scholarly journals Social Disadvantage, Severe Child Abuse, and Biological Profiles in Adulthood

2017 ◽  
Vol 58 (3) ◽  
pp. 371-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chioun Lee ◽  
Christopher L. Coe ◽  
Carol D. Ryff
Keyword(s):  
Childhood Abuse ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
The United States ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Adult Health ◽  
Socially Disadvantaged ◽  
Physiological Dysregulation ◽  
Physiological Profiles ◽  
The Life Course

Guided by the stress process model and the life course perspective, we hypothesize: (1) that childhood abuse is concentrated, in terms of type and intensity, among socially disadvantaged individuals, and (2) that experiencing serious abuse contributes to poor biological profiles in multiple body systems in adulthood. Data came from the Biomarker subsample of Midlife in the United States (2004–2006). We used latent class analysis to identify distinct profiles of childhood abuse, each reflecting a combination of type and severity. Results indicate that disadvantaged groups, women, and those from disadvantaged families are at greater risk of experiencing more severe and multiple types of abuse. Those with more severe and multifaceted childhood abuse show greater physiological dysregulation. Childhood abuse experiences partially accounted for the social status differences in physiological profiles. Our findings underscore that differential exposure to serious childhood stressors plays a significant role in gender and class inequalities in adult health.

scholarly journals A Faith to Move Mountains? Childhood Abuse, Religious Change, and Mental Health at Midlife

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 461-461
Author(s):  
Laura Upenieks
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Life Course ◽  
Childhood Abuse ◽  
Childhood Maltreatment ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Religious Attendance ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Religious Importance ◽  
The Life Course

Abstract Of all the various forms of adversity experienced during childhood, childhood maltreatment (emotional and physical abuse) is shown to have the largest impacts on mental health and well-being. Yet we still have a limited understanding of why some victims of early maltreatment suffer immense mental health consequences later on in the life course, while others are able to cushion the blow of these early insults. Using two waves of data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS), this study considers change in religiosity as a buffer across three dimensions for victims of childhood abuse: religious importance, attendance, and the specific act of seeking comfort through religion. Results suggest that increases in religious comfort during adulthood are positively associated with adult mental health for victims of abuse, while decreases in religious comfort over time were associated with worse mental health. Changes in religious attendance and religious importance were not significant associated with mental health for victims of abuse. Taken together, my results show that the stress-moderating effects of religion for victims of childhood maltreatment are contingent on the stability or increases or decreases in religiosity over the life course, which has been overlooked in previous work.

Stability and Change in Motherhood Status and Fertility Problem Identification: Implications for Changes in Self-Esteem

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (9) ◽  
pp. 1674-1695
Author(s):  
Arthur L. Greil ◽  
Julia McQuillan ◽  
Elizabeth Richardson ◽  
Michele H. Lowry ◽  
Kathleen S. Slauson-Blevins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Change Score ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Stability And Change ◽  
Fertility Problem ◽  
Score Analysis ◽  
Theory Of Conjunctural Action ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
The Life Course

Because motherhood is a valued status, the life course perspective and the theory of conjunctural action suggest the following hypotheses: for women in the United States, gaining the valued identity “mother” should lead to an increase in self-esteem, while identification with a fertility problem identity should lead to a decrease in self-esteem. Using the nationally representative two-wave National Survey of Fertility Barriers (NSFB), we conducted change-score analysis with chained multiple imputation (MICE) to model attrition. We compared changes in self-esteem by change and stability in motherhood and self-identified fertility problem status among women who initially had no children. Results provide support for the hypotheses. All but one group—those who no longer identified a problem and who had a baby—had declines in self-esteem. Women who persisted with a fertility problem identity and did not have a baby had the steepest decline in self-esteem.

