Determining Latent Classes of Cumulative Family Structure Experiences in Emerging Adulthood

ABSTRACT

Using a sample of emerging adults (N = 536), this study examined detailed cumulative family structure spanning birth through emerging adulthood. Latent class analysis was used to determine profiles of cumulative family structure experiences based on measures of family structure measured at 5 time points, duration in current family structure, the number of parent relationship transitions, and the number of sibling transitions. Two distinct stable groups, 2 distinct mostly stable groups, and 1 highly unstable group emerged. Additionally, we explored 2 demographic variables as predictors of class membership, and class-level differences on current levels of well-being with a sample of emerging adults.     

重庆:中国现代文学的“异乡”

从文学史的发展来看,重庆完全可以跟北京、上海并称为影响中国现代文学发展的三大中心城市,但由于重庆的中心地位来自于政治的机缘,不是自身文化、文学发展的必然结果,所以它作为中心城市,有着与京沪截然不同的性质和意义。如果说京沪是中国现代文学的"故乡",那么重庆就只能算是"异乡"了。它的这一"异乡"身份赋予了现代文学新的特质,从而与京沪形成互补关系。     

修旧法，择其善者而业用之——论管仲的政治改革思想

“修旧法,择其善者而业用之”是管仲社会改革的基本原则,它的提出有其特殊的社会背景。“修旧法”的核心内容是“尊王”,而“择其善者而业用之”的目的则是“图霸”。管仲在旧制度中寻求突破,而他成功的改革则成为了春秋战国时期的社会变革的滥觞。     

The Noncustodial Father–Child Relationship From Adolescence Into Young Adulthood

The relationship between adult children aged 18 – 24 and noncustodial fathers was explored with longitudinal data from the National Survey of Families and Households (n = 359). Noncustodial fathers’ commitment to their adolescent children (contact, involvement in childrearing decisions) was strongly associated with father‐child relations in early adulthood. Father–adult child relations were weaker when children were born to an unmarried mother and when children had no memory of living with the father. Contrary to expectations, both mothers’ and fathers’ remarriage was associated with stronger father‐child relationships in early adulthood. The results show continuity in the father‐child relationship from adolescence into young adulthood and suggest that the life course transitions of family members influence the father‐child bond.     

论新建本科院校教学管理的弊端及改进措施

目前,我国新建本科院校如雨后春笋般的茁壮成长,但教学质量问题已成为新建本科院校持续发展的命脉。作为提高教学质量必不可少的有效措施和制度保障,教学管理工作却如幼儿学步,跌跌绊绊。本文论述了新建本科院校在教学管理方面的弊端,提出了一些对策性措施。     

Timing, Sequencing, and Quantum of Life Course Events: A Machine Learning Approach

In this paper we discuss and apply machine learning techniques, using ideas from a core research area in the artificial intelligence literature to analyse simultaneously timing, sequencing, and quantum of life course events from a comparative perspective. We outline the need for techniques which allow the adoption of a holistic approach to life course analysis, illustrating the specific case of the transition to adulthood. We briefly introduce machine learning algorithms to build decision trees and rule sets and then apply such algorithms to delineate the key features which distinguish Austrian and Italian pathways to adulthood, using Fertility and Family Survey data. The key role of sequencing and synchronization between events emerges clearly from the analysis. Billari F.C., Fürnkranz J., et Prskawetz A., 2006. Calendrier, séquence et intensitédes événements du cycle de vie : une application des techniques d’apprentissage par machine. Revue Européenne de Démographie, 22: 37–65     

‘Generation boomerang’ in Germany? Returning to the parental home in young adulthood

Leaving the parental home is not always a one-off event in the course of a person's life. Young adults can return one or more times before leaving home permanently. The aim of this article is to analyse the social and economic transition markers and socio-demographic factors which play a role in the return to the parental home of young adults in Germany. The analysis is based on the survey AID:A, conducted by the German Youth Institute in 2009. Data from 4300 young adults, aged 18–32 years, who left the parental home at least once, are used. Young adults are differentiated by their current residential status: living with at least one parent again (returners) or living outside the parental home (leavers). The results show that, the more financially and socially independent a young person is, the less likely they are to return to the family of origin. Furthermore, growing up in a two-parent family in West Germany as well as a strong relationship between fathers and sons increases the likelihood of returning to the parental home after leaving. Notably, it was also found that young adults of Turkish and Eastern European origin are more likely to return than those of German origin.     

The transition from college to work during the great recession: employment,financial, and identity challenges

This study examines the challenges that recent college graduates face in a hard-hit US region during the Great Recession. In their poignant and sometimes heartbreaking perceptions of their ‘biggest challenges,’ graduates vividly illustrate the negative implications of degree completion during the recession. Based on an analysis of both closed and open-ended survey data of Michigan's 2012 graduates, we find that women and first generation college graduates fare the worst in terms of their employment status, debt and income levels, and subjective assessments of job opportunities and financial stress. In contrast, men, especially those whose parents have at least a bachelor's degree, were more likely than their counterparts to report that their ‘biggest challenge’ since graduation was linked with making the transition into adult roles. Taken together, these findings suggest widespread difficulty after graduating from college during the Great Recession, and the ways in which these difficulties are linked with gender and class inequalities.     

Long‐Term Influences of Intergenerational Ambivalence on Midlife Parents' Psychological Well‐being

We investigated changes in midlife parents' intergenerational ambivalence toward a focal child and its influence on their psychological well‐being over 14 years, as the focal child moved from adolescence into young adulthood. We estimated growth curve models using three waves of data from the National Survey of Families and Households (N = 1,510 parents aged 35–54 years at Time 1). Parental ambivalence declined over time, equally among mothers and fathers. The prediction from ambivalence theory that children's attainment of adult statuses reduces parental ambivalence received only modest support. Only the focal child's marriage reduced parental ambivalence. The focal child's lifestyle–behavioral problems during adolescence still elevated ambivalence 14 years later, albeit less so. For its part, intergenerational ambivalence counteracted trends toward declining depressive symptoms and greater happiness for mothers and fathers alike, and its effects remained constant over time.