Search

Despite the prevalence of co-residence of adult children and their parents across Europe, there is only limited empirical evidence on the impact of such living arrangements on well-being. This paper investigates the impact of adult children living in the household on the well-being of Spanish parents aged 50-75. Using three waves of panel data from the Spanish Survey of Household Finances we assess whether the impact on parental well-being differs depending on the age of the child, and whether the effect depends on the gender of the parent. We find that there is a negative impact on parents' well-being of older adult children (aged 30 or over) living in the household, while cohabitation with younger children (aged 18-29) is not found to affect parental well-being. When analysing the impact on mothers and fathers separately we find that the negative effect of older children living in the household is driven by a significant reduction in the well-being of mothers, with no evidence of a corresponding effect on fathers. The negative effect on mothers' well-being seems to be related to co-residence with older sons rather than older daughters. • Co-residing with older adult children is found to lower Spanish parents' well-being. • This effect is driven by a negative impact on the well-being of mothers. • The negative impact appears to be related to co-residence with older sons. • Co-residing with younger adult children is not found to affect well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Communication partners play an important role in the hearing healthcare (HHC) process of the person with hearing impairment (HI). However, present research focuses mainly on the role of the spouse; the role of the adult child is often overlooked or understated. Purpose: The aim of the study was to describe the role of the adult child in theHHCprocess of a parent with HI. Research Design: Using a qualitative study design, participants described their role in their parents' HHC process and the impact of a parent's HI on their relationship and communication in individual semi-structured interviews. Study Sample: Twelve adult children of ten parents with HI participated; two sets of siblings were included to gain different perspectives on the HHC process within the same family. Data Collection and Analysis: Thematic analysis, a qualitative method to explore participant's perceptions and viewpoints, was used as the method of analysis. Results: The superordinate theme discussed most frequently by participants, communication management, was bolstered by three ideas or pillars: facilitating HHC, communication strategies, and encouraging hearing aid use. Adult children saw themselves as advocates or supporters of their parent's HHC by taking an ongoing and active role in promoting successful communication rather than a role in directing their parent's HHC actions. Within each pillar of communication management, participants' perceptions and actions were modulated by the varying levels of effort and a desire to ask questions to better understand how to help their parent, which in turn influenced their awareness of the HI and HHC options, often resulting in the adult child putting forth new effort. Conclusions: Whereas the patient journey is often presented to the patient as a linear process, the adult children instead viewed the process of communication management as an ongoing and continuous cycle. The audiologist should be encouraged to involve adult children in the HHC process, as adult children play an important role in everyday communication management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study adds to the existing knowledge about adult children of parents with mental illness. The aim was to explore differences between adult children of parents with mental illness and parents in the general population on a range of adult relationship and parenting variables. Utilizing a cross‐sectional design, 86 adults across Australia participated in this study (47 general population; 39 adult children of parents with mental illness). Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and parametric tests. Adult children of parents with mental illness were found to be more permissive in their parenting compared with parents in the general population. However, between‐group differences were not found on measures of parenting competence, adult attachment, and relationship satisfaction. These findings suggest that adult children of parents with mental illness are able to thrive just as well as individuals in the general population but may require some support in the form of parental skills training. The paper concludes by highlighting the role of mental health professionals in the empowerment and resilience building of adult children of parents with mental illness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this study was to examine how the quality of relationship between parent and adult children influences adult children's views on aging and attitude toward their own aging and whether the effects of relationship qualities depend on parents' health and adult children's perceptions of how well their parents were aging. The sample included 217 adult children aged 18 to 73. Findings revealed that different parent–child relationship quality dimensions (i.e., support, conflict, depth, ambivalence) differentially influenced adult children's view on aging (positive and negative) and attitude toward own aging, and some of these effects depended on levels of parental health and the way adult children view how successfully their parents were aging. The quality of the relationship to one's parents has an important role in shaping adults' views on aging and experience of their own aging, highlighting the importance of incorporating the role of family context to further enhance our understanding of how individuals develop perceptions of aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives Stress can trigger physical pain and disturb sleep. Whether dementia family caregivers experience heightened pain is unknown. Cycles of unwanted thoughts about caregiving stressors and avoidance of these thoughts—that is, caregiving-related distress—may exacerbate both pain and sleep disturbances, and genetic susceptibility to stress may further modulate these associations. Research Design and Methods Dementia caregivers (72 spouses, 58 adult children, ages 34–89) rated the extent to which they experienced unintended thoughts about caregiving and tried to suppress such thoughts. They also reported their pain levels, sleep problems, and depressive symptoms. Peripheral blood leukocytes were genotyped for 5-HTTLPR (serotonin-transporter-linked polymorphic region) and 5-HT1A receptor polymorphism rs6295 on the 5HTR1A locus. Results Short-allele carriers for 5-HTTLPR experienced more pain and sleep problems in association with greater caregiving-related distress than those with other genotypes. For rs6295, C carriers also showed the strongest links between distress and sleep problems. Those who experienced more avoidance and intrusive thoughts about caregiving had more severe depressive symptoms, consistent with past work. Discussion and Implications Caregivers' genetic profiles helped to explain whether caregiving-related distress predicted worse pain and sleep problems. These data reveal new somatic risks of caregiver distress and provide targets for intervention. According to plasticity theories, caregivers genetically predisposed to greater stress reactivity may also respond particularly well to interventions, and many brief treatments may effectively address caregivers' intrusions and avoidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the associations between the quality of adult filial caregivers' intimate partner relationships and health behaviors, mental health, and physical health using structural equation modeling. Secondary data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States were used to examine the health outcomes of adults (n = 224) who reported caregiving for a parent or parent-in-law in the past 12 months. Results indicated a significant mediation effect of close intimate partner relationship quality and physical health, through mental health; health behaviors did not produce a significant mediation effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Attachment