Archive
Donor, Dad, or…? Young Adults with Lesbian Parents’ Experiences with Known Donors
Donor, Dad, or…? Young Adults with Lesbian Parents’ Experiences with Known Donors
Source: Williams Institute
Research suggests that children of lesbian parents are satisfied with their current level of contact with their male donors and do not think of their donors as dads. The study sheds light on how children raised in lesbian, gay, and bisexual families are contributing to the redefinition and reconstruction of complex kinship arrangements. Participants in the study perceived their relationships with their male donors in one of three ways: as strictly donors and not members of their family; as extended family members, but not as parents; and as fathers. Participants ranged in age from 19-29, and while most were satisfied with the current level of contact with their male donors, several desired more information or contact with these men, and in some of these cases, had already begun to establish a connection with them.
Metro Areas with Highest Percentages of Same-Sex Couples Raising Children Are in States with Constitutional Bans on Marriage
Source: Williams Institute
The metro areas with the highest percentages of same-sex couples raising children are in states that have a constitutional ban on marriage, according to a new infographic created by the Williams Institute.
“Research consistently shows that same-sex couples raise children all across the country,” said Williams Institute public policy research fellow, Angeliki Kastanis. “This analysis underscores the fact that recognition of LGBT families is a consequential policy question in every state.”
Mississippi has the highest percentage of same-sex couples raising children at 26 percent.
Incidence of Childhood and Adolescent Melanoma in the United States: 1973–2009
Incidence of Childhood and Adolescent Melanoma in the United States: 1973–2009
Source: Pediatrics
OBJECTIVE:
Childhood and adolescent melanoma is rare but has been increasing. To gain insight into possible reasons underlying this observation, we analyzed trends in melanoma incidence diagnosed between the ages of 0 and 19 years among US whites by gender, stage, age at diagnosis, and primary site. We also investigated incidence trends by UV-B exposure levels.
METHODS:
By using Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program data (1973–2009), we calculated age-adjusted incidence rates (IRs), annual percent changes, and 95% confidence intervals for each category of interest. Incidence trends were also evaluated by using joinpoint and local regression models. SEER registries were categorized with respect to low or high UV-B radiation exposure.
RESULTS:
From 1973 through 2009, 1230 children of white race were diagnosed with malignant melanoma. Overall, pediatric melanoma increased by an average of 2% per year (95% confidence interval, 1.4%–2.7%). Girls, 15- to 19-year-olds, and individuals with low UV-B exposure had significantly higher IRs than boys, younger children, and those living in SEER registries categorized as high UV-B. Over the study period, boys experienced increased IRs for melanoma on the face and trunk, and females on the lower limbs and hip. The only decreased incidence trend we observed was among 15- to 19-year-olds in the high UV-B exposure group from 1985 through 2009. Local regression curves indicated similar patterns.
CONCLUSIONS:
These results may help elucidate possible risk factors for adolescent melanoma, but additional individual-level studies will be necessary to determine the reasons for increasing incidence trends.
Mental Health Surveillance Among Children — United States, 2005–2011
Mental Health Surveillance Among Children — United States, 2005–2011
Source: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (CDC)
Mental disorders among children are described as "serious deviations from expected cognitive, social, and emotional development" (US Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Mental health: A report of the Surgeon General. Rockville, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services, and National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health; 1999). These disorders are an important public health issue in the United States because of their prevalence, early onset, and impact on the child, family, and community, with an estimated total annual cost of $247 billion. A total of 13%–20% of children living in the United States experience a mental disorder in a given year, and surveillance during 1994–2011 has shown the prevalence of these conditions to be increasing. Suicide, which can result from the interaction of mental disorders and other factors, was the second leading cause of death among children aged 12–17 years in 2010. Surveillance efforts are critical for documenting the impact of mental disorders and for informing policy, prevention, and resource allocation. This report summarizes information about ongoing federal surveillance systems that can provide estimates of the prevalence of mental disorders and indicators of mental health among children living in the United States, presents estimates of childhood mental disorders and indicators from these systems during 2005–2011, explains limitations, and identifies gaps in information while presenting strategies to bridge those gaps.
