Unsupervised Routine Activities as a Mediator of the Parental Knowledge–Delinquency Relationship

The principal aim of this study was to examine the relationship between parents (parental knowledge) and peers (unsupervised routine activities) in predicting delinquency. Enlisting all 1,170 male members of the Pathways to Desistance study and a causal mediation model, baseline and Wave 1 measures of parental knowledge and unsupervised routine activities were cross-lagged and then regressed onto Wave 2 delinquency. Consistent with the view that parenting precedes peer influence when it comes to predicting delinquency, the target pathway (baseline parental knowledge → Wave 1 unsupervised routine activities → Wave 2 delinquency) achieved significance and the comparison pathway (baseline unsupervised routine activities → Wave 1 parental knowledge → Wave 2 delinquency) did not. These results suggest that weak parental knowledge may increase delinquency by failing to divert the child from involvement in unsupervised routine activities with peers.     

Evaluating integrative services in edge-of-care work

Children living on ‘the edge-of-care’ are typically known to local safeguarding authorities and are considered likely to face risks to their safety. Many are subject to a child protection plan and/or involved in ‘pre-proceedings’ processes. A growing number of their parents face (un)diagnosed mental health difficulties as well as economic and social precarity. This article draws on a mixed methods evaluation of a pilot service in the East of England offering a therapeutically led attachment-based intervention for families. The service cross-cuts health and social care, allowing psychologists and psychotherapists to work alongside social workers and other practitioners. The evaluation examined psychological and safeguarding outcomes and explored practitioner perspectives. A key outcome was that 85.4% of families were enabled to remain, or reunite with their child, compared with an estimated 50% of ‘edge-of-care’ cases nationally. This supports the need for similarly oriented interventions that could help lower the incidence of child removals.     

The impact of timing and frequency of parental criminal behaviour and risk factors on offspring offending

This paper explores mechanisms of intergenerational transmission of criminal behaviour by investigating specifically the timing and frequency of the parents' criminal behaviour while including risk factors for criminal behaviour. The results demonstrate a dose–response relationship: parents' number of criminal convictions is positively related to offspring's conviction rate. Furthermore, children whose parents had only been convicted before the child's birth have more convictions than those whose parents had never been convicted. Children whose parents had been convicted after the child's birth have more convictions than those whose parents had only been convicted before the child's birth, but this difference can be explained partly by the observation that the latter group had fewer risk factors for crime. When parental convictions at different ages were examined, children whose parents had been convicted between their 7th and 13th birthdays exhibit more criminal behaviour than children whose parents were convicted in other periods, but none of the differences were significant. There does not appear to be a sensitive period for the impact of parental criminal behaviour. The results demonstrate support for static as well as dynamic explanations of intergenerational transmission such as the transmission of a criminogenic environment and/or mediation through risk factors.     

现行民法对亲子关系外部调整的缺失与建构

随着社会的发展,人们越来越重视对人身权的保护,对亲子关系的研究和保护也逐渐受到关注。诱拐儿童、错抱子女、探望权纠纷等都属于第三人侵害亲子关系的行为,但我国现行《婚姻法》仅仅涉及对亲子关系的内部调整,整个民法都欠缺对亲子关系的外部调整,造成第三人侵害亲子关系的行为无法得到有效的制约。从私法保护的角度出发,对第三人侵害亲子关系的行为宜明确规定"父母照顾权"、构建以"请求权"为核心的二元保护模式、重视精神损害赔偿。     

Teenagers and their Parents: Parental Time and Parenting Style—What are the Issues?

Two recent reports, from the ippr and UNICEF have provided disturbing evidence on the behaviour and well‐being of young people in the UK. The ippr's Report suggests that a significant explanatory factor is the lack of time children spend with parents and other adults. But is mere ‘presence’ the key? The paper briefly reviews the possibilities parents in the UK have to spend time with their children by exploring how much and when they work in relation to parents in other European countries, and goes on to report on evidence from interviews with parents and children, which signal the importance of parenting style. I suggest that time with children is not unimportant, which has implications for Government's decision not to extend the right to request flexible working patterns to parents with older children, but that it is far from being the only factor at stake. The increasing difficulties parents face in negotiating the transition to independence with their teenage children indicate a need for parenting to be on the policy agenda.     

