The extent of family and school social capital promoting positive subjective well-being among primary school children in Shenzhen, China

This study aimed to examine, first, the extent to which variations in family and school social capital can be explained by child's differing socioeconomic and demographic background and school characteristics; and second, the extent to which family and school social capital in combination might be associated with variations in child subjective well-being in Shenzhen, China. This study was a cross-sectional survey design, using stratified random sampling. A total of 1306 sixth-grade primary school children and their parents were drawn from 16 schools, and a self-administered questionnaire was used. The results suggested that gender difference, the only child status at home and hukou status had impacts on family and school social capital accrued among primary school children in Shenzhen. There were also links between child's perception of connectedness to their parents, peers, and teachers, and their positive child subjective well-being.     

Family structure and family relationship from the child well-being perspective: Findings from comparative analysis

Relationships within the family are important for the development of children's well-being, as well as for their evaluations of their family and their overall life satisfaction. Nevertheless, little is known about differences in family relationships, family subjective well-being (SWB) and overall SWB of children from different groups, especially those who are living in diverse family structures. The purpose of this study is to explore differences in family relationships, family SWB and overall SWB between children living in three different living arrangements – a two-parent family, a single-parent family and a separated family. The study used data from the second wave of data collection of the Children's Worlds project, a large international study of children's well-being. 20,343 children aged 10–12 from 10 countries constitute the final sample of the current sample. Several agreement, satisfaction and time use questions were applied to measure the children's family relationships and family SWB. Two psychometric scales were used to explore the children's overall SWB. In addition, differences in socio-economic characteristics were also explored. Children living with both parents were found to evaluate their family relationships and family SWB higher than children living in a single parent family and in separated families. Similar results were also found in respect to overall SWB. Not many differences were found between the last two groups, namely these children are quite similar in their perceptions and evaluations of their families and their overall SWB. However, children living in separated families tend to be less satisfied with the people they live with and their family life. This trend was found in all participant countries, although it was less prevalent in Israel and Algeria. The discussion offers several possible explanations to the findings, and emphasizes that the source of the differences may be complex and may include macro and micro explanations.     

The eudemonic and hedonic role of happiness in a population with high levels of life satisfaction / El rol eudemónico y hedónico de la felicidad en una población con altos niveles de satisfacción con la vida

The hedonic perspective of happiness focuses on studying positive emotions and life satisfaction, while the eudemonic perspective prioritizes a meaningful life which leads to high functioning and the development of individual talents. It was hypothesized that well-being will be positively related to the domains associated with family and affective satisfaction and negatively associated with issues related to economic and physical security, and that the structure of happiness would primarily be comprised of elements of hedonic happiness. Measurements from a national survey (BIARE, 2014) were used, and the sample size was 39,274 men and women between the ages of 18 and 85. Via confirmatory factor analysis techniques, a model was confirmed with two factors which correlated negatively, one of which consolidates eudemonic elements while the other refers to negative affect. The findings contribute to explaining why the population of Mexico, the subject of this study, shows high levels of happiness even though it ranks below the average on almost all the quality-of-life indicators.     

Bringing Work Home or Bringing Family to Work: Personal and Relational Consequences for Working Parents

This study examined the impact of work–family and family–work role blurring on personal and, consequently, relational well-being among parents. A sample of 402 working parents of children between the ages of 2–12 completed measures of role blurring, well-being, and marital satisfaction. Both directions of role blurring were indirectly associated with lower marital satisfaction in mothers through a decreased psychological well-being. For fathers, family–work role blurring was also indirectly associated with poorer marital satisfaction through decreased psychological well-being, whereas work–family role blurring was directly associated with higher marital satisfaction. However, for both parents, the effects of work–family role blurring on well-being and marital satisfaction became non-significant when levels of family–work role blurring were held constant.     

With or without you? Measuring the quality of relational life throughout the world

This paper proposes a new method for the measurement of the quality of relational life. Building on the recent literature on the determinants of subjective well-being, we use implicit valuations estimated from microeconometric life satisfaction equations to weigh scores on several dimensions of relational life. We apply the proposed method to a large sample of individuals from 94 countries, in order to construct composite indicators that focus on three dimensions of interpersonal relations: friends, family, and society. We use these indicators to compare the quality of relational life across countries worldwide and to explore its determinants at individual and country level. Overall, the results indicate that, at individual level, better economic conditions are associated with higher quality of interpersonal relationships.     

