal development and their rights to full reproductive health and well-being, education, and participation in civil life. Bangladesh stands out in international comparisons as having an extraordinarily early age at marriage for girls and a considerable average age difference in marriage between girls and their husbands. This Bangladeshi Association for Life Skills, Income, and Knowledge for Adolescents (BALIKA) fact sheet, “Highlight on Marriage,” concludes: In Bangladesh, marriage remains early by most standards and the majority of girls still get married before reaching the legal age of 18 years. By age 19, more …

Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Schooling, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

School attendance is universal in the Bangladeshi Association for Life Skills, Income, and Knowledge for Adolescents (BALIKA) study area, but the persistence of early and child marriage leads to high dropout rates among girls. Compulsory primary education is free in Bangladesh, and policies to improve access to schooling are generally credited with universal schooling at young ages. Only 1 percent of 12–15-year-olds have never attended school compared to 9 percent among 15–18-year-olds in the study area. The recent expansion of educational opportunity presents new challenges. Bangladesh is unusual by global comparison in the high proportion of girls who are married …

Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Married Adolescents, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

In Bangladesh, marriage marks the beginning of sanctioned sexual activity as well as increased social isolation. When girls are not in school, they miss the opportunity to interact with same-age peers and form social networks. They may be less likely to gain skills and knowledge and have less earning power. Married adolescents have poorer sexual and reproductive health knowledge and more unequal gender attitudes. Young girls who are married to much-older men are in a disadvantaged position to negotiate in their marital home. This can have implications for realizing sexual and reproductive choice and health rights. This Bangladeshi Association for …

Evaluation Of Health And Education Impacts Of A Girls’ Safe Spaces Program In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Annabel Erulkar, Girmay Medhin

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Approximately one in eight of the world’s population is a girl or young woman aged 10–24 and attention is increasingly focusing on the central role of adolescent girls in achieving global health and development goals. Areas of focus by the development field include girls’ education, health, child marriage, and the experience of violence. This study analyzes the educational and health impacts of a program for slum-dwelling girls, including child domestic workers and rural-urban migrants. Established in 2006, Biruh Tesfa (Bright Future) aimed to increase social networks and support for the most marginalized girls in the poorest urban areas of Ethiopia. …

Highlights From The Unicef Adolescent Development And Participation Baseline Study, Sajeda Amin, Ashish Bajracharya, Michelle Chau, Mahesh Puri

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This document presents highlights from the UNICEF Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP) Baseline Study in Nepal, which aims to ensure the systematic, ethical, meaningful, and regular participation of adolescents and focuses on vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. The program aims to empower adolescents, especially girls, to initiate and sustain activities and interventions that create positive transformation in their families, communities, and society, and bring about realization of their rights. The Population Council and partners led a study to develop a research design and implement a baseline survey to inform UNICEF’s ADAP program. The primary aim is to inform the program with …

Kalkidan (‘Promise’) Preventing Marital Transmission Of Hiv In Urban Ethiopia, Annabel Erulkar, Hanan Nourhussein

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

Most mainstream HIV-prevention programs focus on increasing knowledge related to HIV transmission and risky sexual behaviors. These initiatives often do not take into account gender issues or power dynamics, nor do they address the risk that marital partners face within their relationships. Such programs assume that marriage is a safe haven for women and that their HIV risk is minimal. In response, the Population Council launched the “Kalkidan” project to enhance couple communication, promote HIV prevention within marriage, reduce stigma and violence, and increase demand for HIV information and services, including prevention of mother-to-child transmission—which will collectively contribute to HIV-negative …

Enablers And Barriers Experienced By Grandparents Who Become Primary Caregivers Of Grandchildren: An Occupational Perspective, Janice Du Preez

Theses : Honours

Aim: The aim of this review was to identify current issues affecting grandparents who are raising their grandchildren in Australia.

Method: The study systematically reviewed twelve studies that evaluated supports for grandparents. The Checklist Analysis of Research for Systematic Review and the Quantitative and Qualitative Checklist were used to evaluate the studies.

Findings: Five support issues affecting grandparent-headed families were evidenced in the literature as being of priority. These include stress, intergenerational conflict, community support, legal and financial aspects, policies and service frameworks.

