Asian Families at the Crossroads: A Meeting of East,West, Tradition,Modernity, and Gender

East Asian societies have undergone major changes in the past few decades, including substantial declines in marriage and fertility. This article introduces the special section of Asian Families in Context by sketching commonalities and variations in patterns of marriage and family behavior in this region. A discussion of relevant theoretical frameworks from the Western literature follows. The final section briefly introduces the 6 empirical studies that comprise this section and discusses their relevance for developing and refining theory relevant to understanding family change in East Asia.     

Social Relations Model Analyses of Perceived Self‐Control and Trust in Families

How do people know which family member is trustworthy? In this study, the authors tested the hypothesis that people use their perception of a family member's self‐control as an indicator of his or her trustworthiness. Eighty‐four Dutch families consisting of 2 parents and 2 children completed questionnaires assessing each family member's trust in and perceived self‐control of the other 3 family members. This full‐family design enabled the authors to examine their hypothesis in horizontal relationships, between family members of equal status (i.e., parent–parent and sibling–sibling relationships), and vertical relationships, in which partners have unequal status (i.e., parent–child and child–parent relationships). Consistent with the hypothesis, Social Relations Model analyses showed that being perceived as having higher self‐control is related to greater trustworthiness among adults and children in the large majority of horizontal and vertical relationships (10 out of 12). These findings highlight that perceived self‐control is an important factor by which to gauge trustworthiness in families.     

Exploring Cultural Issues for Constellation Work in South Africa

Constellation work is a therapeutic and counselling intervention recognised in Germany and other European countries since the 1970s. Various scientists and practitioners have contributed to its theoretical and practical development, and research on the subject has increased over the past few years. However culture in constellation work has received little research attention and has not been empirically studied in African contexts. The aim of this article is to reflect on culture and its influence on constellation work in multicultural, post‐apartheid South Africa. An empirical qualitative research approach within the phenomenological paradigm was adopted. Six constellation facilitators were interviewed with in‐depth and field notes taken during participative observations of constellation workshops. The findings provide insight into culture in constellation work in the South African context. Theoretical and practical recommendations for scientists and therapy practitioners working with systemic interventions like constellation work are provided.     

大学生创业意向影响因素研究——基于武汉高校的调研分析

对武汉市8所高校1 600名在校大学生的调查表明:大学生创业最突出的动机是自我实现;大学生普遍认为学校教育对其创业意向有影响,而他们对学校的创业教育并不满意;大学生创业最需要的是资金和知识技能支持,而创业者本身最需要的素质是自信、有创造力和团队合作精神等。进一步的分析表明,自身主客观条件、家庭背景、外部环境都对大学生创业意向有显著的影响:女生总体创业意向低于男生;学校、专业、年级、籍贯对大学生创业意向有显著影响,而学历无显著影响;就业压力越大,大学生创业意向越强;家庭背景对大学生创业意向有显著影响,而对机遇的认识无显著影响。     

Impact of Mid-Life Symptoms of Alcoholism on the Health and Wellbeing of Aging Parents of Adults with Disabilities

The study examined the effect of adult children’s disability on parents’ physical health in later life and the extent to which parents’ symptoms of alcoholism in mid-life moderates the link between children’s disability and later life parental health. Analyses are based on data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. The analytic sample included parents of children with developmental disabilities (n = 145) or mental health problems (n = 200) and 2,432 parents of unaffected children. The results showed that the negative health consequences in later life of having a child with a developmental disability were greater for those who showed more symptoms of alcoholism in mid-life. However, symptoms of alcoholism in mid-life did not significantly moderate the impact of an adult child’s mental health problems on parents’ later life physical health. The findings suggest a potential area where gerontological social workers could intervene, given the negative impact of symptoms of alcoholism on the health of aging parents of children with a disability who may be significantly more susceptible to the negative health impacts of alcohol compared to their younger counterparts.     

家庭背景、学业表现与研究生教育机会获得

随着高校毕业生数量的逐年攀升和经济发展对高端人才需求的增长,越来越多的本科毕业生选择继续接受研究生教育以提高自己在劳动力市场中的竞争优势。本文对首都大学生成长追踪调查数据进行了实证分析,研究发现,2010年和2012年毕业于北京高校的本科生中,约有三分之一的学生选择了继续接受研究生教育,而且读研学生的家庭背景和学业表现都要显著地优于毕业后直接就业的学生。进一步的分析表明,在国内研究生教育机会获得中,家庭背景变量基本上是通过影响本科就读高校的类型和学业表现来发挥作用的,而比较海外留学与国内读研这两种选择,本科就读学校类型和学业表现对此并没有显著的影响,主要是家庭社会经济地位在起作用。上述研究发现对于当前中国的研究生教育招生和培养工作具有重要的政策意涵。     

What social workers do in performing child protection work: evidence from research into face‐to‐face practice

Little research has been done into what social workers do in everyday child protection practice. This paper outlines the broad findings from an ethnographic study of face‐to‐face encounters between social workers, children and families, especially on home visits. The social work practice was found to be deeply investigative. Children's bedrooms were routinely inspected and were the most common place where they were seen alone. A high proportion of children were not seen on their own because they were too young and the majority of the time was spent working with parents and children together. Small amounts of time were spent with children on their own and some first encounters were so rushed that social workers did not even introduce themselves to the child. This arose from two key factors: firstly, organisational pressures from high workloads and the short timescales that social workers were expected to adhere to by managers and Government; secondly, practitioners had varying levels of communication skills, playfulness and comfort with getting close to children and skills at family work. Where these skills and relational capacities were present, social workers were found to have developed deep and meaningful relationships with some children and families, for whom it was apparent that therapeutic change had occurred.     

Parenting interventions in shelter settings: a qualitative systematic review of the literature

The aim of this literature review was to critique the state of the research on the effects of implementing parenting programmes in shelters for homeless families. A comprehensive search of multiple databases yielded 12 studies for inclusion. The methodological sophistication of the studies varied, with most investigations based on very small samples and one‐group pre‐post designs. Results indicated that parents generally viewed the interventions as enjoyable and informative, and attendance was good. Incentives were often used to encourage attendance. Evidence was limited in terms of effectiveness of the interventions, but the few studies of evidence‐based parenting programmes showed changes in parenting and child functioning. Suggestions are provided for future investigations in this important yet challenging field of study.     

Transnational Caregiving for My Father: An Opportunity and a Blessing

Transnational caregiving can be daunting, yet it often brings out the strengths of the caregiver that he or she may not have been aware of. Thus, it is a wonderful opportunity to know oneself and use those strengths to become better in other areas of life. Transnational caregiving is also a blessing, in that one can still continue to provide care for a loved one by surmounting the barriers of geographical distance. To transform what often is a challenging situation into a blessing, a fresh eye is needed to seek different ways of fulfilling the needs of the loved one by focusing on one thing: How can the caregiver, in his or her individual capacity, make a difference in the quality of life of the family member? This article, while relating personal experience in caring for a parent, traverses these issues.