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Given the unprecedented increase in the flow of migrants from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to the United States, this article analyzes the impact of U.S. interior enforcement on parent-child separations among Central American deportees, along with its implications for deportees' intentions to remigrate to the United States. Using the EMIF sur survey data, we find that interior enforcement raises the likelihood of parent-child separations as well as the likelihood that parents forcedly separated from their young children report the intention to return to the United States, presumably without documents. By increasing parent-child separations, interior enforcement could prove counterproductive in deterring repetitive unauthorized crossings among Central American deportees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few methods estimate the prevalence of child maltreatment in the general population due to concerns about socially desirable responding and mandated reporting laws. Innovative methods, such as interactive voice response (IVR), may obtain better estimates that address these concerns. This study examined the utility of interactive voice response (IVR) for child maltreatment behaviors by assessing differences between respondents who completed and did not complete a survey using IVR technology. A mixed-mode telephone survey was conducted in English and Spanish in 50 cities in California during 2009. Caregivers ( n = 3,023) self-reported abusive and neglectful parenting behaviors for a focal child under the age of 13 using computer-assisted telephone interviewing and IVR. We used hierarchical generalized linear models to compare survey completion by caregivers nested within cities for the full sample and age-specific ranges. For demographic characteristics, caregivers born in the United States were more likely to complete the survey when controlling for covariates. Parenting stress, provision of physical needs, and provision of supervisory needs were not associated with survey completion in the full multivariate model. For caregivers of children 0–4 years ( n = 838), those reporting they could often or always hear their child from another room had a higher likelihood of survey completion. The findings suggest IVR could prove to be useful for future surveys that aim to estimate abusive and/or neglectful parenting behaviors given the limited bias observed for demographic characteristics and problematic parenting behaviors. Further research should expand upon its utility to advance estimation rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growth in U.S. incarceration rates during the 1980s and 1990s prompted a body of research focused on understanding the diverse effects of incarceration on individuals, families, and communities. An area of particular interest has been how the incarceration of a parent may affect child well-being. Despite what appears to be converging evidence that parental incarceration poses a significant threat to child development, this area of inquiry has yet to overcome important methodological and conceptual challenges related to selection bias. It is therefore unclear whether the difficulties that have been observed among children whose parents are incarcerated are due to the incarceration itself or to other adversities that children have experienced. The purpose of this article is to draw attention to these issues, to summarize empirical and conceptual progress in overcoming these challenges, and to suggest directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In many European countries, both the voluntary and the forced return of rejected asylum seekers are problematic. In the case of separated children, the difficulties seem to be even greater. In the Netherlands, many of these children disappear from the reception centres for unknown destinations, instead of returning to their home country. The new, stricter return policies adopted by the Dutch government in recent years have not (yet) changed this situation. In an explorative study of separated children aged between 15 and 18, the implementation and results of these policies were studied. The impact of the activities designed to promote voluntary return appeared to be very limited. Most separated young people did not want to consider return and did not take any action in this regard. Forced return rarely constituted a viable alternative. These findings may be explained by several factors. Among other things, considerations pertaining to personal security, family circumstances, and structural conditions in the countries of origin influence both the attitudes and behaviours of separated children, and host government policies. Moreover, many children were not willing to discuss their return with the youth care workers who were supposed to discuss and promote a voluntary return with them. The fact that most of the young people were allowed to stay in the reception centres until their eighteenth birthday enabled them to postpone making a final decision. A forced return was hindered by such obstacles as the absence of documents and the lack of appropriate care in the country of origin. More insight into the backgrounds of separated children and the (im)possibilities regarding their return seems necessary to be able to design more effective return policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A neurocognitive, developmental framework was used to examine the effectiveness of Early Head Start (EHS) programs. Evidence has shown that caregiver variables impact early brain development. This study aimed to better understand this relation. Results showed that the EHS program made no significant impact, and at 3 years old, children were significantly behind population norms in language development, partially replicating previous findings with children from poverty backgrounds. EHS and parental depression were significant predictors of language and cognitive stimulation; however, depression and stimulation, but not involvement in EHS, were significant predictors of vocabulary. Implications for EHS programs are discussed, such as addressing caregiver variables (e.g., depression) and increasing focus on services to expectant families. Future directions also are discussed, such as understanding how young children's stress, within the context of caregiver variables, is related to neurocognitive outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A multiple-case study of the use of cinematherapy in six sessions of individual therapy each with three preadolescent aged children who were experiencing parental divorce was conducted. Questions to facilitate discussion and expressive activities including art, creative writing, story-telling, and/or drama were used. Multiple themes emerged across the cases including the usefulness of films to help children identify and express emotions, increased sharing, and increased coping. Interactive viewing was a new concept to emerge and involved a child spontaneously interacting with a film and/or the therapist through narrating, sharing thoughts and emotional responses, or interacting expressively while viewing providing therapeutic opportunities. Furthermore, all the children shared the plots from films or television shows they watched outside of therapy which can be viewed as a form of story-telling which conveyed their concerns and contributed to healing. Through their expressive responses, children experienced catharsis and created therapeutically relevant metaphors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an argument that the state of Kentucky should recognize the claim outside the wrongful death context with the loss of parental consortium upon the wrongful death of a child. Topics include family law in Kentucky regarding a minor child's claim for loss of parental consortium; Kentucky courts' decisions in Giuliani v. Guiler and Lambert v. Franklin Real Estate Co.; and children's loss of parental consortium due to a parent's injury or death.

