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Children's early behavioral issues can lead to negative outcomes that persist throughout the life course. One important predictor of these problems is parental psychological distress. Studies addressing this association have largely focused on Western contexts, leaving the relationship unexplored in non-Western countries. There is also limited research that distinguishes between the effects of both maternal and paternal psychological well-being on child behavioral outcomes. Japan represents a unique ecological context to study this relationship because of Japanese-specific patterns of maternal and paternal involvement. Using linear regression analyses and two complementary datasets from Japan (Japan Child Panel Survey and Japan Household Panel Survey), this study examines the relationship between parental psychological distress for both mothers and fathers and child internalizing and externalizing behavioral outcomes (N = 484). Unlike findings from Western studies, we find that maternal, but not paternal psychological distress is associated with child internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems in Japan. Further research in non-Western locations is needed, as the way parental psychological factors affect child behavior may vary in contexts with differing family dynamics and child-rearing practices. Highlights: Examines both maternal and paternal psychological distress on child internalizing and externalizing behaviors in Japan. Maternal psychological distress is significantly associated with child internalizing and externalizing behavioral outcomes. Unlike Western findings, the effects of paternal psychological distress are explained away in our full model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research shows negative associations between living in single-parent or stepparent families and average academic outcomes. But some children from non-traditional family structures are successful, such as those who enroll in college. Such students may be well suited to handle transitions to college because of their experience handling family transitions. By contrast, characteristics of non-traditional family structures generally associated with lower academic performance may persist into the collegiate context. We use the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-1997 Cohort to compare first-term college GPA for students from two-biological-parent, single-parent, and stepparent families. We employ data from the NLSY97 Post-Secondary Transcript Data (NLSY97-PST) (N = 3346) and regression analyses to test the degree to which three competing theoretical perspectives––resources, family structure selectivity processes, or student resilience factors––might explain potential differences in college performance. Students from single-parent and stepparent families perform worse in their first collegiate semester than their peers from two-biological-parent families. Resources and selectivity factors explain differences for students from single-parent families, but explaining differences for students from stepparent families requires accounting for resilience factors as well. Highlights: We explore how child and adolescent family structure is related to first-term college GPA. We ask whether children who have experienced family structure transitions might develop resilience that would help facilitate the transition to college. Bivariate comparisons suggest students from two-biological-parent families have higher first-term GPAs than those from single-parent or stepparent families. Differences between youth from two-biological-parent families and single-parent families can be explained by differences in resources and selectivity factors. Differences between youth from two-biological-parent families and stepparent families can only be explained by including resilience factors along with differences in resources and selectivity factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Child behavior problems are associated with an array of negative outcomes that can continue into adulthood. Because much of the social development and adjustment for children in early to middle childhood takes place in the home, families are of special interest in understanding child behavioral problems. Past research suggests an association between more stable family structures and healthier child behavioral outcomes. However, much of the research assessing behavioral outcomes has overlooked more complex family structure types and trajectories or has not considered how finer measures of family structure may clarify the connection between family structure and child behavior. Using the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), a longitudinal study of children in the United Kingdom, we examine the relationships between various types of family structure stability and instability on child internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. Our results suggest that internalizing behavioral problems differ only slightly across all eight family structure trajectories and are instead explained by differences in other family characteristics such as stress and parental selectivity. Conversely, we find that family structure and trajectories of family structure change are associated with child externalizing problems, independent of other family characteristics. Despite the increase in frequency and normalization of non-traditional family structures in the UK, such as cohabitation, single parent and stepparent families, we find that children in stable married families experience fewer externalizing behavior problems compared to children in other family structures. Highlights: Examines the association between eight family structure trajectories and child behavior problems in the UK. Family structure differences are related to externalizing behavior problems. Family structures that are less stable are associated with more child behavior problems. Family resources, stressors, and parental depression, not family structures per se, are related to internalizing behavior problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research suggests that children of single parents are at heightened risk of precocious sexual behavior, STDs, and other risky sexual outcomes. However, few such studies have addressed the type of single-parent family (single mother or single father), or differences across other-sex parent–child dyads. While gender essentialist models assume differences among youth living only with mothers or with fathers, constructivist models propose more flexible modes of parenting that lead to more similar outcomes. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (n = 2570) on youth between the ages of 15 and 19, we compared sexually-related outcomes among adolescents, both boys and girls, who lived with a single mother or a single father. These outcomes include sexual intercourse and knowledge, use of contraception, attitudes toward intimacy and pregnancy, and diagnosis of sexually-transmitted diseases. The results from linear and logistic regression models indicated few differences between single-mother and single-father families, or between same-sex and opposite-sex parent–child matches, using p values of.05 or smaller. Our results called into question essentialist models that posit higher risks for adolescents living with a particular parent or with an opposite-sex parent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]