Family Type Research Articles

Some pros and cons of remote working

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Working from home blurs conventional boundaries between work and family life. To prioritize employee well-being, firms should aim to devise and implement appropriate policies to ensure working time is regulated. It is also important to consider the scope for the impact to differ by gender, family type and presence or absence in the household of young and older children and/or other dependents who require care and support. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Factors associated with children’s attachment hierarchy in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families through assisted reproduction

Abstract With few exceptions, previous studies of children’s identification and hierarchy of attachment figures have involved only children born to heterosexual parents through unassisted conception, recognizing mothers as the primary attachment figures. Further research into diverse families may help to disentangle parents’ attachment role from their gender, sexual orientation, and biological relatedness to children. The present study aimed at exploring whether differences in children’s choice of primary attachment figure could be explained by parents’ gender, biological status, attachment state of mind, reflective functioning, parenting quality, or by the child’s gender, across diverse family types. In total, 152 parents (i.e., 60 lesbian mothers through donor insemination, 50 gay fathers through surrogacy, 42 heterosexual parents through gamete donation) and their 76 school-aged children participated in the study. Children were interviewed about their choice of attachment figure in different situations. Parents completed questionnaires about parenting stress, parental rejection, parent–child relational efficacy, and parent positivity; and were administered the Adult Attachment Interview as a measure of their attachment state of mind and reflective functioning. Overall, no significant differences emerged between mothers and fathers or between biological and non-biological parents for children’s choice of primary attachment figure. However, fathers with higher RF were more likely to be identified as a primary attachment figure, and gay fathers who demonstrated less parental rejection were more likely to be chosen as a primary attachment figure. The findings provide important insights for social policies aimed at promoting preventive parenting interventions targeting the child–parent attachment bond in diverse families.

Family Strategies for Rural-to-Urban Migrant Children Under the Points-Based Admission Policy in China

Family factors significantly influence rural-to-urban migrant children’s educational opportunities within the framework of education policies. In this research, we examined rural-to-urban migrant families’ strategies for the urban education of their children in the context of China’s points-based admission policy. We investigated how family capital and willingness to participate impact their children’s access to educational opportunities. The results reveal that the points-based admission policy prioritizes “ability first” while allowing for diverse indicators that accommodate various types of rural-to-urban migrant families. In the points-based admission process, different family types adopt distinct strategies, including the “capital transformation” strategy of high-capital–high-willingness families; the “quit voluntarily” strategy of high-capital–low-willingness families; the “try one’s best” strategy of low-capital–high-willingness families; and the “let nature take its course” strategy of low-capital–low-willingness families. The admission policy based on allocating points favors rural-to-urban migrant children from families with high capital. Nevertheless, those from families with low capital are not entirely excluded from educational opportunities in other locations. These families possess a strong capacity for action, propelled by their eagerness to engage. Within the framework of educational policies, the amalgamation of family capital and willingness to participate serves as the driving force behind rural-to-urban migrant children’s access to educational prospects, with educational expectations serving a regulatory function. Exploring the family strategies for rural-to-urban migrant children’s urban education can enhance educational policies for this demographic and offer valuable recommendations for their sustainable development.

Extent and predictors of socio economic deprivation in urban geriatric subjects: evidence from Varanasi, India

Old age Socio Economic Deprivation (SED) is a significant issue because geriatric subjects (60 years and above) are more vulnerable to SED than the other age group. Socio-economic deprivation refers to deprivation in terms of economic parameters, food, water sanitation, shelter and information. The predictors of SED in geriatric subjects have been the least researched area. The objective of the present study was to find out predictors of SED. This study was carried out by adopting a cross-sectional study design on 616 (279 male and 337 female) geriatric subjects (60 years and above) selected by a multistage sampling procedure from urban Varanasi, India. Pre-designed, pre-tested proforma was used for assessing socio-economic deprivation in subjects by using interview techniques. Data was analyzed by using SPSS version 22.0. In order to find out predictors of all significant variables in bivariate analysis, viz., associates of socioeconomic deprivation were subjected to a logistic regression model. According to Rangrajan Committee criteria 38.0% subjects were below the poverty line. Food, water and sanitation deprivation were to the extent of 44.8%, 29.2% and 14.8%, respectively. As many as 32.6 % and 40.9% of subjects were deprived of shelter and education, respectively. There existed a significant association of gender, marital status, caste, religion, type of family and literacy status of study subjects with SED. However, the logistic model nullified the significant association of these variables with SED. In comparison to family size < 3 risk of SED was 3.31 (CI: 1.13-9.68) and 10.17 (CI: 2.44-42.45) times more in subjects with family size 3-6 and >6, respectively. When upper, upper middle and lower middle socio-economic status categories were considered as reference it was found that risk for SED was significantly (p<0.01) more in lower and upper lower SES categories. Odds of SED for lower and upper lower SES were 84.13 (CI: 15.9-244.63) and 18.24 (CI: 8.69-38.24) times higher than their counterparts, respectively. People with socioeconomic deprivation need to have focused attention based on the predictors of SED. Limiting family size, ensuring income generation activities and economic security are key inputs for optimum dividends in tackling SED.

