Intergenerational Effects of the Fast Track Intervention on Next-Generation Child Outcomes: A Preregistered Randomized Clinical Trial.

OBJECTIVE: The authors sought to determine whether the Fast Track mental health intervention delivered to individuals in childhood decreased mental health problems and the need for health services among the children of these individuals. METHODS: The authors examined whether Fast Track assignment in one generation of children (generation 2; G2) from grades 1 through 10 reduced parent-reported mental health problems and health services use in these children's children (generation 3; G3) 18 years later relative to a control group. The Fast Track intervention blended parent behavior-management training, child social-cognitive skills tutoring, home visits, and classroom social-ecology changes across grades 1-10 to ameliorate emerging conduct problems among the G2 children. For this study, 1,057 G3 children of Fast Track participants (N=581 intervention group, N=476 control group) were evaluated. RESULTS: G3 children of G2 parents who were randomized to the Fast Track intervention group used fewer general inpatient services and fewer inpatient or outpatient mental health services compared with G3 children of G2 parents randomized to the control group. Some of these effects were mediated: randomization to Fast Track predicted fewer internalizing problems and less use of corporal punishment among G2 adults at age 25, which subsequently predicted less general inpatient service use and outpatient mental health service use among the G3 children by the time the G2 parents were 34 years old. There were no significant differences between G3 children from these two groups on the use of other health services or on mental health measures. CONCLUSIONS: Fast Track was associated with lower use of general inpatient services and inpatient and outpatient mental health services intergenerationally, but effects on parent-reported mental health of the children were not apparent across generations. Investing in interventions for the mental health of children could reduce service use burdens across generations.

Intergenerational Effects of a Family Cash Transfer on the Home Environment.

OBJECTIVE: A natural experiment that provided income supplements to families has been associated with beneficial outcomes for children that persisted into adulthood. The children in this study are now adults, and many are parents. METHOD: The study builds on the longitudinal, representative Great Smoky Mountains study conducted from 1993 to 2020. At follow-up in their late 30s, 1,094 of the 1,348 living participants (81.2%) were assessed. Of these participants (67.6%), 739 were parents. A tribe in the area implemented a cash transfer program of approximately $5,000 annually per person to every tribal member based on the profits received from operating a casino. Ten aspects of the home environment of participants were assessed (eg, family chaos, substance use, and food insecurity) as well as a composite measure across all home environment indicators. The proposed analyses were preregistered (https://osf.io/ex638). RESULTS: Of the 739 parents assessed, 192 (26.0%) were American Indians. Parents whose families received cash transfers during childhood did not differ from parents whose families did not receive cash transfers on any of the home environment indicators or the composite measure. At the same time, there was little evidence of elevated risk for participants in either group in measures of parental mental health, substance use, and violence. CONCLUSION: A family cash transfer in childhood that had long-term effects on individual functioning did not impact the home environment of participants who became parents. Rather, parents in both groups were providing home environments generally conducive to their children's growth and development. STUDY PREREGISTRATION INFORMATION: Intergenerational Effects of a Family Cash Transfer on the Home Environment; https://osf.io/; ex638.

SARS CoV-2 IgG seropositivity post-vaccination among dental professionals: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has spread very rapidly around the world. Various regional and national lockdowns were imposed to control the spread. Meanwhile, vaccine development and population vaccination were the next steps for pandemic control. Workers in the dental field, both dentists and dental assistants, however, were close to the sources of aerosol generated during dental procedures and thus were the group of workers the most exposed to COVID-19 infection. The aim of our study was to monitor the immune response before and after the vaccine in a high-risk population, composed by dental professionals. METHODS: A clinical prospective study was carried out among dental professionals at the Academic Dental Polyclinic, Wroclaw Medical University (Wroclaw, Lower Silesia region, Poland). Blood samples were collected at an interval of one year - March/April 2020, before the vaccination against COVID-19, and April 2021, after the vaccination. The analysis was performed on serum with four different methods: qualitative, semi-quantitative, and quantitative IgG count for SARS-CoV-2, and SARS-CoV-2 neutralizing antibodies. RESULTS: A total of 42 healthy adult volunteers participated in the study. The results showed a statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) in antibody levels before and after vaccination (1st and 2nd measurement) for each test method. The tests that were used affected the results and the test that showed the strongest relationship with the result was the Qualitative test. CONCLUSIONS: Dental professionals are the adult working population most at risk for COVID-19. Monitoring SARS-CoV-2-status-related seropositivity can provide useful information occupational risk factors for dental professionals.

