Implementation of family life education (FLE) can positively influence individual and family well‐being by helping families to help themselves. However, because the nature of FLE is not widely ...understood, a comprehensive model highlighting and integrating fundamentals of the practice is needed. The foundations of family life education model (FFLE) is a visual illustration that incorporates foundational principles of FLE with changes in culture, context, content, practice, and family well‐being across time. In addition to the visual representation of core concepts defining FLE and their relationship with each other, the model provides a unique conceptualization by reframing the frequently referenced 10 content areas as concepts within the content, context, and practice of the field. The creation of a graphic identity for the practice of FLE can offer greater clarity and understanding regarding the nature of FLE, thereby increasing opportunities for implementation and best practices.
IntroductionIn the first years of life, parents and a secure family environment are essential to the survival and development of young children.Attention is focused on the undeniable importance of ...mothers’ role in childcare. But it’s also important to involve fathers, who are often sidelined from the responsibilities of this role, not least because of cultural factors linked to the separation of roles. In some situations, this is compounded by the psychological suffering that men may feel, without being able to admit it or express it, as a result of representations linked to masculinity.ObjectivesThe aim of the intervention was to strengthen the psychosocial and parenting skills of men, while taking into account their distress. The objective was to reduce intra-family violence, to involve men more in family life and in the care of young children, and to work on cultural representations of the role and cultural dynamics within the family and the community.MethodsMen, fathers and future fathers were recruited in the Mweso region in the Democratic Republic of Congo, following community psychoeducation. The group protocol took the form of five weekly sessions covering various themes linked to psychological distress, emotion management, psychosocial skills as well as gender roles and child development.ResultsBetween 2021 and 2023, 727 men participated in the program. They showed an improvement in well-being (reduction in anger, symptoms of anxiety, depression and PTSD), better management of emotions and the acquisition of strategies to address cultural factors linked to fatherhood within the family unit and the community.ConclusionsThe use of this protocol allowed men to become more aware of the issues of psychological suffering and fatherhood linked to cultural factors by allowing them better inclusion in the family dynamic.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared
ABSTRACT
The authors review demographic trends and research on families in the United States, with a special focus on the past decade. They consider the following several topics: (a) marriage and ...remarriage, (b) divorce, (c) cohabitation, (d) fertility, (e) same‐gender unions, (f) immigrant families, and (g) children's living arrangements. Throughout, the authors review both overall trends and patterns as well as those by social class and race–ethnicity. The authors discuss major strands of recent research, emphasizing emerging themes and promising directions. They close with a summary of central patterns and trends and conclude that recent trends are not as uniform as they tended to be in earlier decades, making the description of family change increasingly complex.
Background:In 2022 little Niene (11 today) gets the diagnosis of JIA. A big shock for the active family of five, who needs to learn all about this disease and its impact on not only Niene, but the ...whole family. Big sister Mare (13 today) soon felt she needed to do something to support her sister. Inspired by a book, she decided to build a treehouse in the garden and live in it for six months to raise awareness and funding for JIA.Objectives:To raise awareness for JIA. To raise funding for ORKA, the Flemish organisation for parents with children with JIA.Methods:The family started building the treehouse beginning of January 2023. They used recycled materials to make the whole thing also eco-friendly. With some creativity and the help of generous donators for the materials, the cabin was finished just in time for Mare to move in on the 16th of April. The cabin contained a bed and a desk. Mare allowed herself only in the house for eating and washing. Sleeping, studying and free time were spent in the treehouse. Belgian press was alerted and immediately jumped on the inspiring story. Mare got radio-, TV- and newspaper coverage right away. This led to a nice financial boost for the project from the start. Apart from living in the treehouse, Mare also sold self-grown plants such as tomatoes, homemade cookies, homemade earrings and had family and friends in her cabin or garden for a sleepover in exchange for a financial gift. On Sunday 15th of October ORKA, the Flemish organisation for parents with children with JIA, organised a wonderful closing event together with Mare and her family. Mare succeeded in living in the treehouse for six months! Again, the press covered the story on all possible channels.Results:As for awareness: Mare’s action was spot on. The press loved the idea of this selfless deed of a 13 year old girl who wanted to do something for her little sister. Press coverage was huge on all channels. People in Flanders have certainly heard about JIA now! As for funding: The original goal was to raise 5000 euro. This soon showed to be too modest, so the hope was to raise 10 000 euro. Finally, Mare succeeded in raising almost 11 000 euro for ORKA.Conclusion:Mare’s plan to live in a treehouse for six months was a brilliant way to draw attention of the general public to JIA and the impact the disease has on the child, but also the family, including brothers and sisters. Mare has given a big boost to ORKA, who will use the extra funding to inform parents of new JIA children, for the annual summer camp and for additional awareness campaigns.REFERENCES:NIL.Acknowledgements:NIL.Disclosure of Interests:None declared.