Conclusions: The paucity of research implies that further funding for large-scale research is required. Implications for informal …

Nutrition Education Curriculum For The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (Agep), Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) in rural and urban Zambia aims to build social, health, and economic assets of adolescent girls. A safe spaces component is at the core of AGEP. Girls groups, under the guidance of a female mentor from the same community, provide a safe and supportive learning environment. The meetings are critical in building social assets for vulnerable girls—including friendships, self-esteem, trusting relationships with adults, and social support. The training content over the course of the year varies from sexual and reproductive health and life skills to financial education and nutrition training. This collection is focused …

Promoting Respectful Maternity Care (Rmc) At Birth: Orientation For Facility-Based Workshops, Population Council

Reproductive Health

The goal of “Promoting Respectful Maternity Care (RMC) at Birth: Orientation for Facility-Based Workshops” is to orient service providers on the RMC concept along with a set of evidence-based interventions to promote RMC. Objectives of the workshop as indicated in this slide deck are: Outline the current status of maternal and neonatal health in relation to respectful care. Discuss key RMC concepts, terminology, legal and rights-based approaches related to RMC and the RMC Resource Package. Demonstrate knowledge and use of Values Clarification and Attitude Transformation (VCAT) theory and practice. Discuss selected evidence-based strategies that reduce disrespect and abuse. Discuss participants’ …

Physical Activity Barriers And Facilitators Among Working Mothers And Fathers, Emily L. Mailey, Jennifer Huberty, Danae M. Dinkel, Edward Mcauley

Health and Kinesiology Faculty Publications

Background: The transition to parenthood is consistently associated with declines in physical activity. In particular, working parents are at risk for inactivity, but research exploring physical activity barriers and facilitators in this population has been scarce. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively examine perceptions of physical activity among working parents.

Methods: Working mothers (n = 13) and fathers (n = 12) were recruited to participate in one of four focus group sessions and discuss physical activity barriers and facilitators. Data were analyzed using immersion/crystallization in NVivo 10.

Results: Major themes for barriers included family responsibilities, guilt, lack of …

Our Family Functions: Functions Of Traditional Weddings For Modern Brides And Postmodern Families, Medora W. Barnes

Sociology

In many ways the continued popularity of traditional weddings in the United States may seem surprising in light of the increased rates of divorce, cohabitation, and non-marital child-bearing in the latter half of the twentieth century, which have accompanied the rise of what has come to be called the "postmodern" family. This research draws upon in-depth interviews with twenty white, middle class women who recently had traditional weddings and explores the connections between the postmodern family context and the desirability of traditional weddings. Specifically, it examines how traditional functions of formal weddings are still relevant within contemporary society. Findings indicate …

The Changes In Mainland Chinese Families During The Social Transition: A Critical Analysis, Anqi Xu, Yan Ruth Xia

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

Modernization theory offers possible explanations for family changes related to advances in science and technology, and socio-economic development in industrial societies. Modernization impacts family structure, relationship, values and beliefs. Families become nuclear while people become mobile and the society becomes urban. Economic development provides employment opportunities outside the birthplace. Away from kinship network, a nuclear family is less influenced and controlled by elder members in the extended family in fulfilling its traditional roles and obligations (Parsons, 1943). The changes occur in all societies although they may vary in pace across societies (Goode, 1982). Modernization theory is criticized for valuing Western …

Family Policy In China: A Snapshot Of 1950–2010, Yan Ruth Xia, Haiping Wang, Anh Do, Shen Qin

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

The Chinese family policies are shaped by the country’s political, socioeconomic, and cultural contexts and have evolved over the years. China has passed its most significant family policies and laws in marriage; child rearing; child, women, and elderly protection; family planning; and health care in the past 60 years. This chapter will cover the most important laws and policies that affect Chinese families from 1950 to 2010. The discussion focuses on policy development, implementation and analysis, and the challenges China faces in relation to these policy issues.

The Cultural Contexts Of Children’S Prosocial Behaviors, Maria Rosario De Guzman, Kieu-Anh Do, Car Mun Kok

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

In 1976 Beatrice Whiting famously urged researchers to “unpackage” the concept of culture and related constructs. She highlighted the need in social and behavioral research to tease out the complex and often interwoven factors that might underlie superficial culture group differences in child outcomes and suggested looking more closely at the child’s learning environment, the details within which could provide important insight regarding children’s behaviors that could better explain how culture might be manifested in the developmental landscape (Whiting, 1976). Almost 40 years later, the importance of culture in children’s development is widely recognized, nonetheless researchers continue to wrestle with …

Head Start And Child Care Providers’ Motivators, Barriers And Facilitators To Practicing Family-Style Meal Service, Dipti A. Dev, Katherine E. Speirs, Brent A. Mcbride, Sharon M. Donovan, Karen Chapman-Novakofski

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

This paper presents a qualitative investigation of the motivators, barriers, and facilitators for practicing family-style meal service (FSMS) from the perspective of 18 child care providers serving preschool children in Head Start (HS), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) funded, and non-CACFP child-care centers. Providers were selected based on maximum variation purposive sampling and semi-structured interviews were conducted until saturation was reached. Provider responses were systematically coded using thematic analysis. HS and CACFP providers reported being motivated to practice FSMS because it created pleasant mealtimes, opportunities to role model healthy eating, and healthful child development. CACFP and non-CACFP providers …

