Social network engagement and subjective well‐being: a life‐course perspective

Social networking is a digital phenomenon embraced by billions worldwide. Use of online social platforms has the potential to generate a number of benefits including to well‐being from enhanced social connectedness and social capital accumulation, but is also associated with several negative behaviours and impacts. Employing a life‐course perspective, this paper explores social networking use and its relationship with measures of subjective well‐being. Large‐scale UK panel data from wave 3 (2011–12) and 6 (2014–15) of Understanding Society reveals that social network users are on average younger, aged under 25, but that rising use is reported across the life‐course including into old age. Probit, multinomial logistic, and ANCOVA and change‐score estimations reveal that membership, and greater use, of social networks is associated with higher levels of overall life satisfaction. However, heavy use of social networking sites has negative impacts, reflected in reductions in subjective well‐being. Socio‐economic disadvantage may drive these impacts among young (in education), unemployed and economically inactive heavy SNS users.     

Dual Measures of Sexual Consent: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Internal Consent Scale and External Consent Scale

Sexual assault, often defined as nonconsensual sex, is a problem among college students. Universities have made efforts to increase student awareness about sexual consent, which varies along two dimensions: internal feelings of wantedness and external expressions of consent. However, interventions focus on increasing knowledge of the external expression of consent despite the importance of both dimensions for effective sexual communication. A validated research tool that captures students’ ecological experiences along both dimensions is critical. The current study aimed to replicate and validate the factor structure of the Internal Consent Scale (ICS) and External Consent Scale (ECS) in a sample of 610 undergraduate students and to expand on prior work by examining associations with relationship to partner and sexual orientation. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) provided support for the ICS in its current form (i.e., model fit and factor loadings for the ICS were good). Although model fit for the ECS was good, one subscale, no response signals, had poor factor loadings (.16, .38); thus, suggestions are offered to improve its psychometric properties. Despite limitations of the ECS, these dual measures fill a gap in the consent literature by providing a tool to quantify internal and external aspects of sexual consent.     

Efficacy of interventions targeting alcohol,drug and smoking behaviors in university and college students: A review of randomized controlled trials

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of interventions targeting alcohol consumption, drug use and smoking for college/university students.Participants: College/University students.Methods: Studies were eligible if: (1)included students attending universities/colleges; (2)implemented in a university/college setting; (3)aimed to improve at least one of the following behaviors: alcohol and/or drug use and/or smoking; (4)were RCTs. The effect of the interventions on behaviors was determined by the percentage of studies that reported an effect. Due to the heterogeneity of outcomes meta-analysis was not conducted.Results: 88 studies met criteria. University-based interventions were effective for reducing alcohol-related outcomes (drinking patterns, BAC, consequences, problem drinking). Inconsistent findings for drug and smoking were observed.Conclusions: University-based interventions have the potential to improve health for students. While there is a breadth of research examining the efficacy of interventions to reduce alcohol consumption, further research is needed to determine the best approach for addressing smoking and drug use among students.     

One step forward? Advances and setbacks on the path toward gender equality in families and work

Men and women increasingly express egalitarian preferences for organizing family life, but workplace norms and practices are still based on relatively traditional assumptions about the gender division of labor in families. In this article, we unpack this discordant feature of the cultural landscape with recent sociological research on gender, work, and family. We begin by discussing the growing body of evidence on preferences for gender–egalitarian relationships and specify how these egalitarian desires are incongruous with workplace norms and practices. Such a mismatch between desires and reality tends to produce negative personal and career outcomes, including work–family conflict, stress, and job and marital dissatisfaction. Then, we offer a critical review of the recent actions taken by some employers and policymakers to address this issue. We observe some progressive changes in both the public and private sector in regard to family leave policies, flexible work arrangements, childcare support, and fertility benefits, but these policy initiatives still fall short of supporting gender–egalitarian arrangements for working families. We conclude with a discussion of how researchers could better evaluate and increase the effectiveness of workplace initiatives.     

The Interrater Reliability of the Survivors of Torture Psychosocial Wellbeing Index: An Assessment Matrix Instrument

The United States continues to resettle refugees fleeing conflict, persecution, and torture, enabling many of the world’s most vulnerable individuals to start over and become productive citizens. The rehabilitation of survivors of torture is a complex process that requires service providers to assess a number of factors connected to the multidimensional construct of human wellbeing. The recently developed assessment instrument matrix, Survivors of Torture – Psychosocial Wellbeing Index (SOT-PWI), offers professional providers a way to capture quality of life metrics within the torture treatment settings. The current study sought to establish the reliability of SOT-PWI with a diverse sample of U.S.-based torture treatment professionals. Using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), results suggest that the SOT-PWI achieves a solid interrater reliability, although education level and years of work experience can influence assessment consistency. Error analysis revealed very good accuracy. Study limitations, implication for practice, and future research are considered as well.     

Impact of Social Work Practice in Public Defense

Public defenders are increasingly welcoming social workers into their practice, but there is little understanding of the impact of social work services in this context. This study used propensity score matching to determine the effect of social work services on public defense clients in terms of the number and severity of criminal charges when statistically controlling for pre-existing criminal history and demographic characteristics. Findings indicate that social work and non-social work clients were similar in terms of demographics and that clients in both groups were more likely to have incurred misdemeanor charges, but clients in the social work group experienced more, suggesting greater life disruption. When comparing clients who did and did not receive social work services, results indicate that the number of misdemeanor charges incurred during a two-year time period was lower for clients who received social work services. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.     

Family relationships and troubled sleep among U.S. adults: examining the influences of contact frequency and relationship quality

Sleep is essential for health and daily functioning, and social relationships may be a key social factor influencing sleep, yet sleep has been understudied in the literature on social relationships and health. This study used data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States to examine associations between troubled sleep and family contact, social support, and strain. Results show that having strained family relationships is associated with more troubled sleep, while supportive family relationships are associated with less troubled sleep. Family strain is more consequential for sleep than support, and sleep troubles are greatest when family relationships are highly strained and provide inadequate emotional support. Family strain is also more harmful to sleep among individuals who are in frequent contact with family members. These findings underscore the importance of focusing on both negative and positive aspects of relationships and highlight the significance of family relationships for sleep.     

Latino Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health Behaviors and Outcomes: Research Informed Guidance for Agency-Based Practitioners

Latinos are the largest and fastest growing minority youth group in the United States. Currently, Latino adolescents experience higher rates of teen pregnancy compared to any other racial or ethnic group and have disproportionately high levels of sexually transmitted infections and HIV. Latino teens are also affected by a number of social problems such as school dropout, poverty, depression and limited access to healthcare, which contributes to disparities in reproductive health outcomes for this population. Relatively few intervention research studies and programs have been dedicated to reducing sexual risk among Latino youth, despite their particular vulnerabilities in experiencing negative reproductive health outcomes. We provide recommendations for identifying the unique reproductive health needs of Latino youth and specific applied strategies so that agency-based social workers and other providers can develop family-based interventions that improve adolescent Latino sexual and reproductive health.