Mental Health Status and Related Factors of Citizens 6 Months after Mass Death and Injury Due to Crowd Crush Incident: Focused on the Itaewon Disaster in 2022.

Crowd crush disasters result in psychological risks such as anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This descriptive research study identified the mental health status of Koreans after the Itaewon crowd crush disaster and explored related factors. Data were collected May 2-9, 2023 using an online survey. Participants included 205 adults aged 19-69 years recruited through South Korean local and online university communities. Their mental health and related factors were measured at 6 months post-disaster. Data were analyzed using IBM® SPSS® Statistics 26.0. and R 3.4.2. Significant differences in anxiety, depression, and PTSD among participants who experienced the disaster as victims; changes in drinking frequency and alcohol consumption; and differences in anxiety and PTSD according to family type were observed. Comparing the 3 and 6 month surveys, there were no significant changes in anxiety, depression, PTSD, general mental health, or mental well-being. When mental health severity was divided according to victimization, a significant difference in the severity of anxiety, depression, and PTSD was observed. Participants' levels of anxiety, depression, and PTSD varied according to their direct and indirect experience of the disaster, with higher levels of PTSD even without direct experience with the disaster.

Spiritual Well-Being and Hopelessness Levels in Individuals Who Have Experienced Myocardial Infarction in Turkey.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between spiritual well-being and hopelessness levels in individuals who have experienced myocardial infarction. The study, which was descriptive and exploratory, was conducted on patients who had experienced myocardial infarction and undergone angiography in the coronary intensive care unit and cardiology ward of Ağrı Education and Research Hospital. The population of the study consisted of 151 patients who had experienced myocardial infarction and undergone angiography between December 2022 and February 2023. Data were collected using a Demographic Information Form, Spiritual Well-Being Scale, and Beck Hopelessness Scale. This study highlights the significance of the transcendent subscale of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale, as it is unaffected by indicators of mental health. Findings revealed that higher transcendent subscale scores were associated with lower hopelessness levels in individuals who had experienced myocardial infarction. Body mass index, family type, marital status, and fulfilling religious duties when healthy were significantly associated with spiritual well-being and hopelessness. These results underscore the importance of considering transcendent aspects when evaluating spiritual well-being in this population. Furthermore, a strong negative correlation was found between spiritual well-being and hopelessness levels in individuals who had experienced myocardial infarction. Higher levels of spiritual well-being were significantly associated with lower levels of hopelessness. This study provides valuable insights into the relationship between spiritual well-being and hopelessness in post-myocardial infarction patients. However, limitations relevant to this study, including its single-center design and cross-sectional nature, are also noted.

Analyzing the Cohesion and Adaptability of Families of Children with Intellectual Disability Using the FACES-20Esp Scale

The impact of disability on families can vary greatly and depends directly on the coping ability of each family system. The purpose of this research is to analyze the functioning of 535 families of children with intellectual disability using the FACES-20Esp scale, identifying different types of families according to the variables of cohesion and adaptability. The results indicate that the style of family functioning can most commonly be classified as mid-range or unbalanced/extreme. Scores for cohesion are largely within the range of balanced; however, in terms of adaptability, the majority of families are considered unbalanced/extreme according to the model. The results of the study suggest there is a pressing need to provide families with strategies to face the challenges of raising and caring for a child with intellectual disability, and establish and maintain a balanced family system.

Child care usage among families with young children staying in homeless shelters

Families living in homeless shelters with young children (birth-36 months) face a variety of complex challenges which make it difficult to locate and maintain child care enrollment. Although the inequitable access to child care for families in shelter has been documented, little is known about the factors that predict child care usage among families experiencing homelessness. This investigation utilized interviews of 150 parents with children ages birth-36 months residing in nine different homeless shelters to identify: how many families used center-based care, how many families relied only on parental care, and what other types of nonparental child care arrangements families utilized. Next, we investigated whether usage of center-based child care was associated with child and family characteristics of race/ethnicity, unemployment, time spent in shelter, reasons for seeking shelter, and parent depression symptoms. Data for this study came from three data collection efforts considering risk and resilience factors among families with infants and toddlers experiencing homelessness. Parents in this study reported using nonparental child care at lower rates than the general population. Employed parents were more likely to use center-based child care, and families who reported their child's race/ethnicity as Black or African American were less likely to report using center-based child care. Findings have implications for policy considerations necessary to support the use of center-based child care among families living in homeless shelters.

