Low-Income Mothers’ Material Hardship and Children’s Socioemotional WellBeing

Research suggests that children from low-income families are more likely to exhibit behavioral problems than children from wealthier families and these adverse behaviors have long-term detrimental effects on academic outcomes, health and earnings. In this paper, we examine the relationship between material hardship, an economic indicator that describes concrete adversities, and child behavior. Specifically, we use data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to examine the following questions; (a) Is material hardship associated with child socioemotional behavior, (b) Are particular hardships associated with socioemotional outcomes, and (c) Are there stronger effects for more recent or long lasting hardships? We find that children in households experiencing material hardship score significantly higher on aggressive, withdrawn, and anxious/depressed behaviors. Additionally, we find that a mother‘s inability to pay bills, having utilities cut off, and having unmet medical needs have particular adverse affects on child behavior.low-income families, behavioral problems, children, academic outcomes, health, earnings, long-term detrimental effects, child behavior

Educational gradients in nonstandard work schedules among mothers and fathers in the United Kingdom

Background: Mothers' and fathers' participation in nonstandard employment across children's lives is not well understood in the United Kingdom. Objective: The first objective is to describe the prevalence of nonstandard work schedules (e.g., evenings, weekends, nights) among employed mothers and fathers using longitudinal data. The second objective is to document the education gradient in parental nonstandard work schedules over the first decade of a child's life. Methods: Linear probability models predict participation in nonstandard work schedules, adjusting for demographic variables, at each survey wave by education for each parent, using the first five waves of the Millennium Cohort Study. Results: Employed mothers with less than NVQ2 (or less than high school) were most likely to work nonstandard schedules across childhood. Among employed fathers, there was little difference in the probability of working nonstandard schedules by education. The most common type of shift for mothers (30Š‒36Š) and fathers (nearly 42Š‒46Š) was evening work. Mothers and fathers with NVQ4 or more (college degree or higher) were most likely to work regularly in the evening at all ages. Night working, the least common type of schedule, did not differ by education for both parents. Mothers and fathers with the least education were most likely to work weekend schedules at all ages. Contribution: This article documents the pervasiveness of parental nonstandard employment, which has received little attention in the UK; finds that the education gradient in nonstandard work schedules is contingent on type of schedule; and critically incorporates information about fathers' nonstandard schedules

Women's Time Poverty: Differences by Family Structure, Employment, and Gender Ideology

Major changes in American families have influenced the ways in which women organize their work and family lives. The most dramatic change has been women's increased commitment to paid work which, as a result, has influenced women's time in household activities and childcare time. Population aging means working adults are more likely to care for their parents and older relatives. Changes in the workplace, including an increase in nonstandard employment and education related inequality in work hours and income, suggest a tension between work and family commitments for women facing a range of economic circumstances. This interplay of work and family obligations results in a time crunch, or insufficient discretionary time after considering time in paid work, household activities, and caregiving responsibilities. Women who are particularly prone to experience time shortages from day-to-day responsibilities are single mothers who have to juggle work and household commitments with half as many adults to provide economic and caregiving support. Single mothers also lack the economic resources to purchase goods and services that may free up their time. Literature on time deficits tries to capture time disadvantages using a construct called "time poverty"; however, there is a substantial gap in this literature because of the lack of focus on women and family structure. This dissertation seeks to fill this void in the literature by comparing time poverty metrics, examining differences in women's time poverty by family structure and work status, and investigating the extent to which gender attitudes predict women's time poverty

Understanding the Education Trajectories of Young Black Men in New York City: Elementary and Middle-School Years

Making targeted decisions about how, when, and where to intervene to improve educational outcomes for black males requires understanding the complex pathways that shape these outcomes. This study, undertaken for the Black Male Donor Collaborative, uses longitudinal data on a cohort of black males from New York City Schools to gain insights about the different possible student paths, with specific focuses on middle school and math scale scores

Race/ethnic inequalities in early adolescent development in the United Kingdom and United States

