Parental health risk preferences, socio-economic status and offspring's alcohol behavior in South Africa

Alcohol consumption represents a widespread behavior with detrimental effects on both individuals and society. Understanding the factors influencing offspring alcohol consumption is crucial for identifying potential risk factors and informing prevention and intervention strategies. Existing empirical literature underscores the intricate interplay of biological, environmental, and social factors in shaping offspring alcohol consumption. Building upon this foundation, this study investigates the determinants of health risk preferences, such as alcohol consumption, among South African offspring, utilizing a dataset comprising the 2008, 2010, 2012, and 2014 waves of the National Income Dynamic Study (NIDS). Logistic regressions are employed to model the determinants of offspring alcohol consumption, while ordered logits are utilized to assess the impact of parental drinking on offspring drinking frequency. The findings indicate that parental drinking significantly influences offspring alcohol intake. Specifically, daughters' alcohol consumption is influenced solely by maternal drinking, whereas sons are affected by both parents' alcohol consumption. Furthermore, while daughters from currently disadvantaged backgrounds may exhibit higher tendencies towards alcohol consumption, those with mothers from such backgrounds and fathers from more affluent backgrounds are less likely to engage in such behavior. Additionally, the results suggest that male offspring from higher-income brackets are less likely to consume alcohol, yet sons of wealthy fathers are more likely to adopt such lifestyles.

Disentangling the multigenerational transmissions of socioeconomic disadvantages and mental health problems by gender and across lineages: Findings from the Stockholm Birth Cohort Multigenerational Study

There is a paucity of research examining the patterning of socioeconomic disadvantages and mental health problems across multiple generations. The current study therefore aimed to investigate the interconnected transmissions of socioeconomic disadvantages and mental health problems from grandparents to grandchildren through the parents, as well as the extent to which these transmissions differ according to lineage (i.e., through matrilineal/patrilineal descent) and grandchild gender. Drawing on the Stockholm Birth Cohort Multigenerational Study, the sample included 21,416 unique lineages by grandchild gender centered around cohort members born in 1953 (parental generation) as well as their children (grandchild generation) and their parents (grandparental generation). Based on local and national register data, socioeconomic disadvantages were operationalized as low income, and mental health problems as psychiatric disorders. A series of path models based on structural equation modelling were applied to estimate the associations between low income and psychiatric disorders across generations and for each lineage-gender combination. We found a multigenerational transmission of low income through the patriline to grandchildren. Psychiatric disorders were transmitted through both the patriline and matriline, but only to grandsons. The patriline-grandson transmission of psychiatric disorder partially operated via low income of the fathers. Furthermore, grandparents' psychiatric disorders influenced their children's and grandchildren's income. We conclude that there is evidence of transmissions of socioeconomic disadvantages and mental health problems across three generations, although these transmissions differ by lineage and grandchild gender. Our findings further highlight that grandparents' mental health problems could cast a long shadow on their children's and grandchildren's socioeconomic outcomes, and that socioeconomic disadvantages in the intermediate generation may play an important role for the multigenerational transmission of mental health problems.

The intergenerational persistence of opioid dependence: Evidence from administrative data

To address the opioid crisis, it is crucial to understand its origins. We provide descriptive evidence for the intergenerational persistence of opioid dependence. Our analysis is based on administrative data covering the universe of Austrian births from 1984 to 1990. We consider prescription opioids and a new proxy for addiction to illicit opioids. We find that, if at least one parent is using illicit opioids, the likelihood of the child using increases from 1% to 7%. For prescription opioids, we observe an increase from 3.6% to 6.7%. Both associations are stable and do not change when controlling for environmental variables.

How do grandparents influence child health and development? A systematic review

Grandparents are often a key source of care provision for their grandchildren, yet they are sidelined in caregiving research and policy decisions. We conducted a global, systematic review of the literature to examine the scope and quality of studies to date (PROSPERO database CRD42019133894). We screened 12,699 abstracts across 7 databases, and identified 206 studies that examined how grandparents influence child health and development. Indicators of grandparent involvement were contact, caregiving behaviors, and financial support. Our review focused on two research questions: how do grandparents influence child health and development outcomes, and what range of child outcomes is reported globally? We examined study design, sample characteristics, key findings, and outcomes pertaining to grandchildren's physical health, socio-emotional and behavioral health, and cognitive and educational development.  Our search captured studies featuring grandparent custodial care (n = 35), multigenerational care (n = 154), and both types of care (n = 17). We found substantial heterogeneity in the data provided on co-residence, caregiving roles, resources invested, outcomes, and mechanisms through which "grandparent effects" are manifested. We identified two important issues, related to operationalizing indicators of grandparent involvement and conceptualizing potential mechanisms, leading to gaps in the evidence base. Currently, our understanding of the pathways through which grandparents exert their influence is constrained by limited data on what grandparents actually do and insufficient attention given to interpersonal and structural contexts. We present a conceptual framework to explicitly measure and theorize pathways of care, with a view to inform research design and policy implementation. We underscore the need for more robust data on three indicators of caregiver involvement-contact, behavior, and support-and for careful description of structural and interpersonal contexts in caregiving research.