Aim. Longitudinal study on the predictors of parental stress in mothers and fathers of toddlers. Background. To study whether anxiety, depression, or marital problems increase the parenting stress in parents of toddlers. Methods. At early pregnancy, 2 - 3 months, and 2 - 3 years after delivery, 214 low-risk couples filled in questionnaires on their marital relationship, social support, child's temperament, and self-evaluated competence in routine care-taking. In hierarchical regression analyses, they were used as predictors of parental stress. Results. Those mothers who in early pregnancy had adequate social support, adaptive social strategies, and high self-esteem, and who had given birth vaginally, enjoyed breastfeeding, and whose spouse supported breastfeeding reported less stress 2 - 3 years later. Pregnancy-related anxiety, depression, general anxiety, neuroticism, and vulnerability in early pregnancy, as well as child's temperament and low self-estimated competence in routine care-taking measured at both 2 - 3 months and 2 - 3 years after childbirth predicted parental stress. Depression and living alone in early pregnancy, and the child-related variables (temperament and care-taking, measured both at 2 - 3 months and 2 - 3 years after childbirth) predicted high parenting stress in fathers of toddlers. Conclusions. Parental stress in toddlers' parents was predicted both by the temperament of the child, and by the parents' depression, self-esteem, and anxiety, as well as by lack of support and low self-evaluated competence in routine care-taking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compared parental psychiatric symptom severity, and the absence or presence of severe substance abuse, as predictors of contact with minor children for a representative sample of adults with diagnoses of serious mental illness (N = 45). Child contact and psychiatric symptom severity were measured during regularly scheduled 6-month research interviews over a total 30-month period following each participant's entry into the project. Severe substance abuse was documented as present or absent for the 6-month interval preceding each interview. Results revealed that incidence of severe substance abuse was repeatedly associated with less frequent parent-child contact, even after controlling for psychiatric symptoms, diagnosis, gender, age, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Neither psychiatric diagnosis nor symptom severity predicted frequency of child contact when substance abuse was taken into account. Mental health agencies offering parenting classes for adults with serious mental illness should incorporate substance use interventions to reduce loss of child custody and strengthen parent-child relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the tendencies and characteristics of development in monitoring the rise of generation in Russia. It states that an individual is the main wealth of any country, with consideration on the determinant of power and future. In the system of values, children occupy a top-priority in the Russian government. It contends that children represents the anchor of the Russian population and the foundation of the country's success or failure. It notes that owing to number of factors, the state and society, parents do not pay enough attention to children.

