THE EVOLUTION—OR END—OF MARRIAGE?: REFLECTIONS ON THE IMPASSE OVER SAME‐SEX MARRIAGE

The debate over legalizing same‐sex marriage implicates the question of whether doing so would signal the end—or destruction—of the institution of marriage. The appeal to preserving a millennia‐old tradition of marriage against change fails to reckon with the evolution that has already occurred. Invocations of gender complementarity between parents as essential to child well‐being also conflict with growing recognition in family law that children's best interests can be served by gay and lesbian parents. Canada's path toward same‐sex marriage suggests that impasse need not be inevitable. In the United States, this impasse stems in part from the problem that same‐sex marriage serves as an emblem of everything that threatens marriage.     

Verbal and Physical Abuse Toward Mothers: The Role of Family Configuration,Environment, and Coping Strategies

This paper focuses on parental maltreatment, a rarely documented phenomenon. We prospectively examine factors that can increase the risk of abusive behavior toward mothers. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between a stressful family situation, parental divorce, and verbal and physical aggression toward mothers. We use a large Canadian sample of adolescents who have been followed since kindergarten. At age 15, we assessed verbal and physical abuse toward mothers, as reported by both mothers and their adolescents. Multinomial logit modeling revealed that parental divorce was associated with a greater risk of physical aggression directed toward mothers by adolescents. Family environment and parental coping strategies partially mediated that relationship. Mothers who divorced, and remained divorced, were at greater risk of being assaulted by their adolescent children. A positive family environment, reflecting a better parent–child relationship, partially diminished this risk. However, support-seeking behavior on the part of mothers increased the risk of abuse, concurrent with tyrannical strategies often mobilized by abusive children.     

Happy Adolescents: The Link Between Subjective Well-Being, Internal Resources, and Parental Factors

The research investigates the associations of personal and parental factors with subjective well-being (SWB) in adolescents on the basis of 2 studies. The first included 97 university students and 185 adolescents who completed questionnaires measuring perceived mastery, dispositional optimism, and affect used as a measure of SWB. Correlations and hierarchical regression analyses showed mastery and optimism to be negatively associated with negative affect (NA) and positively associated with positive affect (PA). Demographic variables did not relate to PA and NA except for gender, with female adolescents showing higher levels of NA than males. The second study included 121 adolescents and their parents who completed questionnaires measuring mastery, optimism, SWB indicators, and assessments by the adolescents of their relationships with their parents. The associations of the adolescents' mastery and optimism with SWB measures were positive and were similar to those found in the first study. Positive correlations were found between the adolescents' and their parents' SWB (especially with their father's), but no significant associations were observed between adolescents' and parents' mastery and optimism. However, adolescents' mastery and optimism were related to positive relationships with parents. The results highlight the importance of mastery, optimism, and positive adolescent–parent relationships in contributing to the well-being ofadolescents.     

The Summer Semester

正While many parents schedule children's school holidays,students are encouraged to pursue interests of their own By Ji JingThis summer,Wang Tianshu,a 13-year-old junior middle school girl from Qingdao,east China's Shandong Province,signed up for a course at Beijing's New Oriental EducationTechnology Group,a renowned Chinese training institute focused largely on English instruction."I chose to attend the course entirely on my own will because I want to improve my English     

澳大利亚“子女最大利益原则”对我国的启示

1959年《儿童权利宣言》和1989年《儿童权利公约》等国际文献均规定,在处理与儿童有关的问题时,应以儿童最大利益为首要考虑。目前,澳大利亚在婚姻家庭法的立法中确立了“儿童最大利益优先原则”。在我国婚姻家庭法中迫切需要确立儿童最大利益的优先权准则,相关法律制度也应予以修改和完善。     

Birth Registration and Protection for Children of Transnational Labor Migrants in Indonesia

ABSTRACT

Policies on transnational labor migration do not consider workers' needs as parents or the rights and welfare of their children, including a child's right to an official identity through birth registration. A study of birth-registration decision making by migrant parents in Lombok, Indonesia underscored the need for targeted responses to uniquely challenging circumstances and priorities of migrant parents. Free birth registration through birthing and health centers and village-level leaders can overcome problems of decentralized implementation of national strategies and an exploitive registration brokerage industry, mitigating risks of de facto statelessness for children and a multigenerational pattern of undocumented and unsafe migration.     

全社会都要关心青少年的成长——学习江泽民同志《谈教育问题》的体会

江泽民同志的《谈教育问题》对青少年教育问题的论述 ,非常精辟。“百年大计 ,教育为本”。遵照江总书记的指示 ,我们应构建一个有利于青少年健康成长的环境 ,学校的教师、家长、社会一切成员都应重视并共同来关心青少年的成长。正如江泽民同志所指出的 :“抓好教育和青少年学生的思想工作是关系到我们实施科教兴国战略能否成功 ,关系到我国社会主义现代化建设能否取得成功。”我们应从各方面加强青少年的教育工作。     

大学生羞怯的特点及其与父母教养方式关系的研究

结合调查问卷,对大学生羞怯的特点以及大学生羞怯与父母教养方式之间的关系进行分析。对大学生羞怯特点的研究包括性别、专业、年级、家庭所在地、是否独生子女等,羞怯与父母教养方式的关系的研究包括相关关系、不同羞怯水平父母教育方式、羞怯对父母教养方式的回归等。这两方面的研究及结论有助于对大学生羞怯问题及相关心理问题的进一步研究。     

孟子论舜所涉道德判断与选择问题初探——以“不告而娶”为中心

孟子对舜的诸多论述体现出独特的观念：首先,孝作为一种道德原则源于人的本性之善。其次,孝是具有最高价值的道德原则,它不仅能够实现于血亲关系和家庭中,也可推及于社会群体及天地万物,具有强大的示范与感化作用。再次,在具体的实践方式上,为人子者应顺乎父母、得乎父母,对父母时时保持发诸本心的诚与敬。最后,在不同的道德原则发生冲突时,应根据具体情境选择具有更高价值的道德原则作为判断与选择的标准,做到原则性与灵活性的统一。     

STATEWIDE SPECIAL EDUCATION SURROGATE PARENT PROGRAMS: ENSURING QUALITY ADVOCACY TO ALL FOSTER CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION NEEDS

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) protects foster children's rights to have a special education decision maker. For foster children who do not have a natural or adoptive parent or a responsible adult in their life to take on this role, IDEIA requires that a special education surrogate parent be appointed by appropriate procedures. Under IDEIA, these procedures are delegated to the states. Each state must ensure that local education agencies (LEAs) delineate methods for recruiting and maintaining a pool of available special education surrogate parents. Due to differing state laws and LEA procedures, there are many discrepancies in the quality and availability of special education surrogate parents. To combat these problems, this Note proposes principles for administrative regulations establishing statewide special education surrogate parent programs by examining existing statewide programs. Administered through a state's Department of Education in collaboration with child welfare agencies, statewide special education surrogate parent programs guarantee well‐qualified decision makers who will advocate for all children eligible for special education services.