Birth Spacing and Child Maltreatment: Population-Level Estimates for North Carolina.

We examine population-level associations between birth spacing and child maltreatment using birth records and child welfare records for 1,099,230 second or higher parity children born in North Carolina between 1997 and 2013. Building upon previous research, administrative data linkages were used to address out-of-state migration and family-level heterogeneity in birth spacing and child maltreatment risk factors. Findings provide the strongest evidence to date that very short birth spacing of zero through 6 months from last birth to the index child's conception is a prenatal predictor of child maltreatment (indexed as child welfare involvement) throughout early childhood. Consequently, information about optimal family planning during the postpartum period should become a standard component of universal and targeted child maltreatment prevention programs. However, challenging previous empirical evidence, this study reports inconsistent results for benefits of additional spacing delay beyond 6 months with regard to child maltreatment risk reduction, especially for children of racial and ethnic minorities. These findings call for further inquiry about the mechanisms driving the connections between birth spacing and Child Protective Services assessments.

The effects of a universal short-term home visiting program: Two-year impact on parenting behavior and parent mental health.

BACKGROUND: At the time of childbirth, families face heightened levels of unmet need. These needs, if left unmet, can lead parents to engage in less positive parenting practices, which in turn, increase the risk of child maltreatment. Family Connects (FC) is a universal postnatal nurse home-visiting program designed to prevent child maltreatment by supporting all families in a community through one to three visits to improve parent mental health and parenting behaviors. A randomized controlled trial of FC demonstrated improving positive parenting and reducing postpartum depression through age 6 months. OBJECTIVE: To determine sustained (2-year) impact of random assignment to FC on parenting behavior and parent mental health and identify heterogeneity of effects. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: A representative subsample of 496 families that had been randomized to FC (255 treatment; 241 control) of infants born between July 1, 2009, and December 31, 2010, in Durham County, North Carolina. METHODS: Demographic characteristics were collected through hospital discharge data. Treatment-blinded interviewers collected maternal reports of parenting behavior and mental health at infant age two years. Moderation and subgroup analyses were conducted to estimate heterogeneity in impact of FC. RESULTS: Mothers assigned to FC engaged in more self-reported positive parenting relative to control mothers (B = 0.21; p < 0.05). Hispanic mothers assigned to FC reported greater sense of parenting competence (B = 1.28; p < 0.05). No significant main effect differences were identified for negative parenting, maternal depression, or father involvement. CONCLUSIONS: Assignment to FC was associated with improvements in population-level self-reported scores of positive parenting 2 years post-intervention.

Evaluation of a Family Connects Dissemination to Four High-Poverty Rural Counties.

OBJECTIVES: Home visiting is a popular approach to improving the health and well-being of families with infants and young children in the United States; but, to date, no home visiting program has achieved population impact for families in rural communities. The current report includes evaluation results from the dissemination of a brief, universal postpartum home visiting program to four high-poverty rural counties. METHODS: The study utilized a quasi-experimental design. From Sept. 1, 2014-Dec. 31, 2015, families of all 994 resident births in four rural eastern North Carolina counties were assigned to receive Family Connects (FC; intervention group). A representative subsample of families participated in impact evaluation when the infants were 6 months old: 392 intervention group families and 126 families with infants born between Feb. 1, 2014-July 31, 2014 (natural comparison group). Data were analyzed preliminarily for reporting to funders in 2016 and, more comprehensively, using propensity score matching in 2020. RESULTS: Of FC-eligible families, 78% initiated participation; 83% of participating families completed the program (net completion = 65%). At age 6 months, intervention parents reported more community connections, more frequent use of community services, greater social support, and greater success with infants sleeping on their backs. Intervention infants had fewer total emergency department and urgent care visits. Intervention parents had more total emergency department and urgent care visits and (marginally) fewer overnights in the hospital. CONCLUSIONS FOR PRACTICE: FC can be implemented successfully in high-poverty rural communities with broad reach and positive benefits for infants and families.

Transitioning to virtual interaction during the COVID-19 pandemic: Impact on the family connects postpartum home visiting program activity.

