Social support and outcome in teenage pregnancy

This paper presents information on the role and significance of social support for the occurrence of health and birth problems among adolescent mothers and their babies. Pregnant teenagers (N = 268) were interviewed during the course of pregnancy and again approximately four weeks after delivery, and hospital records were abstracted. The significance of family support, friend support, and partner support, assessed during the pregnancy, were examined in relation to infant and mother outcomes assessed at or after the birth. Infant outcome was indexed by birth weight, with gestational age controlled; mother outcome in terms of psychological adaptation was indexed by depressive symptomatology among adolescent mothers. Socioeconomic background was found to influence relationships between social support and both infant and mother outcomes.     

THE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG ADOLESCENT PREGNANCY, PREGNANCY RESOLUTION, AND JUVENILE DELINQUENCY

We apply criminological theories of social control to explore the relationships among adolescent pregnancy, pregnancy resolution, and juvenile delinquency. While most ever-pregnant girls have especially high rates of delinquent behavior, adolescent mothers exhibit delinquency levels no higher than those of their never-pregnant peers. Unlike adolescent females who end their pregnancies through abortion, those who keep their babies experience a dramatic reduction in both smoking and marijuana use. Our results suggest that among adolescent girls, the birth of a child has a strong trajectory-modifying effect. It serves as a mechanisms of social control and substantially reduces the likelihood of delinquent behavior.     

The role of social support in the psychological well-being of African American girls who experience dating violence victimization

The goals of this study were to test the relationship between dating violence victimization (i.e., verbal, emotional, and physical abuse) and psychological well-being (i.e., depressive symptomatology, self-esteem, and body image) among 522 African American girls, and to determine whether social support acted as a buffer of negative effects (moderator) or as an intervening factor (mediator) in the relationship between dating violence victimization and psychological well-being. Results from structural equation modeling indicated that dating violence victimization was associated with negative psychological outcomes. Although social support did not moderate this relationship, it served as a mediator of the relationship between dating violence victimization and psychological well-being. Dating violence programs for African American girls should consider how to incorporate family, church, and other networks in the community to foster support, and allow adolescent girls to discuss their abusive experiences in a nonblaming environment. If programs are able to buoy girls who experience dating violence, then they may be able to ameliorate the associated negative psychological sequelae.     

Does Adolescent Affect Impact Adult Social Integration? Evidence from the British 1946 Birth Cohort

Using data from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development (the British 1946 birth cohort), we take a life course approach with a sociology of mental health framework to examine the relationship between adolescent affect and adult social integration. The results suggest that being observed as anxious or sad in adolescence has long-term effect on adult social integration. These associations are not explained by adult mental health or socioeconomic status, for the most part. The results demonstrate support for social selection processes between adolescent mental health and adult social outcomes and suggest a disparate effect of type of adolescent affect on adult social outcomes.     

CLOSENESS WITH PARENTS AND PERCEIVED CONSEQUENCES OF PREGNANCY AMONG MALE AND FEMALE ADOLESCENTS

Using the 1994–1995 National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, we examine the association between closeness with parents and teen beliefs regarding the consequences of pregnancy. Unlike previous studies in this area, we include measures of closeness to both mother and father and examine effects for both male and female adolescents by family type (two-biological- or two-adoptive-parent, stepfather, and single-mother families). Our findings indicate that parental closeness is most salient for boys living with two biological or adoptive parents. For girls living with two biological or adoptive parents and boys and girls living in stepfather families, controlling for other aspects of the parent-child relationship, as well as adolescent, socioeconomic, and demographic characteristics, eliminates the protective influence of closeness to parents. For teens living in single-mother families, closeness with mother has no effect on beliefs about the consequences of pregnancy. Overall, our findings indicate that it is teen beliefs regarding parental viewpoints on educational achievement and engagement in sexual activity, rather than closeness per se, that has the link to adolescent beliefs about the consequences of pregnancy.     