Predictors Of Head Start And Child-Care Providers’ Healthful And Controlling Feeding Practices With Children Aged 2 To 5 Years, Dipti A. Dev, Brent A. Mcbride, Katherine E. Speirs, Sharon M. Donovan, Hyun Keun Cho

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

Few child-care providers meet the national recommendations for healthful feeding practices. Effective strategies are needed to address this disparity, but research examining influences on child-care providers’ feeding practices is limited. The purpose of this study was to identify determinants of child-care providers’ healthful and controlling feeding practices for children aged 2 to 5 years. In this cross-sectional study, child-care providers (n = 118) from 24 center-based programs (six Head Start [HS], 11 Child and Adult Care Food Program [CACFP] funded, and seven non-CACFP) completed selfadministered surveys during 2011-2012. Multilevel multivariate linear regression models were used to predict seven feeding practices.Working …

Intergenerational Transmission Of Emotion Dysregulation Through Parental Invalidation Of Emotions: Implications For Adolescent Internalizing And Externalizing Behaviors, Kelly E. Buckholdt, Gilbert R. Parra, Lisa Jobe-Shields

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

We examined parent emotion dysregulation as part of a model of family emotion-related processes and adolescent psychopathology. Participants were 80 parent– adolescent dyads (mean age = 13.6; 79 % African-American and 17 % Caucasian) with diverse family composition and socioeconomic status. Parent and adolescent dyads self-reported on their emotion regulation difficulties and adolescents reported on their perceptions of parent invalidation (i.e., punishment and neglect) of emotions and their own internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Results showed that parents who reported higher levels of emotion dysregulation tended to invalidate their adolescent’s emotional expressions more often, which in turn related to higher levels …

Examining Identity Consolidation Processes Among Ethnic Minority Gay Men And Lesbians, Heather R. Kennedy, Rochelle L. Dalla

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

Past scholarship has demonstrated shortcomings in developmental theories for both sexual and ethnic identity. Furthermore, identity development may be especially challenging for members of multiple minority groups facing significant social stressors. The primary goal of this study was to explore identity consolidation processes among individuals with intersecting minority identities. Using in-depth, personal interviews and self-report measures, data were collected from 16 ethnic minority gay men and lesbians. Themes such as acceptance, invisibility, and fear confirm the influence of social context on identity integration. Findings revealed differing magnitudes of consolidation. Greater social support and educational endeavors were critical factors in distinguishing …

“Robbing Peter To Pay Paul”: Economic And Cultural Explanations For How Lower-Income Families Manage Debt, Laura M. Tach, Sara Sternberg Greene

Faculty Scholarship

This article builds upon classic economic perspectives of financial behavior by applying the narrative identity perspective of cultural sociology to explain how lower-income families respond to indebtedness. Drawing on in-depth qualitative interviews with 194 lower-income household heads, we show that debt management strategies are influenced by a desire to promote a financially responsible, self-sufficient social identity. Families are reluctant to ask for assistance when faced with economic hardship because it undermines this identity. Because the need to pay on debts is less acute than the need to pay for regular monthly expenses like rent or groceries, debts receive a lower …

Coping With Unintended Pregnancies: Narratives From Adolescents In Nairobi's Slums, Joyce Mumah, Caroline W. Kabiru, Chimaraoke O. Izugbara, Carol Mukiira

Reproductive Health

This qualitative study examined the challenges faced by adolescents in Kenya with regard to unintended pregnancies and how adolescents in urban slum settlements manage and cope with unintended pregnancies. The study’s findings suggest that high levels of unintended pregnancy among young people in Kenya’s urban slums are linked to myths and misconceptions about contraception. Other findings underscore the fact that many young people lack access to contraception and reproductive health services; indicate that unintended pregnancies are linked to sexual violence; and highlight the need for government to manage the high levels of school dropout as a result of an unintended …

Achieving Mdgs 4 And 5 In Punjab: The Role Of Family Planning, Population Council

Reproductive Health

This brief focuses on the policy options available to the Punjab government to affect the province’s population growth by 2050 and its potential to achieve MDGs 4 and 5. Maternal mortality is a leading cause of death among women of reproductive age in Punjab—about 16 percent of the deaths in this age group are pregnancy-related. Approximately 6,000 women die each year in Punjab due to pregnancy-related factors. Pregnancies that occur too early, too late, or too frequently increase the risk of maternal death. Lowering fertility rates by increasing the use of family planning can help reduce pregnancy-related deaths. The good …