In this paper, we analyze program activity for Family Connects (FC), an evidence-based postpartum home-visiting intervention, during the COVID-19 pandemic. When the pandemic began, FC transitioned to a virtual protocol which maintains key psychosocial components of the in-person protocol and adjusts health assessments to address the lack of in-person contact. Program performance is contrasted for periods before the pandemic onset (April 2019-March 2020) and after the onset (April 2020-March 2021), involving 10,280 scheduled visits and 6696 visited families (46% non-Hispanic white; 20% non-Hispanic Black; 23% Hispanic; and 10% other race). Post-pandemic onset, FC program participation rates were at 89.8% of pre-pandemic levels. Home visitors observed post-onset increases in families' concerns about home safety but declines in families' needs related to infant care. Community connections were facilitated for 42.9% of visited families post-pandemic onset compared to 51.1% pre-pandemic onset. We conclude that post-pandemic onset virtual delivery rates of FC declined but are high enough to merit continued implementation during a period when some families will decline in-person visits. When in-person visits are deemed safe per public health guidelines, the findings suggest a hybrid approach that could maximize program outreach by prioritizing in-person contact and offering virtual delivery as a second choice.

En este ensayo, analizamos la actividad de programación de Conexión de Familia (FC), una intervención de visitas a casa posteriores al parto con base en la evidencia, durante la pandemia COVID-19. Cuando comenzó la pandemia, FC pasó a un protocolo virtual el cual mantiene componentes sicosociales claves del protocolo presencial y ajusta las evaluaciones de salud para considerar la falta de contacto personal. La actuación del programa se contrasta por períodos antes del comienzo de la pandemia (abril 2019 - marzo 2020) y después del comienzo (abril 2020 - marzo 2021), lo cual involucra 10,280 visitas y 6,696 familias visitadas (46% blancas no hispanas, 20% negras no hispanas, 23% hispanas, 10% de otras razas). Al comienzo de la postpandemia, el nivel de participación en el programa FC estaba al 89.8% del nivel de prepandemia. Los visitantes a casa observaron aumentos posteriores al comienzo en preocupaciones de las familias sobre la seguridad del hogar, pero bajas en necesidades familiares relacionadas con el cuidado de los infantes. Las conexiones comunitarias se facilitaron para el 42.9% de las familias visitadas después del comienzo de la pandemia, comparadas con el 51.1% antes del comienzo de la pandemia. En resumen, la actividad de programación de FC declinó después del comienzo de la pandemia, pero se mantuvo suficientemente alta como para ameritar la continuación de la implementación durante un período cuando algunas familias rechazaron las visitas en persona. Cuando las visitas en persona se estiman seguras según las directrices de salud pública, los resultados indican que un acercamiento híbrido pudiera conducir al máximo el alcance del programa por medio de darle prioridad al contacto en persona y ofrecer el servicio virtual como segunda opción.

Dans cet article nous analysons l'activité de programme pour une Family Connects (FC), une intervention postpartum à domicile fondée sur des données probantes, durant la pandémie du COVID-19. Lorsque la pandémie a commencé la FC a transitionné à protocole virtuel qui maintient les composantes psychosociales clé du protocole en personne et ajusté les évaluations de santé afin de répondre au manque de contact en personne. La performance du programme est comparée pour des périodes avant le début de la pandémie (avril 2019-mars 2020) et après le début de la pandémie (avril 2020-mars 2021), comprenant 10280 visites programmées et 6696 familles visitées (46% de blancs n'étant pas hispaniques, 20% de noirs n'étant pas hispaniques, 23% d'hispaniques et 10% d'autres races). Les taux de participation au programme FC, après le début de la pandémie, étaient à 89,8% des niveaux avant pandémie. Les visiteurs à domicile ont observé des augmentations des inquiétudes des familles à propos de la sécurité à la maison après le début de la pandémie mais des déclins dans les besoins familiaux liés au soin du nourrisson. Les liens avec la communauté ont été facilités pour 42,9% des familles visitées après le début de la pandémie, comparé à 51,1% avant le début de la pandémie. Pour conclure, l'activité de programme du FC a décliné après le début de la pandémie mais est restée suffisamment élevée pour mériter une exécution continue durant une période où certaines familles ont décliné les visites à domicile. Quand les visites à domicile ont été estimées sûres suivant les directives de santé publique les résultats suggèrent qu'une approche hybride pourrait maximiser la sensibilisation au programme en privilégiant le contact en personne et en offrant une prestation virtuelle comme second choix.

