Family Socioeconomic Status In Childhood Research Articles

Emotional support across adulthood: A 60-year study of men's social networks.

Past research shows that social networks get smaller with age. But not all types of relationships may shrink at the same rate or for similar reasons. In the present study, we used a unique data set from a sample of 235 men who were followed longitudinally for 71 years to examine how the general pattern of network shrinkage documented in previous research generalizes to the number of emotional support providers in people's networks. We additionally examined early-life predictors of the size of later-life support network. Growth curve analyses revealed that, mirroring the more general pattern of network shrinkage, emotional support networks shrink by as much as 50% between the ages of 30 and 90, reflecting an average reduction from two to one support providers. Examining the associations between prospectively collected measures of childhood family environment and later-life emotional support, we also found that men who grew up in warmer family environments had larger support networks in adulthood. In contrast, childhood family socioeconomic status was not connected to the size of emotional support networks later in life. The generalizability of this work is limited by the use of an archival all-male sample from the United States. Despite this limitation, these findings make important contributions to our understanding of adult socioemotional development and underscore the importance of prospectively collected longitudinal data in developmental research. Additional research is needed to examine the consequences of changing emotional support across the lifespan for health and well-being. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Association of childhood socioeconomic status with adulthood maximal exercise blood pressure: the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study

Purpose Socioeconomic status has been related to resting blood pressure (BP) levels at different stages of life. However, the association of childhood socioeconomic status (SES) and adulthood exercise BP is largely unknown. Therefore, we studied the association of childhood SES with adulthood maximal exercise BP. Materials and methods This investigation consisted of 373 individuals (53% women) participating in the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study who had data concerning family SES in childhood (baseline in 1980, at age of 6–18 years) and exercise BP response data in adulthood (follow-up in adulthood in 27–29 years since baseline). A maximal cardiopulmonary exercise test with BP measurements was performed by participants, and peak exercise BP was measured. Results In stepwise multivariable analysis including childhood risk factors and lifestyle factors (body mass index, systolic BP, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin, fruit consumption, vegetable consumption, and physical activity), lower family SES in childhood was associated with higher maximal exercise BP in adulthood (β value ± SE, 1.63 ± 0.77, p = 0.035). The association remained significant after further adjustment with participants SES in adulthood (β value ± SE, 1.68 ± 0.65, p = 0.011) and after further adjustment with adulthood body-mass index, systolic BP, maximal exercise capacity, and peak heart rate in exercise (β value ± SE, 1.25 ± 0.56, p = 0.027). Conclusions These findings suggest that lower childhood family SES is associated with higher maximal exercise BP in adulthood.

CHILDHOOD INTERPERSONAL TRAUMA AND DEPRESSION OF CHINESE IN MID LATER LIFE: MEDIATION EFFECT OF SOCIAL INTEGRATION

Abstract Objectives This study investigates the long-term associations between five types of childhood interpersonal trauma (i.e., physical neglect, emotional neglect, physical abuse, being bullied, exposure to interparental violence) and depression in mid-later life. The mediation roles of social integration in the family (i.e., satisfaction with marriage and children) and broader social contexts (i.e., social participation and perceived social support) are examined in the associations. Methods This study used two waves (2014 and 2015) of data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. The analytical sample included 12,486 participants aged 45 years and older. Results People who was bullied, physically abused, and witnessed interparental violence during childhood are more likely to develop depression in mid-later years, controlling for socio-demographic characteristics, childhood family socio-economic status, and childhood parental mental health. However, childhood physical neglect and emotional neglect are not directly related to depression in mid- and late-adulthood. The associations between childhood interpersonal trauma and depression were mediated by the satisfaction with marriage, satisfaction with children, and perceived social support, but not social engagement. Discussion This study calls for attention on the long-term consequences of multiple types of childhood interpersonal trauma on mental health among middle-aged and older adults. It provides a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms of social integration in bridging early-life interpersonal trauma and depression in mid-later life.

Associations between family socioeconomic mobility during childhood and adolescence and diurnal and hair cortisol among adolescent twins

Although exposure to socioeconomic hardship is hypothesized to induce dysregulation in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity and cortisol secretion, evidence remains inconsistent. Yet, few studies have investigated this association according to a developmental approach sensitive to the social context likely to exacerbate and mitigate this association. To examine whether childhood family socioeconomic status (SES) sensitizes the association between mid-adolescence SES and multiple indicators of cortisol secretion. Participants were twin pairs reared together with measures of SES collected in early childhood (ages 0–5) and mid-adolescence (age 14). Diurnal cortisol (n=592 twin pairs) was measured at age 14 at awakening, 30 min later, in the afternoon and evening over four non-consecutive days. Hair cortisol (n=422 twin pairs) was measured at age 19. Our findings revealed that youths experiencing lower SES levels throughout childhood and adolescence had a flatter diurnal slope and higher hair cortisol levels in comparison to those who experienced upward socioeconomic mobility from childhood to mid-adolescence. Moreover, youths who experienced downward socioeconomic mobility showed higher hair cortisol levels, except for those who were raised in higher-SES households during early childhood. Our study supports the hypothesis that early socioeconomic adversity may sensitize HPA axis activity to later socioeconomic disadvantage, which may bear consequences for socioemotional and behavioral functioning.

