The Effects of Divorce on the Academic Achievement of High School Seniors

Abstract

The divorce rate in the United States has climbed at an astounding rate during the past 80 years. Consequences of this change in family structure have impacted millions of children in a variety of ways. This study assessed the impact of divorce in relation to students' academic achievement. Two hypotheses were introduced reflecting expectations suggested by previous studies. High school seniors from a middle class school in a Rocky Mountain State served as the population for this study.

The results suggest that family structure impacts both the grade point average and attendance of high school students. Adolescents from intact families outperform those students from other family structures. One of the most surprising findings was that these results were most pronounced for females. Females were more negatively impacted by family structures due to divorce than were males.     

What Shall We Call Ourselves? Last Names Among Lesbian,Gay, and Heterosexual Couples and Their Adopted Children

ABSTRACT

Choices of last names for both adults and children are important family decisions that are often made upon marriage or upon the birth of a child. The gendered nature of such choices among heterosexual populations is well known, but they have not been widely studied among lesbian or gay populations. We studied selection of last names among 106 adoptive families—27 headed by lesbian couples, 29 headed by gay couples, and 50 headed by heterosexual couples—all of whom had adopted children at birth or in the first weeks of life. Whether in selection of last names for adults or for children, we found that heterosexual adoptive couples were more likely than lesbian and gay adoptive couples to follow patronymic conventions. Thus, heterosexual parents and their children were most likely to have identical last names. For lesbian and gay couples, in contrast, the most common scenario was for both adults to retain last names given to them at birth and hyphenate them to create last names for their children. Parents in lesbian and gay couples offered more detailed explanations of their choices than did those in heterosexual couples. Explanations offered by heterosexual parents were most likely to refer to tradition, but those given by same-sex parents were more likely to mention egalitarian or practical considerations. Overall, we found that same-sex and other-sex couples took very different approaches to the problem of naming themselves and their children.     

Correlated factors with filial piety expectations of older Koreans and Korean-Americans

ABSTRACT

Changing filial piety expectations have been examined from the viewpoint of younger generations. However, research on older adults’ perspective of this cultural phenomenon is virtually absent from the empirical literature. In an effort to address the changing family life circumstances of Korean and Korean-American families, this study explores older adults’ filial expectations from their own children and correlated factors associated with the expectation. The cross-sectional survey study with 449 older adults found that the majority of respondents still believe that adult children should assume responsibility for the care of their parents. Several factors such as age, education, income, living arrangements, self-rated health, year of immigration, and social support were significantly correlated with filial expectations among older Korean-Americans. Only satisfaction with social support received from family and friends was significantly related to older Koreans’ expectations. Implications for social work practice are discussed and further research directions are suggested.     

Comparative Study of the Opinions and Beliefs of Undergraduate Students in Nigeria and the United States toward Family Size

Abstract

Previous studies have indicated that fertility tends to be inversely related to level of education. Thus the author hypothesized that there would be no difference between the undergraduates of a Nigerian university and those at an American university with regards to opinions on family size. This null hypothesis was found to be untrue; Nigerian students, both male and female, preferred large families when compared to their U.S. counterparts.     

Longitudinal Connections Between Parenting and Peer Relationships in Adoptive and Biological Families

SUMMARY

The links between parent-reported parent-child relationship quality and teacher-reported peer relationship quality were investigated in a sample of biological and adoptive families in the Colorado Adoption Project (CAP; n = 423 children). Data were analyzed using a multilevel model approach. Results indicated that teacher-rated popularity, but not peer problems, was significantly influenced by genetic factors. Longitudinal analyses indicated that parental report of warmth/ support and child-reported family expressiveness at age 10 years both predicted teacher-rated popularity at age 12 after age 10 popularity was statistically controlled. Also, parental negative control at age 10 years predicted a positive change in peer problems at age 12 years. The effect of parent-child relationship quality on the change in peer relationship quality was obtained in both biological and adoptive families. Finally, evidence of reciprocal influence over time was found for parental negative control and peer problems.     

