Nonshared Environment Research

SUMMARY

This review focuses on conceptualizations of nonshared environment and on four areas of research that should be targeted for future growth. It is argued that there are at least two different approaches to the study of nonshared environment. “Experience-oriented” researchers center on sibling differential experiences in the family and their role in children's development. “Outcome-oriented” investigators focus on the search for environmental origins of individual differences in outcomes. Turkheimer and Waldron's (2000) concept of objective versus effective nonshared environment and Reiss and colleagues' (2000) notion of single-system versus multi-system nonshared environment processes are also discussed. Four topics for future research are outlined: (1) age-related changes and development; (2) the role of the self; (3) the role of context; and (4) the importance of extrafamilial experiences. More work in these areas will lead to useful theories of how nonshared environment processes are linked to sibling and individual differences in behavioral development and adjustment.     

German family policy at the crossroads: analysing the impact of parental leave reform through simulation

Comparative studies of welfare reforms encounter two problems. First, the counterfactual problem is that in the real world schemes and their reforms do not coexist simultaneously and are hard to compare. Second, the contextual problem derives from the absence of comparable measures for change. Microsimulation helps to overcome these problems. It compares policy options – actual reforms or reform plans – simultaneously and provides a comparable measure: the disposable income of model families. This article uses a type–case approach to investigate recent reforms of the German parental leave benefit. Simulation makes those reforms comparable over time and across countries. Results show that the profile of the German scheme is changing from 'general family' towards 'dual-earner' support. Furthermore, the recent reforms make the German scheme converge towards the Swedish leave scheme. The recent reforms introduce a new concept of fairness and a focus on gender equality to German family policies.     

Coming Out as “We 3”

Abstract

Using an academic letter format, I use a blended-method-ological approach of personal ethnography and qualitative case study to assess the three-partner, gay male relationship and the role of parental support. In working to understand better the relational “We 3,” I first provide an account of my relational experience with two other men. I discuss the process of our coming together and then make a methodological turn to provide insights from both e-mail and face-to-face interviews with one set of parents who have supported their gay son in his three-partner relationship. As I, personally, have not had an in-depth conversation with my own parents regarding this issue, I use the parental case study to bridge an academic conversation regarding the negotiation of what might be termed a second or relational coming out process with parents. Finally, I discuss how insights from the first, personal coming out process provided the parents with tools to keep the conversation going and to support their son's relational coming out as a “We 3.”     

Are girls more than boys subjected to disrupted conditions of upbringing?

Basing findings on data from the longitudinal programme Individual Development and Adaptation (IDA; n = 1383) it was found to be twice as common for girls to have been subjected to problematic upbringing conditions as for boys (here defined by experiencing major changes with regard to the child's caregivers; i.e. not just one parental divorce). This characterized 7.4% of the girls and 3.5% of the boys, a highly significant difference. A simple count of the number of parental transitions a child had been subjected to during upbringing also showed a sex difference in the same direction. As expected, girls with such disrupted upbringing showed adjustment problems during the school years, especially with regard to hyperactivity-related behaviours and conduct problems. The corresponding group of boys showed less pronounced adjustment problems. The generalizability of the results are discussed and tentative explanations presented for the sex differences that were found.     

FATHERS’ USE OF LEAVE IN AUSTRALIA

This paper examines Australian fathers’ use of leave at the time of the birth of a child, drawing on data from The Parental Leave in Australia Survey, conducted in 2005, and a subsequent organizational case study. Our analysis shows that although most Australian fathers take some leave for parental purposes, use of formally designated paternity or parental leave is limited. This is unsurprising given the Australian policy framework, which lacks legislative provision for paid paternity or parental leave, and does not require any of the shared unpaid parental-leave entitlement to be reserved for fathers. Use of leave is shown to be influenced primarily by fathers’ employment characteristics, with those working in small organizations or non-permanent positions least likely to utilize paternity or other forms of leave. Overall, the analysis suggests that improvements in the policy framework would increase Australian fathers’ propensity to take parental leave, but highlights barriers to usage associated with labour market divisions and career pressures that will not be solved solely by the adoption of more progressive leave policies.     