Children's subjective well-being in relation to gender — What can we learn from dissatisfied children?

Gender differences in subjective well-being (SWB) are a common finding in studies of children, but the nature, causes and effects of these differences remain unclear. This article draws on data from the Children's Worlds study, an international survey of child well-being across countries, to examine the structure of SWB drawing on different life domains, and comparing the effects of these domains on SWB for boys and girls. Structural equation modelling is used to examine differences between 12 year old boys and girls who reported low subjective well-being (bottom 25% of the sample). Findings reveal that the structure of SWB is comparable across the genders; girls' SWB was lower than boys'; and different domains of SWB vary in their importance for boys and girls. Specifically, girls' SWB appears to be more driven by relational factors, whilst boys' SWB is more driven by perceived academic achievement.     

Dimensions of social capital and subjective well-being: evidence from Italy

The concept of social capital was investigated as an explanatory variable of a number of significant socio-economic phenomena, such as economic development, the well-functioning of institutions, and school performance. This study proposes an analysis of the relation between social capital and well-being. The two concepts have been interpreted by social sciences in many different ways. In particular, as a result of its recent success, social capital has been the object of a great deal of interpretations. Social scientists have considered it either as a collective resource (macro social capital), or as an available resource amongst members of specific groups (friends, associations, local communities, etc.; i.e. meso social capital), or as a resource that individuals can achieve through their personal networks (micro social capital). Using data from a representative sample of Italian citizens (25–80 years old), this work investigates which dimension (micro, meso, or macro) of social capital has (if any) a major influence on subjective well-being. Data show some interdependence only with the macro social capital, and suggest that it is just the symbolic and cognitive qualities of the social capital, rather than its structural dimension, that could be associated with subjective well-being in a significant way.     

The psychosocial well-being of children from Australian military and fly-in/fly-out (FIFO) mining families

This study investigates the effects of employment-related father absence on children's psychological well-being and home based mothers’ perceptions of family functioning. Ninety primary school aged children and their mothers residing in Perth in Western Australia participated in this study. The sample consisted of three groups: children whose fathers were employed in fly-in/fly-out (FIFO) mining (n =30), children whose fathers were in the military (n =30) and a community sample (n =30) of children, whose fathers’ employment was not military or mining based and who did not have extended periods of absence from home. Children's psychosocial well-being was measured by the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS). Children's and mothers’ perceptions of family function were assessed with the Family Assessment Device (FAD). Results indicated that there were no significant differences between the groups on all measures of child well-being, and all groups were functioning at healthy levels. However, mothers from the FIFO families reported significantly more stress than the military and community groups with respect to communication, support and behaviour control within the family. It was concluded that despite mothers’ perceptions of disruption to family routine, the well-being of children in this small sample was not affected.     

Contextualizing subjective well-being of children in different domains: Does higher safety provide higher subjective well-being for child citizens?

According to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, all children are born with civil, political, social and economic rights. However, children's ability to exercise their citizenship rights and practices depend on which country context they live in. Within the limits of this article we want to explore how children's subjective wellbeing is affected by the level of safety provided within the larger country context by using data collected by the consortium of the International Survey of Children's Well-Being. The question we elaborate is whether there is a relationship between the welfare context and subjective well-being of children with respect to different domains, and whether age and gender play a role. We first cluster welfare contexts with selected indicators from international reports among the selected countries of the Children's World Survey from high to low safety provided for children. Then, by referring to the existing literature, we propose six domains for analyzing children's subjective well-being: Health; Material conditions; Education; Risk and Safety; Relationships, and Self-perception. By analyzing each domain we ask whether there is a linear relation between the levels of safety welfare contexts and the subjective well-being of children in different domains and whether this hypothetical relationship exists after controlling for the age and gender of participants. According to our findings, high and medium welfare contexts provide higher subjective well-being in the domains of ‘material’ and ‘risk and safety’. Girls have lower subjective well-being in the low safety welfare context compared to boys. We also find that in the domains of education and relationship, girls' subjective well-being is higher than boys in every safety welfare contexts. Last but not least we also find that the high safety welfare context has a lower average in the self-perception domain and also there is gender difference, girls compared to boys are less satisfied with themselves.     