theory and Bowen's family system theory are theories focused on the central role of the family bonding in the development of the self and in the promotion of affective and relational regulation. The main objective of our study was to reflect on the dialogue between adult attachment and differentiation of self constructs and to explore if and in which measure romantic attachment styles depend on attachment bonding with parents or from differentiation of self processes. Involving a convenience sample of 350 participants, we administered a research protocol composed of the Differentiation of Self Inventory (Skowron, Schmitt in J Marital Fam Ther 29(2):209–222, 2003), the Experience in Close Relationships–Revised Scale (Fraley et al. in J Personal Soc Psychol 78(2):350–365, 2000) and the Parental Bonding Instrument (Parker et al. in Br J Med Psychol 52(1):1–10, 1979). Data revealed that the most important variables in predicting anxiety are emotional reactivity and low level of paternal care and that the most important variable in predicting avoidance is emotional cutoff. This study supports a possible integration of attachment theory and family systems theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The killing of parents, frequently referred to as parricide, is a disturbing phenomenon that often generates widespread media coverage. Most of the scholarly literature on this topic has focused on biological offspring who kill mothers and fathers. Some analyses have examined juveniles and adults who kill their stepparents. To date, virtually no research exists on children who kill their adoptive parents because this type of victim-offender relationship has been absent from available homicide databases, thereby preventing such analyses. The present study is a content analysis of news reports of 46 cases of adopted children who killed their adoptive parents in several different countries. Data pertaining to offender and victim demographics, incident characteristics, and the processing of offenders from the initial charge through conviction and sentencing are examined. To the extent possible, media accounts are used to classify cases according to motives or circumstances leading to the killings. The article concludes with a comparison of profiles of children who kill adoptive parents in relation to those who kill biological parents, important observations that emerged from these news accounts, and discussion of possible explanations of parricide by adopted children, including adopted children syndrome, reactive attachment disorder, and biological risk factors. Limitations of this study and directions for future research are addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite common recommendations from professionals that adoption disclosure should be done at early ages, reports suggest that a sizeable number of adult adoptees do not learn of their adoption status until older ages. The few studies that exist indicate that the late discovery of adoption is linked to psychological distress and feelings of anger, betrayal, depression, and anxiety. In this mixed-method study, 254 adult adoptees completed a survey consisting of the K10 (Kessler Distress Inventory) the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale–BREF, open-ended prompts, and demographic items. Results indicated that those who learned of their adoptions from age 3 and older reported more distress and lower life satisfaction when controlling for the amount of time adoptees have known of their adoption statuses and their use of coping strategies. Adoptees also indicated a desire for communicative openness and reported that beneficial coping methods included supportive relationships and seeking contact with birth relatives and other adoptees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Adult Children of Alcoholics (ACOAs) have shown poorer psychosocial outcomes compared to their counterparts (non-ACOAs). These poorer outcomes, however, are not consistently present between groups. Investigating psychological markers of such functioning can help to highlight nuances between ACOAs and non-ACOAs even when mean differences of psychosocial outcomes are not present. This is pertinent to the study of ACOAs to understand predictors of positive well-being trajectories. Objective: The aim of the present study was to compare the linguistic content of ACOAs and non-ACOAs in relation to psychological functioning. Method: A quasi-experimental design was employed; ACOAs (n = 53) and non-ACOAs (n = 80) were asked to write a significant memory in which they went through a change of some kind (i.e., turning point) regarding a parent. Participants were then asked to complete measures of psychological functioning. Using a word counting software, we identified verbal immediacy, a combination of words signifying psychological closeness, within participants' memories. Results: Results indicated no mean differences in the amount of verbal immediacy amid ACOAs and non-ACOAs, but there were differences in its predictive ability between groups. Among ACOAs, verbal immediacy predicted better psychological functioning. Yet, there was no association found among non-ACOAs. Conclusions/Importance: These results show that psychological closeness, among ACOAs, is indicative of better psychological functioning, even though it is typically associated with worse outcomes. This suggests that vulnerable individuals may have nontraditional correlates between psychological markers, like verbal immediacy, and such functioning and should be assessed when comparing these populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives Most older mothers have strong preferences regarding which offspring will serve as their future caregivers, and violation of these preferences has been found to have consequences for mothers' psychological well-being. However, no study has examined the accuracy of adult children's perceptions of their mothers' caregiver preferences. In this article, we compare mothers' stated preferences for particular caregivers with their adult children's perceptions of their mothers' preferences. Research Design and Methods Data were collected from 675 adult children and their mothers nested within 285 families as part of the Within-Family Differences Study. Results Only 44.6% of adult children accurately reported their mothers' preferences for particular offspring as caregivers. Consistent with our hypotheses, accuracy was higher when mothers and children shared values regarding filial piety, and lower when children were parents, had poor health, and lived further away. Surprisingly, primary caregivers were substantially less likely to accurately report mothers' caregiver preferences than were noncaregivers. This counterintuitive pattern can be explained by the finding that most mothers were cared for by children whom they did not prefer and may have therefore been reluctant to share their preferences with those caregivers. Discussion and Implications Given the negative psychological consequences for mothers whose caregiver preferences are violated, the high level of inaccuracy found among adult children has important implications when mothers face serious health events. These findings underscore the need for intervention efforts to encourage practitioners and clinicians to collect information directly from mothers regarding preferences for particular offspring as caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the normal progression of life for an aging person is interrupted by a decline in physical and or mental abilities, adult children are often suddenly faced with assuming care of their parent(s). Currently, adult child caregivers of aging parents work up to 100 hours per month at caregiving. Most existing literature is focused on informal caregivers, which can consist of spouses, relatives, and friends' caregiving for persons with debilitating illnesses. Despite the amount of time dedicated to parental caregiving, little is known about the experience of this exclusive caregiver group. The aim of this study was to explore and describe the experience of adult children caregiving for aging parents at any stage of health. A qualitative phenomenological approach was used to interview six daughters and one daughter-in-law. Themes were identified and presented