scholarly journals Disabled Families: The Impacts of Disability and Care on Family Labour and Poverty in Rural Guatemala

Societies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shaun Grech

An increasing body of literature has started to look at how disability impacts and shifts poverty in the global South in and through a range of areas, including health, education, and livelihoods. However, much of this research is limited to disabled individuals, while qualitative research focusing on and articulating the circumstances, needs and demands of rural families remains scarce, especially research focusing on Latin America. This paper reports on a qualitative study looking at how disability affects family labouring patterns in rural Guatemala, with a special focus on women carers of people with acquired physical impairments, in the bid to contribute to a more inclusive understanding of the disability and poverty relationship and its gendered dimensions. Findings highlight how in rural communities already living in dire poverty, the fragmentation of labour input of the disabled person, costs (notably health care) and intensified collective poverty, push fragile families with no safety nets into a set of dynamic responses in the bid to ensure survival of the family unit. These include harder and longer work patterns, interruption of paid labour, and/or induction into exploitative and perilous labour, not only for women, but also children. These responses are erosive and have severe personal, social, cultural and economic consequences, strengthening a deep, multidimensional, chronic and intergenerational impoverishment, transforming these families into ‘disabled families’, among the poorest of the poor. This paper concludes that research, policy and services need to move beyond the disabled individual to understand and address the needs and demands of whole families, notably women, and safeguard their livelihoods, because ultimately, these are the units that singlehandedly care for and ensure the well-being and survival of disabled people. It is also within these units that disability is constructed, shaped, and can ultimately be understood.

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 151-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janmejaya Samal ◽  
Ranjit Kumar Dehury

The school lunch programme in India was first implemented in 1925 by the Madras Municipal Corporation for disadvantaged children. At present, the school lunch programme in India is known as mid-day meal (MDM) scheme. It was started with an objective to enhance enrolment, retention and attendance rates, and simultaneously improve nutritional levels among children. MDM not only impacts the well-being of each child but also affects the overall prosperity of families. Hence, a family impact analysis of the MDM scheme of India would be instrumental in charting out the future directions of this programme. For this study, no primary research has been carried out, rather this paper is based on secondary literature pertaining to MDM with relation to child nutrition and education. The checklist developed by the Family Criteria (Ad Hoc) Task Force of the Consortium of Family Organizations (COFO) for assessing the intended and unintended impact of public policies, proposals and social programmes on families is used. This checklist, which was later revised by the Policy Institute for Family Impact Seminars, outlines six principles to guide analyses of the family supportiveness of policies and programmes: (1) family support and responsibilities, (2) family membership and stability, (3) family involvement and interdependence, (4) family partnership and empowerment, (5) family diversity and (6) support of vulnerable families. There are a good number of intended consequences of MDM scheme which include enrolment, retention, attendance, eradication of school hunger, family stability, improvement of malnutrition, employment to women of disadvantaged communities, improvement of girl child education, etc. However, it also has some unintended consequences, including food contamination or food poisoning. Social discrimination can also be seen as an intended or unintended consequence of MDM.


Author(s):  
Doris Bühler-Niederberger ◽  
Jessica Schwittek

AbstractThe paper focuses on the question of how young people in the post-Soviet country of Kyrgyzstan deal with the structural and cultural demands of a society characterized by strong obligations of intergenerational solidarity and the normative pattern of submission under the authority of elders. Based on three preponderantly qualitative empirical studies on kindergarten children, teenagers and young adults, young people’s commitment to that order is mapped out, defining their reasons for acceptance on the one hand and the limits of their acceptance on the other hand. Concerning the latter, a special focus is laid on processes of the “self” as well as notions of a “generation gap”. We can then deduce what the hierarchical age order means for the well-being of young people.


