Self-Reported Personal Well-Being of Youth Accessing Intensive Mental Health Treatment

Normative samples have been shown to rate their personal wellbeing (PWB) as positively high and high PWB is associated with many enduring benefits. Cummins (J Happiness Stud 10(6):1–17, 2009) has suggested that PWB has an equilibrium that is set at a rather high positive state and maintained through psychological mechanisms he termed homeostatic protected mood (HPM). Investigators who have explored PWB and mental health disorders have often focused on schizophrenia in adult populations, with varied results, and scant attention has been paid to clinical samples of youth with emotional and/or behavioral disorders. The purpose for this report was to explore the level of PWB reported by a subsample of youth who accessed residential treatment (n = 30) and intensive home based treatment (n = 33) at 12–18 months post-discharge, and explore whether clinical variables could predict PWB. Many youth reported high PWB despite experiencing continued challenges in symptoms and psychosocial functioning. Demographic and clinical characteristics did not predict participants’ PWB scores, lending support for the HPM theory with this sample of youth with emotional and behavioral disorder.     

Impact of Postdivorce Sibling Structure on Adolescent Adjustment to Divorce

A sample (N = 222) of middle school, high school, and college students were surveyed with regard to their adjustment to their parents’ divorces in specific domains, including coparenting, financial strain, and overall adjustment. With time since the divorce covaried, youth living with half-siblings, stepsiblings, or both (HSS) rated their experiences consistently more positively than youth living with full biological siblings only (FBS). HSS youth reported stronger perceptions that life has gotten better, parents are working together to raise them, and there are no lingering financial effects. There were no main effects for age, but an interaction of sibling structure and gender found male adolescents in the FBS group sometimes had more negative ratings than any of the other groups. Our findings contrast with prior studies suggesting that HSS youth do not adjust as well as FBS youth.     

The experiences of adolescents and young adults residing with their families in emergency shelters in Canada

Emergency homeless shelters can be stressful environments for families. They can be associated with emotional distress and feelings of restriction for parents, and with behavioural, social, and developmental challenges for children. However, little is known about the experiences of accompanied youth residing in shelter with their families, as the literature about this age group's experiences of homelessness has mainly focused on unaccompanied youth. Findings from the current study are drawn from qualitative interviews with 16 adolescents and young adults (aged 16–21) who were homeless and living with their families in family homeless shelters in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Youth described family homeless shelters as stressful environments but also found that the shelters provided support to them and their families. Youth discussed the various strategies they used to cope in facing the challenges of shelter life. These findings add to our understanding of youth who are homeless and highlight the ways in which they adapt to the challenges of living in a family homeless shelter with their families. Recommendations are included for ways that shelter staff and policymakers can enact operational and systemic changes that could potentially improve the experiences of such youth and their families.     

Siblings’ Differential Treatment in Mexican American Families

We investigated the patterns and correlates of parents’ differential treatment of adolescent siblings in 246 two‐parent Mexican American families. In home interviews, siblings rated 7 domains of differential treatment (e.g., privileges, chores, warmth) as well as their adjustment and perceptions of parental acceptance and fairness, and both parents and adolescents reported on cultural dynamics. More gender‐typed patterns of differential treatment were evident when parents were more oriented to Mexican than Anglo culture. The links between differential treatment and youth reports of adjustment, parental acceptance, and parental fairness were moderated by adolescents’ familism values, particularly for older siblings: Differential treatment was linked more strongly to adjustment and parent‐youth relationship problems when youth reported lower levels of familism.     

Parenting Under Pressure: Experiences of Parenting While Aging Out of Foster Care

Youth “aging out” of foster care experience higher rates of adolescent parenting than their peers who have not been in care. Due to their history of maltreatment, high adolescent pregnancy rates, and poor psychosocial outcomes, youth aging out who are parents are a vulnerable at-risk group. This study examines the parenting experiences of 33 youth aging out (21 mothers and 12 fathers) using data from a larger ethnography. Field notes of observation and transcribed interviews of youth aging out who are parents were analyzed using open coding strategies. Findings show parents encountered challenges while aging out and parenting, yet they found joy in their children and strived to be good parents despite having limited parenting skills, few resources, and little support. Desiring a better life for their children and fearing their children would enter foster care, parents were motivated to improve their lives for their children. Implications are discussed.     