The mediating pathways between parental separation in childhood and offspring hypertension at midlife

Social life course determinants of adult hypertension are relatively unknown. This paper examines how parental separation before age 10 relates to hypertension at age 46. Adjusting for parental confounders and considering the role of adult mediators, we aim to quantify unexplored mediating pathways in childhood using prospectively collected data. Data from the 1970 British Birth Cohort Study are utilised. Hypertension is measured by health care professionals at age 46. Potential mediating pathways in childhood include body mass index (BMI), systolic and diastolic blood pressure, illness, disability, family socioeconomic status (SES) and cognitive and developmental indicators at age 10. Additionally, we explore to what extent childhood mediators operate through adult mediators, including health behaviours, family SES, BMI and mental wellbeing. We also test for effect modification of the relationship between parental separation and hypertension by gender. Nested logistic regression models test the significance of potential mediating variables. Formal mediation analysis utilising Karlson Holm and Breen (KHB) method quantify the direct and indirect effect of parental separation on offspring hypertension at midlife. There was an association between parental separation and hypertension in mid-life in women but not men. For women, family SES and cognitive and behavioural development indicators at age 10 partly mediate the relationship between parental separation and hypertension at age 46. When adult mediators including, health behaviours, family SES, BMI and mental wellbeing are included, the associations between the childhood predictors and adult hypertension are attenuated, suggesting that these childhood mediators in turn may work through adult mediators to affect the risk of hypertension in midlife. We found family SES in childhood, cognitive and behaviour development indicators at age 10, including disruptive behaviour, coordination and locus of control in childhood, to be important mediators of the relationship between parental separation and midlife hypertension suggesting that intervening in childhood may modify adult hypertension risk.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Mild Cognitive Impairment in Later Life: Exploring Rural/Urban and Gender Differences Using CHARLS.

This paper aims to examine whether and how adverse childhood experiences are associated with mild cognitive impairment among middle-aged and older adults in China, and if the associations vary by gender and rural/urban residence. Using four waves of data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, cox proportional hazard models were applied. Results showed that the rural and female subsamples were significantly disadvantaged and were more likely to be cognitively impaired. Moreover, childhood family socioeconomic status and childhood social relationships were significantly associated with the risk of mild cognitive impairment for the study sample. Our findings suggest that, for middle-aged and older Chinese adults, adverse childhood experiences could have long-lasting impacts on cognitive functioning throughout the life course.

Family and neighborhood socioeconomic status and temperament development from childhood to adolescence.

Children differ in their temperament and these differences predict consequential outcomes, including mental health, peer relations, substance use, academic performance, and adult personality. Additionally, children's temperament develops over time in response to environmental factors, such as the socioeconomic status (SES) of their family and the neighborhood in which they are raised. However, there has been lack on research on the relation between neighborhood SES and the development of temperament or personality. Using data from two cohorts of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC; N=9,217) that followed children from 4 to 15years old, the present analyses examined whether parent income, parent education, and neighborhood disadvantage were associated with three child temperament traits that are precursors to Five-Factor Model (FFM) adult personality traits. Longitudinal hierarchical linear models (HLM) generally found that children with lower neighborhood SES or family SES tended to have lower sociability, higher reactivity, and lower persistence and these associations did not decrease over time. This research demonstrates that both the neighborhood and the family SES in childhood are important for the development of temperament across childhood and adolescence.

Childhood Socioeconomic Status and Arterial Stiffness in Adulthood: The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study.

