Welfare Reform on the Web (February 2004): Child Welfare - Overseas
CHILDREN'S NUTRITION IN JAMAICA: DO HOUSEHOLD STRUCTURE AND HOUSEHOLD ECONOMIC RESOURCES MATTER?
J. Bronte-Tinkew and G. DeJong
Social Science and Medicine, Vol. 58, 2004, p.499-514
The article assesses the influence of household structure and resources on children's nutritional status (height for age) in Jamaica. The hypothesis is that children in one-parent and co-habitation households are more likely to be stunted than those in two-parent, married, households. It also examines whether material resources and number of siblings affect a child's nutritional development. Results prove the hypothesis and indicate that children in low-income families with siblings are more likely to have low height for their age.
CLAIMS FOR CHILDCARE AS STRUGGLES OVER NEEDS: COMPARING ITALIAN AND DANISH WOMEN'S ORGANISATIONS
C. Bertone
Social Politics, Vol. 10, 2003, p.229-255
The article explores childcare issues in Denmark and Italy during the 1960s and early 1970s.
SUICIDALITY AND CULTURAL VALUES AMONG HONG KONG ADOLESCENTS
T. H. Lam and others
Social Science and Medicine, Vol. 58, 2004, p.487-498
The article examines whether the levels of suicidality amongst adolescents in Hong Kong are linked to their cultural values. It is based on the hypothesis that cultural change influences values and that values affect propensities towards risk behaviours. Almost 2500 teenagers aged 14-18 were questioned about their suicidality and their family relationships and were tested for levels of depression. The study found that traditional values protected against suicidal intention but that relationships between values and suicidality were generally not mediated through their effect on family relationships or depressive symptoms.
TEENAGE MOTHERHOOD IN EUROPE: A MULTI-COUNTRY ANALYSIS OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC OUTCOMES
K. Robson and R. Berthoud
European Sociological Review, Vol. 19, 2003, p.451-466
Although there has been much research on the disadvantages teenage mothers face compared to their peers who start their families later in life, it has always been on an individual country basis. This article studies the lives of teenage mothers across thirteen countries in the European Union. The mothers' educational qualifications, family structure, labour force participation (of both themselves and their family), income and poverty levels were examined. The article concludes that although the teenagers' experiences differed between countries, motherhood increases teenagers' chances of being disadvantaged.