Associations of Childhood Religious Attendance,Family Structure,and Nonmarital Fertility Across Cohorts

This article considers associations among childhood family structure, childhood religious service attendance, and the probability of having a nonmarital first birth before age 30 for non‐Hispanic White women born 1944 to 1964 using data from the 1988 and 1995 waves of the National Survey of Family Growth (N = 5,995). We found that attending religious services weekly during childhood and growing up in a 2‐biological‐parent family were associated with lower odds of having had a nonmarital first birth. These associations were quite stable across cohorts, although religious attendance was less associated with nonmarital fertility for the youngest cohort. We estimate that changes in these childhood experiences account for 22% of the increase in nonmarital first births across these cohorts.     

Violence in the Transition to Adulthood: Adolescent Victimization,Education, and Socioeconomic Attainment in Later Life

There is increasing speculation about links between violent victimization in childhood and adolescence and socioeconomic disadvantage in later adulthood, yet little work, either theoretical or empirical, has examined this issue. This paper integrates research on social and psychological consequences of victimization with theory and research on socioeconomic attainment to propose a theoretical model that situates adolescent victimization in the socioeconomic life course. Examination of data from a national sample of American adolescents (ages 11–17 in 1976) indicates a chain‐like sequence in which victimization diminishes educational self‐efficacy, which subsequently undermines educational performance and attainment. Through diminished educational attainment, adolescent victimization has substantial and wide‐ranging effects on socioeconomic attainment in early adulthood. Theoretical and policy implications of these findings are discussed.     

African American Adolescent Girls in Impoverished Communities: Parenting Style and Adolescent Outcomes

The relationship between parenting style and adolescent functioning was examined in a sample of 302 African American adolescent girls and their mothers who lived in impoverished neighborhoods. Although previous research has found that authoritative parenting, as compared with authoritarian, permissive, and disengaged parenting, is associated with positive adolescent outcomes in both European American, middle‐class and large multiethnic school‐based samples, these parenting categories have not been fully explored in African American families living at or near poverty level. Data were collected from adolescent girls and their self‐identified mothers or mother figures using in‐home interviews and self‐administered questionnaires. Parenting style was found to be significantly related to adolescent outcome in multiple domains including externalizing and internalizing behaviors, academic achievement, work orientation, sexual experience, and pregnancy history. Specifically, teens whose mothers were disengaged (low on both parental warmth and supervision/monitoring) were found to have the most negative outcomes.     

The Role of Contemporary Family Behaviors in Nonmarital Conception Outcomes of Nonmetro Women: Comments on Albrecht and Albrecht (2004)*

Abstract Recent research by Albrecht and Albrecht (2004) on nonmarital conception outcomes is extended using data from the 1995 cycle of the National Survey of Family Growth. Residential differences in nonmarital conception outcomes are examined, including nonmarital conception, live birth outcomes, and marital status at birth following a nonmarital conception. Analyses emphasize the role of more contemporary family behaviors in conception outcomes and the importance of distinguishing suburban‐metro from central city‐metro residence in studies that emphasize residential variation in family outcomes. Findings are that (1) nonmetro women have retained more traditional family behavior with regards to marriage following a nonmarital conception, (2) nonmetro and suburban women, however, have equally traditional family patterns and behaviors on many of the outcomes of interest, and (3) it is important to include contemporary family behaviors, such as nonmarital cohabitation, in studies that evaluate traditional family behavior among nonmetro populations.     

RELIGIOUS INVOLVEMENT AND EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES: The Role of Social Capital and Extracurricular Participation

Previous research has observed that religious participation is positively related to a wide variety of adolescent outcomes, including academic achievement, but relatively little is known about why this is the case. We focus on a group of related potential explanations for why religious involvement improves educational outcomes. We examine whether religious participation enhances academic outcomes among teens by the way in which it shapes their social ties, or social capital, focusing on both intergenerational relationships and on relationships with peers. We also examine the potential intervening role of extracurricular participation. Using structural equation models to analyze data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), we examine the potential role of social capital and extracurricular participation in mediating the relationship between religious participation and academic achievement, dropping out of high school, and attachment to school. We find that religious attendance promotes higher intergenerational closure, friendship networks with higher educational resources and norms, and extracurricular participation. These intervening variables account for a small part of the influence of adolescent religious participation on the educational outcomes in this study.     

