Gender Differences in Parental Images and Intimate Relationships: A Northern Finland Sample

One of the most important components of the developmental environment is the emotional atmosphere. Childhood experiences and perceptions of parental roles and behavior result in memory models and images, which may affect the children’s relationships in adulthood. In the present study, the cross-sectional associations between childhood parental images and the quality of current intimate adult relationships were studied in a sub-study of a mother–child follow-up in northern Finland. The data were collected with a questionnaire mailed to 28–29-year-old adults, with a total of 337 replies. The present study included those respondents (N = 253) who were married or cohabiting (153 women, 100 men). Since offspring can be affected by gender-specific parenting patterns, the analyses were made separately for both genders. In women, supportiveness in both maternal and paternal images was associated with a balanced intimate relationship, the latter also being associated with a loving relationship and providing protection against quarrelsome and repressive–submissive aspects of the relationship. In men, maternal supportiveness was linked with a balanced and loving intimate relationship and protected against a quarrelsome relationship. Paternal domination was associated with repressive–submissive relationships regardless of gender. In conclusion, the qualities of recalled childhood parenting are important to adult well-being in intimate relationships in a gender-specific manner. The specific importance of the father to the children’s later life was also observed. This would indicate that supporting the relationship of the child with both parents is equally important for professionals working with children and families.     

Timing of Early Maternal Mental Health and Child Cortisol Regulation

Maternal mental health problems can negatively impact children's physiological stress regulation. Yet, little is known of their long‐term effects, especially related to the timing of maternal symptoms. We examined how maternal mental health problems during pregnancy versus in the early postpartum period predict children's cortisol levels and diurnal patterns at 10–12 years. Participants were a selection (N = 102) of an original sample of 805 Finnish families, who were followed from the second trimester of pregnancy (T1) to child's age of 2 months (T2) and 12 months (T3), and again at child's age of 10–12 years (T4). Based on the timing of psychological distress and depressive symptoms (T1–T3), the mothers could be assigned to three distinct mental health trajectory groups: mothers with prenatal mental health problems (n = 15), mothers with early postpartum mental health problems (n = 15) and mothers without mental health problems (n = 72). Children's cortisol (T4) was measured by saliva samples through five within‐1‐day assessments. The results show that maternal prenatal mental health problems predicted a relatively steep increase of child cortisol from awakening to 1 h later, indicating an intensified cortisol awakening response (CAR). Mothers' early postpartum mental health problems instead predicted a reduced CAR. Both maternal prenatal and postnatal mental health problems thus predicted children's later stress regulation, but in unique ways. We discuss the specific roles of direct biochemical effects during pregnancy and postpartum mother–infant interaction quality as modifiers of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal system. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Physical Activity in Overweight and Obese Women: Association with Body Mass Index and Demographic Characteristics

The aim of present study was determination of the level of physical activity in overweight and obese women and its association with body mass index and various socio-demographic characteristics. In the present cross-sectional survey, the translated and validated form of International physical activity questionnaire was completed by 300 overweight and obese women from Iran-Tabriz. For each activity level, the MET-time value was calculated. The weight and height of subjects were measured and the BMI was calculated. In addition, subjects were asked to indicate their age, marital and socioeconomic status (including employment, educational status, salaries and material endowments) using a general information questionnaire. The One-way ANOVA, Independent t-test, multiple linear regression analysis were used for statistical analysis. Approximately, 45 % of women were physically inactive. Overweight women were more likely to be physically active as compared to obese, while the lowest physical activity rates were observed in older participants. With increasing age, the time spent in vigorous physical activity declined significantly (p-value?=?0.004). Physically active women had higher Socio-economic status. The average time spent on vigorous physical activities were significantly more in single than married women (p-value?相似文献   

Differences in career maturity among adjudicated and nonadjudicated male students with and without disabilities

The authors investigated the level of career maturity of nonadjudicated high school students without disabilities and 3 groups of adjudicated high school students: those without disabilities, those with learning disabilities, and those with emotional disturbance. Also investigated was the relationship between career maturity and behavioral functioning, using the Behavior Assessment System for Children‐Self‐Report of Personality (BASC‐SRP; C. R. Reynolds & R. W. Kamphaus, 1992). No significant differences existed between nonadjudicated and adjudicated students without disabilities. Adjudicated students with emotional disabilities and learning disabilities scored significantly lower than nonadjudicated high school students without disabilities on the overall measure of career maturity. Career maturity was found to be significantly but only moderately related to 8 behavioral domains on the BASC‐SRP.