After the Divorce

The present study compares postdivorce adjustment factors among older, long-married persons with similar familial factors among younger divorced persons. Data collected from personal interviews indicate that older divorced persons are not devastated by their divorce. Although these two groups do not differ in their overall scores of emotional health as measures by the General Well-Being Scale, within certain categories the older persons appear to be emotionally healthier. Statistically significant differences between the two samples include: importance of family closeness; conflict in relationships; and forewarning of the divorce from family members. There are also differences in the familial factors that predict well-being for the two age groups. Professionals intervening at all system levels should be sensitive to age differences and incorporate familial factors that ameliorate postdivorce adjustment. Implications for practice with older divorced persons include strengthening parent/adult child relationships and creatively designing programs at macro and micro levels to decrease family conflict. With younger divorced persons, conflict mediation with the family following divorce is necessary.     

Single Mothers Always Lose? Union Dissolution and Perceived Changes in Material Well-Being in Lithuania

The article investigates the perceived changes in material well-being of single mothers due to union dissolution in Lithuania. The analysis is based on a nationally representative data set; our sample includes 415 single mothers with underaged children. At the core of the analysis is the effect of socioeconomic standing on the assessment of changes. I use the level of education as the proxy variable for the measurement of socioeconomic position and consider education on the individual and ex-couple level. The decline of material conditions after union dissolution was reported by 45% of the sample. The main results, based on the multivariate analysis, indicate the most negative effect of union dissolution for women from the educationally heterogeneous ex-couples, where women’s education was lower than men’s. Thus, union dissolution most negatively affects women, who were economically dependent in the previous partnership. Contrary to our expectation, we did not find any significant association between women’s education and the assessment of the changes in material well-being. However, ex-partner’s education is a significant predictor and shows the highest risk of reporting negative changes for women previously partnered with university-educated men. On a more general level, the article highlights the importance of the subjective indicators in the analysis of economic divorce outcomes.     

Linguistic Acculturation and Emotional Well-Being in U.S. Schools

The relationship between language use and emotional well-being at school/work, compared to other contexts in which adolescents spend time, has not been studied extensively. An analysis of data from the 1993–1997 Sloan Study of Youth and Social Development employing the experience sampling method showed that language preference moderated the effect of context on the subjective emotional experiences of Latino(a) youths. Participants whose primary language is Spanish experienced lower emotional well-being in school/work time than with family, as opposed to those whose second language preference is English in the same contexts. Results highlight the need to better understand the complex process of language use and raise questions about improving the incorporation of Spanish-dominant students.     

Birthday celebrations as a family homelessness intervention: a mixed-methods analysis

Families report that the experience of homelessness presents a significant barrier to family functioning and interrupts regular family routines. This study uses data from 22 homeless shelters in Massachusetts to examine the relationship between birthday parties for homeless children, family functioning, and parent well-being in homeless families. The study includes a sample of 255 residents across 20 homeless shelters in both urban and rural communities that received regular monthly birthday parties from a nonprofit agency. A small comparison sample of 25 residents came from two shelters that were not receiving birthday parties from the nonprofit agency. Data from 78 staff members working at all 22 shelters was collected on shelter environment and resident cohesion. Results indicated that residents in those shelters that received monthly birthday party celebrations for children had higher levels of happiness. Residents’ satisfaction with the birthday parties showed correlations between levels of hope, happiness, and parental empowerment. Shelter staff who reported higher levels of satisfaction with birthday parties also reported higher levels of resident cohesion. Results point toward the value of continuing regular family routines, such as annual birthday celebrations, to help mitigate the stressors and disruptions of homelessness on families.     

Hope as a coping resource among parents at risk for child maltreatment

This study investigated hope as a protective factor buffering the relationships between parenting stress and well-being among a sample of parents identified at moderate to high risk for child maltreatment. Two hundred parents were recruited from a nonprofit organization providing secondary and tertiary child maltreatment prevention programs. Results of the analyses showed that parental stress was negatively associated with subjective and emotional well-being. Hope was positively correlated with well-being and negatively associated with parenting stress. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that hope had a significant incremental relationship to well-being and that the negative effects of parenting stress fell below statistical significance. These findings provide preliminary support for hope as a coping resource social workers can target when working with parents in the prevention of child maltreatment.     