Home Visiting Services During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Program Activity Analysis for Family Connects.

PURPOSE: Early reports highlighted challenges in delivering home visiting programs virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic but the extent of the changes in program implementation and their implications remains unknown. We examine program activity and families' perceptions of virtual home visiting during the first nine months of the pandemic using implementation data for Family Connects (FC), an evidence-based and MIECHV-eligible, postpartum nurse home visiting program. DESCRIPTION: Aggregate program implementation data for five FC sites for January-November of 2019 and 2020 are compared. The COVID-19 Modification Survey is used to analyze families' reactions to virtual program delivery. ASSESSMENT: Post-pandemic onset, FC's program completion rates amounted to 86% of the pre-pandemic activity level. Activity in key components of the intervention-home-visitor education and referrals to community agencies-was maintained at 98% and 87% of the pre-pandemic level respectively. However, education and referrals rates declined among families of color and low-income families. Finally, families reported a positive response to the program, with declines in feelings of isolation and increases in positive attitudes toward in-person medical care-seeking due to FC visits. CONCLUSIONS: During the first nine months of the COVID-19 pandemic, families' interest in home visiting remained strong, performance metrics were maintained at high levels, and families responded positively to the virtual delivery of home visiting. Home visiting programs should continue implementation with virtual modifications during the remainder of the pandemic but attention is needed to address growing disparities in access to home visiting benefits among marginalized communities.

Impact of a universal perinatal home-visiting program on reduction in race disparities in maternal and child health: Two randomised controlled trials and a field quasi-experiment.

Background: Public health interventions must become accountable for reduction of race disparities, particularly among Black, Hispanic, and Non-Hispanic White families in the United States. Family Connects (FC) is a universal perinatal home-visiting program that assesses family-specific needs, offers support, and provides connections to community resources to address identified needs. Two previously-published randomised controlled trials and a field quasi-experiment have shown positive impact on maternal mental health, infant emergency medical care utilization, and government investigations for child maltreatment; however, these reports have not tested impact on reducing race disparities in these outcomes. The current report examined three questions in these trials: 1) the extent of race disparities in maternal and infant health and well-being, absent intervention; 2) whether intervention can be implemented with high reach and fidelity among all race groups; and 3) whether assignment to intervention reduces race disparities in important outcomes. Methods: Data were re-examined from: 1) a randomised controlled trial of 4777 birthing families in Durham, NC, USA; 2) a replication randomised controlled trial of 923 birthing families in Durham, NC, USA; and 3) a quasi-experiment of 988 birthing families in rural NC, USA. Families were classified as Black, Hispanic, Non-Hispanic White, or Other. Disparity reduction was tested by the interaction effect between treatment assignment and race. Findings: 1) In the absence of intervention, large and statistically significant differences between Black familes and Non-Hispanic White families were found in maternal anxiety, maternal depression, father non-support, child emergency medical care, and child maltreatment investigations. Few differences were found between Non-Hispanic White familes and Hispanic families.2) High rates of participation in treatment were found for each race group.3) Across studies, assignment to FC was associated with statistically significant reductions in 7 of 12 disparities, in maternal anxiety and depression, father non-support, infant emergency medical care, and child maltreatment investigations. Interpretation: This study provides a method, metric, and mandate to prioritise testing of whether public health interventions reduce race disparities in family outcomes. Funding: This research was supported by grant R01HD069981 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and a grant from The Duke Endowment.

