Crisis or Chronic Strain?

2017 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 54-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Vignes

This population-based study ( N = 908,468) examines the effects of spousal loss on being absent from work due to illness or injury (sickness absence) among employed individuals in Norway. Fixed-effects models capturing antecedent and short- and long-term effects of spousal loss over a 15-year period were estimated to explore gender and age differences in the impact of widowhood. The crisis model, the social-role model, and the life course perspective are discussed. Furthermore, the study calls into question whether parenthood explains the gendered age gradient of the widowhood effect. The results show that the theoretical relevance of the crisis and social-role models is best understood in dialogue with a gendered life course approach. The results show that the crisis response is especially high among young widowers, whereas the recovery period is markedly prolonged among young widows. Parenthood at the time of widowhood explains much of the age difference among widowers and widows.

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-152
Author(s):  
Lizette Drusila Flores Delgado ◽  
Irlanda Olave Moreno ◽  
Ana Cecilia Villarreal Ballesteros

Research shows that mentoring EFL pre-service teachers during the practicum element of teacher-training courses allow them to get experience and to develop, improve, and put into practice their teaching skills. This professional practice can impact the development of a positive or negative professional identity in teachers. Current literature, however, seems to focus on the shaping of teacher identity and learner identity, but there is little empirical research regarding the development and shaping of the identity of pre-service teachers. Pre-service teachers are the main actors of this practicum stage of teacher-training programs and, therefore, by working in collaboration and being supported by a mentor as a role model, they develop their professional identity. The present qualitative case study sought to explore the shaping and re-shaping of the professional identity of fifteen EFL pre-service teachers of a northern Mexican university and the impact of working with English teacher mentors as role models. Information gathered through the constant comparative method of data from the participants taken from their reflective journals, mentor-observations, and self-observations suggests that although working with a positive role model encourages the development of a stronger teacher identity and an improvement in their teaching practice, working with a bad role model can also have the same results.


2013 ◽  
Vol 81 ◽  
pp. 87-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monique A.M. Gignac ◽  
Catherine L. Backman ◽  
Aileen M. Davis ◽  
Diane Lacaille ◽  
Xingshan Cao ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 301-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurie T. O’Brien ◽  
Aline Hitti ◽  
Emily Shaffer ◽  
Amanda R. Van Camp ◽  
Donata Henry ◽  
...  

A field experiment tested the effect of choosing a “favorite” role model on sense of fit in science among middle school girls. The girls participated in a 1-day science outreach event where they were exposed to multiple female role models. At the end of the event, participants were randomly assigned to choose and write about a favorite role model or to choose and write about their best friend. Girls in the role model choice condition experienced a significant increase in sense of fit in science, whereas girls in the control condition did not. Girls in the role model choice condition also tended to have stronger role model identification than girls in the control condition, and role model identification was correlated with sense of fit in science. Encouraging girls to actively choose and write about a favorite role model may help to maximize the impact of exposure to role models.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S706-S707
Author(s):  
Sarah Jen ◽  
Yuanjin Zhou ◽  
Mijin Jeong

Abstract In qualitative research, similarities and differences between the participant and researcher influence the research process and dynamics. Specifically, the age difference between older participants and relatively younger qualitative researchers is a common, but under-examined dynamic requiring nuanced, reflexive analysis. Using a life course conceptual framing, this study explored age-related participant-researcher dynamics in interviews from two qualitative studies of older women’s sexual experiences in later life. Participants included 25 women whose ages ranged from 55 to 93 and both studies were completed by the same researcher, a relatively younger woman (age 23 and 28 at times of data collection). A thematic analysis revealed three primary themes: 1) taking care - participants took care of the researcher by offering advice, asking about the researcher’s life, and expressing hopes for a positive future, 2) expertise – varied expertise was demonstrated by the researcher (e.g. substantive and scholarly) and participants (e.g. life experience), and 3) researcher growth - the researcher’s interviewing tactics shifted between the two studies (e.g. use of validation rather than consolation in response to aging-related concerns), indicating a shift in perceptions of aging and later life. Findings indicate that older women participants and younger women researchers are bound together through the life course, by shared gendered experiences, the fact that one will eventually become the other, and the mutual sharing of expertise and caring. Gerontology researchers must actively reflect on the impact of their own identities and aging perceptions on the interviewing process in order to enhance rigor in qualitative research.


Author(s):  
Tumani Malinga ◽  
Tirelo Modie-Moroka

Intercontinental migrations, forced or volitional, are not new to Africans. While several research and studies have been conducted on the impact of migration on host countries as well as the brain-drain experienced by African countries, there is a scarcity of research on the real experiences of African migrants. This chapter proposes such research, using the life course perspective and qualitative research strategy in order to get a broader understanding of the lives of African diasporas. The life course perspective highlights the transitions, social meanings, and cumulative nature of the migrants' experiences, while the qualitative approach allows for tapping into the lived experiences of individuals through their personal narratives. Both are necessary for a more purposeful examination and realistic understanding of the African diaspora.


2017 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 168-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Bellis ◽  
Karen Hughes ◽  
Katie Hardcastle ◽  
Kathryn Ashton ◽  
Kat Ford ◽  
...  

