Relational and Individual Resources as Predictors of Empathy in Early Childhood

The goal of this study was to examine children's cognitive and language development and social engagement of mother as mediators of the relationship between maternal emotional availability at 15 months and children's empathy at the ages of two and four. Participants were 661 low-income, ethnically diverse mother-child dyads participating in a trial of home visitation in the Denver area. Using home- and lab-based free-play episodes, mothers' emotional availability (15 months) and children's social engagement of mother (21 and 24 months) were assessed. Standardized measures were used to assess children's language development (21 months) and cognitive development (24 months). Empathy was assessed using a simulated injury paradigm at ages two (both 21 and 24 months) and four. The predictive models supported the hypothesis that the child's cognitive and social resources mediate the relationship between maternal emotional availability and children's empathy with respect to empathy at the age of two toward both mothers and an unfamiliar examiner. These results indicate that parental sensitive behavior is not the only important condition for predicting children's empathy, and that children's own internalized resources are a likely mechanism of transmission from parents caring for their children to children learning to care for others.     

Conditions for migrant mothers' socioeconomic disadvantages in Hong Kong

The present study utilizes both survey and interview data to examine the socioeconomic disadvantages in terms of limited social support, poverty, and non-employment in migrant mothers in Hong Kong, China. It seeks to understand the disadvantages from a social distance perspective, which holds that social distance hinders access to employment, and social and formal support. This article surveyed 837 mothers living in two impoverished communities. A subsample of 72 migrant mothers participated in follow-up in-depth interviews. Findings indicate the socioeconomic disadvantages and reveal some local conditions for the disadvantages. Specifically, the norms of childcare and self-reliance, social stigmatization of welfare recipients, and remote residential community come to shape migrant mothers' experiences of caring for young children. These findings provide implications to social work practitioners for targeting migrant mothers to reduce their social distance from local community resources.     

Behavioural and emotional problems of children by type of out-of-home care in Croatia

The aim of this article is to compare the kinds of behavioural and emotional problems of youth in relation to type of out-of-home placement in Croatia. Children living in children's homes manifest significantly more behavioural and emotional problems than other groups of children in out-of-home care or children living in their primary families. Children living in foster families or in family-type homes integrated in the community do not differ from a comparative group of children living in primary families. Regardless of differences among sub-samples regarding behavioural and emotional problems, the current problems of individual children in all groups of children in out-of-home placement were connected more to currently experienced stressors than to unfavourable circumstances before their removal. This indicates that there are benefits to be gained by improving services in the children's present care environment.     

Individual Differences in Children's Understanding of the School

Following previous research (Buchanan-Barrow and Barrett, 1996) which investigated the developmental trends in children's understanding of the school, this paper reports a study which explored wider influences on children's thinking in an examination of individual differences within those broad trends. First, the role of socio-economic class, gender and birth-order were examined for possible relationship to the children's understanding. Second, the attitudes of children, parents and teachers towards their school were investigated in order to assess possible links with the children's thinking. Children, aged 5-11, from two primary schools, were interviewed, with separate questionnaires being completed by their parents and teachers. Although the findings suggested developmental trends associated with age, there were also clear indications of other patterns associated with all the social categories examined in this study. Furthermore, there was evidence of context-effects, with links between the children's attitudes and their understanding of the school and also between parental and children's attitudes. Given the extent and significance of the factors which emerged, children's social understanding would appear to be complex and liable to vary according to their social group memberships.     

Family conditions, parental acceptance, and social competence and aggression in Chinese children

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relations among family ecological factors including parental educational and occupational status, family income and housing conditions, the quality of the marital relationship and social support, parental acceptance and rejection, and social competence in a sample of Chinese children. Four hundred and seventy-six primary school children in Shanghai, P.R. China, and their parents participated in the study. Children were administered a peer assessment measure of social behavior and a measure of their perceptions of parental behavior. Parents completed questionnaires concerning family background, parental acceptance and rejection, perceived social support, and marital conflict and satisfaction. Teachers completed a rating scale concerning children's behaviors in school. Information on children's leadership was collected from the school administrative records. Results indicated that parental educational and occupational status was associated with family psychological conditions which, in turn, were predictive of parental acceptance. Family capital resources were negatively related to parental acceptance. Results also indicated that parental acceptance was associated positively with prosocial-competent behavior in children and negatively with aggressive behavior in children. Parental educational and occupational status was directly associated with children's competent behavior. Finally, it was found that family psychological resources were positively related to competent behavior and negatively related to aggression in children, through the mediation of parental acceptance and rejection. Family capital resources were indirectly and positively associated with child aggression through the mediation of parental acceptance and rejection.     