Helping parents to manage infant crying and sleeping: a review of the evidence and its implications for services

Infant crying and night waking are common concerns for parents, costly problems for health services and may trigger infant abuse or lead to serious child disturbances. Parents are given contradictory advice on how to manage infant crying and sleeping, indicating the need for evidence‐based guidance. This review of recent research draws distinctions between infant crying and sleeping problems, between the problem identified by parents and the infant behaviour underlying the problem, between different types of crying behaviour and their causes, and between the types of cases which present at different ages. It proposes that the two main approaches to parenting advocated by baby‐care experts, ‘infant‐demand’ and ‘structured’ parenting, have different benefits, and costs. Comparative studies have found that infant‐demand parenting is associated with low amounts of fussing and crying in the first three months of age, but with night waking which continues beyond three months. Randomised controlled trials have provided evidence that structured parenting leads to more overall fussing and crying during the first three months, but reduced night waking and crying after that. The findings are translated into recommendations for preventing and treating infant crying and sleeping problems, for policy debate, and for further research. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Conversation With Virus X: Outing a Malevolent and Subversive Force in Parents' Lives

The following conversation describes a narrative means of uncovering (or ‘deconstructing’) some of the invisible forces that undermine parents' capacities in caring for their children in preferred ways. In the authors' experience, parents can be hugely resourceful and provide a clear account of what they ‘should’ be doing, yet seem unable to act upon their own good advice — it is as though an external agent, named below as ‘Virus X’, prevents them from being the parents they would like to be. Through naming this external agent, identifying its influences and noticing parents' acts of resistance in the face of these influences, antidotes to Virus X can be developed. This paper describes the development of such an approach within a child behaviour management group. In keeping with the playful approach encouraged by narrative therapy, the authors of this paper join forces to act as investigative journalists in exposing Virus X to the readers.     

Difference and equality: Icelandic parents' division of parental leave within the context of a childcare gap

Iceland's parental leave system, granting mothers and fathers equal benefits, may be interpreted as part of the development in the Nordic countries towards a dual-earner/dual-caregiver model. Even though uptake studies show fathers' increased participation in childcare, the use of the entitlement varies and a gendered pattern persists. This paper is based on interviews with 14 Icelandic couples who find themselves in a situation where they have to bridge a care gap between parental leave and state-subsidized childcare. While mothers tend to stretch their part of the leave on the argument that six months is too short a leave, fathers generally find three months to be long enough. The discussion revolves around the question of the relationship between difference and equality, inspired by Andrea Doucet's (2006) concept of strategic essentialism. May we envision a policy system that takes into consideration the way people invest in gender and at the same time develop policy measures that facilitate gender equality?     

The Development of a Screening Tool for the Adult Children of Alcoholics Traits (STACAT)

In order to develop a valid tool for screening the traits of adult children of alcoholics (ACOA), this study focused on finding common characteristics among ACOA and developing a tool based on those characteristics. An item pool was generated targeting three distinct characteristics discussed in the alcohol literature related to ACOA, and the items were reviewed by a panel of experts. Using data from the sample, a confirmatory factor analysis, t -test and correlation analysis were conducted to gather various validity evidences for the screening tool. Cronbach's coefficient alpha test was used to check the internal consistency of the tool. The evidence of the reliability and validity for the ACOA traits screening tool provide the social work practice with an empirically validated method of measuring these traits in the children of alcoholics.     

家长期望教育价值的思考与探索

家长对子女的学习成绩、学历水平、职业选择等关系他们一生成长的重要方面均有很高的期望。要克服长期存在的家长期望过高的偏向以及由此给儿童、青少年身心发展和学校教育带来的负面影响,必须正确认识家长期望的教育意义,给家长期望适切、合理的教育定位,准确把握家长期望的水平尺度,不断提高家长期望质量。这样,才能充分发挥家长期望特有的教育功能,实现家长期望的教育价值。