The development of a dyadic assessment for families experiencing

Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a chronic disease involving curvature of the spine that is typically diagnosed in late childhood and early adolescence. The timing of most AIS diagnoses and subsequent treatment occur at a critical point developmentally and may place strain on the parent-adolescent relationship. The present study developed a measure, The AIS Dyadic Assessment, of the parent-adolescent relationship affected by AIS. This measure assessed three aspects of the parent-adolescent relationship: Communication Skills, Emotion Regulation, and Mutual Agreement about AIS. Twenty-six female adolescents who were currently prescribed a brace as part of their AIS treatment, and their mothers, participated. Dyads in the present sample were relatively high functioning and appeared to be coping well with AIS treatment. They rated their overall communication and problem-solving skills highly and were in agreement regarding basic facts related to the daughters\u27 AIS diagnosis and treatment. The AIS Dyadic Assessment had preliminary and tentative evidence of reliability, convergent validity, and utility. Secondary aims of the study included novel application of the most commonly used measure in AIS research, the Scoliosis Research Society Outcomes Instrument-22r, to dyadic research. Dyads were in complete agreement on this scale. Results from the study contributed to the AIS literature by providing information on the effects of family system variables on adolescents\u27 treatment, by informing psychosocial assessment practices in research and clinical practice and by directly comparing two different modalities of data collection

Child language brokers’ representations of parent-child relationships

This paper reports the analysis of qualitative data from a broader study of young people’s representations of conflicting roles in child development. Just over a quarter of the group, bilingual students who spoke a variety of first languages, had had personal experience of child language brokering (CLB). Employing vignette methodology, they were invited to reflect on the implications of an adolescent boy’s language brokering activities for, among other things, his relationships within his family. In this paper we will present brief case studies to illustrate different positions that members of the group adopted in relation to developmental scripts emphasizing independence and interdependence between young people and their parents (Dorner et al. 2008). Through an analysis of individual CLB case studies, we illustrate various ways in which individual young people reported the balancing of the demands of autonomy and connectedness in their analysis of relationships between young people and their parents

Recent research on child language brokering in the United Kingdom

Recent patterns of migration and population change in the UK have led in some places to a need for child language brokering (CLB). Although there is only limited evidence on CLB in the UK, the research that has been published indicates the diversity of the phenomenon and suggests its frequency and significance in the lives of some families. In this paper we review a range of small scale studies from different research centres to illustrate that diversity. The research has highlighted ways in which language brokering often elides into cultural brokering with young children playing a brokering role within as well as outside their families. An important line of enquiry has been research on the CLB process itself, but detailed studies of how children and young people respond to the challenges of translation in different settings remain elusive, as do studies of the impact that the activity has on their interactions with others. A key issue for the children and parents involved is others’ perceptions of and reaction to CLB, including not only the professionals and officials with whom they deal but also their peers at school and elsewhere who are not involved in language brokering. Ultimately CLB is of theoretical interest not only for the light it throws on children’s language learning and acculturation but also for the challenge it presents to traditional notions of child development and family role

Using the vignette methodology as a tool for exploring cultural identity positions : European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLI) Special Interest Group 21: Learning and Teaching in Culturally Diverse Settings: Moving through cultures of learning

In this paper we will examine how the vignette methodology can aid understanding of cultural identity. Vignettes are typically short stories about a fictional character or fictional scenario appropriate to a particular study. The story places the behaviour of the character in a concrete context and allows the researcher to explore participants? positions and perspectives on the issues arising from the situation. We argue that within a framework of cultural development theory and the dialogical self theory (Hermans, 2001) identity positions can be explained in relation to the sociocultural context. To do so we report on part of wider study about representations of children who work. In particular this paper will focus on language brokering which involves translating or interpreting on behalf of family members who do not speak the host language. Language brokering requires the child to engage in both the cultural contexts of the host culture and the home culture and as such, the child must negotiate new cultural identities. Those interviewed were young people aged between 15-18 years, some of whom were brokers and others who were not. When looking at the language broker vignette scenario these young people often positioned the parents, teachers and friends of the language broker in the scenario in particular ways. Through notions of adequacy and inadequacy, visibility and invisibility, theoretical ideas around cultural identity theory and the dialogical self theory can provide an understanding of how the young people moved through different (often conflicting) identity positions

Global water outlook to 2025

"... Based on a global model of supply and demand for food and water, this report shows that if current water policies continue, farmers will indeed find it difficult to meet the world's food needs. Hardest hit will be the world's poorest people. The results from the model used in this report also show the consequences of changing the course of water policy. Further inattention to water-related investments and policies will produce a severe water crisis, which will lead in turn to a food crisis. A commitment to sustainable use of water, through appropriate policies and investments, however, will lead to a more water- and food-secure world. Water may be a scarce resource, but humans have developed many ways of using it more efficiently — that is, getting more from each unit of water. But water-saving policies, practices, and technologies are of no help if they are not used. Inappropriate incentives and institutions often hinder effective use of water. This report spells out the future results of our current choices." Authors' Introduction

Water and food to 2025

The world's farmers will likely need to produce enough food to feed 8 billion people by 2025, and to do so they must have enough water to raise their crops. Yet farmers are already competing with industry, domestic water users, and the environment for access to the world's finite supply of water. Will available freshwater meet the rapidly growing demands for household, industrial, and environmental needs and still provide enough water to produce food for a burgeoning population? New research from IFPRI shows what steps policymakers and water users can take now to help ensure that water scarcity will not result in worsening hunger for the world's poorest people.

March 2008 Economic development report, no. 5

March 2008.Includes bibliographical references

July 2008 Economic development report, no. 7

July 2008.Includes bibliographical references

January 2008 Economic development report, no. 1

January 2008.Includes bibliographical references