Social class, social mobility and alcohol-related disorders in Swedish men and women: A study of four generations

Objectives

To investigate whether and how social class and social mobility in grandparents and parents predict alcohol-related disorders (ARDs) in males and females aged 12+ years, and whether intergenerational social prediction of ARDs varies across time periods.

Methods

The study sample included four successive generations (G) of Swedish families from the Uppsala Birth Cohort Multigenerational Study: G0 born 1851–1912; G1 born 1915–1929; G2 born 1940–1964 and G3 born 1965–1989. Two study populations were created, each consisting of grandparents, parents and offspring: population I ‘G0-G1-G2’ (offspring n = 18 430) and population II ‘G1-G2-G3’ (offspring n = 26 469). Registers and archives provided data on ancestors’ socio-demographic factors and ARD history, together with offspring ARD development between 1964–2008. Cox regression models examined the hazard of offspring ARD development according to grandparental social class and grandparental-to-parental social trajectories, controlling for offspring birth year, grandmother’s and mother’s marital status and parental ARDs.

Results

Disadvantaged grandparental social class predicted increased ARD risk in offspring in population I, although the effect attenuated and became non-significant in males after adjusting for parental characteristics (adjusted hazard ratio (HR) = 1.80 (95%CI; 1.07, 3.03) in females, HR = 1.32 (95%CI; 0.93, 1.89) in males). In population II, no increase in ARD risk by grandparental social was evident. In both populations, males were at the highest ARD risk if both parents and grandparents belonged to disadvantaged social class (population I: HR = 1.82 (95%CI; 1.22–2.72); population II: HR = 1.68 (95%CI; 1.02–2.76)).

Conclusions

Intergenerational social patterning of ARDs appears to be time-contextual and gender-specific. The role of grandparental social class in developing ARDs in grandchildren seems to decline over time, while persistent grandparental-to-parental social disadvantage remains associated with higher ARD risk in males. When targeting higher risk groups, continuity of familial social disadvantage, particularly among males, should be considered.

Increased DNA Methylation of ABCB1, CYP2D6, and OPRM1 Genes in Newborn Infants of Methadone-Maintained Opioid-Dependent Mothers

OBJECTIVE

To investigate whether in utero opioid exposure, which has been linked to adverse neurodevelopmental and social outcomes, is associated with altered DNA methylation of opioid-related genes at birth.

STUDY DESIGN

Observational cohort study of 21 healthy methadone-maintained opioid-dependent mother-infant dyads consecutively delivered at >36 weeks of gestation, and 2 comparator groups: smoking, "deprived" opioid-naïve mother-infant dyads (n = 17) and nonsmoking, "affluent" opioid-naïve mother-infant dyads (n = 15). DNA methylation of ABCB1, CYP2D6, and OPRM1 genes for mothers and babies was determined from buccal swabs. Plasma methadone concentrations were additionally measured for methadone-maintained opioid-dependent mothers.

RESULTS

DNA methylation for ABCB1 and CYP2D6 was similar in opioid-naïve infants compared with their mothers, but was less for OPRM1 (3 ± 1.6% vs 8 ± 1%, P < .0005). Opioid-exposed newborns had similar DNA methylation to their mothers for all genes studied and greater methylation of ABCB1 (18 ± 4.8% vs 3 ± 0.5%), CYP2D6 (92 ± 1.2% vs 89 ± 2.4%), and OPRM1 (8 ± 0.3% vs 3 ± 1.6%) compared with opioid-naïve newborns (P < .0005 for all 3 genes). Infant DNA methylation was not related to birth weight, length of hospital stay, maternal smoking, dose or plasma concentration of methadone at delivery, or postcode of residence.

CONCLUSIONS

In utero exposure to opioids is associated with increased methylation of opioid-related genes in the newborn infant. It is not clear whether these findings are due to opioid exposure per se or other associated lifestyle factors.

