Although US rates of early fertility have declined, they remain high relative to other high-income countries, and disparities by population group persist. The share of the US youth population with immigrant parents has expanded greatly, yet relatively little is known about generational variations in early fertility. This study used Add Health data to investigate: (1) differences by generational status in the risk of early childbearing; (2) to what extent observed differences reflected timing of sexual onset versus post-onset proximate determinants like contraceptive use; and (3) the influence of individual-, family-, and neighborhood-level social factors. Foreign-born and second-generation young women initiated both sexual activity and childbearing later than those with US-born parents. Sequential hazard models revealed the importance of later sexual onset in explaining delayed fertility among the foreign-born, and of family attributes for their later sexual onset. Post-onset behaviors were central to the delayed childbearing observed among the second generation.

This study builds on and extends previous research on nativity variations in adolescent health and risk behavior by addressing three questions: (1) whether and how generational status and age at migration are associated with timing of sexual onset among U.S. adolescents; (2) whether and how family instability mediates associations between nativity and sexual debut; and (3) whether and how these associations vary by gender. We find that first- and second-generation immigrant youth initiate sexual activity later than native youth. Foreign-born youth who migrate after the start of adolescence exhibit the latest sexual onset; boys' sexual behavior is particularly sensitive to age at migration. Parental union stability is protective for first- and second-generation youth, especially boys; however, instability in co-residence with parents accelerates sexual debut for foreign-born girls, and dilutes protections from parental marital stability. Use of a non-English language at home delays sexual onset for immigrant girls, but not boys.

Millions of children in Sub-Saharan Africa live with adults, often parents, who are HIV-infected or ill due to AIDS. These children experience social, emotional, and health vulnerabilities that overlap with, but are not necessarily the same as, those of orphans or other vulnerable children. Despite their distinctive vulnerabilities, research aimed at understanding the situation of these children has been limited until very recently. This review summarizes the state of knowledge based on a systematic search of PubMed and Web of Science that identified 47 empirical research articles that examined either the population prevalence of children living with HIV-infected or AIDS-sick adults, or the consequences of adult HIV infection or AIDS illness for child well-being. This review confirms that this population of children is substantial in size, and that the vulnerabilities they experience are multi-faceted, spanning physical and emotional health and schooling. Mechanisms were examined empirically in only a small number of studies, but encompass poverty, transmission of opportunistic infections, care for unwell adults, adult distress, AIDS stigma, lack of social support, maternal breastfeeding issues, and vertical HIV transmission. Some evidence is provided that infants, adolescents, children with infected or ill mothers, and children living with severely ill adults are particularly vulnerable. Future research would benefit from more attention to causal inference and further characterization of processes and circumstances related to vulnerability and resilience. It would also benefit from further study of variation in observed associations between adult HIV/AIDS and child well-being based on characteristics such as age, sex, kinship, severity of illness, TB co-infection, disclosure, and serostatus awareness. Almost one-quarter of the studies reviewed did not investigate variation based on any of these factors. More nuanced understanding of the short- and long-term effects of adult HIV on children's needs and circumstances will be important to ongoing discussions about equity in policies and interventions.

Partnership formation is an important developmental task for adolescents, but cross-sectional and periodic longitudinal studies have lacked the measurement precision to portray partnership stability and flux and to capture the range of adolescent partnership experiences. This article assesses the promises and challenges of using bi-weekly mobile diaries administered over the course of a year to study adolescent partnership dynamics. Descriptive findings illustrate the potential of bi-weekly diaries for both capturing the longitudinal complexity and fluidity of adolescent partnerships as well as for reducing retrospection biases. Results also underscore several challenges, including those posed by missing data, and highlight several strategies for maximizing participant engagement and reliably tracing adolescent partnerships.

Objective

This study examines intergenerational continuities in relationship instability, general relationship quality, and intimate partner violence (IPV) between mothers and adolescents.

Background

A growing body of literature has observed similarities in relationship quality between parents and their adult offspring. Less attention has focused on whether intergenerational continuities are present in adolescent relationships.

Method

Using age 3, 5, 9, and 15 data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing birth cohort study (N=3,162), the authors examined associations between maternal reports of relationship instability, general quality, and IPV in early and middle childhood and similar adolescent reports at age 15. Variations based on timing and persistence of exposures were considered.

Results

In general, exposures to low-quality maternal relationships were associated with higher risk of forming adolescent partnerships and lower relationship quality. Intergenerational links in quality were predominantly construct-specific, consistent with observational learning processes. Adolescents exposed to maternal relationships of poor general quality in middle childhood were less likely to report high-quality relationships themselves, and those exposed to any maternal physical IPV victimization during childhood were more likely to perpetrate IPV in their own relationships. Exposure to maternal relationship instability in both early and middle childhood was associated with more adolescent romantic partners.

Conclusion

The study illuminates additional pathways through which healthy and unhealthy relationships are reproduced across generations.

Both low birthweight (<2500 g; LBW) and macrosomia (>4000 g) are considered adverse birth outcomes and are associated with later poor health conditions, yet the social determinants of macrosomia are understudied. In this study, we explore patterning of LBW, normal birthweight, and macrosomia by race/ethnicity and nativity. We examined data from all live births between 1999 and 2014 in New Jersey with a non-missing, plausible value of birthweight (n = 1,609,516). We compared the risk for LBW and macrosomia among non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic Asian mothers, and between the US- and native-born. For Hispanics and Asians, we also examined differences by country of origin. The racial/ethnic patterns for macrosomia mirrored those of LBW, suggesting that the factors underlying LBW shift birthweight distributions. For example, non-Hispanic White mothers had the lowest risk for LBW and the highest risk for macrosomia. Nativity patterns differed by subgroup, however, with unique risks for macrosomia among some origin groups, such as foreign-born Cubans. The racial/ethnic and nativity patterns of macrosomia do not completely mirror those of LBW, suggesting some distinct social risk factors for macrosomia. Our findings raise questions about whether and how racial/ethnic and nativity patterning in both low and excess birthweight is retained in later conditions, such as childhood obesity.

Background

In sub-Saharan Africa many children live in extreme poverty and experience a burden of illness and disease that is disproportionately high. The emergence of HIV and AIDS has only exacerbated long-standing challenges to improving children's health in the region, with recent cohorts experiencing pediatric AIDS and high levels of orphan status, situations which are monitored globally and receive much policy and research attention. Children's health, however, can be affected also by living with HIV-infected adults, through associated exposure to infectious diseases and the diversion of household resources away from them. While long recognized, far less research has focused on characterizing this distinct and vulnerable population of HIV-affected children.

Methods

Using Demographic and Health Survey data from 23 countries collected between 2003 and 2011, we estimate the percentage of children living in a household with at least one HIV-infected adult. We assess overlaps with orphan status and investigate the relationship between children and the adults who are infected in their households.

Results

The population of children living in a household with at least one HIV-infected adult is substantial where HIV prevalence is high; in Southern Africa, the percentage exceeded 10% in all countries and reached as high as 36%. This population is largely distinct from the orphan population. Among children living in households with tested, HIV-infected adults, most live with parents, often mothers, who are infected; nonetheless, in most countries over 20% live in households with at least one infected adult who is not a parent.

Conclusion

Until new infections contract significantly, improvements in HIV/AIDS treatment suggest that the population of children living with HIV-infected adults will remain substantial. It is vital to on-going efforts to reduce childhood morbidity and mortality to consider whether current care and outreach sufficiently address the distinct vulnerabilities of these children.