Child effects and child care: Implications for risk and adjustment.

Evocative effects of child characteristics on the quality and quantity of child care were assessed in two studies using longitudinal data from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care. We focus on the influence of child characteristics on two important aspects of the child care experience: language stimulation provided by caregivers and quantity of care. In Study 1, associations between the developmental status of children aged 15 to 54 months and the language stimulation provided by their caregivers were examined using path models, and longitudinal child effects were detected across the earliest time points of the study. In Study 2, the associations among child behavior, temperament, development, and time in care were examined. Little evidence was found for such child effects on time in care. The results are discussed in terms of the effects of child care on child development and implications for developmental processes, particularly for children at greatest risk for developmental delay or psychopathology.

Promoting the Positive Development of Boys in High-Poverty Neighborhoods: Evidence From Four Anti-Poverty Experiments.

This study uses geocoded address data and information about parent's economic behavior and children's development from four random-assignment welfare and anti-poverty experiments conducted during the 1990s. We find that the impacts of these welfare and anti-poverty programs on boys' and girls' developmental outcomes during the transition to early adolescence differ as a function of neighborhood poverty levels. The strongest positive impacts of these programs are among boys who lived in high-poverty neighborhoods at the time their parents enrolled in the studies, with smaller or non-statistically significant effects for boys in lower poverty neighborhoods and for girls across all neighborhoods. This research informs our understanding of how neighborhood context and child gender may interact with employment-based policies to affect children's well-being.

Sleep and the body mass index and overweight status of children and adolescents.

Associations between sleep and the body mass index (BMI) and overweight status of children and adolescents were estimated using longitudinal data from a nationally representative sample of 2,281 children aged 3-12 years at baseline. Controlling for baseline BMI, children who slept less, went to bed later, or got up earlier at the time of the first assessment had higher BMIs 5 years later and were more likely to be overweight. Child age moderated the relationship between bedtime and BMI. In addition, the study reports nationally representative data on the sleep habits of American children aged 3-18 years. This study underscores the likely importance of sleep on children's physical health and suggests that sleep is important for understanding childhood weight problems.

Sleep timing and quantity in ecological and family context: a nationally representative time-diary study.

Associations between demographic characteristics, school schedules, activity choices, family functioning, and sleep behaviors were estimated using nationally representative time-diary data from 2,454 children (ages 5.5 to 11.9 years) and adolescents (ages 12.0 to 19.1 years). For weekdays, African American adolescents, Asian children, and those with earlier school start times and longer travel times to school reported fewer sleep hours. More time spent watching television (for children), doing homework (for adolescents), and engaging in religious activities predicted fewer hours, whereas a longer time spent on meals predicted greater hours of weekday sleep. For younger children, greater parental warmth predicted more hours of weekday sleep, whereas for adolescents, stricter household rules were protective. On weekends, African American adolescents and Hispanic children slept less, and there were strong effects of activity choices including time spent on television, computer and videogames, sports, religious activities, socializing, and employment. In accounting for age-related decreases in sleep hours from childhood to adolescence, earlier school start times, greater hours of homework, greater paid employment, less time spent on meals, and fewer household rules were all significant mediators.

Wealth patterns among elderly Americans: implications for health care affordability.

This paper estimates the ability of the elderly to pay for necessary health care services and emerging technologies. Projections from the Long Term Care Financing Model paint a promising picture of the income and assets that elders in the future will have available to support discretionary, uncovered health care and service costs. Nevertheless, policymakers should pay close attention to the finances of the "Tweeners"--people who are middle class with low levels of discretionary assets available for health and long-term care.

The 2030 problem: caring for aging baby boomers.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the coming challenges of caring for large numbers of frail elderly as the Baby Boom generation ages. STUDY SETTING: A review of economic and demographic data as well as simulations of projected socioeconomic and demographic patterns in the year 2030 form the basis of a review of the challenges related to caring for seniors that need to be faced by society. STUDY DESIGN: A series of analyses are used to consider the challenges related to caring for elders in the year 2030: (1) measures of macroeconomic burden are developed and analyzed, (2) the literatures on trends in disability, payment approaches for long-term care, healthy aging, and cultural views of aging are analyzed and synthesized, and (3) simulations of future income and assets patterns of the Baby Boom generation are developed. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: The economic burden of aging in 2030 should be no greater than the economic burden associated with raising large numbers of baby boom children in the 1960s. The real challenges of caring for the elderly in 2030 will involve: (1) making sure society develops payment and insurance systems for long-term care that work better than existing ones, (2) taking advantage of advances in medicine and behavioral health to keep the elderly as healthy and active as possible, (3) changing the way society organizes community services so that care is more accessible, and (4) altering the cultural view of aging to make sure all ages are integrated into the fabric of community life. CONCLUSIONS: To meet the long-term care needs of Baby Boomers, social and public policy changes must begin soon. Meeting the financial and social service burdens of growing numbers of elders will not be a daunting task if necessary changes are made now rather than when Baby Boomers actually need long-term care.