Health Lifestyles in Adolescence and Self-rated Health into Adulthood

2017 ◽  
Vol 58 (4) ◽  
pp. 520-536 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amy M. Burdette ◽  
Belinda L. Needham ◽  
Miles G. Taylor ◽  
Terrence D. Hill
Keyword(s):  
High Risk ◽  
Life Course ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Low Risk ◽  
Adult Health ◽  
Moderate Risk ◽  
Health Lifestyles ◽  
Health Lifestyle

Do health behaviors cluster together as health lifestyles in adolescence? Are these lifestyles socially patterned? Do these lifestyles impact physical health into adulthood? To answer these questions, we employed data from Waves 1 and 4 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health ( n = 7,827). Our latent class analysis revealed four health lifestyles: (a) low risk, (b) moderate risk with substance use, (c) moderate risk with inactivity, and (d) high risk. As suggested by health lifestyle theory, membership in these classes varied according to gender, race-ethnicity, and family structure. Consistent with the life course perspective, regression analyses indicated that those in the high-risk lifestyle tend to exhibit worse health in adolescence and adulthood than those in the low-risk lifestyle. Our findings confirm that socially patterned lifestyles can be observed in adolescence, and these lifestyles are potentially important for understanding the distribution of physical health across the early life course.

scholarly journals Marital Strain and Support and Subjective Well-Being in Later Life: Ascribing a Role to Early-Life Conditions

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 407-407
Author(s):  
Laura Upenieks ◽  
Yingling Liu
Keyword(s):  
Life Course ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Subjective Well Being ◽  
Marital Support ◽  
Lagged Dependent Variable ◽  
The Life Course ◽  
Marital Strain

Abstract Decades of research have the beneficial effects of marital support and the detrimental consequences of marital strain on health and well-being. However, we know relatively less about how circumstances in childhood—a key developmental period of the life course—influence the relational structure in which later life is embedded and any implications this may hold for well-being. We integrate the life course perspective with the stress process model to offer a framework for how childhood conditions (childhood happiness, family structure, and financial strain) moderate the relationship between marital support/strain and subjective well-being in older adulthood in potentially different ways for men and women. The consequences of marital strain may be more severe and the benefits of marital support may not be as strongly felt for those adults who experienced greater adversity during childhood. Drawing on longitudinal data from Waves 2 (2010-2011) and 3 (2015-2016) of the NSHAP project (N = 1,376), results from lagged dependent variable models suggest that marital support buffers the effect of not living with both parents in childhood on subjective well-being for men. Meanwhile, women raised in families that experienced financial hardship reported lower subjective well-being in the context of marital strain in later life. No significant interaction effects were obtained for childhood happiness. Taken together, our findings suggest that adverse experiences in childhood can be scarring, particularly in the context of strained intimate relationships. However, a supportive marriage can, in some cases, offset the effects of childhood hardship on subjective well-being in later life.

scholarly journals Why Does the Importance of Education for Health Differ across the United States?

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 237802311989954
Author(s):  
Blakelee R. Kemp ◽  
Jennifer Karas Montez
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Positive Association ◽  
The United States ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Adult Health ◽  
Economic Policies ◽  
Childhood Health ◽  
Tobacco Policies ◽  
Geographic Differences ◽  
Using Data

The positive association between educational attainment and adult health (“the gradient”) is stronger in some areas of the United States than in others. Explanations for the geographic pattern have not been rigorously investigated. Grounded in a contextual and life-course perspective, the aim of this study is to assess childhood circumstances (e.g., childhood health, compulsory schooling laws) and adult circumstances (e.g., wealth, lifestyles, economic policies) as potential explanations. Using data on U.S.-born adults aged 50 to 59 years at baseline ( n = 13,095) and followed for up to 16 years across the 1998 to 2014 waves of the Health and Retirement Study, the authors examined how and why educational gradients in morbidity, functioning, and mortality vary across nine U.S. regions. The findings indicate that the gradient is stronger in some areas than others partly because of geographic differences in childhood socioeconomic conditions and health, but mostly because of geographic differences in adult circumstances such as wealth, lifestyles, and economic and tobacco policies.