through the use of narratives and poetry. The participants expressed they felt unprepared for caregiving and their culture had a direct impact on the expectations of caregiving. A myriad of unpleasant emotions and loss were voiced, yet their outlooks remained extremely positive. The overall health of adult child caregivers needs to be supported to prepare them for what lies ahead with caregiving. Caregivers report their loved one(s) required several hospitalizations, which lead to performing medical/nursing tasks at home. Nursing then has a unique opportunity during discharge preparation, to identify those who need community, state, and faith-based services. Replication is needed to address the limitation of the number of participants, ethnic, and gender diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assessed the relationships between psychological morbidity, social intimacy, perception of the parental relationship, lifestyle and physical symptomatology as well as the contributors of physical symptomatology, in adult children of divorced parents. Participants answered the Physical Symptom Questionnaire, the Anxiety, Depression and Stress Scale, the Lifestyle Questionnaire, the Social Intimacy Scale and The Perception of the Parental Relationship Scale. Results revealed that older participants showed lower levels of anxiety, depression and stress and that male participants perceived the parental relationship as better when compared to females. There was a negative association between depression and the duration of parental divorce. Adult children with greater physical symptoms and more anxious showed less social intimacy. The latter was associated with a less healthy lifestyle. As expected less physical symptomatology was associated with lower levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. Anxiety was the only variable that contributed to physical symptomatology. Intervention should be gender sensitive and focus early on on the identification of psychological morbidity, social intimacy, healthy behaviors, and physical symptomatology, in adult children whose parents are in the process of divorcing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To analyze the association between attitudes of filial responsibility and adult child caregivers' behaviors in the Southern Region of Brazil. Methods: Cross-sectional study with 100 child caregivers of older adults. The data were collected through an interview using the protocol of filial responsibility adapted and validated to Brazilian Portuguese. Filial Expectation and Filial Piety scales evaluated the attitudes of filial responsibility. Caring behaviors assessed were: instrumental support, emotional, financial support, and companionship. The variables that presented p<.20 value in the bivariate analysis were inserted into a multivariate Poisson regression model. Results: Financial and emotional support behaviors were significantly associated with filial piety (p =.050 and p =.001, respectively) and filial expectation (p =.013 and p =.023, respectively). Providing companionship was associated with filial piety (p =.015). Conclusion: Attitudes of filial responsibility are associated with some but not all caregiving behaviors. Brazilians caring for older parents show more similarities to Chinese than to Canadian caregivers. Furthermore, filial responsibility and caregiving behaviors are strongly affected by Brazilian social and cultural norms. Reasons are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physical activity is central to health. Parents tend to have lower levels of physical activity than the childless, however, little is known about how adult child–parent relationship quality matters for mothers' and fathers' physical activity trajectories. Nationally representative panel data from the Americans' Changing Lives survey (1986–2012) are used to analyze multilevel-ordered logistic regression models. Greater social support from adult children is associated with more frequent active exercise, and higher strain with adult children is related to more frequent active exercise and walking. A significant gender interaction suggests that strain with adult children is related to greater exercise among men more so than women, but this interaction is attenuated after adjusting for cigarette smoking, another gendered way of coping with stress. This study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of how different dimensions of intergenerational relationships shape health behaviors across the life course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores cross-cultural variations in adult children's perceptions of maternal favoritism during caregiving in Turkey and the United States. Qualitative analysis of interview data from two siblings in each of 14 Turkish and 14 American families revealed differences in adult children's perceptions of and explanations for maternal favoritism. Most Turkish children perceived that their mothers favored sons because of higher filial expectations from sons. Conversely, most American children perceived that their mothers favored daughters and explained mothers' preferences as based on socioemotional factors. Furthermore, perceptions of maternal favoritism had detrimental consequences for sibling relationships in both contexts but differently. Turkish daughters reported conflicts over their favored brothers' lack of cooperation. American daughters perceived themselves as favored and felt obligated to undertake most of the caregiving burden which fueled sibling conflict. Taken together, this study highlights the importance of cultural context for understanding the within-family differences in sibling relationships during caregiving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent long-term care (LTC) reforms in the Netherlands are illustrative of those taking place in countries with a universalistic LTC model based on extensive provision of state-supported services. They entail a shift from de-familialisation, in which widely available state-supported LTC services relieve family members from the obligations to care for relatives in need, to supported familialism, in which family involvement in care-giving is fostered through support and recognition for families in keeping up their caring responsibilities. Using data from four waves of the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study (N = 2,197), we show that between 2002 and 2014 the predicted probability that adult children provide occasional household support to impaired parents rose substantially. Daughters more often provided household support to parents than did sons, but no increase in the gender gap over time was found. We could not attribute the increase in children's provision of household support to drops in the use of state-supported household services. The finding that more and more adult children are stepping in to help their ageing parents fits a more general trend in the Netherlands of increasing interactions in intergenerational families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How do time and personhood become related when dementia sets in? This article brings together ethnographies from a memory clinic and a dementia nursing home in Copenhagen, Denmark, pursuing how personhood and time become intertwined across early and late-stage dementia. In the memory clinic, the dementia diagnosis is enacted and experienced simultaneously as an indispensable prophecy of discontinuity of personhood and life for the patients, and as a prognosis that renders the future indeterminate and open to intervention. In the nursing home, institutionalized care marks the fulfillment of the prophecy of decline, yet nursing home staff insist on practicing prognoses for the residents. Across our empirical sites, we enquire what the tension between prophecy and prognosis mean for personhood and the possibilities of the present, arguing that people with dementia are made and unmade through different understandings and enactments of future-oriented temporalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Providing care to persons with Alzheimer's disease poses challenges for spouses and adult children, including experiencing stigmatic beliefs towards themselves—i.e., family stigma. Drawing on the frameworks of ethnicity and stigma and ethnicity and dementia, the current