The Role of Companion Animals Throughout the Family Life Cycle

ABSTRACT

This paper examines the roles that companion animals play in the lives of American families, and discusses how those roles change as families progress through the stages of the family life cycle. It highlights the importance of pets in the lives of children and the benefits they receive from such relationships. It also presents information regarding the role of a child that animals often assume within families that do not have children. This paper also discusses the impact that the death of a pet has on the family, and provides suggestions for social workers who assist families that have strong attachment to companion animals.     

The Educational Expectations of South African Youth

Abstract

Educational expectations, in particular the relationship between race/ethnicity and educational expectations, have been understudied in less developed countries. We use data from the Cape Area Panel Study (CAPS) to examine the educational expectations of black (African), coloured (mixed race), and white (European ancestry) youth in Cape Town, South Africa. The educational expectations of all three racial groups are high, although coloured youth are less likely than black and white youth to expect to complete postsecondary or postgraduate schooling. Supporting research on educational expectations in the United States and other more developed countries, our findings indicate that socioeconomic status and academic performance matter for educational expectations in South Africa, although their importance varies by racial group. In contrast to U.S. studies that have found effects of family composition for whites only, we found virtually no effects of family composition on the educational expectations of whites or nonwhites. Our findings suggest possible similarities and differences across social contexts in the processes shaping the educational expectations of youth from disadvantaged groups.     

Pathways from family violence exposure to disruptive behavior and suspension in elementary school

Abstract

Suspension is associated with a host of negative outcomes, including future suspension and poor academic engagement. A number of demographic and behavioral factors, such as behaviors and race/ethnicity, have been found to predict a child’s risk of suspension, however factors in the family environment, such as family violence, have not been widely explored within this body of literature. The current study examined whether disruptive behaviors mediated the relationship between family violence exposure and suspension in elementary school using data from the age 8 wave of the LONGSCAN dataset. In this sample, 68% of children had been exposed to some sort of family violence and 6.6% of children had been suspended. The direct pathway from family violence to suspension was significant, as was the indirect pathway through disruptive behaviors, where children exposed to more family violence were more likely to exhibit disruptive behaviors and more likely to be suspended. In this sample, boys and African American students were also more likely to be suspended. These findings support the need for school-based responses that addresses both the impact of violence exposure and racial disparities within discussions of children’s outcomes.     

Undergraduate Activists in the Woman's Movement and Their Public: Attitudes towards Marriage and the Family

Abstract

This paper compares the attitudes towards women's home and famiy roles of two groups of undergraduate women: undergraduate activists in the Women's Liberation Movement and a random sample of non-activist undergraduates. Data from both of these groups pertaining to career aspirations, marital and fertility expectations, communal living arrangements, and possible strains between future family and work roles are examined. While the desire to combine family and career roles is typical of undergraduate women in both groups, there are important differences between activists and non-activists in their plans for integrating the two role constellations. Activist women's responses are also compared with positions on women's family roles indicated by spokeswomen of the wider radical Women's Movement, and some important differences are suggested by the data. The paper concludes by briefly exploring the implications of the findings for future social change in the family and in the society of which it is a part.     

Instructional Demonstrations are More Efficient Than Consequences Alone for Children with Naming

Prior research found that without the naming cusp, children did not learn from instructional demonstrations presented before learn units (IDLUs) (i.e., modeling an expected response twice for a learner prior to delivering an instructional antecedent), however, following the establishment of naming, they could. The present study was designed to compare the rate of learning reading and mathematics objectives in children who showed naming using IDLUs compared to standard learn units (SLUs) alone (comparable to three-term contingency trials). In Phase 1, a pre-screening phase, we demonstrated that four typically developing males, 3 to 4 years of age, had naming within their repertoire, meaning they were able to master the names of novel 2-D stimuli as both a listener and a speaker without explicit instruction. Using the same participants in Phase 2, we compared rates of learning under two instructional methods using a series of repeated AB designs where conditions (IDLUs versus SLUs) were counterbalanced across dyads and replicated across participants. The participants learned more than twice as fast under IDLU conditions and showed between 30% and 50% accuracy on the first presentation of a stimulus following a model. The IDLU condition was more efficient (fewer trials to criterion) than the SLU condition. These findings, together with prior findings, suggest that the onset of naming allows children to learn faster when instructional demonstrations are incorporated into lessons.