Definitions and terminology regarding child alignments,estrangement, and alienation: A survey of custody evaluators

Parental alienation (PA) is a highly consequential family dynamic that causes harm to children and parents. While many mental health and legal professionals agree that PA is common and potentially very harmful to children, there is still the appearance that there is controversy and discord in the field. The purpose of this study was to test the extent of consensus in the field regarding the basic tenets of PA theory. Specifically, 11 key terms related to PA were identified through expert input and preliminary field-testing. An on-line survey was created specifically for the study to assess level of agreement with these key terms among custody evaluators. This profession was selected because of their high degree of training and experience with a variety of family conflict situations; 119 child custody evaluators selected as members of a professional custody evaluator listing (88% response rate) rated their endorsement of these 11 key definitions with response options including: strongly agree, agree, neither agree nor disagree, disagree, and strongly disagree. Results revealed that roughly 80% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with each of the 11 definitions. These results demonstrate a high degree of consensus and should guide future trainings of legal and mental health professionals to ensure a common language and understanding of this phenomenon.     

The welfare systems of the Baltic states following the recent financial crisis of 2008–2010: expansion or retrenchment?

ABSTRACT

This article aims to uncover major social security system reforms that were implemented following the recent financial and economic crisis of 2008–2010 and the post crisis period. Additionally, it explores the dynamics of the socioeconomic situation during the last 10 years, looking at how Baltic states compare with each other and how they compare with other central and eastern European countries in the EU. The findings show that retrenchment is difficult even during times of crisis. Although the Baltic states were affected by the crisis, especially Latvia and Lithuania, their social security institutions did not experience any structural shift.     

Parental Sociopathy as a Predictor of Childhood Sexual Abuse

Research on childhood sexual abuse has often examined, in isolation of one another, such highly correlated risk factors as parental substance abuse, domestic violence, and pathological family functioning. Investigating comorbid antecedents separately does not allow accurate specification of the predictors of abuse. Moreover, sexual trauma research has tended to neglect parental sociopathy as a risk factor. Given the limitations of past research, the present study examined the relationships among parental sociopathy, parental substance use, marital violence, poor family functioning, and childhood sexual abuse. We administered a battery of questionnaires to a nonclinical sample of 130 college women and replicated previous findings by showing that parental substance use predicted sexual abuse when examined in isolation. However, when parental sociopathy and the other risk factors were included in a regression model, parental sociopathy was the only significant predictor. Mother's and father's sociopathy predicted sexual abuse independently and when combined.     

The Associations Among Perceived Pubertal Timing, Parental Relations and Self-Perception in Turkish Adolescents

This study is primarily aimed at investigating how pubertal timing is perceived in urban Turkish adolescents in terms of their feelings about maturation, their relationships with their parents, and their self-perception. A total of 697 high-school students (360 girls, 337 boys) between the ages of 14 and 18 (M=16.15, SD=1.08) were included in this study. The findings indicated that most of the adolescents perceived themselves as on-time developers in comparison with their peers. Consistent with widely available research data in the literature regarding the impact of early versus late maturation, girls who mature early and boys who mature late reported more negative feelings about pubertal maturation. In addition, those who matured early reported greater conflict and disagreement with their parents and more negative communication with their fathers than the adolescents who matured on- time. Adolescents who were less satisfied with their physical appearance were more likely to have negative feelings about pubertal maturation. Sex was found to act as a moderator of relationships between global self-worth and feelings about pubertal maturation. In conclusion, this study, conducted with Turkish urban adolescents, suggests that the impact of early versus late maturation differs between girls and boys, which is consistent with widely available data in the literature.     

Outcomes for children who care for a parent with a severe illness or substance abuse

Quantitative studies of children’s caring activities during parental illness have increased in the past 10 years. However, the various outcomes for these children have been investigated less frequently. In the present study, we investigate whether the children have different outcomes when the parent has a severe physical illness, mental illness, or substance abuse and whether any factors are associated with the positive and negative outcomes of the children’s caregiving. This was a cross-sectional, multicenter study. We recruited parents who were out- or inpatients in five public hospitals in Norway as well as their children. The sample included 246 children ages 8–18 and 238 of their parents with a severe physical illness, mental illness, or substance abuse. Ten percent reported negative outcomes at a clinical level of concern, and nearly half of the children reported stress. However, the outcomes were not significantly different across parental illness groups. Positive and negative outcomes were associated with the nature of caring activities (e.g., personal care, financial and practical management, household management), social skills, and perceived external locus of control. Health professionals must provide a more comprehensive and overall assessment of both the parents’ and the children’s needs. To recognize the role taken by the child, an assessment of children’s caring activities and their need for adequate information should be performed. In particular, should the children’s need for follow-up regarding caring activities, respite, and emotional support be assessed to secure their necessary skills and feeling of mastery.