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.

Fast Track intervention effects on family formation.

The present study examines whether the Fast Track (FT) intervention, a 10-year randomized controlled trial with children at risk for conduct problems, affects family formation in adulthood, as indexed by partnerships, parenthood, and family structure, and whether the intervention effect differs across participants' gender and race/ethnicity. Participants included 891 children (intervention n = 445; control n = 446; 69% male; 51% Black, 47% White) who were recruited in kindergarten and followed to age 32 or 34 (80% participation of still-living participants), when they reported on their romantic partnerships, parenthood, and family structure. Controlling for numerous covariates that are related to family formation, intervention participants were more likely than those in the control group to be married rather than single and to have a larger number of children; the intervention and control groups did not differ on cohabitation status, age at first marriage, whether they had ever been divorced, their likelihood of being a parent, the age at which they first became a parent, the spacing of births, family structure (partnered or not, with or without children), or in whether they were residentially independent of their parents and grandparents. Intervention effects were not moderated by gender, but race/ethnicity moderated the effect of the intervention on the probability of having any children and the number of children. These findings suggest that several elements of family formation may remain unchanged by an intervention that changes many other behavioral and psychological trajectories of participants. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Life-Course Trajectories of Childless Women: Country-Specific or Universal?

While existing research has documented complexities in biographies of childless women, few studies to date have systematically examined the life-course pathways of the childless from a comparative, cross-country perspective. In this paper, we analyse biographies of childless women in four countries-Germany, Italy, Poland, and the United States-in order to investigate whether pathways into childlessness are country-specific or commonly shared across institutional, cultural, and geographical settings. Partnership, education, and employment histories are examined using sequence analysis with dynamic Hamming distance and cluster analysis. Discrepancy analysis indicates a country-effect in women's biographies although life-course patterns identified in each country share similarities. Overall, seven life-course trajectories have been identified, with the most numerous cluster comprising single, working women who completed their education at a relatively young age. The results highlight a marked variation in the life-courses of childless women. Put together, these findings provide descriptive evidence for both country-specificity and cross-country similarity in the pathways to childlessness. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10680-022-09624-5.

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.

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.

Is a dyadic stressor experienced as equally distressing by both partners? The case of perceived fertility problems.

Using data from a population survey, this article explores whether perceptions of having a fertility problem among 926 U.S. couples in heterosexual relationships (women aged 25-45 and male partners) are associated with distress. Most couples did not perceive a fertility problem (58%). In almost a third (30%) of the couples, only women perceived a fertility problem; in 4%, only the men; and in nearly a fifth (19%), both perceived a problem. Adjusted for characteristics associated with fertility problems and depressive symptoms, those who perceived a problem exhibited significantly more depressive symptoms than those who did not. Fertility problems are sometimes experienced as individual because in some couples only one partner perceives a problem or has higher distress in response to their own rather than to their partners' perceived problems. For women, fertility problems are experienced as a couple phenomenon because women were more distressed when both partners perceive a problem. The perception of fertility problems is gendered in that women were more likely to perceive a problem than men. Furthermore, men are most distressed when they perceive a problem and their partner does not.

A Research Note on the Convergence of Childlessness Rates Between Women with Secondary and Tertiary Education in the United States.

