Suchergebnisse

AbstractObjectiveTo identify within‐family groups according to sleep schedule, problems, and impact, reflecting similarities or differences in adolescents, mothers, and fathers and to examine how mental health and attachments associate with these triadic sleep groups.BackgroundFamily relationships shape sleeping, but within‐family research in adolescence is scarce.MethodAdolescents (17–18 years; 60% girls; n = 438), mothers (n = 448), and fathers (n = 358) filled in the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The adolescents reported mental health problems by the Behavior Assessment System and the parents by the General Health Questionnaire. All reported attachments by the Experiences in Close Relationships.ResultsCluster analysis identified four triadic sleep groups: "Good family sleep" (47%), "Poor adolescent and maternal sleep" (29%), "Poor paternal sleep" (16%), and "Poor family sleep" (8%). Adolescents in the "Poor family sleep" group had more mental health problems than they did in other groups, and fathers in the "Poor paternal sleep" group showed higher psychiatric symptoms than in the "Good family sleep" or "Poor adolescent and maternal sleep" groups. Adolescents in the "Poor family sleep" group reported higher insecure–anxious attachments than they did in other groups, and fathers reported higher insecure–avoidant and insecure–anxious attachments in the "Poor paternal sleep" than they did in other groups.ConclusionA family systems approach provides new insight into sleep, mental health, and attachments.ImplicationsInterventions to improve sleep quality should consider family dynamics that may underlie potential sleep problems, and sleep as a public health issue can benefit from knowledge about family mental health and attachments.

Toxicant, teratogen and carcinogen metal war remnants negatively affect human health. The current study analyzes, first, the persistence of heavy metal contamination in newborn hair in four cohorts across time in Gaza Palestine; second, the change in mothers' and infants' heavy metal contamination from birth to toddlerhood; and third, the impact of heavy metal contamination on infants' and toddlers' growth and development. The hair of newborns was analyzed for twelve heavy metals by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP/MS) in cohorts recruited at delivery in 2011, 2015, 2016, and 2018–2019. In the 2015 cohort, mothers' hair samples were taken at delivery, and toddlers and mothers hair were also analyzed 18 months later. Growth levels of infants at six months and toddlers at 18 months were assessed according to World Health Organization (WHO) standards according to a mother report and pediatric check-up, respectively. 1. The level of metal contamination in utero was persistently high across 8 years, 2011, 2015, 2016, 2019, following three major military attacks (2009, 2012, 2014). 2. The 2015 cohort babies exposed in utero to attacks in 2014 at six months showed association of high load at birth in mother of arsenic and in newborn of barium with underweight, of barium and molybdenum in newborn with stunting. 3. Eighteen months after birth, toddlers had a higher level of metals in hairs than when they were born, while, in their mothers, such levels were similar to those at delivery, confirming persistence in the environment of war remnants. Underweight and stunting, both in infants and toddlers, were higher than reported for previous years, as well as being progressive within the cohort. Severe environmental factors, metal contamination and food insecurity put Gaza's infant health at risk.

ObjectiveTo identify interplay of early maternal and paternal mental health symptoms for predicting child mental health and development.BackgroundResearch on family mental health has largely excluded fathers, although the well‐being of both parents is likely to be important for child development. In this study, we analyzed (a) intrafamilial dynamics between mothers' and fathers' early mental health symptoms and (b) the importance of separate (mother and father) and joint (additive, hierarchical, and buffering) theoretical models of parental mental health for predicting child mental health and development.MethodFinnish mothers and fathers (N = 763), half of whom conceived through assisted reproductive treatments (ART), reported their symptoms of psychological distress and depression from the pregnancy to 2 months and 12 months postpartum. Later, when the child was 7–8 years of age, parents (N = 485) reported the child's internalizing and externalizing symptoms and social and cognitive developmental problems.ResultsWe identified both co‐occurrence and compensation in intrafamilial early parental mental health. Further, mothers' symptoms alone (separate mother model) predicted child internalizing symptoms, whereas joint parental symptoms (additive model) predicted problems in executive function.ConclusionThe pre‐ and postnatal mental health of mothers and fathers is important for later child development.ImplicationsTo support healthy child development, both parents need to be screened for early mental health problems, and psychological help should be offered to families across the pre‐ and postpartum period.

AbstractFacial emotion recognition (FER) is a fundamental element in human interaction. It begins to develop soon after birth and is important in achieving developmental tasks of middle childhood, such as developing mutual friendships and acquiring social rules of peer groups. Despite its importance, FER research during middle childhood continues to be rather limited. Moreover, research is ambiguous on how the quality of one's early social‐emotional environment shapes FER development, and longitudinal studies spanning from infancy to later development are scarce. In this study, we examine how the cohesive, authoritarian, disengaged and enmeshed family system types, assessed during pregnancy and infancy, predict children's FER accuracy and interpretative biases towards happiness, fear, anger and sadness at the age of 10 years (N = 79). The results demonstrated that children from disengaged families (i.e., highly distressed relationships) show superior FER accuracy to those from cohesive families (i.e., harmonious and stable relationships). Regarding interpretative biases, children from cohesive families showed a greater fear bias compared to children from disengaged families. Our findings suggest that even in a relatively low‐risk population, variation in the quality of children's early family relationships may shape children's subsequent FER development, perhaps as an evolution‐based adaptation to their social‐emotional environment.

Abstract. Background: Young migrants face particular risks to develop mental health problems. Discrimination and social support impact mental health, yet little is known about the differential impact thereof on mental health in newcomers, non-newcomer migrants, and non-migrants. Aim: This study sheds light on mental health (posttraumatic stress, behavioral problems, hyperactivity, emotional distress, peer relationship problems, prosocial behavior) and the overall well-being of newcomers, non-newcomer migrants, and non-migrants. Furthermore, the impact of social support and discrimination on mental health is investigated. Method: Descriptive analysis and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) were applied to analyze responses of 2,320 adolescents through self-report questionnaires in Finland, Sweden, and the UK. Results: Newcomers, non-newcomer migrants, and non-migrants have different psychological profiles. While newcomers suffer more from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and peer problems, non-newcomers and non-migrants report more hyperactivity. Discrimination strongly threatens all mental health dimensions, while support from family serves as a protective factor. Support from friends has a positive impact on PTSD among newcomers. Limitations: As this study has a cross-sectional design, conclusions about causality cannot be drawn. In addition, history of traumatic life events or migration trajectory was lacking, while it may impact mental health. Conclusion: Different mental health profiles of newcomers, non-newcomer migrants, and non-migrants point to the need for a tailored and diversified approach. Discrimination remains a risk factor for mental health, while family support is a protective factor for adolescents. Interventions that foster social support from friends would be especially beneficial for newcomers.