study explored stigmatic experiences among Israeli Arab family caregivers of a person with Alzheimer's disease. Three focus groups with 20 caregivers (adult children and spouses) of persons with Alzheimer's disease were conducted. Data were analyzed using theory-led thematic analysis. Caregivers reported experiencing family stigma in two dimensions: public and affiliate stigma, in both the existence of an attribution process in which cognitive stereotypes elicit negative and positive emotions which in turn provoke behavioral attributions, was evident. Family stigma was found to be a discernible feature of everyday reality among Israeli Arab caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease and stress the importance of developing management strategies that are tailored to the socio-cultural characteristics of the caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The increased longevity of individuals with intellectual disability means that ageing parents often play an extended caregiving role into late life. This systematic review evaluates qualitative evidence on futures planning among older parents whose adult children live either in the family home or out-of-home. Method: Electronic databases were searched for studies published between 2000 and 2015. Studies that met the inclusion criteria were analysed using the McMaster Critical Review Form for Qualitative Studies. Results: Of 14 articles reviewed, quality was mixed. Three over-arching themes emerged: (1) external barriers to planning involving reservations about available services; (2) internal barriers preventing parents from planning such as mutual dependency and sense of helplessness; and (3) existence of diverse “plans” and ways of managing the future. Conclusions: Parents are aware of the need to make plans or at the very least have preferences for what they would like to occur. However, a range of external and internal factors pose as barriers to this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parents with ADHD may be at increased risk to engage in physical child abuse and, in turn, influence the developing child abuse risk of their children. The present study investigated the connection between maternal ADHD symptoms and their emerging adult child’s physical abuse risk, considering potential paths via maternal child abuse risk, maternal parenting style, and the child’s ADHD symptoms. The sample included 794 emerging adults and 146 of their mothers. Emerging adults and their mothers both reported on the ADHD symptoms of the mother, the ADHD symptoms of the emerging adult child, and the mothers’ parenting style. Each also independently reported on their own physical child abuse risk. Models indicate maternal ADHD predicted emerging adult children’s abuse risk directly and indirectly through the children’s ADHD symptoms but only weakly through parenting style and not through mothers’ child abuse risk. Child abuse risk appears related to ADHD symptoms in both generations, representing an area to address clinically to reduce the intergenerational patterns of child abuse risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This paper examines whether a relationship exists between paternal psychological stability and daughters' symptomatology following the death of a wife/mother from breast cancer. Specifically, is there a relationship between paternal parenting style and the daughters' subsequent capacity to form committed relationships later in life?Methods: We assessed 68 adult daughters (average age = 23.5 years) since the mother's breast cancer diagnosis by means of a semistructured clinical interview and psychological testing.Results: The daughters were subdivided into three psychiatric risk groups. Those in the highest risk group were most likely to be single and to have high CES-Depression and STAI-Anxiety scores. Daughters in the highest risk group were also most likely to have fathers who abused substances, fathers who had experienced a serious psychiatric event, and families with the most closed communication about the mother's cancer.Significance Of Results: Psychopathology in fathers correlated with increasing anxiety and depression in adult daughters. Daughters at the highest level of risk had the most severe affective states, the most disturbed father-daughter bonding, and the least ability to create successful interpersonal relationships as adults. We suggest specific interventions for these daughters of the lowest-functioning fathers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACTObjectives:Little is known about the experience of family caregivers of adults with cystic fibrosis (CF). This information is important for the identification of caregivers at risk for burden.Methods: This was a longitudinal analysis of survey data obtained from caregivers of adult CF patients participating in an early intervention palliative care trial. Caregivers completed the validated Brief Assessment Scale for Caregivers (BASC) repeatedly over a 28-month period. Mixed-effects modeling evaluated multivariate associations with positive and negative caregiver perceptions over time.Results: Of the 54 caregivers, 47.9% were spouses. The mean age was 50.9 years (SD = 13.2); 72.2% were women; 75.9% were married; and 63.0% were employed. At baseline, the BASC revealed large variations in positive and negative perceptions of caregiving. Although average scores over time were unchanging, variation was greater across caregivers than within caregivers (0.49 vs. 0.27, respectively). At baseline, the positive impact of caregiving in the sample was higher than the negative impact. Multivariate analysis revealed that patients' baseline pulmonary function and their full-time employment status predicted caregiver burden over time.Significance Of Results: Caregivers of CF patients varied in their positive and negative caregiving experiences, although burden levels in individual caregivers were stable over time. When the disease was advanced, caregivers of CF patients experienced more overall burden but also more positive impact. This suggests that the role of caregivers may become more meaningful as disease severity worsens. In addition, full-time patient employment was associated with lower caregiver burden regardless of disease severity. This suggests that burden in CF caregivers may be predicted by financial strain or benefits conferred by patient employment. These associations require further investigation to determine whether highly burdened caregivers can be identified and assisted using tailored interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large body of literature addresses experiences of spouse and adult-children caregiver of individuals with dementia (IWDs) but has not examined the role and strength of social networks in associations between spouses and adult-children caregivers' experience. Based on the stress process model, we aimed to explore the strength levels of social networks and their association with spouses/adult-children caregivers for IWDs. A cross-sectional study. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted with a total of 146 family caregivers of IWDs (78 adult-child, and 68 spouses) in China. Data collection comprised 4 sections: (1) care-related stressors (dementia stage, neuropsychiatric symptoms); (2) caregiver context; (3) social network, using the Lubben Social Network Scale; and (4) caregiving experience, using the short-form Zarit Burden Interview and 9-item Positive Aspects of Caregiving Scale. Linear regression, mediation model analysis, and interactive analysis were performed to explore the mechanisms of associations between variables. Spouses had weaker social network strength (β = −0.294, P =.001) and reported greater positive aspects of caregiving (β = 0.234, P =.003) than adult-children caregivers; no significant difference was found between them for caregiver burden. Mediation analysis suggests that associations between caregiver type and caregiver burden are indirect-only mediation effects of social networks (β = 0.140, 95% CI = 0.066-0.228). The social network strength suppressed the association between caregiver type and positive aspects of caregiving. The caregiver type/social network interaction statistically significantly (P =.025) affected the "positive aspects": a stronger social network was associated