Family Relations and the Self-esteem of Adolescents and their Parents

Previous research, especially that of Gecas and Schwalbe (1986), relating adolescent self- esteem to parental support, control, and participation is extended in the present investigation, which examines the effects of parent-adolescent communication and investigates dimensions of parent-adolescent interaction that predict parents' self-esteem. The findings suggest that (a) adolescents and their parents have similar but distinct perceptions of their relationships; and (b) self-perceptions of these relationships, especially self-judgments of communication, are important in predicting levels of self-esteem for both adolescents and their parents. Our discussion focuses on gender differences in the relationships reported, the central role of communication within the family unit, and the reciprocal character of parent-adolescent socialization

Diversity within Lesbian and Gay Families: Challenges and Implications for Family Theory and Research

This paper describes and discusses diversity among lesbian and gay families along central dimensions of social stratification: gender, sexual orientation, generation, age, race and ethnicity. We examine implications of this diversity for traditional family theories, identify and discuss sexist and heterosexist assumptions of dominant family theories and suggest the usefulness of an integrative approach that combines insights from positivist and post-positivist theories. We conclude by proposing research questions, directions and methods to guide future empirical work, facilitate theory development and enrich our understanding of diverse family forms

Early Adolescent Self-Esteem as a Function of Social Class: Rosenberg and Pearlin Revisited

Self-esteem is postulated to be a function of social class in accordance with four theoretical principles-reflected appraisals, self-perception, social comparison, and psychological centrality. It is argued that the ascribed nature of social class among young adolescents makes it a weak determinant of their self-esteem, but that with increasing age socioeconomic position becomes more meaningful and thus more consequential for self-esteem. Data are presented which reveal a stronger association between social class and self-esteem among eighth graders than among fifth graders. One salient characteristic, academic skills, is found to be a strong predictor of early adolescent self-attitudes. Last, levels of self-esteem increase consistently from the fifth to the eighth grade, indicating a developmental trend toward greater self-acceptanc

Self-Perceptions of Black Americans: Self-Esteem and Personal Efficacy

This study examines the determinants of personal self-esteem, racial self-esteem, and personal efficacy in a 1980 national sample of black Americans. The findings show that the three dimensions are inter- related and each is anchored in interpersonal relations with family and friends. However, the three dimensions are produced by fundamentally different processes. Personal self-esteem is most strongly influenced by microsocial relations with family, friends, and community, while personal efficacy is generated through experiences in social statuses embedded in macrosocial systems of social inequality. We conclude that black self-esteem is insulated from systems of racial inequality, while personal efficacy is not, and suggest that this explains why black Americans have relatively high self-esteem but low personal efficacy. The belief that racial discrimination, rather than individual failure, accounts for low achievement among blacks is irrelevant to personal self-esteem and personal efficacy. In contrast, racial self-esteem is produced by a combination of education, interracial contact, and ideological processe

Family involvement with middle-grades homework: Effects of differential prompting

A middle-grades homework intervention was investigated to determine if variations in prompting families to be involved with mathematics homework would influence their level of involvement. The extent to which family involvement was a predictor of student achievement in mathematics was also examined, as were the relationships among family involvement, student achievement, and parent education level. Families in the 2 prompted groups were significantly more involved with mathematics homework than were families in the no-prompt group. Level of family involvement was not significantly related to student achievement on the post-test. However, students across the 3 groups whose parent(s) held a 4-year college degree scored significantly higher on the post-test than did students neither of whose parents held a college degree, even though reported levels of family involvement were nearly identical across parent education levels. Qualitative data elicited in follow-up interviews with family members indicated that "quality of involvement" with homework merits examination in future research

From the Editor

I am pleased to announce that the publication of Volume 72 of Journal of Marriage and Family (JMF) ushers in some exciting changes, new resources, and the renewal of a rich tradition. Since 2004, when JMF expanded from a quarterly publication to one with five issues per volume, the Journal has published issues appearing in February, May, August, November, and December. Effective with Volume 72, issues of JMF will be printed in February, April, June, August, and October. This change enables us to print issues bimonthly, eliminates production problems associated with publishing the final issues of each volume in consecutive months, and creates an opportunity for the Journal to expand to six issues per year (if and when that decision is made) by restoring a December issue

Review of GROWING UP WITH A SINGLE PARENT: WHAT HURTS, WHAT HELPS, by Sara McLanahan and Gary Sandefur

Integrating their insights from more than a decade of research on single-parent families, McLanahan and Sandefur rekindle the debate concerning the consequences for children growing up in households where only one biological parent is present. Their news is not good. Based on extensive analyses of four national data sets, the authors conclude that the disadvantages for children living with single parents are substantial, they occur across several important life domains, and they persist long into adulthood. The authors find that regardless of parents' race or educational background, children spending some part of their childhood in a single-parent household earn lower grades in school and are less likely to graduate from high school, less likely to attend or graduate from college, and more likely to be unemployed during late adolescence and early adulthood. Young women from single-parent households are more likely to bear children outside of marriage

Issues in training family scientists

Issues related to graduate education in family science, especially at the doctoral level, are explored in this article. Using Boyer's 4 types of scholarship ('i.e., discovery, integration, application, teaching) as a framework, we discuss the competencies family scientists should have, as well as the experiences necessary to help students acquire them. We propose ideas for a core curriculum for family science doctoral study. Controversies and unresolved issues are identified, and the training of family scientists for the future is examined

Developmental Change and Stability in Adolescent Self-Concept

This research challenges the traditional conception of adolescence as a time of stress and instability in self-concept. Using multiple measures of self-concept with a longitudinal sample, three components of self-concept are distinguished: the experienced self, the presented self, and self-feelings Feelings about the self are relatively stable from moment to moment and from year to year. There are apparently three routes through the adolescent years: stable, baseline, and oscillating. For most study participants, level of self-esteem increased gradually and only slightly from 7th to 10th grade. This study is unique because of its methodology (longitudinal and multiple measures) and its counter-traditional characterization of adolescence

Situational and Transituational Determinants of Adolescent Self-Feelings

Employing a new self-report technique (paging devices), the self-feelings of 35 adolescents were assessed in various naturalistic contexts. Regression analysis was used to assess the stability of self-feelings. Individuals fell into three groups: stable, oscillating, and unpredictable (the largest). For the sample as a whole, self-feelings were not influenced by the immediate context, although specific settings, activities, and others present within the contexts elicited various levels of self-feelings. More crucial for predicting the self-feelings of adolescents are such enduring characteristics as sex, social class, pubertal maturation, stability group, birth order, and number of siblings. The authors argue for a baseline conceptualization of adolescent self-conception from which fluctuations occur