A very small number of young people enter youth custody between age 16 and 18 (about 4 in 1000 males), yet the consequences are severe. They spend an average of 7 months in youth custody and such incarceration has been related to negative outcomes in the longer term even if they can establish themselves in the labour market. In this paper, we…

The quality of parent-child relationships during adolescence has the potential to impact adolescents' mental health. This study explored how seven dyads (parent-child) might experience a two-component intervention (Method of Levels therapy-MOL and a parent-child activity) over four months. Following this, six dyads were interviewed and a thematic…

Parents increasingly view afterschool as important to the healthy development of children. Afterschool programs support healthy development. Parents of color and families with low incomes especially value afterschool's role in supporting healthy development. America After 3PM is a nationally representative survey of randomly selected adults who…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore how a small group of adolescents in an alternative care and treatment program develop digital literacy skills over time while immersed in a rich media setting. It also explores how the students use new media tools and affordances to "perform" their identities and to present themselves…

This Parameter addresses the key concepts that differentiate the forensic evaluation of children and adolescents from a clinical assessment. There are ethical issues unique to the forensic evaluation, because the forensic evaluator's duty is to the person, court, or agency requesting the evaluation, rather than to the patient. The forensic…

As part of the largest, longest running prospective American study of same-sex parent families, the present investigation examined relationship dissolution in planned lesbian families. Data were collected from 40 separated couples and their 17-year-old adolescent offspring--19 girls and 21 boys. Nearly all breakups occurred before the former…

Examined custodial fathers' engagement activities with minor children using data from heterosexual couples from National Survey of Families and Households. Strongest and most consistent predictors of paternal involvement with children 5-18 years of age were children's characteristics (age, number, biological status, gender composition). (Author/NB)

The Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, an international law whose purpose is to establish uniform rules to be applied in cases of international child abduction, is described. The Hague Convention requires that children wrongfully removed or retained abroad in connection with parental custody disputes be…

Tested hypothesis that children's contact with nonresident parents decreases children's behavior problems when interparental conflict is low but increases children's behavior problems when interparental conflict is high. Analyzed data from 1,285 children in single-parent families. Hypothesis was supported among boys from divorced families; no…

Study examines interrelationship of nonresident father visitation, parental conflict over the visitation, and mother's satisfaction with the visitation. Data from the National Survey of Families and Households determined that children were least well off in families where mothers were dissatisfied with high levels of father contact. (Author/JDM)

Compared and contrasted relative strength of two different theoretical explanations, individualist and microstructural, for apparent sex differences in parent-child relationships. Tested strength of each perspective empirically through comparisons of single-custodial mothers and single-custodial fathers. Findings suggest importance of…

Regardless of custody arrangements, what seems to matter for children is the quality of family functioning. Types of custody arrangements are defined, and the effects of joint custody on parents and children are discussed. Children's developmental needs are considered, and issues for parents and counselors to consider are explored. (EMK)

This document is one of six discussion papers prepared for the Wisconsin Legislative Council's Special Committee on Crimes Against Children. The introduction explains the committee's task of conducting a thorough examination of state laws relating to crimes against children, reviewing major policy issues affecting those laws to determine whether…

Many states are adopting joint custody legislation to support continued relationships between children of parental divorce and both of their biological parents. This study examined the effects of joint versus maternal legal custody, whether or not the stepfather had biological children from a prior marriage, and the sex and age of an adolescent on…

Reports on a literature review of adolescent development, family relationships, and the impact of divorce on adolescents. Results reveal that adolescents experience divorce differently than younger children and that a positive parent-adolescent relationship can ameliorate a divorce's negative effects. Identifies major gaps in the literature,…