Effect of a Universal Postpartum Nurse Home Visiting Program on Child Maltreatment and Emergency Medical Care at 5 Years of Age: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: The Family Connects (FC) program, a community-wide nurse home visiting program for newborns, has been shown to provide benefits for children and families through the first 2 years of life. Potential longer-term outcomes for child well-being remain unknown. Objective: To determine the effect of randomization to FC on child maltreatment investigations and emergency medical care through 5 years of age. Design, Setting, and Participants: In this randomized clinical trial, families of all 4777 resident births in Durham County, North Carolina, from July 1, 2009, to December 31, 2010, were randomly assigned to receive the FC program or treatment as usual. Impact evaluation was on an intent-to-treat basis and focused on a subsample of 549 families randomly selected from the full population and included review of hospital and Child Protective Services (CPS) administrative records. Statistical analysis was conducted from November 6, 2020, to April 25, 2021. Interventions: The FC programs includes 1 to 3 nurse home visits beginning at the infant age of 3 weeks designed to identify family-specific needs, deliver education and intervention, and connect families with community resources matched to their needs. Ongoing program engagement with service professionals and an electronic resource directory facilitate effective family connections to the community. Main Outcomes and Measures: Two primary trial outcomes were CPS-recorded child maltreatment investigations and emergency medical care use based on hospital records. Results: Of the 4777 randomized families, 2327 were allocated to the intervention, and 2440 were allocated to services as usual. Among the children in the full study population, 2380 (49.8%) were female, 2397 (50.2%) were male, and 3359 (70.3%) were from racial/ethnic minority groups; of the 531 children included in the impact evaluation follow-up, 284 (53.5%) were female, 247 (46.5%) were male, and 390 (73.4%) were from racial/ethnic minority groups. Negative binomial models indicated that families assigned to FC had 39% fewer CPS investigations for suspected child maltreatment through 5 years of age (95% CI, -0.80 to 0.06; 90% CI, -0.73 to -0.01; control = 44 total investigations per 100 children and intervention = 27 total investigations per 100 children); intervention effects did not differ across subgroups. Families assigned to FC also had 33% less total child emergency medical care use (95% CI, -0.59 to -0.14; 90% CI, -0.55 to -0.18; control = 338 visits and overnight hospital stays per 100 children and intervention = 227 visits and overnight hospital stays per 100 children). Positive effects held across birth risk, child health insurance, child sex, single-parent status, and racial/ethnic groups. Effects were larger for nonminority families compared with minority families. Conclusions and Relevance: The findings of this randomized clinical trial suggest that, when implemented with high quality and broad reach, a brief postpartum nurse home visiting program can reduce population rates of child maltreatment and emergency medical care use in early childhood. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01406184.

Effect of a Community Agency-Administered Nurse Home Visitation Program on Program Use and Maternal and Infant Health Outcomes: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Postnatal home visitation to support parenting and infant healthy development is becoming increasingly common based on university efficacy studies, but effectiveness when disseminated by communities is not clear. Objective: To test implementation and impact of the Family Connects (FC) program when administered by a community agency. Design, Setting, and Participants: In this randomized clinical trial, births were randomly assigned to receive FC or treatment as usual. Independent evaluation was conducted through parent interviews and review of health and child protective services records. Interviewers were blind to the experimental condition of participants, and participants were blind about the purpose of the interview as an intervention evaluation. A total of 936 consecutive residential births at Duke University Hospital from January 1, 2014, through June 30, 2014, were included. Data were analyzed preliminarily for reporting to funders in early 2015 before all birth-record covariates were scored and were analyzed more comprehensively in mid-2019 after administrative birth and child protective service records became available. Interventions: The goals of the FC brief universal program were to assess family-specific needs, complete brief interventions, and connect families with community resources. Community agencies and families were aligned through an electronic data system. Main Outcomes and Measures: Case records documented program penetration and quality. The primary outcome was child protective services investigations for maltreatment. Secondary outcomes were the number of sustained community connections, maternal mental health, parenting behavior, infant well-child care visits and maternal postpartum care compliance, and emergency health care utilization. Results: Of 936 births, 451 infants (48.2%) were female and 433 (46.3%) were from racial/ethnic minority groups. In all, 456 births (46.5%) were randomized to the intervention and 480 (53.5%) were randomized to the control. All analyses were based on intention to treat. The impact analysis included 158 intervention families and 158 control families. Intervention penetration was 76%, adherence to the protocol was 90%, and independent agreement in scoring (κ) was 0.75. Nurses identified and addressed minor problems for 52% of families and connected an additional 42% to community resources. Analysis of the primary outcome of child abuse investigations revealed a mean (SD) of 0.10 (0.30) investigations for the intervention group vs 0.18 (0.56) investigations for the control group (b = -0.09; 90% CI, -0.01 to -0.12; 95% CI, -0.18 to 0.01; P = .07). The intervention group's rate of possible maternal anxiety or depression was 18.2% vs 25.9% for the control group (b = -7.70; 90% CI, -15.2 to -0.1; 95% CI, -16.6 to 1.3; P = .09). Conclusions and Relevance: This study indicates that a nurse home visitation program for families of newborns can be implemented by a community agency with high penetration and quality. Other communities could benefit from wider dissemination of the program provided that quality remains strong and evaluation continues. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01843036.

