Suchergebnisse

Communities That Care (CTC) is a prevention-planning system that helps community members plan, implement, and evaluate evidence-based prevention strategies that target common behavioral problems among youth. Recent evaluations of the system have indicated promising results. To date, most of these studies have examined broad effects across multiple implementation sites. The purpose of the current study was to determine if such promising results could be replicated in a single rural county that has been implementing the CTC system for more than a decade. The results of this utilization-focused evaluation indicate a variety of positive effects on outcomes among adolescents.

Advances in the field of prevention science have resulted in strategies that target various youth outcomes. In recent years, numerous "best practices" lists have been developed to help professionals identify such strategies. Some scholars have questioned the quality of these lists and cautioned that there are flaws in evaluations of many prevention strategies. The purpose of this paper is to review these criticisms and provide applied family scholars with suggestions regarding how to identify effective strategies.

The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of depressive symptoms among adolescents using concepts drawn from two theoretical models that underlie popular youth-focused programs. Specifically, we assessed the degree to which family-level risk factors increase the likelihood of depressive symptoms, and the degree to which community and/or school-level protective/promotive factors either buffer against risk, or directly lead to lower levels of depressive symptoms. Results indicate that three of the four hypothesized risk factors were associated with elevated levels of depressive symptoms. In addition, the protective/promotive factors had more promotive than protective effects because they were directly related to lower levels of symptoms. Implications for youth-focused programming are discussed.

ObjectiveUsing an ecological resilience model, we sought to identify protective factors that buffer against the effects of stressful deployment‐related experiences on symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among active duty U.S. Air Force personnel who were married or in a committed relationship.BackgroundStressful deployment experiences are associated with PTSD symptoms among active duty military personnel. However, certain protective factors may buffer against negative effects of such experiences.MethodAnalyses for the present study were active duty military personnel who completed the 2011 Air Force Community Assessment Survey, were married or in a committed relationship, and had completed at least one deployment at the time of the survey (N = 12,166).ResultsRegression analyses indicated that stressful deployment experiences were statistically related to elevated PTSD symptoms but also that both personal and contextual factors moderated those symptoms. Furthermore, self‐efficacy, family coping, spouse/partner support, financial resources, and religious participation moderated the relation between stressful deployment experiences and PTSD symptoms.ConclusionPTSD symptoms were positively associated with stressful deployment experiences, and symptoms were less likely to occur when service members experienced support from individual, family, and community sources.ImplicationsInterventions that promote self‐efficacy and social support from multiple ecological contexts may help reduce PTSD symptoms among combat‐exposed Air Force personnel.

This paper addresses a conundrum that merits scholarly attention—why social scientists' ability to generate high quality research has outpaced their ability to disseminate research into the policymaking process. The paper describes Family Impact Seminars, a series of seminars, briefing reports, and follow‐up activities that provide up‐to‐date, solution‐oriented information to state policymakers. In support of the proposed "three‐communities" theory, the utilization of research in policymaking appears to depend upon several pragmatic practices and procedures, ten which are detailed in the paper.

Numerous studies have focused on links between religiosity and marital outcomes. Results suggest that various aspects of religiosity predict outcomes such as marital satisfaction and commitment. However, less research has focused on identifying the processes by which these links occur. This study had two primary goals: (a) determine if perceptions of spousal values mediate associations between religiosity and marital satisfaction and (b) examine the degree to which predictors of marital satisfaction differ across different regions of the United States. Data were gathered from 1,513 married individuals living in Arkansas, Utah, and Vermont. Results indicated that religiosity and perceptions of several spousal values were significantly associated with increased marital satisfaction. Findings suggest little evidence of mediating effects of spousal values, but there was significant variation in findings across the three states.

AbstractResults of numerous studies have demonstrated a positive relation between religiosity and marital well‐being. In this study, the authors examined direct effects on marital satisfaction of religious homogamy, prayer for spousal well‐being, and forgiveness. They also examined the degree to which religiosity buffered against risks to marital well‐being. The results indicated significant positive linear relations between each indicator of religiosity and marital satisfaction. Furthermore, religiosity moderated, or buffered against, the negative effects of risk factors; specifically, religious homogamy buffered against previous divorce; prayer buffered against having a high‐stress marriage; and spousal forgiveness buffered against cohabitation before marriage, previous divorce, and stressful marriage.

A growing body of literature has examined relations among qualities of character—or marital virtues—and marital outcomes. Results of past research have suggested positive relations between qualities such as generosity, kindness, and forgiveness, and marital well‐being. We expand on previous research by examining relations between three qualities of character and marital satisfaction with 1,513 respondents randomly selected from three states. Specifically, we examined the effects of participants' perceptions of their partners' humility, compassion, and positivity on their own marital satisfaction. Results indicated statistically significant, positive associations between each of these qualities and marital satisfaction, although results vary by gender. Furthermore, a statistically significant interaction effect suggested that spousal humility may be a protective factor against marital stress among women. Implications for practice and program development are discussed.

The necessity to implement evidence-based programs to support the healthy development of youth and families is becoming part of national policy. Organizations that are not "ready" to do so will likely lose resources, disallowing them to serve as they have set out to do. Consequently, the current survey study draws from a national sample of Cooperative Extension personnel in 2009 to examine characteristics within their organizational context that facilitate successful change related to youth/family programming. Data were collected from 946 4-H/youth development or Family and Consumer Sciences employees at all levels. Self-reported indices of each state organization's openness to change, leadership, morale, communication, and resources were constructed to assess the organizational context. Dependent variables included indicators of readiness to implement prevention and evidence-based programming. Results suggest that the organizational context was strongly associated with indicators of readiness for evidence-based prevention programming, and specifically, the clarity of communication was most important.