Youth and parent perceptions of aftercare supports at discharge from residential care

While much is known about youth struggles after reintegration into the home and community settings following stays in out‐of‐home care, little is known about appropriate supports for aftercare, or parent (see Note ¹ ) and youth perceptions during this critical transition period. This study seeks to begin to address these questions through surveys evaluating youth (n = 48) and parent (n = 48) perceptions of (i) transition planning, family preparedness and aftercare; (ii) youth preparedness for the transition period across major life domains (e.g. education, health care, relationships); and (iii) the importance of specific aftercare supports and services. Results indicate differences between youth and parents on perceptions of need for continued supports, likelihood of participation in aftercare programs; and youth preparedness for success in relationships, family and independent living domains. In contrast, similarities were found on youth and parent ratings regarding the importance of specific services and supports, with both groups indicating supports in education as most important and supports in mental health as least. Study limitations, future research and implications are provided.     

Facilitating visitation for infants with prenatal substance exposure

Permanency planning for infants with prenatal substance exposure is challenging due to characteristics of the infants and the ongoing substance use or relapse of the parents. Visitation is a primary mechanism through which child welfare workers determine and support permanency planning. Productive use of visitation for permanency planning for infants with prenatal substance exposure is described, along with strategies for skillfully focusing visits on issues and needs relevant to this population.     

Changes in body weight and fat mass of men and women in the first year of college: A study of the "freshman 15"

Students entering their first year of college are faced with many stresses and changes, including changes in eating and exercise behavior. A common but often undocumented myth among college students is that there is a high risk of gaining 15 pounds of weight during freshman year. The objective of this study was to measure changes in body weight and percentage of body fat among first-year college students. Using a digital scale with bio-electrical impedance, the authors measured height, weight, and percentage of body fat for a sample of students who volunteered to be weighed during a health assessment in the university dining halls. The authors sent e-mails inviting those same students to complete a second measurement in February of the academic year. Sixty-seven of the 217 students who volunteered for the health assessment agreed to undergo a second set of measurements in the spring. The mean change in body weight was 2.86 pounds (1.3 kg, SD = 4.0 kg), and the mean change in percentage of body fat was 0.7% (SD = 4.0%). For those students who gained weight only, the mean increase in body weight (as measured by body mass index, weight divided by height in kg/m2) was 6.82 pounds (3.1 +/- 2.4 kg) and percentage of body fat was 0.9 +/- 3.8%. The authors found that the first year of college is a period in which weight and fat gain may occur. The exact causes behind these changes are unclear and warrant further research to plan or improve intervention and prevention.     

Joint modeling of multivariate hearing thresholds measured longitudinally at multiple frequencies

Pure-tone thresholds are used to estimate hearing acuity and, when measured longitudinally, can characterize age-related changes in hearing. Measured at multiple-frequencies, multiple-irregular time points, for right and left ears, these longitudinal studies of age-related hearing loss produce data of inherent complexity due to: 1) multivariate outcomes at different frequencies; 2) longitudinal measurements taken at subject-specific time intervals; and 3) inter-ear correlations due to clustering and nesting. To address limitations in existing methods, we propose a multivariate generalized linear mixed model (mGLMM) and assess its performance. We demonstrate its application using a unique dataset from a cohort study of age-related hearing loss.     

Does Telephone Audio Computer-Assisted Self-Interviewing Improve the Accuracy of Prevalence Estimates of Youth Smoking? Evidence from the UMass Tobacco Study

Despite their advantage for obtaining representative samplesof adolescents, telephone surveys have been regarded as an inferiormethod for collecting data on youth tobacco use because theyyield lower estimates than school-based, self-administered surveys.Although no gold standard for smoking estimates exists, thelower estimates in telephone surveys have been attributed tounderreporting due to youths’ concern that parents orothers may overhear their responses. Telephone audio computer-assistedself-interviewing (T-ACASI) is a cost-effective method for obtaininga representative sample of youths and provides increased privacyfor the respondent. We hypothesize that using T-ACASI wouldencourage youths to report more fully smoking behavior comparedto traditional interviewer-administered telephone methods. Ouranalysis further assesses whether respondent age, gender, race/ethnicity,and parental attitude toward smoking moderated the relationshipbetween survey mode and smoking reports. Using data from a statewidetobacco use survey that randomly assigned youth respondentsto either T-ACASI or interviewer-administered modes, we findthat youths were more likely to report smoking behaviors inT-ACASI mode and that this was especially true for girls, particularlythose who believed their parents would disapprove strongly oftheir smoking. The findings suggest that traditional telephonesurveys may underestimate smoking prevalence in most girls bya factor of two, and that a technique for ensuring privacy forthese respondents is an important component of effective telephonesurvey methodology.     

Interviewers' Voices and Refusal Rates in Telephone Surveys

Interviewers' voice characteristics are related to refusal ratesin telephone interviews. Judges reliably rated vocal and personalcharacteristics of telephone interviewers from recordings ofthe first one-half minute of interview introductions. Interviewerswith low refusal rates were judged as having comparatively higherpitched voices, greater ranges of variation in pitch, greaterloudness, faster rates of speaking, and clearer and more distinctpronunciation. They also were judged as more competent and ashaving a more positive approach to the respondent and the interview.     

Black Women Achievers: An Isolated Elite

This report deals with the marginality of upwardly mobile black women and the sociological consequences of their marginal status in contributing to their social isolation and their mate selection chances. I examined two ideal types of women achievers, Type A and Type B, and the way in which they respond to their alienation.