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (6.8%) was the most prevalent parent-reported current diagnosis among children aged 3–17 years, followed by behavioral or conduct problems (3.5%), anxiety (3.0%), depression (2.1%), autism spectrum disorders (1.1%), and Tourette syndrome (0.2% among children aged 6–17 years). An estimated 4.7% of adolescents aged 12–17 years reported an illicit drug use disorder in the past year, 4.2% had an alcohol abuse disorder in the past year, and 2.8% had cigarette dependence in the past month. The overall suicide rate for persons aged 10–19 years was 4.5 suicides per 100,000 persons in 2010. Approximately 8% of adolescents aged 12–17 years reported ≥14 mentally unhealthy days in the past month.
Future surveillance of mental disorders among children should include standard case definitions of mental disorders to ensure comparability and reliability of estimates across surveillance systems, better document the prevalence of mental disorders among preschool-age children, and include additional conditions such as specific anxiety disorders and bipolar disorder. Standard surveillance case definitions are needed to reliably categorize and count mental disorders among surveillance systems, which will provide a more complete picture of the prevalence of mental disorders among children. More comprehensive surveillance is needed to develop a public health approach that will both help prevent mental disorders and promote mental health among children.
Informal Kinship Care Most Common Out-of- Home Placement After an Investigation of Child Maltreatment
Informal Kinship Care Most Common Out-of- Home Placement After an Investigation of Child Maltreatment (PDF)
Source: Carsey Institute
Key Findings
Informal kinship placement settings, where a parent voluntarily places a child with a family member, were the most common out-of-home placement in both rural and urban areas. Informal placements involve children who are in physical custody of a relative but may remain in legal custody of a parent.
Children aged 3 to 5 with a child maltreatment report in rural areas and those in very poor rural households (incomes less than 50 percent of fed – eral poverty level) were more likely to be in informal kinship settings than similar children in urban areas.
Economic Conditions and Child Abuse
Economic Conditions and Child Abuse (PDF)
Source: Arizona State University
Although a huge literature spanning several disciplines documents a strong association between poverty and child abuse, researchers have not found strong evidence that economic downturns increase abuse, despite their impacts on family income. In this paper, we address this seeming contradiction. Using county-level child abuse data spanning 1996 to 2009 from the California Department of Justice, we estimate the extent to which a county’s reported abuse rate diverges from its trend when its economic conditions diverge from trend, controlling for statewide annual shocks. The results of this analysis indicate that overall measures of economic conditions are not strongly related to rates of abuse. However, overall measures of economic conditions mask very strong opposing effects of economic conditions facing males and females: male layoffs increase rates of abuse whereas female layoffs reduce rates of abuse. These results are consistent with a theoretical framework that builds on family-time-use models and emphasizes di erential risks of abuse associated with a child’s time spent with different caregivers.
More Is More or More Is Less? Parental Financial Investments during College
More Is More or More Is Less? Parental Financial Investments during College
Source: American Sociological Review
Evidence shows that parental financial investments increase college attendance, but we know little about how these investments shape postsecondary achievement. Two theoretical frameworks suggest diametric conclusions. Some studies operate from a more-is-more perspective in which children use calculated parental allocations to make academic progress. In contrast, a more-is-less perspective, rooted in a different model of rational behavior, suggests that parental investments create a disincentive for student achievement. I adjudicate between these frameworks, using data from nationally representative postsecondary datasets to determine what effect financial parental investments have on student GPA and degree completion. The findings suggest seemingly contradictory processes. Parental aid decreases student GPA, but it increases the odds of graduating—net of explanatory variables and accounting for alternative funding. Rather than strategically using resources in accordance with parental goals, or maximizing on their ability to avoid academic work, students are satisficing: they meet the criteria for adequacy on multiple fronts, rather than optimizing their chances for a particular outcome. As a result, students with parental funding often perform well enough to stay in school but dial down their academic efforts. I conclude by highlighting the importance of life stage and institutional context for parental investment.