The purpose of this project was to investigate potential correlates of family life impairment in families of young autistic children. This project incorporated measures of specific child and parent ...challenges in addition to a commonly used unidimensional measure of autism characteristics. In this way, we could assess whether such challenges explain variance in family life impairment, and whether their inclusion diminish associations between autism characteristics and family life impairment. Cross-sectional data were collected from 564 parents of autistic children aged 2 to 5 years who participated in a larger online study. Participants completed measures on child characteristics (autism characteristics, emotion dysregulation, speaking ability, flexibility, and sleep problems), parent depression, and family life impairment, using the Family Life Impairment Scale (FLIS). Multiple linear regression models were generated to examine whether any of the independent variables were associated with the four domains of the FLIS. Models controlled for child age and sex, parent education, and single-parent homes. All independent variables were associated with impairment in one or more FLIS domains. None of the primary independent variables were significantly associated with positive growth. More overt characteristics and behaviors (e.g., autism characteristics, reactivity, speaking ability, and flexibility) were associated with impairment in domains that reflected a family's ability to navigate the community. However, sleep challenges and parent and child emotional difficulties were most strongly associated with parent impairment. Findings suggests that families may have different needs across contexts and provide new avenues through which they might be better supported.
Background: Recent research has alluded to weight stigma being perpetuated in pregnancy and postpartum from essential support networks of family and friends, and this may have detrimental ...implications on relationship quality and overall mental well-being. The purpose of this study was to assess and conceptualize weight stigma in pregnancy and postpartum from interpersonal networks and evaluate the impact on relationship quality and maternal mental health. Methods: Participants completed a survey at ≥13 weeks gestation and again at 3 months postpartum. Participants indicated whether they had experienced weight stigma, identified the sources (partner, family members, friends), and completed independent relationship quality assessment scales (Dyadic Adjustment Scale Short Form, Satisfaction with Family Life Scale, and Friendship Network Satisfaction Scale, respectively). Participants reported whether they had been diagnosed with anxiety or depression, and Chi Square compared frequency based on weight stigmatizing experiences. Linear regressions assessed relationships between experiencing weight stigma from each source and implications on relationship quality. Results: Both assessment points were completed by 471 participants (n = 471), of which 398 (84.5%) indicated experiencing weight stigma. No differences in anxiety and depression diagnosis were observed. Weight stigma in pregnancy from family was associated with reduced family life satisfaction (R2 = 0.013, B = -0.995, p = 0.013). Weight stigma in postpartum from partners and family was associated with reduced marital (R2 = 0.070, B = -1.103, p = 0.022) and family life satisfaction (R2 = 0.034, B = -0.161, p ≤ 0.001). Change scores were significant for friends only, such that having experienced weight stigma by friends in pregnancy reduced friendship satisfaction postpartum (R2 = 0.016, B = 2.510, p = 0.006). Conclusions: Given that interpersonal relationships are critical for supporting maternal well-being, these findings highlight the need to mitigate weight stigma at a population level in pregnancy and postpartum.
The phenomenon of information and communication technology (ICT)-assisted after-hours work has led to rising academic interest in examining its impact on workers' lives. ICT-assisted after-hours work ...may intrude on the home domain and contribute to higher work-family/life conflict, lower work-family/life balance, or higher work-family/life enrichment (the last one owing to the acquisition of competencies transferable to the home domain). Additionally, owing to cultural and societal differences in gender roles, the relationships between ICT-assisted after-hours work and work-family/life management variables may differ between female and male workers. To analyze the current empirical findings, this study performed a literature review with 38 articles and a meta-analysis with 37 articles. Our findings showed that ICT-assisted after-hours work was positively related to work-family/life enrichment (
= 0.335,
< 0.001; 95% CI 0.290, 0.406), but also to work-family/life conflict (
= 0.335,
< 0.001; 95% CI 0.290, 0.406). However, neither gender nor pre-/post-COVID significantly affect the relationship between ICT-assisted after-hours work and work-family/life conflict. Finally, future research and implications are discussed.
This article reexamines the thesis that marriage is becoming deinstitutionalized. It first reviews relevant theoretical literature on social institutions, including the “new institutionalism” and the ...work of Bourdieu on cultural capital. It addresses the great social class differences that have emerged in American family life over the past few decades and their implications for the deinstitutionalization thesis. It then evaluates the thesis, with these conclusions: What has happened in recent years to the place of marriage in the broader field of intimate partnerships is consistent with the deinstitutionalization thesis, although primarily among the non‐college‐educated. In contrast, marriage still plays a central role in the field of intimate partnerships among the college‐educated. Moreover, the behavior of partners within marriage has not change enough to conclude the deinstitutionalization has occurred. The article also examines related claims about marriage and individualism, the concept of capstone marriage, and same‐sex marriage.
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