Exploring Intergenerational Continuity in Gang Membership

Little is known regarding intergenerational continuity in gang membership. Qualitative literature is suggestive of intergenerational parallelism yet no known research examines the causal mechanisms associated with this cycle, if it even exists. Prospective, longitudinal data from the Rochester Youth Development Study (RYDS) and the Rochester Intergenerational Study (RIGS) assess intergenerational continuity in gang membership among 371 parent-child dyads in a series of logistic regressions accounting for moderating influences of parent sex, child sex, parent-child sex combinations, and level of contact. Path analyses reported herein explore whether parenting behaviors mediate the relationship between parent and child gang membership among fathers and mothers, respectively. Three key findings emerge. First, intergenerational continuity in gang membership exists between mothers and daughters and, conditional on contact, between fathers and sons. Second, maltreatment mediates some of this relationship among father-son dyads. Third, no pathways to daughter gang membership were identified among mothers. In sum, this study provides evidence of intergenerational continuity in gang membership and further highlights the importance of parent sex, child sex, and level of contact in intergenerational research. Future research should further explore the causal pathways between parent and child gang membership.

Substance use capital: Social resources enhancing youth substance use

BACKGROUND

Social capital is described as a protective factor against youth substance use, but it may also be associated with behaviours that do not enhance health. The present study hypothesized that 'substance use capital', i.e. resources favourable to substance use, is a risk factor for substance use and misuse.

METHODS

We used baseline data from the ongoing Cohort Study on Substance Use Risk Factors (C-SURF) that included a representative sample of young Swiss men (n=5623). Substance use (alcohol, cannabis, 15 illicit drugs, lifetime use, hazardous use and dependence), substance use capital (parental and peer attitudes towards substance use, parental and peer drug use, perceived norms of substance use) and aspects of social capital (relationships with parents and peers) were assessed. Logistic regressions were used to examine the associations between substance-related resources and social resources, and substance use.

RESULTS

Results showed that substance-related resources were associated with an increased risk of substance use (OR between 1.25 and 4.67), whereas social resources' associations with substance use were commonly protective but weaker than substance-related resources. Thus, a drug-friendly environment facilitated substance use and misuse. Moreover, the results showed that peer environments were more drug-friendly than familial environments.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, this study highlighted a concept of 'substance use capital', which may be useful for advancing both theoretical and applied knowledge of substance use. Indeed, substance use is not only associated with a lack of social resources, but also with specific drug-friendly social resources coming from environment and background.

The Availability of Substances in Adolescence: Influences in Emerging Adulthood

This study examines how the availability of substances in the home during adolescence and its influence on substance use in young adulthood. Data are drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (ADD Health). The final sample consisted of approximately 15,000 cases from waves 1, 3 and 4. Multivariate analyses indicate that the availability of substances in the home affects young adult substance use and substance use in later young adulthood. We also find that the availability of substances in the home during adolescence is associated with an earlier age at first substance use. This study offers further evidence for understanding how the home environment affects substance use behavior among young adults. In this case, exposure to substances in adolescence, and their easy availability increases the likelihood of substance use in adolescence, and increases use in young adulthood.

Adolescent Life History Strategy in the Intergenerational Transmission and Developmental Stability of Substance Use

Research suggests that fast life history strategy (LHS) may be a primary driver of substance use among young adults. However, a recent study reported that (a) young adult fast LHS did not subsume all theorized indicators of LHS during this period and (b) fast LHS among parents did not predict young adult fast LHS or liability for use of common substances. In this study, we used structural equations and national data to test whether these findings generalized to adolescence. In addition, given that LHS and substance use share genetic and neuropsychological bases, we examined whether fast LHS could explain the developmental stability of substance use. Overall, our results extend the findings discussed above and suggest that fast LHS fully explains the developmental stability of substance use among youth. We discuss implications for life history models, research applying life history theory and substance use, and substance abuse prevention and treatment.

Exploring Intergenerational Discontinuity in Problem Behavior: Bad Parents with Good Children

Using data from the Rochester Youth Development Study, a series of regression models are estimated on offspring problem behavior with a focus on the interaction between parental history of delinquency and the parent-child relationship. Good parenting practices significantly interact with the particular shape of parental propensity of offending over time, functioning as protective factors to protect against problematic behaviors among those who are most at risk. The moderation effects vary slightly by the age of our subjects. Accordingly, it is important to distinguish the effect of not only the level of parental delinquency at one point in time, but also the shape of the delinquency trajectory on outcomes for their children. Good parenting holds the hope of breaking the vicious cycle of intergenerational transmission of delinquency.