Physical and social circumstances of children in Iran affected by the incarceration of the mother

The children of incarcerated parents have been a relatively invisible population. More and more children are being affected by the incarceration of a parent. These young people are already at high risk along several dimensions and tend to live under conditions characterised by poverty, instability and diminished access to sources of support. The study presented in this research explores the physical, social and psychological conditions of children in Iran affected by the incarceration of the mother, thereby contributing to the international literature by describing the problem of children of prisoners in Iran. Here we describe in an international perspective the physical and social conditions with which these children are confronted. The study comprises 33 children who had spent some time in prison with their mothers but were then moved to welfare centres. The most prevalent illnesses of these children were infectious diseases, bruises, wounds on lips and fractures of the hand. The Vineland Social Maturity Scale indicated that the children's locomotion and socialisation skills were relatively low.     

Mothers' Cognitions about Relational Aggression: Associations with Discipline Responses, Children's Normative Beliefs, and Peer Competence

Prior research has shown that parental social cognitions are associated with child outcomes such as aggression. The goal of this study was to examine mothers' cognitions about relational aggression, and to explore linkages between mothers' attributions and normative beliefs about aggression and children's competence with peers. Participants included 103 mothers and children in grades 3 through 6. Results showed that mothers viewed relational aggression as more acceptable and normative than physical aggression, and they attributed less responsibility to children for using relational aggression. Maternal cognitions also predicted levels of sternness and disapproval in response to child relational aggression, and children's beliefs about the acceptability of relational aggression, which were associated with children's teacher-rated peer competence. Sex differences in the patterns of associations between maternal cognitions, discipline responses, child norms and peer competence were found. Applications of these results to parent education programs that are focused on relational aggression are discussed.     

Differential Knowledge of Display Rules for Positive and Negative Emotions: Influences from Parents, Influences on Peers

The current study examined different types of display rule knowledge and their relation to parental control of children's emotional expression and children's social competence. A sample of 61 third-grade children (50% Euro-American, 40% Latino, and 10% African-American, Asian-American or other) participated in the current study. Children's knowledge of display rules for positive and negative emotions was explored, as were the different reasons for endorsing the use of display rules. Parental level of control of children's emotions was also examined. Findings indicate that children who endorsed the use of display rules for both positive and negative emotions were rated as more competent by both teachers and peers. Parental control of children's expression of emotion was negatively related to children's knowledge of display rules and better social outcomes.     

How do placements in kinship care compare with those in non‐kin foster care: placement patterns,progress and outcomes?

As the use of kinship care is set to rise in England, it is important that policy and practice developments are based on firm evidence about kin placement outcomes and how these compare with those in stranger foster care. The research reported in this paper was based on case file reviews of 270 children, half in kin placements and half in stranger foster care, and on interviews with a sub-sample of 32 kin carers, social workers, children and parents. Kin carers were found to be significantly more disadvantaged than stranger foster carers: more kin carers were lone carers, with health problems, living in overcrowded conditions and had financial difficulties. The children, in contrast, were remarkably similar in the two kinds of placement. The main differences between the children in the two settings are examined in the paper. The children's progress and outcomes in terms of placement quality and disruption were very similar in the two settings, but kin placements lasted longer, mainly because fewer were planned as interim placements. However, because kin carers persisted with very challenging children and yet received fewer services than stranger foster carers, they were more often under strain. The implications for policy and practice are examined.     

Fairness decisions in children and early adolescents with and without hearing loss

Although having universal aspects, development of a sense of fairness, a milestone in children's social development, is influenced by social and cultural forces. Yet, it scarcely has been studied in children who are at risk for their social development, let alone in deaf and hard‐of‐hearing (DHH) children, who have limited access to linguistic and social input. This study examined for the first time equity preferences in DHH children compared with hearing counterparts. About 179 children (8–11 years) and early adolescents (12–14 years) played four economic allocation games where they distributed coins between themselves and another child. Participants with and without hearing loss were similar in conditions that entailed non‐costly prosociality or self‐maximization. However, DHH participants showed weaker inequity aversion in more complex conditions: DHH children were more willing to allow other players to receive more coins than themselves, compared with hearing children and to DHH or hearing adolescents, and DHH adolescents were less willing to share resources when it was self‐costly, compared with all other groups. Findings are discussed in light of the tension between norms of social comparison and norms of prosociality, and how they are reflected in developmental trajectories for inequity aversion when access to these norms is limited.     

