What counts as happiness for young people: A qualitative study

Limited research exists on young people's own views on their happiness, with research dominated by adult-led, quantitative well-being studies. This article discusses a qualitative study on young people's happiness which draws on both Psychology and Childhood and Youth Studies. In all, 42 young people completed writings and a new method of ‘happiness maps’, together with discussion groups and interviews, which were analysed within a constructivist grounded theory approach. Happiness is revealed as wide-ranging, complex, and individually variable. Family and friends were important, but these relationships were qualified and contingent in how they contributed to happiness. Importantly, discussions of happiness also incorporated unhappiness.     

Missing family: the adult child’s experience of parental estrangement

This qualitative study examined the experiences of 25 adult children who initiated or maintained estrangement from one or both parents. Participants often stated that they initiated or maintained estrangement to provide relief and space to heal from a difficult relationship, but it was also experienced as a considerable loss that impacted them across the lifespan. They missed having a family and the benefits of such a relationship, including emotional, financial and physical support. However, the majority stated that they did not miss ‘their own family’ or the person they were estranged from, often taking active measures to keep the estrangement status intact. Estrangement also appeared to affect participant’s experiences of other relationships with non-estranged family members, work colleagues, and potential partners and friends. These findings suggest social work practice that is focused on understanding and addressing grief reactions, a critical examination of family, stress reduction, and reconnection to safe and trusting relationships.     

Change and Adaptation in Families with Young Carers

Using grounded theory methodology, members of nine families with 'young carers' were interviewed to explore their experiences of caring. A dynamic theory of change and adaptation emerged in relation to changes in who cares within families, in external support and in the attitudes of young carers towards caring. Adaptations included becoming used to the way life is, knowing how to care, balancing and trading off, rewarding care, and anticipating future adaptations. A model has been developed to offer an explanation of factors which influence young caring in families. These include family expectations about caring; who is available to care; the willingness and capability of young carers to help; and the degree of choice or obligation they experience. Formal and informal support services from outside the family, and environmental adaptations, can reduce the amount of family caregiving required, increase choice and contribute to balancing life for carers.     

成人高校学生德育教育的探讨

思想道德教育是学校整体教育工作的重要组成部分,成人高校亦应如此。但由于成人高校的生源多为成年人,已经具备个人较为固定的思想体系,因此成人高校的德育教育有其特殊性,需要更加具有实践性。在就业导向背景下,尝试将德育教育与学生就业相结合,以提高成人高校德育教育的时效性。     

难以抹去的青春写作——以春树的小说创作为例

对以春树为代表的"80后"青春女性写作,人们有很多认识误区。究其实而言,她们的写作还是一种当代中国女性写作传统影响下的正在成长中的青春书写:既有性别意识的凸显,又有性别姿态的显然夸大和扭曲,既渴求树立其年龄阶段的话语表达方式,又显然缺乏更高的审美价值追求。与女性写作传统比,其承接中既有时代和年龄的变化,也有书写意识和美学追求尚不协调的矛盾。     

Accessing a hard to reach population: reflections on research with young carers in Ireland

In keeping with developments in children's rights, research is increasingly including the views of children. Accessing a hard to reach population of children can, however, raise significant ethical and methodological challenges for researchers. Negotiating access through gatekeepers, securing parental consent and limits on confidentiality are central issues in the recruitment process of children. This paper is based on a qualitative study of young carers in the Irish population. It outlines the methodological approaches employed to access a representative sample of young carers and the measures taken to fulfil ethical obligations. In the recruitment phase of the study, researchers attempted to strike a balance between two sometimes competing requirements, the need to protect children from harm and to respect children's competence. This paper reflects on the success and limitations of the approaches adopted towards achieving this balance, exploring the use of gatekeepers as a method to identify and recruit a hidden population, and revisiting the measures taken to comply with the ethical requirements of parental consent and limits on confidentiality.     

Professionals' perceptions of offending in children's residential care

This paper reports on and discusses the results of part of the author's PhD study. It focuses on professionals' perceptions of the factors that contribute to young people in residential children's homes coming to the attention of the criminal justice system, with consideration given to how such perceptions might impact on responses to the young people. As part of a case study of a particular local authority area, the author undertook semi‐structured interviews and a focus group with 31 professionals from the care and criminal justice systems. The implications of the findings for policy and practice are discussed.     

Impact of Childhood Socioeconomic Position on Self‐Rated Health Trajectories of South Korean Adults

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of childhood socioeconomic position (SEP) on adult health trajectory in South Korea. Seven waves of data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study (KOWEPS, 2007–2012; Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, 2014 ) were analyzed using latent growth curve analysis. Health condition was measured by self‐assessment. The major independent variables were indicators of childhood and adult SEP. The findings suggest that those who perceive their childhood economic condition to be more affluent are more likely to assess their health to be better at the intercept. The insignificant effect of childhood economic condition on the slope and the quadratic term suggest that the initial gap remains over time. On the other hand, a disruption in education as a result of poverty was significantly associated with the intercept, slope, and quadratic term. The results suggest that although the large gap at wave 1 somewhat decreases, the gap in health remains because of the significant quadratic term. Childhood SEP has a a lasting effect on adult health trajectories, after controlling for adult SEP. Significant findings support policies and programs that are targeted to reduce socioeconomic disparities in childhood to enhance equality and public health.     

阿斯塔菲耶夫《偷窃》中的西伯利亚形象

西伯利亚时空被誉为俄罗斯文学的极限时空,因其地缘政治因素、历史文化因素和自然因素的巧妙融合而被神话化。俄罗斯当代著名作家阿斯塔菲耶夫在其小说《偷窃》中,把西伯利亚时空具象化为克拉耶斯维茨克,作者继承了俄罗斯文学对西伯利亚做出的神话诗学阐释,并创造性地把极限意义上的自然时空社会化,深化了人在宇宙中的存在主义命题,凸显出人类精神存在的孤独感、被弃感,探索了人类精神体验的深度。作家描绘的三种基本道德感的建立是处于极限环境下的人摆脱困境、实现其精神完整性复归的最佳途径。     

End of Life,Chronic Illness,and Trans-Identities

In this study, the experiences and needs of a sample of 1,963 current, global, English-speaking, transgender-identified adults responding to the Transgender MetLife Survey (TMLS) as related to a number of later-life and end-of-life (EOL) preparations and concerns were examined. EOL concerns are integrated with concerns and challenges around chronic illness and disability. Overall, this population was significantly ill-prepared for the major legalities and events that occur in the later to EOL time periods. The population was found to harbor significant fears around the future. Drawing on the author's decades of survey research in transgender aging and case data along with current scientific and online literature, illustrative quotations and case examples are provided.