Increasing evidence supports the importance of socioeconomic factors in the development of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. However, the association of childhood socioeconomic status (SES) with arterial stiffness in adulthood has not been reported. Our aim was to determine whether higher childhood family-level SES is associated with lower arterial stiffness in adulthood. The analyses were performed using data gathered within the longitudinal Young Finns Study. The sample comprised 2566 participants who had data concerning family SES at ages 3 to 18 years in 1980 and arterial pulse wave velocity and carotid artery distensibility measured 21 or 27 years later in adulthood. Higher family SES in childhood was associated with lower arterial stiffness in adulthood; carotid artery distensibility being higher (β value±SE, 0.029±0.0089%/10 mm Hg; P=0.001) and pulse wave velocity lower (β value±SE, -0.062±0.022 m/s; P=0.006) among those with higher family SES in a multivariable analysis adjusted with age, sex, and conventional childhood cardiometabolic risk factors. The association remained significant after further adjustment for participant's SES in adulthood (β value±SE, 0.026±0.010%/10 mm Hg; P=0.01 for carotid artery distensibility and β value±SE, -0.048±0.023 m/s; P=0.04 for pulse wave velocity) but attenuated after adjustment for adulthood cardiometabolic risk factors (β value±SE, 0.015±0.008%/10 mm Hg; P=0.08 for carotid artery distensibility and β value±SE, -0.019±0.02 m/s; P=0.38 for pulse wave velocity). In conclusion, we observed an association between higher family SES in childhood and lower arterial stiffness in adulthood. Our findings suggest that special attention could be paid to children from low SES families to prevent cardiometabolic diseases primordially.

Association of Socioeconomic Status in Childhood With Left Ventricular Structure and Diastolic Function in Adulthood

Increased left ventricular (LV) mass and diastolic dysfunction are associated with cardiovascular disease. Prospective data on effects of childhood socioeconomic status (SES) on measures of LV structure and function are lacking. To examine whether family SES in childhood was associated with LV mass and diastolic function after adjustment for conventional cardiovascular disease risk factors in childhood and adulthood. The analyses were performed in 2016 using data gathered in 1980 and 2011 within the longitudinal population-based Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. The sample comprised 1871 participants who reported family SES at ages 3 to 18 years and were evaluated for LV structure and function 31 years later. Socioeconomic status was characterized as annual income of the family and classified on a 3-point scale. Left ventricular mass indexed according to height at the allometric power of 2.7 and the E/e' ratio describing LV diastolic performance at ages 34 to 49 years. The participants were aged 3 to 18 years at baseline (mean [SD], 10.8 [5.0] years), and the length of follow-up was 31 years. Family SES was inversely associated with LV mass (mean [SD] LV mass index, 31.8 [6.7], 31.0 [6.6], and 30.1 [6.4] g/m2.7 in the low, medium, and high SES groups, respectively; differences [95% CI], 1.7 [0.6 to 2.8] for low vs high SES; 0.8 [-0.3 to 1.9] for low vs medium; and 0.9 [0.1 to 1.6] for medium vs high; overall P = .001) and E/e' ratio (mean [SD] E/e' ratio, 5.0 [1.0], 4.9 [1.0], and 4.7 [1.0] in the low, medium, and high SES groups, respectively; differences [95% CI], 0.3 [0.1 to 0.4] for low vs high SES; 0.1 [-0.1 to 0.3] for low vs medium; and 0.2 [0 to 0.3] for medium vs high; overall P < .001) in adulthood. After adjustment for age, sex, and conventional cardiovascular disease risk factors in childhood and adulthood, and participants' own SES in adulthood, the relationship with LV mass (differences [95% CI], 1.5 [0.2 to 2.8] for low vs high SES; 1.3 [0 to 2.6] for low vs medium; and 0.2 [-0.6 to 1.0] for medium vs high; P = .03) and E/e' ratio (differences [95% CI], 0.2 [0 to 0.5] for low vs high SES; 0.1 [-0.1 to 0.4] for low vs medium; and 0.1 [0 to 0.3] for medium vs high; P = .02) remained significant. Low family SES was associated with increased LV mass and impaired diastolic performance more than 3 decades later. These findings emphasize that approaches of cardiovascular disease prevention must be directed also to the family environment of the developing child.

Childhood Socioeconomic Status in Predicting Metabolic Syndrome and Glucose Abnormalities in Adulthood: The Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study.

We prospectively examined whether family socioeconomic status (SES) in childhood is associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS), impaired fasting glucose (IFG), or type 2 diabetes in adulthood. The sample comprised 2,250 participants from the longitudinal Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study cohort. Participants were 3-18 years old at baseline (mean age 10.6 years), and they were followed for 31 years. SES was characterized as reported annual income of the family and classified on an 8-point scale. For each 1-unit increase in family SES in childhood, the risk for adult MetS decreased (risk ratio [95% confidence interval] 0.94 [0.90-0.98]; P = 0.003) when adjusted for age, sex, childhood cardiometabolic risk factors (lipids, systolic blood pressure, insulin, and BMI), childhood physical activity, and fruit and vegetable consumption. The association remained after adjustment for participants' own SES in adulthood (0.95 [0.91-0.99]; P = 0.005). A similar association was seen between childhood SES and the risk of having either adult IFG or type 2 diabetes (0.96 [0.92-0.99]; P = 0.01, age and sex adjusted). This association became nonsignificant after adjustment for childhood risk factors (P = 0.08). Of the individual components of MetS, lower SES in childhood predicted large waist circumference (0.96 [0.93-0.99]; P = 0.003) and a high triglycerides concentration (0.96 [0.92-1.00]; P = 0.04) after adjustment for the aforementioned risk factors. Lower SES in childhood may be associated with an increased risk for MetS, IFG, and type 2 diabetes in adulthood. Special attention could be paid to children of low SES families to decrease the prevalence of MetS in adulthood.