Objectives The lifelong health impacts of adverse childhood experiences are increasingly being identified, including earlier and more frequent development of non-communicable disease. Our aim was to examine whether adverse childhood experiences are related to increased use of primary, emergency and in-patient care and at what ages such impact is apparent. Methods Household surveys were undertaken in 2015 with 7414 adults resident in Wales and England using random probability stratified sampling (age range 18–69 years). Nine adverse childhood experiences (covering childhood abuse and household stressors) and three types of health care use in the last 12 months were assessed: number of general practice (GP) visits, emergency department (ED) attendances and nights spent in hospital. Results Levels of use increased with increasing numbers of adverse childhood experiences experienced. Compared to those with no adverse childhood experiences, odds (±95% CIs) of frequent GP use (≥6 visits), any ED attendance or any overnight hospital stay were 2.34 (1.88–2.92), 2.32 (1.90–2.83) and 2.67 (2.06–3.47) in those with ≥ 4 adverse childhood experiences. Differences were independent of socio-economic measures of deprivation and other demographics. Higher health care use in those with ≥ 4 adverse childhood experiences (compared with no adverse childhood experiences) was evident at 18–29 years of age and continued through to 50–59 years. Demographically adjusted means for ED attendance rose from 12.2% of 18-29 year olds with no adverse childhood experiences to 28.8% of those with ≥ 4 adverse childhood experiences. At 60–69 years, only overnight hospital stay was significant (9.8% vs. 25.0%). Conclusions Along with the acute impacts of adverse childhood experiences on child health, a life course perspective provides a compelling case for investing in safe and nurturing childhoods. Disproportionate health expenditure in later life might be reduced through childhood interventions to prevent adverse childhood experiences.


1970 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerstin Ruckdeschel ◽  
Anne Salles ◽  
Sabine Diabaté ◽  
Laurent Toulemon ◽  
Arnaud Régnier-Loilier

The neighbouring countries France and Germany show very different levels of fertility. Differences also exist between the two regions of East and West Germany. The aim of this paper is to help close a remaining gap in explaining these differences by applying a cultural concept of role models. Data is based on the German survey “Family-related role models” (2012) and the French survey “Situation de couple, intentions de fécondité et opinions sur la famille”, ELIPSS (2013) offering a new approach to measuring the impact of social norms. The analysis uses multinomial logistic regression. We identified role models regarding the acceptance of childlessness on the one hand and large families on the other, as well as regarding the link between marriage and parenthood and the importance of financial security, suggesting different fertility-related cultures in France and Germany. There is a strong predominance of one general role model in France – that of having at least two children. In Germany, in contrast, there is a dominant role model – the two child family – but there are also several less central role models. The dominant model in France even leads to a sort of self-stigmatisation of individuals who want to stay childless, whereas childlessness is generally accepted in Germany. Role model differences between East and West Germany show a lower acceptance of large families and a higher acceptance of single-child families in the East. Our results highlight the importance of role models for fertility intentions as well as the relevance of cultural dimensions when studying the impact of the institutional framework on fertility.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne-Kristin Kuhnt ◽  
Lara Minkus ◽  
Petra Buhr

Objective: The aim of this study is to extend our knowledge about uncertainty in fertility intentions from a life course perspective. We want to find out if life course markers such as economic circumstances, relationship status, family size, and the so-called “biological clock” (getting older) influence uncertainty in fertility intentions. Uncertainty in fertility intentions is the state in which individuals are not sure whether they will have (more) children. Background: Determining what drives uncertainty in fertility intentions may lead to a better understanding of fertility decision-making and its outcomes. Method: We use German panel data (German Family Panel, pairfam) for three birth cohorts (1971-73, 1981-83, 1991-93), and employ multinomial fixed-effects logit models as well as bivariate analyses based on waves 1 to 11. Results: Uncertainty in fertility intentions is volatile across an individual’s life course, serving as a transitional phase between certainly intending and not intending to have any (more) children. Approaching the end of the reproductive life span (getting older), separating from a partner, having two or more children, and, for men, subjective economic fears increase the odds of being uncertain. Conclusion: By showing that uncertainty in fertility intentions is a volatile concept and that relevant life course markers shape this volatility, we provide new insights into the process of fertility decision-making.


Author(s):  
Tara Renae McGee ◽  
David P. Farrington

Developmental and life-course theories of crime are collectively characterized by their goal of explaining the onset, persistence, and desistance of offending behavior over the life-course. Researchers working within this framework are interested not just in offending but also in the broader category of antisocial behavior. Their research aims to investigate the development of offending and antisocial behavior throughout life; risk and protective factors that predict this development; the effects of life events; and the intergenerational transmission of offending and antisocial behavior. While there have been a number of developmental and life-course theories of crime, the more influential and empirically tested ones include Sampson and Laub’s age-graded informal social control theory and Moffitt’s typological model of life-course-persistent and adolescence-limited offending. While developmental and life-course criminology has come to be viewed a single type or grouping of criminology, there are distinctions between the more sociological life-course perspectives and the more psychological developmental perspectives. These are a result of the disciplinary training of the individuals working in the field and are reflected in the types of variables examined and the theoretical explanations developed and applied to explain the relationships. The broader life-course perspective focuses on the examination of human lives over time, with an understanding that “changing lives alter developmental trajectories,” according to Glen Elder in his 1998 work. Life-course approaches to studying human development are not unique to criminology and are represented within many disciplines, such as medicine and epidemiology. There are four central themes of the life-course paradigm: the interplay of human lives and historical times; the timing of lives; linked or interdependent lives; and human agency in making choices. Therefore the life-course perspective within criminology focuses on the examination of criminal behavior within these contexts. Given its sociological origins, life-course theoretical explanations tend to focus more on social processes and structures and their impact on crime. Developmental perspectives within criminology tend to be more psychological in nature, and its theoretical explanations tend to focus more on individual characteristics and the impact of familial processes on the individual. Both of these perspectives require longitudinal data, that is, data collected over time for each individual. Collectively, developmental and life-course criminology allow for the examination of: within-individual changes over time; the impact of critical life events; the importance of the social environment; and pathways, transitions and turning points.


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