Health belief dualism in the postnatal practices of rural Swazi women: an ethnographic account

ObjectiveThis study explores and describes the values, beliefs, and practices of rural Swazi women regarding childbearing in the postpartum period.MethodA retrospective ethnographic research design was used. A snowballing sampling method was used to recruit fifteen participants. Face-to-face unstructured audio-taped interviews and field notes were utilised to gather data.FindingsResults showed that rural Swazi women held a dual health belief system of modern and traditional medicinal use; practiced lengthy periods of postpartum confinement; customarily gave regular enemas and traditional medicines to their babies; undertook the specific cultural practice of taking the baby to enyonini [a tree struck by lightening] to perform specific rituals; used self-prescribed pharmacy medicines; used both traditional and modern contraception; as well as practiced breastfeeding.ConclusionRural Swazi women observe modern health practices alongside traditional customary practices that are inherent to their health belief and value systems in the postnatal period. These customary beliefs and values underpin their birth practices postpartum. Recommendations include the need to consider including formal knowledge on cultural aspects of childbirth and postpartum care into midwifery education; a review of maternal care practices and policies to incorporate widely practised traditional elements including redressing the use of self-prescribed pharmacy medicines to ensure a higher level of safety.     

The Effects of Childhood SNAP Use and Neighborhood Conditions on Adult Body Mass Index

The disproportionate number of individuals who are obese or overweight in the low-income U.S. population has raised interest in the influence of neighborhood conditions and public assistance programs on weight and health. Generally, neighborhood effects and program participation effects have been explored in separate studies. We unite these two areas of inquiry, using the 1968-2005 Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) to examine the long-term effects of childhood Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation, neighborhood conditions, and the interaction of these two, on adult body mass index (BMI). Using sibling fixed-effects models to account for selection bias, we find that relative to children in other low-income families, children in SNAP-recipient households have higher average adult BMI values. However, the effects of childhood SNAP usage are sensitive to both residential neighborhood and age at receipt. For those growing up in advantaged neighborhoods, projected adult BMI is higher for children in SNAP-recipient households than for children in low-income, nonrecipient households. In contrast, for those growing up in less-advantaged areas, adult BMI differences between children in SNAP-recipient and those in low-income, nonrecipient households are small. SNAP usage during preschool years (0 to 4) has no impact on adult BMI scores. However, at later childhood ages, the time elapsed receiving SNAP income increases adult BMI values relative to a condition of low-income nonreceipt.     

The Mentoring FAN: A Promising Approach to Enhancing Attunement within the Mentoring System

ABSTRACT

Youth mentoring is a popular tool in positive youth development, with most programs utilizing a model through which youth and non-parental adults are “matched.” Using an adaptation of the Facilitating Attuned Interactions framework, this study sought to explore the effectiveness of the Mentoring FAN in enhancing interpersonal attunement among mentoring staff at two youth mentoring programs in the U.S. Upon completion of the Mentoring FAN training, quantitative (n = 28) and qualitative (n = 15) data were collected from program staff at both sites. Open-ended data from a subset of mentors (n = 27) was also gathered. Results revealed that mentoring staff experienced significant increases in empathy following the Mentoring FAN intervention. Participant interviews revealed increased attunement, increased listening ability, and increased collaboration in the supervisory relationship. Findings support the continued delivery and rigorous testing of Mentoring FAN training, with great promise for enhancing attunement across the mentoring system as a means of strengthening the relationships so critical to this intervention. The study also has important implications for the development of mentor support practices within mentoring organizations, as well as policies designed to meet the needs of youth served by mentoring programs in the U.S.     

Finding gender advantage and disadvantage: Systematic research integration is the solution

In this article, we respond to Vecchio's [Leadersh. Q., 14 (2003)] critique of Eagly and Carli's [Leadersh. Q., 14 (2003)] arguments concerning female leaders' relative advantage and disadvantage. We support Eagly, Johannesen-Schmidt, and van Engen's [Psychol. Bull., 95 (2003) 569] conclusions about leadership style and show that the areas of leadership style in which women exceed men are associated with gains in leader effectiveness, whereas the areas in which men exceed women have negative or null relations to effectiveness. We point out flaws in Vecchio's understanding of the methodology by which researchers integrate research findings across studies and elucidate several essential principles of valid research integration. Our analysis strengthens Eagly and Carli's conclusion that female leaders, relative to male leaders, are correctly described as possessing both advantage and disadvantage.     

Young women’s transition to marriage

This paper examines determinants of timing of marriage for young women by modeling the transition from the single to the married state by age. This approach, combined with a large longitudinal data set, allows us to disaggregate the analysis into fine age groupings and to include situational and attitudinal factors in our model. We find that those characteristics of a young woman’s parental family that reflect the availability of parental resources tend to decrease the chances of a marriage during the early teens. Chances of marrying appear to decrease with increases in the availability and attractiveness of alternatives to the wife role and in the costs of assuming it. We discuss these results from the perspective of the societal and parental normative pressures which affect timing of marriage for young women.     

Bonding to Youth Clubs and Delinquency

Youth clubs and their relationship to delinquency has received surprisingly little attention in the literature. The applicability of social bonding theory, a prominent sociological theory of delinquency, to the experiences of youth in their clubs is the primary focus of this research. The reliability and validity analysis of indices specifically created to assess club bonding suggest the legitimacy of this approach. Belief in the rules and the regulations of the club is found to be negatively correlated with delinquency. Surprisingly, weekly involvement in the club is found to be positively associated with delinquency. Implications for practice and/or intervention are discussed.     

Drug abuse treatment training in Peru. A social policy experiment

A social policy experiment is presented that was conducted from 1997 to 2000 in a setting with a high level of readiness for implementing a randomized experiment of therapeutic community (TC) drug treatment training in Peru. Seventy-six drug abuse treatment organizations were randomly assigned into three groups, and data were collected at multiple assessment periods. Staff and directors in organizations assigned to the training groups participated in either 6-week basic training or 8-week basic plus booster training sessions, which were theoretically grounded. Small- to medium-size positive effects were found on increased staff empowerment to use actual tools and principles from the training; medium and large positive effects were found on the implementation of TC methods with fidelity after the training. A follow-up with the funding and training organizations 1 year later showed use of the evaluation results in decision making in both organizations.     

Relationships between maternal adult attachment security, child perceptions of maternal support, and maternal perceptions of child responses to sexual abuse

This study assessed the relationships between maternal adult attachment style, children's perceptions of maternal support following disclosure of sexual abuse, and maternal perceptions of children's behavioral and emotional responses to sexual abuse among African-American child sexual abuse victims aged 4 to 12 (n=96) and a comparison group of non-abused subjects (n=100). Mothers with insecure attachment styles reported significantly higher rates of internalizing behaviors in their sexually abused children than did securely attached mothers. Among mothers of non-abused children, those with insecure adult attachment styles reported significantly higher rates of externalizing behaviors shown by their children in comparison with mothers with a secure adult attachment style. Mothers with insecure adult attachment styles also reported higher rates of overall behavior problems in their non-abused children that approached statistical significance. Sexually abused children's perceptions of maternal support were not related to maternal attachment style nor to child functioning. Contrary to our prediction, mothers of sexually abused children did not show lower rates of secure attachments when compared to mothers of non-sexually abused children. Our findings indicate that fostering parent- child attachment is important in order to decrease the risk for behavior problems and symptomatology in sexually abused children.