Finding Jobs, Forming Families, and Stressing Out? Work, Family, and Stress among Young Adult Women in the United States

Social Forces ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 98 (2) ◽  
pp. 885-914 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam M Lippert ◽  
Sarah Damaske
Keyword(s):  
Young Adult ◽  
Transition To Adulthood ◽  
Latent Class ◽  
The United States ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Adult Women ◽  
Adult Health ◽  
Work Family Conflict ◽  
Young Adult Women ◽  
Work Family

AbstractThe transition to adulthood is increasingly characterized by complex paths into the world of work and family, especially for young women. Yet how work and family combine to influence stress among young adult women is not well understood. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we leverage new extensions to latent class analysis (LCA) to identify common combinations of work and family circumstances among young adult women, their earlier life and contemporaneous correlates, and associations with two stress measures: a multi-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Epstein–Barr Viral (EBV) antibody titers, a well-validated biomarker of stress-related immunity impairments. We identify seven different common combinations of latent work–family combinations among young adult women ranging from well-compensated professional workers with and without children, mothers without paid employment, and delayed transitions to work and family. Completing a college degree was associated with a higher likelihood of membership in classes marked by professional work irrespective of motherhood, while being raised in a community with greater female labor opportunities was generally associated with membership in child-free classes. Mothers and child-free women in “pink-collar” work with low wages and decision-marking freedom reported higher stress compared to women in “white-collar” work with higher wages and decision-making freedom. These differences are mostly attenuated following adjustments for poverty-related stressors and work–family conflict. While prior work has emphasized the health benefits for women of combining work and family, our research suggests these benefits may be limited to women of higher socioeconomic status with flexible, well-compensated jobs.

scholarly journals ALWAYS TRY TO DO MY BEST: A THEMATIC ANALYSIS OF CHINESE AMERICAN DEMENTIA CAREGIVERS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S676-S676
Author(s):  
Jinyu Liu ◽  
Bei Wu ◽  
Ada Mui ◽  
Yifan Lou ◽  
Wenxing Wei ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life Course ◽  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Chinese American ◽  
Chinese Americans ◽  
The United States ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Chinese Family ◽  
Older Chinese ◽  
The Life Course

Abstract Objectives: Given the increasing prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD) in the United States and the rapid growth of the older Chinese American population, many older Chinese Americans are expected to need intensive care because of cognitive impairment. Prior studies on Chinese ADRD caregivers lack comprehensive examinations from a life course perspective that emphasizes the importance of time, context, process and meaning on human development. Using the life course perspective, this study aims to identify challenges and strength of caregiving experience for this population. Methods: We conducted semi-structured face-to-face interviews with 28 Chinese family caregivers of persons with ADRD in New York City. Thematic analysis method was used to assess the interview data. Results: Seven life-course themes emerged from the data. In the domain of challenges, four themes were identified: (1) physical and emotional exhaustion, (2) limited understanding on cognitive health, (3) difficulty in accessing effective and culturally-sensitive health care services for care recipients, and (4) caregivers’ inability to do self-care. Other three themes were found in the domain of strengths: (1) commitment to care due to cultural and religious values, (2) emotional closeness as resource to sustain caregiving, and (3) family support and cohesion. Conclusion: This study indicates that the life course perspective is an important lens to understand challenges and strengths of Chinese American caregivers. This study also suggests that health professionals could incorporate the life course perspective into assessment and intervention development when working with minority and immigrant ADRD family caregivers.

scholarly journals THE INFLUENCE OF RECESSION HARDSHIPS ON THE PSYCHOSOCIAL WELL-BEING OF SANDWICHED AND FILIAL CAREGIVERS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S613-S613
Author(s):  
Barbara Hodgdon ◽  
Jen D Wong
Keyword(s):  
Positive Affect ◽  
Family Caregiving ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Multiple Generations ◽  
Multigenerational Households ◽  
Environmental Mastery ◽  
The Life Course

