The association between educational attainment and self-assessed health is well established but the mechanisms that explain this association are not fully understood yet. It is likely that part of the association is spurious because (genetic and non-genetic) characteristics of a person's family of origin simultaneously affect one's educational…

A major goal of special education services is to prepare graduates for productive and rewarding lives as adults in the community. Follow-up studies, however, consistently have indicated very poor post-school outcomes for special education graduates. While there has been a wealth of research related to the effectiveness of services in inclusive…

One hundred ten Mexican American adolescents (12-17 years) who provide infant care for their older sisters were studied to determine the effects of family caregiving responsibilities on adolescents' adjustment. Controlling for prior adjustment and family context factors, providing many hours of caregiving predicted an increase in youths' school…

We compared the cognitive and language development at 4, 14, 24, 36, 54 months, and 7 years of siblings of children with autism (SIBS-A) to that of siblings of children with typical development (SIBS-TD) using growth curve analyses. At 7 years, 40% of the SIBS-A, compared to 16% of SIBS-TD, were identified with cognitive, language and/or academic…

A questionnaire was given to 500 mental health and child welfare professionals asking for maximum acceptable ages for siblings to engage jointly in certain family practices related to hygiene, affection, and privacy. A large proportion of respondents felt it was never acceptable for siblings to take showers together (40%), kiss on the mouth (37%),…

The impact of childhood chronic health conditions like spina bifida (SB) is a shared family experience. However, the lived experience of siblings is not well known. One hundred and fifty-five brothers and sisters of a child with SB responded to an open-ended question included in an anonymous self-administered mail questionnaire designed to enhance…

This article addresses children's sibling relationships as a site of social learning involving the (re)production of femininity and masculinity, drawing on in-depth qualitative interviews with children aged 8-12. We begin by noting the lack of focus on gender in the majority of previous work on siblings. After introducing our own study, we look at…

This study surveyed 25 siblings of persons with Down Syndrome to gain an ecological perspective about important communication competence indicators. Siblings favorably described persons with Down Syndrome as "effective" and "good" communicators who "communicate to potential." Siblings regarded social communication skills as especially important,…

This paper focuses on the aspects of a qualitative research project that examines an assessment protocol for the placement of siblings in foster care and/or future adoption. A brief description of the background to the study and the research design is given. Evaluating the material from the quantitative instruments used and the psychotherapeutic…

This paper provides a review, followed by a critique, of Kenneth M. Coffey and S. John Obringer's article entitled "A Case Study on Autism: School Accommodations and Inclusive Settings." Coffey and Obringer's intriguing and informative article provides new insights regarding the effects of autism socializing disorder (ASD) and its impact on a…

This study examined longitudinal links between incongruence in mothers' versus fathers' differential treatment of adolescent-age siblings and parents' marital quality. Multilevel models including 200 families, over four waves, spaced across 6 years tested whether youth perceptions of incongruence in differential intimacy and conflict predicted…

Specific IgA, IgG, and IgE antibodies to food antigens in 35 participants with autistic disorder and 21 of their siblings in the Republic of Macedonia were examined. Statistically significant higher plasma concentration of IgA antibodies against alpha-lactalbumin, beta-lactoglobulin, casein, and gliadin were found in the children with autistic…

In order to add to the knowledge on adult phenotypes of metabolic disorders associated with intellectual disability (ID) and to evaluate criteria for recommending metabolic testing of adolescents and adults with unexplained ID, the authors analyzed retrospectively the outcome of metabolic investigations performed during a 10-year period on 256…

Objective: This study examined the impact of inattention, hyperactivity, and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) behaviors and gender on family life. Method: We created scales for the Family Experiences Inventory (FEI) in a nonclinical sample of Spaniard families with children ages 6 to 12 years (N = 369) and analyzed the perceived impact of these…

Homesickness is a major stressor for college students in general, and international students in particular, that has an adverse effect on their psychological health and academic performance. The present study examined the incidence and determinants of homesickness in a sample of international students from India attending a US university and…