The present study examines the influence of economic and family stress processes on change in drug and alcohol use in a cohort of 478 Mexican American youth (50.8% female) followed longitudinally beginning in Grade 5 when the youth averaged 10.4 years of age. Adolescents, their mothers (median age 36 at Grade 5), and their fathers (median age 39…

This report describes the population of young children in Durham, North Carolina, through the lenses of socioeconomics, health and education. When helpful in highlighting areas of strength or concern, data on Durham's children are compared with their counterparts statewide. The report also shows how particular groups within the overall population…

Maternal immune activity has been linked to children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We examined maternal occupational exposure to asthma-causing agents during pregnancy in relation to ASD risk. Our sample included 463 ASD cases and 710 general population controls from the Study to Explore Early Development whose mothers reported at least one…

The federally funded, locally administered Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program sponsors family support programs that are often called "home visiting" because they take place in the homes of at-risk families. These families often lack support, experience, and knowledge of basic parenting skills. Because children…

This study evaluated prospective longitudinal relations among an index of poverty-related cumulative risk, maternal salivary cortisol, child negative affect, and maternal sensitivity across the first 2 postpartum years. Participants included 1,180 biological mothers residing in rural and predominantly low-income communities in the United States.…

Background: Despite the mounting evidence of efficacy of early intervention for children with autism spectrum disorders, there is little research that considers the various perceptions and resources with which parents respond to the pressures and opportunities associated with participation in early intervention. Research is particularly lacking…

Community studies indicating that affluence has social-emotional consequences for youth have conflated family and neighborhood wealth. We examined adolescent boys' delinquency and adolescent girls' anxiety-depression as a function of family, neighborhood, and cumulative affluence in a sample that is primarily of European-American descent, but…

Just as exposing children to books helps develop their interest in reading; talking to children helps develop their language abilities. Research shows that from a very young age, children are influenced by the manner in which their mothers verbally interact with them. An FPG study published in the May/June 2008 issue of "The Journal of…

This report describes the relationship between comprehensive prenatal care services and healthy babies, and examines the inclusion of social support services with medical care for women at-risk of problem pregnancies and unhealthy babies. The report notes that the United States trails many countries in indicators of maternal and child health. In…