Abstract The 2007-2009 U.S. Great Recession impacted the lives of many families, and it has been documented that multigenerational households in the U.S. increased by 10% during this period. Given the vulnerability of providing care to multiple generations, there is a need to examine the influence of recession hardships on sandwiched caregiving and psychosocial well-being in the context of more normative caregiving (e.g., filial caregiving). Informed by the life course perspective, this study assessed the impacts of types of family caregiving (sandwiched and filial caregivers) on psychosocial well-being (e.g., affect, environmental mastery, and social actualization) and the moderating role of recession hardships (e.g., job loss, foreclosure). Sandwiched and filial caregivers (N=127; Mage=53; SD=11.02) from the Refresher Cohort of the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) Survey provide information on demographics, recession hardships, family caregiving, and well-being. Results from regression analyses showed that sandwiched caregivers exhibited lower levels of positive affect and environmental mastery than filial caregivers. Moderation analyses showed that filial caregivers with lower recession hardships exhibited lower positive affect and social actualization when compared to sandwiched caregivers with lower recession hardships. Filial caregivers with lower recession hardships exhibited lower positive affect and social actualization than sandwiched and filial caregivers with greater recession hardships. These results illustrate the complexity of family caregiving in that providing care to multiple generations does not necessarily translate to lower levels of well-being. Study findings have the potential to inform programs that may promote sandwiched caregivers’ well-being and support filial caregivers navigating financial disruptions.

ADDRESSING RACIAL DISPARITIES IN HEALTH USING LIFE COURSE PERSPECTIVES

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cynthia G. Colen
Keyword(s):  
Life Course ◽  
Racial Disparities ◽  
African American Women ◽  
The United States ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Socioeconomic Mobility ◽  
Marginalized Groups ◽  
Interactive Nature ◽  
The Life Course ◽  
Racial Disparities In Health

AbstractIn the United States, African Americans face stark inequalities in health. The life course perspective offers a unique viewpoint through which racial disparities in morbidity and mortality may be understood as the result of repeated exposures to risk factors during both childhood and adulthood. However, the utility of this approach is limited by its failure to investigate the degree to which racial/ethnic minorities are able to translate gains in socioeconomic status into favorable health outcomes, both for themselves and for their children. In order to adequately reflect the realities of marginalized groups, life course models must explore the interactive nature of linkages across lifecourse stages, pay particular attention to the unique processes that create and maintain health disparities over time, and consider the specific contexts in which these processes occur. To this end, I examine the ways in which exclusionary forces and discriminatory conditions are likely to prevent African American women and their children from reaping the health benefits typically associated with upward socioeconomic mobility.

Types of Family Caregiving and Daily Experiences in Midlife and Late Adulthood: The Moderating Influences of Marital Status and Age

2017 ◽  
Vol 39 (6) ◽  
pp. 719-740 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jen D. Wong ◽  
Yetunde Shobo
Keyword(s):  
Family Caregivers ◽  
Family Caregiving ◽  
Multilevel Models ◽  
Leisure Activities ◽  
The United States ◽  
Life Course Perspective ◽  
Late Adulthood ◽  
Daily Diary Study ◽  
Daily Experiences ◽  
The Life Course

Guided by the life-course perspective, this study contributes to the family caregiving, aging, and disability literature by examining the daily experiences of three types of family caregivers in midlife and late adulthood. A sample of 162 caregivers from the National Survey of Midlife in the United States study completed interviews, questionnaires, and a Daily Diary Study. Multilevel models showed the patterns of daily time use did not differ by caregiver types. Caregivers of sons/daughters with developmental disabilities (DD) experienced more daily stressors than caregivers of parents with health conditions (HC) and caregivers of spouses with HC. Unmarried caregivers of sons/daughters with DD reported spending more time on daily leisure activities and exhibited greater daily stressor exposure than other family caregivers. Age did not moderate the associations between caregiver types and daily experiences. Findings highlight the important consideration of the caregivers’ characteristics to better determine the quality of their daily experiences in midlife and late adulthood.

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