Family Structure and Quality of Life of Elders in Rural China: The Role of the New Rural Social Pension

Using data from a survey in Ankang district of Shaanxi province of China in 2011, this article examines the protective effect of the New Rural Social Pension (NRSP) on quality of life of rural elders, as well the moderating effect on association between family structure and quality of life. An instrumental variable approach is used. NRSP is shown to significantly improve the quality of life of rural elders, and a robustness check shows that this effect is consistent across different sets of subgroups. Compared with the elders who have at least one son, the quality of life of those who are childless or have only one child is significantly lower. The NRSP is more likely to significantly improve the quality of life of one-child elders. In addition, the associations between the NRSP and the different facets of quality of life of the elders are significant except for the facet of sensory abilities.     

Support,social networks and the family in Portugal: two decades of research

This article presents two major surveys, carried out in Portugal, on the inclusion of families and individuals in social networks of support and affinity. The first, dating from 1999, sought comprehensively to reconstruct families' social networks by mapping effective support relations. The second survey, fielded in 2009–10, followed a family configuration perspective which sought to reconstruct individuals' networks of close relationships, and the issue of informal support only arose as providing further insight into the characteristics of personal networks. Both surveys will be analysed from a comparative perspective which, while stressing their different but connected conceptual orientations, compares each one's methodological strategies and operationalization procedures. Finally, the main results of each survey are outlined, leading to a brief discussion of the ways in which the two surveys complement each other.     

Negotiating Emotional Support: Sober Gay Latinos and Their Families

This study explores how sober gay Latino men obtain support from their families. Familial ties can be a protective health factor, yet many gay Latinos experience rejection from family members because of their sexuality. There are very few studies that examine the extent and quality of emotional support from kin for this population. Understanding family dynamics within the context of recovery and sexuality can increase our understanding of how to leverage family ties to develop alcohol abuse interventions. The study was conducted via semistructured interviews with 30 sober gay Latinos using a grounded theory approach. Analyses of the qualitative data identified the following themes: family values shaped the participants’ perception of their range of choices and emotional responses; participants reported feeling loved and supported even when sexuality was not discussed with parents; and family support for sobriety is essential. Findings suggest that familial ties shape perceptions of support and importance of disclosing sexual identity. Family support often results from agreements about sexual identity disclosure, and some families can overcome cultural and religious taboos on sexuality. Future studies should investigate families that negotiate acceptance with their gay members, and whether they exhibit heterosexual biases that may influence the psychological stress of gay Latino men who wish to be sober.     

Stability in the Social Support Networks of Homeless Families in Shelter: Findings From a Study of Families in a Faith-Based Shelter Program

The following article outlines a longitudinal study tracking changes of the social support networks of 28 homeless families in shelter. Weekly changes in support networks of homeless mothers were tracked including 482 dyadic ties between mothers and supportive persons. Findings suggested that informal social support and persons who provided emotional support were significantly more stable forms of support in the mothers' lives throughout their shelter stay. Time was found to be a significant predictor of financial well-being and housing stability at shelter exit, but characteristics of the supportive ties were not. Implications for family social work and research practice are presented.     

Relationship Status and Activated Kin Support: The Role of Need and Norms

Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, we examined whether mothers' (N = 4,127) and fathers' (N = 3,405) relationship status influenced their activation of financial support from relatives over time. We found that relationship status influenced the activation of financial support from relatives but that the effects differed somewhat by gender. Mothers were significantly more likely to activate financial assistance if they did not reside with the focal father, whereas fathers had lower odds of activating support if they were no longer in a relationship with the mother. Thus, the need for assistance may encourage mothers to access support; fathers may be less likely to access support when they deviate from social norms.     

A Vignette Study on Gendered Filial Expectations of Elders in Rural China

This investigation integrated vignette and survey design to study how sons' reduced availability and daughters' increased contributions to parents influenced Chinese rural elders' gendered filial expectations, measured with their beliefs about obligations of a vignette daughter and a vignette son to their postsurgery parent. The sample included 802 elders from 2001, 2003, and 2006 waves of a longitudinal study on rural elders in Anhui Province, China. Multinomial logistic regressions showed that the vignette sons' migration and actual daughters' previous contributions increased elder women's, but not men's, endorsement of the vignette daughter's obligations. The vignette son's child‐care responsibilities affected neither women's nor men's beliefs, but the vignette daughters' migration and child‐care responsibilities reduced respondents' expectations of the vignette daughter. This study directs attention to the discrepancy between social changes and individuals' attitudes because of structural lags as well as to the importance of examining factors that will reduce the discrepancy.     