Randomized controlled trial of Family Connects: Effects on child emergency medical care from birth to 24 months.

One of Tom Dishion's most significant contributions to prevention science was the development of affordable, ecologically valid interventions, such as the Family Check-Up, that screen for child and family risk factors broadly, but concentrate family-specific interventions on those with greatest potential for population impact. In the spirit of this approach, investigators examined effects of a brief, universal postnatal home visiting program on child emergency medical care and billing costs from birth to age 24 months. Family Connects is a community-wide public health intervention that combines identification and alignment of community services and resources with brief, postpartum nurse home visits designed to assess risk, provide supportive guidance, and connect families with identified risk to community resources. Over 18 months, families of all 4,777 resident Durham County, North Carolina, births were randomly assigned based on even or odd birth date to receive a postnatal nurse home visiting intervention or services as usual (control). Independently, 549 of these families were randomly selected and participated in an impact evaluation study. Families, blind to study goals, provided written consent to access hospital administrative records. Results indicate that children randomly assigned to Family Connects had significantly less total emergency medical care (by 37%) through age 24 months, with results observed across almost all subgroups. Examination of billing records indicate a $3.17 decrease in total billing costs for each $1 in program costs. Overall, results suggest that community-wide postpartum support program can significantly reduce population rates of child emergency medical care through age 24 months while being cost-beneficial to communities.

Moving Beyond Program to Population Impact: Toward a Universal Early Childhood System of Care.

Families have clearly benefited from increased availability of evidence-based intervention, including home-visiting models and increased federal funding for programs benefiting parents and children. The goal of population-level impact on the health and well-being of infants and young children across entire communities, however, remains elusive. New approaches are needed to move beyond scaling of individual programs toward an integrated system of care in early childhood. To advance this goal, the current article provides a framework for developing an early childhood system of care that pairs a top-down goal for the alignment of services with a bottom-up goal of identifying and addressing needs of all families throughout early childhood. Further, we describe how universal newborn home visiting can be utilized to both support alignment of and family entry into an early childhood system of care with broad reach, high quality, and evidence of population impact for families and children.

Universal Reach at Birth: Family Connects.

How do we screen all families in a population at a single time point, identify family-specific risks, and connect each family with evidence-based community resources that can help them overcome those risks-an approach known as targeted universalism? In this article, Kenneth A. Dodge and W. Benjamin Goodman describe Family Connects, a program designed to do exactly that. Developed and tested in Durham, NC, Family Connects-now in place at 16 sites in the United States-aims to reach every family giving birth in a given community. The program rests on three pillars. The first is home visiting: trained nurses (or other program representatives) welcome new babies into the community, typically at the birthing hospital, then work with the parents to set up one or more home visits when the baby is about three weeks old so they can identify needs and connect the family with community resources. The second pillar, community alignment, is an assembly of all community resources available to families at birth, including child care agencies, mental health providers, government social services, and long-term programs for subgroups of families with identified needs, such as Healthy Families and Early Head Start. The third pillar, data and monitoring, is an electronic data system that acts as a family-specific psychosocial and educational record (much like an electronic health record) to document nurses' assessments of mother and infant, as well as connections with community agencies. In randomized clinical trials, Family Connects has shown promising results. Compared to control group families, families randomly assigned to the program made more connections to community resources. They also reported more positive parenting behaviors and fewer serious injuries or illnesses among their infants, among other desirable outcomes. And in the first five years of life, Family Connects children were significantly less likely to be subject to Child Protective Services investigations than were children in a control group.