with more positive aspects of caregiving among the spouse subgroup (β = 0.341, P =.003). Social networks mediate responses to caregiving experiences among different care provider types and are vital intervention targets, especially for spousal caregivers. Our results can serve as references for identifying caregivers for clinical intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between exposure to Parental Alienation (PA) at different developmental time periods and psychological maltreatment. Three hundred and sixty‐one adults in Chieti, Italy completed an anonymous and confidential paper and pencil survey regarding their childhood exposure to twenty PA behaviours across three developmental time periods as well as a measure of psychological maltreatment by each parent. Results revealed that exposure to PA at each time period was significantly associated with psychological maltreatment. Moreover, the number of time periods of exposure to PA (from 0 to 3) was associated with psychological maltreatment. This was true for PA by mothers and PA by fathers. Implications for policy and practice are discussed. Practitioner points: Mental health professionals can use the results of this study to guide their intervention effortsCo‐parenting educators can incorporate these results into their routine efforts to help parents be aware of PA and its effectsTargeted parents can use these findings to make the case for timely legal and mental health interventions [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study tests the underlying structure of a multidimensional construct of helicopter parenting (HP), assesses reliability of the construct, replicates past relations of HP to poor emotional functioning, and expands the literature to investigate links of HP to emerging adults’ decision-making and academic functioning. A sample of 377 emerging adults (66% female; ages 17-30; 88% European American) were administered several items assessing HP as well as measures of other parenting behaviors, depression, anxiety, decision-making style, grade point average, and academic functioning. Exploratory factor analysis results suggested a four-factor, 23-item measure that encompassed varying levels of parental involvement in the personal and professional lives of their children. A bifactor model was also fit to the data and suggested the presence of a reliable overarching HP factor in addition to three reliable subfactors. The fourth subfactor was not reliable and item variances were subsumed by the general HP factor. HP was found to be distinct from, but correlated in expected ways with, other reports of parenting behavior. HP was also associated with poorer functioning in emotional functioning, decision making, and academic functioning. Parents’ information-seeking behaviors, when done in absences of other HP behaviors, were associated with better decision making and academic functioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Aims: To identify what factors are associated with the caregiver burden of spouse caregivers, adult child caregivers, and parent caregivers. Background: Caregivers often feel stressed and perceive caregiving as a burden. The caregiver burden has been little studied from the perspective of the personal relationship between caregiver and care recipient. Design: Cross‐sectional study. Methods: A random sample of 4,000 caregivers in Finland was drawn in 2014 and those who remained either spouse, adult child, or parent caregivers at data collection were included in the analysis (N = 1,062). Data collection included recipients’ characteristics. Caregivers’ perceived burden was measured using the Caregivers of Older People in Europe index. General linear models were used to explain perceived caregiver burden. Results: Care recipients’ low level of cognitive function was associated with greater perceived burden. Higher quality of support was associated with lower perceived burden among female and male spouse caregivers, daughter caregivers, and mother caregivers. Low cognitive function explained 3–6% and high quality of support 2–5% of the total variation in the burden explained by the models, which ranged between 45–55%. Conclusion: Because cognitive challenges of care recipient are associated with greater perceived burden and high quality of support with lower burden among most of the caregiver groups, high‐quality tailored nursing interventions will be needed especially for the caregivers of the most frail care recipients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES: To determine if longitudinal associations exist between parental incarceration (PI) and health care use or health behaviors among a national sample of young adults. METHODS: We used the National Longitudinal Survey of Adolescent to Adult Health to examine associations between history of mother incarceration (MI) and father incarceration (FI), health care use, and 3 dimensions of health behaviors (eg, general health behaviors, substance use, and other risky behaviors) (N = 13 084). Multivariable logistic regression models accounted for individual, family, and geographic factors and generated adjusted odds ratios (aORs). RESULTS: Over 10% of the sample had a history of PI before the age of 18. History of MI and FI were both associated with forgone health care (aOR = 1.65 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.20-2.27], aOR = 1.22 [95% CI, 1.02-1.47], respectively), prescription drug abuse (MI aOR = 1.61 [95% CI, 1.02-2.55], FI aOR = 1.46 [95% CI, 1.20-1.79]), and 10 or more lifetime sexual partners (MI aOR = 1.55 [95% CI, 1.08-2.22], FI aOR = 1.19 [95% CI, 1.01-1.41]). MI was associated with higher likelihood of emergency department use (aOR = 2.36 [95% CI, 1.51-3.68]), and FI was associated with illicit injection drug use (aOR = 2.54 [95% CI, 1.27-5.12]). CONCLUSIONS: The effects of incarceration extend beyond incarcerated individuals. PI histories are associated with lower health care use and unhealthy behaviors in young adulthood. By addressing barriers to health care and health-harming behaviors, health care providers and policy makers may reduce health disparities among this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family conflict and estrangement can complicate caregiving tasks later in life. Research suggests that adult children who are estranged do not visit their parents when their parents are sick, despite societal pressures to reconcile and take care of them. Parents also report feeling surprised that their estranged children did not return home when they were in need, which ultimately solidified the estrangement. This article offers a broad discussion of the existing research on family conflict and caregiving, then focuses more specifically on family estrangement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite growing concern over the potential consequences of migration for the “left behind,” few systematic attempts have been made to document the relationship between the migration of an adult child and the well-being of his or her elderly parent(s) remaining in the country of origin. This article proposes a multidimensional elderly well-being index that enables the identification and comparison of outcomes between elderly individuals with and without adult migrant children in Moldova and Georgia, two former Soviet states that are both experiencing demographic and mobility transitions. The outcomes of elderly individuals with and without children living abroad are compared to illustrate in what domains child absence through migration corresponds to differing well-being outcomes. The findings suggest that the migration of an adult child is not as significant a factor in shaping well-being outcomes as would be expected based on past literature; other factors may play much stronger roles in shaping of well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Resilience can be defined as exhibiting positive outcomes after serious threats to one's adaptation or development. Aims: This study aimed to suggest a theoretical model of resilience capacity by validating and extending one of the existing nursing theories of resilience—the society‐to‐cell model developed by Szanton and Gill. To do so, we conducted a qualitative study exploring the factors and conditions influencing adaptation in children of alcoholics (i.e., people who