Polyoxometalate-ionic liquids (POM-ILs) – a new type of ionic liquid additive family for lubricants

The focus on energy efficiency to move towards a more sustainable use of resources has intensified efforts to minimize friction and wear in mechanical systems, which account for 23% of the world's energy consumption.

Contribution of Women in Household Income— Based Perspective on Production

Analyses by family type based on age brackets are useful for structural analysis. We confirmed substantial wage-earning differences between the sexes, full- and part-timers, and large-work hour differences between the sexes. Unpaid work using opportunity cost is generally underestimated because of the Japanese seniority-based wage system. Then, we tried to make adjusted indices to account for wage-earnings and work-our differentials. We compare three kinds of income –market income, broad income (including unpaid work values) and adjusted income--in terms of the contribution of married women to family income. The disproportionate burden placed on women was highlighted.

Determinants and the Correlates of menstrual cup usage among medical students in a tertiary care hospital in Puducherry

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION: Adolescence is the period between 10-19 years of life and about 1/5th total female population in the world are adolescent girls who requires specific and special attention. Menstruation is a unique phenomenon happening at this age which has lots of social stigma attached to it. It affects the physical, mental and social functioning of any teenager which is of greater concern in order to prevent any major disorder of sexual and reproductive health in future. OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of usage of menstrual cup among medical students and to determine the barriers and facilitators regarding the use of menstrual cup and finally to estimate the knowledge and practises and its association with various determinants of menstrual cup. METHODS: This study was a analytical cross sectional study conducted among the female medical students of a private medical college in Pondicherry. The study tool was a Google form comprising the socio demographic details of the study participant and the details regarding the usage of menstrual products especially menstrual cup. This study followed the universal sampling method and a total of 328 students responded. The responses were downloaded in the Microsoft excel and analysed using the SPSS version 21. RESULTS: Out of the total 328 study participants 54.9% belonged to the age group of 18-23 years , 45.1% were in age group of 24-27 years. Of these 62% were I – III years, 37.8% were IV- CRRI, these students resided in all the types of families, such as 42.1% in the nuclear type, 57.9% in the three-generation type and the joint family. The knowledge prevalence of menstrual cups was 42% among the study participants. The prevalence of the usage of menstrual cups was 41.5%. The logistic regression model showed statistical significance with age (OR=5.078, p = 0.003). Students aged 18 to 23 were 5.078 times more likely to face barriers to using menstrual cups than those aged 24 to 27. Furthermore, increasing age was associated with a decrease in the likelihood of barriers to usage. Those in lesser years of study were 12.086 times more likely to have a barrier. CONCLUSION: From this study its evident that literacy about a concept plays a key role in adapting to a new change. Thus behaviour change communication has to be the key strategy in formulating the change in behaviour to convert theory into practise.

Perceived Parenting Style and the Mental Health of Adolescents in North Macedonia’s Albanian Community

The family factor (i.e., parenting style) is among the most important factors affecting adolescents’ development, in particular their mental health. This study investigates the relationship between perceived parenting styles and mental health among adolescents, through the mediating effects of gender, age, child order, family type, income and religious attachment. It then quantitatively evaluates perceptions regarding the prevalence of mental health disorders among adolescents in seven Albanian community secondary schools in North Macedonia’s capital, Skopje. The results showed that authoritative parenting was the most common perceived style, followed by authoritarian and permissive parenting, and that mental health among adolescents was generally poor. Further, correlations were found between different parenting styles and particular aspects of mental health among Albanian adolescents in North Macedonia. It is hoped that the findings of this study will provide targeted guidance for the prevention of adolescent mental health problems.

Will dependency ratio matter the economic welfare of the geographically isolated and disadvantaged households in the province of Samar, Philippines?

The study employed descriptive-exploratory research methods to examine the dependency ratio and economic welfare of geographically isolated and disadvantaged households in Samar Province, Philippines. It aimed to determine the demographic profiles of the respondents, including age, gender, civil status, highest educational attainment, occupation, family type, number of household members, and dwelling type. The study explored the dependency ratio, economic welfare status (in terms of consumption and expenditures), and the relationship between the dependency ratio and economic welfare. Households (n=88) were systematically sampled from 14 municipalities in Samar, Philippines. The findings revealed that these households had a high dependency ratio, and their economic welfare was below the country's poverty line. It was also found that the number of unproductive members did not significantly affect the households' economic welfare, while the productive population had a direct positive impact. Furthermore, as the household head aged, there was a direct negative effect on the household's economic welfare. Further, as the household head ages, there appears to be a negative impact on the economic welfare of the household. Interestingly, while the dependency ratio did not significantly influence economic welfare, it highlighted the increasing strain on the working population and the broader economy to support and provide necessary social services for the dependent population.