A gap in childlessness rates between women with and without tertiary education in low-fertility settings has been well documented by scholars. However, in the United States, high rates of childlessness are declining for women with tertiary education. Will this current trend lead to a closing of the gap in childlessness across educational subgroups in this country? We answer this question using data from the Current Population Survey from 1976 through 2018. We present population-level trends in permanent childlessness by level of education and estimate the differences in the prevalence of childlessness across educational subgroups. Our findings indicate that the rates of childlessness for women aged 40-44 with tertiary education in the United States are the lowest they have been in over three decades and that rates of childlessness are converging among women with secondary and tertiary education. The declines in childlessness rates and the convergence in childlessness rates between women with secondary and tertiary education are observed for all of the three largest race/ethnicity sub-populations of American women: non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black, and Hispanic women. This report contributes to the emerging literature on the convergence of childlessness rates across sub-populations of women with different levels of educational attainment, which questions the well-established observation that there is a positive relationship between education and childlessness.

Correction to: A Research Note on the Convergence of Childlessness Rates Between Women with Secondary and Tertiary Education in the United States.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s10680-019-09550-z.].

Childless Expectations and Childlessness Over the Life Course.

Using nineteen panels of the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY-79), we construct life-lines characterizing women's childless expectations and fertility behavior. One-quarter of women in the NLSY-79 cohort ever reported an expectation for childlessness but only 14.8 percent of women remain childless. Childless women follow two predominant life course paths: (1) repeated postponement of childbearing and the subsequent adoption of a childless expectation at older ages or (2) indecision about parenthood signaled through vacillating reports of childless expectations across various ages. We also find that more than one in ten women became a mother after considering childlessness: an understudied group in research on childlessness and childbearing preferences. These findings reaffirm that it is problematic to assign expected and unexpected childlessness labels to the reproductive experience of childless women. In addition, despite their variability over time, childless expectations strongly predict permanent childlessness, regardless of the age when respondents offer them. Longitudinal logistic regression analysis of these childless expectations indicates a strong effect of childbearing postponement among the increasingly selective group of childless women. However, net of this postponement, few variables commonly associated with childlessness are associated with reports of a childless expectation. We thus conclude that the effects of socio-demographic and situational factors on childless expectations are channeled predominantly through repeated childbearing postponement.

"Super Bowl Babies": Do Counties with Super Bowl Winning Teams Experience Increases in Births Nine Months Later?

Following the claim of a highly publicized National Football League (NFL) commercial, we test whether the Super Bowl provides a positive exogenous shock to fertility in counties of winning teams. Using stadium locations to identify teams' counties, we analyze the number of births in counties of both winning and losing teams for ten recent Super Bowls. We also test for state effects and general effects of the NFL playoffs. Overall, our results show no clear pattern of increases in the number of births in winning counties nine months after the Super Bowl. We also do not find that births are affected at the state level or that counties competing in the playoffs are affected. Altogether, these results cast doubt on the NFL's claim that winning cities experience increases in births nine months after the Super Bowl.

ILPC: simple chemometric tool supporting the design of ionic liquids.

BACKGROUND: Ionic liquids (ILs) found a variety of applications in today's chemistry. Since their properties depend on the ions constituting particular ionic liquid, it is possible to synthetize IL with desired specification, dependently on its further function. However, this task is not trivial, since knowledge regarding the influence of particular ion on the property of concern is crucial. Therefore, there is a strong need for new, fast and inexpensive methods supporting the process of ionic liquids' design, making it possible to predefine IL's properties even before the synthesis. RESULTS: We have developed a simple tool (called Ionic Liquid PhysicoChemical predictor: ILPC) that allows for the simultaneous qualitative prediction of four physicochemical properties of ionic liquids: viscosity, n-octanol-water partition coefficient, solubility and enthalpy of fusion. By the means of Principal Component Analysis, we studied 172 ILs and defined distribution trends of those four properties, dependently on the ILs structures. We proved that the qualitative prediction of mentioned properties could be performed on the basis of most simple information we can deliver about ILs, which are their molecular formulas. CONCLUSIONS: Created tool presented in this paper allows fast, pre-synthesis screening of ILs, with the omission of any experimental steps. It can be helpful in the process of designing ILs with preferred properties. We proved that the information encrypted in molecular formula of ionic liquid could be a valuable source of knowledge regarding the IL's viscosity, n-octanol-water partition coefficient, solubility and enthalpy of fusion. Moreover, we proved that the influence of both ions, constituting the IL, on each of those four properties indicates same, additive trend.Graphical AbstractSchematic representation of ILPC performance - the exact position of the ionic liquid on the linear map is determined by its chemical structure.