Can typical US home visits affect infant attachment? Preliminary findings from a randomized trial of Healthy Families Durham.

US government-funded early home visiting services are expanding significantly. The most widely implemented home visiting models target at-risk new mothers and their infants. Such home visiting programs typically aim to support infant-parent relationships; yet, such programs' effects on infant attachment quality per se are as yet untested. Given these programs' aims, and the crucial role of early attachments in human development, it is important to understand attachment processes in home visited families. The current, preliminary study examined 94 high-risk mother-infant dyads participating in a randomized evaluation of the Healthy Families Durham (HFD) home visiting program. We tested (a) infant attachment security and disorganization as predictors of toddler behavior problems and (b) program effects on attachment security and disorganization. We found that (a) infant attachment disorganization (but not security) predicted toddler behavior problems and (b) participation in HFD did not significantly affect infant attachment security or disorganization. Findings are discussed in terms of the potential for attachment-specific interventions to enhance the typical array of home visiting services.

Implementation and randomized controlled trial evaluation of universal postnatal nurse home visiting.

OBJECTIVES: We evaluated whether a brief, universal, postnatal nurse home-visiting intervention can be implemented with high penetration and fidelity, prevent emergency health care services, and promote positive parenting by infant age 6 months. METHODS: Durham Connects is a manualized 4- to 7-session program to assess family needs and connect parents with community resources to improve infant health and well-being. All 4777 resident births in Durham, North Carolina, between July 1, 2009, and December 31, 2010, were randomly assigned to intervention and control conditions. A random, representative subset of 549 families received blinded interviews for impact evaluation. RESULTS: Of all families, 80% initiated participation; adherence was 84%. Hospital records indicated that Durham Connects infants had 59% fewer infant emergency medical care episodes than did control infants. Durham Connects mothers reported fewer infant emergency care episodes and more community connections, more positive parenting behaviors, participation in higher quality out-of-home child care, and lower rates of anxiety than control mothers. Blinded observers reported higher quality home environments for Durham Connects than for control families. CONCLUSIONS: A brief universal home-visiting program implemented with high penetration and fidelity can lower costly emergency medical care and improve family outcomes.

Randomized controlled trial of universal postnatal nurse home visiting: impact on emergency care.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Although nurse home visiting has proven efficacious with small samples, scaling up to community populations with diverse families has not yet proven effective. The Durham Connects program was developed in collaboration with community leaders as a brief, universal, postnatal nurse home visiting intervention designed to screen for risk, provide brief intervention, and connect families with more intensive evidence-based services as needed. This study tested program effectiveness in reducing infant emergency medical care between birth and age 12 months. METHODS: All 4777 resident births in Durham, North Carolina across 18 months were randomly assigned, with even birth date families to intervention and odd birth date families to control. Intervention families were offered 3 to 7 contacts between 3 and 12 weeks after birth to assess family needs and connect parents with community resources to improve infant health and well-being. Hospital records were analyzed by using an intent-to-treat design to evaluate impact among a representative subset of 549 families. RESULTS: After demographic factors (ie, birth risk, Medicaid status, ethnicity, and single parenthood) were covaried, relative to control families, families assigned to intervention had 50% less total emergency medical care use (mean [M] emergency department visits and hospital overnights) (M(intervention) = 0.78 and M(control) = 1.57; P < .001, effect size = 0.28) across the first 12 months of life. CONCLUSIONS: This brief, universal, postnatal nurse home visiting program improves population-level infant health care outcomes for the first 12 months of life. Nurse home visiting can be implemented universally at high fidelity with positive impacts on infant emergency health care that are similar to those of longer, more intensive home visiting programs. This approach offers a novel solution to the paradox of targeting by offering individually tailored intervention while achieving population-level impact.

Toward Population Impact from Home Visiting.