Smart phone is a expectation-laden trophy: adolescent girls–adults’ mobile phone tensions and changing sexuality negotiation

This article is based on a study conducted in Nigerian Christian and Muslim neighborhoods on the intrigues that characterized adults-adolescent girls’ relations about how and when adolescent girls could use smart phones. Questionnaires, ethnographic interviews, school debates, observations, and focus group discussion methods were used to study the influence of smart phones on adolescent girls’ identity construction, adults-adolescent girls’ tension as regards ownership and use of smartphones, and new dynamics in adolescent girls-male friends’ relationship caused by smart phone uptake. For this population, smart phones display contextual symbolism that transcends their technological meaning, shifting girls’ social dependence from adults to peers and technology. Smart phone use has given adolescent girls a new way of identity construction, empowered them subtly in sexuality negotiation and assigned new roles to them. Adults’ concern about adolescent girls’ use of smart phones is rooted in their fears about the possible negative influences of smart phone use, which they see as entertainment driven and inimical to adolescent girls’ development. Findings of this study revealed that tensions between adults and adolescent girls over smart phone uptake originated from role reversal and expectation-laden nature of smart phones acquired by male friends, which effective mutual sharing of knowledge and resources could address. Adolescent girls should justify their craving for smart phones morally, socially, and psychologically. Adults and social institutions also need to rediscover their new roles in a world where digital innovations are necessities.     

SOCIAL STATUS,ADOLESCENT BEHAVIOR,AND EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

Education has long been recognized as an institution that plays a prominent role in the reproduction of social class. Children from socially advantaged backgrounds tend to achieve higher educational outcomes than children from more disadvantaged backgrounds. In this study, data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) were utilized to better understand the relationship between social advantage, high school educational achievements, adolescent behaviors, and educational attainment. It was found that individuals from socially advantaged backgrounds had greater high school educational achievements and were less likely to engage in problematic adolescent behaviors, and that these behaviors were, in fact, related to educational attainment. The socially advantaged did have greater levels of educational attainment. Most significantly, it was apparent that the socially advantaged were more likely to overcome low high school educational achievements and problematic adolescent behaviors to achieve higher levels of post-high school educational attainment. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

The effects of domestic violence during pregnancy on maternal and infant health

The present study examined the impact of domestic violence on maternal and infant health by assessing maternal health during pregnancy and infant health at two months postpartum. Two hundred and two women (68 battered and 134 non-battered) were recruited from the community and completed both pregnancy and 2-month postpartum interviews. Results revealed that domestic violence during pregnancy was associated with numerous health problems for mothers and infants including more health problems during pregnancy, more likelihood of premature labor, later entrance into prenatal care, lower infant birth weight, greater utilization of health care resources, and more prenatal substance use. After income was controlled, the relationship between violence and timing of prenatal care and infant birth weight became nonsignificant. Maternal social support was found to protect against the effects of violence for several health outcomes. The current findings suggest the need for domestic violence screening during pregnancy, as well as clinical interventions for battered, pregnant women in order to prevent serious physical and emotional problems for both mothers and their infants.     

Daughter‐Father Relationships and Adolescent Psychosocial Functioning in Low‐Income African American Families

This study examines the role of biological and social fathers in the lives of low‐income African American adolescent girls (N= 302). Sixty‐five percent of adolescents identified a primary father; two thirds were biological and one third were social fathers. Adolescents reported more contentious and less close relationships with biological than with social fathers. Multivariate regression analyses indicated that daughters' perceptions of anger and alienation from fathers was related to greater emotional and behavioral problems for adolescents, whereas perceptions of trust and communication with fathers were not predictive of youth outcomes. These relationships were generally similar for biological and social fathers, but differed according to fathers' level of contact with their daughters. A combination of low contact and high levels of either anger or trust in the daughter‐father relationship related to particularly deleterious psychosocial outcomes for adolescent girls.     