Do Foster Parents and Care Workers Recognize the Needs of Youth in Family Foster Care with a History of Sexual Abuse?

Children in family foster care have the right to participate in decisions regarding their life, however, adults often advocate on behalf of children. This Q methodological study explored whether shared perspectives among foster parents and care workers resemble shared perspectives of youth regarding the psychosocial needs experienced by youth with a history of sexual abuse. Participants sorted a set of statement cards according to what they thought was most important for youth. By-person factor analyses examined how the Q sorts of foster parents and care workers related to those of youth. The results showed that foster parents mostly recognized the group of youth who value an instrumental relationship with their carers, while care workers mostly recognized the group of youth who value support of both foster and birth parents with regard to their preparation for independent living. The two youth groups characterized by ambivalence and autonomy were barely recognized. Results are discussed in light of the expected roles of foster parents and care workers, and youth’s contact with birth parents. Lastly, this study highlights the importance of youth participation, because youth offer unique and varying perspectives about their needs.     

Exploring the Experiences of Lesbian,Gay, Bisexual,and Questioning Adolescents in Foster Care

This article is based on the findings from a subset of gender identity and sexual orientation questions from The Casey Field Office Mental Health Study (CFOMH). It aims to contribute the experiences of youth in the care of Casey Family Programs to the increasing body of research on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ) youth in foster care, as well as inform future studies in this area. The CFOMH study interviewed 188 adolescents ages 14 to 17 who were receiving foster care services from Casey Family Programs in 2006. The experiences in care of youth who identified as LGBQ (n = 10) are presented in narrative form, along with data from all youth in care (N = 188) regarding their perceptions of the foster care environment for LGBTQ youth. These findings are intended to underscore the need to conduct a larger, more in-depth study of the experiences of LGBTQ youth in foster care and the environment that foster care provides for them.     

Social Work Students and Faculty: Testing the Convergence of Perspectives on Student Writing Abilities

Students (n = 244, 76% MSSW) and faculty members (n = 40, 36% tenure or tenure track) at a social work program at a large public southern U.S. university were surveyed to assess within- and between-group differences in perspectives on student writing. Faculty members expressed significantly greater concern with student writing than students. Latina/o, African American, female, and undergraduate students all reported more writing challenges compared to their peers. Likewise, full-time faculty members who teach mainly online or had less training in writing instruction reported more challenges than their colleagues. Overall, our findings support the need for writing interventions that acculturate students to the discipline through a more inclusive, culturally competent discourse as well as increased faculty preparation for teaching writing.     

Family Functioning and Mental Health of Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Youth in the Trans Teen and Family Narratives Project

Transgender and gender-nonconforming (TGN) youth are at increased risk for adverse mental health outcomes, but better family functioning may be protective. This study describes TGN youth’s mental health and associations with family functioning in a community-based sample. Participants were from 33 families (96 family members) and included 33 TGN youth, ages 13 to 17 years; 48 cisgender (non-transgender) caregivers; and 15 cisgender siblings. Participants completed a survey with measures of family functioning (family communication, family satisfaction) and mental health of TGN youth (suicidality, self-harm, depression, anxiety, self-esteem, resilience). TGN youth reported a high risk of mental health concerns: suicidality (15% to 30%), self-harm (49%), clinically significant depressive symptoms (61%); and moderate self-esteem (M = 27.55, SD = 7.15) and resiliency (M = 3.67, SD = 0.53). In adjusted models, better family functioning from the TGN youth’s perspective was associated with better mental health outcomes among TGN youth (β ranged from ?0.40 to ?0.65 for self-harm, depressive symptoms, and anxious symptoms, and 0.58 to 0.70 for self-esteem and resiliency). Findings from this study highlight the importance of considering TGN youth’s perspectives on the family to inform interventions to improve family functioning in families with TGN youth.     