BACKGROUND Comparative literature investigating race/ethnic patterning of children’s health has found racial/ethnic minority status to be linked to health disadvantages. Less is known about differences during early adolescence, a period during which health outcomes are linked to later life health. OBJECTIVE Using the UK Millennium Cohort Study (n = 10,188) and the US Early Childhood Longitudinal Survey–Kindergarten Cohort (n ~ 6,950), we examine differences in socioemotional and cognitive development among 11-year-old adolescents and the contribution of family resources in explaining any observed differences, including socioeconomic, cultural traditions, and psychosocial resources. RESULTS Adverse socioemotional health and cognitive development were associated with race/ethnic minority status in both countries. In the United States, we found that cultural resources and family socioeconomic capital played a large role in attenuating differences in problem behaviors between Asian American, Black, and Latino adolescents and their White peers. In the United Kingdom, the explanatory factors explaining differences in problem behaviors varied by racial/ethnic group. In both contexts, family resources cannot explain the sizable cross-country differences in verbal skills. In the United Kingdom, Indian adolescents had nearly one-third of a standard deviation increase in their verbal scores whereas in the United States, Black and Latino adolescents had scores nearly two-fifths and one-fifth of a standard deviation below the mean, respectively. CONTRIBUTION We use a detailed race/ethnic classification in the investigation of racial/ethnic inequalities across the United States and United Kingdom. There are strong family resource effects, suggesting that relative family advantages and disadvantages do have meaningful associations with adolescent socioemotional and cognitive development. Although levels of resources do explain some cross-national differences, there appears to be a broader range of family background variables in the United Kingdom that influence adolescent development. Our findings point to the critical role of both the extent and nature of family social capital in affecting adolescent development

Parental absence in early childhood and onset of smoking and alcohol consumption before adolescence.

BACKGROUND: Parental absence, due to death or separation from a parent, has been associated with smoking and alcohol consumption in adolescence and adulthood. The aim of this study was to investigate whether parental absence in early childhood was associated with smoking and alcohol uptake before adolescence. METHODS: Data on 10 940 children from the UK's Millennium Cohort Study were used. Logistic regression was used to test associations between parental absence (0-7 years) and reports of smoking and alcohol consumption at age 11. RESULTS: Children who experienced parental absence were more likely to have smoked (OR=2.58, 95% CI 1.88 to 3.56) and consumed alcohol (OR=1.46, 95% CI 1.25 to 1.72). No differences were found by child sex or age, or parent absent. Children who experienced parental death were less likely to have drunk alcohol but those who had were more likely to have consumed enough to feel drunk. CONCLUSIONS: Parental absence was associated with early uptake of risky health behaviours in a large, nationally representative UK cohort. Children who experience parental absence should be supported in early life in order to prevent smoking and alcohol initiation.European Research Council [Grant IDs: ERC-2011- StG_20101124, ERC-StG-2012-309337_Alcohol-Lifecourse], Economic and Social Research Council International Centre for Lifecourse Studies in Society and Health (ICLS) [Grant ID: ES/J019119/1], Medical Research Council/Alcohol Research UK [Grant ID: MR/M006638/1]This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from BMJ Publishing Group via http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2016-31044

Social Media Use and Adolescent Mental Health: Findings From the UK Millennium Cohort Study

Background Evidence suggests social media use is associated with mental health in young people but underlying processes are not well understood. This paper i) assesses whether social media use is associated with adolescents' depressive symptoms, and ii) investigates multiple potential explanatory pathways via online harassment, sleep, self-esteem and body image. Methods We used population based data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study on 10,904 14 year olds. Multivariate regression and path models were used to examine associations between social media use and depressive symptoms. Findings The magnitude of association between social media use and depressive symptoms was larger for girls than for boys. Compared with 1–3 h of daily use: 3 to < 5 h 26% increase in scores vs 21%; ≥ 5 h 50% vs 35% for girls and boys respectively. Greater social media use related to online harassment, poor sleep, low self-esteem and poor body image; in turn these related to higher depressive symptom scores. Multiple potential intervening pathways were apparent, for example: greater hours social media use related to body weight dissatisfaction (≥ 5 h 31% more likely to be dissatisfied), which in turn linked to depressive symptom scores directly (body dissatisfaction 15% higher depressive symptom scores) and indirectly via self-esteem. Interpretation Our findings highlight the potential pitfalls of lengthy social media use for young people's mental health. Findings are highly relevant for the development of guidelines for the safe use of social media and calls on industry to more tightly regulate hours of social media use

Partnered Intimate Activities in Early Adolescence-Findings From the UK Millennium Cohort Study.