Just Released — Top 10 Baby Names For 2012
Source: Social Security Administration
1 Jacob Sophia
2 Mason Emma
3 Ethan Isabella
4 Noah Olivia
5 William Ava
6 Liam Emily
7 Jayden Abigail
8 Michael Mia
9 Alexander Madison
10 Aiden Elizabeth
Cross-Reporting Among Responders to Child Abuse and Neglect
Cross-Reporting Among Responders to Child Abuse and Neglect
Source: Child Welfare Information Gateway
This factsheet discusses State laws that authorize cross-reporting and information sharing among the agencies that must respond to reports of suspected child abuse or neglect. Typically, reports are shared among social services agencies, law enforcement departments, and prosecutors’ offices. Summaries of laws for all States and U.S. territories are included.
Making and Screening Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect
Making and Screening Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect
Source: Child Welfare Information Gateway
This factsheet discusses State laws and regulations that specify the procedures that State child protection agencies must follow when responding to reports of suspected child abuse or neglect. The issues addressed include individual responsibility to report, content of reports, screening reports, investigation procedures, time frames for completing investigations, and classification of investigative findings. Special procedures for handling child fatalities and drug-exposed children also are addressed. Summaries of laws for all States and U.S. territories are included.
Determining the Best Interests of the Child
Determining the Best Interests of the Child
Source: Child Welfare Information Gateway
This factsheet discusses State laws that present the factors that courts need to consider when making decisions about a child’s appropriate custody and care. Factors to be considered include parental capacity to provide adequate care, sibling and other family relationships, and the child’s wishes. The factsheet also addresses the definition of best interests and guiding principles of best interest determinations. Summaries of laws for all States and U.S. territories are included.
Disconnected Mothers and the Well-Being of Children: A Research Report
Disconnected Mothers and the Well-Being of Children: A Research Report
Source: Urban Institute
Considerable research attention has been devoted to low-income mothers disconnected from both work and welfare. This body of work has rarely highlighted disconnected mothers’ roles as parents and has remained virtually silent about the experiences and well-being of their children. This paper synthesizes research findings to show that many of the circumstances disconnected mothers face pose major risks to children’s development and potentially serious consequences for children. We describe potential interventions to help disconnected families by increasing and stabilizing family income, enhancing parenting skills, supporting children directly, and reaching out to disconnected mothers who are not citizens.
Immigration and Child Welfare
Source: Child Welfare Information Gateway
Includes selected national organizations that provide information and resources on immigration issues related to children and families.
Food-Related Parenting Practices and Adolescent Weight Status: A Population-Based Study
Food-Related Parenting Practices and Adolescent Weight Status: A Population-Based Study
Source: Pediatrics
OBJECTIVE: To examine food-related parenting practices (pressure-to-eat and food restriction) among mothers and fathers of adolescents and associations with adolescent weight status within a large population-based sample of racially/ethnically and socioeconomically diverse parent-adolescent pairs.
METHODS: Adolescents (N = 2231; 14.4 years old [SD = 2.0]) and their parents (N = 3431) participated in 2 coordinated population-based studies designed to examine factors associated with weight status and weight-related behaviors in adolescents. Adolescents completed anthropometric measurements and surveys at school. Parents (or other caregivers) completed questionnaires via mail or phone.
RESULTS: Findings suggest that the use of controlling food-related parenting practices, including pressure-to-eat and restriction, is common among parents of adolescents. Mean restriction levels were significantly higher among parents of overweight and obese adolescents compared with nonoverweight adolescents. However, levels of pressure-to-eat were significantly higher among nonoverweight adolescents. Results indicate that fathers are more likely than mothers to engage in pressure-to-eat behaviors and boys are more likely than girls to be on the receiving end of parental pressure-to-eat. Parental report of restriction did not differ significantly by parent or adolescent gender. No significant interactions by race/ethnicity or socioeconomic status were seen in the relationship between restriction or pressure-to-eat and adolescent weight status.
