by Megan Haselschwerdt, M.S., doctoral candidate in Human Development and Family Studies
If we don’t study parent-child relationships in affluent communities, we ignore unhealthy patterns that may set these youth up for failure. If we as a society continue pointing out potentially problematic parent-child interactions in low-income communities without acknowledging that these same patterns appear similar in affluent communities, we aren’t doing anyone any service.
by Angela Wiley, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Applied Family Studies and Extension Specialist, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The complex problem of childhood overweight and growing desperation to find effective interventions have led to hand wringing and occasional blaming of everything from parents, to schools, to individual food and beverage items. The family context is of primary importance for the younger generation, and effective intervention involves identifying and building on the strengths inherent in family contexts.
Girls and boys face different developmental challenges throughout childhood and adolescence. Although a number of evidence-based programs have been found to be effective at reducing risk factors for children and adolescents, many programs have differential impacts for girls and boys. Understanding what works for girls and what works for boys is critical to improving youth outcomes. Child Trends' latest research briefs examine programs and strategies that work, as well as those that don't, for each gender.
A significant body of research documents the poorer outcomes of teen and non-marital parenthood for both children and parents, and recent statistics underscore the strong association between single parenthood and childhood poverty. Child Trends' latest Fact Sheet, What Works for Disadvantaged and Adolescent Parent Programs: Lessons from Experimental Evaluations of Social Programs and Interventions for Children, reviews 20 parenting programs that are geared toward enhancing the parent's development and/or educating disadvantaged and teenage mothers on effective parenting methods.
