EARLY PARENTING SUPPORT AND INFORMATION: A CONSUMER PERSPECTIVE

The transition to parenthood is a period of both joy and challenge for most parents. There is a recognized need to support parents during this period, yet existing interventions have shown limited evidence of efficacy. This study takes a consumer‐focused approach to examine the needs and preferences of parents both prenatally (n = 77) and postnatally (n = 123) for parenting support. The study used a cross‐sectional design with a purpose‐built online survey. Parents were recruited via online forums, Facebook and parenting blogs, childcare centers, and playgroups. In general, all parents were satisfied with their current levels of both formal and informal support, and about one fourth of parents had accessed a parenting intervention. Parents expressed a moderate level of interest in additional parenting information, and parents expecting their first baby indicated preferences for information about basic baby care needs whereas postnatally, parents expressed more interest in topics around self‐care and behavior management. The implications for developing interventions and engaging families are discussed.     

Contributions of Observed Parent Socialization of Coping and Skin Conductance Level Reactivity to Childhood Adjustment

This research examined the longitudinal association between parent socialization of coping and child adjustment, as well as the moderating role of children's skin conductance level reactivity (SCLR). Participants were a community sample of children (n = 64, M age = 9.02, 54.5% females, 93.2% Caucasian) and their parent(s). Parent coping suggestions were observed while their child engaged in a stressful challenge task, during which the child's SCLR, a measure of children's physiological reactivity to stress, was also measured. Parent(s) completed the Child Behavior Checklist (Achenbach & Rescorla, 2001) at baseline and a 6‐month follow‐up to assess internalizing and externalizing problems. Results revealed that secondary control engagement suggestions predicted fewer internalizing problems over time. In addition, disengagement suggestions predicted fewer externalizing problems over time among children with high SCLR. This study provides evidence that parent coping suggestions serve as a resource that protects youth from developing adjustment problems.     

Enhancing Critical Consciousness Through a Cross‐Cultural Immersion Experience in South Africa

Using phenomenological approaches, the author explored the meanings and essences of a cross‐cultural immersion experience in South Africa among counseling master's‐level students. Five core themes—the meaning of being American, sociopolitical awareness, engagement with South Africans and their communities, appreciation of life, and commitment to change—characterized the development of critical consciousness (Freire, 1973 , 2000 ). Findings support positive influences of cross‐cultural immersion as an experiential pedagogical method for multicultural development. Usando enfoques fenomenológicos, se exploraron los significados y esencias de una experiencia de inmersión transcultural en Sudáfrica entre estudiantes de nivel máster en consejería. Cinco temas centrales (el significado de ser estadounidense, la conciencia sociopolítica, la interacción con individuos sudafricanos y sus comunidades, la valoración de la vida y el compromiso con el cambio) caracterizaron el desarrollo de la conciencia crítica (Freire, 1973 , 2000 ). Los hallazgos confirman influencias positivas de la inmersión transcultural como un método pedagógico basado en la experiencia para el desarrollo multicultural.     

The Relationship Between Racial Identity Status Attitudes and Acculturation Among Chinese and Korean Americans: A Criterion Profile Analysis

This study tested the relationship between racial identity and acculturation among 223 Asian Americans self‐identifying as Chinese American or Korean American. Findings showed within‐group variations among the study participants with regard to their racial identity status attitudes and acculturation. Using criterion profile analysis, the authors found 2 distinctive criterion profiles of racial identity status attitudes that significantly related to higher levels of acculturation among Chinese American and Korean American participants. Implications for multicultural counseling, racial identity, and acculturation research are discussed. Este estudio puso a prueba la relación entre identidad racial y aculturación entre 223 individuos asiático‐americanos que se identifican a sí mismos como chino‐americanos o coreano‐americanos. Los resultados mostraron variaciones dentro del miso grupo entre los participantes del estudio en cuanto a su aculturación y sus actitudes hacia el estatus de su identidad racial. Usando un análisis de perfil de criterio, los autores encontraron 2 perfiles de criterio distintivos para las actitudes hacia el estatus de identidad racial que estaban relacionados significativamente con niveles más altos de aculturación entre los participantes chino‐americanos y coreano‐americanos. Se discuten las implicaciones para investigaciones sobre consejería multicultural, identidad racial y aculturación.     

Modeling of 1-3 piezoelectric composites operating in thickness-stretch vibration mode

For bulk piezoelectric ceramics plates, the fundamental thickness-stretch (TSt) waves are always coupled to the in-plane extension waves and the symmetric thickness-shear waves. The occurrence of these spurious modes in bulk piezoelectric ceramics plates is undesirable as it may interfere with the operation of transducers. 1–3 piezoelectric composites are promising candidates to suppress the spurious modes mentioned above. However, theoretical modelling of multiphase ceramic composite objects is very complex. In this study, a simple analytical TSt vibration model is constructed from three-dimensional equations of linear piezoelectricity. The mechanical damping is considered in the model by introducing a complex elastic constant. The performance of 1–3 piezoelectric composites is analysed and the electrical impedance results from theoretical and experimental analysis are compared. The results show that there is excellent agreement between the experimental electrical impedance and that obtained by the theoretical TSt vibration analysis. This indicates that 1–3 piezoelectric composites can be operated in a nearly pure TSt vibration mode near the fundamental resonance. The analytical model we present is valid for analysing 1–3 piezoelectric composites plates with large aspect ratios quickly and efficiently.     

Treatment Effectiveness of PMTO for Children's Behavior Problems in Iceland: Child Outcomes in a Nationwide Randomized Controlled Trial

Well‐documented treatment methods must be tested following their implementation in community service agencies and across different cultures to ensure continuing effectiveness. This study was a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of Parent Management Training—the Oregon model (PMTO), conducted within a nationwide implementation in Iceland. Families of 102 clinically referred children with behavior problems were recruited from five municipalities throughout Iceland. Child age ranged from 5 to 12; 73% were boys. Families were randomly assigned to either PMTO or services usually offered in the communities (SAU). Child adjustment was measured with a latent construct based on parent, child, and teacher reports of externalizing and internalizing problems and social skills. Prepost intent‐to‐treat analyses showed that PMTO treatment led to greater reductions in child adjustment problems relative to the comparison group, obtaining a modest to medium effect size based on the construct score. Only one indicator (parent‐rated Social Skills) showed significant change independently and information on amount and kind of treatment in the SAU was limited. Overall, findings indicate that PMTO is an effective method to treat children's behavior problems in a Northern European culture and supply evidence for the method's successful implementation in community settings in Iceland. This is one of few nationwide implementation studies of PMTO outside the United States and the first RCT in Iceland to test a treatment model for children's behavior problems.