Correlates of Depression among Chinese Immigrant Elders in Arizona: The Role of Acculturative Stress and Social Support

Using the stress and coping framework, we examined the association between acculturative stress, social support, and depression among Chinese immigrant elders living in Arizona. This cross-sectional study used a snowball sample of 120 respondents. Multiple regression results suggest that English language proficiency, health status, and gender were significant correlates of depression. Findings justify creating intervention programs that target Chinese immigrant elders who are less proficient in English, female, and in poor health. Future research and implications are discussed.     

Reconfigured Everyday Lives of Children from Divorced-Parent Families in Singapore

With the termination of a marriage, children involved inevitably experience dramatic changes in different facets of their lives. This article makes use of narrative accounts of divorced single parents to investigate how their marital dissolution has impacted and changed their children's lives. Empirical data was collected through semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 25 Singaporean divorced parents. Within the policy and social context of Singapore society, I highlight transformations in three specific aspects of the children's lives: one, the reconfigurations of familial relationships and formation of a new family unit; two, the creation of and adaptation to new family practices and routine; three, the adoption of new social identity following parental divorce. This article hopes to present a more nuanced understanding of the divorce experience by emphasizing both the precarious and productive aspects in the children's lives, contra to the existing divorce literature that typically focuses on the former.     

Residential Instability,Family Support,and Parent–Child Relationships Among Ethnically Diverse Urban Families

From a social disorganization standpoint, neighborhood residential instability potentially brings negative consequences to parent–child relationship qualities, but family social support and racial/ethnic identity may modify this association. Using data (n = 3,116) from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, this study examines associations between neighborhood residential instability and parent–child warmth and conflict, whether family social support moderates associations between residential instability and parent–child relationships, and variation by race/ethnicity. Multilevel models reveal that residential instability undermines parent–child relationship qualities, particularly for non‐White individuals. Family support is a protective factor for families in less stable neighborhoods and specifically buffers the association between neighborhood residential instability and reduced parent–child warmth. Among Hispanics, family support mitigates the association between residential instability and heightened parent–child conflict. Findings highlight residential instability as a detriment to parent–child relationships; families in unstable neighborhoods may benefit from family social support.     

Coordination Tasks and Negotiation Modes of Linked Lives in Entrepreneurial Families

The overlap of business and family roles, and how they are linked in entrepreneurial families, requires intergenerational negotiation. Biographical case reconstruction analysis of 32 narrative interviews of 12 German entrepreneurial families explores what coordination tasks need to be resolved and how family members negotiate their interlocking lives. The article finds that entrepreneurial families actively coordinate positions, life phases, and material transfers by means of a pedagogy of succession, life course evidence analysis, and entrepreneurial narratives. The article presents two innovations. First, it demonstrates how these families experience and cope with their linked lives under flexible working conditions and in multigenerational families. Second, it argues that research on linked lives should shift from focusing on outcomes to understanding emergence and operations, and it advances the use of the biographical case reconstruction method for this endeavor.     

Transgender Individuals' Perceptions of Maternal Support in Central Appalachia

The psychosocial experiences of transgender individuals are shaped by specific cultural beliefs and values that influence family and community interactions. Using a constant-comparative approach to thematic analysis, we analyzed in-depth interviews with 25 transgender-identified adults in Central Appalachia and discovered that their mothers play a crucial role in their social support experiences. Participants described supportive and unsupportive interactions with their mothers and how their mothers' attitudes and behaviors evolved in positive directions over time. They also perceived that their mothers played a key role in influencing how other family and community members behaved toward them. Participants gave meaning to their mothers' behaviors by placing them in the context of strong cultural values about distinct gender roles, family loyalty, religious conservatism, and pride of place. These findings serve as a reminder to family mental health practitioners and health service providers to directly assess family and community strengths and draw on these resources to facilitate the well-being of clients from stigmatized and under-resourced populations.     

Rethinking Families and Community: The Color,Class, and Centrality of Extended Kin Ties1

Although a focus on marriage and the nuclear family characterizes much sociological research and social commentary, this article suggests that this focus ignores the familial experiences of many Americans, particularly those on the lower end of the economic spectrum for whom extended kin are central. African Americans and Latinos/as are more involved with kin than whites, but class trumps race in this regard: African Americans, Latinos/as, and whites with fewer economic resources rely more on extended kin than do those more affluent. The emphasis on marriage and the nuclear family may actually promulgate a vision of family life that dismisses the very social resources and community ties that are critical to the survival strategies of those in need. In contrast to those who have argued that marriage is the foundation of the community or even, in that overused phrase, the “basic unit of society,” this article suggests that marriage actually detracts from social ties to broader communities just as an emphasis on marriage and the nuclear family, to the exclusion of the extended family, distorts and reduces the power and reach of social policy.     