Medication Adherence and Health related Quality of life among Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in Pokhara

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common preventable and treatable chronic disease. Patients have to consume medicine for longer duration which usually leads to non adherent to medicine in long term due to various socio-economic factors such as financial status, economical status of patients. This study focuses on nature of medicine adherence among COPD patients, factors affecting medicine adherence of the patients and influence of medicine adherence on Health related Quality Of Life.Methods: A descriptive analysis study was done among known case of COPD cases after obtaining approval from ethical review board of NHRC. A written consent was obtained from all the participants. Morrisky Medication adherence scale was used to access medication adherence among patient where as st. George ’s Respiratory Questionnaire for COPD was used to evaluate Health related Quality of life of the patients. Results: Among 350 cases analyzed, majority (n= 217; 63%) of the cases were poorly adherence to medicine. There was significant association between rural residence of patients, poor financial status, low education status, longer disease duration, lack of financial support, nuclear family type and poor adherent to medicine (p< 0.05). There was also significant association between poor medicine adherent and poor Health related Quality of Life. (P < 0.05).Conclusion: These patients experienced a severe impact on their symptoms, considerable limitations in daily activities, a higher burden of disease, and an overall reduction in their quality of life.

Environmental Literacy of Generations X, Y, and Z in a Provincial Center in Turkey: A Descriptive-Comparative Study

Objective: This research was conducted to determine the environmental literacy and behaviors of Generations X, Y, and Z. Method: This descriptive-comparative study involved a total of 1,148 participants, comprising 376 from Generation X, 399 from Generation Y, and 373 from Generation Z. Data were collected using the Demographic Characteristics Form and the Environmental Literacy Scale for Adults. Results: It was found that 67.8% of participants had not received any education on environmental issues, 81.8% disposed of used cooking oil in the trash or sink, 43.6% discarded waste batteries in the trash, and 62.1% were unfamiliar with the concept of ecological footprint. The environmental literacy of Generation Z was significantly lower than that of Generations X and Y. Nuclear family type, perception of high income, lack of social security, willingness to receive environmental education, separate disposal of waste cooking oil, disposal of waste batteries in designated units, and use of recycling bins were identified as factors influencing environmental literacy for all participants. These variables explained 22.4% of the variance in environmental literacy. Conclusion: The results revealed insufficient environmental behaviors in the sample and lower environmental literacy in Generation Z compared to Generations X and Y. It is recommended to conduct informative and educational programs and prepare public service announcements in order to enhance community environmental awareness and promote appropriate environmental health behaviors

Posttraumatic stress disorder and its cross-generational familial relationship with drug use disorder and alcohol use disorder: an extended Swedish adoption study

ABSTRACT Objective: Information on how parental risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) relates to their children’s risk for drug use disorder (DUD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD) is limited. This study is the first to utilize an extended adoption design which can address questions about the degree of, and sources of, cross-generational and cross-disorder transmission of PTSD and substance use disorders. Method: We examined diagnoses using Swedish National registries for parents and their adult offspring (n = 2,194,171, born 1960–1992) from six types of families (intact (1), not lived with biological father (2) or mother (3), step father (4), step mother (5), and adoptive (6)). Parent–child resemblance was assessed by tetrachoric correlation. Results: PTSD and DUD showed an approximately symmetrical cross-generational cross-disorder relationship. Conversely, AUD in parents was more related to the risk for PTSD in offspring compared to the reverse direction. The cross-disorder cross-generation transmission correlations for PTSD to DUD were higher than those for PTSD to AUD. Genetic and rearing correlations for PTSD-DUD were estimated at + .79 (CI: .66, .91) and + .49 (CI: .33, .65), significantly higher than those for PTSD-AUD + .59 (CI: .48, .71) and + .28 (CI: .12, .44). Conclusions: PTSD and the substance use disorders demonstrated cross-transmission, but more so for DUD. PTSD and DUD demonstrated highly correlated genetic effects, and moderately correlated rearing effects. Correlations of genetic and rearing effects between PTSD and AUD were lower than those for PTSD and DUD.

