Inequalities In Children Research Articles

Potentials of Collaborative Educational Welfare Research - Theorizing Voice Plurality and Social Empowerment

Childhood marginalization is the result of complicated processes that appears difficult to address for policymakers worldwide. Neo-institutional theory enables studies of the complexity of educational organizations, showing how they evolve in responses to their contradictory surroundings and generate unintended social inequality. Three Nordic municipalities are currently participating in a project that focuses on the increasing polarization between exposed and privileged schools in urban areas and on the significance of institutional and organizational factors in their local welfare models in ensuring childhood equity. The project we report on combines data in contrasting urban school areas. After showing some examples of voices in the project, the authors discuss how municipal actors are informed about social problems in school organizations yet lack research-based tools to counteract social inequality in education. They theorize how collaboration between researchers and welfare providers can contribute to counteract social inequality. Lessons from the project indicate a need for further collaboration between different stakeholders that includes different voices to ensure that research on childhood inequality is relevant and has an impact.

Reviewing inequalities in early childhood

A comprehensive inequalities review includes an appraisal of UK policies for supporting children and their families in the early years when inequalities in cognitive and socio-emotional development shape outcomes and experiences

Measuring Health Literacy in Childhood and Adolescence with the Scale Health Literacy in School-Aged Children – German Version

Abstract. Health literacy can help explain health inequalities in childhood and adolescence. However, suitable instruments for assessing health literacy in this age group are rare, especially in the German-speaking countries. One economical measure is the 10-item Health Literacy in School-Aged Children (HLSAC) scale, developed and reviewed as part of the WHO Child and Adolescent Health Study (HBSC, Health Behavior in School-Aged Children). In the present study, we tested dimensionality, measurement invariance, and associations with health-related measures of the German version of the scale (HLSAC–German), using data from the 2018 national German HBSC study ( N = 4,347 students aged 11, 13, and 15 years). We also tested HLSAC–German with 11-year-olds, representing an expansion of the original scale. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses consistently demonstrated the unidimensionality of the scale (α = .88). Complete scalar measurement invariance was found for sex and partial scalar measurement invariance for age groups and school type, allowing for the comparison of means. Associations with indicators of health and health behavior further demonstrate the construct validity of the scale. The analyses show that the scale is suitable for the economic measurement of a general factor of health literacy in 11- as well as in 13- and 15-year-olds.

Science resource inequalities viewed as less wrong when girls are disadvantaged.

In response to some resource inequalities, children give priority to moral concerns. Yet, in others, children show ingroup preferences in their evaluations and resource allocations. The present study built upon this knowledge by investigating children's and young adults' (N=144; 5-6-year-olds, M age=5.83, SD age =.97; 9-11-year-olds, M age=10.74, SD age =.68; and young adults, M age=19.92, SD age=1.10) evaluations and allocation decisions in a science inequality context. Participants viewed vignettes in which male and female groups received unequal amounts of science supplies, then evaluated the acceptability of the resource inequalities, allocated new boxes of science supplies between the groups, and provided justifications for their choices. Results revealed both children and young adults evaluated inequalities of science resources less negatively when girls were disadvantaged than when boys were disadvantaged. Further, 5- to 6-year-old participants and male participants rectified science resource inequalities to a greater extent when the inequality disadvantaged boys compared to when it disadvantaged girls. Generally, participants who used moral reasoning to justify their responses negatively evaluated and rectified the resource inequalities, whereas participants who used group-focused reasoning positively evaluated and perpetuated the inequalities, though some age and participant gender findings emerged. Together, these findings reveal subtle gender biases that may contribute to perpetuating gender-based science inequalities both in childhood and adulthood.

Does artistic activity help kids avoid obesity? Emergent considerations in the ecology of childhood BMI

Although the positive relationship between arts engagement and mental health is well documented, arts participation may be an emergent factor in the ecology of childhood obesity. Prior research hypothesized several potential health benefits of arts participation including healthy diet and lifestyles, but the available evidence is mainly limited to cross-sectional covariate-adjustment models for the adult population. We employed a newly released panel of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study kindergarten cohort (ECLS-K: 2011), which is a nationally representative sample of American children who entered kindergarten in 2010–2011 (n = 15,820). We applied both dynamic panel models with Maximum Likelihood estimation as well as difference-in-differences models to address unobserved heterogeneity. Our results showed that childhood arts activity is significantly associated with reduced weight status in elementary schooling. In particular, arts participation in elementary schooling reduced the risk of being overweight on a year-to-year basis; the effect size was between 12% and 23% of a SD of BMI for all children. Arts participation at kindergarten also had a significant relationship with cumulative changes in BMI over the course of elementary schooling, especially for female and White female children (about 22% and 32% of a SD of BMI). There are considerable arts participation gaps between families and regions, and these early artistic experiences appear to affect the risk of being overweight. This suggests the possibility of a larger social reproduction process via an ecological pathway that might be easily overlooked—the accumulation of arts experience and concurrent health inequalities in childhood.