In this article, a theoretical model of the role of parental intrusiveness in the development of childhood separation anxiety disorder is presented and tested. Parents who act intrusively tend to take over tasks that children are (or could be) performing independently, thereby limiting mastery experiences and inducing dependence on caregivers. Families of children diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, aged 6–13 years, participated ( N = 40). Child anxiety was assessed with a diagnostic interview and rating scales. A novel measure of intrusiveness based on behavioral observations and self-reports was developed, following seven principles for enhancing the psychometric properties of parenting measures. There was initial evidence of strong psychometric properties for the intrusiveness measure, which was associated with children’s separation anxiety symptoms, but as predicted, not with other types of anxiety symptoms. Parental intrusiveness appears to be specifically linked with separation anxiety among children with anxiety disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the development of a 5-factor, 31-item, Young Carers Perceived Stress Scale (YCPSS) from an initial 50-item pool. The scale was developed and tested on 108 young carers aged between 12–18 years, and acceptable Cronbach Alpha values were obtained for the individual factors and the overall scale. In addition, both the overall scale and individual factors produced a pattern of correlations with social support, burden of care, psychological distress, and coping, supporting the initial validity and utility of the scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined associations between changes in sibling relationships and changes in parental differential treatment and corresponding changes in children's adjustment. One hundred thirty-three families were assessed at 3 time points. Parents rated children's externalizing problems, and children reported on sibling relationship quality, parental differential treatment, and depressive symptoms. On average, older siblings were 10, 12, and 16 years old, and younger siblings were 8, 10, and 14 years old at Waves 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Results from hierarchical linear modeling indicated that as sibling relationships improved over time, children's depressive symptoms decreased over time. In addition, as children were less favored over their siblings over time, children's externalizing problems increased over time. Findings highlight the developmental interplay between the sibling context and children's adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is about the making of an observation video of a Nepalese baby during the first six months of its life and the technical and cultural issues raised (Barnett & Leng, 2004). The project was undertaken in collaboration with Lynn Barnett, as part of her series of cross-cultural observation videos on the emotional development of infants and young children (Barnett, 1975–2005, 1996–1999, 1996). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generational boundary dissolution is a form of parent-child relationship disturbance in which the typical parent and child roles become distorted or even reversed. While recognized as a pathological family process among clinicians, generational boundary dissolution has also become the subject of empirical study. The current paper presents the theoretical background supporting the construct of boundary dissolution, with particular emphasis on family systems theory and developmental psychopathology. We also review the empirical studies of the occurrence and developmental outcomes of boundary dissolution that have been conducted within the Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, extending from early childhood through adolescence and into adulthood, with data related to multiple realms of social and emotional development, including questions of intergenerational continuity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of boundary dissolution has a long history in both the psychodynamic and family systems literatures and is linked to a number of important processes in developmental psychopathology. However, advancements in the empirical study of boundary dissolution have been hindered by the multiplicity of terms and conceptualizations that have been used to capture the construct. The purpose of this paper is to present a multidimensional model of boundary dissolution and to show how the specific dimensions of the construct might be differentially linked to pathological processes in development. Research from a series of studies is presented that lends Support to this model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is currently the most prevalent, yet most under-researched anxiety disorder in childhood. To date, there have been few studies investigating the efficacy of interventions for young children with SAD. The primary purpose of this paper is to describe the process of tailoring Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PC IT) for young children aged 4-8 with SAD. The paper provides a theoretical rationale for using PCIT to treat young children with SAD. The first randomized clinical trial for young children with SAD is then described. The paper focuses on the process of adapting PCIT to make it most relevant for children with SAD. The specific challenges and rewards of conducting PCIT with anxious children and their parents are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the trends in parental time devoted to children in 16 industrialized countries using time-use survey data. Despite the time pressures that confront today's families, parents appear to be devoting more time to children than they did 40 years ago. Multivariate analysis of trends in parental time by type of activity revealed a significant increase in parental time devoted to children. A comparison of 1981 and 1997 U.S. data suggests that children are not spending less time with parents. In the case of two-parent families, today's children are in fact spending substantially more time with their parents than in 1981. Between 1961 and 1999, time spent on childcare by mothers in Great Britain has increased from 0.7 hour per day to 1.7, while for fathers it increased from 0.2 to 0.8 hour per day. Results also suggest that mothers continue to devote more time to childcare than fathers, but the gender gap has been reduced. The consistency of these results across countries suggests a global trend toward an increase in parental time investment in children.

This study examined children''s perceptions of their parents'' involvement in all types of extracurricular activities, extending research beyond the sports domain. The Parental Involvement in Activities Scale (PIAS) was developed to measure children''s perceptions of their parents'' involvement. The PIAS resulted in a 16-item measure with 2 factors, “support” and “pressure.” The amount of time children spend in their activities and their affective experience of participation were also assessed. Perceived parental support positively predicted participants'' amount of extracurricular involvement. Perceived parental support and pressure predicted children''s affective experience of participation. Present results suggest that parental support and pressure are variables that may be central to understanding how to optimize children''s extracurricular involvement. Recommendations are made regarding how parents can modify their involvement to contribute to their children''s positive experience of extracurricular activities, while minimizing involvement that contributes to negative experience. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