Author(s):  
Nahema El Ghaziri ◽  
Jérémie Blaser ◽  
Joëlle Darwiche ◽  
Joan-Carles Suris ◽  
Javier Sanchis Zozaya ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The ongoing Syrian civil war has led to massive population displacements, leading to the reorganization of the asylum policies of several countries. Accordingly, like other European countries, the Swiss government has recently chosen to implement a specific resettlement program. This program is characterized by the fact that the whole nuclear family is granted a work and residence permit upon arrival, and benefits from enhanced integration services. The aim of the present project is to evaluate the effects of the Swiss resettlement program, with a special focus on mental health, while adopting a family perspective. Methods The outcomes of 15 Syrian families taking part in this program will be compared to those of 15 Syrian families that came to Switzerland through other means (i.e., following the usual asylum procedure, which is much more stressful and time consuming). Each family member above 8 years old will be invited to participate to a 3-wave longitudinal survey concerning the resettlement process: upon arrival in the collective shelters, six and 12 months later. Questionnaires will be used for the evaluation of participants’ mental health, risk behaviors, general health, romantic relationship, parent-child relationship, family functioning, parentification, social support, and social identities related to group belongingness. Discussion The findings of the present project will provide longitudinal information on Syrian refugees. A comprehensive approach will be adopted by screening potential difficulties that the sample may be faced with and potential strengths that participants may rely on. Accordingly, physical and mental health, as well as the quality of family functioning, the feeling of support and of belongingness to different groups will be evaluated. We will also compare the results of families who had the chance to immigrate through the Swiss resettlement program, to the results of families that did not. This comparison will allow the elaboration of hypotheses regarding adjusted asylum policies. Furthermore, it will enhance our knowledge regarding the impact of displacement on the family system. Indeed, although the role of the family for the well-being of adults and children has been established, surprisingly few studies have adopted this focus in the asylum field.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-81
Author(s):  
Tiiu Tammemäe ◽  
Lii Lilleoja ◽  
Mari-Liis Valma

There are many children with special needs whose siblings play an important role in their lives for a longer time than other family members. Longer life expectancy and the deepening of disabilities bring along a higher need of being taken care of. When the parents grow older it is often the siblings who become the caretakers. Meyer & Vadasy (2007) found that if siblings of children with SEN get proper support and information while growing up, the well-being of siblings with special needs also increases. Relationship with a sibling with special needs influences development of adaptability and self-esteem, this influence can be positive or negative (Burke, 2008). The parents of the children with SEN have many ways to receive information or help from the family – doctors, therapists, consultants, teachers, books, etc. The siblings in their turn usually get their information from the parents. (Conway & Meyer, 2008) Family members of different ages need different information. Therefore, there should be research on what kind of experiences do the siblings of the disabled child need, how their needs and well-being are guaranteed, and what kind of support they need. The aim of this study is to describe the experiences of brothers and sisters with siblings with special needs, try to understand their need for support, and find out the need for support groups and camps.


Economy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-15
Author(s):  
Chukwuemeka Valentine OKOLO ◽  
Bartholomew Onyekachi OKOLO ◽  
Nneka Nancy ANIKA

Nutrition is known to be the key driver in well-being and fitness generally, and as a driving force behind the growth of capital and child food, it is a source and a product of greater health problems, family income and living conditions. The first 1,000 days of maternal and child care concentrate on healthy physical exercise and cognitive improvement, with long-term health and economic consequences for people and economies. The research reviewed Nutrition for Preschool Children in Africa and Asia and illustrated the economic effect of malnutrition in infants. The review indicated that nutrition for pre-school children in Africa and Asia remains insufficient to ensure enhanced economic and human growth and that each nation needs to consider how money is to be invested through the assistance resources that help the least per cent of the population to fix this gap for children and make it the most efficient investment in society. Citizenship and collective efforts, particularly the voice of youth, are important forces of transformation, which must be encouraged to meet SDGs. Democracy campaigns can play a crucial role in the struggle for justice for children and the family.


2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lenna Ontai ◽  
Melissa Barnett ◽  
Suzanne Smith ◽  
Joe Wilmoth ◽  
Loriena Yancura

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 247-255
Author(s):  
Maria Magdalena Setyaningsih ◽  
Emy Sutiyarsih