Early childhood low parental income and the risk of mental disorder in adolescence and early adulthood. A register study of migrants and non-migrants

Introduction Low parental income during childhood is associated with increased risk of mental disorders at later ages. However, despite a disproportionate share of migrant children growing up in persistent poverty, as compared to their majority counterparts, the research on whether the association varies by migrant background is limited.ObjectivesIs there an association between parental income during early childhood and the risk of mental disorder, defined by use of outpatient mental healthcare services (OPMH), in adolescence and early adulthood? Does the strength of the association vary by migrant background?MethodsInformation from five national registers were combined to study a population of 577,072 individuals. We applied discrete-time logistic regression, with an interaction term between parental income and migrant background to study differences in the association by migrant background.ResultsLow parental income during early childhood was associated with twice the odds of OPMH use in adolescence and early adulthood compared to individuals with higher parental income. Even after adjusting for a range of covariates the association remained significant, yet, weaker. The association was, however, in the opposite direction for migrants. Those in the higher income group had higher probability of OPMH use. The relative differences within groups were small, but significant for migrants from Middle East and North Africa, South Asia and Western countries.ConclusionsSocial inequalities in mental health may have an onset already in childhood, Therefore, future interventions should focus on reducing social inequalities in childhood in order to improve the mental health in young people.DisclosureNo significant relationships.

How to make healthy early childhood development more likely in marginalized Roma communities: a concept mapping approach

BackgroundThis study aims to assess which measures could improve the healthy early childhood development of children from marginalized Roma communities and to identify priority measures.MethodsConcept mapping approach was used, using mixed methods. In total 54 professionals, including social workers, educators, health care providers, municipality representatives, and project managers participated in our study.ResultsFour distinct clusters of measures targeting living conditions, public resources, healthcare and community interventions, and 27 individual priority measures of highest urgency and feasibility were identified. The cluster ‘Targeting living conditions’, was rated as the most urgent but least feasible, whereas the cluster ‘Targeting health care’, was considered least urgent but most feasible. Among the 27 priority measures, ‘Planning parenthood’ and ‘Scaling up existing projects’ had the highest priority.ConclusionOur results reflect the public and political discourse and indicate significant barriers to implementation. Reducing inequalities in early childhood needs to be addressed through coordinated efforts.

Moderating or mediating effects of family characteristics on socioeconomic inequalities in child health in high-income countries \u2013 a scoping review

BackgroundBy explaining the development of health inequalities, eco-social theories highlight the importance of social environments that children are embedded in. The most important environment during early childhood is the family, as it profoundly influences children’s health through various characteristics. These include family processes, family structure/size, and living conditions, and are closely linked to the socioeconomic position (SEP) of the family. Although it is known that the SEP contributes to health inequalities in early childhood, the effects of family characteristics on health inequalities remain unclear. The objective of this scoping review is to synthesise existing research on the mediating and moderating effects of family characteristics on socioeconomic health inequalities (HI) during early childhood in high-income countries.MethodsThis review followed the methodology of “Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews”. To identify German and English scientific peer-reviewed literature published from January 1st, 2000, to December 19th, 2019, the following search term blocks were linked with the logical operator “AND”: (1) family structure/size, processes, living conditions, (2) inequalities, disparities, diversities, (3) income, education, occupation, (4) health and (5) young children. The search covered the electronic databases PubMed, PsycINFO, and Scopus.ResultsThe search yielded 7,089 records. After title/abstract and full-text screening, only ten peer-reviewed articles were included in the synthesis, which analysed the effects of family characteristics on HI in early childhood. Family processes (i.e., rules /descriptive norms, stress, parental screen time, parent–child conflicts) are identified to have mediating or moderating effects. While families’ living conditions (i.e., TVs in children’s bedrooms) are suggested as mediating factors, family structure/size (i.e., single parenthood, number of children in the household) appear to moderate health inequalities.ConclusionFamily characteristics contribute to health inequalities in early childhood. The results provide overall support of models of family stress and family investment. However, knowledge gaps remain regarding the role of family health literacy, regarding a wide range of children’s health outcomes (e.g., oral health, inflammation parameters, weight, and height), and the development of health inequalities over the life course starting at birth.

Time trends in socio-economic and geographic-based inequalities in childhood wasting in Guinea over 2decades: a cross-sectional study.