The roles of social support and family resilience in accessing healthcare and employment resources among families living in traditional public housing communities

This study relied on theories of family resilience to examine and differentiate the roles of community social support and family resilience in regards to access and utilization of healthcare and employment resources for public housing residents. The study assessed 234 public housing residents and used structured regressions to test the role of family resilience, internal and external community social support on outcomes associated with economic mobility. Results suggest that external community social support is associated with increased access to and use of health and employment resources. Additionally, residents with higher levels of resilience sought social support from outside of their communities to a greater degree, thereby increasing their access and use of resources. Increases in internal community support were associated with increases in external community support, but alone, limited access to and use of resources. Implications of the findings for policy, interventions, and future research are discussed.     

Children in Residential and Foster Care – a Swedish Example

The article reports on a longitudinal study of children placed in a children's home in Malmö, Sweden, at the beginning of the 1980s. The 26 children, placed when younger than four years of age and staying more than four weeks in the children's home, were followed up three and nine months after leaving the children's home as well as five, ten and fifteen years later. Interviewing the parties concerned was the predominant research method. Twenty of the 26 children in the research group also had later experiences of out-of-home care, including foster care, in addition to the stay at the children's home. This article is about them, 15–20 years old when interviewed in the latest follow-up study. Three aspects of "outcome" are focused on: the degree of stability in the children's living conditions; relationships to parents and foster parents; well-being and emotional and behavior problems. Bearing in mind that the concept of well-being is relative, a cautious conclusion is that a third of the children in the study experienced well-being, a third felt "o.k.," and a third had serious problems, including criminal activities and drugs. The somewhat unclear connection between well-being, stability in living conditions, and sense of family belonging is discussed.     

Moral Reasoning in Violent Contexts: Displaced and Non-displaced Colombian Children's Evaluations of Moral Transgressions, Retaliation, and Reconciliation

In order to assess the effects of displacement and exposure to violence on children's moral reasoning, Colombian children exposed to minimal violence (non-displaced or low risk; N  =  99) and to extreme violence (displaced or high risk; N  =  94), evenly divided by gender at 6, 9, and 12 years of age, were interviewed regarding their evaluation of peer-oriented moral transgressions (hitting and not sharing toys). The vast majority of children evaluated moral transgressions as wrong. Group and age differences were revealed, however, regarding provocation and retaliation. Children who were exposed to violence, in contrast to those with minimum exposure, judged it more legitimate to inflict harm or deny resources when provoked and judged it more reasonable to retaliate for reasons of retribution. Surprisingly, and somewhat hopefully, all children viewed reconciliation as feasible. The results are informative regarding theories of morality, culture, and the effects of violence on children's social development.     

Father Custody and Social Development in Boys and Girls

The effects of father custody on children's social development are being studied by comparing children whose fathers have been awarded custody, children whose mothers have been awarded custody, and children from intact families. Half of the subjects are boys, and half are girls aged 6–11 years. Families are matched on SES, family size, and sibling status. The data presented here were based primarily on videotaped observations of parent-child interaction in 60 families. The most intriguing findings to date suggest that children living with the opposite sex parent (father custody girls and mother custody boys) are less well adjusted than children living with the same sex parent. However, in both father custody and mother custody families, authoritative parenting by the custodial parent was positively linked with the child's competent social behavior. Also, in both sets of divorced families, contact with additional adult caretakers was associated with positive social behaviors shown by the child.     

父母期望的自证预言效应农民工子女研究

自证预言效应广泛存在于社会生活各个领域。本文在概要评述自证预言概念的缘起、发展及其实现过程的基础上,运用质性研究与量化研究相结合的三角测量法,考察了农民工子女的父母期望对其学业成就的影响。研究认为,父母期望具有强有力的自证性影响。在“父母感知”与“孩子学业成绩”之间的相关关系中,有3/5是源于父母期望的自我证实。研究还发现,亲子沟通质量是父母期望正确性的调节变量,父母期望存在着言语报告和行为表现上的不一致。     

Social services provided for physically abused children in Sweden: background factors and interventions

This study aims at describing and analysing what kinds of social services are provided for physically abused children in Sweden. The social services files were examined for 113 children under 15 years of age (67 boys and 46 girls) who had been reported to the police as having been physically abused by a parent or equivalent caretaker in a particular police district. The children's social services files indicated an increased risk of a parental abusive behaviour prior to the abuse incident. There had been former interventions in 81 per cent of the families and previous reports on neglect or abuse in 44 per cent of the 113 families. After the abuse incident, investiga-tions were opened in 80 per cent of the cases. The three most common interventions were placement in foster care, referrals to Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Service and Social Services support contacts. The study shows that there was a tendency towards more proactive work with injured children, children of immigrant parents and children of mentally ill parents.     