CONCLUSIONS: Given that there is accumulating evidence for the detrimental effects of controlling feeding practices on children’s ability to self-regulate energy intake, these findings suggest that parents should be educated and empowered through anticipatory guidance to encourage moderation rather than overconsumption and emphasize healthful food choices rather than restrictive eating patterns.
Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities 2011: Statistics and Interventions
Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities 2011: Statistics and Interventions
Source: Child Welfare Information Gateway
Using data from Child Maltreatment 2011, this summary presents statistics and information on child fatalities due to abuse and neglect in the United States during Federal fiscal year (FFY) 2011. It includes national and State-by-State data, as well as additional research and information on prevention and interventions.
About 6 in 10 Recent Moms in Their Early 20s are Unmarried, Census Bureau Reports
About 6 in 10 Recent Moms in Their Early 20s are Unmarried, Census Bureau Reports
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
As of 2011, 62 percent of women age 20 to 24 who gave birth in the previous 12 months were unmarried, according to a report released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. This compares with 17 percent among women age 35 to 39.
The information comes from Social and Economic Characteristics of Currently Unmarried Women with a Recent Birth: 2011, an American Community Survey report. The analysis is based on separate survey questions on whether women have given birth to any children in the past 12 months and what their marital status is. The statistics in the report are presented at the national and state levels, with a separate table and map containing metropolitan area data.
"This is the first report from the Census Bureau showing geographic variation in recent births to unmarried women, as well as characteristics of the women such as educational attainment," said Rose Kreider, a family demographer with the Census Bureau and one of the report’s authors. "The American Community Survey is the nation’s exclusive source of data on the demographic characteristics of mothers with this level of geographic detail."
In 2011, 4.1 million women reported that they had given birth in the last year. Of these women, 36 percent were unmarried at the time of the survey, an increase from 2005 when an estimated 31 percent of recent births were to unmarried women (2005 was the earliest year for which statistics are available from the American Community Survey).
"The increased share of unmarried recent mothers is one measure of the nation’s changing family structure," Kreider said. "Nonmarital fertility has been climbing steadily since the 1940s and has risen even more markedly in recent years."
Parents, Children, Libraries, and Reading
Parents, Children, Libraries, and Reading
Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project
The vast majority of parents of minor children — children younger than 18 — feel libraries are very important for their children. That attachment carries over into parents’ own higher-than-average use of a wide range of library services.
The ties between parents and libraries start with the importance parents attach to the role of reading in their children’s lives. Half of parents of children under age 12 (50%) read to their child every day and an additional 26% do so a few times a week. Those with children under age 6 are especially keen on daily reading with their child: 58% of these parents read with their child every day and another 26% read multiple times a week with their children.
The importance parents assign to reading and access to knowledge shapes their enthusiasm for libraries and their programs:
- 94% of parents say libraries are important for their children and 79% describe libraries as “very important.” That is especially true of parents of young children (those under 6), some 84% of whom describe libraries as very important.
- 84% of these parents who say libraries are important say a major reason they want their children to have access to libraries is that libraries help inculcate their children’s love of reading and books.
- 81% say a major reason libraries are important is that libraries provide their children with information and resources not available at home.
- 71% also say a major reason libraries are important is that libraries are a safe place for children.
Almost every parent (97%) says it is important for libraries to offer programs and classes for children and teens.
The Other Mother: A Narrative Analysis of the Postpartum Experiences of Nonbirth Lesbian Mothers
The Other Mother: A Narrative Analysis of the Postpartum Experiences of Nonbirth Lesbian Mothers
Source: University of Connecticut (thesis)
The United States Census (2013) reported that 49 percent of lesbian couples are raising children. Homosexuality has become more accepted in mainstream society. Lesbians and gay men currently have more social and legal rights and protections than at any other time in history. These rights are largely dependent upon the geographical location in which one resides. Although the incidence of lesbian motherhood has increased, the partners of biological mothers are not automatically recognized as parents. Same-sex couples can jointly petition to adopt their partner’s biological children in only 16 American states (including the District of Columbia). Throughout most of the United States, nonbirth lesbian mothers have no legal rights to their children.