     

Geographic distance and intergenerational relationships in Chinese migrant families

ABSTRACT

This study examines the effect of adult Chinese migrants’ geographic distance from home on their intergenerational relationships with parents who remain behind. We compared monetary and family care support as well as emotional relationships among four parent-child groups: older adults and international migrant children, older adults and internal migrant children (who migrated to other cities in China), older adults and coresiding children, and older adults and local children (living in the same city as their parents). Data were derived from 332 older adults in Beijing, China, with at least one child who migrated to another country or city. Results from chi-square tests, anaylsis of variance (ANOVA) tests, and regression analyses indicate that international and internal migrant children maintain similar intergenerational relationships with their parents, and that both of those groups are less likely than coresiding and local children to have family care exchanges and emotionally close relationships with their parents. The results may help professionals develop supportive services and policies for older adults in migrant families.     

A Grounded Theory of Interracial Romantic Partners’ Expectations for Support and Strain with Family Members

ABSTRACT

Interracial romantic partners (IRPs) are known to experience additional hardships in their relational functioning compared to same-race partners. This study explores the support processes that IRPs engage in with those who are often the source of external pressures on the romantic unit – family members. The study examines IRPs’ support expectations from family and how this shapes the support and resilience of the IRP over time. In-depth interviews were conducted with 32 IRPs and 30 parents of IRPs, resulting in a grounded theory of participants’ support expectations and their violations and ensuing experiences of support and/or strain. Based on their support expectations, participants came across three support paths after initiating support-seeking disclosure strategies. Encounters with these support paths resulted in support and strain for IRPs and their parents. Taken together, the results contribute to theorizing about processes of support and their functionality in underrepresented relationships.     

Family versus friends: Their relative importance as referent others to an aged population

There is much social gerontological research suggesting that the aged in our society constitute a minority group or separate stratum. This separateness, in combination with a lack of a clear conception of the elderly role, has led to a preponderance of stereotyped images of the elderly. A mailed questionnaire was returned by 224 retirees of a large utility company in the Southwest and provided a data base to test a conceptual model of the dynamics of the process of acceptance or denial of age‐appropriate behavioral expectations. The model, grounded in the reference group theoretical approach, was concerned expressly with the operationalization of factors thought to influence whether the elderly accept age‐appropriate behavioral expectations as pertinent to their life situation. Whether the people in this particular population accept others' expectations for their behavior was found to be affected by their perception of the expectations of family members and friends and whether the respondents characterized themselves as subject to age‐related shortcomings. In addition, friends were found to be a more salient reference group in conveying age‐appropriate behavioral expectations than family members. The analysis provided general support for the reference group approach and suggested a broader application of the concept in the gerontological literature.     

Gender and Transnational Gossip

Transnational social networks powerfully shape Mexican migration and enable families to stretch internationally. In an atmosphere of such high dependence on social networks, it would be rare for families not to be affected by the opinions of others. This article analyzes this often-overlooked aspect of social networks, gossip. I analyze gossip stories prevalent for one type of migrant family, those in which parents and children live apart. Drawing on over 150 ethnographic interviews and observation with members of Mexican transnational families and their neighbors in multiple sites, I describe both parents’ and children’s experiences with transnational gossip. I show that in a transnational context, gossip is a highly gendered activity with different consequences for men and women. Although targeting both women and men, transnational gossip reinforces the expectations that mothers be family caregivers and fathers be family providers even when physical separation makes these activities difficult to accomplish.

