It is well documented that children’s language skills already vary by socioeconomic status by the time they are about 2-3 years old. In addition, study results demonstrate that the frequency of language-stimulating interaction behavior – as an important aspect of the proximal familial learning environment – significantly predicts children’s later language skills. However, it is … Read more
Social disparities in the vocabulary of 2-year-old children and the mediating effect of language-stimulating interaction behavior
What impacts early language skills? Effects of social disparities and different process characteristics of the home learning environment in the first 2 years
It is well documented that the language skills of preschool children differ substantially and that these differences are highly predictive of their later academic success and achievements. Especially in the early phases of children’s lives, the importance of different structural and process characteristics of the home learning environment (HLE) has been emphasized and research results … Read more
Gestational age, parent education, and education in adulthood
BACKGROUND Adults born preterm (<37 weeks) have lower educational attainment than those born term. Whether this relationship is modified by family factors such as socioeconomic background is, however, less well known. We investigated whether the relationship between gestational age and educational attainment in adulthood differed according to parents’ educational level in 4 Nordic countries. METHODS … Read more
Maternal hypertensive pregnancy disorders and mental disorders in children
The associations of maternal hypertensive pregnancy disorders with offspring mental disorders remain unclear. We examined whether maternal hypertensive disorders and maximum blood pressure during pregnancy predict offspring childhood mental disorders, whether the associations are independent of maternal and paternal mental disorders and paternal hypertensive disorders, independent of or additive with maternal early pregnancy overweight/obesity and … Read more
LGBT discrimination, harassment and violence in Germany, Portugal and the UK: A quantitative comparative approach
This study investigates the ways in which LGBT individuals in Germany, Portugal and the UK continue to experience discrimination, harassment and violence despite legal measures designed to protect them. Using an online questionnaire, the researchers gathered information from almost 20,000 people in Germany, 6,600 in the UK and 2000 in Portugal. The results show trans … Read more
Cash for Care as Special Money: The Meaning and Uses of the Care Allowance in Close Relationships in the Czech Republic
This paper investigates the responses of family members with long-term caring responsibilities in the Czech Republic to the introduction in 2007 of a cash-for-care benefit. Specifically, it examines how those family members viewed and used the benefit. The research compares two in-depth qualitative studies: one undertaken with adult children providing care to their parents and … Read more
The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Working Lives and Retirement Timing of Older Nurses in Ireland
This article draws on interviews with 16 female and nine male older nurses in Ireland in 2021 and asks what effect the pandemic has had on their working conditions and retirement intentions. It finds that while some responded positively to the pandemic, some experienced adverse health impacts, stress and exhaustion and many of the women … Read more
Golfing with Trump. Social capital, decline, inequality, and the rise of populism in the US
This paper analyses the extent to which the 2016 election of Donald Trump—and his failed re-election bid in 2020 – are, as often claimed, linked to lower levels of community engagement in the United States and rising inequality. It suggests an alternative view might be more accurate and that the rise in votes for Trump … Read more
From social origin to selective high school courses: Ability grouping as a mechanism of securing social advantage in Israeli secondary education
This paper focuses on ability grouping in middle school as an important mechanism enabling students with privileged social backgrounds to increase their likelihood of enrollment in the most selective and prestigious high school programs, thus paving the way to higher academic degrees and more lucrative occupations. Using data from Israeli national standardized tests administered in … Read more
The effect of COVID-19-related school closures on students’ well-being: Evidence from Danish nationwide panel data
New research from Denmark suggests that in some respects students’ wellbeing improved during the Spring 2020 lockdown, and that this effect was strongest among students of lower socioeconomic status. The study used data from the Danish Student Wellbeing Study, which is carried out nationwide on an annual basis. It compared responses from students aged 12-15 … Read more