grew up under alcoholic parents). Methods: Data were collected from 22 adult children of alcoholics in South Korea via semistructured interviews. All interviews were audio‐recorded and transcribed, and the data were analyzed using directed content analysis. Results: The results revealed two categories each at the society and community levels, and three categories each at the family and individual levels. No categories emerged at the physiological and cellular levels. In summary, resilience capacity is determined by the multilevel (e.g., society, community, family, and individual levels) factors that all individuals possess. Conclusion: This study is meaningful in that it presents concrete goals for nurses to pursue—namely, enhancing individuals’ resilience capacity—and suggests strong evidence for developing nursing intervention programs that can foster resilience capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research indicates that posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) induced by war trauma may be transmitted to veterans' wives and offspring (secondary traumatic stress; STS). However, the interplay between family members' characteristics has not been accounted for in such processes. Taking a family systems perspective, we examine the contributions of fathers' PTSS, mothers' STS, marital adjustment, and self-disclosure of both parents to offspring's STS and test whether marital quality applies as a mechanism of parent-child transmission. Combat veterans and former prisoners of war (N = 123), their spouses, and adult offspring were investigated in a multiple-step mediation analysis. The results highlight the mother's crucial role in trauma transmission and suggest that strengthening the marital relationship may buffer the transmission of fathers' PTSS to offspring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: The current study examined the within-person association between providing daily assistance to aging parents with disability and adult children's daily mood in the context of early relationship with parents. Methods: We used data from 782 participants and 5,758 daily interviews from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) Refresher, with 248 people self-reported providing daily assistance ranging from 1 to 8 days out of the entire daily-interview period. Multilevel models were fit to examine the moderating effect of physical and emotional abuse from parents in early life on the associations between daily assistance to parents today and yesterday and daily mood. Additional analyses were conducted to examine whether the moderating effect of parental abuse remained when the assistance was provided for other family members and friends. Results: Providing assistance today and yesterday to parents had immediate and lagged associations with higher negative affect when adult children experienced childhood emotional abuse from parents. No significant findings were found for daily positive affect. The moderating effect of parental abuse became nonsignificant when the assistance was provided to other family members or friends. Discussion: Daily assistance to parents with disability needs to be examined in the context of the relationship history with parents. The impact of childhood abuse can linger long after the actual incident. Frequent early emotional abuse from parents was associated with greater distress when the middle-aged provided daily assistance to their aging parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study is about the vulnerability of parents to adult children with drug problems. The study is based on a self-reporting questionnaire (n = 687) distributed to parents in Sweden via family member organizations, treatment centers, and online communities. Most parents reported extensive negative consequences on relationships, social life, and mental health due to their children’s drug problems. Most parents also experienced strong feelings of powerlessness, grief, guilt, and shame. Many parents reported a negative impact on their economy and work ability. In general, fathers claimed to feel less of a negative impact than mothers. A more severe drug problem and life situation for the child was associated with a greater negative impact for the parents. Many parents experienced difficulties in securing adequate help both for their child and for themselves. The study shows the need for increased support efforts for this parent group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Late-life repartnering is a phenomenon developing as life-expectancy increases, creating complex stepfamilies constructed in old age. Adult children and parents’ well-being could be influenced by adult children’s experiences of one parent’s late-life repartnering after the death of the other parent. Our aim is to explore how these two life events intertwine in the lives of adult children heuristically using existential phenomenology. Semistructured qualitative interviews with 27 adult children were chosen from a larger study on the meaning of late-life repartnering from an intergenerational family perspective. Criterion sampling included adult children of a widowed parent who repartnered at or above the official retirement age in Israel. Two themes emerged—(1) loyalty conflict: (a) visible and/or hidden, (b) hypothetical thoughts and feelings about the deceased parent in the context of the parent’s new partner and (2) comparison between the deceased parent and parent’s new partner. Findings are discussed using the existential figure−ground concept illustrating the two life events intertwining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focused on the relationship between parent–child religious discordance (affiliation, intensity, and attendance) in early adulthood and children’s perceived affectual and associational solidarity with their parents across 20 years. The data derived from eight waves of the Longitudinal Study of Generations between 1971 and 2005. We selected 635 young adult children whose mothers and/or fathers also reported their religious orientations in 1971 and then constructed mother–child dyads (n = 584) and father–child dyads (n = 475). Results showed that religious affiliation discordance between parents and children negatively and consistently lowered children’s affectual and associational solidarity with parents over several decades regardless of parents’ gender. However, intergenerational discordance in religious intensity and religious attendance showed no such association. These findings indicate that discontinuity in denominational identification is more disruptive to intergenerational relations than discontinuity in religious strength and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Adult children are involved a myriad of roles including providing routine (non-caregiving) support to a parent. Yet we know little about whether providing routine support to a parent is stressful and whether it has any associations with stressors in other life domains. Methods: We use daily diary data (N = 127; Study Days = 424) from the National Study of Daily Experiences to determine whether providing routine support to an older parent is associated with higher negative affect and salivary cortisol. Results: Results confirm that providing routine support and experiencing stressors at work were independently associated with negative affect and greater cortisol output. Stress reactions were not amplified, however, on days when adult children concurrently provided support to a parent and reported work stressors. Cutting back usual activities at work or home elevated negative affect but were not associated with an upsurge of cortisol production. Discussion: Findings lend support to the caregiving career framework for understanding even casual routine assistance provided to a parent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Since the Great Recession, the proportion of young adults living with their parents has risen steadily in the United States. Research on coresidence with adult children and parental marital quality is mixed, but marital quality may suffer if children coreside under certain circumstances. When coresidence signifies a deviation from normative expectations, it may be a source of stress in parents' marriages. Further, living with adult children who are suffering