Although some home-visiting programs have proven effective with the families they serve, no program has yet demonstrated an impact at the population level. We describe the Durham Connects (DC) initiative, which aims to achieve population impact by coalescing community agencies to serve early-intervention goals through a Preventive System Of Care and by delivering a universal, short-term, postnatal nurse home-visiting program. The home-visitor delivers brief intervention, assesses family needs in 12 domains, and connects the family with community resources to address individualized family needs. Evaluation of DC occurred through a population randomized controlled trial of all 4,777 births in Durham, NC, over an 18-month period. DC was implemented with high penetration and high fidelity. Impact evaluation indicated that by age 6 months, DC infants had 18 percent fewer emergency room visits and 80 percent fewer overnights in the hospital than did control families. We conclude that population impact is achievable if a program attends to challenges of community partnership, universal reach and assessment, rigorous evaluation, and models for sustaining funding.

Paternal Work Stress and Latent Profiles of Father-Infant Parenting Quality.

The current study used latent profile analysis (LPA) to examine the implications of fathers' experiences of work stress for paternal behaviors with infants across multiple dimensions of parenting in a sample of fathers living in nonmetropolitan communities (N = 492). LPA revealed five classes of fathers based on levels of social-affective behaviors and linguistic stimulation measured during two father-infant interactions. Multinomial logistic regression analyses suggested that a less-supportive work environment was associated with fathers' membership in multiple lower-quality parenting classes. Greater work pressure and a nonstandard work schedule also predicted fathers' membership in the latent parenting classes, although these associations differed depending on the number of hours fathers spent in the workplace.

Longitudinal Associations between Maternal Work Stress, Negative Work-Family Spillover, and Depressive Symptoms.

The current study examined associations over an 18-month period between maternal work stressors, negative work-family spillover, and depressive symptoms in a sample of 414 employed mothers with young children living in six predominantly nonmetropolitan counties in the Eastern United States. Results from a one-group mediation model revealed that a less flexible work environment and greater work pressure predicted higher levels of depressive symptoms, and further, that these associations were mediated by perceptions of negative work-family spillover. Additionally, results from a two-group mediation model suggested that work pressure predicted greater perceptions of spillover only for mothers employed full-time. Findings suggest the need for policies that reduce levels of work stress and help mothers manage their work and family responsibilities.

Nonstandard Work Schedules, Perceived Family Well-Being, and Daily Stressors.

Data from two studies assessed the effects of nonstandard work schedules on perceived family well-being and daily stressors. Study 1, using a sample of employed, married adults aged 25 - 74 (n = 1,166) from the National Survey of Midlife in the United States, showed that night work was associated with perceptions of greater marital instability, negative family-work, and work-family spillover than weekend or daytime work. In Study 2, with a subsample of adults (n = 458) who participated in the National Study of Daily Experiences, weekend workers reported more daily work stressors than weekday workers. Several sociodemographic variables were tested as moderators. Both studies demonstrated that nonstandard work schedules place a strain on working, married adults at the global and daily level.

Paternal Work Characteristics and Father-Infant Interactions in Low-Income, Rural Families.

To examine the implications of paternal occupational conditions for the quality of father-infant interactions, home visits, including interviews and videotaped observations of father-infant interactions, were conducted with 446 fathers living in six low-income, nonmetropolitan counties in North Carolina and Pennsylvania. When a variety of individual and demographic characteristics were controlled for, a less supportive work environment was associated with lower levels of fathers' engaged and sensitive parenting. Significant interactions pointed to the importance of understanding combinations of risk factors. Experiencing high levels of workplace stressors, including low levels of self-direction and high levels of care work, in the presence of other individual or demographic risk factors was associated with lower levels of father parenting quality.

The O*Net Jobs Classification System: A Primer for Family Researchers.

We introduce family researchers to the Occupational Information Network, or O*Net, an electronic database on the work characteristics of over 950 occupations. The paper here is a practical primer that covers data collection, selecting occupational characteristics, coding occupations, scale creation, and construct validity, with empirical illustrations from the Family Life Project, a study of almost 1,300 families with infants born in 6 low-income, nonmetro counties in North Carolina and Pennsylvania. We factor analyzed parents' occupations on 35 O*Net characteristics and identified 5 factors: occupational self-direction, physical hazards, physical activity, care work, and automation/repetition, variables that supplement data collected from parents directly. Applied researchers can use the O*Net to expand their knowledge of participants' work circumstances with objective data.