Parenting Styles: The Impact on Student Achievement

ABSTRACT

Parenting style and its impact on student achievement in a multidimensional society continues to pose significant challenges to clinicians, researchers, educators, and parents alike. This literature review summarizes the research surrounding five domains: (1) parental control; (2) gender and parenting style; (3) parental education; (4) perceptual differences between parents and their children; and (5) ethnicity and diversity. Behavioral control and psychological control were found to be two inherent features of parental style that have a direct affect on student achievement. Adolescents' perceived level of independence when interacting with their parents also seemed to have a direct relationship on their academic achievement. Research concerning children's progress in mathematics as related to parenting style and gender stereotype was also uncovered. Evidence was found to support the notion that parental education can have an indirect impact on children's academic achievement in various cultures. Implications for future research are identified including the need for applied research in learning communities factoring in variables for family structure, expectations, ethnicity, communication, and involvement.     

Conceptions of Family and Adoption Among Older Adoptees

ABSTRACT

Research on older child adoptions that incorporates the adoptee's perspective is noticeably absent from the literature. Drawing on the theoretical, clinical and empirical literature on children's understanding of family and adoption, this paper reports a study that examined older adoptees' conceptions of family and adoption relative to nonadopted peers. Interviews with 15 children adopted between ages 8 and 11 and a sample of 15 demographically matched nonadopted children (47% male; 84% Caucasian, 13% African American, 3% Biracial Asian/American) provided data that were analyzed for differences in children's understanding and elaboration of family and adoption concepts. Although no group differences were found in children's basic understanding of family or adoption, differences emerged in children's ratings of the acceptability and typicality of family constellations, as well as in the nature of concept elaboration. Older adoptees were more likely to accept and view as typical nontraditional family constellations. Whereas nonadopted children relied more on biological themes, older adoptees' concept elaboration was qualitatively richer, reflecting their varied birth family and foster care experiences. Within-group comparisons among older adoptees revealed differences: Children with more experience in foster care and children who lived in the adoptive home longer displayed higher levels of family understanding and a more realistic perspective of the permanence of the placement. Implications for future research and adoption service delivery are discussed.     

Family Size,Birth Order,and Educational Attainment

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between birth order and educational attainment measured at ages 7, 11, 16, and 23, with particular care taken to separate the effects of birth order from the effects of family size. Since eldest children benefit from their parents' undivided resources at an early age, theory predicts that they may do better educationally than later-born children. This is confirmed by the analysis in this paper, with eldest children performing significantly better than other children on almost all measures of attainment. Youngest children in large families perform less well than middle children, and this effect increases with the age of the child. These findings are robust to the inclusion of a large set of background controls.     

Size of Family of Orientation and Family Size Preference: A Replication

Abstract

Past studies have found a modest, positive association between size of family of orientation and preferred family size and fertility behavior in the family of procreation. While there is some consistency in the findings, contradictions are also noted. The present study replicates earlier studies dealing with preferred family size, and seeks to resolve some of the contradictions by utilizing multiple classification analysis to determine the simultaneous impact of parental family size, religion, happiness, lifestyle stability, and birth order on family size preference.     

Findings from a UK Based Study of Late Permanent Placements

ABSTRACT

This prospective, UK based adoption study examined the first year of placement of 61 boys and girls who joined permanent unrelated families during middle childhood. Most of the children had experienced abuse, neglect and discontinuity in their lives prior to this placement. The psycho-social functioning of the children and the development of family relationships were assessed by means of in-depth interviews with the new parents. High levels of behaviour problems were found in the children initially. About a third of the children showed a diminution of problems after placement, the remainder showed little change or a deterioration. At the end of the first year, 72% of the surviving placements were considered stable. An active rejection by birth parents stood out as a particular risk to placement stability, especially when accompanied by over active behaviour and where new parents had difficulty in maintaining warmth and sensitivity in their responses to the child in the early months of placement.