Household Disorder,Network Ties,and Social Support in Later Life

Family relationships, social interactions, and exchanges of support often revolve around the household context, but scholars rarely consider the social relevance of this physical space. In this article the author considers social causes and consequences of household disorder in the dwellings of older adults. Drawing from research on neighborhood disorder and social connectedness in later life, she describes how network characteristics may contribute to household disorder and how household disorder may weaken relationships and reduce access to support. This is explored empirically by estimating cross‐lagged panel models with data from 2 waves of the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project. The results reveal that household disorder reflects a lack of social support, and it leads to more kin‐centered networks and more strain within family relationships. The author concludes by urging greater attention to how the household context shapes—and is shaped by—the social interactions and processes that occur within it.     

Psychological Wellbeing Among Same‐sex Attracted and Heterosexual Parents: Role of Connectedness to Family and Friendship Networks

Increasing numbers of lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) adults are entering into parenthood. Previous studies indicate many of these parents receive little or no support from their families of origin due to family members' negative attitudes toward homosexuality. This study looks at the extent to which LGB parents report a lower sense of connectedness to family of origin and friendship networks than heterosexual parents and whether this has an impact on psychological wellbeing in either of these groups. Data were derived from two studies of parents: Work, Love, Play, a study of Australian and New Zealand LGB parents (n=324); and the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children, a population‐based study of young children and parents (n=6460). Structural equation modelling was used to explore the relationships between: parent sexuality and family/friendship connectedness, family/friendship connectedness and psychological wellbeing, parent sexuality and psychological wellbeing. LGB parents reported feeling less connected to their families of origin but more connected to their friendship groups than heterosexual parents. Counter to previous studies, we found no difference in the psychological wellbeing of LGB parents compared to heterosexual parents when examining the direct effect of sexuality on psychological wellbeing. Clinical implications for counsellors and family therapists are discussed.     

Fickle Families and the Kindness of Strangers: Social Capital in the Lives of Low-Income Single Mothers

This article is a qualitative study that examines the social capital in the lives of 20 formerly homeless and nearly homeless single mothers with children in their care. The findings for this study indicate that the mothers' close social ties simultaneously served as a resource and a hindrance to their progress into sustainable work or education. Findings also show that nearly all of the women in this study benefited from “weak” ties by receiving information or other kinds of resources from strangers or friends of friends. Implications for policy and practice are also discussed.     

Associations Between Social Support Network Characteristics and Receipt of Emotional and Material Support Among a Sample of Male Sexual Minority Youths

Few studies have examined how social support network characteristics are related to perceived receipt of social support among male sexual minority youths. Using egocentric network data collected from a study of male sexual minority youths (N = 592), multivariable logistic regression analyses examined distinct associations between individual and social network characteristics with receipt of (1) emotional and (2) material support. In multivariable models, frequent communication and having friends in one's network yielded a twofold increase in the likelihood of receiving emotional support whereas frequent communication was associated with an almost threefold higher likelihood of perceived material support. Finally, greater internalized homophobia and personal experiences of gay-related stigma were inversely associated with perceived receipt of emotional and material support, respectively. Understanding the evolving social context and social interactions of this new generation of male sexual minority youths is warranted in order to understand the broader, contextual factors associated with their overall health and well-being.     

Evaluation of the Stress Adjustment and Adaptation Model Among Families Reporting Economic Pressure

ABSTRACT

This research evaluates the Stress Adjustment and Adaptation Model (double ABCX model) examining the effects resiliency resources on family functioning when families experience economic pressure. Families (N = 128) with incomes at or below the poverty line from a rural area of a southern state completed measures of perceived economic pressure, family hardiness, social support, and the McMaster Family Assessment device. The family resiliency model was evaluated using regression and two path analyses. Results of the model evaluation indicate that when family resiliency resources are introduced economic pressure is not a significant stressor influencing family functioning. Family resiliency is a key to the healthy functioning of the family unit moderating distress and decreasing the negative effects associated with economic pressure. Implications for social work practice to enhance family resiliency using community and personal supports are discussed.