Kin support and childbearing intentions: Polish mothers and fathers in Poland and in the UK

Reproductive decisions imply long-term direct and indirect costs. Individuals may draw on family, the market and the welfare state to reduce such costs, and to attain resources seen as necessary for childbearing. Reliance on different sources for childbearing capital may have diverse impact on reproductive choices. The evidence presented in this paper is based on 42 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Polish mothers and fathers in the UK and Poland. Respondents in Poland often resorted to the market and extended family to obtain resources perceived as important for childbearing. The pervasiveness and importance of long-term kin support in the Polish familialistic context, may however have negative consequences for childbearing decisions because many parents in Poland expect to invest rather heavily in their children long into adulthoods. Since children with fewer siblings have better access to parental support and inheritable wealth, having fewer children and investing more heavily per child is the preferred choice for many parents. Polish respondents in London did not (expect to) draw on kin support and the resources derived from the market and the welfare state were perceived to be sufficient for childbearing. Expectations about the necessity of long-term financial investment in children were overall lower in London than in Krakow. Living in the UK was perceived by many parents as providing their children with good prospects of succeeding in the future because, for instance, children raised in London learn the English language and will have British education which was believed to provide them with better employment opportunities. The link between kin support and childbearing intentions is however complex, context specific and could well change for an individual when they migrate

Kin support and childbearing intentions

Reproductive decisions imply long-term direct and indirect costs and individuals can utilise family, market and the state’s assistance to achieve resources perceived as necessary for childbearing. Reliance on kin help, social assistance and employment markets may have various impact on childbearing choices. The evidence presented in this paper is based on 42 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Polish mothers and fathers in the UK and Poland, conducted in 2011. The findings illustrate that specific socio-institutional settings are linked to different strategies parents employ to achieve desired resources related to their childbearing intentions. Respondents in Poland often resorted to the market and the family itself (nuclear and extended). The pervasiveness and importance of long-term kin support in the Polish familialistic context increases economic resources seen by respondents as necessary for childrearing and it has negative consequences for reproductive intentions because many parents in Poland expect to invest rather heavily in their children long into adulthoods. Polish respondents in London derive resources based on the market and the welfare state and their expectations about the necessity of long-term financial investment in children were overall lower than in Krakow. The findings also question assumptions about the meaning of categories used in surveys measuring childbearing intentions, e.g., ‘adequate housing’ may signify enough space for a child but it can also denote being able to provide a property for each adult child. The link between kin support and childbearing intentions is complex, context specific and could well change for an individual when they migrate

Childbearing intentions of Polish nationals in Poland and in the UK: progression to the second child

This study explores and compares the rationales behind, and justifications for, intentions about whether or not to have a second child among Polish fathers and mothers living in the UK and Poland. Drawing on semi-structured interviews (n=42) contextualised by media and statistical analyses, the thesis interrogates the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and explores the extent to which aspects related to the theory (i.e. attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control) permeate informants’ narratives. This thesis emphasises that researching fertility intentions requires more complex and context-specific operationalisations of theoretical constructs as drawing on standardised definitions and concepts across different populations could impact data validity and reliability, and I suggest ways in which survey questions could be modified. The findings demonstrate the importance of transnational groups of reference for Polish individuals’ understanding of resources deemed as adequate to have a second child, suggesting that the notion of economic wellbeing is more variable and complex than current evidence suggests. The study also illustrates that kin assistance in Poland is relevant for reproductive decisions since it relates to economic constraints to childbearing and to perceived requirements to provide children with kin support and inheritance. Moreover, individuals in both settings communicate beliefs related to childbearing intentions discursively, fine-tuning ambivalent and inconsistent cognitions while constructing a coherent narrative. The findings question the TPB assumption that people reach decisions primarily as a result of causal, regular and law-governed forces acting on theoretical constructs independent of individuals’ agency, and I point to possibilities to expand and refine theories used in demographic research. Although my empirical findings focus on Polish nationals, I argue that this research has broader implications for theorising, researching and interpreting findings on childbearing intentions

Cross-national comparisons: a missing link in the relationship between policies and fertility? A comparative study of fertility decision making of Polish nationals in Poland and UK

Our findings suggest that a framework to research fertility in contemporary societies in which cross-national comparisons are considered may contribute new and useful knowledge, however more research is needed to test the influence of cross-national comparisons on actual behavioural outcomes

