Journal of Family Issues current issue

Special Reviewers for Volume 30

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:17:40 PDT

An Exploratory Study of the Nature of Family Resilience in Families Affected by Parental Alcohol Abuse

Coyle, J. P., Nochajski, T., Maguin, E., Safyer, A., DeWit, D., Macdonald, S. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:17:40 PDT

Resilient families are able to adapt to adversities, but the nature of family resilience is not well understood. This study examines patterns of family functioning that may protect families from the negative impact of alcohol abuse. Naturally occurring patterns of family functioning are identified and associations between these patterns and parenting, current parental alcohol use, recent family stressful events, supportive relationships outside the family, and demographic characteristics are assessed. Cross-sectional data are analyzed from racially diverse American and Canadian families (N = 674) who have at least one parent with an alcohol abuse problem and a child between ages 9 and 12 years. Cluster analyses derived from family functioning indicators are used to identify naturally occurring family patterns. Multivariate assessments evaluated relationships between family functioning clusters and potentially influencing factors. The study results reveal a continuum of family functioning associated with parenting, child’s perception of teacher caring, and race.

Perception of Adequacy of Resources With a Turkish Sample

Copur, Z., Safak, S., Terzioglu, G., Dodder, R. A. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:17:40 PDT

This study examines the validity and reliability of the Perceptions of Adequacy of Resources inventory—developed for American society—in a sample from Turkey and determines the correlations between perceived adequacy of resources and selected socioeconomic and family composition characteristics in Turkey. Participants of this study consist of employees and students at the central campus of the Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey. The sample size is determined using a random sampling method (n = 500). Analysis of variance tests show significant differences (.05) in perceptions of adequacy of resources according to income, education, marital status, number of children, and family life stage. On the other hand, gender, age, family type, and length of marriage are not found to be significant. In addition, regression analysis shows that the demographic variables of income, education, and marital status significantly predicted perceptions of adequacy of resources.

The Empty Nest Syndrome in Midlife Families: A Multimethod Exploration of Parental Gender Differences and Cultural Dynamics

Mitchell, B. A., Lovegreen, L. D. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:17:40 PDT

This study explores parental health and well-being in relation to "empty nest" transitions. Focus is placed on the purported empty nest syndrome (i.e., self-reported experiences of depression and emotional distress when children leave home) and variations by parental gender and cultural background. This study is primarily based on in-depth telephone interviews conducted in 2006 and 2007 with a subsample (n = 316) of parents from four cultural groups (British, Chinese, Southern European, and Indo/East Indian) living in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia. A mixed-methodological approach is used whereby both quantitative and qualitative strategies are combined. Findings reveal that overall only a minority of parents report having experienced the empty nest syndrome. However, cultural background and other sociodemographic and relational processes are found to influence the likelihood of reporting this condition. With increasing cultural diversity in North American society, these results have the potential to shed light on a significant life course transition.

Youths' Caretaking of Their Adolescent Sisters' Children: Results From Two Longitudinal Studies

East, P. L., Weisner, T. S., Slonim, A. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:17:40 PDT

The extent and experiences of youths’ caretaking of their adolescent sisters’ children have been assessed in two longitudinal studies. The first study examines the caretaking patterns of 132 Latino and African American youth during middle and late adolescence. The second study involves 110 Latino youth whose teenage sister has recently given birth. Youth are studied at 6 weeks and 6 months postpartum. In both studies, girls provide more hours of care than boys, and in Study 1, girls’ hours of care significantly increase with age whereas boys’ hours of caretaking decrease. Girls provide more care when their sisters are older and when their mothers provide many hours of care, whereas boys provide less care when their mothers provide more care and when they have many siblings. Results of both studies reveal age, gender, and across-time differences in the extent of care, type of caretaking activities, and experiences in providing care.

Contact Between Grandchildren and Their Grandparents in Early Adulthood

Geurts, T., Poortman, A.-R., van Tilburg, T., Dykstra, P. A. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:17:40 PDT

Using cross-sectional data from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (N = 1,231), this study examines the relationship between grandchildren and their grandparents across early adulthood. Age is used as a proxy for change during the grandchild’s life course and the influence of major life course characteristics is examined. Results indicate that the majority of young adult grandchildren have contact with their grandparents, but the average frequency is low. Age differences in contact frequency suggest a decline in grandparent—grandchild contact across early adulthood. Multilevel analyses show that grandchildren’s employment status, partner, and parenthood status do not affect contact frequency with grandparents. Rather, the results point at the importance of the parental home for facilitating grandparent—grandchild contact as age-related differences are accounted for by whether grandchildren left the parental home. Furthermore, most of the variance in grandparent—grandchild contact is attributable to differences between family of the mother’s and family of the father’s side.

Primary and Secondary Socialization Impacts on Support for Same-Sex Marriage After Legalization in the Netherlands

Lubbers, M., Jaspers, E., Ultee, W. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:17:40 PDT

Two years after the legalization of same-sex marriages in the Netherlands, 65% of the Dutch population largely or completely disagrees with the statement "gay marriage should be abolished." This article shows, by way of multinomial logistic regression analysis of survey data, which socializing agents influence one’s attitude toward same-sex marriage after its legalization (FNB2003; N = 2,124). Parents’ attitudes toward homosexuality during one’s youth strongly affect one’s attitude toward same-sex marriage. The strongest determinant is socialization within religious institutions. Religious practice provides an explanation of the differences between members of denominations opposing same-sex marriage. A lower educational level enhances one’s probability of being neutral on abolishing gay marriage. Finally, men and people from non-Western origin are especially likely to oppose same-sex marriage.