Limited data on ethnic group differences among young adolescents exist regarding the prevalence of mental distress, social stress, and resources. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine ethnic differences among African American (AA), European American (EA), Hispanic American (HA), and Asian American adolescents in mental distress,…

The provision of respite services for families with adolescents who are at risk of abusing or neglecting the young person is discussed, with attention to program design, services to parents, and services to adolescents. Respite programs can provide an important resource for families that lack sufficient supports to deal with the difficult period…

Children need to make decisions to learn responsibility, but when they choose a destructive behavior, such as drug or alcohol use, then the consequences can be severe. This program concentrates on helping parents prevent their children from making harmful decisions. The workbook was designed for use with classroom instruction and the parent…

This paper summarizes the proceedings of a 1999 symposium on mental health in infants and toddlers, particularly the role of attachment, held at the University of Minnesota. Presentations by Kathryn Barnard of the University of Washington and Anne Gearity of the University of Minnesota are included. Following an introduction and conference…

Reviews current knowledge of the most frequently asked questions about child sexual abuse, in areas such as its prevalence and trends, and what populations are at risk. Data presented from 19 adult retrospective surveys show that the incidence of reported child sexual abuse is rising, that less than one-third of the cases were committed by…

Traced the effects of economic pressure to emotional distress and parenting behaviors of African American and European American parents (n=429 families). Both low income and unstable work/income enhance the risk of emotional distress and beliefs of parental ineffectiveness. Among black families, single-parent households and conflicted marriages…

Examines methodological and conceptual issues related to the study of the effects of parental depression on children, focusing on the need to develop measures of relational behavior that are well-validated in high risk samples; relational assessments focused around central motivating systems; and methods that describe a variety of individual…

Explores the use of manifest indicators to predict adolescents' suicide attempts. Manifest predictors in the categories of school, leisure, peer and parent relations, consumption, and contact with suicidal behavior identified those most at risk. Concludes that manifest predictors can complement psychiatric screenings by reducing the number to be…

Personal, medical, family, and cultural risk factors for child abuse or neglect and roles of stress and social support in causation of child maltreatment were examined. Interviews conducted with 749 mothers of newborns were analyzed; child abuse/neglect by age 1 was predicted by maternal education, number of dependent children, receipt of…

Mothers (n=113) of child psychiatric patients and nonpatients were classified as being at low, moderate, or high risk of child abuse. Mothers with high abuse potential reported greater child externalizing and depressive symptoms, child rejection, psychological dysfunction, stressful life events, and family problems, but there were few differences…

Security of attachment and level of individuation from parents and peers was examined among 42 undergraduates with a history of suicidality, 42 undergraduates with depression, and 42 undergraduate controls. Suicidal students had the least security of attachment, the least degree of individuation, and the highest incidence of parental…

Infant-mother dyads classified as anxiously attached intervention and control or securely attached control were compared. Intervention toddlers were lower than anxious controls in avoidance, resistance, and anger, and higher in partnership with mother. Intervention mothers were higher in empathy and interactiveness. No differences between…

Compared knowledge and attitudes regarding inappropriate parenting among immigrant parents from European and Caucasus countries of the former Soviet Union residing in Israel. Found that immigrants from the Caucasus related inappropriate parental behaviors to what is normative, whereas European immigrants were concerned with potential harm to the…

Twenty-nine years ago Minnesota Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (MLSPC) was launched at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota. It was one of the first prospective longitudinal studies of how parent-infant attachment develops, how it changes over time, and how the quality of attachment in infancy influences…

This practice/policy brief focuses on early childhood home visiting as a place-based family strengthening strategy that supports parent/caregivers as a key influence on the lives of young children. ("Place-based family strengthening" means that "children do better when their families are strong, and families do better when they live in communities…