Listening to Young People with Learning Disabilities Who Have Experienced,or Are at Risk of,Child Sexual Exploitation in the UK

This paper reports on a UK study which examined the identification of, and support for young people with learning disabilities who experience, or are at risk of, child sexual exploitation (CSE). CSE has received considerable attention in the UK, with evidence suggesting an increased risk for young people with learning disabilities. However, no study has specifically focused on this group, and their voices remain largely unheard. In‐depth interviews with 27 young people with learning disabilities were undertaken to explore how to meet their needs. This paper presents the young people's voices and identifies areas for improvements in policy and practice.     

New evidence about effects of reproductive variables on child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa

There is still considerable uncertainty about how reproductive factors affect child mortality. This study, based on Demographic and Health Survey data from 28 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, shows that mortality is highest for firstborn children with very young mothers. Other children with young mothers, or of high birth order, also experience high mortality. Net of maternal age and birth order, a short preceding birth interval is associated with above average mortality. These patterns change, however, if time-invariant unobserved mother-level characteristics of importance for both mortality and fertility are controlled for in a multilevel–multiprocess model. Most importantly, there are smaller advantages associated with longer birth intervals and being older at first birth. The implications of alternative reproductive ‘strategies’ are discussed, taking into account that if the mother is older at birth, the child will also be born in a later calendar year, when mortality may be lower.     

Divorce and parity progression following the death of a child: A register-based study from Finland

Most studies that have examined whether a child’s death influences parental relationship stability have used small-scale data sets and their results are inconclusive. A likely reason is that child loss affects not only the risk of parental separation, but also the risk of having another child. Hence parity progression and separation must be treated as two competing events in relation to child loss. The analysis in this paper used Finnish register data from 1971 to 2003, covering over 100,000 married couples whose durations of both first marriage and parenthood could be observed. We ran parity-specific Cox regressions in which process time started from the birth of each additional child. All marriages included women of childbearing age, none of whom had experienced any child death on entering the analysis. We find that child loss only modestly influences the divorce risk, whereas its effect on the risk of parity progression is considerable.     

中国已婚女性意愿生育数的影响因素分析

本文利用2004年中国健康与营养调查（CHNS）数据,分析了个人因素、家庭因素以及社会因素对中国已婚女性意愿生育数的影响。结果显示,个人因素如年龄、受教育程度、工作单位类型及月均收入水平对其意愿生育数的影响具有显著的统计学意义;社会因素如城乡、所在省份亦对意愿生育数有影响;但家庭因素,被调查者有无兄弟姐妹对其意愿生育数影响的统计学意义不显著。     

再论“四二一”结构:定义与研究方法

"四二一"结构是中国低生育率背景下家庭结构与代际关系的一种特殊表达,既反映了20世纪70年代以来计划生育政策广泛推行对中国家庭的深刻影响,又揭示了中国现阶段婚姻家庭乃至未来人口发展的特点与趋势。目前这一领域的研究虽然已经取得一系列的进展,但在概念界定与使用的方法上仍缺乏共识,导致研究结论的分歧和研究拓展的迟滞。在中国社会剧烈变动的形势下,"四二一"结构是研究中国的计划生育政策、独生子女问题,以及家庭结构与代际关系变动的一个良好的载体和切入点。     

“I'm Not Supporting His Kids”: Nonresident Fathers' Contributions Given Mothers' New Fertility

The authors examined whether nonresident fathers provide informal support to their children and whether support stops if their ex‐partner goes on to have a child with a new man. A logistic regression analysis of longitudinal survey and administrative data for 434 women who received welfare in Wisconsin showed that fathers are less likely to provide informal support when their ex‐partner has a child with a new partner. Alternative models that control for unobserved characteristics suggest somewhat different results, providing stronger evidence of declines in support that can be shared across family members than in support that can be directed to a particular child.     

Life Course Status and Exchanges of Support Between Young Adults and Parents

The authors investigated intergenerational support exchanges in relation to young adults' life course status. In a sample of 2,022 young adults (ages 18–34 years) in The Netherlands, single young adults reported receiving more advice from parents than married young adults, and those with children of their own received more practical support. Married young adults and young adults with children provided less support to parents than, respectively, single young adults and young adults without children. Congruent with the life course perspective, the authors' findings suggest that the intergenerational support network is both durable and flexible, responding to the resources and needs associated with an individual's life course status.     

Traditional versus Western perceptions of mental illness: women of Moroccan origin treated in an Israeli mental health center

This paper focuses on the problems encountered in providing Westernized psychiatric treatment to a population with traditional healing beliefs. The sample comprised women of Moroccan origin living in Israel undergoing treatment for psychiatric disorders (N=38), and their treating psychiatrists (N=9). Ethnographic interviews were conducted among both groups. The results revealed that the symptoms, perceptions of the illness, and problems encountered in the therapeutic relationship differed across three age groups, young women (20–30 years), more mature women (31–42 years), and older women (43–60 years). While cultural conflict appeared to affect the development of mental illness in each group, this was most pronounced among women in the middle age range. Moreover, problems in the therapeutic alliance were greatest in this age group. The data from the therapists indicated that they maintained a Western perspective in both their understanding and diagnoses of these patients' illnesses. The different perspectives of the therapists and each of the three groups of women are discussed. It is concluded that professionals treating traditional populations must avoid imposing Western standards, and consider the treatment in the context of cultural beliefs. The developmental stages of the individual, and the stage of acculturation must also be taken into account if treatment is to be effective.     

Trauma and Bowen Family Systems Theory: Working with Adults Who were Abused as Children

Working with survivors of trauma is mostly challenging, exhausting, long‐term and often ‘messy’, when interventions that ‘should’ work, don't, or the unexpected arises. Nevertheless, explanations that speak to recovery from trauma more and more rely on neurobiological concepts to account for any positive change. Combining the family systems approach of Murray Bowen and recent research on the brain and trauma, post trauma symptoms are viewed as part of the ‘family emotional process’ even when traumatic events have emanated from outside the family system itself. Variations in responses to trauma, including dissociation and self‐harm are discussed in relation to chronic anxiety and ‘differentiation of self’.     

Obstacles for child participation in care and protection cases—why Norwegian social workers find it difficult

Although some attempts are being made to increase children's participation in Norwegian child protection cases, much needs to be done in order to comply with the participation principle in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. This paper reports on a study of factors that are likely to predict if social workers will attempt to give children an effective voice in decision making processes. 53 child protection case managers and 33 social work students participated in a questionnaire survey in which they were asked to agree or disagree with 20 statements about child participation. Statistical factor analysis was used in order to identify underlying factors in the dataset. The results suggest three main reasons for children not being allowed to participate: communication difficulties (communication factor); because child participation was not deemed necessary (participation advocacy factor); or that participation was considered inappropriate because it might be harmful (protectionism factor). This research suggests that, if we are to improve participation within the child protection system, formal regulations and guidelines need to be accompanied by a greater attention to development of social work skills in working with children through participatory processes. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.