Unicef Nepal Adolescent Development And Participation (Adap) Baseline Study: Final Report, Sajeda Amin, Ashish Bajracharya, Michelle Chau, Mahesh Puri

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP) program is UNICEF Nepal’s endeavor to inform the design and implementation of an evidence-based program for adolescents. This ADAP Baseline Study Final Report documents the first comprehensive study of the lives of adolescents in 15 districts of Nepal with high levels of child deprivation where UNICEF is focusing its intervention. The ADAP Baseline Study is aligned with the National Plan of Action for Holistic Development of Adolescents launched in 2013, and highlights the sociocultural and behavioral aspects of adolescents in six domains: Education and Skills; Livelihoods and Financial Literacy; Enabling and Protective Environment; Gender …

Balika Fact Sheet: Highlight On Girls' Social Lives, Population Council

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

In Bangladesh, in addition to schooling, work opportunities, and family-building patterns, social networks, mobility, and civic participation are important dimensions of young people’s lives. Previous studies have suggested ways in which the seclusion of Bangladeshi women by purdah exerts a strong influence on girls’ lives. This Bangladeshi Association for Life Skills, Income, and Knowledge for Adolescents (BALIKA) fact sheet, “Highlight on Girls’ Social Lives,” concludes that school enrollment plays a positive role by affording girls greater mobility and access to clubs and institutions, and by promoting social interactions. Adolescent girls in rural Bangladesh are usually socially isolated, and have restricted …

Provision Of Adolescent Reproductive And Sexual Health Services In India: Provider Perspectives, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, K.G. Santhya, Santosh Kumar Singh, Shilpi Rampal, Komal Saxena

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

The recently launched Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram (RKSK) program seeks to enable all adolescents and youth to realize their full potential by making informed decisions concerning their health and well-being and by accessing the services and support they need to implement their decisions. To realize this vision, the RKSK framework acknowledges the strengthening of Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics (AFHCs) and providing correct knowledge and information through counseling services as two of its seven critical components. As the government makes an effort to roll out the RKSK program at scale across the country, reviewing the experiences of the AFHCs established under …

Hepatitis C Virus Infection Among Hiv-Positive Men Who Have Sex With Men: Protocol For A Systematic Review And Meta-Analysis, Holly Hagan, Joshua Neurer, Ashly E. Jordan, Don C. Des Jarlais, Jennifer Wu, Kirk Dombrowski, Bilal Khan, Ronald Scott Braithwaite, Jason Kessler

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Background: Outbreaks of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection have been reported in HIV-positive men who have sex with men (MSM) in North America, Europe and Asia. Transmission is believed to be the result of exposure to blood during sexual contact. In those infected with HIV, acute HCV infection is more likely to become chronic, treatment for both HIV and HCV is more complicated and HCV disease progression may be accelerated. There is a need for systematic reviews and meta-analyses to synthesize the epidemiology, prevention and methods to control HCV infection in this population.

Methods/design: Eligible studies will include …

“Bomb Talk” And Erving Goffman’S Frame Analysis, Michael R. Hill

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Erving Goffman’s Frame Analysis is introduced (together with several of Goffman’s basic concepts, including “strips”, “frames”, “keys”, “fabrications”, etc.) and applied to “bomb talk” (i.e., the different ways in which westerners discuss and/or refer to the reality of nuclear weapons). This analysis confirms (as Goffman predicts) that the manner in which everyday life is conceptualized and subsequently transformed is extraordinarily flexible. Goffman offers a coherent knowledge-producing system, one that is best carefully studied before applying his precisely-defined concepts to other aspects of our social world. Frame Analysis provides the means for analyzing the organization of everyday life and answering many …

Experiences Of Mothers Of Children With Autism And Aggression : The Process Of Becoming "Super-Copers", Christine Peters

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of 14 mothers who have children with Autism and aggression issues. The combination of marginalization, stigma and the impact of aggression were found to be an overarching theme with emotional effects of fear, despair, guilt and anxiety being experienced by the mothers. Using grounded theory and feminist disability theory, a process of coping emerged which included analyzing for aggression triggers, as well as searching and utilizing resources. The end result of this model was mothers becoming advocates or maintaining a level of coping. A significant finding of this study …

Social Security And Divorce, Marcus O. Dillender

Upjohn Institute Working Papers

People who have divorced are entitled to Social Security spousal benefits if their marriages lasted at least ten years. This paper uses 1985–1995 Vital Statistics data and the 2008–2011 American Community Surveys to analyze how this rule affects divorce decisions. I find evidence that the ten-year rule results in a small increase in divorces for the general population; however, the effects vary greatly by age. Divorce decisions change very little for people under the age of 35. For people 55 and older, however, divorces increase by approximately 20 percent around the ten-year cutoff, which leads to an increase in the …