Individualized education programmes and parental behaviours for children with disabilities: moderation effects of head start on children's developmental outcomes

This study examined associations among Head Start attendance, individualized education programmes (IEPs), parental behaviours and child outcomes in a sample of five‐hundred and seventy 3‐ to 4‐year‐old children with disabilities. Home language, number of disabilities and Head Start enrollment were associated with having an IEP. Parents of children with IEPs and those who participated in Head Start used more social services, while social support was more prevalent for parents of non‐Head Start children with IEPs. For all children, frequent parental book reading, greater number of books in the home and greater perceived social support among parents were associated with favourable cognitive and social–emotional outcomes. Greater social service use was adversely associated with reading scores only for non‐Head Start children. Findings highlight the need for inclusive IEP policies and Head Start programmes for parents regarding access to special education supports for children who demonstrate developmental concerns. Participation in Head Start may buffer negative effects of social service use on children's reading skill development, although more research is needed to uncover the specific mechanisms responsible for this association.     

Children living with parental substance misuse: A cross‐sectional profile of children and families referred to children's social care

Parental substance misuse is a significant public health and children's rights issue. In the United Kingdom, social workers frequently work with children and families affected by substance misuse. However, relatively little is known about this population, particularly at point of referral to children's social care. This paper reports on the largest known study of parental substance misuse as a feature of children's social care work in England. The paper provides a cross‐sectional profile of 299 children living with parental substance misuse and referred to children's social care in one local authority in England. Data were collected from social work case files at the point of referral to social care about the child, family, the wider environment, and parental substance misuse. The findings show that children affected by parental substance misuse frequently had other support needs relating to their well‐being and mental health. Children were also likely to be experiencing other parental and environmental risk factors. The significant historical—and in some cases intergenerational—social care involvement for some families indicates potential issues with the capacity of services to meet needs. Recommendations for practice are discussed with a particular focus on the need for early, comprehensive support for children and families.     

与祖辈同住:当前中国家庭的三代居住安排与青少年的学业表现

通过分析具有全国代表性的初中学生样本数据，本研究考察了影响当前中国家庭三代共同居住的决定因素、三代居住安排与青少年学业表现之间的关系及其中间机制。首先，家庭社会经济地位较低、母亲在职或单亲家庭的青少年更可能与祖辈同住。其次，代际居住安排会显著影响青少年的学业表现，控制了其他因素之后，三代共同居住（与祖辈同住）家庭的学生的学业表现要优于两代核心家庭的学生。第三，与祖辈同住的效应受到家庭社会经济地位和家庭结构的调节，来自较低阶层或非双亲家庭的学生从与祖辈同住中获益更多。最后，与祖辈同住在一定程度上通过加强亲子间的家庭社会资本这一机制作用于学生的学业表现。本文表明，在现代社会，家庭亲属网络仍然对个体的地位获得或社会流动具有十分重要的作用。     

Emotion Regulation in Low-income Preschoolers

The present study was concerned with identifying the causes of low-income preschoolers' negative emotions and their most common regulation responses. The relations of family socialization practices and temperament to the children's emotion regulation skills were also examined. Ninety predominantly minority low-income preschoolers (46 boys) and their mothers participated. During visits to the children's preschools, observers watched for expressions of anger and sadness, and recorded the causes of the displays and the children's reactions. Mothers reported on their emotion socialization and discipline practices and their children's temperament. Although the children expressed more anger than sadness, they used more constructive reactions in response to sadness and more non-constructive reactions in response to anger. Maternal reports of appropriate family emotion were associated with low levels of non-constructive regulation responses to anger and sadness whereas reports of inconsistent parental discipline were generally associated with non-constructive regulation responses. All in all, the findings of this study are in accord with findings on middle-income children and indicate that low- and middle-income children are more alike than different with regard to the regulation of negative emotion in the peer environment.