Today, an estimated 7.3% (50 million) of all children <5y of age suffer from wasting, with more burden in African countries including Guinea. Investigating inequalities in childhood wasting is essential for designing efficient programs and interventions, but no related evidence exists in Guinea. This study aimed to examine the trends in the prevalence of childhood wasting and the extent of sex, socio-economic and geographic-based disparities in Guinea. Data from the 1999, 2005 and 2012 Guinea Demographic and Health Surveys and the 2016 Guinea Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, with a total of 16137 children <5y of age were included for analysis. For inequality analysis, we used the 2019 updated World Health Organization Health Equity Assessment Toolkit (HEAT) software. Inequality was measured using four summary measures (difference [D], population attributable risk [PAR], ratio [R] and population attributable fraction [PAF]) for five equity stratifiers (economic status, education, place of residence, sex and subnational region). We computed 95% confidence intervals (CIs) around the points estimates to measure statistical significance. The findings revealed a pro-rich (R=1.68 [95% CI 1.11 to 2.24]), pro-urban (PAR=-1.04 [95% CI -1.90 to -0.18]) and subnational region (D=8.11 [95% CI 4.85 to 11.36]) inequalities in childhood wasting across all surveys. Except in 2005, education-based disparities (PAF=-18.2 [95% CI -36.10 to -0.26]) were observed across all survey years, but not sex-based disparities. An approximately constant inequality pattern was seen across all dimensions. This study showed inequalities in childhood wasting in Guinea with a disproportionately higher risk of wasting among children from disadvantaged subpopulations/mothers, including uneducated, poorest/poor, rural residents and regions. Policies that target disadvantaged populations need to be considered in order to ensure social protection, access to a wholesome diet and universal and quality health services.

Parental Perception of the Social and Physical Environment Contributes to Gender Inequalities in Children's Screen Time.

This cross-sectional study aimed to explore how parental perceptions of the social and physical environment of the neighborhood was associated with 3- to 10-year-old children's use of traditional and modern screen devices. Participants were recruited under the scope of the project ObesInCrisis, conducted in 2016-2017 in the cities of Porto, Coimbra, and Lisbon (Portugal). Data from 6347 children aged 3-10 years were analyzed (3169 boys [49.9%]). A parental questionnaire was used to collect data on children's screen time (dependent variable) and parents' perceived social and physical environment (from the Environmental Module of the International Physical Activity Prevalence Study questionnaire; independent variable), parental education, and urbanization (used as covariates). Neighborhood features were more correlated with girls' screen time, than with boys', particularly among younger children. Also, more social than physical characteristics of the neighborhood were positively associated with children's use of television and mobile devices (ie,tablet and smartphone). Community-based approaches should improve the social environment and implement supervised after-school programs to encourage and support children to be outdoors and spend less time in sedentary pursuits.

Role of contextual and compositional characteristics of schools for health inequalities in childhood and adolescence: a scoping review

ObjectivesTo synthesise the evidence on the role of compositional or contextual characteristics of schools in the association between students' socioeconomic position and their health in primary and secondary education in...

Is it possible to model the impact of calorie-reduction interventions on childhood obesity at a population level and across the range of deprivation: Evidence from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC)

BackgroundSimulated interventions using observational data have the potential to inform policy and public health interventions where randomised controlled trials are not feasible. National childhood obesity policy is one such area. Overweight and obesity are primarily caused by energy-rich and low-nutrient diets that contribute to a positive net energy imbalance. Using data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), we investigated whether causal modelling techniques could be applied to simulate the potential impact of policy-relevant calorie-reduction interventions on population prevalence and inequalities in obesity in childhood.MethodsPredicted probabilities of obesity at age 11 (UK90 cut offs) were estimated from logistic marginal structural models (MSM) accounting for observed calorie consumption at age 7 and confounding, overall and by maternal occupational social class. A series of population intervention scenarios were modelled to simulate daily calorie-reduction interventions that differed in effectiveness, targeting mechanism and programme uptake level.ResultsThe estimated effect of maternal social class on obesity after accounting for confounding and observed calorie intake was provided by the controlled direct effect (CDE), in which, 18.3% of children were living with obesity at age 11 years,. A universal simulation to lower median intake to the estimated average requirement (EAR) (a 6.1% reduction in daily calories) with 75% uptake reduced overall obesity prevalence by 0.6%; there was little impact on inequalities. A targeted intervention to limit consumption to the EAR for children with above average intake reduced population obesity prevalence at 11 years by 1.5% but inequalities remained broadly unchanged. A targeted intervention for children of low-income families reduced prevalence by 0.7% and was found to slightly reduce inequalities.ConclusionsMSMs allow estimation of effects of simulated calorie-reduction interventions on childhood obesity prevalence and inequalities, although estimates are limited by the accuracy of reported calorie intake. Further work is needed to understand causal pathways and opportunities for intervention. Nevertheless, simulated intervention techniques have promise for informing national policy where experimental data are not available.