: BackgroundWe describe a successful demonstration that repeated early deprivation of parental care (ED), as used to study effects of early life stress in rats, can be performed in a primate and that it constitutes an early life stressor.: MethodsSeven breeding pairs of marmoset monkeys each provided control twins (CON) and twins that were subjected to ED for 30–120 min/day on postnatal days (PND) 2–28. Urine samples were obtained to monitor the acute effect of ED on cortisol and catecholamine levels. Behavior samples were obtained in the home cage to monitor the effects of ED on infant and infant–parent behavior.: ResultsEarly deprivation of parental care caused acute increases in cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. At PND 28, basal cortisol was reduced in ED compared with CON infants, and ED infants were smaller than CON infants. Early deprivation infants tended to spend more time in the suckling position than did CON. Early deprivation infants demonstrated more distress vocalization than CON infants, even though the parental care they received in the home cage was similar. Early deprivation infants tended to play less socially than did CON.: ConclusionsTo our knowledge, this is the first demonstration that a repeated early life stressor of the type developed in rats can also be applied to a primate species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To identify and validate factors within the parental background affecting risk of child maltreatment. Method: A nested case-control study based on the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (‘Children of the Nineties’), a cohort of children born in Avon in 1991 through 1992. Data on the childhood and psychiatric histories of the parents, along with other data on the social and family environments, have been collected through postal questionnaires from early antenatal booking onwards. Results: Out of 14,138 participating children, 162 have been identified as having been maltreated. Using logistic regression analysis, significant risk factors within the mothers' backgrounds were age < 20; lower educational achievement; history of sexual abuse; child guidance or psychiatry; absence of her father during childhood; and a previous history of psychiatric illness. Significant factors in the fathers' backgrounds were age < 20; lower educational achievement; having been in care during childhood; and a history of psychiatric illness. Significant factors on univariate, but not multivariate analysis included a parental history of childhood physical abuse; divorce or separation of the mother's parents; a maternal history of having been in care, or separated from her mother; parental alcohol or drug abuse; and a maternal history of depression. Conclusions: This study, the first of its kind in the UK, supports the findings of others that parental age, educational achievement, and a history of psychiatric illness arc of prime importance in an understanding of child maltreatment. With the exception of maternal sexual abuse, a history of abuse in childhood is not significant once adjusted for other background factors. The study suggests that psychodynamic models are inadequate to explain child maltreatment, and wider models incorporating other ecological domains are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship of timing of early parental separation to psychosocial development of daughters was examined in 77 girls, 6-9 years of age over a four-year period. Disruptive behavior across contexts was prevalent in girls separated between birth and two years of age. Girls separated between three and five years of age showed more externalizing behavior problems, but only in school. Results suggest that early parental separation has more pervasive and stable negative effects on psychosocial adjustment of girls in this age group in single-parent families. Implications of the findings and directions for research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses the relation between the scientific genius and loss of a parent. Researcher remarked that the characteristics of people who became eminent in the days of little science might differ from those in the era of big science. Specifically, he observed that many of the great men of science lost one parent early in youth and became strongly attached to the other. Researcher S.M. Silverman has gone beyond this suggestion of over-identification with the surviving parent to the speculation that withdrawal from the human to the natural world is also a function of parental deprivation. The purpose is to test the hypothesis implied by researchers that the percentage of eminent scientists who lost a parent during childhood has been higher than the percentage of children in the population at large who lost a parent during the same age span.

The article discusses the relative roles of nature and nurture in the formation of personality are difficult ones to define. Nevertheless it seems clear that in at least the aspect of human relations, an aspect which stands out clearly as a problem for the physical scientist, the loss of a parent can have deleterious effects. A number of studies have been made of adult psychiatric disabilities correlated with retrospective childhood experiences, including especially parental deprivation. Despite the methodological problems there appears to be a consensus that the bereaved child has a higher than chance risk of developing serious problems as an adult.

A system for monitoring drug use was based on the data from annual surveys of two contrasting population groups, a general cross-section of young people and a cross-section of antisocial deviants. Correlation of deviancy and drug use established that drug use, both licit and illicit, was more extensive among those who suffered parental deprivation, whose parents were divorced or separated, who had psychiatric illness and particularly those who had committed anti-social acts. The degree of antisocial deviancy correlated with the extent of drug use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article tests the hypothesized detrimental effects of parental separation on academic achievement and academic self-concept using multivariate analysis of covariance in data from public school students in the seventh and ninth grades in Columbia, South Carolina. Every year, more than one million American children experience the divorce or separation of their parents, and the vast majority of these children subsequently live without the full-time presence of their biological fathers. Many studies have indicated that the vast majority of children and adolescents whose parents separate or divorce suffer extensive emotional pain and distress for a considerable period of time. Problems that may be associated with the emotional distress have been identified. Some investigators have found that adolescents whose parents have separated or divorced are more susceptible than others to peer pressures to engage in deviant behaviors, and that they actually engage in more deviant behavior than others. There is considerable evidence also that lower academic achievement of children and adolescents is related to parental divorce, a relationship that might also be mediated by emotional distress or by other mechanisms.