Kehamilan remaja adalah kehamilan yang terjadi pada remaja berusia kurang dari 20 tahunan. Kehamilan remaja memberikan banyak kerugian bagi kesehatan, mental dan psikologis, kesejahteraan ekonomi dan peluang karier, kemiskinan dan prospek kehidupan masa depan remaja. Tujuan penelitian mengidentifikasi faktor determinan yang melatarbelakangi terjadinya kehamilan remaja. Jenis penelitian adalah penelitian analitik kategorik jenis survei kuantitatif dengan desain case control. Populasi semua perempuan yang bertempat tinggal di wilayah dusun Wonosari, Sukosari, dan Krajan Pandansari dan pernah/sedang hamil pertama kali pada usia kurang dari 20 tahun. Teknik pengambilan sampel cluster random sampling besar sampel 73. Berdasarkan hasil model akhir analisis multivariat, diketahui bahwa variabel pendidikan, riwayat kehamilan remaja pada keluarga dan usia menikah merupakan variabel yang berhubungan dengan kejadian kehamilan remaja setelah dikontrol oleh variabel akses informasi, responden berpendidikan rendah memiliki peluang 20,8 kali lebih tinggi, responden yang memiliki riwayat kehamilan remaja pada keluarga memiliki peluang 14,9 kali lebih tinggi, responden yang menikah pada usia <20 tahun memiliki peluang 12,1 kali lebih tinggi, responden dengan pemahaman yang kurang baik terkait penggunaan kondom memiliki peluang 5,9 kali lebih tinggi untuk terjadi kehamilan remaja. Oleh karena itu perlu dibangun karakter buiding, sosial karakter suport untuk para ibu remaja dan keluarga sehingga terbangun interaksi yang baik dalam keluarga yang dilandasi dengan pendidikan dan pemahaman yang baik tentang Pendidikan seksualitas. Teen pregnancy is a pregnancy that occurs in adolescents aged less than 20 years old. Teen pregnancy provides many disadvantages for health, mental, psychological, economic well-being, career opportunities, poverty, and the future life. The aim of the study was to identify the determinants underlying teen pregnancy incidence. This study was a quantitative study with categorical analytic method. The study design used a case control with two comparison groups. The groups were control group and case group. The population in this study was all women who lived in the Wonosari, Sukosari, and Krajan Pandansari district and had or were pregnant for the first time at the age of less than 20 years old. Seventy three respondents were recruited using cluster sampling technique. The case group consists of women who were or had pregnant for the first time at the age of less than 20 years old and their children are currently aged ≤ 1 years old. The control group consists of women who were pregnant for the first time at the age of > 20 years old. The data was collected using a questionnaire. The findings showed that education, history of teen pregnancy in family and the age of marriage were related to the incidence of teen pregnancy after being controlled by information access. Low-educated respondents had 20.8 times higher chance of experiencing teen pregnancy; respondents with a history of teen pregnancy in the family had 4.9 times higher chance of experiencing teen pregnancy; respondents who were married at the age of < 20 years old had 12.1 times higher chance of experiencing teen pregnancy; respondents with poor understanding of condom use had 5.9 times higher chance of teenage pregnancy. In conclusion, the findings suggest to build good interactions in the family based on education and a good understanding of sex education.


Author(s):  
Catrin Heite ◽  
Veronika Magyar-Haas

Analogously to the works in the field of new social studies of childhood, this contribution deals with the concept of childhood as a social construction, in which children are considered as social actors in their own living environment, engaged in interpretive reproduction of the social. In this perspective the concept of agency is strongly stressed, and the vulnerability of children is not sufficiently taken into account. But in combining vulnerability and agency lies the possibility to consider the perspective of the subjects in the context of their social, political and cultural embeddedness. In this paper we show that what children say, what is important to them in general and for their well-being, is shaped by the care experiences within the family and by their social contexts. The argumentation for the intertwining of vulnerability and agency is exemplified by the expressions of an interviewed girl about her birth and by reference to philosophical concepts about birth and natality.


Author(s):  
Irina V. Bogdashina

The article reveals the measures undertaken by the Soviet state during the “thaw” in the fi eld of reproductive behaviour, the protection of motherhood and childhood. Compilations, manuals and magazines intended for women were the most important regulators of behaviour, determining acceptable norms and rules. Materials from sources of personal origin and oral history make it possible to clearly demonstrate the real feelings of women. The study of women’s everyday and daily life in the aspect related to pregnancy planning, bearing and raising children will allow us to compare the real situation and the course of implementation of tasks in the fi eld of maternal and child health. The demographic surge in the conditions of the economy reviving after the war, the lack of preschool institutions, as well as the low material wealth of most families, forced women to adapt to the situation. In the conditions of combining the roles of mother, wife and female worker, women entrusted themselves with almost overwork, which affected the health and well-being of the family. The procedure for legalising abortion gave women not only the right to decide the issue of motherhood themselves, but also made open the already necessary, but harmful to health, habitual way of birth control. Maternal care in diffi cult material and housing conditions became the concern of women and the older generation, who helped young women to combine the role of a working mother, which the country’s leadership confi dently assigned to women.


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