The effect of the violence against children and ıts prevention course on university students’ awareness of domestic violence and their sensitivity to violence against children

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of the "Violence Against Children and Its Prevention" course on university students' awareness of domestic violence and their sensitivity to violence against children. Material and Method: The study was conducted during the 2021-2022 academic year at a state university located in the Mediterranean region. One hundred students who enrolled in the elective course "Violence Against Children and Its Prevention" participated in the study, with 81 students completing it. Data were collected using the Student Identification Form, the Domestic Violence Awareness Scale (DVAS), and the Sensitivity to Violence Against Children Scale (SVACS) through a Google survey. Descriptive statistics, Shapiro-Wilk, Man-Whitney U, Kruskal Wallis, and Wilcoxon tests were used for data analysis. Ethical approval was obtained before the study. Results: The average age of the students was 21.1±2.2 years, with 23.5% male and 90.1% second-year undergraduate students. DVAS scores showed statistically significant differences based on gender and family type before the course, but these differences disappeared afterward. SVACS scores showed differences based on gender, class level, and parental education level before the course, but only gender and father's education level differences persisted after the course. DVAS scores significantly increased after the course (p<0.05), whereas SVACS scores did not show statistically significant changes (p>0.05). Conclusion: Future randomized controlled studies are recommended to evaluate the effectiveness of different educational programs aimed at increasing sensitivity to violence against children.

Perceived Parental Affection, Supervision and Social Media Addiction of Chittagong University Students

Parenting behaviors like parental affection and supervision greatly determine different developmental outcomes of a person. Inadequate parenting behavior can lead to different behavioral problems, even various forms of addictions such as social media addiction in young adults like university students. The present study attempted to investigate the relation of social media addiction with parental affection and supervision of university students according to their gender and family type. The sample of the study was purposively selected 300 students from Chittagong University. The family relation scale and the Bangla version of Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale were used as data collection tools. The collected data were analyzed by using independent sample t-test, Pearson product moment correlation and regression analysis. Male participants perceived significantly more affection and supervision than female participants. Participants from nuclear family had significantly more social media addiction than extended family. Social media addiction was found significantly negatively correlated with both parental affection and supervision. Parental affection significantly predicted social media addiction. The findings of the study may contribute to reduce social media addiction of our university students by highlighting the need for proper parental affection and supervision. Chittagong Univ. J. B. Sci. Vol. 12 (1 & 2): 72-82, 2024

Polish Family War Stories: Perpetuating and Healing Intergenerational Trauma

SYNOPSIS Objective. This study explored the types of war stories Polish families tell and the lessons family members learn from these stories. Design. Polish adults (n = 32) were interviewed about their intergenerational family stories. Interview transcripts were analyzed using narrative thematic analysis. Results. Analyses revealed four types of war stories—survival stories, hero stories, tragedy and loss stories, and missing stories—and four lessons learned from these stories—how to live, how to be Polish, how to cope, and how to understand others. Conclusions. Findings advance narrative scholarship by integrating communicated narrative sense-making theory with the ecological systems model of family narratives. In so doing, we highlighted how macro-system meanings, values, and beliefs emerged in these family stories. Findings also show the presence and effect of silencing in intergenerational family storytelling.

Diabetes-specific family functioning typology associated with intervention engagement and effects: secondary analyses from a randomized controlled trial.

Observationally, family and social support are important for optimal diabetes self-management; however, interventions targeting family/social support have not consistently been effective. A novel, diabetes-specific family functioning typology offers the opportunity to classify types of baseline family functioning to determine for whom family interventions may be effective. We examined the effects of an intervention by baseline type of family functioning post hoc, to inform differential benefit from interventions. Participants were randomized to enhanced treatment as usual or a 9-month, mobile phone-delivered, family-focused, self-care support intervention. Adults with type 2 diabetes (N = 318) who participated in the randomized clinical trial (RCT)and provided baseline data were included. We determined participants' diabetes-specific family functioning types at baseline using a validated, survey-administered, typology assessment tool. We investigated the associations between type and engagement (eg, attending coaching sessions and responding to text messages) and psychosocial (eg, well-being and diabetes distress) and glycemic outcomes at mid- and post-treatment. Despite overall high engagement, there was variability across types in engagement and effects. Want More Involvement benefited the most; Satisfied with Low Involvement showed early improvements that waned; Collaborative & Helpful were highly engaged but derived minimal benefits from the intervention; and Critically Involved benefitted the least and may have experienced some harm. We demonstrated the utility of a novel diabetes-specific family functioning typology to explain variability in response to a family-focused intervention. Findings from this work answer the calls for systems-level consideration in precision behavioral medicine and drive hypothesis generation for future, tailored interventions. The larger RCT is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04347291).