The recurrent theme of rejection and abandonment in group work with Caribbean adolescents recently immigrated to join parents after years of separation is discussed. Familial tensions that preclude successful reunion are explored and implications for helping professionals are highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A statistical profile using data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau is presented of those children and adolescents who were living apart from their parents, referred to in this report as "parent-absent children." Data obtained from the 1981 Current Population Report indicated that in 1980 2,295,000 or 3.7% of all unmarried noninstitutionalized children under 18 years of age were not living with either of their parents. A large majority of these children were living in families with some relative, usually their grandparents, and a minority were living outside of families in group quarters, such as boarding schools. The percentage of parent-absent children increased between 1975 and 1979, especially among black preteenagers. Possible reasons for parent absence are discussed, along with directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forty women and partners were interviewed separately about changes in parent-child interactions and other family relationships after the mother had returned to college study. Mothers reported spending less time with each child. However, both parents generally reported that, overall, their children were now receiving more and better parental contact and that there had been qualitative improvement in father-child relationships, in particular. Rather than be guided by some earlier more pessimistic research, counsellors and educators are encouraged to recognize that the benefits to older women of returning to study and to their families seem widespread and important. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a comparative study on prison groups with regards to the effect of parental deprivation. The result of the study indicated that parental deprivation amongst the prison populations was the result of failure of infra-familial relationships which leads to compulsory institutionalization. The result also indicated that offenders who had experienced parental deprivation had younger parents and were themselves younger than their counterparts who had suffered no loss. Furthermore, the results were discussed with regard to the influence of institutions and contemporary family life on subsequent behavior disturbance.

This article focuses on psychological effects of paternal deprivation upon children from ten to sixteen. An understanding of the relationships between children and their parents is essential to a comprehension of effects of paternal absence. These family relationships are of three types; parental (mother and father), maternal and paternal. Before years of eight to ten the child is more mother centered, but after this the father becomes just as important and at times even more important. Etymologically, paternal deprivation simply means the absence or lack of a father. Its meaning is bi-directional. It has intensity and derivation. The intensity ranges from zero to almost infinity. Zero is the ideal degree, which is the so called normal family. However, very few family are actually at the zero point. At the opposite extreme is the child who never knew his or her father and had very little contact with adult males during childhood. These children are easily recognized as products of divorce, death or other forms of separation. Paternal deprivation causes distorted concepts of the life roles played by fathers, mothers and by the affected children themselves. There are two basic derivations of deprivation, each with its characteristics of being evil. Death stands by itself as one cause, and divorce as the other.

The article looks at immigrant children in the U.S., focusing on how they are affected by long-term separation from their families. The author comments on research conducted among Honduran, Guatemalan, and Salvadoran immigrant families on unaccompanied migrant children. The desire of immigrant children to reunite with their parents in the U.S. is discussed, noting instances where they do not receive adequate funds for care in their home countries or are neglected by their caretakers. The emotional aspects of being separated from parents, particularly mothers, are considered.

Several letters to the editor in response to the article "Family Ties: Separation through a Parent's Eyes," by Jennifer Briody in the March 2005 issue are presented.

The article presents a study regarding the differences between monopolar and bipolar manic-depressive psychosis patients In India. The analysis of patients was based on three factors including the occurrence of psychiatric illness in first degree relatives, parental death prior to the patient's 15th birthday and socio-economic status of the patient. The study employed 76 patients who were admitted to a hospital in India between November 1966 and March 1967. It was found that the three groups do not differ significantly in terms of parental deprivation in childhood. In addition, psychiatric morbidity in the parents and siblings differ only slightly between the groups, while no significant difference was found in relation to socio-economic status of the patients.

The article offers information on maternal deprivation. Several studies of the effects of parent-child separation, most notably mother-child separation, are of great importance in psychoanalysis, developmental psychology, cultural anthropology, comparative psychology, and other disciplines that are concerned with the study of human behavior. Three major avenues in which the issues involved in maternal deprivation can be undertaken. These are the institutional approach, the cultural approach, and the animal approach.