Do adolescent drug users fare the worst? Onset type, juvenile delinquency, and criminal careers

Although substance abuse often accompanies delinquency and other forms of antisocial behavior, there is less scholarly agreement about the timing of substance use vis-à-vis an individual's antisocial trajectory. Similarly, although there is extraordinary evidence that onset is inversely related to the severity of the criminal career, there is surprisingly little research on the offense type of onset or the type of antisocial behavior that was displayed when an individual initiated his or her offending career. Drawing on data from a sample of serious adult criminal offenders (N = 500), the current study examined 12 forms of juvenile delinquency (murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, auto theft, arson, weapons, sexual offense, drug sales, and drug use) in addition to age at arrest onset, age, sex, race to explore their association with chronicity (total arrests), extreme chronicity (1 SD above the mean which was equivalent to 90 career arrests), and lambda (offending per year). The only onset offense type that was significantly associated with all criminal career outcomes was juvenile drug use. Additional research on the offense type of delinquent onset is needed to understand launching points of serious antisocial careers.

Life History Strategy and Young Adult Substance Use

This study tested whether life history strategy (LHS) and its intergenerational transmission could explain young adult use of common psychoactive substances. We tested a sequential structural equation model using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. During young adulthood, fast LHS explained 61% of the variance in overall liability for substance use. Faster parent LHS predicted poorer health and lesser alcohol use, greater neuroticism and cigarette smoking, but did not predict fast LHS or overall liability for substance use among young adults. Young adult neuroticism was independent of substance use controlling for fast LHS. The surprising finding of independence between parent and child LHS casts some uncertainty upon the identity of the parent and child LHS variables. Fast LHS may be the primary driver of young adult use of common psychoactive substances. However, it is possible that the young adult fast LHS variable is better defined as young adult mating competition. We discuss our findings in depth, chart out some intriguing new directions for life history research that may clarify the dimensionality of LHS and its mediation of the intergenerational transmission of substance use, and discuss implications for substance abuse prevention and treatment.

Intergenerational continuity of substance use

Guided by rigorous methodology and a life-course perspective, the goal of this research is to address a gap in current knowledge on whether, when, and how strongly intergenerational continuity of substance use exists when examining age-equivalent and developmentally specific stages of the life course. Annual self-reported substance use measures were analyzed from a prospective, longitudinal, and nationally representative sample that originally consisted of 1,725 respondents and their families, who were then interviewed over a 27-year period from 1977 to 2004. Findings from multilevel random-intercept regression models provide support for intergenerational continuity when substance use occurs in emerging adulthood but not when limited to adolescence. Implications, limitations, and future research directions are discussed.

Adolescent Onset of Maternal Substance Abuse: Descriptive Findings from a Feasibility Trial

Although maternal substance abuse in child welfare populations is a well-documented occurrence, little is known about the onset of these behaviors or the substance abuse histories of these mothers. Descriptive data from a small feasibility trial of mothers referred for substance abuse and child neglect suggest adolescent onset of hard substance use. Age of onset was associated with family history of use. The majority of mothers reported polysubstance abuse starting at an early age and quickly escalating patterns of behavior including IV drug use. Implications for prevention efforts for children of families identified with substance abuse problems are discussed.

Maternal and paternal imprisonment in the stress process

Parental incarceration is now prevalent in community samples (e.g., with 11% of children reporting paternal imprisonment and 3% reporting maternal imprisonment in a national sample), pointing to a potentially important childhood trauma that should be included in work on contemporary childhood stressors in this era of mass incarceration. This paper investigates the influences of maternal and paternal imprisonment on changes in young adult mental health using a nationally representative sample. We assess four perspectives-gendered loss, same-sex role model, intergenerational stress, and maternal salience - on the joint influences of maternal and paternal incarceration within the broader stress process paradigm. The results generalize support for a gendered loss perspective developed in work on parental death and an early small study of parental incarceration. This pattern reveals maternal incarceration increases depressive symptoms while paternal incarceration increases substance role problems. Chronicity of parental imprisonment and its timing are also influential. Analyses further specify a vulnerability of male and minority young adults to high levels of mental health problems following maternal and paternal incarceration in adolescence.

Women’s “Storylines” of Methamphetamine Initiation in the Midwest

Scholars have learned a great deal about the age at which individuals typically initiate particular drugs, the contexts in which they initiate use, and some of the motivations for initiation. Despite this attention, there remain few scholarly examinations of the accounts or “storylines” that users themselves give as explanation for their initiation. The authors present research from 40 interviews with female methamphetamine (meth) users incarcerated in Missouri, a state that has gained national attention for having high numbers of meth lab seizures. This study focuses specifically on the ways in which women articulate their storylines of initiation into meth use. These reveal a number of important findings, including the most common contexts in which women describe first using meth and their motivations for doing so. In particular, the findings highlight the role of family drug use, prior victimization experiences, and meth’s known pharmacological effects in women’s motivations for initiation.