Childhood adversity,sense of belonging and psychosocial outcomes in emerging adulthood: A test of mediated pathways

Childhood adversity is a complex issue with the potential for lasting effects over the developmental trajectory. Research has confirmed that people who experience significant adversity, hardship and trauma in early stages of development are at an increased risk of a range of negative outcomes at later stages of the life-course, including increased psychological distress and dysfunction, decreased likelihood of educational engagement and an increased risk of early parenthood. However, distal events exert their influence on later outcomes through various proximal mechanisms. One such postulated mechanism is a sense of belonging. This study investigated the role of sense of belonging as a mediator between experiences of adversity in childhood and psychosocial outcomes in emerging adulthood, amongst a sample of 254 young people receiving a range of social services throughout Australia. Results of three mediation analyses confirm that the path from childhood adversity to psychological distress and educational engagement is only weakly mediated by sense of belonging. No other statistically significant relationships were found. These results indicate that additional mediators are likely needed to more fully explain the effects of childhood adversity on psychosocial functioning in emerging adulthood. The paper concludes with a discussion of the relevance of belonging for practice in the field of child and youth welfare.     

Der lange Arm der Bildungsexpansion: Die Bedeutung zunehmender elterlicher Bildungsressourcen für die Bildungsbeteiligung von Frauen in Deutschland

The study combines survey data from the German General Social Survey (ALLBUS) and the German Socio-Economic Panel (GS?O?E?P) to address the role of changing parental resources in explaining the long-run historical trend of women’s rising educational attainment in Germany. For West German cohorts, the analysis suggests a distinction between two historical periods: a first one for birth cohorts up until the mid-1960s, when daughters’ educational attainment increased uniformly across all social strata, and a second period among women from younger birth cohorts, for whom all observable change in educational attainment can be explained as a pure compositional effect due to rising levels of parental resources. Rising educational attainment among East German cohorts has followed a more complex historical pattern, however, as women first benefitted from rapid educational expansion and the equalization of educational opportunity during the first two decades of the GDR. With educational policies reversed since the 1970s, East German women saw their educational progress stalled, and class-specific educational attainment actually in decline up until the point of German reunification. With reunification, women’s educational attainment increased sharply, but, as among Western cohorts, mostly as a reflection of the growth of parents’ private resources. In both parts of Germany, parental education rather than class has been the key factor at the family level, and increasingly so the rising education of mothers.     

What is(n’t) a friend? Dimensions of the friendship concept among adolescents

Much research in network analysis of adolescent friendships assumes that friendships represent liking and social interaction, friendships are directed, and friendships are equivalent to one another. This study investigates the meaning of friendship for eight diverse cohorts of sixth graders. Analysis of focus group and survey data suggests that these adolescents construe friendship as a multidimensional role relation composed primarily of relational norms, expectations for mutual behavior. Their friendship definitions may also include mutual liking and interaction, and other structural expectations such as reciprocity, homophily, and transitivity. Lastly, boys and girls weight these dimensions differently in defining friendship.     

Evaluating Social Integration and Psychological Outcomes for Older Adults Enrolled at a University Intergenerational Program

Abstract

Intergenerational programs are proliferating. The basic assumption of such programs is that pairing older and younger people in various activities and contexts such as educational programs will produce positive developmental benefits for all participants. Educational programs appear to help adults to remain socially active and connected. The University of Valencia (Spain) initiated in 1999–2000 a “University Program for Seniors” for adults age 55 and over, entitled “Nau Gran.”The goal of this paper is to present baseline results on the benefits and impacts for older adults enrolled at the program during 2002. Results from a sample of 212 sophomore and junior older adult participants are presented. The questionnaire included socio-demographic information and items regarding health, social integration, and psychological outcomes. Results indicated that older adults attending courses at the University increased their level of social integration.     

Precursors of Nonmarital Fertility in the United States

The dramatic increase in nonmarital fertility in the United States has generally been explained in terms of either economic circumstances or changing norms and values. We believe that fertility motivations, and the intentions they generate, should be taken into account, and we hypothesize that nonmarital fertility is more likely when children are seen as an important source of social capital. Using data from the first two waves of the National Survey of Families and Households (N= 1,155), we find support for these views. Women who considered the social resource value of children to be high were more likely to have an out‐of‐wedlock birth than were those who did not. Women who did not intend to have a child were less likely to have a nonmarital conception than were women who did intend to have a child. We conclude that understanding recent increases in nonmarital fertility requires an appreciation of the social benefits that children bring to their mothers, married or not.