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Guided by a family stress perspective, we examined the hypothesis that discussing money would be associated with the handling of marital conflict in the home. Analyses were based on dyadic hierarchical linear modeling of 100 husbands' and 100 wives' diary reports of 748 conflict instances. Contrary to findings from previous laboratory‐based surveys, spouses did not rate money as the most frequent source of marital conflict in the home. However, compared to nonmoney issues, marital conflicts about money were more pervasive, problematic, and recurrent, and remained unresolved, despite including more attempts at problem solving. Implications for professionals who assist couples in managing their relationships and family finances are discussed.

Social identity in Northern Ireland is multifaceted, with historical, religious, political, social, economic, and psychological underpinnings. Understanding the factors that influence the strength of identity with the Protestant or Catholic community, the two predominate social groups in Northern Ireland, has implications for individual well-being as well as for the continuation of tension and violence in this setting of protracted intergroup conflict. This study examined predictors of the strength of in-group identity in 692 women (mean age 37 years) in post-accord Northern Ireland. For Catholics, strength of in-group identity was positively linked to past negative impact of sectarian conflict and more frequent current church attendance, whereas for Protestants, strength of in-group identity was related to greater status satisfaction regarding access to jobs, standard of living, and political power compared to Catholics; that is, those who felt less relative deprivation. The discussion considers the differences in the factors underlying stronger identity for Protestants and Catholics in this context.

AbstractAddressing a gap in process‐oriented understanding of relations between marital conflict and children's adjustment, propositions of the emotional security hypothesis from a family‐wide perspective were tested in a longitudinal research design. Participants were 181 families and their 11–12 year‐old‐child (115 boys, 76 girls) living in Wales, in the United Kingdom. Relations between marital conflict, children's emotional security about marital conflict and parenting, respectively, and children's adjustment were assessed based on reports by mothers, fathers, and children and videotaped analogue procedures completed by children. Structural equation modelling indicated that children's emotional security about interparental conflict (emotional regulation, cognitive representations and behavioural regulation) mediated the relation between marital conflict and children's security about parenting. Processes pertaining to children's security in multiple family systems (i.e., interparental and parent–child) provided an indirect mechanism through which interparental conflict affected children's symptoms of psychological distress (internalising and externalising problems) assessed 12 months later. Future directions for further tests of comprehensive, theoretically based models for the effects of marital conflict on children are discussed.

AbstractRebuilding society in the wake of conflict often falls on the generation born in peace. Yet, youth contributions to peacebuilding are often overlooked. This article challenges the narrative that sidelines the constructive contributions of young people in conflict‐affected settings. Instead, we identify different kinds of youth peacebuilders. Using a person‐centered approach, we conduct a latent class analysis of 590 adolescents (Mage = 16.8, SDage = 2.0, years old), evenly split by sex (51% female) and representing both communities, or conflict‐related identity groups, in Northern Ireland (38% Catholic, 62% Protestant). Across 10 indicators capturing different types and targets of prosocial action, the best fit to the data was a four‐class model: Peace in Name Only (36%), Peace at Home (33%), Peace Within Community (13%), and Future Peacebuilder (16%). Class membership varied based on youth's prior exposure to intergroup threat, or sectarian antisocial behavior. Prior exposure was related to a higher probability of being in the Peace at Home or Future Peacebuilder, compared to the Peace in Name Only class. The importance of recognizing the different kinds of youth peacebuilders in a conflict‐affected society is discussed, along with implications for global policy.

Going beyond the association between youth exposure to political violence and psychopathology, the current paper examines within-person change in youth strength of identity with their ethno-political group and youth reports of the insecurity in their communities. Conceptually related but growing out of different paradigms, both group identity and emotional insecurity have been examined as key variables impacting youth responses to threats from other group members. The goal of the current study is to review previous studies examining these two key variables and to contribute new analyses, modeling within-person change in both variables and examining co-variation in their growth The current paper uses data from 823 Belfast adolescents over 4 years. The results suggest youth are changing linearly over age in both constructs and that there are ethno-political group differences in how youth are changing. The results also indicate that change in insecurity is related to strength of identity at age 18, and strength of identity and emotional insecurity are related at age 18. Implications and directions for future work in the area of youth and political violence are discussed.

The effects on children of political violence are matters of international concern, with many negative effects well-documented. At the same time, relations between war, terrorism or other forms of political violence and child development do not occur in a vacuum. The impact can be understood as related to changes in the communities, families and other social contexts in which children live, and in the psychological processes engaged by these social ecologies. To advance this process-oriented perspective, a social ecological model for the effects of political violence on children is advanced. This approach is illustrated by findings and methods from an ongoing research project on political violence and children in Northern Ireland. Aims of this project include both greater insight into this particular context for political violence and the provision of a template for study of the impact of children's exposure to violence in other regions of the world. Accordingly, the applicability of this approach is considered for other social contexts, including (a) another area in the world with histories of political violence, and (b) a context of community violence in the US.

Adolescents are often exposed to the lasting effects of political conflict. Complementing existing research on negative outcomes in these settings, this paper focuses on the role of the family (N = 731 mother/adolescent dyads, 51% female, 14.72 (SD = 1.99) years old at Time 1) in promoting constructive youth outcomes in response to perceived conflict in Northern Ireland. Exploratory factor analyses revealed two related forms of youth civic engagement: volunteerism and political participation. Structural equation modelling revealed that compared to males, female adolescents reported more volunteerism. Older adolescents reported higher political participation and lower volunteerism. Moreover, over three time points, the primary model test revealed that the impact of perceived political conflict on adolescent volunteerism and political engagement was partially mediated by family cohesion. These findings suggest that amid protracted political conflict, the family may be a key factor underlying adolescents' contributions to post-accord peacebuilding.

Counterbalancing the narrative of youth as either helpless victims or ruthless perpetrators, a new generation of research in conflict settings focuses on their peacebuilding potential, including constructs such as prosocial behaviors and civic engagement. This paper prospectively examines trajectories of adolescent prosocial behaviors (N= 999; Time 1: M=12.18, SD=1.82, overall range 10–20 years old) over six consecutive years in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A dual change model found an initial shallow decrease in prosocial behaviors that dropped more sharply in later adolescence. Exposure to sectarianism related to an accelerated decrease in prosocial behaviors. Trajectories of prosocial behaviors positively related to later social and political engagement. Intervention implications address how to promote youth prosocial behaviors and civic engagement amid protracted political conflict.

Counterbalancing the narrative of youth as either helpless victims or ruthless perpetrators, a new generation of research in conflict settings focuses on their peacebuilding potential, including constructs such as prosocial behaviors and civic engagement. This paper prospectively examines trajectories of adolescent prosocial behaviors (N= 999; Time 1: M=12.18, SD=1.82, overall range 10-20 years old) over six consecutive years in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A dual change model found an initial shallow decrease in prosocial behaviors that dropped more sharply in later adolescence. Exposure to sectarianism related to an accelerated decrease in prosocial behaviors. Trajectories of prosocial behaviors positively related to later social and political engagement. Intervention implications address how to promote youth prosocial behaviors and civic engagement amid protracted political conflict.