problems may be especially detrimental to parental marital quality. Method: Middle-aged parents (N = 287; mean age = 50.65) completed measures of marital quality, child problems, and coresidence at 2 time points, at the onset of the Great Recession in 2008 and again in 2013. Results: Regression analyses estimating marital quality from coresidence status revealed that coresidence with a child was associated with lower parental marital quality in 2008, but not in 2013 (when it may be considered more normative to have adult children living in the home). Additional analyses showed living with a child who was suffering problems was associated with lower marital quality in 2013. Discussion: These findings suggest that coresidence may be detrimental to marital quality, but perhaps only when coresidence is nonnormative or when coresidence co-occurs with child problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relationships with parents have significant implications for well‐being throughout the lifespan. At midlife, these ties are situated within both developmental and family contexts that often involve the adult offspring's spouse. Yet, it is not known how ties with aging parents are related to psychological well‐being within middle‐aged couples. This study examined how middle‐aged wives’ and husbands’ views of the current quality of relationships with their own parents (positive and negative) are linked to their own and their partner's psychological well‐being. Using a sample of 132 middle‐aged couples from Wave 1 of the Family Exchanges Study, we estimated actor–partner interdependence models to evaluate these dyadic associations while controlling for each spouse's marital satisfaction. Both actor and partner effects were observed. With respect to actor effects, wives who reported more negative relationship quality with their own parents had elevated depressive symptoms and lower life satisfaction. Husbands who reported more negative relationship quality with their own parents had lower life satisfaction. In terms of partner effects, husbands had lower depressive symptoms and greater life satisfaction when wives reported more positive relationship quality with their own parents. Finally, the link between wives’ positive ties with parents and husbands’ lower depressive symptoms was intensified when husbands had less positive relationships with their own parents. Findings suggest that relationship quality with wives’ aging parents has implications for both spouses’ well‐being and may serve as a critical social resource for husbands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co-resident adult children may be a source of emotional and instrumental support for older parents, but also a source of conflict and stress. Results from previous research are far from conclusive and indicate that intergenerational co-residence may have both negative and positive effects on parents' depressive symptoms and physical health. We analyse longitudinal data from four waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (2007-2015) to examine whether returns to the parental home by adult children are associated with changes in the quality of life of parents aged 50-75. Results from fixed effects linear regression models show that returns to the parental home by adult children were associated with decreases in parents' quality of life and that this largely reflected declines associated with the return of a child to an ‘empty nest’ where no other children were still co-resident. In line with previous research which has indicated differing effects of co-residence on parents' depressive symptoms by cultural tradition, this effect was largely driven by decreases in parents' quality of life in a grouping of Nordic/social-democratic. There were no associations between changes in parental quality of life and the returning child's characteristics, although unemployment of a child was negatively, and new partnership of a child, positively associated with changes in parental quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Offspring of patients with depressive and/or anxiety disorders are at high risk of developing a similar disorder themselves. Early recognition and treatment may have substantial effects on prognosis. The main aim of this study was to examine the time to initial help-seeking and its determinants in offspring after the first onset of a mood and/or anxiety disorder.Methods: Data are presented of 215 offspring with a mood and/or anxiety disorder participating in a cohort study with 10 year follow-up. We determined age of disorder onset and age of initial help-seeking. Offspring characteristics (gender, IQ, age of onset, disorder type, suicidal ideation) and family characteristics (socioeconomic status, family functioning) were investigated as potential predictors of the time to initial help-seeking.Results: The estimated overall proportion of offspring of depressed/anxious patients who eventually seek help after onset of a mood and/or anxiety disorder was 91.9%. The time to initial help-seeking was more than two years in 39.6% of the offspring. Being female, having a mood disorder or comorbid mood and anxiety disorder (relative to anxiety) and a disorder onset in adolescence or adulthood (relative to childhood) predicted a shorter time to initial help-seeking.Limitations: Baseline information relied on retrospective reports. Age of onsets and age of initial help-seeking may therefore be subject to recall bias.Conclusion: Although most offspring eventually seek help after onset of a mood/anxiety disorder, delays in help-seeking were common, especially in specific subgroups of patients. This information may help to develop targeted strategies to reduce help-seeking delays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives. The detrimental consequences of parents' differential treatment on children's well-being have been documented in earlier stages of the life course; however, little is known about this pattern in midlife. Drawing from theories of equity and social comparison, we tested whether psychological well-being was affected only by adult children's perceptions that their mothers treated some offspring in the family differently or by their perceptions that they were favored or disfavored. Further, we explored the extent to which these patterns differed by race. Method. Multilevel regression modeling was conducted using data collected from 725 adult children nested within 309 later-life families as part of the Within-Family Differences Study-II. Results. Depressive symptoms were higher when offspring perceived that they had the most emotional closeness to mothers or the greatest conflict with mothers. Depressive symptoms were also higher when respondents identified themselves as being the children in whom the mothers were most disappointed. Discussion. The findings shed new light on the role of intergenerational relations in adult children's well-being in midlife by taking into consideration the respondents' direct reports of their perceptions of their mothers' favoritism and disfavoritism. Further, the findings provide evidence that the association between maternal differentiation and psychological well-being in adulthood is stronger in Black than in White families. These patterns suggest that the association between psychological well-being and both favoritism and disfavoritism can be accounted for by processes involving social comparison rather than equity for both Black and White adult children in midlife. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on 5 waves of multiple-informant data gathered from focal participants and their parents and intimate partners (n = 360 families) who completed annual surveys in the German Family Panel (pairfam) study, the present investigation examined bidirectional associations between the development of adults' conflictual and intimate interactions with their parents and intimate partners. Autoregressive cross-lagged latent change score modeling results revealed a robust pattern of coordinated development between parent-adult child and couple conflictual and intimate interactions: increases in conflict and intimacy in one relationship were contemporaneously intertwined with changes in the other relationship. Additionally, prior couple intimacy and conflict predicted future parent-adult child relations in 7 out of 14 cross-lagged pathways examined, but parent-adult child conflict and intimacy was only associated with future couple interactions in 1 pathway. These associations were not moderated by the gender of parents or the adult child or whether the adult child was a young adult or nearing midlife. Frequency of contact between parents and the adult child moderated some associations. Adults simultaneously juggle ties with parents and intimate partners, and this study provides strong evidence supporting the coordinated development of conflictual and intimate patterns of interaction in each relationship. (PsycINFO Database Record [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Midlife adults report greater investment in their children than in their parents, and these ties have important implications for well-being. To date, little research has addressed daily experiences in these ties. The present study examines daily experiences (negative and positive) with aging parents and adult children and their associations with daily negative affect and diurnal cortisol rhythms. Participants were middle-aged adults (N = 156; 56% women) from Wave 2 of the Family Exchanges Study, conducted in 2013, who completed a 7-day daily diary study, which included assessments of daily negative and positive social encounters and negative affect, and 4 days of saliva collection, which was collected 3 times a day (upon waking, 30 min after waking, and at bedtime) and assayed for cortisol. Multilevel models revealed that individuals were more likely to have contact with adult children than with parents but more likely to have negative experiences (negative interactions, avoidance, negative thoughts) with parents than with adult children. Nevertheless, contact and negative experiences with adult children were more consistently associated with negative affect and daily cortisol patterns than were interactions with parents. Findings are consistent with the intergenerational stake hypothesis, which suggests that individuals have a greater stake in their children than in their parents. Indeed, negative experiences with adult children may be more salient because tensions with adult children occur less frequently than do tensions with parents. (PsycINFO Database Record [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of the current study was to examine the reliability and validity of Adult Parental Acceptance - Rejection Questionnaire Short Form (Adult PARQ - Short Form) which can be used to assess adults' remembrance of parental acceptance-rejection in their childhood, in a normal population in Turkey. Method: The study was conducted with two samples and in two phases. The first study, investigating the factor structure, composed of 424 women (62%) and 261 men (38%), in total 685 subjects between the ages of 18 and 63. A total of 201 university students including 163 women (81%) and 38 men (19%), between the ages of 18 and 25 took part in the second study, evaluating the criterion-related validity, discriminant validity and reliability. In this phase, in addition to Adult PARQ- Short Form, the Parental Bonding Instrument was used. Results: In exploratory factor analysis, Mother Form of the scale revealed two factor structure (acceptance and rejection) and Father Form revealed three factor structure (acceptance, rejection and neglect). However confirmatory factor analysis showed that revised version of the scale which was obtained by displacing one item in the theoretically proposed 4-factor structure (item 13 was included in Warmth/Affection instead of Indifference/Neglect), represented better goodness of fit values. The scale represented good internal consistency, test-retest and split half reliabilities. Similarly, the criterion related and discriminant validity features of the scale were supported. Conclusion: Adult PARQ- Short Form is a reliable and valid instrument evaluating adults' remembrance of parental acceptance and rejection in their childhood, to use in both clinical applications and scientific researches in Turkey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advice response theory (ART) proposes advisor characteristics, advice politeness, and advice content impact recipient perceptions of advice quality, their intention to implement the advice, and their coping. However, ART has primarily been examined in friend-to-friend advising on academic, romantic, or social issues. To test ART in an understudied relational and topical context, emerging adults (N = 196, aged 18–28 years) were surveyed about physical activity or exercise advice they received from a parent. Current findings supported propositions about advisor characteristics and politeness, and parent–child relational elements were particularly salient. Emerging adults satisfied with their parent–child relationship rated all advice features and outcomes more favorably, and participants who reported their parents conveyed that the participant was approved of, competent, and likeable rated all outcomes more favorably. Counter to ART predictions, emerging adults displayed psychological reactance to certain message content features, responding favorably to advice they perceived to propose an efficacious solution but reacting negatively to advice perceived to emphasize their capability of performing the action and the lack of drawbacks in doing so (especially when feelings of obligation were high). ART propositions about advisor characteristics and politeness may hold across advice situations, but the parent–child dynamic during emerging adulthood and inherent face threat for health influence attempts may explain why certain formulations of advice messages elicited responses inconsistent with ART. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The Adult Children Study (ACS) at the Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center is a longitudinal investigation designed to identify and validate potential biomarkers of preclinical Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in cognitively normal individuals with and without a family history of AD. The purpose of the current study was to validate the proposed latent structure of the ACS psychometric battery.Method: Confirmatory factor analyses of baseline data in a sample of 229 (75 men) cognitively normal middle-aged to older adult individuals assessed a hypothesized 4-factor model of cognitive performance. Measurement invariance was investigated as a function of family history of AD and apolipoprotein E (APOE) status.Results: This study confirmed a priori hypotheses of 4 latent cognitive domains in a unique longitudinal sample of cognitively normal adults. In addition, there was evidence of a similar factor structure for family history and APOE status groups.Conclusion: These robust indicators of a broad range of cognitive domains will be used in future investigations to track the influence of family history of AD on cognitive performance over time. In addition, associations with fluid, structural, and molecular biomarkers of preclinical AD will be further examined, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally in this sample. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose. Caregiving to parent stroke survivors in China is increasing and adult child–parent relationships are being challenged. The purpose of this study was to explore whether mutuality and filial piety have a protective role against caregiver depression. Design. A cross-sectional correlational study was conducted with a nonproportional quota sample of 126 caregivers. Surveys were conducted at hospitals or in homes using structured questionnaires: the 15-item Mutuality Scale, the 4-item Filial Attitude Scale, the 9-item Filial Behavior Scale, and the 10-item Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Results. Higher mutuality and stronger filial attitudes were significantly associated with less caregiver depression after the covariates were controlled. Mutuality explained 5.5% (p < .01) and filial attitude explained 4.6% (p < .01) of the variance in caregiver depression. Conclusion. Mutuality and filial attitude may be protective factors against caregiver depression. Implications for Practice. Supportive strategies can be implemented to enhance mutuality and filial attitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]