PURPOSE: Little is known about potential influences on emerging partnered intimate behaviors in early adolescence. We investigate (1) the prevalence of partnered intimate activities and (2) associations with social relationships, parental monitoring and supervision, health behaviors, and psychosocial well-being. METHODS: We used population-based data from the UK's Millennium Cohort Study on 11,079 participants aged 14 years. Partnered intimate activities were grouped into three categories: "light" (handholding, kissing, and cuddling); "moderate" (touching and fondling under clothes); and "heavy" (oral sex and sexual intercourse). Multinomial logistic regression models were used. RESULTS: Thirty percent of study participants reported not engaging in partnered intimate activity. Fifty-eight percent reported "light," 7.5 percent "moderate," and 3.2 percent "heavy" activity. Associated with increased likelihood (adjusted relative risk ratios [RRRs]) of intimate activities were confiding worries in a friend (light RRR = 2.13, moderate RRR = 3.42, heavy RRR=5.32), low parental monitoring-staying out late or overnight (late: light RRR = 1.62, moderate RRR = 2.44, heavy RRR = 2.32; overnight: light RRR = 1.57, moderate RRR = 1.94, heavy RRR = 3.38), health-damaging behaviors (per unit increase: light RRR = 1.91, moderate RRR = 3.15, heavy RRR = 5.03), and depressive symptoms (per scale point increase light RRR = 1.03, moderate RRR = 1.09, heavy RRR = 1.11). Confiding in a parent was associated with lower likelihood of intimate activity (light RRR = .82, moderate RRR = .65, heavy RRR = .65). CONCLUSIONS: Partnered intimate activity of some form is commonplace among 14-year-olds in the United Kingdom. Given the short- and long-term implications of adolescent sexual development and well-being, improving our understanding of influences could help identify opportunities for interventions with benefits across the lifecourse

Socioemotional wellbeing of mixed race/ethnic children in the UK and US: patterns and mechanisms

Existing literature suggests that mixed race/ethnicity children are more likely to experience poor socioemotional wellbeing in both the US and the UK, although the evidence is stronger in the US. It is suggested that this inequality may be a consequence of struggles with identity formation, more limited connections with racial/ethnic/cultural heritage, and increased risk of exposure to racism. Using data from the UK Millennium Cohort Study (n = 13,734) and the US Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (n ~ 6250), we examine differences in the socioemotional wellbeing of mixed and non-mixed 5/6 year old children in the UK and US and explore heterogeneity in outcomes across different mixed groups in both locations. We estimate a series of linear regressions to examine the contribution of factors that may explain any observed differences, including socio-economic and cultural factors, and examine the extent to which these processes vary across the two nations. We find no evidence of greater risk for poor socioemotional wellbeing for mixed race/ethnicity children in both national contexts. We find that mixed race/ethnicity children experience socio-economic advantage compared to their non-mixed minority counterparts and that socio-economic advantage is protective for socioemotional wellbeing. Cultural factors do not contribute to differences in socioemotional wellbeing across mixed and non-mixed groups. Our evidence suggests then that at age 5/6 there is no evidence of poorer socioemotional wellbeing for mixed race/ethnicity children in either the UK or the US. The contrast between our findings and some previous literature, which reports that mixed race/ethnicity children have poorer socioemotional wellbeing, may reflect changes in the meaning of mixed identities across periods and/or the developmental stage of the children we studied

Women’s time poverty and family structure: differences by parenthood and employment

Discretionary time deficits are a result of a disproportionate amount of time spent in paid and unpaid work. Such time deficits are related to negative health outcomes. Discretionary time deficits may be influenced by family structure,because other adults can provide additional economic and time resources.Research to date does not examine differences in discretionary time deficits by family structure. Using the 2003-2010 American Time Use Surveys (ATUS), this study measures discretionary time deficits using a residual time poverty measure and investigates differences in time poverty rates by family structure for women in combination of two social roles—worker and parent. Never married women have significantly lower time poverty rates as compared with married women. There are no family structure differences in time poverty among married, cohabiting, and previously married employed mothers. Living with other employed adults significantly reduces the odds of time poverty for never married women