The purpose of this study was to develop a metastory of nonbiological lesbian mothers’ postpartum experiences. This author employed narrative analysis utilizing Riessman’s (1993;2008) structural approach to thematic analysis to understand the postpartum experiences of nonbirth lesbian mothers. Ten nonbirth lesbian mothers were interviewed. Each mother shared a unique story of her first year of motherhood. Themes were individually analyzed within each story. The meta-story of the postpartum experiences of non-birth lesbian mothers revealed six overarching themes including: At the mercy of health care providers, Nursing is the major difference between us, Defined by who I am not, Trying to protect my family: The world can take them away, What’s in a name?, and Epilogue: The new normal. Stories remained intact within the portrayal of the metastory illustrating the postpartum experiences of nonbirth lesbian mothers.
This study adds valuable insight to clincial practice. The perspective of the nonbirth lesbian mother is virtually absent in the literature. Nonbirth lesbian mothers have significant health disparities. Health care providers can be instrumental in providing more sensitive care to lesbian mothers and their families. Recommendations are made for clincial practice, education, leadership and research. Nursing has been silent on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) health issues. This study compels nurses to take a stand on public issues related to the LGBT community.
FTC Issues Updated FAQs on Amended Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule
FTC Issues Updated FAQs on Amended Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule
Source: Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission has issued an updated set of frequently asked questions designed to help website operators, mobile application developers, plug-ins and advertising networks operating on child-directed websites and online services prepare for upcoming changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule.
The document, titled “Complying With COPPA: Frequently Asked Questions” contains information directed to websites and online services whose work online may involve the collection of personal information from children under age 13. The document provides guidance from the FTC staff that supplements the rule and other COPPA–related material previously published by the FTC.
In addition to the guidelines and frequently asked questions, FTC staff maintain a “COPPA Hotline” email address, COPPAHotLine@ftc.gov, where industry members can send questions on how to ensure they are compliant with the rule. FTC staff will periodically update the FAQs. Comments on the FAQs or suggestions for new FAQs may be submitted through the COPPA Hotline email address.
The Commission finalized amendments to the COPPA Rule last December, and they will go into effect on July 1 of this year. The process to review the rule was begun in 2010 with the intent to modernize the rule and ensure that children’s privacy protections kept up with evolving technology and changes in the way children use and access the Internet, including the increased use of mobile devices and social networking.
Born both ways: The alloparenting hypothesis for sexual fluidity in women
Born both ways: The alloparenting hypothesis for sexual fluidity in women
Source: Evolutionary Psychology
Given the primacy of reproduction, same-sex sexual behavior poses an evolutionary puzzle. Why would selection fashion motivational mechanisms to engage in sexual behaviors with members of the same sex? We propose the alloparenting hypothesis, which posits that sexual fluidity in women is a contingent adaptation that increased ancestral women’s ability to form pair bonds with female alloparents who helped them rear children to reproductive age. Ancestral women recurrently faced the adaptive problems of securing resources and care for their offspring, but were frequently confronted with either a dearth of paternal resources due to their mates’ death, an absence of paternal investment due to rape, or a divestment of paternal resources due to their mates’ extra-pair mating efforts. A fluid sexuality would have helped ancestral women secure resources and care for their offspring by promoting the acquisition of allomothering investment from unrelated women. Under this view, most heterosexual women are born with the capacity to form romantic bonds with both sexes. Sexual fluidity is a conditional reproductive strategy with pursuit of men as the default strategy and same-sex sexual responsiveness triggered when inadequate paternal investment occurs or when women with alloparenting capabilities are encountered. Discussion focuses on (a) evidence for alloparenting and sexual fluidity in humans and other primates; (b) alternative explanations for sexual fluidity in women; and(c) fourteen circumstances predicted to promote same-sex sexual behavior in women.
