RELATIONSHIP TRANSITIONS AMONG YOUTH IN URBAN KENYA

The process of courtship and marriage in sub-Saharan Africa has changed remarkably. These changes, however, have received scant attention, as recent research has focused on adolescent relationships' links to HIV/AIDS rather than to marriage. Drawing on detailed reports of 1,365 romantic and sexual partnerships from youths in Kisumu, Kenya, we find that marital aspirations, school enrollment, emotional attraction, pregnancy, and independence from kin are all predictors of getting engaged or married. Furthermore, though men and women are much more likely to marry partners they believe are sexually exclusive, men who have multiple partners are actually more likely to get married. By focusing on the contemporary process of marriage, this paper offers an alternative portrayal of premarital relationships in sub-Saharan Africa.     

Growing up with a sibling with dwarfism: perceptions of adult non‐dwarf siblings

Despite the fact that society seems to have become more tolerant towards human diversity, skeletal dysplasia still carries some extent of stigmatization and negative stereotyping. There seems to be a lack of knowledge regarding psychosocial factors associated with skeletal dysplasia, specifically as it relates to interpersonal relationships. Since the negative attention directed at individuals with dwarfism may also have an impact on family members and family relationships, the aim of this qualitative study was to explore adult non‐dwarf siblings' experiences of growing up with siblings with a skeletal dysplasia. Thematic analyses of semi‐structured interviews with four adult non‐dwarf siblings confirmed both negative and positive effects. These effects were evident in childhood and continued into adulthood. For the adults who took part in this study, the positive effects seemed to be more profound.     

Being close: The quality of social relationships in a local organic cereal and bread network in Lower Austria

Experience of the drawbacks of a globalised and industrialised food system has generated interest in localised food systems. Local food networks are regarded as more sustainable food provision systems since they are assumed to have high levels of social embeddedness and relations of regard. This paper explores the social relations between food actors and how ‘local’ and ‘organic’ are expressed by detailing how actors describe qualities of their intra-network relationships, how they understand ‘local’ and how they are connected within the food system. A study from the province of Lower Austria in Austria, where organic cereals and bread are produced and marketed, serves to illuminate these issues. Actors agreed that geographical closeness contributed to the social closeness they experienced and that social relationships were a strong reason for being in the network. However, the meaning of ‘local’ was elastic depending on where inputs and consumers could be found. Furthermore, despite strong commitment to organic production methods and the local market, actors faced constraints that made them hybrids between organic and conventional, and between locally focused and globally dependent. Thus, the binary thinking along the local-global and organic-conventional divide does not hold. While it is important to not make a causal link between high quality of social relationships and local food networks, the case described here indicates the possibility of such a link.     

Impact of Genetic Relatedness and Emotional Closeness on Intergenerational Relations

Both emotional closeness and genetic relatedness are known to influence helping behavior between family generations, yet few studies have explored them together. The authors investigated the associations between (a) parenthood and perceived emotional closeness toward own parents and parents‐in‐law and (b) emotional closeness and receiving child care from grandparents across and within lineage lines. The data include information on the 8 dyads of possible parent–grandparent relations from a nationally representative survey of young adults in Finland (born 1962–1990, sample N = 1,216). The results show that parenthood was associated with women's emotional closeness to their own mothers and men's emotional closeness to their parents‐in‐law. Maternal grandmothers provided the most grandchild care. After controlling for emotional closeness, the difference in child care provision between one's own mother and one's mother‐in‐law disappeared for women but was accentuated in men. Thus, emotional closeness shapes intergenerational relations differently for kin and in‐laws.     