Onset drinking: how it is related both to mother's drinking and mother-child relationships

Employing the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY) as a sample of adolescents and their mothers, the present study connected the onset of adolescents' drinking to certain posited risk and protective factors characterizing their families. Via event history analysis and the discrete-time method, the data analysis involved more than 6,331 pair-interview-year units. The results show that both peer influences and mother's daily alcohol consumption enhance the risk that an adolescent aged between 10 and 14 years will begin drinking. At the same time, the quality of a mother's relationship with her child is an important posited protective factor delaying onset drinking.

Mother-Daughter Attachment and Drug Abuse among Latinas in the United States

Although the risks and protective processes influencing substance use behaviors of adult Latinos have been increasingly examined in the literature, substance abuse among adult Latinas remains a relatively understudied area. This study examined associations between mother-daughter attachment and substance abuse among 158 Latina mothers and their adult daughters (N = 316). Dyads of mothers and daughters were categorized into four groups: (a) mother/daughter both drug or alcohol abusers (Dyad 1), (b) mother abuser and daughter non-abuser (Dyad 2), (c) mother non-abuser and daughter abuser (Dyad 3), and (d) mother/daughter both non-abusers (Dyad 4). Dyad 1 participants reported lower levels of attachment to each other than all other types of dyads. Participants born in the U.S. reported more substance abuse than their non-U.S. born counterparts. Future longitudinal research is recommended to determine the presence of a mother-daughter attachment threshold that, if established early and maintained, may act as a protective mechanism against the intergenerational co-occurrence of substance abuse among adult Latinas.

The Apple Doesn't Fall Far from the Tree (or Does It?): Intergenerational Patterns of Antisocial Behavior-The American Society of Criminology 2008 Sutherland Address

There is a growing literature on intergenerational studies of antisocial behavior and a growing understanding of the unique contributions they are likely to make. At the same time, the field has yet to agree on core design features for intergenerational study. In this article I propose a set of defining design elements that all intergenerational studies should meet and I discuss the advantages of these studies for enhancing our understanding of the onset and course of delinquent careers. I then use data from the ongoing Rochester Intergenerational Study to illustrate these points and the potential yield of intergenerational studies. In particular, I examine intergenerational continuities in antisocial behavior and school disengagement, test the cycle of violence hypothesis to see if a history of maltreatment increases the likelihood of perpetration of maltreatment, and estimate a structural equation model to help identify mediating pathways that link parents and children with respect to antisocial behavior.

Intergenerational linkages in antisocial behaviour

BACKGROUND

A life-course perspective was used to examine whether a parent's adolescent antisocial behaviour increases the chances of his or her child being involved in antisocial behaviour and, if so, the extent to which different aspects of parenting mediate this relationship.

AIM

It was hypothesised that there will be significant levels of intergenerational continuity in antisocial behaviour when parents have ongoing contact with the child, and that stress from parenting and ineffective parenting styles will mediate this relationship.

METHOD

Longitudinal data from the Rochester Intergenerational Study were used to test these issues in structural equation models for fathers and for mothers.

RESULTS

Parental antisocial behaviour is significantly related to child antisocial behaviour for mothers and for fathers who have frequent contact with the child, but not for fathers with infrequent contact. For mothers, the impact of adolescent antisocial behaviour on the child's antisocial behaviour is primarily mediated through parenting stress and effective parenting. For high-contact fathers there are multiple mediating pathways that help explain the impact of their adolescent antisocial behaviour on their child's behaviour.

CONCLUSIONS

The roots of antisocial behaviour extend back at least to the parent's adolescence, and parenting interventions need to consider these long-term processes.

The impact of parental stressors on the intergenerational transmission of antisocial behavior

We examine the extent to which parental antisocial behavior is related to child antisocial behavior and, if it is, the extent to which the effect is mediated by parental stressors and by parenting behaviors. In particular, we examine two sources of stress-depressive symptoms and exposure to negative life events. The study is based on data from the Rochester Intergenerational Study, a prospective multi-generation panel study. The parent sample is 73% male and 27% female and predominantly African American (69%); the child sample consists of each parent's oldest biological child. We find significant levels of intergenerational continuity in antisocial behavior for mothers and for fathers who live with or supervise their child, but not for fathers who have low levels of contact with their child. Results of structural equation models of mediating pathways are similar for mothers and for supervisory fathers. Of the two stressors we examine, depressive symptoms appears to be the more consistent mediator. It, both directly and indirectly via its impact on parenting behaviors, influences the child's early onset of antisocial behavior. The results imply that childhood antisocial behavior has deep roots, extending back to the parent's adolescent development.