Journal of Family Issues

The current study aimed to investigate the intergenerational transmission of parenting and internalizing problems in children. Serial mediation models were used to assess parental psychological control and child emotion regulation as mediators in linking grandparents’ parenting (care or overprotection) and children’s internalizing problems. The sample consisted of 150 Chinese children (M_age = 8.54, SD = 1.67) and their parents. The parents reported the grandparents’ parenting and children’s internalizing problems, and the children reported on their emotion regulation. Both the children’s ratings and behavioral observations were used to assess the parents’ psychological control. The results showed that grandmothers’ parenting was significantly associated with children’s internalizing problems, and this relationship was mediated by perceived (but not observed) parental psychological control and children’s emotion regulation. These results highlighted the differential role of children’s perceptions of parental control and the observed parental psychological control on internalizing symptoms in children.

Neighborhoods with higher levels of collective efficacy are associated with more favorable family outcomes such as lower teen pregnancy rates and less antisocial behavior among children. Collective efficacy is traditionally measured by combining the constructs of social cohesion and informal social control, yet these two constructs may have unique influences on family outcomes. While prior studies have examined collective efficacy’s factor structure, there is limited understanding of this construct among single-mother families, who have unique social and economic characteristics. In this exploratory study, we tested a single-factor model and two-factor model separating social cohesion and informal social control to examine the underlying factor structure of collective efficacy with a diverse sample of 2,084 unmarried mothers who participated in the third wave in-home survey of the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study. Results support that informal social control and social cohesion were best modeled as two distinct, but related, constructs.

Coresiding with extended relatives represents a beneficial form of resource sharing for disadvantaged individuals that is particularly common among Black, Hispanic, and low-socioeconomic status communities, yet we know little about financial arrangements within coresidential families. Given ongoing racial inequality in extended family resources, this study explores whether contributing rent is patterned by race among coresidential families. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 4,103), this project explores coresident and rent payment arrangements among mothers of young children. The analysis reveals that Black and Hispanic mothers carry unique financial burdens, being more likely, in comparison to White peers, to live with extended relatives and pay rent to the householder. Furthermore, among coresiders, Hispanic mothers are more likely than White mothers to pay rent even when the household is socioeconomically advantaged. This work reveals a form of inequality within coresidential housing, with White mothers having advantaged access to rent-free housing arrangements.

This article explores the motivations for unregulated child care use within Canada. Using focus group data from 109 mothers, we analyze unregulated child care use within a policy context in which regulated child care is only available for 20% of preschool children. The key drivers for unregulated care were framed by participants as benefits: trust in a known caregiver with similar values, offered in a home-like environment. Importantly, one driver that was not seen as beneficial was the lack of affordable and accessible, regulated child care. Sometimes used as a last resort amid regulated child care shortages, unregulated care became the driver of how mothers organized their time. Within the constraints of a limited regulatory child care environment, we argue that Mathieu’s (2016) concept of demotherization is beyond the grasp of the majority of Canadian mothers.

Incorporating contemporary theories of Aliyah (Jewish migration to Israel) by English speakers and family intergenerational solidarity, this article compares the perspective of older women who immigrated to Israel accompanied by their families with representatives of organizational stakeholders: paid professionals as well as volunteers. The textual corpus of 14 episodic interviews conducted in two Israeli cities has been analyzed using the method of descending hierarchical clustering. The resulting four clusters focus on information, family, friends, and language-related challenges, in the opposition of public sphere (Clusters 1 and 4) versus private sphere (Clusters 2 and 3). The privileged condition of family solidarity contributes to the migrants’ abilities to overcome the difficulties, buffering them from migration-related stress. The findings are discussed in the light of a theoretical compass model of intergenerational Aliyah.