Evaluating social care prevention in England: challenges and opportunities

Context: The Care Act 2014 placed a statutory duty on adult social care (ASC) to prevent and delay the development of needs for care and support. There is little clarity about how to translate this national obligation into effective local practice. Objectives: This exploratory study sought to lay the foundations for understanding approaches to this new duty by identifying: emerging local understandings of prevention; associated implementation strate­gies; and the potential for designing evaluation frameworks. Methods: Local perspectives were secured through: in-depth interviews in six English local authorities; reviews of local strategy, implementation documents and reviews of data sources; and methods for evaluating local initiatives in sampled authorities. Findings: Our findings indicate important differences between and within local authorities in conceptuali­sations of prevention. Although willingness to commission services was strongly linked to the availability of evidence on what works in prevention, council conducted limited local evaluations. We also found limited collaboration between ASC and Health in developing joint prevention approaches, in part due to differ­ences in conceptualisation and also constraints arising from different priorities and information systems. Limitations: The exploratory nature of the study and the small sample size limits the generalisability of its findings. Overall, the number of local authorities and respondents allowed us to explore a range of local views, opinions and practices related to the prevention agenda in a variety of contexts, however the findings are not generalisable to all English local authorities. Implications: Our study suggests that the limited local evidence about prevention, combined with finan­cial austerity, may lead to disproportionate investment in a small number of interventions where existing evidence suggests cost-savings potential, which, in turn, may impact authorities’ ability to fulfil their statutory duties related to preventing and delaying the needs for care and support. In this connection, we highlight the potential for developing local evaluation strategies utilising existing but largely unexploited local administrative data collections

When the grass is greener: fertility decisions in a cross-national context

In research and policy discourse, conceptualizations of fertility decision-making often assume that people only consider circumstances within national borders. In an integrated Europe, citizens may know about and compare conditions across countries. Such comparisons may influence the way people think about, and respond to, childrearing costs. To explore this possibility and its implications, we present evidence from 44 in-depth interviews with Polish parents in the UK and Poland. Explanations of childbearing decisions involve comparisons of policy packages and living standards across countries. Individuals in Poland used richer European countries as an important reference point, rather than the (recent) Polish past. In contrast, migrants often positively assessed their relatively disadvantaged circumstances by using Polish setting as a reference. The findings could help explain why, despite substantial policy efforts, fertility has remained at very low levels in low-fertility, poorer European countries, while migrants from those countries often have higher fertility abroad

Local Online Information for carers in England: content and complexity

This article reports on a study of local online information for carers in England. It sets this in the context of the Care Act 2014 which gave local authorities (LAs) specific responsibility for providing information to carers. The study selected four varied case study LAs and explored the content of their websites to see what carers might find available and accessible. We found the LA websites differed, with some LAs making use of local voluntary sector groups to be the main information resource. Mentions of NHS services for carers appeared often less comprehensive and there was scant mention of private social care providers as being sources of advice and information. The article suggests that social workers should be careful of referring carers to LA websites without checking that they are sufficiently meaningful to the carer and accessible to the individual. Care is also needed in not taking internet accessibility for granted

Mass spectrometry-based analysis of therapy-related changes in serum proteome patterns of patients with early-stage breast cancer

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The proteomics approach termed proteome pattern analysis has been shown previously to have potential in the detection and classification of breast cancer. Here we aimed to identify changes in serum proteome patterns related to therapy of breast cancer patients.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Blood samples were collected before the start of therapy, after the surgical resection of tumors and one year after the end of therapy in a group of 70 patients diagnosed at early stages of the disease. Patients were treated with surgery either independently (26) or in combination with neoadjuvant chemotherapy (5) or adjuvant radio/chemotherapy (39). The low-molecular-weight fraction of serum proteome was examined using MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry, and then changes in intensities of peptide ions registered in a mass range between 2,000 and 14,000 Da were identified and correlated with clinical data.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found that surgical resection of tumors did not have an immediate effect on the mass profiles of the serum proteome. On the other hand, significant long-term effects were observed in serum proteome patterns one year after the end of basic treatment (we found that about 20 peptides exhibited significant changes in their abundances). Moreover, the significant differences were found primarily in the subgroup of patients treated with adjuvant therapy, but not in the subgroup subjected only to surgery. This suggests that the observed changes reflect overall responses of the patients to the toxic effects of adjuvant radio/chemotherapy. In line with this hypothesis we detected two serum peptides (registered m/z values 2,184 and 5,403 Da) whose changes correlated significantly with the type of treatment employed (their abundances decreased after adjuvant therapy, but increased in patients treated only with surgery). On the other hand, no significant correlation was found between changes in the abundance of any spectral component or clinical features of patients, including staging and grading of tumors.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The study establishes a high potential of MALDI-ToF-based analyses for the detection of dynamic changes in the serum proteome related to therapy of breast cancer patients, which revealed the potential applicability of serum proteome patterns analyses in monitoring the toxicity of therapy.</p