Family Structure,Gender, and Adolescent Emotional Well-Being

This article focuses on gender differences in emotional well-being of adolescents in five different family settings. It analyzes two main mediators—economic deprivation and parental socialization—and is based on unusually rich survey data combining parental and child reports as well as information from administrative registers. The results show lower well-being of children in single-mother families and stepfamilies. These associations are mainly mediated through parental socialization rather than economic deprivation, except for girls in their early to midteens living with a single mother. Different patterns of lower well-being levels for boys and girls in different family settings are found.     

Multi-Systemic Influences on the Family Functioning of Teens Attending Pregnancy Prevention Programs

This exploratory study used Bronfenbrenner's (1979) multi-systemic framework to determine the factors predicting scores on the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD) with a sample of low SES and culturally diverse (White non-Hispanic, African-American, and Hispanic) teenagers attending both primary and secondary pregnancy prevention programs. Factors studied at the individual (micro) level involved the adolescent's pregnancy status; at the level of the immediate social environment (meso), family structure was assessed, and SES and race were studied as broader social environment influences (macro). Overall, scores on the FAD were high, indicating unhealthy functioning according to teen self-reports. Support was indicated for the Bronfenbrenner model with all three systems levels exerting an influence on family functioning. Adolescents who had grown up in homes without their parents seemed most at risk for perceptions of poor family functioning although racial differences were found. Overall, minority teens rated their families as higher functioning. Pregnancy and parenting as a teenager also appeared to put a strain on family functioning. Implications for service delivery are discussed.     

The notion of precariousness among older adults living alone in the U.S.

This paper argues that older adults living alone in the U.S. face a set of unique challenges, as they are likely to experience a sense of precariousness. The term precariousness points to an intrinsic sense of instability and insecurity stemming from a lack of, or difficulty to, access essential resources. During a two-year ethnography of 47 older solo dwellers, this term captured one of the distinctive traits of the experience of living alone in older age in the U.S. The findings from semi-structured interviews and participant observation highlight the emergence of the notion of precariousness along three levels of analysis. First, on the micro and subjective level of analysis, older solo dwellers may struggle to perform the chores related to their household as they may deal with a failing body, faltering memory, and fixed if not shrinking income. Second, on the meso and institutional level of analysis, older adults living alone need to navigate the complex, scattered, and ever-changing landscape of services and understand their eligibility criteria, accessibility, fees, and conditions. At the same time they may have to deal with family issues. Finally, the macro level examines the pressure on older solo dwellers of a prevalent ideology that prizes independent behaviors and personal responsibility. In conclusion, the notion of precariousness illustrates the unique position of older adults living alone as they face different type of challenges on a micro, meso, and macro dimension. The paper ends with an invitation to create social policies that accommodate the needs of a growing number of older adults living alone.     

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! The impact of Christmas rituals on subjective well-being and family's emotional climate

Abstract

This study assessed subjective well-being before and after Christmas and New Year holidays. In contradiction to lay beliefs about these holidays, stress and conflict caused by its experience was weak, while participation in rituals was high and satisfactory, and positive emotions were dominant. High frequency of participation in ritualised family celebrations increased positive well-being: satisfaction with life, perceived social well-being, and the balance of affective well-being. Satisfaction with rituals had an impact on positive affect, satisfaction with life and positive family climate, while participation frequency was more relevant for social support and lower loneliness level. Conflict experienced during Christmas increased negative affect and negative emotional family climate, while it undermined positive affect, satisfaction with life and social well-being.     

The Effects of Resources, Decision Making, and Decision Implementing on Perceived Family Well-Being in Adjusting to an Economic Stressor

This article examines the relationships of personal resources, decision-making, and decision-implementing behaviors that were measured in time one with perceived family well-being that was measured one year later. The sample included 323 farm men and women who had experienced the same economic stressor event. A structural equation model was posited based upon the theoretical frameworks of family resource management. The results indicated the theoretical model fit the data well for both men and women. LISREL analyses revealed strong positive relationships among perceived financial and emotional resources, decision making, and perceived family well-being. A positive relationship was found between decision making and decision implementing, but no relationship was found between decision implementing and perceived family well-being. Gender differences were present only in the measurement model among the indicators of decision implementing and family well-being.