How the structure of ionic liquid affects its toxicity to Vibrio fischeri?

In the present work, we have proposed a statistical model predicting the toxicity of ionic liquids (ILs) to Vibrio fischeri bacteria using the Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationships (QSAR) method. The model was developed with Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) technique, using the Gutman molecular topological index (GMTI), the lopping centric information index (LOC) and the number of oxygen atoms. Presented model is characterized by the good fit to the experimental data (R(2) = 0.78), high robustness (Q(2)CV = 0.72) and good predictive ability (Q(2)EXT = 0.75). This approach, with using very simple descriptors, helps to initially evaluate the toxicity of newly designed ionic liquids. The studied toxicity of ionic liquids depends mainly on their cations' structure: larger, more branched cations with long alkyl chains are more toxic than the smaller, linear ones. The presence of polar functional groups in the cation's structure reduces the toxic properties of ionic liquids. The structure of the anion has little effect on the toxicity of the studied ionic liquids. Obtained results will provide insight into the toxicity mechanisms and useful information for assessing the potential ecological risk of ionic liquids.

Geometry optimization method versus predictive ability in QSPR modeling for ionic liquids.

Computational techniques, such as Quantitative Structure-Property Relationship (QSPR) modeling, are very useful in predicting physicochemical properties of various chemicals. Building QSPR models requires calculating molecular descriptors and the proper choice of the geometry optimization method, which will be dedicated to specific structure of tested compounds. Herein, we examine the influence of the ionic liquids' (ILs) geometry optimization methods on the predictive ability of QSPR models by comparing three models. The models were developed based on the same experimental data on density collected for 66 ionic liquids, but with employing molecular descriptors calculated from molecular geometries optimized at three different levels of the theory, namely: (1) semi-empirical (PM7), (2) ab initio (HF/6-311+G*) and (3) density functional theory (B3LYP/6-311+G*). The model in which the descriptors were calculated by using ab initio HF/6-311+G* method indicated the best predictivity capabilities ([Formula: see text] = 0.87). However, PM7-based model has comparable values of quality parameters ([Formula: see text] = 0.84). Obtained results indicate that semi-empirical methods (faster and less expensive regarding CPU time) can be successfully employed to geometry optimization in QSPR studies for ionic liquids.

Filling environmental data gaps with QSPR for ionic liquids: Modeling n-octanol/water coefficient.

Ionic liquids (ILs) form a wide group of compounds characterized by specific properties that allow using ILs in different fields of science and industry. Regarding that the growing production and use of ionic liquids increase probability of their emission to the environment, it is important to estimate the ability of these compounds to spread in the environment. One of the most important parameters that allow evaluating environmental mobility of compound is n-octanol/water partition coefficient (KOW). Experimental measuring of the KOW values for a large number of compounds could be time consuming and costly. Instead, computational predictions are nowadays being used more often. The paper presents new Quantitative Structure-Property Relationship (QSPR) model that allows predicting the logarithmic values of KOW for 335 ILs, for which the experimentally measured values had been unavailable. We also estimated bioaccumulation potential and point out which group of ILs could have negative impact on environment.

Motherhood after the age of 35 in Poland.

Postponing motherhood is a widespread phenomenon across developed countries, however only few studies look into very late motherhood in post-socialist countries using individual level data. In this study, I look at the context of the first childbirth in Poland in the midst of the political transformation of 1989. Employing sequence analysis I reconstructed life trajectories of women who experienced the transition to adulthood during the late 1980's and the early 1990's and have just completed their fertility histories. Individual data from the 2011 GGS-PL and the 2011 FAMWELL Survey were used. Comparing paths of mothers' lives, I searched for differences in educational, professional and conjugal careers between women who gave birth before the age of 30 and after the age of 35. The results show how various life careers crisscross over the life course leading women to late motherhood.