The effects of mindfulness on mother–child relationships and maternal well-being during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Israel

Research indicates associations of mindfulness with better relationships and well-being because it promotes decentering and relationship-related capacities. This study examined the effects of mindfulness on mothers' relationships with their children and well-being in a challenging time – the first COVID-19 lockdown. We hypothesized that mothers' relationships and well-being would deteriorate during the lockdown, but a mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) would mitigate this process because of its effect on mothers' mindfulness and decentering. We surveyed 109 mothers caring for their children (mean age 8.61) during the first lockdown in Israel. First, they completed online questionnaires assessing their interpersonal mindfulness, decentering, relationships with their children and well-being (including positive and negative affect and life satisfaction). Then, they were randomly assigned to a group: MBI, relaxing music intervention or no intervention. Participants completed the questionnaires again after 2 weeks of daily interventions. Unexpectedly, mothers in all groups improved their relationships with their children and well-being (their satisfaction with life increased and negative affect decreased) with no significant group differences. Furthermore, the increase in relationship quality was associated with increases in mindfulness and decentering. The findings suggest that crises initially perceived as a threat to mother–child relationships may also present a beneficial opportunity in certain circumstances.     

Self‐assessed consequences of unemployment on individual wellbeing and family relationships: A study of unemployed women and men in Finland

Weckström S. Self‐assessed consequences of unemployment on individual wellbeing and family relationships: a study of unemployed women and men in Finland The present study investigated how family situation and gender affect the experience of unemployment. The sample consisted of 494 Finnish women and 387 Finnish men who had been registered as unemployed for at least 3 months. The main method used in the study was analysis of covariance. Women assessed the consequences of unemployment on their individual wellbeing and on the parent–child relationship less negatively than men, but there was no corresponding gender difference concerning spousal relationship. Lone mothers experienced the change in individual wellbeing slightly more negatively than women in other family situations; this difference was in part related to financial strain. Financial strain and non‐financial work motivation predicted negative changes in individual wellbeing and in spousal relationship for both genders. Parent–child relationships were, however, independent from these variables. The way family relationships were affected was connected to changes in individual wellbeing.     

历代注释书句法逻辑语义关系分析——兼说汉语语法单复句区分自身存在的“破绽”和建立“并列语法结构”

历代注释书对短语中和短语间的逻辑语义关系有精细分析,并表现出二者的语义关系类型实完全相同、所用关系词多同少异。汉语语法无单复句区分,而这种＂区分＂自身存在＂破绽＂、＂不协调＂,应建立二元（或过二元）平等加合构成的并列结构代替单复句划分。并列结构跟主谓、动宾、动补等句法结构不在一个层面上：并列结构可是主谓等句法结构的结构成分,而构成元也可是主谓等句法结构。     

维吾尔族妇女婚居模式及婚姻家庭关系——基于新疆喀什地区S县A村的调查研究

维吾尔族婚居模式普遍为从夫居。A村维吾尔族婚后的居住类型以从夫居为主,同时存在少量的从妻居和独居制。近年来,婚居模式已发生了一些变化,从妻居略有增加,但不是入赘,这种情况多见于再婚。在相应居住模式下,从维系婚姻及女性视角,探讨维吾尔族妇女婚后主要的家庭关系--夫妻关系、亲子关系、婆媳关系。     

师幼关系对学前儿童自我概念的影响：接受性语言能力和心理弹性的链式中介作用

为探讨师幼关系与学前儿童自我概念的关系,并检验接受性语言能力和心理弹性在其间的中介作用,采用师幼关系量表、接受性语言能力测量、幼儿心理弹性量表和幼儿自我概念量表对911名学前儿童及其教师进行测量和调查。结果表明：1）师幼亲密性和依赖性对学前儿童自我概念具有直接正向预测作用;2）接受性语言能力和心理弹性在师幼亲密性与自我概念之间分别起着部分中介作用,接受性语言能力在师幼依赖性与学前儿童自我概念之间具有部分中介作用;3）接受性语言能力和心理弹性在两种类型师幼关系与学前儿童自我概念之间起着链式中介作用。研究表明,教师与学前儿童建立积极亲密的师幼关系将有助于促进学前儿童自我概念的发展。