Anxiety and intertemporal decision making: The effect of the behavioral inhibition system and the moderation effects of trait anxiety on both state anxiety and socioeconomic status

Based on Gray's theory, which links the behavioral inhibition motivation system (BIS) to the personality trait of “anxiety”, the present study examined whether anxiety (trait vs. state), BIS sensitivity, and family socioeconomic status in childhood (SES) had an interactive or independent impact on intertemporal decision-making processes. The study also investigated whether participants with high trait anxiety had a significantly different choice preference on the immediate but smaller (SS) rewards over the larger but delayed (LL) rewards. Participants (N=108) were randomly assigned to either the anxiety or the control condition. Results showed that people with a higher BIS score tended to choose less SS rewards. Trait anxiety was found to moderate both state anxiety and childhood SES to influence intertemporal decision processes. We further found high or low trait anxiety significantly influenced people's choice preference. Speculations on the psychological meanings of the findings were discussed from the perspective of biased risk perception. Limitations and implications were also discussed.

Psychological Symptoms in Youth and Later Socioeconomic Functioning: Do Associations Vary by Informant?

We examined whether associations between symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), depression, and anxiety assessed in a sample of 2,026 youth aged 6 to 16 years and socioeconomic functioning measured 18 years later varied as a function of whether parents or teachers had rated symptomatology. After accounting for confounding variables (e.g., family socioeconomic status in childhood), psychological symptoms explained 2.78% of the variability in adult socioeconomic status. Much of that variance was unique to teachers or parents (0.90% and 1.41%, respectively). Moreover, several informant-specific associations emerged: teacher-rated depression and parent-rated ADHD and ODD were significant predictors of later socioeconomic functioning. Overall, these findings provide further evidence that differences between informants are meaningful and support the utility of maintaining the unique perspective of each rater in analytic and measurement strategies.

Parent, Family, and Neighborhood Effects on the Development of Child Substance Use and Other Psychopathology From Preschool to the Start of Adulthood

We examined the long-term effects of childhood familial and neighborhood risk on adolescent substance use and psychiatric symptomatology. This study used data from an ongoing 2-decade long study that recruited alcoholic and neighborhood control families through fathers' drunk-driving records and door-to-door canvassing in a four county area. The sample included 220 male, initially 3- to 5-year-old children of the participant families, who received in-home assessments at baseline and thereafter at 3-year intervals. Parental lifetime psychopathology and offspring symptomatology at ages 18-20 were assessed by semistructured diagnostic interviews. Census tract variables were used to indicate neighborhood characteristics. The isomorphic parental symptomatology predicted offspring psychopathology. For marijuana-use disorder, major depressive disorder, and nicotine dependence, the other parental comorbidities were also significant predictors. Neighborhood residential instability in childhood contributed to the development of late adolescent alcohol-use disorder, marijuana-use disorder, major depressive disorder, antisocial personality disorder, and nicotine-dependence symptomatology. Although lower family socioeconomic status in childhood contributed to more adolescent marijuana-use disorder, major depressive disorder, and nicotine-dependence symptoms, neighborhood socioeconomic status did not predict adolescent psychopathology. Longitudinal changes in neighborhood environments from early childhood to adolescence had significant effects on alcohol-use disorder, marijuana-use disorder, and major depressive disorder symptoms in late adolescence. A higher frequency of family mobility from early childhood to adolescence predicted more nicotine-dependence symptoms in late adolescence. Findings indicate that parental psychopathology, family socioeconomic status, and neighborhood residential instability are all important risk factors for the development of substance-use disorder and other comorbid psychopathology. Intervention programming might effectively use these early parental psychopathology indicators to identify risk and might target community activity to stabilize the social environment and provide youth services to counteract the effects of family transience.

The transmission of social inequality: Examination of the linkages between family socioeconomic status in childhood and educational achievement in young adulthood

The present study examines the linkages between family socioeconomic status (SES) in childhood and educational achievement in young adulthood using data from a 25-year longitudinal study of a birth cohort of over 1000 New Zealand children. Structural equation modeling of the association between latent SES at birth and educational achievement by age 25 years showed evidence of a strong association between latent SES and later educational achievement. Much of this association was mediated via two pathways relating to child cognitive ability and family educational aspirations; family economic resources and school factors did not mediate the association. However, even when the major theoretical pathways were taken into account, a substantial component of the latent SES/educational achievement correlation remained unexplained.