Does Moving a Child Create Adult Baggage?

Author: Pamela Paul

Publication Name: The New York Times

Date of Publication: July 9, 2010

Summary:

Research has shown that a variety of adult problems has stemmed from moving houses in one’s adolescent life. Psychologist, sociologists, and epidemiologists notice that children that move often do worse in school and have behavioral problems than children that are stationary.

Americans are a highly mobile bunch and according to Professor Oishi, “American levels of well-being can be explained in part by residential differences.” People that move frequently say they have less “quality relationships.” People that moved a lot as children were reported to have less “self-satisfaction” and “well-being” as adults. These are the two characteristics used to measure adult happiness.

However the personality of the child also matters, whether they are introverted or extroverted. Those that are extroverted tend to remain the same while introverts are more deeply impacted. It is shown that a child reacts differently to the different reasons for moving. Military children handle moving better because children in military schools are in the same situation. However, relocation due to a job may adversely affect a child as well as relocation due to divorce or foreclosure because of the financial and relationship problems that may follow.

The age group that it affects the most though is the kids that are still in middle school. Being a pre-teenager with hormones and puberty is already a lot to handle. Adding in moving to a different place makes the tween years so much more appealing. Middle school kids will be more affected than older kids or younger kids in high school or elementary school.

Links to Study: N/A

Article:http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/11/fashion/11StudiedMoving.html?ref=psychology_and_psychologists

Submitted By: Tina Nguyen

TV Watching is Bad for Babies' Brains

AUTHOR: Nancy Shute
PUBLICATION NAME: US News & World Report
DATE OF PUBLICATION: December 7, 2010
SUMMARY: A study done in New York which followed 259 low-income (and mostly primary Spanish-speaking) families showed that babies around the age of 14 months who watched television for an hour daily had developmental scores lower that those of babies whose television-watching activities were limited. These results contradict what many parents allow their children to do: watch excessive television. Previous studies that focused on higher-income families showed similar results, refuting that argument that socioeconomic status matters in this study. This research also shows that television stunts developmental growth when babies are exposed at an age of 2 years or less (basically meaning all those Baby Einstein videos may be useless). A link between children who do not read (or whose parents do not read to them) and children who watch non-educational television has been established. Many should be aware of this study, because many are addicted to television and are passing it on to their children, and this research shows television is not good for developing children and babies!
LINKS TO STUDY: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17261478


ARTICLE:http://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/on-parenting/2010/12/07/tv-watching-is-bad-for-babies-brains.html
SUBMITTED BY: Bettina Pancho

Does Adolescent Stress Lead to Mood Disorders in Adulthood?

AUTHOR: Science Daily Staff/Concordia University

PUBLICATION NAME: Science Daily

DATE OF PUBLICATION: November 4, 2010

SUMMARY: According to Concordia University’s recent research, stress may have a greater risk in our lives than we formerly thought. Over the years, there has been an increase in depression and stress rates and it has become a major health issue. The affect of depression on young people’s lives are gradually increasing and they are suffering earlier in life. Previous studies show that an early stage of stress can lead to depression or a bipolar disorder. According to the principle researcher Ellenbogen, children who have families that have been dealing with stress, depression, or a psychiatric disorder is said to have a much higher risk of battling with it in their lifetime. Not only are children inheriting these alarming traits from their parents, but also from their environment that they have been raised in. The environment could either be stressful and disordered and it is impacting the children's mental health in adolescence and adulthood. According to Ellenbogen’s recent findings, the cortisol, a stress hormone which is formed by the body in result to upsetting and stressful life events, has shown that the stress hormone can influence and develop a serious mood disorder in people’s lifetime. It has also shown that children of at-risk families have higher cortisol levels due to exposure to family stress and parenting style than children from families that are not battling with stress, depression, or disorders. Children that show high cortisol levels double their risk in developing and battling an alarming and major mood disorder in their adulthood.

LINKS TO STUDY: None

ARTICLE: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/11/101103135348.htm

SUBMITTED BY: Arielle Calara

Firstborns are smart, but younger siblings work harder

Author: Madison Park

Publication name: CNN.com

Date of publication: August 16, 2010

Summary: In a recent study of ninety diverse pairs of siblings by the American Psychological Association, it was found that firstborns scored better on aptitude tests (e.g. SATs, ACTs) but younger siblings worked harder and get higher grade point averages.

The siblings answered questions about their own and their sibling's work ethic and general intelligence, as well as academic performance. They generally agreed that the younger siblings work harder. However, all subjects thought that they were the more naturally gifted of their pair.

A reason given for the eldest sibling scoring higher on aptitude tests is that they were given more one-on-one attention when they were younger. Since they were only children, at least for a short while, they received more homework and schoolwork help from their parents and older family members.

The higher grade point averages of younger siblings are explained by the competitiveness and pressure condoned by family dynamics. Younger siblings normally feel the need to do better than their older brother or sister. This leads to the extra effort put forth by them.

I think that this study shows accurate findings. In the case of my sister and me, I have always been the one that is “naturally smart” while my sister works harder because she is more competitive and has always been around people who have expressed such pride over my grades. The drive to outwit and outperform me has translated into Caitlin’s better grade point average. In sibling groups, the older brother or sister does better on general skill tests while younger siblings are harder working and have better GPAs.

Links to study: none

Links to article: http://pagingdrgupta.blogs.cnn.com/2010/08/16/firstborns-smart-but-younger-siblings-work-harder/?iref=obinsite

Submitted by Courtney Caglia-Hilty