“Understanding” as Support for Emerging Adults Whose Parents Have Chronic Health Conditions: A Life-Span Communication Perspective

To better understand the “chronic burden of care” in the United States, we focused on an underrepresented demographic of youth caregivers in families, emerging adults (EAs). EAs are a newly recognized population of youth, 18–25 years of age, who are developmentally between adolescence and young adulthood. Guided by the life span communication perspective, we interviewed 98 EAs (30 males and 68 females, M age = 19.09, SD = 1.72) about their experiences providing support to a parent with a chronic health condition. Many EAs in this study said they provided “understanding” and our interpretive thematic analyses uncovered two broad meanings of the word: it is a form of support that EAs both have and communicate. When EAs have understanding, they have knowledge about the health condition and how it affects their parent. They also have acceptance to some degree that the health condition is a fixture of their lives and that their parents are imperfect and fallible people. They communicate the understanding they have through reciprocating support, sacrificing, being obedient, avoiding sensitive topics, and projecting emotional strength. We discuss the findings and their implications for emerging adult development as well as parent-child relational development parallel to difficult long-term health issues in families.     

Parent’s Perceptions of Involvement in Children’s Education: Findings from a Qualitative Study of Public Housing Residents

Parent involvement in children’s education is an important element in enhancing academic achievement and promoting positive behavior in young people. This qualitative study uses a Grounded Theory approach to examining parent’s perceptions of their ability or inability to be involved in their children’s education by querying about factors impacting involvement and their experiences overcoming barriers. A semi-structured interview guide was used to collect data on parents (N = 12) of youth who participate in a public housing after-school program by way of focus groups. Results suggest that parents are hopeful about engaging in education, but often fail to become actively involved because they feel marginalized. Furthermore, tangible barriers, a hurdle they were previously able to combat, was more challenging for them to overcome in the face of oppression. Marginalization is manifested cyclically for these parents. Implications for strategies helping parents become more involved in the educational process are identified.     

Sexual minority youth in romantic relationships: Associations with youth well-being

This study investigated differences in depressive symptoms, loneliness, and self-esteem for monosexual (lesbian, gay) and plurisexual (bisexual, pansexual, queer) sexual minority youth (SMY) by relationship status (single, partnered) and relationship configuration (same-gender partner, different-gender partner). Participants included 338 SMY (M_age = 19.10 years) who reported on their relationship status, partner's gender identity, well-being, and ability to confide in partner about LGBTQ issues. Results indicated that for plurisexual youth, single status was associated with greater loneliness; plurisexual youth with same-gender partners reported fewer depressive symptoms and marginally greater ability to confide in their partner about LGBTQ issues than those with different-gender partners. Findings reveal similarities across SMY while also highlighting some unique challenges among plurisexual youth with different-gender partners.     

Indirect Over-Time Relations Between Parenting and Adolescents’ Sexual Behaviors and Emotions Through Global Self-Esteem

The present study examined indirect over-time relations between parenting and adolescent sexuality through global self-esteem. Three waves of online questionnaire data were collected among a community sample of 1,116 Dutch adolescents (M = 13.9 years at baseline). Participants rated the quality of their relationship with parents, their global self-esteem, and their experience with various sexual behaviors. Sexually experienced adolescents (n = 168) evaluated their sexual experiences using six emotions. Path model results showed that a higher-quality relationship with parents at T1 predicted higher levels of self-esteem at T2, which in turn predicted less experience with sexual behaviors and more positive sexual emotions at T3. The indirect over-time path from relationship quality through self-esteem to adolescents’ sexual emotions was significant; the indirect path to adolescents’ experience with sexual behaviors was not significant at the .05 level. No significant age or gender differences were found in the path models. The findings indicate that self-esteem plays an important role in adolescent sexuality and that parents can contribute to positive sexual experiences of adolescents indirectly—through the enhancement of self-esteem—by fostering a high-quality relationship with their children. Implications for theory, future research, and strategies to promote healthy and positive youth sexuality are discussed.     