Inequalities in Children's Mental Health Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Findings from the UK Household Longitudinal Study

Inequalities in Children's Mental Health Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Findings from the UK Household Longitudinal Study

Reducing Racial Inequality in Access to the Ballot Reduces Racial Inequality in Children's Later-Life Outcomes

Reducing Racial Inequality in Access to the Ballot Reduces Racial Inequality in Children's Later-Life Outcomes

Reducing Racial Inequality in Access to the Ballot Reduces Racial Inequality in Children’s Later-Life Outcomes

Reducing Racial Inequality in Access to the Ballot Reduces Racial Inequality in Children’s Later-Life Outcomes

Cultural Inputs and Accumulating Inequality in Children’s Reading: A Dynamic Approach

Abstract Previous research shows that children from socioeconomically advantaged families read more than children from less advantaged homes. This article studies how inequality in the amount that children read accumulates across childhood and the extent to which this inequality depends on the cultural inputs parents provide. Additionally, the article studies whether children’s or parents’ cognitive ability moderates the effect of cultural inputs. Based on a Dynamic Panel Data Model and data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979—Children and Young Adults Supplement, I find that the amount that children read depends on both the cultural inputs they currently receive, but also on those inputs received in previous years (which shaped how much they read in previous years). This cross-time accumulation, coupled with a socioeconomic gradient in the levels of cultural inputs parents provide, leads to growing inequality in children’s reading. I do not find that cultural inputs are more effective in encouraging children with higher ability or children of mothers with higher ability to read more.

Unjust: the health records of youth with personal/family justice involvement in a large pediatric health system

BackgroundMass incarceration has had an undeniable toll on childhood poverty and inequality, however, little is known about the consequences on pediatric health. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the health of pediatric patients with probable personal or family history involvement with the correctional system.MethodsA descriptive study was conducted using electronic health record data of 2.3 million youth (ages 0–21 years) who received care in a large Midwestern hospital-based institution from February 2006–2020. We employed a correctional-related keyword search (e.g. jail, prison, probation, parole) to locate youth with probable personal or family history involvement. Health characteristics were measured as clinician diagnostic codes.ResultsTwo percent of the total pediatric population had a correctional keyword in the medical chart (N = 51,855). This 2% made up 66% of all patients with cannabis-related diagnoses, 52% of all patients with trauma-related diagnoses, 48% of all stress-related diagnoses, 38% of all patients with psychotic disorder diagnoses, and 33% of all suicidal-related disorders within this institution’s electronic health record database – among other highly concerning findings.ConclusionsWe captured an alarming health profile that warrants further investigation and validation methods to better address the gaps in our clinical understanding of youth with personal or family history involvement with the correctional system. We can do better in identifying, and supporting families affected by the correctional system.

Health Inequalities in Children and Adolescents: A Scoping Review of the Mediating and Moderating Effects of Family Characteristics

This scoping review systematically mapped evidence of the mediating and moderating effects of family characteristics on health inequalities in school-aged children and adolescents (6–18 years) in countries with developed economies in Europe and North America. We conducted a systematic scoping review following the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews recommendations. We searched the PubMed, PsycINFO and Scopus databases. Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts and full texts. Evidence was synthesized narratively. Of the 12,403 records initially identified, 50 articles were included in the synthesis. The included studies were conducted in the United States (n = 27), Europe (n = 18), Canada (n = 3), or in multiple countries combined (n = 2). We found that mental health was the most frequently assessed health outcome. The included studies reported that different family characteristics mediated or moderated health inequalities. Parental mental health, parenting practices, and parent-child-relationships were most frequently examined, and were found to be important mediating or moderating factors. In addition, family conflict and distress were relevant family characteristics. Future research should integrate additional health outcomes besides mental health, and attempt to integrate the complexity of families. The family characteristics identified in this review represent potential starting points for reducing health inequalities in childhood and adolescence.

Socioeconomic Status and Inequalities in Children’s IQ and Economic Preferences

This paper explores inequalities in IQ and economic preferences between children from families of high and low socioeconomic status (SES). We document that children from high-SES families are more ...

Inequality in Early Childhood

This paper has a dual purpose. First, it aims to construct and evaluate parental investment in early childhood based on five indicators: mental development, discipline, nutrition, health, and leisure. Second, it aspires to establish a link between the education of mother and family well-being and the level of parental investment in early childhood with regard to the five indicators. The author tests the impact of family well-being and mother's education on investment in early childhood to find out if discrimination of gender and residence inequalities matter. Results indicate that the family's degree of wealth/socio-economic class and mother's education have a significant positive effect on all indicators of parental investment in early childhood except on discipline. The author also sees that households in rural areas invest more in the discipline of their children than urban ones. Moreover, they discriminate between gender in favor of boys.