Prevalence and Correlates of Sex Exchange Among a Nationally Representative Sample of Adolescents and Young Adults

The present study examines prevalence and correlates of exchanging sex for drugs, money, food shelter, or other favors (sex exchange) among a nationally representative sample of youth and young adults. Adolescents and young adults (n = 11,620, 53% female, 47% male) from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used for the current sample. Participants completed in-home interviews at both waves. Results revealed that sex exchange was reported by 4.9% (n = 569) of the population in wave 2 or wave 3, and 4.6% (n = 26) of those who exchanged sex did so at both waves. More males reported exchanging sex than females (n = 332 versus n = 237). Respondents who reported child sexual abuse were more likely to exchange sex (95% CI 2.51–4.28, p < .05) than respondents who reported any other form of child abuse. Both males and females who engaged in sex exchange were at greater risk for sexually transmitted infections; however, the odds of ever exchanging sex were highest among males who ever had gonorrhea (OR = 6.2; 95% CI 3.75–10.3). Although sex exchange has been studied extensively among homeless and runaway youth, the current study reveals sex exchange also occurs in the general population.     

Helicopter Parents and Landing Pad Kids: Intense Parental Support of Grown Children

Popular media describe adverse effects of helicopter parents who provide intense support to grown children, but few studies have examined implications of such intense support. Grown children (N = 592, M age = 23.82 years, 53% female, 35% members of racial/ethnic minority groups) and their parents (N = 399, M age = 50.67 years, 52% female; 34% members of racial/ethnic minority groups) reported on the support they exchanged with one another. Intense support involved parents' providing several types of support (e.g., financial, advice, emotional) many times a week. Parents and grown children who engaged in such frequent support viewed it as nonnormative (i.e., too much support), but grown children who received intense support reported better psychological adjustment and life satisfaction than grown children who did not receive intense support. Parents who perceived their grown children as needing too much support reported poorer life satisfaction. The discussion focuses on generational differences in the implications of intense parental involvement during young adulthood.     

Caregiver perceptions of empowerment and self-efficacy following youths’ discharge from residential care

ABSTRACT

Residential care is one of the most restrictive out-of-home care settings; however, this is a temporary placement and youth eventually reintegrate into the home and community setting. Reintegration presents many challenges, and aftercare becomes critical for maintaining youth gains and promoting family stability. Aftercare programs and supports should align to individual family needs that entail understanding individual and familial characteristics. Previous studies have explored characteristics related to family functioning, mental health, behavior, and perceptions of need during reintegration; yet little is known regarding how affective characteristics (i.e., self-efficacy, empowerment) factor into reintegration, or the implications this may have for providers. The purpose of this study was to address this gap by exploring empowerment and self-efficacy in caregivers (N = 120) who had a child return home within 1 month of departing residential care. Overall, caregivers reported high levels of empowerment and self-efficacy during the initial transition period. Significant differences for empowerment and self-efficacy were present in characteristics such as race, income, number of children in the home, and free/reduced lunch status.     

A Comparison of Male Sex Workers in Prague: Internet Escorts versus Men Who Work in Specialized Bars and Clubs

Prague, the Czech Republic, is a popular sex tourism destination where sex work is decriminalized and young men offer sexual services at low prices relative to countries in Western Europe. This quantitative survey aimed to identify some of the demographic characteristics of these young men and their experiences in the sex industry. Internet escorts (N = 20) and sex workers in bars and clubs (N = 20) completed the survey anonymously in spring 2011. The results showed that sex workers in clubs often had troubled pasts and were forced into sex work to survive. They also reported incidents of violence, serious alcohol and drug use, as well as frequent gambling. The larger group of sex workers in Prague is made up of Internet escorts who have backgrounds that are not atypical for the average Czech youth. They had fewer problems with drugs and alcohol but were twice as likely as sex workers in bars and clubs to be victims of violent crime. Plans for interventions to help those who would change their line of work, as well as the importance of sociocultural context in understanding sex workers, are discussed.     

“They Always Ask What I'm Doing and Who I'm Talking to”: Parental Mediation of Adolescent Interactive Technology Use

Burgeoning technology provides instant access to information and communication. Responsible adults are concerned about the material accessed by adolescent technology users. From an ecological system's lens, using a mixed-methods design, the current study identified adolescent and parent perceptions of parental mediation of adolescent interactive technology use (i.e., cell phones, Internet). Eighty adolescents (16–18 years of age) and their parents (n = 113) participated in the study that identified generational differences in perceptions of parental mediation, techniques for mediating interactive technology (i.e., monitoring data and usage, active mediation, rules, restriction), and adolescent perceptions of the process of parental mediation. We used the results to propose principles for parental mediation of adolescent interactive technology use and provide directions for future research.